n is for new zealand...
so, although i am australian, i left home when i was 22 after a trip to visit my family in new zealand convinced me that that's where i should be. i applied for a transfer at my work, and i was suuuper lucky to have been able to get one - literally straight away! within a month, i was packed up, saying my good byes, and moving across the ditch to my new home with my cousin in lower hutt. i probably should have done some research on the area i was moving to before i moved in; because, had i done that i would have learned that gun fire through the night and regular domestic disturbances were part of the 'norm' in this part of town. thankfully, my first flat in nz had a 24 hour police station 7 doors away, so... that made me feel safe. i didn't stay in that flat long.
my cousin logan is a mechanic, and did a lot of car restoration in his spare time. in his less-than-spare time, he bought and restored a complete heap-of-crap car for me, for a carton of beer. it was a brilliant little run around, that needed fortnightly oil changes and lots of tender loving care... sadly i was not the best person to give her that. although, that car will probably out last the rest of us, regardless of how badly i treated her.
i met a boy, and made a lot of friends very quickly. my best friend from adelaide also moved over about 3 months after me, so i felt really comfortable, and 'at home' in new zealand. my mum's family were all there, and so i really had everything i wanted, and for the first time in my life i felt like i was an adult. i was working, and paying bills, and feeding myself and doing all of the things that adults do - and i was doing it to a fairly satisfactory level!
i worked as a store manager and then as a 'store based trainer' for an australasian retailer, and had a fairly strong love/hate relationship with it. i managed two different stores, including the flagship store in wellington, and met some really great people there. in fact, one of my employees there became one of my best friends, and still is to this day. my two stores did really well while i worked there, but i got bored of success (?!) and wanted to try my hand at something new. i decided to try banking. that did not last long.
about the time i decided banking was not for me, i also decided to follow my bff back to australia and so my boyfriend at the time and i packed up and moved to melbourne. my two years in new zealand were thus concluded with a crazy kings of leon gig and yet another farewell party - one that actually made me bawl my eyes out; proof that i should not have left when i did (didn't cry when leaving australia, not once!).
new zealand stole my heart and is the backdrop for the best part of my 20's. i met some 'choice' people there - people who i still consider some of my absolute best friends to this day. i have only fond memories of my years spent there, and cannot wait for the day we are reunited once more.
kei te aroha au ki a koe, aoteaora <3
*a-z of me is a weekly series created when i was suffering writers block. i also thought it might be a good way for you to get to know me a little bit better.. outside of the general nonsense and backwards mirror pictures. to follow the rest of the series, click here.
