sparkie down under

Feb 2005.......What a holiday!

Tramping up an active volcano, white water rafting a 7m waterfall, caving, fly in/hike out trip, jet boating, kayaking, on and on goes the list. But back home and back in harness, NZ seemed a life time away.

The one thing we heard on the radio all the time whilst on holiday was how short of sparks they were, over and over, all the time.

So back home after a few conversations me and better half decided that we'd give NZ a go. We emigrate. Forms arrived and were duely filled in. Our age certainly went against us. As did our lack of funds. What we need was job offers. So just 4 months after we'd been here on holiday we were back looking for work and somewhere where we'd like to live.

We chose the North Island. More peeps and more chance of work. After driving up to Northland, where we could buy the most hugemongous house, but no work, we went to New Plymouth, that was a - er! NO!, down passed WangaVagas, where we found a nice place to live, but again no work.

By now I was starting to wonder if there was such a shortage of sparks how come I couldn't get a job offer.

Not wanting to be in a 'large' town or city, we skipped along the kapiti coast and then up the east coast towards Napier. Love Napier, hate the cost.

We headed inland and finally I had a offer of work in Reparoa. After that another in Taupo and then another in Taihape.

Taihape seemed to tick off many boxes. Heaps of tramping, the 'mountain', rivers and cheap housing. Better still the o/h was also offered a job as well, so the deal was done. 3 months after that we were here, and then our adventure truly started.

Having been self employed for 17 years having to work for someone was hard, really hard. Made even harder as my 'boss' was just about the dumbest spark I'd ever met, and the apprentice was a total 'stab you in the back' prick. Needless to say I never made employee of the month and we parted company.

What NZ does offer is the opportunity to break out from your 'normal' employment. I went for a job as an industrial spark, and ended up working in a large heavy engineering plant. That was something else. A vertical learning curve. Heaps of new stuff to learn and masses of new experience. I'd never be given that opportunity back home. Why would anyone take on someone with no experience. I was judged by attitude and ability and not on paper qualifications.

Whilst it was an interesting place to work it was also a very dangerous place. The Kiwi attitude also extends to working with 11,000v and I could see that sooner or later someone would be killed, and rather it was me Plus being self employed was always my thing, so I left this comfortable job for the uncertainty of working for myself.

Not being part of the bro network, worked against me and work was harder and harder to find. Being self employed in NZ, with a UK ethic doesn't work.

As owning land and working with animals has always been big on our list the o/h and I decided that we'd make the huge jump to getting a mortgage again and buy a farmlet.

After a short search we found 36 acres and a huge, ex-pub, of a home. So like the feet first jumpers we are we bought it! Then we decided that we'd like to run it as a pub also. (having such good memories of nice country pubs back home) So once again we made a career break and became publicians/farmers.

If I thought that the previous learning curve was steep then this was Everest.
But we rose to the challenge and soon we were the place to come for a meal and several beers, and it that several beers that started to get to us. We were experiencing the Kiwi drink culture first hand

For me it was the listening to the same old bullshit, day in day out that got to me. For the o/h it was seeing people spend all their wages on drink that got to her. It's a shame that we couldn't divorce ourselves from our feeling as we were making dam good money. But we couldn't, so we called it a day and shut the door for good.

And that was a shame, as the profit that we were making was subsidizing our farming efforts. With no other source of incoming other than farming we soon realised that we were on the path to ruin.

I sold my pig breading programme, lock stock and barrel, and two days later I had an offer from an live importer in Japan who wanted me to sign up to a two year contract to take everything I produced. I would have been the only live exporter of pigs in NZ. (and I'd just sold them)

And that is our luck in farming. We got into highland cattle when the market was high and sold them when the market colasped. We bought a 1000 trees and they all died in the longest drought in living memory!

I love farming, I love working with animals, they are a challenge every day. I respect them for what they are. I hate people coming here and patting them like they are some overgrown pet. They provide us with most of our meat and whilst they are alive I think it's my duty to ensure they have the best life possible. To this end we struggle. My neighbors look at their animals in a totally different light. They call them stock units, and once they are either too expensive to keep, or reach the correct weight, then they are sold. Who's the best farmer? Well they make money, I don't. You choose.

I managed to subsidise my farming efforts by going back to my trade, picking up work here and there, but as we all know the worlds bankers gave to us large and the first trade is suffer in any downturn is the building trade.

What we were doing was drowning slowly. Yes we were making money, but not enough. Just then my o/h checked out her old employers web site. There was a job there that she wasn't too qualified for, but she loved the sound of. "well if you don't apply you'll sure not get it" I told her. Long story short. She wasn't the preferred candiate but they loved her and now she's 2IC in her division. Over worked and underpaid if you ask me, but she is loving it and like me before she says that she'd never have even been let in the building in the UK, let alone given an interview.

That was 9 months ago. 2 months ago, I saw a job that I'd love. The o/h said to me what I said to her and I made my application, thinking I'd never get an interview - guess what - I did, and guess what, even though I didn't have all the things they were looking for they offered me the post.

So both of us are now in posts that we'd never, ever have had in the UK. Sadly though it means an end to the farming dream and we are in the process of trying to find a buyer for our farmlet (please please buy it). We are moving on to yet another phase of our lives.

So what has NZ done for us.
It's taken us to places we'd never have been in our careers, in our pot of experiences and allowed us to do things that we'd never have been able to afford back home.

But at what cost? Friends and Family. miss them every day, as I do being in Wales; understanding the culture and feeling I belong. I certainly don't belong here and I'll never understand the kiwi way.

But the real question, would I do it again????? Hummmmm let me see

scrubbedexpat094

You've certainly been through the mill but I'm so pleased that it's all coming together for you both.

I agree with your sentiments about belonging & the Kiwi way. I feel much the same. I don't regret coming here at all though but my heart will always be in England.

Thanks for sharing chuck.

Miss Nic

What a great post!
You guys seem to have taken every opportunity thrown your way and grabbed it with both hands.

Again, agree re the feeling of not 'belonging'. I haven't been here too long but I do wonder if I'll ever feel like less of a visitor.

Best of luck with the next chapter.

love30stm

Agree but i dont really care about 'belonging' i have great british friends here and ive long ago accepted that im never going to be best friends with a kiwi
who knows what the future holds especially with the quakes at the moment but for now im content

Miss Nic

Funny that the majority of my friends are British too, guess we just flock together. I do have a few Kiwi friends but yeah, probably never be the closest!

BEVS

Mate ! That is one first class update. Should be a contender for post of the year 2012.

Soz about the pigs though & having to let your farmlet go ,as I do think it's a talent and gift to have a feel for something like that & do it well.

love30stm

Yeah and we get each other too I know a few kiwi people but I wouldnt call them close and some have been and gone

waikatoguy

Wow, you've certainly had an adventure. Thanks for sharing it.

love30stm

Why cant i view your blog????

Bo-Jangles

Well done you for sticking with it.

I think we should get long service medals or something, after ten years you get ten days all expenses paid off the island.

cappuccino

Top post Sparkie - it's great to hear the good, bad and ugly realities of life here and know that people can still smile and make the best of what life has to offer. Here's to the next 7 years of NZ serendipity

jemima55

Hi! I`m in the UK, not NZ, but I just wanted to say what a fantastic post. It would make a good book or film. You two win an award for being enterprising, unafraid, and learning from all your experiences. I`d vote for it as post of the year, too!

RobDon

Thanks for sharing.

scrubbedexpat094

Great minds

sparkie down under

Thanks guys for the nice comments, and yes it has been a roller coaster.

I love the idea of a film. Obviously Jack Nickleson wold have to play me, and Meryl streep play the better half