"When you get into a tight place and everything goes against you, till it seems as though you could not hang on a minute longer, never give up then, for that is just the place and time that the tide will turn." -Harriet Beecher Stowe

See this seagull?  This here is the illusive New Zealand Charm Seagull.  Named so (by me) for its good luck powers.   As soon as I took this picture, the seagull winked at me and I waltzed into an interview and... got a JOB!!!  As promised, here is my job victory dance:

I am the newest waitress at The Starfish Cafe and I start tomorrow.  The owner was so sweet and told me to show up Wednesday and we'll "give it a go."  Let's hope my next blog doesn't start out "10 Things Not to Do Your First Day Waitressing."  It's a medium-size cafe on the beach with an awesome view.  Score.

Over the last few days the sun has finally come out as spring starts.  It's amazing what a little vitamin D will do to your mood, as well as make Brad and I want to creep a little further out from the CBD and explore some new areas around Dunedin.  For example, it turns out that 15 minutes walk up the hill is a village called Roslyn that is totally adorable and has a sweet view of the harbor and ocean.

Also, we checked out The Dunedin Chinese Garden.  It was built for a cool $14 mill in Shanghai and brought to Dunedin in pieces.   Sadly the fish were hibernating (my childhood goldfish Dina never hibernated, lazy kiwi fish...) so you couldn't see them, but it was still a cool stop.

Meanwhile in "The Octagon" they still want to trick us into thinking it's winter.  This past Saturday they trucked in loads of snow and built a temporary ramp for skiers and snowboarders for the Rail Jam.  The grand prize was worth $20,000 so there was some decent talent that showed up to do some tricks.  On the other hand, there were some terrible, terrible contestants which led to hilarious spills.  Check out Brad's blog to see his latest video which includes some of the best wipe outs.

"This tree has teeth!"

Me: "I hope this poor kid is getting paid well." Brad: "You know he volunteered."  And here come the snowballs...

Needless to say, I'm super pumped about starting work tomorrow.  While unemployment has been, well, glorious, I'm glad to once again be contributing something to society.  That something is food and coffee.  Plus, money in my pocket means that instead of going home broke, tail between my legs, I get to stick around for stuff like this:

Trivial Pursuit

Things like Craig eating Fruit Loops from a pot make me feel like I'm living in a dorm for adults... love it.

Our fave movie theater, The Regent

First Church of Otago

Yep, Dunedin's still hilly.

He is just so sweet.  Brad looks kind of cute too.

Careful Pinocchio!

Iced coffee + the beach + a floral print bus stop = heaven

I'm off to bed, I have a big day of NOT doing stupid things at my new job tomorrow.  Wish me luck.

"See, I just don't know where it stops! Where is the line between food and insect?" -Karl, "An Idiot Abroad"

I thought I'd take a moment to talk about the food in New Zealand.  Overall, pretty similar to the US in that it's a mix of foods from all over.  There are lots of Italian, Asian, and Indian restaurants, and you have your McDonalds and Burger Kings spattered around the main streets.  There's a lot of lamb and fish, and pumpkin is really popular.  Also they take their coffee very seriously, although it's all espresso-based, and the cheapest espresso machine I saw today was $300.  I'll stick to my $8 coffee press thank you very much. 

The grocery stores are easy to navigate, but they tend to have a different name for everything, which has gone from charming ("Oh how cultural, a sweet potato is called a 'kumara' here") to rather tiresome ("WHAT DO YOU MEAN YOU DON'T KNOW WHAT A 'ZUCCHINI' IS?!" -me to shaking pimply-faced produce boy).  I think what I miss most food-wise about home is a good old fashioned cheese pizza.  They make them, but it's just not the same.  How much do you think Nima's charges to deliver overseas?  I would kill for a slice.

Here are some of my most shocking and bizarre food findings in the Dunedin area:

I'm sorry but wtf are rice "bubbles?"  And when did Snap, Crackle, and Pop go all Pixar on me?

I know I've posted a picture of a frozen flounder before, but I couldn't help myself.  Anything with 2 eyes on one side of it's head does not belong in the frying pan.

That.  Ain't.  Right.

 

 

"Duuuuck Chins!  Getcha fresh duck chiiiiiins!"

If this bag of pork cracklings was an isolated incident I wouldn't have posted it, but I have seen multiple instances of perfectly sane looking kiwis snacking away.  For shame.

Brad and I caught wind that there's a Pizza Hut in Dunedin, so if anyone asks for me tell them I'm face down in an extra cheese personal pan eating my way to freedom.

"The future lies before you, like paths of pure white snow. Be careful how you tread it, for every step will show.” -Author Unknown

I've been waiting to blog so that this could be about my new job, at which point I would post pictures of me dancing happily around my room while shouting, "I have a job!  I'm NOT a failure who can't sell a muffin!  I don't have to leave Dunedin!"  However, if you scroll down you will not find these pictures (not authentic ones, anyways).  Dunedin has been a harsh mistress of joblessness.  I had a promising interview at a cafe, but as luck would have it, it's snowing again and the city has shut down.  The return call from my interview stating, "Liz you have the job.  In fact, we were so impressed at the interview that we're turning the company over to you and buying you a house," will have to wait.  Sigh...

Snowy view from our balcony

Looks inviting, eh?

Snow covered Otago Peninsula (with my fave Dunedin house in the foreground)

In the midst of the city-stopping 3 inches of snow I've been a little creative in entertaining myself.  Quite frankly, the locals have been doing a pretty good job of entertaining me as well.  Last night I heard a rumbling and looked out my window just in time to see someone legitimately skiing down my street at 1 am.  On the way home from dinner, we saw three guys "sledding:" one with a snowboard, one with a boogie board, and one with a frying pan.  In addition, we recently discovered a rather bad-ass playground (the kiwis do NOT mess around) up the street which includes a batman zipline:

Craig

Flo

Please note Brad doing a death-defying kart wheel, Flo nearly missing his head

Do you see the opossum?

Opossum #2

We've also been doing the following to amuse ourselves:

Dancing with coins

Attacking coins

Eating snow

Laughing at funny ads

Getting pranked by Rich

...and scrubbing cheap lip gloss off of our hands.

I just noticed that my posts and pictures have gone from whale's tails and breathtaking scenery to me karate kicking a window ad.  Okay, what can I write about that will make my life sound exciting and whimsical... I'm reading books!  Nope.  I went to a casino, but didn't play anything.  No, that's lame.  Okay, I saw a super crappy film festival film!!  Oh, that's not cool at all.  I think I'll take pictures of the dance I'm going to do when I get a job.  It looks a little something like this:

Maybe I should try to find a gig as a choreographer.  Anyone know the cure for cabin fever?  This storm is supposed to last until Thursday...