It wasn't all bad

in fact work today was pretty fab.

I got to work early and

the first hour was pretty hideous.

I kept reminding myself that I am lucky to have a job

which is a bit silly cause NZ isn't really having a serious recession.

I had a good first day of the work year meeting with Henery.

Tinky and I lolled in the park for lunch.

Which was a bit stinky cause Methven is an ag town

so you never know what kind of smell you are going have waft past.

Today was just fertiliser I think.

Then Emz turned up.

I knew she was coming but had kind of forgotten 

by the time she did turn up.

We walked down the street in the sun to Cafe 131

and sat outside only to have countless noisy tractors with trailers,

noisy trucks with trailers and even a silent pennyfarthing bike (without a trailer) go past us.

Emz got to tell me her travel plans.

Off to Oz to visit her two sisters,

then to Alaska for a month to watch the Northern Lights

and bears with tourists.

She'll be with the tourists not the bears.

Then she has a job in Cork, Ireland on a dairy farm for a year.

How exciting is all of that.

Emz will have the best time free of all responsibility

and family and with lots of plans of visiting France and Italy.

If she can keep from falling for the Irish boyos.

When I got back it was time for afternoon tea.

I did actually do some work today.

At afternoon tea I walked in to

wee Alaya writing Happy Birthday Sara

on the newly painted whiteboard walls.

They are like normal colour and normal wall but

 with clear whiteboard paint on them

so you can write and rub out stuff.
It's a scaary when you first write on the wall,
we are well brung up in our office.

Then there was a yummy chocolate cake with

those nasty non-blow out candles.

Rosie tried to help and used the cake to snuff out the candles

when one caught fire, then another, after they had been blown out already

and were lying on the plate.

Then there were presents!

A beautiful aqua bowl with a dip bowl attached inside.

Very earthen and plain

just the way I like.

And rosemary and lavender bath salts

(which I've just used and I smell great)

and a delightful tin with a cool body loofah thingy that isn't a loofah

and yummy body wash.

How lucky am I?

More than the presents and cake and wall art,

it's the love with which it was given.

I feel cherished by my workmates

and that's how we roll in the Young Farmers office.

It's not actually my birthday today.

It was about 10 days ago

but cause its between Christmas and New Years

there is usually nobody about

and mostly people are holiday busy with their lives so forget.

I had a great day on the 30th.

Lovely gifts

(Rush perfume, red earrings, plastic containers and

a divine perfectly white linen tablecloth and napkins)

a relaxed day with a simple supper with family

and they had driven 45 minutes into Christchurch,

battling the sale shoppers to get me a gluten free chocy cake.

No dramas or issues just a pleasant, peaceful day.

But to have two birthdays.

What a delightful day it turned out to be!