fried butter

last time i went to welly, i didn't think i would find any food fattier than fried cheesecake.

today i did: fried butter balls.

seriously, what has the world come to?

television

 

some days you just want to re-inact television.

(too bad we weren't watching "desparate housewives")

friends

the nz newspaper heralded the fact that a nz politician now has as many facebook friends as bill clinton. aside from the obvious question of "is this news"... i ask if this really means anything at all given the fact that the last thing bill clinton wants is a reputation for "the guy with the most school age friends"

book worm

it's been hard for me to pry myself from books this week. recently finished the golden compass trilogy and the da vinci code. in the middle of fast food nation and articles by john shelby spong explaining why christianity must change or die.

surprisingly, it's the latter two that fill my head with new movie ideas.

aviary :: terminated

my time feeding milk goo to native birds is over.
i can now identify many birds by their call and colo*ring.

sadly, they all have populations of 1,000 or less... so this info will be of little practical value.
--
* optional u

giving back :: check

one month after arriving, i submitted an application to volunteer at karori [sanctuary for native flora/fauna]

two weeks ago, i was asked to be a guide, but training starts after my return [august XX] to the states.

in the mean time, i have received monthly volunteer newsletters and invitations to karori parties.

three days ago, i got an emergency call to fill in for "bill" the next two weeks. thinking about all the postage they have spent on me i had to say yes.

every even day for the next fortnight, i spend four hours delivering wombaroo [milk goo] to four feeders spread around the massive center. i monitor birds with tags. i can identify 4 different birds by their call.... and i leave muddy... very, very muddy...

explorer :: species introduction

i hope to be remembered
as the man
who introduced wheat thins
to new zealand.

wanted a "healthy" snack for my cold and the supermarket disagreed with my choice of skinny grains.

mr. berrymore

inspired by flatty's skin diving for pauas [muscles]
today i foraged 90 minutes for 2 cups of blackberries
i asked and the deep, dark forest provided

the pie was delicious, as pies tend to be.

site announcement

new feature :: quiz
experimental phase AA44CC

try it out, directly to your left

lost

i walked the library and photographed every book with "lost" in the title. considering i only walked 1 of 3 floors, that people were actively reading books and that many were checked out... finding 5/1168 is quite an accomplishment... perhaps i found 95% of the books on the shelf.


on my journey, i noticed "life" was a more common book title. the catalog backs me up: