Global Adventures

It’s just over a month ago that I set off to Vancouver International Airport to board my flight to Honolulu. Two surprising things occurred to me. One I hadn’t flown anywhere since last September to New York, two, the last time I was in Hawaii was when I was 6 with my family!

This trip was going to be far different, two ultimate tournaments over two weekends, 5 days of total playing time and a whole host of activities to undertake in between.

It was by far and away one of the most active holidays I’ve ever had, I believe all up I had 1.5 hrs of relaxation sitting in a cafe reading and less than 1 hour hanging out on the beach which included 5 mins of lay down time after my swim to dry off and some frisbee throwing!
That’s what happens when you hang out with super go getting people like Claks (aka Jill Calkin).

In summary the trip went a little like this. Grab lift with new acquaintance Jill had made on her flight from Honolulu airport over the hills to Waimanolo on the east coast of Oahu Island. For the next 3 days we played with our women’s team `Empire Strikes Back’ made up of hot players from the Commonwealth (and two token US ladies plus one German). The Kaimana Klassic is held on Waimanalo Polo grounds and renowned for it’s high quality competitive teams interspersed with it’s ability for parties into the early morning and it didn’t disappoint. Camping was by the beach across the road. This year it transcended was the windiest yet and putting up Jill’s tent in the dark and wind on the first night was amusing and deafening. Needless to say the sleep quality for the next 3 nights was lacking.
The play from our team however was not and the group of ladies, some of whom I’d played with in the UK or in Vancouver or had met and played against at other tournaments around the world were just super high quality on and off the field. No egos, no arguments, just pure fun, positivity and good times.

If only we’d had more than 11 legs we reckon we had a good shot at the semis and finals. But alas even though the first two days we had many excellent wins by day 3 we had no legs left and it’s pretty frustrating to be up 8-3 against a team and lose 9-8 simply because of no gas left in the tank. The hardout dancing the night before probably didn’t help….

It was great catching up with many people I hadn’t even realised would be at this tournament, especially those North Americans, Brits and Australians. It never ceases to amaze me just how many people you do connect with through ultimate that stay in your life forever.

From there we spent a decadent night at a swanky Waikiki hotel care of the lovely Kylie O’Brien in her flash hotel room where those 7 hours were the most solid (and comfortable we’d slept). The next days Claks and I met Eric at the airport and flew off to Maui Island, picked up our hire car and did the 2.5 hour drive around the windy coastal road to get to Hana.
We did several stops along the way checking out the surfers, the coconut stands and some waterfalls and little hikes. I’d picked up the Kaimana flu as it’s called and proceeded to get sicker as the week went on – and I don’t do sick! That didn’t deter me from some great hikes with our team of 3 and witnessing some beautiful scenery and nature. At times it was like being back in New Zealand, particularly the tropical north island.
For anyone ever staying at Hana, I’d advise booking ahead. We’d been told there were no shops the entire drive hence stocking up before hand, but it also seems there was little accommodation that was easy to find or had vacancies. We proceeded to check out over 10 options before going back to the initial place which slept 8 (excessive for 3 of us) but was pretty much a whole house to ourselves. That wasn’t the best use of our time but sometimes you have to do the groundwork.
That night we found out the only restaurant in Hana was at the hotel and shut early so luckily the locals told us that there was some streetside food stalls down by the local basketball match and we munched out on cheap, tasty food and watched the game, only running for shelter when we got hit by torrential rain.

The next day we did an excellent hike for a good few hours in the Kipahulu Valley, through the bamboo forest to an impressive waterfall where we lunched with our homemade wraps and salads thanks to Mama Jill’s preparation and then proceeded to drive around the rest of the south side of the island on the unpaved dirt roads that rental car companies don’t insure you for. We stopped at a winery that had pineapple wine and used to host the King with lavish 5 day parties including gambling and balls.
The scenery along was just stunning as you were essentially driving with the volcano and the lava flows ingrained in the hillside on the right, and looking down to the sea and coastal towns well below on the left.

