A week o' work?

Well I just spent a week doing the least demanding work of my life. Few hours of excel chart building a day, mixed with many hours rating music on my iPod, and plenty surfing o' that little thing we call the "internet".

My boss is bad ass though, Welsh born Kiwi who has traveled the world including being a military observer for the UN in Southern Lebanon. Need I say it, damn. She's down to business, but plenty of fun to work with - and the freedom to discuss my ongoing job interviews is a bonus. (By the way, plenty on that front but I must admit I'm paranoid to post much here in case my possible employer's have also heard of google)

So far, working in New Zealand is awesome. Folks are happy, educated, and not even remotely stressed out. Of course barely 8 hour days punctuated with multiple 30 minute tea breaks and minimum hour long lunches helps you keep your sanity. I loved that on Friday, someone literally rang a bell at 4PM at which point we all walked to a pub and started drinking (and I was paid for the first hour of that). Have I mentioned working here is A-OK?

Friday my American recruiter was nice enough to call me up and invite me to join him and is flatmates to Star Wars, which I must say despite my propensity towards the cynical, I rather liked. Planned on a good nights rest and early up to climb the volcano that stayed unconquered last weekend as it decided to rain all day Sunday. But about 3 am someone had a gran mal seizure outside my door - needless to say 2 hours and a ambulance later my early rise was punished. (thankfully the patient appears to be okay)

Nonetheless, joined this weeks group of an English and two Germans to climb two smaller volcanoes and had a good ol' time. Followed up a non-strenuous day with much coffee and cake on the sidewalks of Devonport in North Auckland. The night was filled with card games and plenty of red wine.

Today I bought a scooter! Whoo-hoo! It rains a lot here lately, but I won't let logic get in the way of my decisions. I'm sure I won't be able to contain myself from posting a picture in the near future, at which point I'll have to ask for nickname suggestions (for the scooter, not me on it). Later on climbed another volcano with a French and another German and overall, despite the lack of relative eventfulness it was a pretty swell way to spend the past couple days.

Hope your weekends back home are going well, just think at about 3 PM on Sunday - I'm enjoying my 30 minute walk to work on Monday. Well... if I can force myself from the scooter this next week.

Cheers to all you back home, nothing will be closed for Memorial Day here - hope you enjoy it back home.

(I promise I'll do something more exciting soon, so I'll have something worth reporting)