We did something that we rarely do - threw a real party. Since I turned 45 on my last birthday we wade it a "45"s rock 'n roll party I dug out my 300+ collection of 45s and people brought theirs along for non-stop playing. While the noise was blaring we had three continuous R'nR games going. The best part was having all of my friends together at one time. Now I have to wait for my 78th birthday - I have a couple of those old records waiting for a spin.

We then saw most of those people again over Christmas period, which is always a good time outside in the sun and at the beach in good old Kiwi fashion. Got a lot of good surf in this past summer. Didn't plan it this way on purpose but we seemed to make a lot of major purchases around Christmas time. I got a weight set and an exercise bike to go with my rowing machine. Every now and then something new arrives in NZ and everyone buys one. This past year dehumidifiers came and we have one - it is a real blessing as it rains six months and things get damp. Then in time for Christmas came WAFFLE makers. Yes, up until now we had the only waffle iron in the country, having brought it with us when we last moved here. No one here knew what a waffle was. David would make them for his friends as a special treat. But now every mother got one for Christmas. And the current hot item is window air-conditioning units. Doesn't get that hot here but in true yuppie fashion the rich must get a couple for their house so they can be one up the Joneses.

The big item however has to be the computer. Poor David had to go without one for a year. But we bought the biggest and best available at the time and this put him light-years ahead of his friends in power and ability, making him a big man in their' eyes. He is taking computing classes at school again this year and it comes in useful for that, but most of the time he is playing games. I rarely touch it.

After one year of no work I hadn't improved healthwise. In fact, was worse. So I decided to try to tackle nutrition, a main theory being that yeast and sugar cause a breakdown in the gut which in turn leads to a weakened immune system. So for six weeks I was on a pretty restrictive and healthy diet. I didn't necessarily feel better but I lost ten pounds and felt good about what I was doing. I actually like oatmeal now.

The highlight of our summer was our trip, with the Whites, to Rangitioto Island. Have been living here on and off since 1973 and have always said one day we will do it, but never did. I decided that this was the summer and we did. Auckland has about 50 volcanic cones and seven are very large ones. We have climbed three of them for some spectacular views. But the most majestic of them all and the main landmark is Rangitoto. It towers above the others and it is set in the harbor. No matter where you are around for 50 miles you look for R. to get your bearings. So one morning we took a rickety old ferry for the half-hour ride to the island. The whole island is lava flow with native trees making forests. Last explosion was 600 years ago. We spent a couple hours hiking to the peak. Stopped on the way in a grove for a picnic lunch and explored caves. The climb was well-worth the effort. Sheer awesome views in any direction. On the way down we split. I went with the older kids to a second island that is connected at low tide. That meant that we had to double-time march a three hour trail along the coast to get back in time to catch the boat. Had such a good time that we plan on doing another island next summer.