20 Dec 2006

Hey all. It's been a really long time since my last update. I think life here is almost as busy as life in Seattle. We are learning that we are the constant in that equation.

Let's see, what's new? Oh I got a job. Well almost. I am on a two month freelance basis with a design agency in Christchurch. At the end of January we will see if both sides want to make it a permanent relationship. I am only three days into so I won't venture any predictions. I like the place so far. The ironic part is that the unique thing about this company is that 80% of their clients and revenue are US companies. All the creative staff is based here in Christchurch and they have the client service staff in Chicago. It's working quite well. It's just goofy working on US products. So much for a cross cultural experience. I am even sitting next to an American.

So today is very Seattle like in terms of weather. It is absolutely dumping rain and blowing like crazy. We have been having a hard time adjusting to a summer Christmas. So today's garbage weather helps a little.

I am desperately trying not to be one of those pet people that is always talking about their little doggie. But oh well. One thing that has been good about having Henry other than cleaning up feces in my yard and in public, big yellow spots on our lawn, and dog hair blowing across our kitchen floor is that I have been getting up to run every morning with him. Walks were getting boring and they weren't giving him enough exercise, so I thought I would start running again. So I should be in pretty good shape in a few weeks. But then again so will the dog and we'll need to do even more exercise to tire him out. It's a neverending battle.

As you may have already heard, Charisa's company was recently bought out. They did have some layoffs (redundancies) and one person in her group was let go. His last day is this Friday. What a way to wish him Merry Christmas. Charisa being Charisa, she organized a goodbye party and collected some cash to help him out. Still not a fun scene.

Last Friday was her company Christmas party. They are still calling it Christmas here actually. It's interesting how a country, like the US, that has a majority of people that claim to be "Christian" has the politically correct, don't offend anyone approach all things Christian, and New Zealand which has only 10% of its population claiming to be Christian and nobody cares who puts Christmas stuff up or where they put it up. Very odd to me. Anyway, the party was alright. Charisa had a cold and I had an awful case of hayfever happening. So our social energy was sapped before we even got there. So notice the half smile on my face in the picture.

We are very excited to have Charisa's parents and my sister coming for our first Christmas here. They will all be here on Friday. Charisa's parents landed in Auckland a week and a half ago and are flyfishing their way down. My sister is flying direct to Christchurch. She bought a Harley Davidson right after we moved here and has been learning to ride. So we are taking an overnight motorcycle trip up North a bit. She is renting a motorcycle for it. I am very excited to spend time with her and show her my new stomping grounds.

That's all for now. Bye.

23 October, 2006

Some other exterior shots.
The front yard, well part of it.


Looking toward the street (really it's there behind the trees) from the house.


The walkway down the leftside of the house that leads to the main entrance.


OK a tour of the inside of the house. I promised Grandma Mary I would get them up today.
Looking into the dining area from the back/main door. We don't have a front door, which isn't that uncommon here.


The kitchen from the dining area. That door leads to the rest of the house.


Our bedroom. Our window looks out the front of the house. It is really nice though that we have a line of tall trees and the fence that blocks any peepers from the street and gives us privacy.


The sunroom/office/3rd bedroom when needed.



The guest bedroom, now occupied by Lydie, in the back corner of the house.


And the lounge occupied by a bunch of our friends gathered for Charisa's surprise birthday party. Well almost a surprise. Lisa and Shauna were meant to pick Charisa up at 2:30, but didn't show until 2:45. Not a big deal except one of Charisa's coworkers arrived at 2:40. Surprise thwarted. But it was not suspected by Charisa until that point. Which is really good on my part, because Charisa gets so curious (scientists) she has figured out the others I have attempted. Notice Henry being well behaved on only his second day with us. He did steal a cookie from a 1 year old though, but he did it very gently.


Henry and Charisa, I mean Charisa and Henry. Funny how pets can take up so much attention, especially energetic, attention hungry dogs. He REALLY likes to be near you or on you, no coaxing ever required. Good thing Charisa is a cuddler herself and I'm not too cold of a guy either.


