Been there, done that...

This is an autographed programme.......

This is a Martian Fighting Machine............







This is one very contented old Cat..

As you may have guessed, I have just gotten home from the New Zealand premier of the stage show of Jeff Waynes War of the Worlds, courtesy of some birthday subterfuge between Herself & Tish. I thought that I would try to put down some impressions while the show was fresh in my mind, but where do you start ? The show was such a visual & audio feast, that one would just about have to see it twice to take in everything. It was utterly monumental. Jeff is like the Energiser Bunny with his conducting. He doesn't stop. Justin Hayward showed us that he still has the testosterone levels needed to sing his part, & Chris Thompson, though his actual involvement was fairly small, still managed to get tears flowing unashamedly down my cheeks with his from the heart rendition of " Thunderchild." I will admit to getting a touch moist round the lachrymals even when I hear it on vinyl, but that was awesome.

The new artists had big boots to fill. I mean the names David Essex, Phil Lynnott & Julie Covington surely are names to fill any up & coming young artists heart with fear, but The three young Australians, Rachel Beck, ( Nathaniel the Persons wife, Beck,) Michael Falzon,( The Artillery Man,) & Shannon Noll, ( Nathaniel) Did so with impressive ease, Giving their roles the power & the passion needed.

A plug for local muso's here now. We talked afterwards to a couple of the orchestra after the show & they are all local artists. They did us proud they did. Very accomplished. Integrated effortlessly & well with the band "Black Smoke" that came out with the show. Speaking of Black Smoke, I have just been reading the bio's on them in the programme. What an impressive lineup. It even includes the original bass player from the album. A who's who on the band would be worthy of a second, & fairly lengthy post on its own, but I won't.

The only slight negative I found was that I thought that Richard Burton's animated head appearing to one side of the stage a little distracting. I gave up looking at in the end because One tends to miss whats happening elsewhere . And there was a lot. Maybe just the voice over with no visuals would have worked better.

The Fighting Machine ? Even though we were close enough to see the ropes & chains that operated it & to hear the winches working, it was still stunning. Full marks to the build team. Oh & a huge plug to the sound & light boys at the back. What an amazing job, & no hiccups in the system at all. Once again, a top show at a top venue...

Now I can genuinely say, " Been there, done that, read the book , seen the movie, got the teeshirt AND the coffee cup to prove it... See?

I've run out of words.....

Yep, the old fellow verbose as he is has actually run out of superlatives to describe the Steely Dan Heavy Rollers Concert he went to last night.... What an awesome show. Right from the warm up act of World Party, whom I must admit I actually hadn't heard of prior to this show. Dunno why , cos they rock. Excellent set by them that finished almost too soon.

That was the entree, then the main course... What a main course. Fagan & Becker served on a bed of beautifully seasoned musicians with a side sauce of two rather delectable little female backup vocalists, who like the rest of the group were very polished at what they did. They sang pretty well too.

Donald Fagan, who looks as though he wouldn't be out of place singing "You've got to pick a pocket or two" in Oliver is an absolutely dynamic personality on stage. Mostly seated behind his keyboards, but occasionally venturing forth with his trusty Melodica, (Remember those ? ) Walter Becker just stood to one side playing some blinding Guitar solo's, content to let his musical partner of some 40 years take the limelight.

Steely Dan have never played in New Zealand before last night, & I think that those performing were determined to give of their best. As was the audience. We responded by singing their songs back at them & bringing the house down with applause. Thats when we weren't up dancing of course. The tekkie's actually brought the house lights up on several occasions so that the boys could see what a damn good time we were all having. If I never go to another concert again, this one would be a good one to go out on.