That night we camped up at the Haleakala Crater campsite, put on several layers and surprisingly it wasn’t freezing even at that altitude. We awoke around 5:30am and packed up before most others to drive to the summit and watch the sunrise along with several others who make the journey up by car. It was pretty amazing, being up there at 10,000ft and watching the clouds drift over the volcanic landscape as the sun rose.
From there we set off on our hike that was around 15km and which we descended first down into the crater, then walking over the undulating landscape to other craters knowing we had the steep climb back up. It’s odd when you hike and can see the entire time where you’re heading as it’s so barren below, with the hues of red earth. It reminded me of Total Recall when they’re on Mars heading down into the crater.

The last 2.5 hours of uphill were not my favourite moments. On top of my headcold and flu it appeared that I developed altitude sickness. I initially thought my cardio system was poor, but it struck me as I had to stop every 100m and could barely breath or muster energy to move that I really wasn’t in a good way. Luckily for me Jill (who’d motored up the hill and I lost from view an hour in) became my guardian angel just when I was at my weakest, appearing out of the fog and drizzle that had enveloped me for the last hour and promptly told me to put on more clothes, drink more water, have a snack and that she’d take my bag and guide me up. What a life saver.
Needless to say after we drove to the cutest surf chill out town Pa’ia and holed up in a ultra cool backpackers for the night, I was super thankful for good food, a decent bed and the chance to just chill out the next morning whilst they went off for a small hike.
Some snorkeling that afternoon and more sightseeing over at Kihei was followed by heading over to the Maui Hat registration, dinner and welcome party in a Hala (Hawaiian hall not dissimilar to a Marae in New Zealand) at the campground.

The hat tourney for the next two days was loads of fun, I was on the pink team and we had a great attitude and some good laughs and after losing the very first game proceeded to win the next 3. That night was some serious dancing had by all which Jill and I joined around 10pm after going to visit her sister in Kihei who had arrived for a vacation just the day before. It was bliss using their pool, spa and having dinner with them and relaxing. Lucky we gained enough energy to crash the party and own the dance floor later!

Falling into our tent at some early hour we awoke less than hour later to much yelling and an incident with a local beating up his girlfriend (that’s putting it mildly), and some of the Australian players trying to help her out which ended in driving the two Aussies up the road to see if she’d gotten away, realising the brute had got hold of her again and drove off with her and us reporting it to a local policeman who turned up to our 911 call. A little drama and lack of sleep on day 2.

Our team continued our winning steak all the way to the final where we suddenly found ourselves down 5 Nil and proceeded to pull all those points back which pleased the crowd before eventually losing to a better team.

That evening after farewells we took an impromptu trip with Tessa (over from Vancouver to celebrate her Mum’s birthday on a week’s vacation in Hawaii), Justin and Chris to meet a few other frisbee players at Little Beach where there was a drumming party going on with the sun setting. There were hundreds of people, some nude, some high and most having a great time. I took a walk with Tess to the waters edge and intercepted a frisbee being thrown by two guys who I quickly realised I didn’t even know and who were impressed I could catch and throw so clearly hadn’t been at the tourney. One of them was called Aaron and it was his birthday so he invited us along to an Indian restaurant that happened to be by Tessa’s condo! We had a really wonderful evening with Aaron, his mate Phil and a Swedish friend of theirs. Great food, good times and new friends.

The next day was spent catching up with those still around after the tourney, using their fancy hotel pool to have a swim and quick (and only) moment catching some rays before heading on to the airport with Justin and Chris. I got a phonecall just before boarding my inter-island flight that my San Fran flight was cancelled which meant I `had’ to party in Waikiki for one more night with the guys plus Brian, Jannine and later Aussie Paul who we picked up in the street. Turned into many drinks at the Thai restaurant followed by walking almost every block of the tourist trap town before finding a club to dance in and try to outdo the black guys who were ripping up the dance floor!

United airlines put me up in an airport hotel and on my final day I decided sitting outside by the pool, fully clothed and reading two books was the perfect end to my excellent trip.

