jlr europe

Greetings Anne-Françoise, Arthur, Dalit, Daphné, Eden, Ilan, Julien, Marc

I have received two great emails and decided this time to rely to all at once with a bit of an overview of where we are at.  I am providing a few pictures.  I am unpractised at that but it seems to be working well.

I once (I was very young then, never met him) had a cousin Len who was a very good painter.  He won a scholarship to England but was sick, and indeed soon died.  A friend of his took the scholarship and when in England married another cousin.  While around 20 Len painted pictures of a number of the family; this is my mother.  His sister, Geoff’s mother in Rotorua, now over 80, has many paintings that she keeps in the attic.  Fortunately a couple of years ago Geoff was able to take me up and show me, and to take photos of this one for me.

Now to me.  I am 71 and in good health, now taking little pills for blood pressure and cholesterol, which work.  I now have hearing aids, which allows me to hear the many birds, including tui and a cuckoo by the house, and to better appreciate good music – as well as understanding conversation better (so many people mutter).  The photo was taken 4 years ago and is flattering but we all look poorly in most photos so I will stick with it.  I was on a tug in the harbour, pretending to steer whereas there are two wheels and this one was disconnected and the captain was below in a comfortable bridge.

As you know, I am a scientist, with degrees in physics and applied mathematics.  When The limits to growth came out in 1972 I studied this and the considerable debate around the issue, and decided it was real – the forecasts and models were pretty good.  So I have worked in that area ever since.  This was successful, even in Paris, where I got contracts with OECD, UNESCO, UNU and UNEP, and there was a Commission for the Future in New Zealand in 1978-82, where I met Lesley.  But after 1984 the subject became unmentionable.  That continues today.  Since the threat is so important, and the crunch date of around 2030 is coming ever closer, I have been more active that ever the last 4 years, with lots of success in meeting various politicians and so on, but no impact at all in any real way.  This year two of my books have been published, Cars at the end of an era, transport issues in the New Zealand greenhouse and The corruption of New Zealand democracy, a Treaty industry overview.  I have also written a pamphlet of 20 pages A5 for our group, the Island Bay World Service, Twenty years to disaster, that we give out at meetings in an attempt to wake people up.

That various activity stops the little grey cells from dying.  It takes about 2 hours a day on average so there is plenty of time for reading, gardening, walking and other odds and ends

Tim is 21 now; he has completed his BA in geography, development studies and sociology.  He is an average student (I think he understands the basic ideas quickly, writes well) with a B grade average.  Unfortunately there are (here as everywhere) too many graduates and you need B+ to go on with post-graduate work.  So he, along with his friends, is struggling to find work (he finished his courses mid-year as he did a few extra).  He has been flatting for the last couple of years, and comes around about twice a week (for good food mostly).  He is a good soccer player but has a weak back so is taking physio treatment.  He has got me interested in Spanish Soccer so I am taping Barcelona (the very best team) just now and will watch Real Madrid (our favourite team) later this Sunday morning.  The photo I took yesterday in the dining room is not very good, but I (unlike Geoff) am not a good photographer and he did not want to pose with a daft grin on his face.

Lesley and I are happy together, sharing ideas and having a walk along the coast most days. 

The photo is at a marching-out parade at the end of an army course Chakkrit was on last year.

Chakkrit (now 25) has struggled to find work with various success over the years and has now moved in with a girl-friend (called a partner these days) up the coast at Waikenae.  We visited a week ago and were happy to find she was keeping him tidy – where we failed when he was in the flat at the back of our house, which I have been tidying for several weeks.  Her family (parents and sisters) lives just round the corner, which is good for him; they visit frequently and play squash together each week.  We hope it works out, but cannot be too optimistic.  He is seeking work, with no success as yet.  This is the sort of society we live in, so many people are struggling.

I have taken far more photos of the garden than of people since we got this camera, so have a wide choice to give you an idea of where we live.  By the way, I notice that Robinson is not all that far from Meudon, where I lived for some time. 

We are in a suburb around 12 minutes by car and 30 by bus from the middle of Wellington.  We have a route into town up a pleasant valley with little traffic, and often return around the harbour through Kilbirnie and then along the south coast, keeping away from heavy traffic as much as possible.  We are on a hillside facing south – away from the sun so we get practically no sun in mid-winter, but protected from the prevalent northerly winds while open to the full force of southerly gales.  Wellington is truly a windy city.  The view is down the valley to the sea.

A small vegetable garden is up steps above the house, and is seen here with a wooden path down the middle.  Given the limited sunlight we can grow a limited range, like silver beet, rhubarb, beans, cabbage, lettuce, chives and leaks.  I grow tomatoes in a small conservatory, the entrance at the side of the house.

On that west side there is a garden area we call the courtyard with pots, lemon and grapefruit, and this and that.

There is also an area with a lot of ferns under trees below that, then the double garage and the drive down to the road.

On the south side we look down on another lawn; the photo is from the living room window.  Damson plums, pears and apples grow well there.  This was taken during a rare snowfall this winter.  Now the plum and pears have finished with their blossoms while the apple is full of flower.

Let’s hope we all keep well in different parts of the world and perhaps one day Tim and Chakkrit will get to Europe to visit you; Lesley and I are pretty much finished with travelling.

All the best, John