GOLDEN OLDIES

When one travels by cruise ship, one comes to accept the fact that a large percentage of passengers will be senior citizens. This comes with certain advantages. It feels good to walk into a room and be one of the youngest (for a change). To sit down at the bar and be asked, "How are you young lady?"

However, the bad outweighs the good by far. Now don't get me wrong, many of the seniors are great fun but the majority think they own the place.

The lunch hooter sounds and they're off. These docile men and ladies become monsters. They charge off down the corridors, brandishing their walking sticks and woe be tide anyone who gets in their way.

And have you seen them eat? They consume plate after plate of meals and they sure can pack away those deserts.

An hour after lunch, the ship is deserted while they nap. Ah, heaven - no shouting, no complaining about EVERYTHING, just peace and quiet.

Afternoon tea comes along and they are lined up outside the dining hall waiting for their next feed. It's been all of an hour since they last ate. Where the hell do they put it all?

The meal is often followed by bingo. I've been too scared to venture into this sacred place, otherwise know as The Bingo Hall. I've seen them in there with their huge marker pens, banging away at their numbered pads. I have a feeling if someone my age shouted out, "Bingo!", they'd attacked me with thier walking sticks.

It's not all bad though. The early evening comes around, their bellies full, they head to the dance floor. Arms entwined, they glide around the floor, (walkers and sticks forgotten), looking into each others eyes and remembering why they fell in love all those years ago.

Aww, a wonderful sight to behold. It's hard to imagine these graceful gentlemen and ladies are the same people who will be fighting over the last sausage come breakfast time.

FLASH 55 - PIECES OF ME

Wife, mother, lover, trusted friend. Loving, giving, heart overflows. Being everything to everyone takes it's toll. Loved ones sometimes hurt most of all. Peel back the layers, these faces of me. What's left behind - me - a woman no-one cares to see. Time to rebuild the fences, safe, secure. To hide behind the masks once more.



Hmmm, why is it every time I start writing a 55, most of my lines rhyme? I can't help myself. A frustrated poet me thinks!

HOLIDAY TIME - THREE DAYS AT SEA

Hubby and I left Auckland for warmer shores on the Pacific Sun.










Our first night was fantastic. We found our bearings on the ship (in other words-the bar).




Dinner seating was assigned for the whole trip. We spent the first evening meal with two couples from Sydney. By the second night, another couple (also from Sydney) decided to move from their assigned table to join us. By this stage, I realised that by adding but to the end of every sentence, I'd be fluent in Australian in no time. I must say, I couldn't have asked for a more fun group of people to dine with.






The second night wasn't as much fun. Me thinks the 'SEVERE WEATHER' warning had something to do with this. However, I am thankful for this as I learned the following:

THINGS NOT TO ATTEMPT IN A FIVE METRE SWELL!






Shave legs in cramped shower cubicle - ouch

Apply mascara - mascara deposits in freshly washed hair - very unattractive

Dance - tis hard to dance with partner when you sway to opposite ends of the dance floor

Drink copious amounts of red wine after taking sea sickness tablet - falling asleep at inappropriate times expected




By the third day, I decided to accept the fact the sea was too rough for me. I made the best of it, tucked myself up in bed with a pizza, half a bottle of red and a couple of movies.




KB'S EMPTIES?




More to come tomorrow

Night all
xxxxxx

I'M BACK

I've been back since Sunday but have been too busy to post. I've been lucky enough to catch up with family visiting from Australia and Dunedin. Feel like I need another holiday now, LMAO!

Anyway, for the family members I didn't manage to catch up with...here are some pics for you to enjoy.

A special hello to Auntie Gracie, the girls are getting so big now and I know they miss you as much as we do.

P.S. Put down that cannelloni!!!!!!!! (I have my spies)

Love ya sweetie xxx

I'll be posting holiday pics tomorrow. Have missed you nutty bloggers.

Bye for now
Love KB
xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

I'M OUTTA HERE...AGAIN

MORE PICS FROM ROTORUA, NZ

WHY DO THE FOOTPRINTS ONLY GO ONE WAY? BUGGA!

MORE STEAM! WAIMANGU VALLEY, ROTORUA, NZ

Waimangu is the only hydrothermal system in the world the commencement of whose surface activity can be pinned down to an exact day, namely 10 June 1886. ON that day a violent volcanic eruption punctured the country in this locality with a series of craters and allowed geothermal fluid already present underground direct passages to the Earth.

The walk to the bottom of the valley takes approximately two hours and is mostly down hill, woohoo! AND, there is a bus to take you back to the top.

GO THE MIGHTY ALL BLACKS

My boys are playing against Ireland tonight. I'll be wearing my All Black jersey and cheering them on. Here's hoping they do NZ proud!

AWWW - PASS THE TISSUES

FLASH 55 - A PRIVATE ORDEAL

Sometimes I feel anxious inside
Need to escape, run and hide
Hard to move, the walls closing in
Heart pounding, a terrible din
Beginning to sweat now, starting to shake
I knew coming out was a huge mistake
Leaving early ,friends think I'm mad
Hard to explain...
I've missed half the great times we've had

I wrote this poem about five years ago. The original version is much longer but I hope you still understand the meaning. It was a very hard time in my life; I suffered severe anxiety attacks on a daily basis. I had no idea at the time what I was experiencing and I thought I was going quite mad. It got to the stage I couldn't go out anywhere in public without feeling anxious and of course, the more I worried about it, the worse the anxiety became. Luckily, I went to the Doc and she explained to me that what I was going through was very common and I wasn't losing my mind.