I still don’t think I’ve entirely recovered!

It’s a funny thing, attitude, but I can truly say if you have it and can change it for the better than use it.

This morning I woke up tired, less than enthusiastic, aching from 3 days of excellent skiing at Whistler, and sore in places I thought impossible after compressing my skeletal system in some jumps I probably extended myself on a little too far. the fact that I missed my mouth completely when I went to drink some water in bed was a sign it wasn’t going to be my day.

The morning was spent trying to turn my mood around – a rarity to not be so optimistic but hey it happens. Re-reading responses from friends to the investor document I’d sent out didn’t help – even though I could answer their insightful questions they left me with some nagging doubts. The roller coaster of being in a new business was taking effect.
Talking to close friends on the phone around the world didn’t help either – they just said that my normal positive demeanour would soon kick in and all would be fine and were generally supportive but I couldn’t see past it.

A walk in the fresh air didn’t help either. So before I knew it I found myself showered and ready to face my first ever attempt at pitching to Venture Capitalists. In true Vancouver style I headed to a cafe in Yaletown and waited until my turn was up. Luckily for me I was given a free hot chocolate, and several people started networking with me which forced me to start talking. Start promoting FundRazr, swapping business cards and generally become enthused.
Thankfully by the 4th conversation I had a guy who totally drilled me about our business concept, pulled me up on elements of my pitch that could be better, things I’d mentioned that should be highlighted as they were worthwhile. Initially I thought he could lay off as I found it all too much, but then realised that, he was in fact helping me to think and act quickly and hammer home the key points that defined our business.

It was about that time that the Venture Capitalists from First Round Capital who’d flown in from Phili announced my name. That was the shortest but most intense 5 minutes I had. I was well prepared having studied their backgrounds and investment needs and interests earlier in the day. They were actually very friendly, smart, interested and probing in a natural way. There was just one financial question I couldn’t answer which bugged me. On reflection this was the first of many learnings and all in all a positive outcome. I expect I should be pitching a lot more to get better at it.
I wasn’t expecting to talk numbers on investment or get a positive response in that short time but it’s up to me now to follow up with an email and some more information to entice them and their general attitude was encouraging.

From there I caught up with Shaun, the original guy who led me to attend the entrepreneurs networking event where I met Daryl in my first week of life in Vancouver. Technically I owe him my current fortunate position. We headed up to a networking event where I continued to meet interesting entrepreneurial people and come into my own. I was a far cry from the Natalie I’d been earlier this morning.

I now have 16 business cards on the table beside me, all worth following up tomorrow and some very useful contacts for future work and opportunities. Who knew that a day that started off the way it did could turn out so well, ending in a drink and tapas with a lively bunch of enthusiasts.

I was also thankful for the friends who bothered to call me this evening to find out how it went, it proved to me that real friends are there for you no matter what.

It also proved to me that having the most awesome 4 days hanging out with a new group of strangers from the UK and being one of the boys, skiing Whistler, doing jumps, crashing and falling over a lot, enjoying some hot tub banter and general great times is an excellent thing to do. But bear in mind it sets you up to come back to reality with a jolt, so the best thing to do is put yourself right back out there pronto.

Amazing things come from pushing yourself outside your boundaries. That said I could still do with a massage….

I sincerely believe I’ve just had one of the best week’s of my life.

Whilst everyone was going mad, trying to drive through snow in a city that doesn’t know how to handle those conditions, I was enjoying the simple pleasure of being a pedestrian and getting to enjoy it in all its brilliance. Snow has a way of magically making everything look much more beautiful than normal. Plus it provides many comic moments including the hot looking Dodge that gunned it out of the driveway opposite our place straight into an oncoming car. The mayhem in our street before Xmas was like no other, with up to two feet of snow to navigate there was no shortage of drama.

And while others were doing chaotic last minute Xmas shopping, I was mooching around the shops when it took my fancy and finding some brilliant gifts for the close friends I’ve made here. With no family close by I had zero committments and felt remarkably relaxed.

