Getting up-to-Date! in Majimaze Musing!

Hello Readers!Well, GS has been exhorting me to write an entry and it is peaceful and quiet now,8am and cool so will do my best!It has been extremely hot here for about a week now,however,hardly the EL Nino threat we were given to expect.Not yet anyway!In fact,the opposite has been the case.North-Easterlies with high humidity and plenty of rain!El Nino in the Southern Hemisphere usually means South-Westerlies and drought.However, it is only January so could change!I am a a of bit of a nutcase about weather having been a farmer and sailor where weather dominates any plans for the day/week.Same as the fact that I am up and about at 6am walking dog,which comes from having to get up for school buses etc when farming.
It has been a busy absorbing month with birthdays and visits and just enjoying myself.I figure that when one is in ones retirement years,enjoying yourself should be top of the list!So I try to do to that.Ha ha!I read a lot,am always engrossed in a book and that is something I always have enjoyed and not always had the time for.I am not anti-social ,just a bit wary about getting too involved in other peoples’ business after being burnt during my daughter’s marriage breakdown and heart-attack and my own meltdown and financial problems, and 2 years of harassment from members of the community until I involved the police.
Living in small communities is great and my first preference.I detest cities although I was a city girl for some years.There is always a flip side to a small community tho.If you have been an obvious ‘big fish in a small pool’, when things go pear-shaped, there are backlashes.Judgement and criticism rear their ugly heads and that is what burns.So,now, I am quite happy to keep my own counsel and not get too involved in the community!To the ridiculous point,that a number of people thought I had left the Island!!Enough about me tho.
My older daughter Janet and her partner and two kids have a lifestyle block on the Island.She is a well-respected and loved District Nurse of 15 odd years on the Island and her partner is a builder.Just lately they have bought 5.6 hectares down country (about 15 acres) complete with 2 old villas and a derelict shop!The villas are habitable and one is let during the ski season as a ski lodge.Yes, it is very close to one of our biggest mountains in our National park!They are going to use it as a bolthole from the Island.It is probably 400 miles away!They settled the deal last Monday and have been down there for a week and won’t be home for a while yet!Must be back by the end of next week as school starts on Feb 1st!There has been a bit of family problems with her partners brother so it is ideal.Boy I miss my Janet tho,even if I have Penny (second daughter) and kids next door!And only a week!I will go down later in the year to see the new acquisition!Good on them!They aren’t ski bunnies,just love the rural scene and the hunting for Bill,plus my son lives down that way and he is a hunter as well.And it is a total contrast to here!
I had my 72nd birthday last week and as a special surprise,my older brother and his wife were here!I have not always got along with my older brother.He was always a driven man,and succeeded very well in the business world and was always my late Mum’s favourite!over the past 10-15 years we have mended fences and kept in touch and altho I had only seen him once in the last 10 years,he and his wife came over especially for my birthday.He is very wealthy and I live on a pension so you can imagine the difference.They have always made their big house at Taupo available to us all (rent-free) when they don’t need it and we have had very happy times there.Rick made time in their 2 day visit to come and spent 2 hours just with me to catch up and we talked about EVERYTHING!Wow!I loved it!He asked the questions and I answered them!I guess he has had a bit of practice with this in business!Went back to childhood and our Dad’s death and my Mums mental illness and all those problematic things that make childhood a minefield!Then our current lives etc.At the end he asked me what I would like for a birthday present.I couldn’t think.So he asked to see my cellphone.I felt weird because I have always inherited families old ones and my current one is an early 1990 Nokia!So he replaced that with a brand new iphone 4 which I am waiting for a sim card for and then I will be into the 21st century!Have to leaan how to use it tho and I can get rid of my landline which costs me $54.00 a month and is hardly used!We all went out to a restaurant for my birthday dinner (12 of us) and he paid for mine and the bar tab!It was wonderful,the entire visit and very healing.I even called him my nickname for him when I didn’t like him because he was obviously Mum’s favourite.’The Great Poohba’ the Lord High Minister of Everything from The Operetta,’Mikado’!He asked me why and I told him!He actually blushed.Tee-hee!
Anyway it was great and all healed now.
I guess I’d better finish this now as it has turned into a book!Life is good and the weather immaculate and lots of people on the Island and me and my family are fine,so ‘God is in His Heaven and All is right with the World’(Well not necessarily,but that is another entry!)
Lots of love,
Majimazexxxxxxxx

P.S. to GS alias ‘she who must be obeyed’, there you are,an entry!!!!xxxxx