Carols by candle light
It’s now Thursday December 21, 2023. Kia ora!
Last Sunday morning I went to church. We were due to drive to Hawkes Bay later that day; JD drove me there and picked me up afterwards. I had already packed, of course, and worked out what clothes to take; our son from the UK and his wife were going to drive there separately. I worried about holding JD up, but of course he hadn’t had a shower, or packed, and was working on writing a paper that had to be done that morning. I got a message from my son to say they were having lunch in Shannon, and we had not even left Wellington.
Eventually we got away a few minutes before 2 pm, which leaves the awkward question of where to stop for lunch, i.e. what will still be open. The expressway goes past Otaki now, so we can’t stop at the lovely café there for something to eat; the cafés in Woodville were likely to close before we got there. So we stopped at Shannon, and shared salad sandwiches and had rather strange oat milk lattés. Sometimes it’s better to have a “long black”.
We made good progress – there was little traffic on the road, no big trucks, and it’s being Sunday, very few roadworks. We were happy to turn off to Havelock North and not go through Hastings or Napier. It’s a different climate up there! When we got there, I changed and we walked to a nearby bistro to have dinner – a smoked salmon salad, and affogato.
The next morning we picked up my daughter from her workshop (Rongo) at Hōhepa’s Clive site. It was pretty hot, so we were glad of the breeze. Then we went to lunch at Birdwood’s Café just out of Havelock North. What a lovely place it is! Service was efficient, and the food was delicious, with special mention for the smoked salmon quiche, and the rhubarb caramel layer cake. It’s nice to walk around and admire the ducks, too.
We gave our daughter her birthday presents, which I think went down all right: a beautiful embroidered jacket, an apron, and a lovely book with short stories and nice pictures. I would have given her a spa bath, but the spa was not working at our otherwise lovely motel, alas, and I had no bath salts. That evening we had dinner at the Thirsty Whale in Ahuriri, where the affogato is truly amazing: ice cream in a tall crystal glass, with a small espresso coffee and a glass of Kahlua on the side.
The next day, our son and his wife drove back to Wellington, but JD and I had an extra day, with two meetings, and a visit to the shop at Hōhepa Clive, where amongst other things I bought another Weleda deodorant and some Danbo cheese. Each morning in Havelock North I was able to buy a copy of The Post at Paper Plus, a very nice store a few minutes’ walk away from our motel. What a lovely place Havelock North is! It can be really hard to get the Post; and in Havelock North, whenever you approach crossing a road, cars stop for you. Mind you, the roading is complicated, with an island in the middle, and paved areas around it, which are not specifically for pedestrians. There are lots of beautiful clothes shops too.
On Tuesday morning we had coffee with the new House Manager for the house where our daughter lives, and the cluster manager. This was in a relatively new café (St Martha) in a more industrialised area where I had not been before. They didn’t have cheese scones, which was probably fortunate! Then we drove to Poraiti to have a meeting with the Hōhepa Hawkes Bay manager at Hōhepa School.
After that, we had lunch at Adoro Café where I had a mini-doughnut. That evening we took our daughter to the Lone Star restaurant in Napier (she calls it “The Star”). It’s not one of my favourites, but it has plenty of room, a unisex disability bathroom, and drawing things. The servings are huge, but JD and I lucked into sharing a main course (which was delicious, and fortunately we wanted the same thing), and a dessert.
On Wednesday morning we drove back to Wellington. It was hot in Hawkes Bay, and quite humid, although it rained on Monday evening! The weather seemed to alternate between being fine and sunny and overcast (but still hot). We decided we will come back to Hawkes Bay in February.
JD had decided we were in a rush; accordingly, he thought we could eat at MacDonalds’ in Dannevirke, but we were there by 10:20 am and it was much too early for lunch. Accordingly we had lunch (again) at – you’ve guessed it, Shannon.
Back in Wellington, our son was minding his nephew, but he hadn’t had lunch, so we walked up the road to Simmer Café. It’s amazing what you find you can do for your family!
While it’s quite nice to be back, it’s a lot cooler, and for some reason I didn’t sleep well last night. I slept remarkably well on our last night in Havelock North.
It’s now Saturday December 23rd.
Christmas Day is not until Monday. That feels really strange, somehow. I am confused about what day it is! Yesterday a cleaning lady came from Access; we also had two grandchildren here for a time. Then in the afternoon, after they’d all gone, we went shopping – to New World, in Thorndon, of course! It wasn’t crazy busy. I think I got almost everything on my list.