We actually bought earplugs, as our seats were 5 rows from the front, but they were unneeded. Even with banks of speakers across the front of the stage, the volume level was comfortable. Loud, sure , but comfortable. Effects wise, it was a no frills, Pam's Budget sort of concert. basically just a few banks of coloured lights & the odd bit of smoke, both used to very good effect. We didn't go there for frills anyway. We went to see one of the best show bands in the world. That we got. The only disappointment for me personally was that they didn't play my alltime favourite. Black Jack.. God I love that song. They , however , are probably sick of it.

This by the way, is my eldest grandson, with his gappy teeth. Damn but that boy is growing up. Its absolutely nothing to do with the concert, but I just wanted to show him off...


Ain't he cute ????

A lovely (Sur)prize..

We went down to Te Puru for the AGM & prize giving for the fishing club today. Richard & Hami came as well... You remember Hami, with his 2.8 kg Kahawai that he caught. Here. Well. he was awarded a trophy for it today.. Here he is with it. We had his Dad bring him along to the meeting. Hami had no idea he was going to get it.. We celebrated by going out fishing, it was such a nice day.. Mind you, we did that yesterday as well.. We had a good weekend.

Do you know the piano's on my foot ?

This afternoon when I got back from Tauranga, I was sent out in the old Ford, the one with half a broom stick stuck in a meat grinder for a gear box with three deliveries requiring a fork lift for delivery. Daniel followed me on the forkhoist as we went round delivering to unload. I have known Daniel since he was a very angry 8 year old, now I work with him... How time flys. Anyway, one of the deliveries was to a new shop in town called "Sun & Moon" The recipient was a very voluble little Asian in a white hat. After I got home, I got changed & herself & me went out for tea to our favourite restaurant, De Luca's. After the usual beautiful meal, we still had enough room for dessert, so I had this..... Chocolate Fettucine with raspberrys & cream.


Now, I'm not saying that I would actually commit murder for this dessert. Grievous bodily harm, certainly, & perjury , yes, & probably a couple of other "Thou shalt nots"as well. Damn, but it was nice. Well, after that we went for a wander & happened to walk past the Sun & Moon, so I regaled herself with the story of the Piano in full 3 part harmony & the 8X10 colour glossy photographs, while we peered through the window at a wonderland of Oriental treasure, the center piece in the window being an exquisitely crafted wooden bath for two.

As we stood & gazed, the said little Oriental came & opened the front door & invited us in for a preview. Gone was the voluble & excited little man that received his daughters piano that afternoon. Instead we were treated to an amazing lesson in history & philosophy & religion by a gentle, earnest Taiwanese Gentleman. The pieces he has on show are exquisite. A lot of them are copied from artifacts on display at the Taipei National Museum. This place, something that I already knew, has an absolutely priceless collection removed from Mainland China in the face of the ravening hordes of Communism. The furniture that he has for sale is the sort of furniture that just invites you to run your hand over it & he is more than happy to let you do so. There is even an area at the back with a comfortable lounge suite where you can sit quietly & wonder what to buy while he makes & serves you tea. Not that we were invited to buy. "You can come in and look, but not for sale till next Thursday."

He has moved down here from Half Moon Bay in Auckland. "Why have half a moon up there when you can have the full one down here?" His name translates to James Sun & Moon, a name implying a bright personality, which he certainly is. I learned a lot tonight about things like the different incarnations of Buddha & the different 'isms in Chinese religion. I learned that he was familiar with the analogy of the blind men & the elephant.. Here if you don't know about it.. We had a wonderful time, interrupted only by our daughter ,who is in the throes of buying a house, ringing Herself on the mobile wanting to know, "Where the bloody hell are you ?" Jeesh, anyone would think we weren't allowed out without a keeper.

Anyway, we had a lovely evening all told, which hopefully will segue (isn't that a neat word) once again here into a great weekend. The haul out winch is repaired on my boat trailer, the scallops & the snapper are in the water waiting & we are ready to rock. Now is time to retire & digest, both physically & spiritually I think. Both body & soul have been well nurtured tonight.. Bless you all....

On a Clear Day....