In fact I found myself going from working 24/7 and loving that to socialising incessantly for 5 days straight with good friends and fun times.

Xmas eve was spent being European doing some pressie opening with Zara and Simon over champagne and smoked salmon. Xmas day I was out the door with Malcolm at 6:30am for my first ever visit to Whistler! And what a visit, blue skies, few queues, not as much snow as they’re used to but for me just a brilliant day. I mean it can’t get much better than skiing on Xmas day with stunning views and a whole new mountain to explore!
Met up with new found climbing and now skiing friend Jay and he and Malcolm took me on a black run for the first run of the day on my new skis which rock! We topped off the afternoon with a tasty frangelico shot and a hot chocolate primed with some delicious alcoholic concoctions. I could have stayed there all afternoon in that lovely apres ski mood, but instead it was off to Mel and Ash’s for Xmas dinner. With 13 people all almalgamating for one rowdy fun filled evening and a brilliant ensemble of food that came together so well. Turkey, chicken and ham and all sorts of other goodies and of course Malcolm’s excellent guinness cake and chocolate log

That was topped off by a group hot tub soak under the stars, surrounded by snow and singing crazy Wham tunes and other classy numbers for close to 2 hours, followed by playing Guitar Hero in to the wee hours – not exactly the normal Xmas formula which is precisely why it was so good.

Boxing day was skiing Blackcomb which had virtually no one on it, so it felt like we’d privately reserved each run for ourselves, despite the face freezing conditions on the chairlifts and limited visibility I got in some great runs and some silly crashes too. Topped off once again by a hot toddy and live music at Melvilles. What I love about Whistler is that everything is so close to the slopes you walk, ski or stumble on to it.
More guitar hero with Mel, Ash and Carly before heading out to a small bar Max Fish in the village. We got there when it opened and left when it shut. Not a bad effort, for me I danced the whole night away, including making use of the 4 poles to choose from……. and topped it off with sleeping in the lobby with Malcolm and new found friend Ben. Not by choice obviously but apparently hammering on the apartment door got us nowwhere, so thank god for leather couches to rest our weary heads and a fireplace to keep us warm.

Back in Vancouver the Boxing Day sale madness appears to have passed and I’m glad I wasn’t privvy to it, what do people actually need more stuff for anyway? That said I now have bedside lamps for my room purchased in a record breaking 5 minute shop.

I think even the shopping isn’t helping the retailers this Xmas, walking through Gastown a few weeks ago I saw the sign `Grand Opening Sale’ and figured times really were tough. That coupled with a guy selling a digital tv package streetside asking a customer:
“Do you like to save money on different stuff?”
To which he responded “Not really, no”. I mean how does one deal with an answer like that!

Crazy times indeed, I feel so lucky to have my wonderful place and be surrounded by great friends who are conveniently located close by. The pace of life here is so totally different to London you actually don’t need to stop to enjoy life, it just flows along with you.

Can’t wait for what 2009 has to offer, must go set some goals. It’s been some time, been having too much fun…..

Today I’m feeling a little worse for wear. It could have been the strong vodka cranberries I poured myself at a party last night or the fact that people around me recently have been getting sick and I’m just starting to get the effects.
However unlike men who `die’ from ManFlu I generally just ignore signs of sickness and it passes – all in the power of positive thinking (well most of the time it works).

So this afternoon I’m going indoor climbing with friends and assuming my body will relish the physical challenge of hauling my weight and considerable toosh up a wall and feel all the better for it. Given it’s only my second time doing it I’m sure it will be entertaining for those I’m with.

