Holy shit. Holy shit. Holy shit. I stared at the email. Your application for a 2021 Resident Visa has been approved. Holy shit. ARRRRGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHH. My insides flipped. I looked again, just to be sure. Really? I’d been waiting so long for this I wasn’t quite sure it was real. Oh but it was. I’m nowContinue reading “Residence Relief”
Tag Archives: new zealand
3 years in New Zealand
Last weekend marked my three year kiwi-versary. Three years since I got off a plane not knowing what would happen next, or how long I’d be here. It’s been quite the journey so far. I posted my thoughts a year ago, when I’d been here two years. It still felt pretty new, and still quiteContinue reading “3 years in New Zealand”
Caricatures and containers
“I’m glad to be back in New Zealand but it’s definitely not the homecoming I’d envisaged,’ laughs Abi. She arrived in New Zealand on 1st January, returning after years living away in the UK, Switzerland and France. She was just getting settled and had some job offers on the table when lockdown hit. ‘Lockdown wasContinue reading “Caricatures and containers”
Trekking with goats
A few years ago on a father-son hunting trip, George’s son was shocked at the small amount his father could carry and suggested he get some packgoats, after reading about them in America. George has always been keen on animals; as a child, if it crawled, he kept it, so it took little persuasion toContinue reading “Trekking with goats”
Post-COVID normal
When COVID-19 hit the world, New Zealand committed to an elimination strategy, which meant that on 8th June 2020, nearly three and-a-half months after the first case was reported on February 28th, the country went into alert Level 1. In layman’s terms, this means we’re pretty much ‘back to normal’, except for strict border control.Continue reading “Post-COVID normal”
2 years in New Zealand
Well, hasn’t that flown? I’d be lying if I said I still didn’t feel a bit sad that the relationship I came here for didn’t work out. Or rather, I guess the thought (or hope) of the relationship. I’d got to the point I was just about ready for, you know, one of those relationship-thingys,Continue reading “2 years in New Zealand”
A year in people #77 – Marsha
As I saw her come through the airport arrival gates, my eyes filled with tears and my throat burned; it took all I had to not burst into a massive pile of sobs and snot. A massive wave of relief and emotion rushed over me. The last time we’d seen each other was when I’dContinue reading “A year in people #77 – Marsha”
New Zealand vs the UK
I love New Zealand. I also love the UK. Some people think you can’t do this, that it has to be one or the other; that living in New Zealand means dissing the UK, and this really bugs me. You can’t really compare the two. Bloody comparison is the thief of joy. Yes, there areContinue reading “New Zealand vs the UK”
A year in people #74 – Emma
“Tara! I need your help.” My friend Emma shouted from downstairs. “I think you need to call an ambulance.” She was staying with me after an operation in which a metal coil was put down the main (femoral) artery in her leg. “I think something’s bleeding inside, it’s happened really quickly.” She lifted the coversContinue reading “A year in people #74 – Emma”
The Paps Life 