This morning was my final packing. My jeans & towel were still damp from yesterday's wash. Alison & I gave Jo our Christmas (I mean) Happy Whatzit Day gifts. We took a few pictures, said good-bye, & headed over to Uncle Walt's.
Jack had already arrived & was reading a book. Walt put out chairs around a table outside. Frank, Nina, & Tansy showed up. We got out the fruit dish that Alison & I fixed. Nina warmed up some big croissants & Walt brought out some different kinds of juices & some glasses. We exchanged gifts & talked a bit. I got some group photos and a photo of the ocean view from Walt's property. I asked for a group hug & got a little group hug from Tansy & Nina since they were closest to me. Then I went around & individually hugged everyone else. Aunt Mary is not a hugger & stiffened up when I gave her one. Frank gave me a soft look of good-bye & a big hug. Jack & Walt gave me a big hug too.
Alison took me to the airport. It's a small airport & pretty empty because of Christmas. We said good-bye & I gave her a long look of thanks for all she'd done for me. I turned around & walked out pass the guy that takes the tickets. He had to call me back. Silly me. Then out, up the steps, & onto the plane. Poor Alison was going to have to wait 1 1/2 hours after I left, for her boyfriend, David to fly in.
Today I'm flying to Christchurch & staying at Jack's house while everyone is away. Then I'm flying out of Christchurch in the morning to Auckland & then on to the US. It wasn't supposed to happen that way but the Quantas Airline cancelled the flight I was supposed to take the day after Christmas from Dunedin to Christchurch & then to Auckland in one day. Thank goodness Jack offered his house for me to stay at.
I arrived in Christchurch around 4pm & I took a shuttle to Jack's. I kept the business card of the shuttle & called to make reservations for the next morning. Aaaahhh, a nice quiet house to rest in, all by myself. Jack said he left food in the frig. He had said with a smile, "It's perfectly fine, I just cooked it up last night & it's been in the frig so don't worry". He must've been thinking "those paranoid Americans".
The phone rang & Jack had instructed me to answer it so I did. It was Manja, Jack's girlfriend. She asked if I'd like to join her for some Christmas tea at her mom & dad's house. I said thank you but that I had to get up real early in the morning to catch my flight.
I had dinner & was flipping around the channels looking for something interesting. Jack has about 5 channels. Then a vehicle drives into the driveway. I thought it might be one of the roommates that might have forgotten something. It was Manja. She had brought me a little package of cookies, strawberries, & Camamile tea to help me sleep. She just couldn't stand the thought of me having to spend Christmas day alone. I invited her in & we talked for an hour. She's so interesting & passionate about things she likes. We talked about the "Lord of the Rings" movie & she showed me an album she made up of the premier parade & shots of the stars in the parade & some beautiful "Lord of the Rings" stamps. She's going to send me some of the stamps when the post office gets more in stock.
After she left I got ready for bed. It was only 7pm & very light out but I wanted to get up at 2am to catch the early shuttle at 4. In Jack's room, the air mattress had been moved out of the way & a note on the bed said,
"No point in a soggy air bed when there is a real one to be had. Happy snoozing."
Jack
