The Legend of Mount Taranaki

Found this cool little movie about the legend of Mt. Taranaki. "Our" mountain which has dominated our lives for the past year.  We will miss him.

Titletown, New Zealand.

In the centre of the rugby universe we have been swept up by the excitement surrounding the 2011 Rugby World Cup, hosted by New Zealand and finishing as it should be with a New Zealand victory! Their first Rugby World Cup Championship since the inaugural World Cup in 1987. The legendary All Blacks, think Canadiens or Yankees or Celtics, the winningest rugby team in history but time and time again denied the Webb Ellis Cup since 1987. The pressure was akin to the pressure over the Red Sox now the Cubs as they tried to get the monkey off their backs. They dominate world rugby but choke when it comes to the Cup. Not this year, the Boys in Black gutted out multiple injuries to their top players and outlasted the pesky French in the final by a score of 8 to 7.

Eli at the Wellington FanZone RWC 2011 Finals All Blacks v France

We were on our holidays and trying to return to Opunake in time for the final but due to a delayed ferry, we decided to stay in the capital, Wellington, to watch it. It was pretty exciting watching the final in a "Fanzone" with thousands of other Kiwis. The excitement and anticipation prior to the game degenerating into silence and tension as the game was far too close to enjoy until the final seconds ticked off. The echoes of Al Michaels' legendary call of the final seconds of the USA vs USSR 1980 hockey epic in my mind, "Do you believe in miracles!?...Yes!"

Locally, our region, Taranaki also got in on the "hardware" as they brought home the provincial title having scored the Ranfurly Shield at the end of the season. This was highlighted by their defense of the Shield during their final home game. The Shield made a dramatic entry via helicopter to open the match.

Henrik, Shelley, Logan and Izaak entering Stadium Taranaki .

Ranfurly Shield Defense

Ready for USA v Ireland

These colors don't run!

Nuff said

Stars and Stripes down under

Irish bodysuits, they're fannnntastic! Or something...

USA v Russia

Yeah!

Lastly, though not in rugby, Eli's Kaponga Soccer Club U-15 Team took home the Title for the first time and received their trophy and medals in an awards ceremony in the basement of Peggy Gordon's, New Plymouth's Irish Pub. Ya gotta love it!

Kaponga U-15 Soccer

U-15 Soccer Prizegiving

Unexpected seal encounters.

Over our ten months here we have seen our fair share of seals, up close and personal.  Only once were we actually looking for them.  The pups are darn cute, and the mammas and pappas rather intimidating when you accidently come upon them.

Hike to Red Rocks in Wellington, totally worth it!

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A little too close for comfort.  We didn't notice him when we hiked up a rock on Waverly Beach.  Interrupted his nap

A Day In The Life-Peter

A day in the life...I usually get up around 0645 ish and head out for a run/walk with Shelley for about 45-60 minutes typically I do the Opunake coastal walkway as it affords great views of foreshore, the mountain and of course, cows. Occasionally I will head up the Ihaia Rd if I want a change of pace.

 I arrive home and cool down for a bit, making myself a cuppa and helping the kids off to school but at a pretty leisurely pace as I do not have to be at work until a little before 0900 and they usually don't leave for school until 0830.

My commute is a rough one, a gut wrenching 5 minute walk into town. Talk about road rage, there is nothing worse than having to wave at people walking or driving by...sheesh!

I start my day and see patients from 9:00 AM until 5:00 PM. Calling them in from the lobby and into my lone office/exam room. I take their vital signs and listen to their needs. On site phlebotomy is performed by the nurses. A small general purpose procedure and urgent care room gives us space to perform most office based procedures. The visits are straight forward and to the point. A quick review of anything which may be due in addition to their presenting issues, then write my notes and on to the next one.

Lunchtime! I may brown bag it or return home for lunch, however now that my 'partner', Ken Taylor, has returned to San Diego via Bali, I am a bit busier so I am returning home less often. I see more patients from 1:00 PM until 4-4:30 PM. I tidy up my notes, review the inbox and am usually home by 5-5:30 PM with little to no work hanging over my head.

