The weary travellers return.

Craig and I arrived back in Wellington at Midday on Sunday. After a 12 hour overnight flight during which we collectively achieved around 4 hours sleep and a 3 hour stopover in Christchurch. We were vaguely delirious with the exhaustion and so we decided, ever so sensibly, that Sunday afternoon would be the best time to move ourselves from our cozy abode (aka a little room in my Parents' house) in to the large and empty house we will be living in until further notice.
At the time? it seemed like a good idea. At 8pm on Sunday it seemed like the worst idea in the world.
We spent the first night rattling around the big house like Kendra (a simile suggested by my baby sister and I'm gonna run with it) with little more than a fridge, a tv, and a bed. But without the stripper pole in the living room.
And Monday, Craig feeling jet-lagged and off work, we moved the rest of our life into the big house, and spent too too too much money getting the ephemera one needs to outfit a house. By 7pm we were mainly finished* though the internet is still not connected (sob).

I told you all of that by way of explaining the lack of photographic evidence of our time in Japan and the lack of yet another 365 update**.

Also! The internet and my disinclination to research (crazy, I know) led to the following items being USELESS in Japan:

1 pair of jeans. 2 turned out to be sufficient
My scarf, hat, and gloves
My hairdryer. My straighteners could deal with the voltage difference but my hairdryer was ridiculously underpowered.
1 pair of shoes. I made do with my boots on days we had to travel, and 1 pair of plimsolls. Fancy flats were superfluous.

It turns out that in Japan, the autumn/beginning of winter temperatures are somwhere in the range of 17-24 degrees celsius. In New Zealand we call that SUMMER.
It was, however, hilarious seeing everyone else wearing long sleeves & jackets & scarves while Craig swanned around in a t-shirt. I am eternally grateful that I included my blazer as a last minute addition to my bag, I could not have survived wearing my winter coat.

So. In short? we are home. Japan was amazing. Lovely. Incredible. We had a great time. Photos will be forthcoming. Maybe.


* We haven't even started on moving my books though. That's a weekend size chore.
** I forgot one day! Agony! I was going so so well. It was the day we flew to Japan where we left our Auckland accommodation (chez in-laws) at about 6am, spent the day on the plane, arrived in Japan and felt overwhelmed by it all, then went out with our friend & host-in-Japan, Tim, for dinner and drinking before crashing into bed just after midnight. Sigh.

Almost almost almost gone

Yes. Those are the bags I have packed for our darling little trip to Japan. They seem ... remarkably small. However I've gone over my mental list a thousand times and I have everything I can think I'll need for a 9 day trip:

3 pairs of jeans. 1 to be worn on the plane. What? they're very stretchy jeans!
1 pair of leggings in case I tire of denim clad pins
6 tops (1 white, 2 black, 3 coloured)
1 dress
1 skirt
1 blazer
A scarf, hat, and gloves because it's wintery up there
Enough underwear to sink a ship (or rather, to last 10 days)
Scant jewellery
Basic makeup
Hair appliances
iPhone and camera chargers
2 pairs of shoes
2 bottles of wine as payment for accommodation at our darling friend Tim's abode.

And yet - all of this fits into a bag that TECHNICALLY is carry on legal. But I will be checking it. I hate people who test the limits of carry-on-only. Especially when they use bags with wheels.

MY carry on bag is my little old guess handbag. It contains mainly camera ephemera (camera, extra lens, wide-angle adaptor, spare battery, memory card, remote) as well as my travel wallet, a small book (A History of Love by Nicole Krauss), bits and bobbins along the lines of floss and mints and hand lotion, my iPhone & headphones, a neck pillow, earplugs, eyemask, and a small bag of musk candies. I don't think there's anything else I need.

This is terrifying me. I'm not used to packing light AT ALL.
And mainly? I just really hope that anything I HAVE forgotten (and there is likely to be something. Last time? toothbrush. NOT THIS TIME!) they sell in Japan and is not break-the-bank expensive.

Now? my main problem is that the outfit I have to wear to Auckland and on the plane tomorrow is far far too wintery to bear wearing in this unusually sunny Wellington weather.

But I must. I'm leaving soon!

Rindercella

Rindercella from Eclecticity - Butterfly Creek Theatre Troupe Revue 2009

Week Forty-Four

Sunday
I walked walked walked in the sun and had a picnic in the park. It was lovely.


Monday
Labour Day, a holiday, I went out walking again (the sun was shining) and this time ended up at the Labour Day sales and coming away with ... a lot of underwear. And these old school seamed stockings.


Tuesday
After a public holiday there is always so much extra work to do. And as such, I stayed late at work.


