Local King tide coast walk...

 

Yesterday, my eldest took my mum (her grandmother), on her motorised scooter, and me on a walking trip along a local coastal walkway.

It was a beautiful sunny day with a cool breeze just after midday. What I was astounded by, however, was the King tide that brought the tide right up the sandy beach at its highest peak that I'd ever seen before.

Usually, rocks are exposed when I go on my regular 5 km walks, but this time the tide seemed swollen, and I reflected on how there had been an eclipse on Monday, which I missed, and a full moon the day after, which brought about this phenomenon.

It was a lovely walk, and it was neat to reflect on how there were three generations of our family enjoying the day out and keeping in good spirits with such lovely memories in the making. When we had almost completed our walk, we were joined by my younger sister and middle child.

Afterwards, my lil' sis' shouted us some Maccha (green-type tea) with a strawberry swirl (which didn't make a lot of sense to me) and a joint meal that extended our fellowship and good vibes. Definitely a lovely day to reflect on as we now invite the autumn season to bring its coolness to our days ahead...

First impressions of IKEA (NZ) store...

 

On the weekend, I visited IKEA (NZ) for the first time since it opened its doors last year with its first store in Auckland. It was interesting to view the big warehouse, which reminded me a lot of the Costco stores.

I was able to view the various furniture layouts for bedrooms, study spaces, kitchen, lounge furnishings and the list goes on. I also loved viewing their colour combinations and found their pricing reasonable.

Now I get what the big deal was all about, as I had heard that when it first opened, there were cues down the road to get in and view the big warehouse.

They even had a large space for seated eating with a nice menu that offered food tastings from their European origins. I guess the only thing that I wasn't too keen on was that it was most of the warehouse used artificial lighting apart from the entrances.

All in all, it was an interesting experience, so that if I ever need furnishings to kit out a specific room or area, then this definitely would be a store to seek and consider the various offerings and options one could choose from...

Watching the movie "Tenor: my name is Pati"...

 

I was so blessed to have watched the movie "Tenor: my name is Pati" with my beloved. It was a three-day preview, and I watched it on Friday in the morning with only three of us watching in a big theatre. I think most people would have missed it as the only session of the day.

It was a touching movie for me as he was brought up in the same suburb of Māngere in South Auckland, as my family, but at different churches and schools. It was also interesting in that he had grown up with a super strict Samoan father.

I think the other part of his journey that was so interesting to watch was his commitment to his craft as a singer, musician and performer. I could see his passion growing up in performing at church and the local elderly home that his parents worked at, and that he and his siblings performed at and also worked there.

To now be on international stages all over the world singing as a tenor in operas and sharing his love and passion with audiences to see is so amazing. If I hadn't watched this movie, I wouldn't have known the great lengths that he has travelled to get to where he is today.

So happy for him and so proud that he represents our Samoaness well. The good, the difficulties and the struggles. I wish all the best for him, as he has been compared with Pavarotti, and that's saying something. 

This is a highly recommended movie that I encourage many Samoans and Pasifika people to be inspired by. Not so much about becoming an opera star but in his journey of never giving up on a dream that transpired as he was dedicated to his craft...