Sunday Bliss

Look at this, me posting twice in a week.  What has happened to bring this on?  Domesticated life, vacuuming, mopping, washing, and generally hanging round the house on a lazy Sunday afternoon enjoying the sunshine when I can.

The reason for this brief post, well brief for me, is to inform you all to visit NPR.  Yes, NPR.  Why?  Because there is a plethora of music there, including my absolute favourite - live music.

I'm a sucker for anything recorded live.  Partly because for me, that's when you can capture the passion, the soul, the imagination of the artist and their music.  So go.  Hunt, trawl, and enjoy the fascinating vault it beholds.

It even has Liam Finn amongst the gems.  Go.  Now.

Searching

Another week is coming to a close, and time seems to be slipping through my fingers. I was reminded of that when my sister was in town last weekend. I hadn't seen her in a long time, and so much has changed, for me, for her. But it was great to know that we could connect and have what I considered a fantastic weekend.

That was cemented come Monday when, after her return to Wellington, I was informed she went straight to bed. Partied too hard I guess. Will have to work on her stamina.

Time for some goodies on the blog again - visit The Black Cab Sessions. One Band. One Cab Ride. One Take. It's a hidden gem, god knows how I found it, but it's quite something. View. Listen. Enjoy.

For those scared, or to lazy, to click on links I give you Man Man (yes, it is a band, though the moustache suggests otherwise):

Pretentious as Hell

Live post for you, coming straight from the heart of Auckland city. In the VIP room of an exclusive club with one of NZ's top DJs playing.

Epic.

And my sister is here. Good times. The joys of iPhone mobile data transfer.

Busy busy week

This week has been a medley of emotions.  Not from me.  Rather, I've been on the receiving end of it.

First up there was a mediation, my first if you will.  There were eight parties including the claimant, and only 3 lawyers.  Most parties were pensioners, in their retirement, and overly frustrated at the system and the claim against them.  So needless to say there was a broiler of emotions.  Thankfully, I somehow seemed to be considered a voice of reason.  I'm not sure how it happened, but people listened to me.  Which makes me think I have my 'normal voice' and my 'lawyer voice'.  I can tell when there's a shift, but I don't know what triggers it.  One just sounds more assertive, more certain.

Anyway, I digress.  I wasn't prepared for the emotional onslaught from these parties wrapped up in this claim.  It was hard, but ultimately it's the best result for them in the long term: no trial, no uncertainty in the outcome.

As for the aforementioned arguing lawyers.  Well, Friday proved interesting.  A lawyer and his firm shall remain unnamed, but he tried picking a fight with me over emails between the tribunal and other parties.  It was over a confidentiality issue.  I remained calm, and professional.  He digressed and took things to a personal level.  Not what I would expect from a partner in a firm.  The good news though: I got what I wanted, and he was politely demonished by the tribunal.  Wonder if his actions will have any professional repercussions.

And now, it's the weekend.  Thank heavens.

Sunshine

I had the chance to show Auckland to a visitor. It was refreshing to be able to demonstrate my limited knowledge of some areas and know that my alien eye had seen similar things. It was also a chance to simply use my new spangly camera.

So what follows are pictures from in and around the Auckland Domain. It turned out to be quite a stellar day following the monsoon unleashed on those of us longing for an inner city weekend escape. It was quite a surprise, and something rather different to the night that quickly followed. Namely cocktails and Sing Star. Nothing like alcohol to lubricate the vocal chords or lull you into a false sense of security only to come crashing down when the recording is played back.

High and Dry

The photo to your left is a dry dock for boats. Somewhere the overwhelmingly wealthy store their boats in a valet fashion. Thirty minutes notice and you can have your boat fuelled, primed, polished and ready to go complete with a picnic lunch if you so wish. The good life I guess.

Anyways, I have that photo simply because I had the enjoyable experience of being invited along to a random party there. I was simply told to come dressed nicely and expect women. Lots of women between the ages of 20 and 50. I wasn't told it was a 21st birthday party, so the ages were spread to either end of the spectrum.

Beyond that surprise, there was a definite pleasant surprise in that Nathan Haines was playing. Apparently he knew the birthday girl and her family really well. So that was a fantastic surprise and one that never lost its astounding factor. In any event, Friday night went quite swimmingly despite my initial trepidation.

What else is new? I discovered that the most common response to my answer that I take the train into work every day is "So you don't drive then?" To which an even more bemused look is given when I reply that I do drive, I just don't have a car in Auckland and am surviving with the upmost happiness in experiencing only the congestion of the footpath. Really. Seriously, it's like I'm some distant relic to these people, or they're quickly calculating whether I'm just a suspended driver. I suppose I should take it as a compliment when everyone assumes that I earn enough to support the insatiable appetite of an automotive.

More notes on work - it looks like I will be busy as ever, including an impending week of hell/irreplaceable experience coming up in October. I have 4 mediations in the space of 5 working days. Which is a boon and a curse, in that mediations require an unsurpassable amount of preparation and can take anywhere from 4 hours to 14 hours. The upside, or downside all things considered is that I have 3 out of 4 mediations outside of Auckland: two in Christchurch and one in Wellington.

Chances are I might even get a weekend in Christchurch due to the two mediations there falling on a Friday and Monday; in fact the supervising senior isn't adverse to the idea of skiing on Mt Hutt for that time. Excellent.