Wednesday
I've been tracking my jean size in the same store all year. In January I didn't buy any because the size 14 was too small. And now? I just bought a size 10!
I think the last time I wore a size 10 was while Craig lived in Auckland. Meaning I would have been around 18/19.
(these are NZ sizes by the way)


Thursday
Creeped out by the Pigeons at the train station snacking on old roast chicken.


Friday
I bought a bag to pack for Japan. We're not going for that long and I want to pack as little as possible.
Then I got it home and realised it's only twice the size of my every day handbag. I may have over estimated my packing-light abilities.


Saturday
The plant that I am looking after for my baby sister has been looking decidedly dodgy ever since the painters came into our house. If it dies, I'm blaming them.


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There will not be a weekly post next Sunday. And possibly not the Sunday after that.
On Friday Sir C and I are winging our way to Japan (JAPAN!) and while I think we do get back in to Wellington on a Sunday, it's highly likely we will feel like death and I will have 7000 photos to sort.
But! I will still be taking a photo every single day so I can catch up upon our triumphant return.

Uss Missouri, Hawaii
August 2008


I thought this lady was horrible & rude because you were only allowed 9 letters for a first name so I put down "SarahRose" and she got all snippity about the double capital letters, even after I explained that USUALLY, when ALLOWED, I put a hyphen between the two parts of my first name. JEEZ.
So I took this photo intending to be all horrid only to find, once completed, that she had BROKEN THE 9 LETTER RULE for me and thus, again, I was both ashamed and Sarah-Rose.


Then we tried Dippin Dots because, like Fluff (tm), it (they?) was (were?) something I'd only ever heard about.
They were less delicious than I expected.


And our first real American hot dogs. I can't believe it took us this long to get around to them.


(don't get complacent. We followed THIS up with more looking-at-old-war-stuff)

Week Forty-Three

I just can't seem to shake this post-show exhaustion.


Sunday
On Sunday the weather was horrible and so was my mood. Sigh.


Monday
I missed a protest outside of my workplace. I have no idea who this Peter Jansen is.


Tuesday
Portable library! The Frankie Photobook was won in a giveaway run by the darling Amber of code for something.


Wednesday
I lovelovelove the badge which came with the plate Sir C ordered through Trixie Delicious for me.


Thursday
One of my legs has been coming up in (stress/exhaustion enduced) mysterious bruises. There are at least 2 more not pictured.
Thankfully I actually quite like my legs being all bruised. It makes me feel tough.


Friday
Most of these 350 posters in Wellington Railway Station make me roll my eyes. But this one I thought was pretty cute.


Saturday
Sir C packed his little bags and flew up to Auckland to play mechanic to his Dad's race-car-driver during the Targa.



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At the peak of my post-show exhaustion.

Week Forty-Two

Sunday
Sunday afternoons are for photo editing.


Monday
A home tableau before a dress rehearsal.


Tuesday
Sometimes, about a third of the time, I quite like the quotes that Bennetts bookshop choose for their sign.


Wednesday
I had to work late, went straight from the work to the show, then I found this cute little ninja drawing in amongst the glitter.
It cheered me right up.


Thursday
Costumes in the second act.


Friday
Ahhh the last work-show combination. I almost cried tears of relief.


Saturday
I've been wearing a lot of clunky silver jewellery recently.
And yes, that's one of the tops I tried on in Week 36.


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This photo was taken after catching up on sleep, while wearing makeup, and still I have luggage under my eyes.
A week of being at home for only 8 hours a night (5.5 hours sleep)? catches up with a girl.

I'm still catching up on sleep ...

Hiding behind my hair and an unflattering dress in the Hutt News
(article here.)

We open TOMORROW NIGHT ...

Alternative Eclecticity Poster by Rajeev
(because who DOESN'T love explosions)

Week Forty-One

Sunday
A whole day's rehearsal later, Craig drives me home in the rain, a stranger is jogging.


Monday
I had to stay late at work & missed my train. It was freezing on the platform and I had 30 minutes to spare so a regular latte (one sugar) was called for.


Tuesday
The girls at Portmans are lovely. They helped me purchase my lay-by jacket then return it immediately then purchase it again. Because the sale price was 45 per cent of the lay-by price.


Wednesday
The first penguin book of the week.
A copy of The Art of War given to me by my darling Petra as a birthday present.
I think I might just keep it at work.


Thursday
My birthday. I woke to birthday wishes from my baby sister as I wouldn't see her until the evening.


Friday
The second penguin book of the week.
Sitting by my birthday bag (marc by marc jacobs!) and a testament to how much I'm loving the show Bored to Death.


Saturday
Lingerie shopping with birthday vouchers and sale prices. Fate!


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