Kate Morton

Kate Morton is a best-selling Australian author that I've recently discovered. Her extraordinary books are full of mystery, dark secrets, historic detail and unforgettable characters. She has published 2 books so far and is working on a third. Because the stories are too complicated for me to explain, here are the descriptions from the back covers:

The Forgotten Garden (April 2009 Best of the Month on Amazon.com)

A lost child...

On the eve of the first world war, a little girl is found abandoned on a ship to Australia. A mysterious woman called the Authoress had promised to look after her - but the Authoress has disappeared without a trace.

A terrible secret...

On the night of her twenty-first birthday, Nell O'Connor learns a secret that will change her life forever. Decades later, she embarks upon a search for the truth that leads her to the windswept Cornish coast and the strange and beautiful Blackhurst Manor, once owned by the aristocratic Mountrachet family.

A mysterious inheritance...

On Nell's death, her grand-daughter, Cassandra, comes into an unexpected inheritance. Cliff Cottage and its forgotten garden are notorious amongst the Cornish locals for the secrets they hold - secrets about the doomed Mountrachet family and their ward Eliza Makepeace, a writer of dark Victorian fairytales. It is here that Cassandra will finally uncover the truth about the family, and solve the century-old mystery of a little girl lost.

The House at Riverton (Published in Australia and the UK as The Shifting Fog)

Within its four walls lay a secret that would last a lifetime.

Summer 1924: On the night of a glittering Society party, by the lake of a grand English country house, a young poet takes his life. The only witnesses, sisters Hannah and Emmeline Hartford, will never speak to each other again.

Winter 1999: Grace Bradley, 98, onetime housemaid of Riverton Manor, is visited by a young director making a film about the poet’s suicide. Ghosts awaken and memories, long-consigned to the dark reaches of Grace’s mind, begin to sneak back through the cracks. A shocking secret threatens to emerge; something history has forgotten but Grace never could.

Set as the war-shattered Edwardian summer surrenders to the decadent twenties, The House at Riverton is a thrilling mystery and a compelling love story.

Check out Kate Morton's website:
http://www.katemorton.com/

Watching Grass Grow: The Sport of Cricket

Call me crazy, but I just don't get Cricket, and probably never will. I think you have to be born into the sport to understand it. I've watched a bit of it on TV here in New Zealand and heard the scores on the radio, but it all looks and sounds so complicated!

Here are some excerpts of recent scores:

"play was halted by rain 15 minutes after the lunch break with New Zealand struggling at 48 for three in their second innings, after being forced to follow on 326 runs behind Australia's first innings."

"stumps were drawn early on the fourth and final day with England A 158 for one in their second innings, with captain Robert Key and Jonathan Trott adding an unbroken 140 for the second wicket."

"McCullum's demise after he and Ryder crunched an opening stand worth 166 triggered an implosion that saw five wickets lost for 37 in the space of 53 balls."

"Harbhajan's first two overs cost 29 but the spinner atoned when Ryder chipped to long-off to leave New Zealand in dire straits at 188 for four."

"After leg-spinner Shahid Afridi took 6-38 to dismiss Australia for 168, Pakistan needed just 44.1 overs to cruise to 6-171."

"Afridi's heroics with the ball were capped by causing Australia more pain with the bat, belting 24 from 16 balls, including five boundaries, in the middle order."

"Indian opening batsmen Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir made a revised target of 54 in six overs look easy, with Sehwag finishing the match with his fourth six in an innings of 38 not out off 16 balls."

Huh?

The BBC offers a nice glossary of some of the more creative cricketing slang.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/cricket/skills/6100344.stm

My favorite Cricket term is Googly.

If you’re interested in learning more about Cricket, or you’re bored, or just plain crazy, check out the Bollywood film Lagaan. It’s 4 hour Indian musical about Cricket! It just might approximate the thrilling, edge-of-your-seat, experience that is a Cricket match.

New Music

I've discovered some great new music here in New Zealand and thought you might be interested. There should be something for everyone....

Bic Runga
http://www.bicrunga.com/
A young singer/songwriter from Christchurch. Her voice is beautiful and soothing. At different times her music reminds me of Jewell, Sheryl Crow, Beth Orton and Norah Jones. Her song "Sway" was on the American Pie Soundtrack and received lots of airplay in the States.

Moana Maniapoto
http://www.moananz.com/
A Maori singer/songwriter that blends traditional Maori song and chant with soul, reggae and hip hop. Her music is a wonderful crossroads of the past and present.

Black Seeds
http://theblackseeds.com/
A Wellington band that fuses reggae, funk and dub. Fun, easy, mellow music. Former band member Bret McKenzie is also a member of the comedy duo Flight of the Conchords. Favorite songs are "Cool Me Down" and"Good People."

Gurumuul
http://www.gurrumul.com/
My personal favorite: A blind Aboriginal singer from an island in Arnhemland, in northern Australia. He sings in Yolngu Matha, his native language. His voice is incredibly beautiful, you will melt! Reminds me a lot of Aaron Neville. I got his self-titled album on iTunes.