Us with friends Hamish and Kim Chalmers, their cat, Roger, and Chuck. Chuck Norris has a bit of a cult status here. Maybe I missed out on that in the US. But they really like him here. Hamish jokingly said Chuck inspired him he's a guy with no acting talent whatsoever who was able to be successful. We really like these folks and have just started to get to know them, but they are moving up to Auckland at the end of the year. Sad.


And Henry. Have you heard we got a dog?


I have a wonderful wife. I really needed some time to myself to gather my thoughts and refocus and recognized that and sent me packing for some alone time. This past weekend was Labour Day weekend here. So, I took off Friday after work on the motorcycle and headed to Hanmer Springs. A little resort town in the mountains about two hours northwest of Christchurch. I stayed at a little hostel for nice and cheap. It's always fun staying at those places because you meet people from all over the world. I chatted with a nice young couple from Manchester, England while we watched an American TV show of course. It is amazing how much American media gets around this world. A majority of the TV shows are American and then British after that. I hate hearing people talk about what was on South Park.
Leaving Hanmer Springs Saturday morning. Headed for the coastal town of Kaikoura. Hanmer Springs is nestled up against the mountains in the background. The Springs in the name is for the huge natural hot mineral water area the town is known for. I actually didn't visit them, but I heard they are quite nice. I just went to bed when I got there.


There are two ways to Kaikoura from Hanmer Springs. I took the way past Mt Leyford, no picture sorry. It was recommended by the mechanic at the petrol station. I had to make sure what a tar sealed road was though. I first thought of a gravel road that had been coated with tar, which they used to do in some areas to keep dust down. That's not a motorcycle type of road. Once again a little language hiccup. The road was completely paved and safe for me. I stopped at this river for an hour or so and just sat at the river's edge and did nothing.


What a great ride! Look at that road! All curves and hills! The whole way between Hanmer and Kaikoura looked like this, even the lack of cars. I saw maybe ten cars total for the two hours it took. Wonderful!


The Pacific Ocean at Kaikoura.

I woke up to much rain on Sunday morning, boooo. I waited until almost noon hoping it would pass, but no such luck. I had to get going though, so I got cold and wet. Similar to a bad day fishing, a wet day on a motorcycle is better than any day at work. It did dry out eventually but was still cold. I did get to enjoy some of the roads I had drooled over when we drove them when Charisa and I visited this area on our vacation to NZ two years ago.
When are you all coming to visit? We would love to share our home and new country with you all.

And back in time.

We had a great time in Seattle in August, thanks to Nate and Anne Young flying me back to photograph their wedding. It was a whirlwind trip for sure, but we saw almost everyone we wanted to.

It's always fun and special seeing a wedding that is truly blessed. Anne and Nate are such a good team, it is amazing. It was an honor to be a part of their day.

On the way back home we took a day long layover in the Los Angeles area to see our old pastor Dan and his wife Debra. We were also able to see my Grandpa, the other Mark James Cornellison. He was first of course, and Grandma Mary. And the bonus was that my Uncle Larry and Aunt Susan who moved to Hawaii almost the same day we moved to NZ were visiting so I got to see them. They had their grandsons, Brian's boys, Hayden and Logan with them. It was a great visit and we got some family business done that was long overdue.

So here are some pics of them. First G&G. Nice shot huh? wouldn't guess that it was an In N Out burger joint. They look great and are still going strong. I hope I got a lot of Grandpa's genes. He's got titanium knees but the rest of him is original manufacturer's equipment.


Next is the Cornellison men, minus Brian (Larry's son), Dave and Doug (my half bros from my dad's first marriage). Someday I will get similar shots of them. I am always amazed and how genetics and upbringing work together. Not only physically, but personality, speech patterns, goofy sense of humor (which all of us seem to have, ask our wives) etc. You can never nail down the true source of a particular characteristic. We are amazing design. Not just the Cornellison men, but humans as a whole.

Grandpa, Larry (aka Stubby), my Dad (aka John), and me.

One of our wisteria

We have these covering the trellis over our back deck and one over our driveway.

Long time coming

Many of you have asked "Where are some pics of your house?" Well here are some finally. As well as pics of our new dog.

