I'm just back from almost a month away, first in England for research (with a side trip to Wales for fun), and then to Ireland for a brief, damp holiday. In a few hours I have to get back on a plane again and fly to Los Angeles, then Auckland. The thought of getting back on a plane does not appeal at all. At least the second flight is on Air New Zealand, where the staff do not seem to share the sullen jobs-worth attitude of the employees of certain other airlines. Also, on ANZ, there's TV on demand. This can keep me happy for hours - luckily, given the duration of the flight.
Here in New Orleans it's sultry; the crepe myrtles are in bloom, and the city feels quiet, in summer slo-mo. I'm only around for 36 hours, too many of which were spent without air conditioning - a problem now fixed, which meant we could sleep last night. And now I'm flying into a winter, to a place where all tea is hot, and you don't have to specify "unsweetened" when you order. (In the South, I've learned to like iced tea, but not the sickly-sweet kind.)
I have lots of pictures to post and stories to tell of our Irish adventures, but will do that over the next week when I have more time. This is what I've been telling myself for months now: in New Zealand I will have more time. I will finish my New Orleans novel; I will make final selections for the anthology I'm editing; I will finish the ghostwriting projects still lingering. And I'll write Rangatira, of course. I'll invite people over for dinner. I'll also try to stay off the Afghan biscuits, and go to Pilates twice a week, and see loads of the movies. It's years since I've been home for the festival.
These are my New Zealand Resolutions, and I intend to stick to them.
Great to hear from you again, welcome back to NZ.
Hmmm, resolutions, good luck!
Posted by: Vanda Symon | July 09, 2008 at 09:51 PM