I’ve learned several insights this week and thought I’d share them with you in order of simplest to more intellectually stimulating:

1. A fir Christmas tree apparently drops the least pine needles, lasts the longest and looks so perfect (since they prune them here) that it almost looks fake
2. Mice have very little feet but can make some substantial noise (yes I think I have a roomate) and so do drains that allow water to drop straight to the bottom of a pipe from two floors up
3. Breakfast is so named because you are `break fast’ from the night before.
4. When your stomach growls it’s because the stomach walls are squeezing together to digest and mix food together that isn’t there!
5. Google analytics is such a cool tool that shows you a world map of people reading your blog and allows you to hone in on which towns people live in who access it – but don’t worry I still don’t know who you are….but if I did I’d know where you live.
6. It shows that my friends actually love me and do read my blog, however why there is only one person in Wellington, my hometown, reading it is beyond me – HELLO family
7. I’m better at figuring out HTML than I originally thought
8. Using PollDaddy to create and refine an online survey is much more time consuming than it should be and it needs for flexible functionality, but I think I’m almost there (so some of you expect to get an email to either complete a fun survey or pass it on to other people – you have been warned)
9. Vancouver may be consistently in the top 3 cities for standard of living but it appears it has many underlying issues and faults http://www.straight.com/article-124519/pickton-killings-reflect-our-world-class-woes
10. I recently met a guy on my networking journey who is slightly creepy but claims he’s normal even though he spent over an hour telling me about the mafia in this town, the druglords who control the businesses and other such things an idealistic lady is loathe to hear (but is not ignorant of)

So that’s the fascinating world of mine. Silly season is upon us and I’m enjoying discovering my new area of Vancouver. Hopefully I’ll soon know which drug dealers are best to do business with, which shops are actually a front for growing BC bud and where I can get coffee beans that are in fact covered with highly addictive chocolate….

On Thursday my life changed considerably. I took my luggage on a porter’s trolley, loaded it into Dingle’s car and drove over to my new home.

Yes that’s right, I have a base, a place to call my own and I absolutely love it. So does Zara, for the first 72 hours we stated to each other `I love our place’ over 30 times each.
The whole heritage feel, the fairy lights we’ve placed all over the lounge, the natural light that floods through the windows and the silver plated tray and tea set have made it feel like home. It’s the first place I’ve felt like making a home in for some time actually. I’m even going so far as to put up photos from my dear friends the world over!

Since then we’ve added our various Craiglist furniture bargains and those from the auction and it’s truly taking shape. The Italian bed I bought has been the envy of many friends who’ve come to visit. I’m even envious of what a super deal it was and I own it! It all fitted on the roof of Dingle’s car too and I managed to get the bedside tables for a complete steal.

Zara and I then went on an epic shopping journey, the same day, to various superstores to get the essentials which were of course Xmas lights and Xmas decorations, followed by various plates, a funky kettle, wine glasses and phones. It seemed cuttlery, pots and pans and, for me bedding, could wait!
The first night here we ate Thai takeaways whilst sitting on the floor and enjoyed the wine Malcolm had bought over, admired the pointsettia he’d bought as a gift which set off the dining room (with no dining room table) and savoured the carrot cake he’d kindly made with `Home Sweet Home’ as the topping. More photos here

I didn’t truly appreciate how exhausting the move was, I think the adrenalin high all weekend gave us momentum and even enough for me to attend some amusing theatre sports and my first ever pole dancing class – how much fun was that! Jill is apparently a natural born pole dancer. I think I have the potential to be and just loved it. The bruises on my knee and shin plus the burn on my foot from spinning to the floor too quickly were well worth it.

But this week I’ve felt pretty knackered and have decided quality sleep and clean eating is in order now. I did manage to get in close to 2 hours of tennis with Dominic today who has also just found a place to live right across from the beach and tennis courts in Kits. Who’d have thought that would be possible in Vancouver in December.

Now it’s time for me to start setting up some interesting activities around my new locale to get involved in – cooking, tae kwondo, latin funk dance and indoor climbing appear to be on my list. More importantly are some goals on what I want to get out of the next 9 months in this city which I know will fly by.

Open to suggestions people

I have to say this imminent recession is a buyer’s dream. Well at least it’s working well for Zara and I as we get overly excited about purchasing furniture for our heritage suite we move into this Thursday.

It appears we are both infecting each other with our energy and zest for making our new place the `home away from home’ we both crave. Much more so than we ever felt for the respective houses we both own.

