Oh, noooooo!

It only snows once every twenty years he lied says....It just snowed a few years ago, so I can't see it snowing any time soon, he lied says....

It snowed on the 20th of May. In our yard. On our car. All over the grass. It was awful! OK, it wasn't a lot and I've certainly seen a lot more of it at one time, having lived in the Chicago area, but that's not the point. I moved here with the notion that if I never get to touch snow again in my life, I won't be upset. 

But it's suppose to snow again tonight. Hrumph.



The good news is that karma catches up with you eventually. He told me those whoppers in an effort to lure me into his den that presumably had little snow. Well, he's up on the mountain with a bunch of Scouts. Hiked up to the cabin in the rain. Might get caught in the snow. Serves him right.

banana bread recipe

I got this recipe from the momswhothink.com website last year.  It's really yummy and I wanted to give credit where it's due, but I can't seem to find the link again.

Banana Bread

1 cup butter, softened

2 cups sugar

7 large bananas, mashed

1 1/2 t vanilla extract

4 eggs, slightly beaten

3 cups flour

1/2 t salt

2 t baking soda

Cream butter and sugar. Blend in the bananas, vanilla and eggs.

Whisk together the dry ingredients.

Add to the banana mixture and mix until just combined.  

Pour into two greased 9x5 loaf pans.

Bake at 350F (160C) for 35 minutes, then check loavess. Add 10 minutes baking time until a toothpick inserted comes out clean.  Cool bread in pan for 10 minutes then cool completely on a wire rack.

Musings

I guess you have all heard about the Westpac bank fiasco, where a customer was 'accidentally' credited with ten million dollars instead of ten thousand. I can't believe the girl blogged their whereabouts. But it only goes to prove my theory that there is so little crime in New Zealand simply because there is nowhere to run--the country is so small!

On the utility overcharging issues here, there is good news and bad news. The good news is that the utilities are busted at overcharging us. The bad news is that most of them are owned by the government so, I really don't know what will be done--if anything. Personally, no rate hike for the next 5 years would suit me just fine.

I might have to change my general perception of New Zealanders (in case you missed the other posts, I find them much less cordial and generally polite than Americans). I went to the grocery store yesterday, in the rain I might add, and it seemed that the Kiwis I met along the parking lot and aisles had more eye contact and smiles. And, even more importantly, two--count 'em TWO--shoppers actually move their shopping carts out of the middle of the aisles before they stopped to peruse the shelves!

I just had to show you all this photo of Missy and Otterboy sharing a bag of crisps (chips in yankspeak). Who would guess that they are siblings, 2 years apart!  And, yes, they usually get along like that--most of the time--so far, anyway.  Missy is almost 15, so we expect more 'teenage angst' in the near future, but, for now, we will take the calm that we get.

I really like the pharmaceutical system here. The government subsidizes one drug for anything that ails ya that requires a prescription. And you only pay $3 for each time you get the script filled. If there happens to be more than one for an ailment, then then government chooses one to subsidize, usually the cheapest one from what I gather. But still, it's a big pressure off the pocketbook for major illnesses.

I also find it strange that the NZ Postal Service is not owned by the government any more. It is franchised across the country. The one in our town also has a KiwiBank franchise, so you can stand in line for either of the services.

Cabin fever car trip

It has rained and rained and rained...at least for 10 days. But, despite the nippy weather and the overcast skies, we ventured out on Saturday to keep from going stir crazy.

We first went to Hollard Gardens, our favorite 'get away' place. I have no idea what the flowers are, but they were a great sight to see.

We left Hollards and travelled south. The clouds were interesting, too, as the almost-winter weather set in.

We ended up at Opunake Beach, another of our favorites.  In the summer, we have fish and chips on the beach here while the kids play among the rocks and dig in the sand.  

Any other time we were here, it was always at high tide, but this time I was pleasantly surprised by low tide and we took advantage of searching among the rocks for treasure.  

I am continually amazed at the patterns left by the tide as it scurries out to sea.

We found lots of limpets (or barnacles) which make the small, round holes in the rocks.

This is a pink algae that we found in the pools between the rocks.

I guess I will always love the ocean and the views and surprises it brings.