pastel efforts

About time I posted here so this is my latest pastel effort...not yet finished but will be soon I think. All is well here despite record cold and snowfall.

new pastel started

Today I started a pastel of a view in NZ...looking good so far...this is after an hour of working and socializing... more socializing than work I think. Decided to let folks know how it's going this time.

painting again

Well, not actually painting but at least doing some art work. Actually it's pastel. Yes...the golf course one that's been on my easel for months while I enjoyed the summer golfing and visiting the southern hemisphere. It's not entirely to my liking but I feel if I fool with it any more I will make it into a mess. So good or bad, here it is.

more photos

Having got home and settled, and having had time to sort them, there is a selection of the photos taken during the trip at
http://www.freewebs.com/warner325/index.htm

Enjoy

Home again

So the trip is over. It was good while it lasted but it's always good to get back to familiar territory and drive on the familiar side of the road. The return trip was mostly uneventful, witht the exception of Trish not being able to make it to the airport at Auckland for a farewell hug. I even had an exotic meal planned, but I guess McD's will get by without my business :) ....Joking Trish. Just a couple of photos this time...one from the Kelowna bound plane over a very poluted Vancouver, and one from my deck this morning as the sun neared the horizon.

I think I'll let the blog run and maybe use it to show my mundane retirement life for a while, even my art attempts when there are any to show :)

Bondi Beach et al

Just got back from a trip to see Sculptures By The Sea. An art show spread over a couple of miles of sea shore. Some was great...some was weird...and some was really weird. (In my opinion that is)One great thing was that it was a free show, and you know how I go for freebies :) By the way the dogs are sculptures and life size. Of course a visit to Australia is incomplete without a photo of Bondi Beach so here is one of that also. Would you believe it's just another beach....sand and water? This is my last day here so any further entries will be done after I get home. Oh yes it's sunny and hot.

North Sydney roam

Today. Oct 24, I went for a wander in North Sydney. Would you believe it's on the north side of Sydney harbour :)Anyway got a couple of interesting photos...interesting to me at any rate, one of a comparitively old house set between high new buildings, and for sure the little old place has all the character the new edifaces lack. The other pic is a church, which struck me as having age and character also. Must come from my years as a bricklayer.

Today the sun is shining and it's warm...no coat today....after yesterdays coldest October day in ages for this city. For some weird reason there were more smiles on faces too, including mine. Only one more day here and I start home. It will be hot for sure on Sunday :)

Oct 21

Went to Ku-Ring-Gai national park today, to a section where the intent is to rescue orphaned kangaroos and wallabies and get them to a point where they can be safely released into the wild. A pleasant, quiet place where one wanders through the forest spotting the animals and loads of wild birds. The kids loved it but I'm sure the animals wondered why those little humans always have to rush around like the fire siren has gone.I got a half decent photo of two wallabies and a cockatoo to show, and also a photo of Claire, the youngest grandchild, age 2, after we got home. Why can't she always be that peaceful?

more backtracking

Scanning again and found this photo among a group I took in a botanical gardens in Christchurch NZ. Thought it was worth showing. It was very peaceful there.

backtracking

Was scanning some photos and came across one taken at Huka Falls (sp?) just out of Taupo. Again a tourist trap but the amount of water rushing through the narrow channel was impresive. Would be interesting to see if anyone could do an effective painting of that lol. I'm not even trying :) By the way, dates showing on my blog are BC Canada times and dates so they are a day behind what I am on here. Just in case you were wondering :)

roads etc

Took a walk yesterday to get some pics of a bridge we had driven over. North Bridge is the name far as I know heading north from Sydney. All plaques had been erased so no idea by whom or for what occasion it was built. The bridge spans a chasm or gorge in which is a recreation area, so far down one would need a telephoto lens to get any pics of what's going on down there. On the way back I took the shot of some prime real estate when it struck me that we are using ridiculous amounts of property just to get where we want to go in less time. Are we really in that much of a hurry?

Sydney 17 Oct

Went into the city this morning. Took in an exhibition of Monet and other impressionists. Sure was worth the trip and the fee. Got a few ideas to try out once I get back to the oils. Amazing what Monet could make you see with just a few dabs of paint. Look close and it's just that:- a few dabs of paint. Couldn't write from Sydney without a couple pics...NO...not the opera house and the bridge...my favourite pub and a Bavarian restaurant where I had lunch. By the way, it's a beautiful sunny day. :)

Heading north Oct 13

It was time to go from South Island to North. All that was required was to be up and around in time for the loading of the ferry. Made it on time and then sat in line for over an hour before they start loading. At least once they started it seemed only minutes before we were on, big rigs and all, and sailing out of Picton to the ocean. Lovely day for a sail but enough breeze to remove even the hardiest bug from the brain, and a laugh when someone started a fire in a cig butt receptical, put out by a female crew mwmber with a jug of water from the restaurant. Bet she wasn't getting firemen's pay either. A lovely view of Wellington as we came into the harbour (pic attached)...that was maybe the best part of that city as it's gotta be the worst place to find your way around if you don't know it. A host of one-way streets and half of them in the opposite direction shown on the map, with never a street name in site. Getting out in the morning was way easier than getting in the previous night. Heading north for Taupo, and then on to Auckland.

Interesting people

I had been told about this old fellow, Rob, who I should go visit if I got the chance. Sounded interesting so off I went. Not only did I visit but stayed 2 nights at his absolute insistence and had a great time. Hey...for free room and board I'm easy to persuade. lol. This guy is only 88 and as lively as me on a good day. I think I met all his family, children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, the lot. Wonderful people who's favourite and only sport seems to be hunting wild boars. Rob had orange and lemon trees in the yard and told me he rakes them up for compost. You can bet I ate some before I left. Got a photo of the house in Motueka right up the north end of South Island, and one of the fruit trees if I can find it.

still 16th

Drove through Arthurs Pass which I was told is a must see. It poured rain the whole way so not a single photo. Just for fun I'll put in a totally unrelated one. I got lots of those. :)

16 Oct

Just trying to give an idea of where I've been on this trip but no chronological order. Stayed a while in Kaikoura, (sp?) , a bit touristy but a nice place other than a Seafest the day I got there which was an excuse for a drunk (not mine).

October 14 Sydney

Trying this again...previous try didn't work. I am now in Sydney Oz and able to use my own computer. I want to show a pic of Franz Joseph glacier in NZ so hope it works this time.

Finally here

Oct 4 08 Saturday

At last I can get in here to let you all know where I am but on a borrowed computer.
I'm in a nice place called Kaikoura on the east coast of south island NZ and being very lazy but meeting some great people. Even indulged in some pastel but no pics yet. Have visited the Franz Joseph Glacier...a bit touristy but worth seeing for some ref pics. More later.