Getting the Urge.

Orion in our March skies. 


The Urge for Going. 
I awoke today and found the frost perched on the town
It hovered in a frozen sky, then it gobbled summer down
When the sun turns traitor cold
And all trees are shivering in a naked row
I get the urge for going but I never seem to go
I get the urge for going
When the meadow grass is turning brown
Summertime is falling down and winter is closing in
I had me a man in summertime
He had summer-colored skin
And not another girl in town
My darling's heart could win
But when the leaves fell on the ground
And bully winds came around pushed them face down in the snow
He got the urge for going and I had to let him go
He got the urge for going
When the meadow grass was turning brown
And summertime was falling down and winter was closing in
Now the warriors of winter they gave a cold triumphant shout
And all that stays is dying and all that lives is getting out
See the geese in chevron flight flapping and racing on before the snow
They've got the urge for going and they've got the wings so they can go
They get the urge for going
When the meadow grass is turning brown
Summertime is falling down and winter is closing in
I'll ply the fire with kindling and pull the blankets to my chin
I'll lock the vagrant winter out and I'll bolt my wandering in
I'd like to call back summertime and have her stay for just another month or so
But she's got the urge for going so I guess she'll have to go
She get the urge for going when the meadow grass is turning brown
And all her empires are falling down
And winter's closing in
And I get the urge for going when the meadow grass is turning brown
And summertime is falling down.

Source: LyricFind
Songwriter: Joni Mitchell
Urge For Going lyrics © O/B/O Apra Amcos

Click here to hear Joni sing this beautiful song about autumn. (It's worth the click)

Here in New Zealand as we slowly turn our face towards autumn we are starting to have colder nights. However news from the rest of the world seems a lot colder. I hope you are all finding ways to deal.  If you are, and care to share any strategies for this dealing, or, better still, good news, please comment below! 

- Kate.

Good Morning from the Town

It's such a pleasure to see the sky wearing its morning sunrise garb, even if the foreground is urban - my neighbour's roof. 6.59am. We have heavy rain forecast tonight so I might check the gutters today. Although I cleaned them only recently, the trees are shedding their leaves at a great rate. We have a a very rainy summer in New Zealand, including several significant flood events. 

Deepest Darkest New Zealand

 Exactly a year ago I was a place in New Zealand I have never been, despite this being a relatively smallish three(-ish) islands, and me living here for 60 (-ish) years. 

I will call it Deepest Darkest New Zealand, even 'tho' wet and wild Fiordland at the Southwestern part of NZ is probably a little deeper and darker. (Here was re-discovered the amazing Takahe, the very rare, thought-to-be-extinct, stumpy-legged, flightless, fat, evolved version of the common blue swamphen which is seen throughout Asia.)

Anyway, Arthur's Pass is one of the four main passes through the backbone of mountains that run up the South Island.  There's not much at Arthur's except a cafe or two and a cluster of small houses, a conservation information centre, and a petrol station. Roy and I were lucky enough to be offered the use of a house belonging to my sister-in-law, and that's where we were, exactly a year ago, fossicking in the dripping beech forest and, a little further up the road, in the pristine alpine gardens, while almost all the populated part of New Zealand sweltered in summer droughts and, sadly, haze from the Australian bushfires... 

Imagine moss everywhere, slugs, spiders, harvestmen, centipedes, beetles, moths, lichens, fungi ...  A cornucopia of things of great interest to my travelling companion Swedish photographer friend Roy, and I.

We had only about a week to go before he had to fly out (just beating Covid border closures) back to Sweden, the two of us having had from mid November - 3 months straight - travelling and bug-hunting. all over New Zealand from top to almost the bottom. Marvellous! Pull up a chair to this blog, as over the next while I'll retrace our steps...

Ohope 2

Nearly time to go home, but here's a few more pics from my stay at this gorgeous place.

From cloudy days ... 

... and high tides ...

... to low tides.

... and hot sun in the middle of the day ...

... when those of us with short legs have to ride a while.

... to soft rosy sunsets.

'Good night' from Ohope Beach, Bay of Plenty, New Zealand.

At Ohope Beach - Pet-Sitting Again.

Oh woe is me - such a horrible time I am having at Ohope Beach again. We walk on the beach twice a day, about a total of 5 km (3 miles) and the waves, sun, fresh air and blue skies ... oh boo hoo. Ghastly.

