Friday’s focus was home improvements. I was pretty tired and inefficient, so I wasn’t able to get all that much done. That said, I did manage to string up a line for some curtains. With a few S-shaped hooks and a turnbuckle from the local hardware store, I was able to rig a clothesline from the passenger-side handle above the door back rear corner, then across to the opposite corner and back to the driver-side handle. Now I just need to measure for sizing and get some fabric to cut up.
Rice and beans for dinner.
Saturday at 9am was the shop ride with the crew from Bike Culture. They had told me it was about a four hour excursion, and they weren’t kidding. It was probably one of my longest days in the saddle ever, and by the end I was probably driving the rest of the group crazy with my nonstop inquiries as to how much climbing was left. Luckily a Bobo’s bar, row of dark chocolate, and turkey pesto sandwhich was enough to keep me from bonking.
We stopped at a restaurant called Burger Fuel for lunch after the ride. One of the other riders named Mike (Curtis) kindly treated me to a grass fed NZ beef burger on a gluten free bun, just the way I like it. The generosity didn’t stop there. As the group was splitting up, another one of the riders, Alex, approached me offering to try out parking on his yard for a couple nights. He led me home to a beautiful house tucked away in a quiet neighborhood just down the road from the restaurant. To my surprise, adjacent to the van’s parking spot lay a beautiful sculpted pump track (which I later found out was professionally constructed by one of the Crankworx course builders). Alex introduced me to his wife Fran, 12 year old son AJ, and 4 year old daughter Audrey. What a beautiful family. They had taken in an injured duck they had found and were in the process of nursing it back to health. After getting me set up with access to the fridge in the back of the house, we set off for a frigid early-season dip in a local lake called Okareka. We stopped for ice cream on the way home. Sadly, we returned to find the duck had passed while we were off on our swim, so Alex and AJ dug “Crispy” a grave in the middle of the pump track. The Tague family welcomed me for a delicious dinner, and we took advantage of the last of the daylight playing in the yard with bikes and RC cars. I feel so well taken care of, what luck. Hopefully Alex and Fran can put me to work so I can feel like I’m doing something to earn my keep on this little slice of paradise.
I went to bed early to give myself a chance at being well rested for my first day at Zippy’s. After waking, I had a slow morning getting ready, and dove into town a few minutes early for my 10am shift. Morgan introduced me to the staff and showed me the ropes, and I was off. Having never worked in a kitchen I wasn’t sure what to expect. The job can get quite intense during peak hours, but the work is never too difficult. I washed dishes from 10-3:30, and after being dismissed I scoured the menu for my allotted free meal. The cashew chicken stir fry was delicious, and I treated myself to a chocolate milkshake on the side.
I drove back to my grassy parking spot and crashed out in the back of my van for an afternoon nap. When I woke up everyone was home and I came inside and petted George (the dog) while my post-nap daze wore off. I’m still pretty exhausted while writing this, but I figured now was a good time to post an update. Now it’s time to settle into the evening and make myself a late dinner (after my massive 4pm lunch) and get to bed for another shift at Zippy’s tomorrow! Over and out
My adventure in New Zealand 