 |
All in all, this week = crap + good/2Posted on Friday 28 September 2007 at 11:11 - Post Comment
Carrying on from the previous post, we have: crocked car, late police checks, broken ceiling, tupperware bill, and just to add to that we now have a late electric bill which I was sure I'd paid but it seems that we haven't. So, what progress on these issues then?
First off - the car. You would not believe it if it wasn't true, I promise you! Following it failing the WOF, we decided to press on and get it through the WOF to then sell it on. 1st step: Windscreen. $260 later and job done. Next: engine smoke & rear light: T goes to shop and buys new plugs, air and fuel filter ($50). Gets in car - it won't idle. She gets bus home, and I then drive home in the company car and we go down to rescue it. A bit of fiddling and I get it running well enough to get it home, and then put the new plugs etc in it. Only now it runs like a complete pile of poo, and is not at all well. By now I've had enough so we leave it to sulk until the morning.
Come Thursday morning it seems absolutely fine. I run it around the block - still fine. 'Result!' thinks I. Oh no - not at all! T takes it to the WOF place but within 4 roads it breaks down again - so I am back out to nurse it to a mechanic. 2 hours later he says it was a carb prob and is now sorted. ($65) T picks it up and it is running great - the best it ever has - hoorah!
So, Friday morning it sails through the WOF ($46) and we celebrate! 2 hours later, T is pulling into our road and it breaks down completely - and this time it is terminal as it won't start at all and to me it sounds as if the gearbox or something has completely given up. So, in total that's $400 pissed up the wall. Maybe we can give the car to Tuppeware with the receipts?
The house in the UK is gonna cost over 600 quid to see right (less than I first thought to be honest, but still more than I want to pay of course!), we have no news from the plastic rip off clan re the $400, and I do have to pay for the electric as it seems that I missed the previous bill. Ah well, it's only money, right?
So, on to the good side of lift. First off, you may recall our Rolleston based mates Gary & Justine. Well on the day of the car drama, they had a party around theirs as a kind of house warming. Although we'd arranged to go we were not in the best of moods come that evening, however Mark (& G who we'd invited, only G couldn't make it) said he'd drive and it may cheer us up. 'OK' sys us and off we go. Lots of beer, fun, frolics and chat later we get to the 'So, how's it going with you?' question, at which point T and I spill our guts to Gary. Being the splendid chap that he is, he assures us that all will sort itself out (which it will I'm sure) and then goes the extra mile and offers us the loan of his car for a few weeks till we either sort out the Shit Box's problem, or get rid of it and buy something new. Now, how nice is that?! Gary and Justine continue to amaze us with their generosity, and by association the general attitude of Kiwi's in general. A great big 'THANK YOU!' goes out to them both, from the pair of us. Thanks to them we are now poncing around in a 3 litre, 5 cylinder Honda - cruise control and all. Nice!
Ok - enough about cars, what about the police check situation? Well - good news there too! Courtesy of a Private Message from Kev&Sarah of this parish, we are now aware that the original police checks we had done for Jan of this year are still valid! Now, call us stupid, but we (for some reason!) thought that they were only valid for 3 months. This means that all we need are the medicals done, and then we can apply! Well, all things really DO happen for a reason, and of course all this sh*t has gone down whilst T is on her school hols. Not ideal, but imagine if she'd not been around to sort car WOF's and the like out?! Anyway, as she was free we went and did the medicals last Thursday. These entailed a bunch of questions, a chest x-ray, a piss-test, and a blood test. So, only a follow up check to go on Tuesday and all being well (fingers crossed yet again!) we should have them done. We've just got to attach them to our visa application info, add the police checks and some info from my employer, and then we chuck it in to immigration.
Now THAT is good news!!!
Yet more good news is that the vendor of the house has confirmed that our completion date will be October 15th, so we WILL be in before mum and dad get here which is fantastic. We're also going to have a house warming party too which will be WICKED - especially as it will have a Halloween theme.
In other news, today sees the clocks going forwards so we are now 12 hours ahead of the UK (if my maths is even slightly correct). Guys back home, expect some odd timed calls until we get used to it!
Just to add to this time-skipping fun, T & G had their first foray into the world of stall-holderism at the 'Riccarton Sunday Market'. This involved 5.30 alarm call (4.30 in old money!!!) and then a drive out to Riccarton for a 7am arrival. Mark and I went along too to help set up and be there as a support crew. They have bought a really good gazebo off Trade Me which we got set up with no worries, and I left them at 8am just as the first customers started wandering through.
Why would I do the dirty and leave them? Well, I had arranged to had off to Ruapuna Raceway to be a bike race marshall for the morning. I had found out about it through the Kiwibiker.co.nz forum, and seeing as I have some UK bike racing experience I volunteered to help out. It was a great morning, and VERY different to the race meets I've attended in the UK! In the UK club I was with, riders were told what would happen, given briefing notes and run to a very strict timetable. Here in NZ, it was a real 'Belt & Braces' approach to racing, with riders choosing how they want the races to start - split grids with a delay start, or fast-first, slowest-behind. Slightly different I must say! Anyway, I had a great time, and it was so good to be a part of the racing scene here in NZ. In short, I loved it.
That all finished at midday, and then I was back to the market to see how the girls were doing. I am sad to say that it was not fantastic news, as no sales were made all day. More interest in commissions though, so they will give it a good few more goes with a lot more variety of pictures to make sure that they are giving it their best shot. Every time they display stuff it means that more is learnt, and I reckon that with some more effective display devices then sales are a cert next week. More finger crossing please!
Finally, another good thing has happened to me, in that I have discovered 'riggers'. What are riggers, I hear you cry? Well, they are 2 litre plastic bottles that the local brewery - Harringtons - fill with beer for $5.40. And that, my friends, is a beery bargain! That's 2000ml for $5.40, when I am used to buying 2280ml (6 x 375ml bottles of Carlton Cold) for $10. Supply your own bottles, and away you go. I am currently sampling their lager, with a rigger of bitter sitting waiting for me in the fridge. Sweet!
Ain't it great? 6.40pm, still light outside and the fire in here remains well and truly off. Watch out summer, here we come!
|
|