It's so bright it hurts my eyes so I have to wear sunglasses and a sun hat. 

With her little legs Poppy gets tired after about three kms, so has to ride. 

Too hot so have to cool off in the water sometimes. Awful. 

Too many smells that get renewed each tide.  Can't keep up! 

So few people we have to be vigilant all the time to catch the ones with dogs. 

Distracting small creatures' burrows all over the place. 

Sometimes it's quite windy and our fur and hair get in our eyes. 

When the sun goes down we can't see any more. 

Between the road and the beach there are garish bright  flowers 

Horrible rare sharp shells ...

We get so hungry we are really ready for tea time. 

All kinds of things going on.

I think in the last five years since I stopped blogging so regularly (I used to blog almost every day, my goodness, however did I do that!) I have started at least three times with the intention of catching you up, and myself at the same time, with all the adventures I have had. 

A while ago I received a lovely email from RWP saying it was time I returned!  Dear man, thank you for your loyalty, or whatever motivated you.  So anyway, here I am again. Back in blogland.  For a while, at least.

Here in New Zealand it is late spring.  The wisteria that drapes itself over my verandah is almost over its main flush of mauve sweet-scented flowering, and the pin oak, always the last tree in the garden to leaf, is tinged with yellowy-lime uncurling tender tips...

... while the huge old rhodo is in full-throated pinkness behind my studio, and trying to distract me in my painting by thrusting itself in the windows too. 

I have a number of commissions on the go.  One for CJ, a bunch of cherries, is waiting for cherry season, (as am I!  One of my favourite fruits - yum) and two others for GB are going to be completed when I go soon to Ohope Beach next (soon GB!) to do my usual dog-sitting for a Scottish Kiwi couple (who since I have now known for so many years I count as dear friends).

Next year I have another trip to the UK, including the Midlands and, for the first time, Yorkshire, so watch out Ian and YP and Shirley! I am then farm-sitting in Suffolk, so that will be fun! And then it will be off to Sweden to visit my son, daughter-in-law and meet my dear little newest grandchild Ian for the first time.

Afterwards:  an adventure! My cousin Thea, daughter Natalie and I are looking for a good 5-day walk in August (in Europe) - all ideas welcomed! Thinking at this stage of the ancient forest in Poland. Anyone know anything about this place? Any other ideas?  Not too hot please.

That's enough for today.  So, how are you all?  What have you been up to? Please tell me in the comments.  I will come and visit your blogs when I can.  I am just catching up on a few urgent tasks that have been put on the back-burner as I've just been down to Hawkes Bay seeing my Dad...

Bye for now. 

Kate x

Botanical Paintings in Progress.

Hello everyone.  Many apologies for my month's absence from your comment box and blogging bin, but I have been busy painting.  I am now proud to announce (Ta dahhhh!) my participation in the group show 'South Seas Botanical' which opened a few days ago.  Those of you in Aotearoa New Zealand are of course warmly invited to see the show at the Zeus Gallery, Tauranga.  Those that are not currently in NZ, here are some views of my works in progress (w.i.p).  Next week I will post some views of the completed work on the gallery walls, and of the other three exhibitors' works too.

Dianella (blue berry plant).  The berries have not developed yet.

The soft hairy young leaves and small flowers of NZ Korokia 

Korokia

Colourful bacterial and fungal deterioration of Whirariki - Mountain flax
 (Phormium cookianum)

Whirariki - Mountain flax (Phormium cookianum)

Karaka - NZ Laurel (Corynocarpus laevigatus)

Karaka berries in progress - NZ Laurel (Corynocarpus laevigatus)

The very tiny karaka flowers and bud.

Karaka flowers.  Just putting in the first layers.

Tanekaha (Phyllocladus trichomanoides)

Tanekaha (Phyllocladus trichomanoides) wip

Puriri (Vitex lucens) with flowers and young berries.

Puriri (Vitex lucens)

Puriri leaves wip

Puriri leaves wip

Puriri flowers

Puriri flowers coming along.
The green moth is the 'puriri moth' Aenetus virescens, the larvae of which burrow
into the puriri tree and consume material before emerging as the adult.The adult only lives a day.

Kiokio - Palm Leaf Fern (Blechnum novae-zelandiae)

Kiokio wip