We have been in the house for about a month now and we feel so blessed. The house is perfect for us and the neighborhood is nearly ideal in feel and location. We have easy access to a road that leads out of town for both of our jobs. I wouldn't call it a commute really, driving through farmland and nice residential neighborhoods with very little traffic if any. We have easy access to the city center, the hills for hiking and biking, and our church is 2 minutes way. We can actually see the church steeple from our dining room windows. It's great. We have a little lot, but not too little. The lawn takes me about 15 minutes to mow with a manual push mower. Charisa has loads of flowers, trees, and shrubs to take care of though. I get the better end of the deal for sure. But the yard is gorgeous. We have not idea what 80% of the plants are though, just that they all seem to bloom and are beautiful.

The first two pics are of our backyard. Sitting enjoying the sun is Lydie. We lived with her and her boyfriend, Vincent, back in our original Kiwi abode, the infamous sleepout on Manhire Street. Her and Vincent went and spent three months in Australia. She is back in NZ for 6 weeks and Vincent returned to France. Lydie is staying with us for 3 weeks until her family arrives and then they will tour the country together. After that Lydie will return to France as well.




These next two are of the front of the house. It's hard to see the whole house from the street because of all the trees and plants in our yard. And our supply of heat, wood, sits there in our driveway.



Below is the looking across our street and down our street toward the Port Hills. The Avon River is also at the bottom of our street. It's little, so hard to see.


On Saturday we adopted a dog from the pound. We think he is a crazy mix of a Staffordshire terrier (similar to a pit bull) and a greyhound. He is so friendly. He just wants to be around us and that's it. It can be hard to walk around the house at times because he'll be tagging along so close. We think he has been trained already, because he woke us up last night to let him outside to relieve himself and sits on command really well. We dig him. And we named him Henry. We had to put a name down on paperwork when adopted and Charisa threw out Henry and it just stuck and fit him. So now we have a dog and eight outdoor goldfish.

And this is Henry playing dead. He so wants to be close to you it is hard to get him to stay still for a picture.

And some closeups.

Ooohh this is cool.

I just downloaded a Dashboard widget, a mini application that lets me post to my blog without going online. It hooks up to Blogger for me in the background and away we go. No photos though bummer.

30 July, 2006

So sorry the blog is so behind. Life is a bit crazy. We have been to Seattle and back, moved into our house, I've been working, etc. But the main reason is we haven't had regular internet access. So this post was started over a month ago and is just now getting up. More to follow.

Here's Bruce making some espresso at his place. I think he would like Seattle alot because he likes coffee alot.

Friends Adam, Sandy, and Shauna at a play we went to a long time ago.

The little harbor town of Lyttleton, which is on the other side of the hills that run along the South border of Christchurch. It's quite a cute little town. We like to visit the little farmers market that happens there every Saturday morning.

Ahh proof positive that my bike is in NZ with me. This tractor looks a bit like the one at Charisa's parents' place. A little old tech and some new tech.

One of the gorgeous little roads that run all over Banks Peninsula.

So this is the first real ride on my bike after finally getting it registered and licensed. There are a couple of "overreaction" laws here regarding imported vehicles, so I had to replace my already new brake lines and brake pads in order to pass compliance. I won't go into it, it's too painful. Anyway, on my first ride I headed over to Akaroa, a cute little town on Banks Peninsula. Lots of little bays and harbors there. So I park the bike on the main street running through town. I purposely put a lot of distance between me and the car in front of me, so the bike doesn't get backed over. Well that didn't work. I walked down and across the street to a shop. I left the shop and was walking back toward the bike, but was about 100 feet away still. And I see the reverse indicators light up on this Isuzu SUV parked in front of me and I had a sinking feeling in my stomach. I saw it start to back up and I just knew the back was toast, but I was too far away to yell or run. So I just watched my bike get backed over and knocked hard to ground. So sad. The lady was very sorry and so was I actually. Fortunately she had insurance and it took care of the damage. My bike was in the shop for four weeks though. So sad. Below is a map of the area. Drag down a bit and Christchurch is at the top and Banks Peninsula is below sticking out to the Southwest. It helps to zoom out one click. That yellow line is the one main road to Akaroa. Lots of curves.




