87 Days

Since my last blog post.

A while huh? A considerable amount has changed in this time. Both for myself and the world. Unfortunately the world has taken much more of a beating than I ever will. Earthquakes, floods, tsunamis, riots and tornado's - which even managed to hit the big smoke of New Zealand. A crazy few months? Definitely.

Such is life I suppose, we're just more aware of it since it's hit home. The amount of disasters that go uncovered by New Zealand news still upsets me however. Do I believe in 2012? No, not at all. In my opinion 2011 feels so much worse as a result of the Christchurch earthquakes. The earthquake in Japan and the resulting tidal wave will have no doubt shown major coverage regardless of this, but I also think our disasters we have had here have in turn hyped any other disaster to come as a result. Don't get me wrong here, I'm not trying to take away the disaster and sorrow of these events and the ones to come as they were truly terrible, especially given that the ones at home hit us the hardest, but it hardly screams positivity with media hype. I just wish the hidden disasters of 2010, 2009, 2008 and so forth were noticed more as in a somewhat abstract way, it just might provide a bit more positivity to those thinking we're heading to the end of the world.

Anyway, time to move on before I get my full-time preach on, these last few months have been rather interesting, especially when I read through my last blog post about Japan. Obviously that won't be happening for a while yet, although I am keen to find this hidden bar that Migeul told me about. Being wined and dined by Japanese women? Ahhh.

However, it wasn't just the disaster of the March 11th earthquake that stopped me from going. It was the disaster of going home, at least that is how it felt at the time. Selfish and wallowing in self-pity? Yeah, that would be me. I'd applied for my New Zealand citizenship prior to leaving for Australia in January. I figured that it was about time to apply for it considering I'd resided in the country for 13 years. Why hadn't I got it? Because I never really needed it, I had my British passport and I had permanent residency. Why fork out the extra $1300 odd? Anyway, since I'd been offered the cost for free, I took it. I'd been told that all I'd have to do is fly back for the ceremony and I could then continue my travels (or at least my time in Sydney to theoretically save for them, which at the time, was not happening). Easy as pie.

However, like many things in life, that didn't go to plan. I'd apparently received a letter in the post stating I required more evidence that I planned to continue living in New Zealand. What did this involve? Going back to New Zealand to sign another declaration, which would then be sent off to the Minister to sign and approve my application, a process that could take up to 7 months, if it were to even be approved. I received this notification a few hours after I'd undertaken the renovations of Green 47 with my fellow roommate and renovator, Mr King. To say I was pissed off would be somewhat of an understatement. I was furious. Furious at the fact I had to give up my time in Australia, give up the money (and if it were to be saved, it would be a considerable amount lost), give up the lifestyle and give up that damn room that is Green 47, the room I worked so hard to get into, the anti-social and rather odd knife-dwelling dorm-mates that stood in the way and lastly, the odd layout that we decided needed to be improved for our long-term residence.

Why do I say the last portion with a mildly humorous manner? Because it is exactly that, it was somewhat of a joke. There I was, getting all up in arms over something I couldn't control, something that would prove to be beneficial to me in the long run and that was something so ridiculously unimportant in comparison to what other people were being subjected to at the time. All I had to bloody do was go back to the privacy of my own room, the enjoyment of my own bed, the loving home-cooked food I'd be provided with and the natural beauty that New Zealand holds. All in order to get a second passport that would provide me with more opportunities both in the Southern hemisphere and the North (I hear the Brits aren't too liked in some areas, as ridiculous as that may seem). Was I crying? Damn right I was. Boo-fucking-hoo!

Was it irritating at the time? Yes. Is it still somewhat irritating? Yes. Is it important and something to drown myself in self-pity over? Hell no. New Zealand is so amazingly awesome in so many ways. I have no idea where in the world I'll be this time next year, or the year after that, but New Zealand is a base I'm glad to call home.

I had more to write about my times between the 17th of February and today, the 15th of May... However, I'll leave that for another blog post in a few days as right now I need to tidy my room, make my parents happy and get prepared to show my soon to be arriving German friend exactly why I'm glad to call New Zealand home.



Emotional blogs end in emotional songs.