NaNoWriMo 2011, Day 5

Wordcount: 2,193
Total Wordcount: 13,098
Percentage: 26.2%

Today was a slightly less productive working day. I got up early, did my usual early morning routine (shower, emails, forums, breakfast) then decided to bake a batch of muffins and wash the dishes. Why? Because I was meeting some friends for a picnic in the park and then we were going to check out the new central city shopping district. Anyhow, got out around 1000 words, then got restless, packed up the (now cooled) muffins and wandered into town early. The new shopping village is really cute - it's composed of shipping crates - and they are all brightly coloured. One lady commented that it looked like it was "made of lego":

Anyhow, after that I made my way to the meeting point and sat int eh sun reading for about half an hour before it became apparent that nobody was coming to my picnic :( But as one lass had been texting me to say she was running late, I decided to walk to her place instead.

Where we sat and talked for about 2 hours before walking back into town to have dinner at the best vegetarian restaurant in Christchurch - the Lotus Heart. We then parted ways - them to go watch things blow up and make pretty lights, me to come home and have an "early night" because I am back at work tomorrow.

Well... so much for that plan (it's just gone 11.30 pm).

Anyhow, to keep it short - in today's writing, Aurelia has been chosen to go on a patrol to meet up with a group of refugees that have just set up camp in the Stone Forest. In her party are her tree-mate, Astrid; a sensible blue-eyed black lemur; a hyperactive brown lemur; a Lake Aloatra Gentle Lemur and a Coquerel's sifaka who has proven to be not the nicest of lemurs to meet. She's a bit of a bully, to be frank.

Anyhow, no quote cos you've got pretty pictures instead and I need to go to bed.

Snow Day!

I've lived in Christchurch for around 18 years. We moved here in 1993, the year after the so-called "big snow of 1992" which was the regions heaviest in 30 years. It was so bad that they lost power, many farmers lost their sheep and an ice-skating rink's roof collapsed under the snow fall.

So, although we've had patchy snow some winters, the last time we had real, genuine, stick-around-and-make driving-hazardous was about four years ago when I lived at my old flat. It melted during the day and turned to slush.

Today has trumped that. I woke up early to the eerie orange-white glow of fluroescent lights reflecting off the snow. Outside the world was transformed by white. After a quick check of my car:

... I decided that backing out the long driveway would probably result in me running into a wall and I didn't fancy shovelling the whole thing only to skid on slippery, pot-holed* roads. So I thought I'd catch the bus.

No buses - so I decided to walk.

Now, I've walked to work on numerous occasions - it's a 5-6 km walk partly through Hagley Park. But walking in the dark and the snow was a surreal experience. For one thing, the streets were so quiet - a few inchworming cars slushed past me, and one bold cyclist, but the world was like a desolate white wonderland. The piles of bricks, the broken houses, all covered in a shroud of snow. My broken city had been painted in beautiful hues. Halfway there, I "picked up" one of my co-workers and we walked through the park together. Haunting and beautiful - the black of the bare trees a stark contrast against the white of the snow. We passed a lone skiier, taking advantage of the large stretch of (at that point) pristine snow. During the last stretch, we hit a full-on blizzard, which was not pleasant.

Arriving at work, there were not enough to run the business, and with fears of worse weather to come, we decided to remain closed. And thus we began the long walk home.

It was actually fun - the first half at any rate. Snowmen were being constructed by the sides of the road, and snowball fights - I even copped one from a passing car. Children out playing on snowboards. We watched a few people get stuck in the snow, and require a push and I was indeed grateful that I had not driven. After leaving my companion, things got worse. The snow started coasting down and the footpath was about 15cm deep - slippery and treacherous. By now my body temperature had melted the snow on my clothing and I was soaked as well. I struggled on, afraid to stop and finally, thankfully reached home and a change of clothes.

Yes folks, I walked 12 km in the snow.
How's that for a work-out?

You can see how deep the snow was by this picture of our backyard table:

But, Hagley Park was beautiful.

But will I walk to work in ankle deep snow again? Well maybe when...