Perhaps it’s the onset of winter and the fact that our place is toasty warm including a fireplace, lovely polished wooden floors and an easy flow from kitchen to dining to the lounge.
Perhaps it’s because we can envisage a perfect Xmas at our new home.

And perhaps it’s because we know we shall now need to have endless tea and cake parties after buying TWO tea sets tonight at an auction house. (Don’t worry we didn’t buy this style, and none of the pictures here represent what I bought but are from the auction website to give you a taste)

What an entertaining night it was. The last time I attended an auction was in Wellington with Mum for various antiques she was interested in. Before that it was when Dad bought `Tonawhai’ our amazing house in the Wairarapa on the spur of the moment, and before that it was when I used to watch my Dad in awe as he ran auctions for the church or Lions and energise the crowds of buyers (I later found out he used `fake bidders’ every so often to get bidding on certain items).

So tonight after waiting for some time to get thorugh the tedious and tacky items that no-one really wanted, I soon found myself on a roll and loving the buzz of bidding for items I wanted and some I never thought I’d ever end up buying.

For a grand sum total of $463 I managed to pick up some complete bargains, that I always got just before they passed it over as it hadn’t met the reserve, sometimes by mistake, shoving my hand up in the air thinking I’d missed the lowest price and getting it!

So I am now the proud owner of a lovely 4 drawer/2 door cabinet for the bedroom in great nick – he started at $200 and I got it as he said $90!
A 2 door oak cabinet for the dining room, needs a little TLC – $40
A Mahogany 1 drawer cabinet with heart shaped frame (for a mirror that is no longer with it) but still a great piece – $40
And a delightful Mahogany chair – $40 – real stunner that’s fitting with our suite

I also picked up a WWII medal – can you believe it, so sad it was even for sale, but an item I shall treasure.

I’m also excited at my purchases that have overnight turned me into my mother – a silver plated tray, a silver plated Tea set and tray, 3 SP dishes and one Bavarian porcelain tea set. All I could think of was how good they’d look on display in the built-in white sideboard unit in the dining room – am I getting old or what?

Zara who was doing hand signals of what was a good deal and what she thought was a dubious choice was overall impressed at the end of the evening. Miraculously it all fitted in two cars too.

It feels so satisfying buying all these second hand pieces for such great prices rather than all this new stuff that people just don’t need to buy and waste money on. Seems so materialistic and wasteful walking by shops selling all their new wares. Why bother to spend thousands on a new bed when I can pick up a fabulous Italian wood frame and decent mattress for just $125 on Craiglist and visit dodgey auctions where you find the true gems (and some mighty odd characters!)

And thanks to the imminent recession as I think I mentioned, all shops have huge sales on right now and so it’s a buyer’s dream, especially when setting up house! Well you have to look at the positives right?

So a slightly ambigious blog title if you haven’t heard of Maslow’s hierarchy of needs. It’s something I learned about during a Management Essentials course whilst at the BMA and if I cast my mind back probably in university too where theories are always embraced.

However this one really does apply, and especially if you live your life the way I do – leaving everything behind you’ve worked to establish on a regular basis to pursue new adventures.
Essentially Maslow concluded that you build your life up one bit at a time, from a strong base of basic needs – breathing, shelter, food right up to self fulfilment at the top. Each layer of the pyramid needs to be in place before you can go to the next level, if one falls away essentially you’ll wake up one day, like me last week and feel overwhelmed and unfocused – or potentially worse depending on the type of person you are!

Being a visual person, here it is:

And of course a better put explanation:

“Maslow’s hierarchy of needs is often depicted as a pyramid consisting of five levels: the four lower levels are grouped together as deficiency needs associated with physiological needs, while the top level is termed growth needs associated with psychological needs. While deficiency needs must be met, growth needs are the need for personal growth. The basic concept is that the higher needs in this hierarchy only come into focus once all the needs that are lower down in the pyramid are mainly or entirely satisfied. Once an individual has moved past a level, those needs will no longer be prioritized. However, if a lower set of needs is continually unmet for an extended period of time, the individual will temporarily re-prioritize those needs – dropping down to that level until those lower needs are reasonably satisfied again.”

