Easter
Tuesday April 22, 2014
Sitting in Auckland Airport waiting for the cleaners to clean the plane. It's been a great Easter, as usual, seeing family and friends before my trip to Malaysia. Just catching with people, playing 7 Wonders and digital darts, watching the Lego Movie, sharing meals and having a good yarn is incredibly satisfying and fulfilling.
As usual, plans in Malaysia have started filling up already. I've also booked flights to Singapore so that should be cool too. It seems like there isn't a lot of time but I will definitely be making the most of it and seeing as many people as I can. Also food. Eating all the food. I am looking forward to the food.
It appears the excitement of travelling has finally hit. Wheeeee!
Posted by Jeremy at 1:14am on Tuesday April 22, 2014 :: 0 comments :: 
Excitement Intensifies
Sunday April 13, 2014
The excitement of going on holiday is often stifled by things tying you to the "real world". It's been terribly busy at work, trying to plan for the three weeks I'm away as well as finish Flick Kick Football Legends v1.2 (iOS version is now out on the App Store, whee!). It hasn't particularly hit me yet, but I'm planning to do some packing this evening and hopefully that will remind me that, hey, you're going on holiday and the plane tickets are free, and you're going to have a good time seeing family and eating to your heart's content. That's plenty to be excited about. It's time away from work, I'm going to relax and enjoy the three weeks away and I'm not going to let anything spoil it.
They still haven't sorted out my domestic flights to Auckland though, but if they can't get me flights up before Easter, I'll just use my air points to buy a ticket back on Good Friday or something. It's been quite a hassle trying to correspond with MediaWorks and Malaysia Airlines over this, but I guess I've been pushing the limits and have been quite fussy over the terms and conditions of the prize.
I'll shut up now.
Posted by Jeremy at 1:23am on Sunday April 13, 2014 :: 0 comments ::
The Best and Worst April Fools Joke Ever
Monday April 7, 2014
Last Tuesday on April 1st, Google pimped their Google Maps app for mobile with catchable Pokemon scattered throughout the world. I jumped on that bandwagon so fast and by the end of the day, I had successfully caught 150 of the Pokemon they'd put into this little April Fools joke. But I soon became aware of Mew's existence somewhere in the Amazon and it was another two days of searching and staring at Reddit before the elusive Number One Five One finally presented itself deep in the forests of South America.
Whee.
It's been a pretty busy weekend, starting off with a murder mystery at the Carter Observatory. Aboard the "International Space Station", we stumbled upon a grisly scene - the owner of the Solar Flare laboratory was found dead from strangulation and asphyxiation! It was a most enjoyable night, with canapes and fine wines to be had, and some interesting people to hang out with for a few hours.
Mat was down in Wellington too and we caught up with him at Ortega before going to Hashigozake for some drinks and Tiger for some karaoke. The night was still young and we ended up at Alice before finally heading home at 1am. Thanks to daylight savings though, I was able to make it to church on time, and caught up with Mat again for a gluttonous afternoon at La Bella Italia in Petone and Strawberry Fare soon after. I also met up with the Fine Dining Club at Charley Noble by the TSB Arena for a very fine dining experience indeed.
It was just a weekend of eating, basically.
Posted by Jeremy at 9:28am on Monday April 7, 2014 :: 0 comments ::
Back to a Grumpy Reality
Tuesday April 1, 2014
After my amazing bungy experience last Thursday, we continued a run of awesome activities around Queenstown with some horse riding up in Glenorchy, doing the Ride of the Rings route with Dart Stables. We visited various Lord of the Rings filming locations and learned about the history of the area - "Paradise", as it's known. Again, the scenery was absolutely stunning, seeing mountain, forest, river and sky around us as our horses trotted merrily through Mt Aspiring National Park.
In the afternoon, we did the Shotover Jet and went up the Queenstown Gondola and did some luging. On Saturday, we walked around the Queenstown Gardens and the peninsula by the Hilton Queenstown too, but because we had flights in the afternoon, it was a pretty casual and relaxed day. We got our last fix of Ferg Burgers and departed for the airport.
