seagulls, surf and surfies

Today was a day to paint, catch up with friends, then visit family. And while the fish and chips are being collected it is Blog time!

I am sitting where I can hear the surf, see the waves, and somewhere out there in wet-suits are my nephews, surfing. The birdsong is melodic; even where I am staying on the outskirts of the city the birdsong is more varied and melodic than in Europe. I don't miss it when I am in Italy, but I really appreciate hearing it now.

The kitten that thinks the best seat in the house is on the shoulder of whomever is at the computer is playing in my hair. The purring is delightful. Zacchi, you must learn to purr. Or to play gently with kittens.

I hear the surfers return. The fish and chips will arrive in a few minutes. "Oh sweet!" says the first surfer in, when I answer that Mum has gone to pick up fish and chips... the smile is wide, the sun-bleached hair hiding any hint of the ancestry that allows this surfer to compete in the Maori competition.

Surf boards and wet suits discarded, the kitten is now the centre of attention. It's a great place to grow up, coastal New Zealand. But for Aunty Kay, much as I love the place, three weeks is enough time away from the place I call home.

PS: Dad and sister might prefer to use plates, but for nostalgia's sake my fish and chips were eaten out of the paper, of course!