Steamin Along

 First day of lockdown In the truck today, & I got a lot done inside, as it was bucketing down with rain all day, apart from the odd non stormy moment. I’m thankful for those times, as I get things done inside, like cleaning, cabin maintenance & repairs. Today it was steampunk repairs. I’ve had quite a few things come apart over the last few months. I’m not sure if it’s the adhesives I’m using, or the jolting of the truck as I go over our rough roads in New Zealand. Perhaps a little of  both. I’m thankful to a friend for a new adhesive that works & does clear. Can’t wait to try that 💚  Anyway, I decided not to go out, as I didn’t want to lose my parking place in the freedom camping area. Lots of people have been coming in today, looking for somewhere to stay I guess. I can’t imagine people are travelling for fun at the moment, with level 2 of lockdown all around me & did I mention rain? Tomorrow I’ll need to go out for a while at least, as the loneliness & inactivi

Lockdown level 3 was announced for Auckland today, & level 2  for the rest of new Zealand.  I’m at the beach needing a gas bottle filled & soon some food, although I was blessed with a lot of fruit from a new friend in Paeroa. I’m wondering how being a full time on the road freedom camper is going to affect me. It’s been on my mind, with the likelihood of another lockdown imminent, with the current situation in other countries who are experiencing covid. So I’m hunkered down, at the beach with other campers around me, wishing I was able to go exploring this gorgeous area tomorrow, as I had planned.  Time to eat some pipis, clear out all my surplus steampunk pieces I’m not using any more & see for the next event I guess.  I’ll go out to get gas tomorrow, fuel, & get some fresh food in, to see me through the lockdown. I’m grateful the heat of the past few weeks has abated for the time being, with wet weather imminent too.

Incredibly Rays Rest turns into a calm sea & idyllic peaceful quiet with a rural outlook, after a storm. It was a beauty! Howling winds were all I could see, with crashing waves & a rocking home. I don’t mind those days, because they shout out all the external noises of life, & give me space to sit & be creative. I always feel safely encompassed wherever I am, & really enjoy the sights & sounds. A flat calm day Today is decidedly cooler, so I’m thankful for my new shoes. They’re brilliant for walking on uneven ground, I have to say. Oboz is the brand, from Kathmandu. After walking up & down an extremely steep driveway for three days, I’m grateful for flat land, or rather my joints are. But the tread is also great for hoarding shells, sand & dirt etc. Shells all through the carpet I have a bit of sewing to finish off this morning, no surprises there 😂 before heading over to park up in Paeroa, at a dear ladies place, who has offered it to steampunk who ar

 Smells of sulphur! Weird! A lovely long piece of sea opposite the Coromandel Peninsula, parking on a shelly beach, for the completely self contained only, thankfully. There are a heck of a lot of people here at the end of the day, all easily absorbed by the space.  There are no facilities here of any kind, & just people in their spaces, doing their thing. It’s a coastal place with a lot of warm wind at the moment. We just need some tumbleweed & a few old wooden buildings, & it could be the Wild West 🤠  These washed up in the weed! And that’s lunch 🥰 The tide goes out leaving a mudflat behind for almost as far as the eye can see. I’ve seen men putting  nets out at low tide, but there’s a lot of weed coming in & muddy silt up to your ankles. The water was really warm when I felt it today, but it’s brown & very wild.  I went over to see the neighbours today, as they had their satellite dish up for tv reception. I would have thought it would be too windy, but a coupl

 I stayed a night at this lovely spot again, had a swim, & was treated to dinner with the neighbours. Feeling very spoiled I went back to my piece of paradise & went to bed, a bit late 😂  Around 2.15am someone thought it would be a good idea to try the handles on all the doors & lockers! Waking up suddenly to that gave me quite a start, as they were persistent in their efforts. Feeling angry I opened the high windows & vents , so I could hear better, & let rip with an led torch & some questions, as to what the heck they thought they were doing! Then a few more phrases, to alert my neighbours as well, & turned various lights on. Talk about persistent! They carried on intermittently for two hours! Until I told my better half of a person, Charlie,to call the police. Being the totally armless guy he is, & not very talkative, he just sat there looking like a dummy 😉 But it worked 🤩 I didn’t call the police, as I didn’t think they’d get there in time &

 I’ve been helping a friend in Albany for a couple of days. Now it’s time to go to a birthday party, & get that much needed Me time. I’m going to hide out I think, after I visit the op shops with a truck load of stash! Albany at sunrise I’ll be visiting more friends & then a place I’ve been wanting to try out, Rays Rest. Time for some R & R, getting ready for a trip to my Celtic heritage, highland dancing anyone? Bagpipes?  Maybe I’ll see a water dragon 🐉🤩 I was lucky enough to be given a corset in tartan, so I only need make an item or two...said no seamstress ever 😂  I pulled into my fave spot in Waiomu Bay, had a swim, a small walk & meet the neighbours...& ended up having happy hour & dinner with them. Spoiled much! Waiomu Bay at sunset They showed me an awning piece I’m missing, & a piece that has fallen off my awning, that I hadn’t noticed. Very thankful! Now I have to find the place that sells them 😂  I got lots of love from their cute little Apal

 From Narrow Neck Beach to Whangaparaoa. I went to help a friend cover a lampshade in feathers . It had the coolest stand made like Pukeko feet! Then it was off to a new beach at a park that I’d never stayed at before, although I knew the area, to a reasonable extent. I need Me time so much after I’ve been peopling.  Isn’t it gorgeous? I didn’t want to leave! Can I live here? A peahen that was So tame I could hardly believe it The Pukeko... like a boss Pukeko footprints early morning. You don’t see that every day! Feisty black birds with long beaks Love gnarly trees Shade & trees for the people Big enough for 50 people My name means in a little meadow I love a pic with a path that goes somewhere The Self contained camping area  Gorgeous old trees The other end of the beach. I love how our beaches can have different kinds of terrain at each end And then it was back to Albany 😂 I hate suburbia, I really do 😂