This is the view from the deck of my truck at a building site I was at today. The little bump that you see on the horizon is Mt Maunganui. At the other end of the vista, you can see Mayor Island. It is absolutely stunning. No wonder someone wants to live there, but what a bastard of a place to take an 8 wheel 11.25 tonne truck. Its 8.5 km off the main road heading towards the Kaimai Ranges from a little township called Aongatete, whose main claim to fame is a massive Kiwi Fruit packing complex. About half the road is a metal surface, & the final track up to the building site is first gear material with about 20cm clearance either side & a sloping paddock to turn round in. Its lucky that my truck has a 4 wheel drive option for the two rear axles. I needed it to get in & out of there.

My Back Pages

As you are probably aware by now, I turned 57 last weekend. Not a particularly significant milestone as far as birthdays go but still. If the Gummint hadn't moved the finish line, I would only be three years away from retirement. As it is , I'm still 8 away... (sigh) I don't actually feel old. I don't feel wise as I thought that I would. I still sort of feel like a little boy lost still . I have always felt the need of an older sibling that I can refer & defer to. Ok, I have my big sister, but she is mentally disadvantaged, and my Mum has totally lost the plot with senile dementia. I don't even go see her as much as I should these days because it fucking well hurts too much.

I don't think my life is a waste or a failure though. In my years, I have seen & done an awful lot of things, & my birthday has occasioned me to ponder on some of them. I think that there are some pretty cool things in there, & some sad ones too & I would like to share a few of them with you.

As a teenager, I played in a band, & later when I discovered folk music I used to play solo at a local coffee club. Music wise, I have been professionally recorded & played on our local radio station. OK, it was only a commercial promoting one end of town, but still... I also recorded the same bit of music for a TV programme about Thames, but it couldn't be included due to copyright problems. I have however been on TV in a different show though. I have also met & talked to Peter Paul & Mary.

I gave sixteen years of my life to the New Zealand Fire Service in various parts of the country. I have run a wheeled escape, (the ladder on the back of this Fire Engine) through the streets of Gisborne & set it up as part of the crew to actually use at a major fire.


I have also used this Godawful piece of kit at an actual fire. If you are sufficiently interested, check it out on Wikipedia here. They were originally designed as a mines rescue set. There are a lot of things I have done while in the Fire Service. Some of the things I have seen aren't particularly pretty & I prefer not to mention them. I'd much rather remember the good times & the practical jokes.. We used to put a lady's purse out front of City Station on a fishing line Friday nights, wait for someone to go pick it up, then yank the cord.. Kept us amused for hours that did.

I went down to help clean up after the earthquake at Edgecombe. That was scary & bloody hard work. I have held too many people while they died in shattered cars, but on the plus side, I have seen both my sons born, & heard their first breath & their first cry. That would have to be one of the most profound experiences of my life.

I have experienced a marriage of 14 years & two sons go down the tubes, & experienced the grief & pain that so many of my generation have. I have experienced the wonderment of finding someone new in my life at a time when I wasn't even looking, & knowing that this person, (herself) was without a doubt the person I wanted to spend the rest of my life with. This holds true still after some 20 years together. Then there is the bitter sweet learning curve that comes from recycled familys. The person that can come up with a formula for successful step parenting is on a winning streak. Out of it all, I have ended up with two sons that I manage a razors edge sort of a relationship with, a wonderful stepdaughter & two stepsons, & two gloriously wonderful grand children, (So far) that we both just absolutely adore.

I know that I have a lot more life to enjoy, but I still find it a little bit scary when younger ones that I work with defer to me as "older" I don't feel so. My body tells me the other side though. It takes a lot longer in the mornings now for different parts of me to settle into place & accept that we are all vertical & on the move. I'm not too proud to ask for help to do things any more. A sore back for a few days sure strips a body of any pride that you may have.

