Deb and I are in Rotorua for her to attend a conference and me to lounge about sightseeing. Staying at a fairly fancy hotel (Novotel) with its own free thermal spa pools. A lovely way to warm up before bed.
Lake Taupō from the car as we whistled past on the way to Rotorua on our first road trip with the EV. 🚗
Our range anxiety
was allayed with charging stops at Mangaweka, where we had lunch and Taupō where we had desserts at an excellent bar called Plateau.
Around 0720 a fuel tanker rolled a few Km north of Waikawa Beach. In spite of detours, that effectively closed the road so traffic north and south has been a nightmare all day.
It's taking Deb ~3.5 hours to get home from Wellington (a 1.25 hour trip) because of backed up traffic. Photo from FB.
Persistence finally paid off. In about 15 minutes this morning, between about 0545 and 0600, I saw 10 meteors from the Eta Aquariids — two streaks and 8 flashes.
It was very moreish, but also very cold and a cup of tea was calling…
I found Cliff Diver: A Detective Emilia Cruz Novel by Carmen Amato to be a tough read. 📚
The setting is drug cartels, police and official corruption, sexual assault and other grim crimes.
I found myself reading only in the day, saving something more anodyne for before bed. Probably won't read more.
Today's beach find: this fishing hook with 3 rusty barbs. It was tangled in some weed just waiting for a horse, dog or barefoot kid to step on it. Hooray for my trusty Swiss Army knife to help remove it from the ball of weed.
OK Pacific Wave Appreciation Society — some gentle Waikawa Beach waves to start the day. 🌊
North Yorkshire Council to phase out apostrophe use on street signs:
"I think we should be using apostrophes.
"If you start losing things like that then everything goes downhill doesn't it?"
Love it! Those nebulous and un-pin-down-able things
will go downhill without apostrophes. Runaway S
es! 😆
Solving a 30 year old cold case is actually very hard — Murder in the Parish (DI Hillary Greene Book 20) by Faith Martin 📚:
Thirty years ago, two days before Christmas, the much-loved Reverend Keith Coltrane was hit over the head and left to die inside his own church. The killer was never caught.
Another enjoyable read in the series — Malice in Tarnished Spaces: (The Pegasus Quincy Mystery Series Book 6) by Lakota Grace 📚 :
When Pegasus Quincy, sheriff’s deputy, steps into the leaky rowboat to investigate a murder at a mysterious artists’ colony, her troubles have just begun.
Yesterday we drove to Palmerston North and watched the excellent movie The Great Escaper starring Glenda Jackson and Michael Caine. 🎥
It was very nuanced, layered and moving.
Based on the true story of 89-year-old British World War II Royal Navy veteran Bernard Jordan who "broke out" of his nursing home to attend the 70th anniversary D-Day commemorations in France in June 2014.
This morning there were 5 Black-fronted dotterels in the estuary.
Black-fronted dotterels are … recognisable by the striking Y-shaped black plumage on the chest contrasting with white plumage above and below, and a conspicuous black stripe through the eye that extends back to the hind neck.
Just before dawn today, with clear skies, a bit of a frost and mist over the ground.
A whole show dedicated to the latest science around our canine companions
I'm looking forward to listening.
Someone on Micro.Blog mentioned the iCab web browser recently. I used to use that years ago. Just paid for a licence. 😁
Bonus: Apple Pay actually worked on my Mac!
Counting on my fingers against the Topic
For the last week my mind has been preoccupied by a Topic. I don't want it to be.
When I walk I like my mind to be free-spirited, bopping around loosely from one idea to another. That's healthy.
Yesterday and today while I was walking Topic kept intruding. Entirely unwanted.
But I've found a tactic that really helps me. As I walked I touched my thumbs to each finger on the same hand in turn, index finger first, and counted: 1, 2, 3, 4. Easy.
Then I started with the little finger. Still easy.
Then I counted up then down on the one hand: 1, 2, 3, 4, 4, 3, 2, 1. That was actually a little harder.
Next I tried counting up, then down without doubling the end fingers: 1, 2, 3, 4, 3, 2, 1, 2, 3, ….
Hmm, suddenly I was unsure if 4 was followed by 3 or not. Finally I reversed the direction of travel.
These tricks totally occupied my brain and Topic couldn't get a purchase. Hooray!
This all reminded me of when I started learning line dancing and my first discovery was that I could count to 1!
Perhaps this trick can help you sometime if you're out for a walk and a Topic keeps bugging you.
And here's a bonus photo of a slightly overexposed Pied Stilt from today's beach walk.
It was a beautiful morning when I went for a walk in the bush at Papaitonga.
We had over 18mm rain last night, and there was probably much more in the hills. Which will be why there are clumps of river weed near the river mouth this morning.
And my other beach find — a little 5-armed starfish.