The medicine here is very similar to back home in terms of rural healthcare. I have said many times it is as though I took my practice from Wilmington and plopped it down under. Scheduled patients occasionally punctuated by some urgencies/emergencies. By virtue of our geography as well as the 'system' we try to take care of the majority of the problems which walk in thru the door. I find the patients pleasant, hard working, tough and hungry for regular consistent healthcare. The fact I am actually staying for a year is a welcome surprise to them. Honestly, if I was in a different place in my career, not so rooted to our home in Vermont and were not a half a world away from family and friends, I would be sorely tempted to stay as I sense the need is great.

I am blessed to work alongside a very dedicated and skilled staff. They work hard but love a good laugh and always have time for tea. They have helped make the transition a smooth and painless one. Even the patients respect the idea that we have needs and are quite accommodating.

Afterwork varies depending on the day of the week; Mondays Eli will have an Opunake Senior A Basketball Game and/or Izaak will have his Opunake Dragonballers games. Tuesdays I try to make it to Logan's basketball games; Thursdays I take Eli to his Kaponga U-15 soccer team practice; and Fridays I am off to see Eli's Opunake Basketball League games.

Home for dinner then, surprisingly enough, a little TV, as we did opt to get the NZ "freeview channels". We often watch a show or two. Afterwards we will end the evening with a game of cards or some reading time. As it has gotten quite chilly here we often have the kids bring in wood from the shed for a roaring fire. We do not have heat per se just a wood stove in living room, a gas stove in the den/kitchen and a hallway space heater. The kiwi way is to take hot water bottles to bed to get you a bit warm and cozy. The mornings are quite chilly and the air is damp so it is a down to the bone chill. The actual temp is around 0-10 degrees celsius usually. Highs up to 15 degrees.

On the weekends; Saturday we are trying to keep 3 boys on the move and not forget anyone; Izaak has his rugby games; Logan his soccer games and Eli has his Kaponga U-15 soccer team matches in the mornings and his Kaponga Men's Senior League games in the early afternoons. Afterwards if the weather cooperates I will take the kids to the beach at Kina Rd for some fun while I fish for dinner. We usually eat something I catch about once a week.

Sundays are generally a day to do something as a family and we try to do something outdoors or perhaps a little more afield. Trying to balance the 'we here in New Zealand and need to do (touristy) stuff' with the 'we live in Opunake and have friends we want to see and do things with.' It is not as if we go to Boston, NYC or Walt Disney World every weekend when we are at home in Wilmington.

Special family time a.k.a. 'forced family fun.'

Shelley and I wondered about how our family would be affected by this trip. We wondered if the kids would be able to adjust to a new life. Well, here we are at the halfway point and the kids, after a sluggish start have come right. An unintended consequence of our journey has been the time we have had to just "be" with one another. I am not sure what is so different as we are increasingly busy here with friends and school and sports just like at home but I guess because we are the "only ones here" and have a little bit of a "we are all in it together" mentality I see a more open and obvious closeness now. I smile as I watch my sons interact with one another. We look forward to watching a TV show together or playing a game of "Hearts". There are giggles and laughter between a 15, 11 and 8 year old. I am reminded of those nature shows where the great apes are grooming each other as my kids pick through Shelley's hair looking for nits (yes we all got lice except for me! a silver lining to having a shaved head). Eli, the teenager, actually seems to enjoy his family. Of course if asked, he would rather be off with his friends doing other things but being stuck here with us he has embraced this rather than being moody and sulking about it. We spend days at the beach, building forts, collecting bones and fishing for kahawai.

Maybe its not them, maybe its me, me having the time to reflect on these moments as they happen, realizing they will be short lived, and soon relegated to imperfect memories. It has been really really nice to have this time together, I wonder what it will all look and feel like years from now when we think about our time here....