Kia Ora Guys

Can I start with a quick apology for the blog arriving in your inboxes yesterday,we had the most amazing thunderstorm here (more later) here and it knocked the router off so the computer didn't work ofr the rest of the evening,but you will be pleased to know I have it running again now.

We had a real cold snap overnight so my Monday morning started in the driveway in my slippers and pyjamas scraping ice from the car windscreen and getting the car warm for Mel. Because it was still cold Mel left a trail of exhaust smoke hanging in the cold air as she drove off to work and it seemed to mingle in with my on breath. I had a reply for a job offering me an interview but when I looked into the role deeper it turned out to be a job selling vacuums and not what I had originally applied for so I thanked them for their interest and declined the interview. I spent a few more hours sweeping the job sites before getting into the much more serious role of getting dinner prepared.

As we had the shortest day yesterday it was still light when Mel got home so we took full advantage of the mild evening and went for a walk.

Tuesday and Wednesday were pretty run of the mill days with my neck pain returning from 5 weeks ago so I had to take an anti-inflammatory to ease the pain in my shoulder. I spent a good 2 hours on dinner and it turned out to be a delicious lamb stew in red wine and peppers, definatley a recipe we would be having again....

Thursday started off really promising when my cellphone rang and it was the council asking about a job I had applied for. It caught me on the hop and it was only then that I realised I was in the middle of a phone interview which got my heart pumping...

After answering the questions as thoroughly as I could,I politely thanked them for their interest and hung up,quite excited. It was only Thursday but my mate Doug popped his head over the fence to say shopping was out Friday, I was at a loose end so took him there and then. We had our usual cup of coffee at our usual coffee shop before hitting the store.

No sooner had we got back to Doug's the phone wnet again and it was the council wanting to move to Stage 2 of the interview process which was great news. I headed home to check my inbox for instructions on how to proceed. It turned out that Stage 2 was in two parts and invovled a personality test and an aptitude test. I settled down at the PC and got the first test underway which was over 150 questions but OK. Test 2 was the timed aptitude test involving maths and parking questions. It was funny doing the test as I felt under pressure with the time limit but finished it with 5 minutes to spare,and would have to wait until tomorrow to see if I had progressed to Stage 3.....

Depending on where you are in the world it would have probably been taken up with the news that both Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson had passed away,and while I realise the former was very ill, Michael Jacksons passing came as a big shock.

I received good news around 3pm that I had progressed to stage 3 of the job process and had been invited for an interview on Monday afternoon,so was really pleased. We had a walk into Devonport and decided to treat ourselves to Fish and Chips,even though the chips here are rubbish!!!!

We took them down to the beach and sat on a bench with just the streetlight above us for light looking out across the water with the city shimmering on the still harbour. Mel pulled out the vinegar and HP which transforms Fish and Chips to a new level and we munched our way through them, finishing just as the rain started to fall again. They were washed down with a few happy hour beers before heading home again.

I couldn't believe it when I turned my head this morning and the clock was reading 10:00, I did feel slightly better when I turned the other way and Mel was still asleep. It took us a while to get moving today,the weather was gloomy and there was a thick fog descending on Auckland.It wasn't a day for a visit to the Sky Tower that's for sure. As the day moved on the fog got lower and lower until it was only a few feet off the water.

Back home Mel helped me get prepared for my interview and we went through several scenarios,but had to stop later that evening for dinner.

I really couldn't believe the rain that was coming down this morning.It was still foggy and the rain sounded like rocks hitting a tin drum.I spent some more time on my notes while we watched Back to the Future II....

We set off for lunch at our friends house and arrived at 3pm ready for a Sunday Roast. The chicken was taking a little longer to cook than they thought but we had good chat to keep us going until lunch was served. The whole purpose of meeting for lunch was a get together of the newly formed group for English people living in Auckland and also we were on our way to see one of Mel's friends singing in the Gay and Lesbian choir at Auckland Grammar school later on that evening.

We were a little late as we had trouble parking and were ushered in to the back seats where we enjoyed a fantastic choir concert and everyone did a great job. I tried not to think too much about the interview tomorrow and enjoyed a nice glass of wine when we got home,my stomach was churning over and over.

I had a quiet morning around the house just going over my notes and wondering what to expect,my stomach was churning and I didn't really want to eat much although I knew that there was a physical test attached to the interview today so managed some beans and toast. I had a bit of a moment when I got to the city and couldn't find the building I needed but after a little investigation I found where i needed to be.

The interview went well and I had to take part in a role play too which was good fun and relaxed me a lot.The final part of Stage 3 was a 45 minute walk around the city with someone to test my fitness levels.At the end of all that I said farewell to my walking companin and hoped I would get a call tomorrow about Stage 4 of the process.

I know I haven't let slip what the job is yet but if I get good news you will be the first to know. I will tell you this much though it's a job where you aren't everyones favourite person!!!!

So watch this space.

Lots of Love

M & M
xx