This is Craig. He fashioned a new footpeg out of a piece of pipe so that I could get back home. I think it was the first time a customer had taken his picture. He was quite a brilliant guy. We talked a bit and I found out he has a Masters in Mechanical Engineering. So I was pretty confident in that footpeg.

House Yay!

We put in a late night last night making and getting an offer accepted on a super duper cool house. We actually had an agent sitting at our table for us to make write up an offer on a completely different house, when everything changed and we decided to go with this house. People are so lovely here, she was so helpful and giving us advice and helping sort things out even though it meant we didn't offer on the house she was representing. I am sure it helped that she had another couple putting in an offer. So we said goodbye to her and raced over the other house to get a second look and take some measurements of the lounge, must make sure it is a good size for the stereo. It was a wonderful time because we actually toured the house withe owners and he pointed out all the work that had been done, alot actually. There are a couple a little bit older than us with two daughters. They are moving outside of town a little to mainly get a bigger house for when those two daughters are teenagers and need the bathrooms. I am guessing we will actually become friends with them, we liked them so much. We still have to clear the building inspection, but that looks to be lock, since the house has been so well cared for. Most of the other older renovated houses we had looked at were mainly renovated cosmetically. Not only does this house look great it has new plumbing and wiring throughout and some new structural pieces that make it much sounder overall. It is close to the little Avon River and the footpaths run along it. Charisa is excited to run along there. But it is not so close to be affected by floods that occasional happen. The trees around the property make it very private as well. All in all what we had hoped for, it just took some time and three failed offers to find it. That works for us.

Here are some pics: http://firstnational.co.nz/frames/templates/property.cfm?propertyID=411027

mark

Ahh Rugby

We are beginning to understand and enjoy rugby more each time we watch a match. This past weekend was the Bledisloe Cup, the New Zealand All Blacks vs. the Australia Wallabies. We watched it with a friend at a restaurant/pub with outdoor seating and a temporary outdoor screen. It was a beautiful evening and the All Blacks won, but not without a little controversy first. Thankfully I missed the whole thing.

Check out this link for the details:
http://msn.foxsports.com/rugby/story/5769250?FSO1&ATT=HMA

It was also the first time we were able to see the Haka before the game. The Haka is a form of Maori "dance" that they used to before the enemy right before battles as a way of intimidation. The All Blacks started doing it originally as a way for one of the Maori team members to honor a recently deceased relative. I think that is the story. Now the team does it before each game. It is quite impressive and intense, even on television.

Article about the Haka:
http://www.allblacks.com/index.cfm?layout=displayNews&newsArticle=4187

A bit of style from the '80s that is apparently coming back is the good ol' mullet. One of considerable presence was on display by one of the All Blacks. I can't find a photo of that mullet. I will soon and display it here.

mark

1 July, 2006

George. Guide on the Milford boat.


Some amazing clouds on the drive back to Christchurch from Lake Wanaka area.


Peaks above Milford Sound.


Wall and reflection at Milford Sound. We learned that a sound is actually a river gorge backfilled by the ocean and fiord was cut by glaciers. So, it should be Puget Fiord... deep thoughts from NZ.


Milford Sound. Alot bigger than it looks. It was really hard to get a sense of scale here. Most the mountains coming up from the water were upwards of 3-4000 feet!


Brrrrrrrr! On the early morning drive to Milford Sound. We were in a time crunch to get there in time for our reserved boat ride, but the sunrise and scenery were almost too gorgeous to bear not pulling over more than once.


David, notice the hotel name. You have an easy retirement business waiting for you...


Pronounced like "Ethel" with an "A". I know I thought of a bad word too, just like all of you.


My cute cold darling on the boat tour of Milford Sound. A must see in NZ.

