A 'lil taste

WHOA!!!!! It has been 1 forever unit of time since I've updated the blog and a lot has changed. 2011 brought a sad end to a great experience at Beta Pro Inc. and the final chapter to a coming of age story in Austin. My official age upon leaving Austin is 32 but the true value number is up to debate.

I'll spare the details of how/why/when/what/who regarding the move to New Zealand and start with feet down on Kiwi soil. I arrived on the 27th of July with my bike box, a 5600cubic inch duffel bag, a wheely bag, medium size suit case and a laptop carrier. I didn't pack light but it consisted of most all my possessions. The triathlon and mountain bike are packed and waiting at the parents house awaiting shipment.

Spent 10 days at a local Hostel (kiwi house) just east of the city center. During that time I updated some contacts regarding my new local status, sent out more job applications, rode my bike all over town and searched for flatmates. Flats are houses and flatmates are roommates. I visited 4-5 houses south of city center and met one creepy old lady before i stopped by the 8 Merlewood flat in the Cashmere neighborhood securely in the green undamaged section of town. I moved in shortly after with the 3 other british occupants. Kirsti and Lizzy are PhD students at the local Uni and James is a working professional. Each have been lovely and accommodating the new guy.

Employers and recruiters have been much more interested in me upon gaining a NZ address. To date I've been on 5 interviews and twice as many phone calls with prospective employers. Unfortunately my unique skill set doesn't have a market here in NZ so I've had to really force fit my prior design skills into an image which the employers will like. Generally I've gotten the response that they like me but want to continue searching for someone with more specific experience to their field (forestry, trailer design etc..). So the search continues but the fact people are bringing me in and talking to me keeps the hopes up.

Exercise. Been getting lots of it. Most of the inner city is a bit rubbish for running but a once you get a bit south of town the Port Hills open up with a myriad of trails and hills climbing to challenge anyone. My favorite Saturday run is to leave my house and climb Dyers Pass out to Summit road which results in a consistent 4% average grade over the 12-14km out. Similarly I've been riding my bike all over and a couple of times got in over my head by keeping on when I should have turned around. As long as you get home before dark and don't get hit by a car then its a good ride.

This coming week I will be traveling to Nelson to pickup a motorcycle I purchased from TradeMe (the ebay of NZ). It is a 2007 Suzuki V-Strom with 600miles. 6-0-0. I'll have to take a couple of cautions with buying a four year old bike which has mostly sat garaged the entire time but I feel that I snagged a killer deal. The only decision now is what to name her/him.

2007 Suzuki DL650 A-waiting

Some pictures from a recent ride.

A couple of photos from the kitchen window.