Scribe
http://www.myspace.com/scribedirtyrecords
A very popular rap/hip hop artist of Samoan descent. You can also check out his songs on iTunes. He's collaborated with Wyclef Jean and Talib Kwali. Top hits include "Stand Up," "Not Many" and "Dreaming."

Kommikal
http://www.myspace.com/conjurur
A bi-lingual (Maori/English) rap/hip hop artist. His music often includes traditional Maori chants, such as Haka war-cries. The Maori language seems to suit this music genre nicely.

Happy listening!

NZ TV

On some cold and rainy nights we drag out our "entertainment system" (which includes a bulky soviet-era TV and a set of rabbit ears that extend 4 feet in the air) to watch some of the spectacular offerings on New Zealand TV. Reality shows are extremely popular here, including many from the U.S. and England, and there are some ridiculously bad drama/soap operas that we just can't bring ourselves to watch.

Some NZ-produced reality shows gems:

Border Patrol: This show tracks people, mail, and goods entering the country through Auckland International Airport and the Auckland Harbor. New Zealand has very strict customs policies and the inspection of items entering the country is taken very seriously. This includes drugs, weapons, pornography, terrorists, food, animals, fake medicines, insects and even illegal fossils! Some of the more "creative" goods brought or sent to NZ have been meth (known as "P" here) disguised in hot chocolate packets, illegal honey, an alligator head, live fish sent through the mail, and even a whale penis bone. Quite fun to watch actually, humans sure are crafty when it comes to smuggling!

Piha Rescue: This show follows the daily routine of the lifeguards that patrol the famous surf beach, Piha, on the North Island. Swimmers (and non-swimmers apparently) are constantly being rescued just minutes after entering the water, often after ignoring the lifeguards' warnings. But without the skimpy bathing suits and slow-motion running of Baywatch fame, just how many times can you watch lifeguards run into the water and drag in some poor swimmer?

New Zealand's Next Top Model: Like America's Next Top Model, except without Tyra, or Miss J, or good hair and make-up, or even good-looking models....Yeah, it's that bad.

Another interesting discovery on NZ TV are the commercials. There are lots of creative beer commercials (of course), but there are also lots of commercials that warn about the hazards of drinking. These are often very graphic, and involve car accidents, children and/or violence. I'm always surprised by these commercials, even when I've seen them before.

Interestingly, there are lots of commercials for male depression. Apparently depressed men in New Zealand aren't getting the help they need.

My favorite commercial is a tampon commercial about a woman and a beaver. The woman "takes care" of the beaver, taking it to the hair salon, the beach, out to lunch....I find it hilarious!
You can watch the commercial here
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mxkUE5TtOFQ

And then there is the language and nudity on TV. Lets just say that some things are best left unsaid, or seen, for that matter....

Chinese Democracy in New Zealand?

Yes, Chinese Democracy is alive and well in New Zealand, in the form of the latest album from Guns n’ Roses, that is!

Remember Guns n’ Roses, those long-haired, bandanna-wearing rockers who welcomed you to the jungle back in 1987…? Well, Axel Rose has certainly found an enthusiastic and dedicated audience in Kiwis. In fact, from what I’ve heard, Guns n’ Roses appear to be an institution in New Zealand. The airwaves are crammed with songs from Chinese Democracy, and on any given Friday night, pubs are wallpapered with Axle’s voice screeching out Sweet Child Of Mine.

Now I like Guns n’ Roses every once in awhile, but it still strikes me as odd that out of all the great American rock bands, Guns n’ Roses would be so incredibly popular here in New Zealand. It’s almost as bizarre as David Hasselhoff’s über popularity in Germany. Almost.

The Bone People

If you need a new book to read, check out The Bone People, which won the Booker Prize in 1985. Author Keri Hulme is one of New Zealand's celebrated authors.

This is one of my favorite books of all time. It is an incredibly powerful, emotional, and sometimes disturbing experience. The Bone People centers on three broken souls who come together in a story of family, love, violence, death, culture, and redemption. These 3 characters are: Simon, a mysterious, abused orphan; Joe, a Maori man embittered by the loss of his wife and son; and Kerewin, a strong and compassionate part-Maori woman estranged from her family. These three characters slowly weave themselves together, experiencing pain, loss, and eventually, healing.

Hulme shifts narrative voice through out the story, includes Maori language and mythology, and uses an unconventional style of writing that may not be for everyone, it takes some getting used to. But I highly recommend The Bone People. The story will pull you in and the characters will stick with you long after you've closed the book.

Check it out!

Starring America

I haven’t owned a TV in years and I find very few merits in watching television. Call me a TV snob but I’d rather read. Besides, cable is expensive, I loathe commercials, I watch movies on my laptop, and most of the HBO, Discovery or History channel shows that I like can be found on DVD. But now that I’m millions of miles from home and am the proud owner of a TV, I can’t help but feel nostalgic for some good ol’American entertainment. Even if this means watching shows that I would never watch back home (or at least admit to watching). There’s something about hearing the American accent, seeing American cities and landscapes, laughing along to American humor, laughing at American stupidity….It’s like going home without the plan ticket!