It's difficult to explain to someone who hasn't suffered an anxiety attack, what it's like. For me it was like having an outer body experience, I was there but not, as it where. I was so involved with what was going through my mind and the sensations my body was experiencing...reality would blur and all I could think about was removing myself from the situation.

I still have the occasional anxiety attack but they are few and far between. I've accepted the fact, anxiety will always be my 'Achilles heel'

You may be wondering why I am sharing this here. One of the surprising things I learned from all this was, how many people I know who have suffered through anxiety at some stage in their lives. Why didn't they say something? Knowing I wasn't alone would have made the whole experience so much easier for me.

If you suffer from anxiety or know someone who does...talk about it, it truly does help.

Ha, you all thought I called myself Krazy cause I like to act the fool. Well now ya know, I really am a nutter and proud of it.

Love ya
KB
xxxxxxx

BY REQUEST - HERE YA GO, DL

I decided it was time for a change. Me thinks the first of many as I seem to be experiencing some kind of mid-life crisis since turning 40, hehe. I love my new do. The only problem I'm having is feeling the cold, I've been wearing a scarf all day cause my neck is so cold.

Hubby was hoping that having less blonde hair would reduce my blonde moments. This doesn't seem to be the case. Earlier this evening, I was trying to add seasoning to the fish I was preparing. I assured hubby the grinder I was using was broken. He proceeded to take of the lid and give me THAT look.

Woohoo! The blondness has not faded!

BE AFRAID, BE VERY AFRAID.

I WANT SEX...AND THE CITY, OF COURSE

Sex, shoes, gossip, laughs, Cosmopolitans, more shoes and BIG. What more could a Krazy Blonde want? I can't wait!

MIND OR BODY?

I was watching an episode of Boston Legal the other night. One of the story lines was regarding an elderly man with Alzheimer's (a topic close to my heart as my Grandad suffered with this disease), his daughter wished to ease his pain with drugs and let him die peacefully and with some dignity. A line from the show which touched me,(I can't remember the exact words), was, we wouldn't put a dog through the misery of soiling itself or crying out in pain and confusion whenever it was touched - we would put it to sleep.

My Grandad was a brave, proud man. He raised a family, fought for his country, he believed in God, he was a marathon runner, never smoked, ate healthy food and hardly ever drank alcohol. He kept his mind active with his work and completed the crossword every day. In other words; he did all the things we are told will help keep mind, body and soul healthy.

I'd rather not share how his mind and body disintegrated became but I will say, it was a blessing in the end that he didn't know what was happening to him because he would have felt humiliated.

My Mum, is a caregiver for the elderly. She shares many stories of her time at work; some hilarious, others heartbreaking.

One of the ladies she cares for packs her bag every day and waits for her son to take her home. He never arrives, in fact, he doesn't even bother to visit anymore. She will forget this by morning and wake up expectantly with the same hope.

Another of Mum's ladies is as sharp as a tack. She's intelligent and wise but her frail body doesn't allow her out of bed most days.

With all the medical breakthroughs these days, people are living longer. But at what cost? What's the point of having a healthy body if the mind has gone and vice versa?

One of the lessons I have learned from my Grandad's death is it's important to look after our body and mind but not at the expense of living life. Everything in moderation is the key.

You only live once-but if you work it right, once is enough.

Joe.E.Lewis

HELLS GATE, ROTORUA, NEW ZEALAND

The Hells Gate geothermal reserve was formed approximately 10,000 years ago as a series of geothermal eruptions when an ancient lake drained to form lakes Rotoiti and Rotorua. The removal of the water caused faulting of the rock allowing the violent escape of steam, gases and hot fluids. Hells Gate is different from the other thermal reserves in the Rotorua/Taupo area, as its heat source is only 1.5 - 2kms below the surface whereas the other thermal reserves' heat source is approximately 10+Kms under the surface. The temperature of the pools and cliffs range from 68 to 380 degrees C.







The Sulphur Crystal Valley, is covered in deposited sulphur that condenses from the geothermal stream. The blackened areas highlight a unique phenomena - spontaneous combustion which occurs when deposited sulphur reaches approx 120 degrees C from ground and sun heat, ignites then burns at 380 degrees C causing silica rocks to melt and flow like laver. In this area you can feel the heat of the earth under your feet by touching the flat rocks in the paths which are always warm to the touch. So cool, or should I say HOT!



The outline of this pool imitates that of Australia, it's shape was not man made. Well obviously because they would have made a map of New Zealand NOT Australia. Unfortunately, I couldn't get the whole pool in the photo, if I'd stepped any further back; I would have ended up in a hot pool and been a deep, fried blonde. The temperature is approx 48 degrees C, which is lukewarm when compared with the rest of the park. Ahhh, maybe that's why it's a map of Australia instead of NZ. *giggles*

Many Australians have asked where Tasmania is and although invited to make a suitable hole, the offer has yet to be taken up. Too funny!




I recommend a visit to Hells Gate if you are ever in the area. It's a short, easy walk with fascinating history. Well, according to the brochure, the walk takes 45 mins but if you are KB and have to point at everything and have blonde moments, such as touching steaming rocks and exclaiming with surprise how hot they feel, it takes much longer. I could have stayed there all day. Well worth a visit.

On another note, I have discovered one of the reasons the rest of NZ loathes Aucklanders.

Hells Gate cashier - "Which country are you from?"

KB - "Auckland, I mean NZ."


Oh, you should have seen the look she gave me. Whoops!

QUOTE OF THE WEEK

The greatest discovery of my generation is that a human being can alter his life by altering his attitude.

- William James

Oh, me likey this one!

Later gators
xxxxx