How are we all?
Things here are well. Mooching happily along, a public holiday tomorrow, so there`s a chance right there for some concerted thank-you card organising. Crikey.
Elope.
We are now proud owners of NZD1000 tickets to Fukuoka on the Bullet Train. Wooohooo!!! Strutting along at 300-odd kph for a few hours this coming Saturday. The erstwhile host family has been notified, the outrageously expensive tickets purchased, and the oooooh-fun-times-a-big-old-adventure feeling has been kicked into at least 2nd gear. It sure is going to be swell fun. A little odd though. I have thought about what it would be like to get on back there and see folk for the past 11 years, I have even dreamed of it a few times - usually with the soundtrack from that Tegal ad running in the background - "...the old hometown looked the same....as I stepped out from the train..."
Mmmmm The Grand Poulet....
I spent a year there as an impressionable 16 year old living in just a swell family, Mum (46), her boyfriend (23), a brother a year older than I and a sister I didn`t know existed until she walked through the door after I had arrived. Dad had been thrown out by the Mum (a Buddhist Minister, Aerobics instructor and Barmaid) 6 months before I arrived and the day before I got there the dog ran away and hasn`t been seen since. It was a fairly a-typical Japanese experience in many ways. It was one that taught me an awful lot and it will be super to be able to get back there and natter with them again, while also introducing Nic to some people that played quite a large role in "me".
Fukuoka is a pretty city too. Should be nice to see the sea. I`ll let you know how it comes along.
Tata.
Wednesday, April 28, 2004
Wednesday, April 21, 2004
Done and Done.
Yesterday, on my way home, I saw a guy walking his cat. On a leash. The cat looked veeeeeeeeery aaaaaaaangry. Things are back to normal here in Japan-Towne.
And what a busy time it was, what with the whole wedding shindig and all. Came off without a hitch don`t you know? Enormous amounts of thanks to those who came from far and wide to drink our beer and wine to excess and dance, dance, dance the night away. Your time in economy class and the taking of leave from hither and yon in order to join us has been noted and you will be mentioned in dispatches. Special mention goes to Mssrs Oliver Reeve and Flight Lef-tenant Jeremy Jones, who travelled from Old `Blighty, lover-ly to see you fellas again, Mr Jarrod Blaine Ward danced in from Kansas City, MO all the way over there in the USA; he even managed to enter the country without demanding a regime change, which I thought was nice. My big sis` Pru travelled seemingly for eternity from sunny Chile, Ma and Pa came in from New Hampshire, Kate Archbold took time out from slicing and dicing household pets in `Stralia to come on over and perform questionable acts with Kodak products (go get `em tiger). Suz the bridesmaid and Ashley also wandered over the ditch, as did Nics` cousin Kerry and sooper it was to see them, Tom, Kerryn and Arch, our NZ support crew here in the Japan also graced us with their presents (sic). Goodness Gracious. Just bunches of folk from all quarters came along and boy oh boy was it neat.
On a more sombre note, there were people that due to me screwing up alot failed to receive invites. I do apologise. Alot. You were missed.
On with the reflections.
Fast though. Fast. Fast.
"It`s your day" they say....Bollocks! My, My, My, and this has been confirmed scrupulously through (drunken) conversations with other married folk at the ceremony. The day goes by exceptionally fast. We estimate the entire day took about an hour and a half, give or take 8-10 seconds. Hellish-ly fun and very meaningful obviously, but crikey! Fast. Blurry.
My thanks go out to my "chaps" wedding party, a cast, seemingly, of thousands - Jon, Morgan, Arch, Paul and Darren, who, apart from Darren "Things To Do" Ede, whisked me away on the morning of the do to the Wellsford Golf Course, up there in the country side, for a nerve calming and nervous energy sapping round of golf replete with natters, catch-ups, good times and the odd fine putt. `Twas a joy.
Then, all of a bloody sudden there I was, with a screaming horde of nearest and dearest, waiting at some sort of alter for my Nic-O-La to make her grandiose entrance. Lo. What a gown! And the Bridesmaids! All of it whipped up by Nic, some here in Japan over the last 4-5 months and some the day before. Crikey.
Then it was into the ceremony - not the vows and such that we actually chose, it seems our little people are not as efficient as perhaps they could be - but still the sentiment was certainly there. And then it was done, off to Bastion Point for the photees (they look real perty), back for a nanoseconds mingling, in for the din-dins and speeches - special thanks to MC Paul Barron, as well as Morgan, Barry, Paw, Marg (thanks for the headlice story though, the more things change...), then it was more of the din-dins, up for the dancing and the shenanigans, here, there, around, then the lights started flashing and we were out.
Bloody Good Fun. Fast though. Fast.
Then it was off to Whangapoua for some good old fashioned sitting. My goodness. After all the shenanigans of organising, attending, catching up, confirming, re-confirming, meeting and all that palava (sp?) it certainly was grand to go there and sit. Juuuuuuuust sit. Oooooh the sitting. That was good. The sit. We had 5 days up there, then back to the Auckland for a few days then all of a sudden we were walking through the rice paddies to get home, a mere 23 hours after leaving Auckland, having taken 2 planes, 1 bus, 2 trains and finally saddling up Shanks` pony for the final burst.
