blogs
On the Road Again
When my picture book, Dougal LeClair’s Incredible Cake came out on March 3rd, my husband, Gary and I were on the road. The North Island this time. We had no fixed address – we’d rented out our house t ........
THE WAIMATE SILOS
The silos of Waimate dominated the skyline as we motored into the town. I was excited to see them. These were the silos built by my great-grandfather Robert Nicol. There’s a bit of a story becau ........
THE WHERE’S WALLY ROCK
A few days into our trip to the South Island, Gary and I were having some lunch at Lake Tekapo when we glanced down and there was a rock with a painted face leaning against the table. The face ........
ON THE ROAD WITH HELGA
Just over a year ago my husband and I bought a 2003 Volkswagen campervan. We named her Helga von Autobahn, or in English, Helga of the Highway. Once my book, The Rubbish Bin Cat, was published, I v ........
A TOWN CALLED TAIRUA
Three years ago, my husband and I made the decision to retire in Tairua, or somewhere on the Coromandel Peninsula. I’ve always loved this area, full of lush native bush and birdsong, unspoiled beac ........
THE LIFE AND TIMES OF A RUBBISH BIN CAT – PART 1
On the day Sonny was born, I followed his mother as she prowled the house, armed with a box and towel. Woody meowed her frustration at not being able to go outside (we lived on a seven-acre life-sty ........
THE LIFE AND TIMES OF A RUBBISH BIN CAT – PART 2
When I think back now, it must have been hard for Sonny, a once free and almost feral cat, suddenly thrust into rural living, and made to toe the line with rules. I had rules for inside animals. For ........
THE LIFE AND TIMES OF A RUBBISH BIN CAT – PART 3
. . .And so began the Sunday evening round up ritual. Sonny had found lots of places to hide. Each time we found him, he went to jail – locked in the back bedroom for the night with food, water and ........