upsidedown charlotte

update three: christmas crisis!?

not so sure about this 'stepping out of the boat & walking on water' lark

Hi Everyone. Hope this email finds you well and gearing up for Christmas in the frost! There was a photo of the ice rink at the Natural History Museum in the World section of the 'Christchurch Press' and I experienced a real pang of longing for London (my first real one to date) It looked so festive, everyone wrapped up in scarves and hats on a winters night- London at its best!

Im still finding it very odd seeing the Christmas decor around when the suns shining and summer sales are in full swing. Christmas is definitely NOT a summer sport! Few concessions seem to be made for the lack of winter atmosphere here with 'Let it Snow' jangling away at me today in the shops, and it must be said that Santa seems to take on a slightly sinister edge when he is to be found lurking amidst the beachwear!!

On the subject of shopping, I have been intrigued by the size of some of the coins here. The 20c and 50c pieces are practically the size of dinner plates. You feel really quite wealthy as you drag your purse containing half a set of Wedgewood around the town until you come to make a purchase, count it out and realise you have the grand sum, of about 67 pence in there.

I aim to keep these emails quite lighthearted but also want to be honest about how things are and for those of you praying for me I would really appreciate your prayers as sometimes its not so easy.. Its been hard going trying to find my fit in this place, both in Rangiora and the church. I have very contemporary tastes in my work, which doesn't perhaps seem suitable to apply in a place like this. If I'm honest, I'm really struggling to see why I'm here and often feel a spare part and at a loss as to how I can be of any use here, I certainly don't feel like I'm the best person for the job! A lot of the time I get quite overwhelmed with how much needs to be done here, it seems impossible that things can change, so what's the point? I'm struggling with motivation levels and will soon be able to proudly add to my CV 'great procrastinating skills'!

I think most difficult of all, there's no one to share this experience with, I'm on my own so much, everyone else around me is married (literally without exception!!) and there seems to be little of the 'romance' and 'dance' that God promised me with Him before I came, most days its really quite lonely and just one hard slog. (and lets face it, romance of any other kind is NEVER going to be on the cards in this place unless I guest star on the next series of 'The Farmer Wants a Wife' or develop a penchant for men called Brett dressed in too tight shorts, sporting long socks pulled up to the knee and hooning around the town in their dusty Utes! (hello boys!)

Ok whinge over!! I do cling to the great verses and pictures that some of you had for me before I came away and the emails and letters I receive are a real help too so thanks! Also Emma (one of the other English newcomers) and I continue to enjoy quite regular gossips... oops I mean chats! We have just clicked and laugh a lot, it's a real release. And there are wonderful moments when I realise how great this chance is, what''s happened to get me here, and experience just how exhilarating 'stepping out of the boat' can be... and when I think that the alternative is to still be in the boat wondering "what if?"- I feel a lot better!

The paid p/t job front is taking some time to get off the ground, sadly the Thai Restaurant and I went our separate ways citing 'irreconcilable differences' and so I am without income and in desperate need of work (for my own sanity as well as my bank managers!) I have a couple of applications in the pipeline, one at the Jade Stadium (Christchurch's answer to Wembley) in their corporate hospitality dept. If I get the job I'm already plotting how I can sneak off to the pitchside in my breaks to catch up with the cricket/rugby!

Anyway, things aren't so bad! Highlight of the week was a huge jar of UK marmite arriving through the post from my Auntie K & Uncle T (thanks!) This reignited the ongoing arguments sparked off by 'The Great Marmite Debate'' which took place in the vicarage, a few weeks ago. It was a rather sombre affair conducted around the dining table complete with taste-testing in carefully controlled conditions. Alas UK Marmite was outvoted by a narrow margin of 2:1 in favour of the (vastly inferior) NZ version, but as the other 2 participants were very patriotic young Kiwis it was always going to be an unfair contest and so in my self-appointed capacity as Chairperson I declared the verdict null and void.

My friend Rachel arrives in a few days and we are planning a 2 week trip around and about, hopefully with our friend Kathryn Elsmore (also from HTB now living back in Rotorua) - am very much looking forward to seeing some more of NZ! So will hopefully have lots of non-Rangiora news to share next time I write- Hurray!

Below are some photos of around the town... not very exciting I'm afraid, the short of shot that would be in with a fighting chance of winning a 'Most Boring Postcard' Competition... on second thoughts, perhaps the local rag would be interested in them for their front page.. might liven it up a bit.... Anyway, recommended for some bedtime reading if you're having trouble sleeping

the railway at Rangiora looking towards the S. Alps...there's only one train a day here to & from Chch. To catch it you have to call in advance to book it to stop at the station or try your luck at flagging it down!

The vicarage right next to St John's Church.... I'll just check if Charlene and Scott are home!