Our huge Soviet-era TV only gets 6 to 8 channels, depending on the angle of the rusty wire antenna, but many American TV shows are popular here, especially reality shows. Apparently Beauty and the Geek was a huge hit, as is The Girls Next Door (c’mon, it’s Playboy). Other shows that we’ve seen include Extreme Home Makeover, Fear Factor, America’s Next Top Model, Survivor, and My Super Sweet Sixteen (seriously, where do they find those kids? Oh yeah, America…). Other shows that are popular with Kiwis are Lost, Grey's Anatomy, Desperate Housewives, Scrubs and Seinfeld.

It’s quite unsettling to watch these shows and think, “Wow! This is how Americans are represented to those living outside the U.S. No wonder everyone thinks we’re crazy!” We come across as spoiled, immoral, greedy, un-educated, un-healthy, plastic surgery-obsessed, and aggressive. Ouch. But it’s entertainment and for 30 minutes I can lose myself in the silliness of American life.

Once in a while we even catch a movie on the basic channels. Most of these films don’t improve our image much but they sure are fun. We’ve seen some real gems of American cinema. These include:

The Day After Tomorrow-Might have been good on the big screen with all the special effects. Although, any movie that combines the science of climate change, rabid wolves, and Dennis Quaid is skating on thin ice.

Alien vs. Predator-This one has it all: big guns, the brave female, the complicated foreigner, the amnesiac old man, ancient mythology, shamefully bad dialogue, and dripping slime. We miss you Sigourney and Arnold!

Failure to Launch-Two words: Matthew McConaughey. Three words: Straight to video.

P.S. Kiwi shows aren't any better, but I'll save that for another day.

Kia Hari Te Tau Hou: January 5 2009

Happy New Years e-mail: January 5 2009

Kia Hari Te Tau Hou!

I hope everyone is happy, healthy and relaxing after the holidays.

Christmas here in New Zealand was very mellow. Without the family and friends it really didn't seem like the holidays this year. We spent Christmas Eve at home watching American movies on TV and Christmas Day enjoying the Summer sunshine that has finally appeared. We decided not to exchange gifts and save our money for road trips instead, although I did cook a yummy dinner for us.

Almost the whole of New Zealand goes on holiday for at least 2 weeks during Christmas (and it is "Christmas" here, none of that PC American lingo for the Kiwis). With the Dunners (those that live in Dunedin) away and the students still out on Summer break, Dunedin has been sooooo quiet. Only cruise ship tourists during the day and no one is out after 5 pm, the city feels like a ghost town!

We did some curling at the ice rink here in Dunedin earlier in the week. Curling is an ancient Scottish sport that involves sliding granite "curls" across the ice in order to get it in the center of a bulls-eye down on the other side of the court. You sweep the ice with brushes in order to speed up the curl to get it closer to the center or slide your opponents out of the center. It's kind of like the Italian bocce on ice. It was actually a lot more fun that I thought and if any of you come visit us, we are definitely going curling! We also did a little night hike to see glow worms in a canyon just NE of town. It was amazing! They looked like constellations on the canyon walls!

With the University closed for 2 weeks and my boyfriend unable to work, we decided to take a day trip on NYE to an area on the South coast called "The Catlins." It's a beautiful, rugged coastline about 1.5 hours drive south of us. There is lots of native forest, waterfalls, dramatic sea caves, and quirky Kiwi settlements (not big enough to really call a town). Since we are getting 16 hours of daylight right now you can really pack in a lot in one day. We did some great hikes in the podocarp forests - a very old family of trees that exists from Gondwanaland. We even had a crazy run-in with little fan tail birds that decided to put on a show for us, they were hilarious!

After a day to re-group and pack lunches we were on the road again. This time we headed inland to Central Otago, which is gold mining country turned wine country. And in fact, it looks a lot like the Sierra foothills in CA, although there are some amazing rock formations and scenery that was used in filming Lord of the Rings. We continued on up to Queenstown, adrenaline capitol of the world where you can find all sorts of death-defying activities to empty your wallet. We did a beautiful hike in high alpine beech forest on lake Wakatipu. There were amazing lichens, mosses, and ferns, and the waterfalls were roaring because it had been raining earlier in the day. After dinner in a very crowded Queenstown, we drove back to Central Otago and stayed in a B&B in Alexandra. The next day we spent wine tasting (where I learned the true meaning of 'minerality'), picking cherries at a small pick-your-own farm, and enjoying the small towns in gold country.

Our road trips were so fun and it allowed us to finally see the New Zealand that everyone raves about. Although, we did have to deal with the Kiwi drivers.....many of the roads are narrow and/or winding but we consistently had cars tail-gating so close we could see the driver's blood pressure rising. We were even passed by a double fuel tanker on a blind curve! Even so, I can't wait to explore more!