..and now we are five.....oh!

I turned 50 last week.

There was a time, at 39, when I did not think I would see 40, so I am pretty chuffed to have made it to 50!

I am not a big one for parties, big celebrations or surprises .(Dear God. My worst ever would be a surprise party.I want to hide just thinking about the notion)

Di and Annemarie know my I am surprise adverse, but  laid claim to the day and told me that they would organise a "mystery day out" and I was to" wear street clothes and shoes you can walk in". Seeing as I have no idea what streetwear is and all my shoes are flat, I decided to dress as normal and wing it. Good call.

Heres how the day went:

8:30 am Collection from home. Give presents of beautiful studio tea mug and soup mugs(handmade in Whanganui by Ivan Vostinar) and luscious hand cream( for painters hands!)

9:00 Breakfast at Suburban Kitchen in Cambridge and onto a trip up to Sanitarium hill. Established ages ago as a TB convalescent hospital on top of the hills behind Cambridge with stunning views over the Waikato . Daffodils, tui's, snowdrops and cyclists all converging at the top at a surprising new find.Cool. Down the hill and we dropped in on a joiner friend of Annemarie who built a house that looks like it belongs in a fairytale book. Made with love, peppered with stained glass windows and bespoke joinery and an amazing view...from the outdoor bathtub!

10:00 Then off to meet Adrian Worsley in Te Aroha for a private tour of his gallery and studio. Holy Crap. What a place! Go and visit(phone and see if its open but make a plan and go) We had a great time wandering around his curated collection of scrap metals and then into his workshop to see his studio. The man has vision.
Then he took us to view his house that he had rendered in local stone and blew our minds once again with his attention to detail. I don't think he ever sleeps!

12:00  Wallace Gallery Morrinsville was the next stop to see the exhibition of husband and wife artists, Tim and Tracy Croucher. It was a good exhibition and lovely to see so many examples of their work, side by side. I could have happily walked off with a few.

13.30 Back to the Tron for a salad Lunch and then to catch a movie at the Lido. Wings of Desire has been remastered and was showing at the film festival. I last saw it in 1988!! I profess it puzzled me when I first saw it ,  but viewing it all these years later, I realise I did not have the life experience at that time to understand all the angst that was portrayed in this Wim Wenders movie. Beautifully shot (the usual Wime Wenders full immersion to a vision), it was an eye opener for me as it portrayed Berlin, 2 years before the wall came down. That seems like another life ago. Last century stuff ...and yet, I was witness.
17.00 Off to Freit gallery for the opening of Spa Garden, another exhibition by Tracy Croucher! Different subject matter but the artist's hand is very clearly Tracy's.

Home at 18.30 for Thai takeaway, courtesy of Charles!

That's a helluva birthday!!!!!A great day, no wild surprises , just lovely surprises and of a calibre that left me grateful that I could still BE surprised !! Thanks so much, Di and Annemarie!

Me, age 4 or 5 and 50.