I’ve had it happen a few times now and it’s like an `Ah ha’ moment as you wonder why you’re struggling all of a sudden. Last week it all hit me and I wasn’t focussed on work, rental places came up and then weren’t available, I felt lethargic, disconnected from friends and …well lost.

Then I took stock of 3 things:
1) That I’m in a new city, a new country, a new culture, with new friends, new work, and still no place of my own to call home.
2) It was a full moon (so what you say?). Well without fail during one I just want to run away, be wild and a true free spirit – and then it passes!
3) It was raining and dull – never a good combo
Whilst generally I love dealing with change every so often it hits me like a tonne of bricks especially if I fail to acknowledge it and know that it’s quite a lot to deal with for one person. I dealt with it like all grown ups do, I rang my folks and had a good cry (my once a year allowance).

And then miraculously, things just got better. Partly through personal effort and also thanks to the life just being wonderful like that. Zara came back from the UK and we looked at places to rent and found a fabulous heritage suite in South Granville – a central place to easily go east, west and downtown in Vancouver. After much indepth referencing we were offered the place, it’s come up early and we’re moving in next week!

Then Daryl calls me on Friday and we agree to take on two developlers and 20% of a COO’s time to get a prototype of the FundRazr application. This also means I get to use their office a few times a week in funky Gastown and sit with our new contracted friends. It re-energised me to get the business plan on track, the competitor info and the market opportunity into shape, and it’s done the same for Daryl. It also makes it more real, like this start-up is revving up.

I had friends appear on the radar that have moved to Vancouver so I felt lucky to have them back in my life, and I managed to chat on the phone to good friends the world over and reconnect. Plus some very interesting and stimulating business connections and friendships are developing here as well.

And of course with a frost on the ground this week it means snow is on its way and that means ski season people. I’m off to bargain hunt for funky retro furniture pieces for the suite. Can’t wait It’s amazing what people give away for very little or free – and that applies to time and generosity as well as furniture!

I wonder if there’s a link between the upcoming elections and the amazing costumes and creatures that came out at Halloween on the weekend? At the end of the day aren’t all politicians just putting on an act, dressing themselves up and pretending to be someone they’re not, whilst saying they’ll deliver on something they’re not capable of achieving?

I mean on my first Halloween on this continent where it’s truly celebrated in style, I dressed up as a cheerleader despite the fact that I can’t do the splits to save my life. Nor is it something I’ve ever aspired to be – a pole dancer yes but cheerleading no. And could I have pulled off a good enough impersonation of a cheerleader once I had enough alcoholic beverages in me? Well likely still no, although I would have given it a damn good try.

So how on earth does Helen Clark in the NZ elections happening this weekend think she can still convince people that Labour is going to take NZ forward into the future, and how does John Keys manage to oust someone who probably has a deeper voice than him despite being a woman. To be honest I have not followed the elections in New Zealand at all until my own mother mentioned John’s name to me and I realised how out of the loop I am after close to 3 years of being away.
So I have no idea who’s offering up what goodies of reducing this tax, and increasing that handout, and saving this many trees, and producing this many new jobs…..

And of course it’s all about Obama and McCain right now anyway who go to the polls tomorrow, its dominating world news and makes everything else Pal-in comparison (terrible attempt at a pun I know). I have this awful feeling that redneck America will blow the polls out of the water and prove them wrong by actually turning up to vote for the white man yet again.
A disastrous move in my mind but something that could well happen even if McCain winning is seen as a `miracle’ as people turning up to vote is what counts, and, and despite all those outwardly supporting Obama, will they, at the last minute revert to the nations normalacy and vote McCain – is America ready for a change in face and race?

And then finally the most of exciting of all is the West Vancouver Municipal Elections that I’m working at tomorrow in the early voting rounds, in anticipation for the real election on 15 November. Nothing like standing around being an Assistant Political Election Officer and slotting people’s voting cards through a special tabulating machine for up to 12 hours. That will be an experience I’m sure!