Last Christmas Day we had a lovely picnic. However the weather looks very dicey this year, with an overcast sky and showers likely, so we will have the family that are in Wellington here – eight, in all. Our sons are bringing things, so I really don’t have to do much except set the table (and decorate it), peel the potatoes, make a salad, and not drop anything. Oh, and get JD to be helpful, especially with carrying things to and from the table. Oh, and clearing it first – not leaving it to the last minute.
On Christmas Eve there is to be a candle-lit carol service at 11:15 pm (I think!), and a service on Christmas Day at 9:30 am. The family are coming in the afternoon (one couple is going to have lunch with her parents), so I should have plenty of time to get ready. It’s a long time since we had a Christmas meal at our house. Thankfully we were able to get lots of lovely summer fruit yesterday when we went shopping. I have also got out long us-used jugs and cutlery, and even cleaned some of the silver. That felt very Downton Abbey-like (from a servant’s perspective, of course)!
In Prague, there’s been a shooting at a university, with 15 dead; In China, there’s been an earthquake, with about 100 dead, last time I looked; in China, they’re still suffering from a respiratory illness. Meanwhile, what’s being called a fifth wave of Covid, with a new variant, is doing the rounds. It’s not as severe as the delta or omicron waves, but is more infectious. So that is casting a bit of a blight on everything. There’s a tummy bug going around, too. Nevertheless, we are fortunate here, compared with those in the troubled Middle East, where it seems 20,000 have been killed in Gaza thus far. The IDF told people to evacuate, but they’re not safe, despite leaving their homes. Where are they to go? Israel seems to have no intention of stopping any time soon, and their attack has been particularly strong in terms of bombardments. And success looks like – what, exactly?
It’s now Sunday 24 December, Christmas Eve.
This morning I went to church in Johnsonville. It is drizzly and overcast, but very warm and humid. The church I usually attend was not having a service this morning, and it now feels weird not to go to church on Sunday morning, so I went, although there is to be a candle-lit carol service tonight, and a service at 9:30 am tomorrow (Christmas Day) morning, so it’ll be a busy time. I have told JD I want to set the table today, so he’ll have to clear his things off it, and not at the last minute, either.
After church I caught a bus home, and found JD putting away the photos he’d got out yesterday (thank goodness). Then we went up to Simmer Café and shared a pizza. We also had oat milk lattés in takeaway cups, since they were closing soon! It was busy, though. I’m sure those guys deserve a break.
Afterwards we went shopping for last minute stuff: plums, bread, peas in the pod, and flowers! They’re outrageously expensive, but then as I assured JD we’re not driving away or buying petrol, or buying stuff for our hosts. Buying flowers for decoration, and for the table, somehow doesn’t feel so expensive now. Then we found a grog shop that was open on Sunday (!), and bought whisky, rum and brandy (to flame the Christmas pudding), and a bottle of Kahlua (so we can have affogato at home). There didn’t seem to be any miniatures.
This afternoon I am resting, listening to a rather nice recording of Handel’s Messiah, before we go to our carol service tonight.
Turning now to US politics, the Supreme Court in Colorado has made waves by ruling that Trump is ineligible to be on the ballot for the 2024 presidential election, in terms of Amendment 14 of the Constitution. Well, you’d think that settled it, but of course Trump is furious, and has referred the decision to the US Supreme Court, and published the names, addresses and phone numbers of the members of the Colorado Supreme Court. Meanwhile, the Court has indicated that it won’t rule on whether Trump’s executive privilege renders him immune from Jack Smith’s election interference case. I would have thought it was clear that he is ineligible to be president again, as Judge Michael Luttig and retired law professor Laurence Tribe have argued most eloquently, but of course Americans have complicated the issue, with many (white people) believing it would be undemocratic to rule Trump ineligible (by the way, he is surely ineligible in terms of the much-revered constitution!) In Texas, they’re threatening to take Joe Biden off the ballot. Once again, it’s coloured legal experts like the amazing Sherrilyn Ifill who see this most clearly. Once again, the American people are being offered an off-ramp, and refusing to take it. I find it unbelievable, really, firstly, that Trump has such widespread support, and secondly that he seems to be very much in the race to become president again.
But now is the season of glad tidings, of great joy, and we are fortunate to be here. Mere Kirihimite! Slava Ukraini! Ngā mihi nui.
Classic Barbarian 