Queenstown was awesome. It was a short but incredible holiday, packed with fantastic sights and heaps of fun, adrenaline-pumping activities. The weather was amazing, and the only disappointment was the no-show of aurora. After a ninety minute flight, I was back in Wellington - perhaps the most notable aspect was being able to see Mt Taranaki from the plane as we were descending into Wellington Airport!
And even back in Wellington, I was busy - I caught up with Kiel very briefly at the Rogue and Vagabond before heading to Motel for Jen's birthday. On Sunday I was at church for an awesome sermon on hospitality, and the Chocolate Frog in Miramar for their famous Steak and Hollandaise, and finally to Evans Bay for Campbell and Linda's engagement party.
Yesterday, I received one of the best presents ever - Sarah brought back a Grumpy Cat plushie from San Francisco for me. It overlooks my desk, holding my Robot Unicorn Attack 2 Rainbow Flag (also from San Francisco) and pouring scorn on all those who come to my desk.
I also caught up with Andrew for a big meal at Ozeki before his big trip to Papua New Guinea. It was a tiring Monday but a bit of sake and some good conversations with cool people helped take my mind off things.
Posted by Jeremy at 10:29am on Tuesday April 1, 2014 :: 0 comments ::
The Cold Never Bothered Me Anyway
Thursday March 27, 2014
Last Friday, I played "Let it Go" (because I really can't get enough of that song) live, at work, on a keyboard, with one of my colleagues who had had some opera training. It went down pretty well I thought, certainly the live element and atmosphere made it so special. Would probably not do that again.
I was at yum cha with Wei on Saturday and music at church on Sunday (where I played Let it Go, again, during the offering, and it totally went down well with everyone who knew the song!) On Monday we were at Crazy Horse for some amazing steaks and finally on Tuesday it was time to head to Queenstown.
I saw the GDC contingent at Wellington Airport on my way out and had a quick chat to them before scampering off to the gate. It was a fine sunny day as I left Wellington, and all was fine until the pilot announced that the winds were too strong to land in Queenstown, and instead we had to land in Invercargill and take a bus for two hours.
Whee.
It was a mildly pleasant drive, apart from the lady and two babies behind me, but it was around 2pm when I finally reached Queenstown Airport and met up with my auntie and cousin. We spent the rest of the day wandering around town, getting some Ferg Burgers and Movenpick and checking out the lake. We had a pretty big day the next day...
We took a day trip to Milford Sound as part of this Jucy Cruise company. After a long wait for the coach to arrive, we went on our way to Te Anau, then Milford via some spectacular sights and fantastic scenery along the way. The cruise itself was amazing, just being able to appreciate the beauty of the Sounds as you're floating by. We were on the foredeck as the captain pulled right up against a waterfall - exhilarating! The gush of cold spray and the force of the water soon dissipated as the sun blazed down on the boat. It's true - every picture you take is a postcard picture. It was 9pm when we finally got back to Queenstown, but what a day.
While yesterday was more laid back and scenic, today was more adrenaline pumping, as I took my first bungy jump at the original bungy at the Kawarau Suspension Bridge. It was a bit windy and chilly as I stood on the edge of the platform, nervous as hell as I gawked at my surroundings. I didn't have my glasses on so it was kinda good that I couldn't focus on exactly how far down it was. The guys manning the equipment there were awesome though, I spoke to them about my job and tried to sell Robot Unicorn Attack 2 to them. Eventually I waddled my way to the edge and they counted down...but I hesitated when he reached zero! I took a deep breath and gracefully fell forward, arms wide open like a majestic eagle.
The jump is over so quickly. You don't really have the time to process what's going on. As I lay on the catchment boat, I replayed the last minute in my head and tried to remember what had just happened. It was awesome though, the slight free fall you get and the adrenaline rush of it all - I'd probably do it again. My bravery spurred my cousin on to go or her first bungy jump, so congrats to her as well for having the guts!
We spent the rest of the day enjoying the wine and cheese of the Gibbston Valley before heading up to Wanaka. We went to Puzzling World and conquered the maze, had a walk by the lake and finally headed back to Queenstown for some dinner.
It's been a long day but tomorrow will be even longer!
Posted by Jeremy at 11:22am on Thursday March 27, 2014 :: 0 comments ::