It was them or us
If there’s one thing that unites pretty much all New Zealanders, it’s a love of killing animals. “On our island anything with fur is an invading species. Unless it’s a bat”. When I was at school in England, about 25 years ago, we had a class debate on whether fox hunting should be banned. I… Continue reading It was them or us
Boxing Doctor
It was never been my intention to join any sort of gym. Who in their right mind would “go to the gym” and “work out” when you can get the same result by practicing a competitive sport? But having strategically arrived in NZ in the depths of winter, running to work quickly lost its appeal.… Continue reading Boxing Doctor
Paragliding
“Just head for the cone. That’s the lowest part of the fence. Nice and easy. Little bit left. Keep heading for the cone. There’s only one cone. Little more left. Just keep looking at the cone. HEAD FOR THE CONE! THE CONE! THERE’S ONLY ONE FUCKING CONE! This is my paragliding instructor, Darrell. He got… Continue reading Paragliding
Pouakai Circuit and Vietnam
“It’s only 24k. Let’s just run it in a morning”. These were Dan’s words on learning that I planned to walk the Pouakai circuit over 2 days staying a night in the mountain lodge. (Dan is not a fan of the protracted brunch). This 24-year-old ultra-sporty whelp wasn’t gonna intimidate me, so I agreed and… Continue reading Pouakai Circuit and Vietnam
Boxer: Dead!
I had just returned a velvet smoking jacket to the New Plymouth Operatic Society, which I’d used when filming my godson’s welcoming address, see video: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1JzZgApd1e20QPyGnT3nlNhezA_ZEJzYn/view?usp=drive_web (Special thanks to Harry Morgan for putting up with all my requests and making helpful suggestions as he edited this) Setting off for my boxing class something seemed wrong.… Continue reading Boxer: Dead!
First month working in New Plymouth
Work I’ve been there a month and so far the team is very welcoming (aren’t they always at the beginning). The work is varied with respect to all the new cancers I’m learning about, but a bit samey as to the nature of my duties. Generally we just review patients in clinic before they have… Continue reading First month working in New Plymouth
“If you gaze into the abyss…”
Here’s a map of South Island to orientate you. Ist stop, a 4 day trek near Queenstown in the Greenstone Valley, so named because of the abundance of the green jade (Pounamu) there, which is found in NZ south island and nowhere else (I didn’t find any). The hike involved staying in cabins without electricity… Continue reading “If you gaze into the abyss…”
“I will work harder” – Animal Farm
I’ve had a request to provide dates for my activities. I’m a little reluctant as it will highlight how much time I spend just drifting around aimlessly, however I shall give it a try and assess. July 3rd: released from quarantine. Within minutes a lady (maskless) walked within 3 feet of me, after which I… Continue reading “I will work harder” – Animal Farm
Quarantine
“In the end, it was the Sunday afternoons he couldn’t cope with, and that terrible listlessness which starts to set in at about 2:55, when you know that you’ve had all the baths you can usefully have that day, that however hard you stare at any given paragraph in the papers you will never actually… Continue reading Quarantine
Preface
“And so Perth went a-whaling.” Moby Dick, Chapter 112 Just to clarify: I have not gone a-whaling, but I have gone to the antipodes. In this first blog I’ll give some background to the venture. For those of you more interested in tales from New Zealand (henceforth NZ) and less so in my meandering career… Continue reading Preface
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Edd Whewell: the New Zealand years 