Since then it has been many, many bursts of laughter of the fact that we are married and a slow return to some semblance of normalcy. Work has started again, the sun is shining, and life is good. We are off to Fukuoka on the Bullet Train in a couple of weeks to see my host family of 11 years ago. Looking forward to that immensely. I called them last night and the Grandma was the only one home. She asked who I was and I explained that 11 years ago I was the one who came and blah, blah, blah this was met by a wonderful bout of cackling and the explanation that she was 95 years old, couldn`t remember what happened last week so how could she possibly be expected to remember someone who came 11 years ago. It should be fun.
Our thanks to all involved in our super wedding day. You all helped make it one that, although particularly quick, will be remembered and talked about in hushed whispers for many moons to come.
Much love.
Berin and Nic (McKenzie)
And what a busy time it was, what with the whole wedding shindig and all. Came off without a hitch don`t you know? Enormous amounts of thanks to those who came from far and wide to drink our beer and wine to excess and dance, dance, dance the night away. Your time in economy class and the taking of leave from hither and yon in order to join us has been noted and you will be mentioned in dispatches. Special mention goes to Mssrs Oliver Reeve and Flight Lef-tenant Jeremy Jones, who travelled from Old `Blighty, lover-ly to see you fellas again, Mr Jarrod Blaine Ward danced in from Kansas City, MO all the way over there in the USA; he even managed to enter the country without demanding a regime change, which I thought was nice. My big sis` Pru travelled seemingly for eternity from sunny Chile, Ma and Pa came in from New Hampshire, Kate Archbold took time out from slicing and dicing household pets in `Stralia to come on over and perform questionable acts with Kodak products (go get `em tiger). Suz the bridesmaid and Ashley also wandered over the ditch, as did Nics` cousin Kerry and sooper it was to see them, Tom, Kerryn and Arch, our NZ support crew here in the Japan also graced us with their presents (sic). Goodness Gracious. Just bunches of folk from all quarters came along and boy oh boy was it neat.
On a more sombre note, there were people that due to me screwing up alot failed to receive invites. I do apologise. Alot. You were missed.
On with the reflections.
Fast though. Fast. Fast.
"It`s your day" they say....Bollocks! My, My, My, and this has been confirmed scrupulously through (drunken) conversations with other married folk at the ceremony. The day goes by exceptionally fast. We estimate the entire day took about an hour and a half, give or take 8-10 seconds. Hellish-ly fun and very meaningful obviously, but crikey! Fast. Blurry.
My thanks go out to my "chaps" wedding party, a cast, seemingly, of thousands - Jon, Morgan, Arch, Paul and Darren, who, apart from Darren "Things To Do" Ede, whisked me away on the morning of the do to the Wellsford Golf Course, up there in the country side, for a nerve calming and nervous energy sapping round of golf replete with natters, catch-ups, good times and the odd fine putt. `Twas a joy.
Then, all of a bloody sudden there I was, with a screaming horde of nearest and dearest, waiting at some sort of alter for my Nic-O-La to make her grandiose entrance. Lo. What a gown! And the Bridesmaids! All of it whipped up by Nic, some here in Japan over the last 4-5 months and some the day before. Crikey.
Then it was into the ceremony - not the vows and such that we actually chose, it seems our little people are not as efficient as perhaps they could be - but still the sentiment was certainly there. And then it was done, off to Bastion Point for the photees (they look real perty), back for a nanoseconds mingling, in for the din-dins and speeches - special thanks to MC Paul Barron, as well as Morgan, Barry, Paw, Marg (thanks for the headlice story though, the more things change...), then it was more of the din-dins, up for the dancing and the shenanigans, here, there, around, then the lights started flashing and we were out.
Bloody Good Fun. Fast though. Fast.
Then it was off to Whangapoua for some good old fashioned sitting. My goodness. After all the shenanigans of organising, attending, catching up, confirming, re-confirming, meeting and all that palava (sp?) it certainly was grand to go there and sit. Juuuuuuuust sit. Oooooh the sitting. That was good. The sit. We had 5 days up there, then back to the Auckland for a few days then all of a sudden we were walking through the rice paddies to get home, a mere 23 hours after leaving Auckland, having taken 2 planes, 1 bus, 2 trains and finally saddling up Shanks` pony for the final burst.
Since then it has been many, many bursts of laughter of the fact that we are married and a slow return to some semblance of normalcy. Work has started again, the sun is shining, and life is good. We are off to Fukuoka on the Bullet Train in a couple of weeks to see my host family of 11 years ago. Looking forward to that immensely. I called them last night and the Grandma was the only one home. She asked who I was and I explained that 11 years ago I was the one who came and blah, blah, blah this was met by a wonderful bout of cackling and the explanation that she was 95 years old, couldn`t remember what happened last week so how could she possibly be expected to remember someone who came 11 years ago. It should be fun.
Our thanks to all involved in our super wedding day. You all helped make it one that, although particularly quick, will be remembered and talked about in hushed whispers for many moons to come.
Much love.
Berin and Nic (McKenzie)
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