1 July, 2006 - WORDS

We went to a really cool (add surprise inflection) Anglican church this past Sunday. Sorry to any Episcopal/Anglicans out there, but I did have a bit of a stodgy, boring image in my mind of what it was going to be like. God likes to prove me wrong every so often or just plain often. It seemed to be a vibrant, healthy, active church. We did go to their "informal" worship service, so that made things, well, less formal. They have three services every Sunday, one traditional, one a little less so, and then the informal. We met and chatted with a very cool guy and talked to another guy that we were told to look for by a friend. It was great to see that they were not putting God in this box and saying there is one way to worship God. They see value in the traditional liturgy and the more "contemporary" way of doing things. My personal opinion is that if they got Jesus as the focus and source of it all, new people are attracted to it, people are growing and maturing, then great. Who cares what denomination or name you put on it. I think we are going to check out the traditional service as well to get a better feel for the church overall. Good stuff I say.

Hooray! My motorcycle has been freed to ride again. I got it out of customs yesterday and was able to ride a teensy bit. The stinky bit is that I can't license it yet though. I upgraded the brake lines to stainless steel braided ones a year ago. (If you are curious to the technicals reasons why they are vastly superior to rubber, then email me.) NZ requires that there be a litte stamp or label on them though that show what specifications they were made to, like DOT or something. But even though mine were made by a racing manufacturer they don't have that little bit on them so I have to get new ones. I was a little bummed thinking I could go for a ride this weekend since the sun was out, but alas the Honda is once again hibernating in a garage until I can rectify the brake lines. I will ride again!!

28 June, 2006

Well we have a house to call a home! Almost, we have the building inspection to go through and those little things, but essentially it's only up to us to break the deal. It's a 65 year old place that a 90 year old couple have lived in for 65 of those years. Crazy! So it needs to be updated for sure in the style category. We'll be stripping the paint off most of the wood paneling and trim, because the wood underneath is gorgeous. As money allows we'd like to put in new double pane windows, update insulation in the roof and underfloor, put in a new kitchen and bathroom, possibly remove some walls to create a dining area, lots of wallpaper removal and painting, and pulling out the carpets and refinishing the nice wood floors underneath. And with me not working just yet, we hope to pound it out quickly right after we move in, or even before. We are both aching to get to our stuff in our container. I can get my motorcycle right away though. The rest has to wait until we move into the house. Which should be mid to late July. The couple are moving into a retirement villa and are waiting for the current owner to move out. We are praying for sooner of course.

I have had a couple of interesting temporary job possibilities come up. The one that I am most intrigued about is a probation officer. Yeah you read that right. Having criminals report to me while they are on probation. What an opportunity to help and make a difference in someone's life. If I hadn't known Mike Banks back in Seattle, I never would have considered it. But I have seen the results of his love and compassion for the guys coming out and it is amazing. I heard about this job from a friend of Bruce of course, Rick. All roads lead to Bruce here in Christchurch. Rick's mother is a senior probation officer and is looking for new people. I am just waiting to hear back from her to set up an interview.

The other is working as a vinyl window assembler and installer. I won't go through the people chain on this one, but it actually doesn't lead to Bruce. Vinyl windows are a very new thing here and this guy has the only company on the South Island selling them. I am intrigued by this job because it is physical labor and I like the guys I would be working with. Also there is a good chance I could save a bundle on the windows and learn how to install them myself. I wouldn't be making much money, but I could save so much on the windows it would make up the difference. It might be a good place to get into as well, because NZ is just now realizing how important it is make an energy efficient home.

That's all for now. I'll get pics of the house up later.

mark

Snow as promised and other pics.

Careful a Mustang ahead.


Finally a pic of the car 'Flo' on its way to crossing the Ford.


I find it really unnerving that when passing through farmland, every cow looks at you.


On the gravel road to Mt. Aspiring, near Lake Wanaka. Notice the little specs of white, those are sheep again of course, but they give some scale to the scene in this case.


Mountains surrounding Lake Tekapo.


Out the kitchen window at the house we were generously able to use at Lake Hawea.


More mountains, they are all so spectacular here. Sorry can't remember the locale other than it was on the trip South last week. Somewhere in Southland or Central Otago.

Nope, not palm trees, cabbage trees. Strange name and they look strange with snow on them.


Finally a pic of our living space benefactor. Unfortunately not a warm and fuzzy one.