* to be fair, most of the potholes have now be filled in, but the roads still dip and rise unexpectedly

Back in the Garden City

My husband and I were lucky. We were in Auckland when the big Quake hit, the quake that devastated our home city. Today we arrived home. Our home is fine. We don't call it Fortress Lemur for nothing. Our "casualties" were: a pizza stone and three bookcases (the books are ok, however). We have power and water. Others were not so lucky.

To raise money for those who are without power, without water, and sometimes without homes, I have created a fundraising blog: http://art4christchurch.blogspot.com in which you can acquire original art from me, and (with any luck) other artists by making a donation of $10 or more to the Red Cross Earthquake fund. Please check it out.

I have created two Art Cards of now lost Christchurch Heritage buildings for this page:

The Christchurch Cathedral - the spire and part of the hall collapsed, killing around 20 people.


The Timeball Station - the Quake was situated very near this charming brick building. Now its masonry lies in piles - its future unknown.

Earthquake in Christchurch

You may have heard that on the 4th September there was an earthquake in Christchurch, New Zealand, measuring 7.1 magnitude.

We were right in it. And it was FREAKY! It was a cold morning and there was a loud BOOM and everything started shaking. We bolted out of bed and jumped under the door clutching each other as the floor rolled beneath us like a boat and things went crashing down around the house (all our tall book cases fell over) and it just went on and on... For almost a minute. Then silence, puncuated by car alarms sounding all over the town. It was 4.35 am. We fossicked for torches and inspected the damage by torchlight before huddling on beanbags with blankets in the doorframes for about an hour before going back to bed. There are constant aftershocks - ranging from barely noticeable to magnitude 5.3. We took a walk around the neighbourhood - lots of fallen chimneys, and burst water pipes and a number of collapsed buildings.

These are the ones in my neighbourhood:

(some of these structures have already been demolished)

My family and friends are okay, and suffered surprisingly little damage. But several suburbs are under mud, with sinking houses and anyone living in an old brick house may face it being condemned. It's surreal driving around the city - most houses look fine from the outside, but then you'll suddenly come to a block of shops that have "pancaked". The aftershocks are taken their emotional toll. Noone has had much sleep, we're constantly tensing up and people are liable to snap at a moment's notice. In the last four days we've had well over 100 aftershocks. These range from barely noticeable up to 5.6, but it was yesterday morning's 5.1 that actually caused the most alarm. Because it was very shallow and a lot closer to the city, it truly felt like the big aftershock they've been threatening.

So please, send your thoughts the way of my humble little city. Not just me - I'm fine, but those that have lost their houses, their livelihoods. It is a miracle that noone lost their life.

Steam Punk and Starry Night

For the Summer Pick-a-theme I decided to do a poll in my Facebook to determine which picture I would draw next. The options were:
A; Still Life with Glass
B; Steampunk Guy
C; Tropical Fish
D; Dionysos (the Greek God)
E; Guy with horns

B came out the Unanimous winner. So I did it first. The rest will come - with time!
This was photoreferenced from this fellow here but doesn't really look like him. With obligatory vehicle and smog!

I've done my own take on Van Gogh's "Starry Night" I think four times now - over Hungary, over Aztec Ruins, over Slovakia - it was high time I did it over something in my own country! Gives me more excuse to try drawing architecture too. Good practise, even if the proportions are slightly off. The Chalice was tricksy!

Christchurch, the Garden City

Welcome to my hometown, Christchurch. Where I have lived over half my life. It is a flat city, built on what was once the Canterbury Plains. In the distance to the east, the Port Hills form a natural barrier. They are the remnants of a now dormant volcano, its crater of which has become Lyttelton Harbour. The central city is represented by the cathedral, a fine and elaborate example of English architecture now sadly shadowed by skyscrapers (small by Honolulu standards though) and surrounded by a sea of flat white tiles that mark out Cathedral Square. Around the city centre trundles a number of restored trams, carrying visitors to the Art Centre, the Museum or just on a regular old tiki-tour. The Avon river cuts through the center, providing a pleasant picnic spot and also home to the hundreds of Paradise shelducks that have now taken up residence here. Once a scarce sight, they now dominate the waterways and are really rather vicious to the other ducks. But, at least they're native! The female has the white head, in case you're curious. And occasionally, you'll find examples of Maori art, like the totem pole, rising from the little parks about the river.

This is my city, and I hope you enjoy my art.