Anyway, I don't care. I am happy with who & what I am, even if there has been the odd wobbly wheel in the system. I have friends, I have family, I have a roof over my head & good food in my tummy & most of all I have the love of a good woman. Take care out there OK ?

Demanding with menaces

This is Thomas, who condescends to allow Tish & family to live in his house, & barely suffers Nushie's presence. I am currently doing the Tauranga run so am able to slide on in & have lunch with Tish most days. Normally , one doesn't see Thomas at all. Today however, he slid on in the ranchslider while I was there, noticed the fact that I was eating, jumped up on my knee & demanded to share my sandwich. So enthusiastic was he, that he didnt even realise that the first tasty morsel that he gulped down was actually a bit of gherkin...


This is Nushie who follows the principle of , "They also serve who only stand & wait." Or is it that they also GET served... I dunno..... This pic is a touch out of date , cos Nushie now sports a rather fetching red collar..

We're going !!!!!!!!!!!!!

Herself an Tish snuck round behind my back, even had me unwittingly transport the tickets up from Tauranga... Bless they's little cotton socks....

4 rows from the freakin stage we is goin....WOOOOOOOOOHOOOOOOOOO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!


Jeff Wayne will be conducting The 10-piece Black Smoke Band and a 40-piece String Orchestra. Moody Blues’ Justin Hayward returns to reprise his role as The Sung Thoughts of The Journalist. The show also features Guest Artistes Shannon Noll (MTV’s ‘Best Male Artist’ for a third year in a row) playing Parson Nathaniel, Rachael Beck as Beth, Parson Nathaniel’s wife, and We Will Rock You’s Michael Falzon portraying The Artilleryman. Manfred Mann Earth Band’s Chris Thompson will be returning on stage as The Voice of Humanity.

UK fans and media alike were astounded by the groundbreaking technology featured in the 2006 production, but the 2007 show (which will Tour not only Australia and New Zealand but also the UK this year) will be even bigger and better! World First 3D Holography will be unveiled as Richard Burton appears in sight and sound as George Herbert, The Journalist in the form of a 3 metre high 3D photo-real Hologram.

Other impressive ingredients will include a 3 tonne, 10 meter-high Martian Fighting Machine firing Heat Rays at the audience and scanning them with its bug-like eyes and a 30-meter wide screen projecting CGI-animation throughout the entire show. Surround Sound and other special effects will heighten the audience’s experience even more.

Well thats what the blurb said.. Quite an exciting prospect. Its the weekend after the Steely Dan concert which we also going to & right at the start of my holidays.. I think I'll need em to recuperate. Had a lovely weekend I did.. herself & I went fishing on Saturday. Although it cut up a bit rough, we came home with 10 nice snapper. This is herself with the best one. It tipped the scales at just on 5 lbs. Pretty damn good for this early in the season.
Thats the other love in my life behind Herself. My Haines 1550 called Top Dog. I think its going to be just as lucky as our faithful old Cool Change, that served us so faithfully over the years. This is whats happening at Alf's old place out the front. Amazing to think that they can cut a house in half & shift it from one spot to another. The drivers have my admiration. takes a modicum of talent to line something that big up so accurately on its pilings..






Tish & the rugrats came up from Tauranga today to poke the shit at me because I was another year older... Seriously, it was lovely to see them & Tish & Ads between them turned out a wonderful Birthday cake, even if she did stuff the numeral candles up & have them reading 75 instead of 57.. At this point, I'll give her the benefit of the doubt on it. Guys, I really appreciate the effort. Knowing that H had her Ball last night & the effort you put into that, the early start this morning was a big ask & I love you all dearly for it. We had a blast. As usual, Tish brought some extra hardware to shoehorn into my puter box & I now think I have enough computer power to take over some smaller 3rd world countries.. Cant be a lot of room left in there now. Anyway the beast is running super fast an slicker n greased weasel crap now, so thanks a heap. Lovely to see ya all up here.. (Sigh...) back to the real world in the morning I guess..