hmmmmm
Posted 13 units in Mid October - And delivery times can vary from one week - (to UK) to 4 Months (Austria)!
Same town - and a two week difference for delivery!!
WTH is going on with Postage!! Ohhhhhhh btw - a postcard posted on 13th Sep from Rarotonga arrived on 7 Nov - along with the Christmas letter and calendar - posted mid Oct!!! Others got their postcard at the end of September . . .
G O F I G U R E
Anywhooooo - below the actual letter - via a Picture image
As children we always loved getting postcards from as far a flung place as possible! They opened a window into the world and of course - always nice to think that people on trips, are thinking of those 'left' behind!!
So when we had our recent 40th celebrations in the Cook Islands we decided to re-institute the art of writing! It takes time to shop for a suitable card (and finding one) - then write some clever useful words - like MISSING YOU - never mind finding a post-office that has stamps and drop them ready for posting!!
All 13 Postcards got dropped into the mail on 13 Sep 2025!!! Go us.
13 cards on the 13th - - hmmmmm was that asking for trouble????
MEANWHILE - if only we knew what was in store . . . .
Almost all recipients acknowledged receiving them, when they eventually arrived where they were supposed to be - with thanks!
The interesting, or should that be, frustrating part - was - drummmm roll please:
ratatat ratat
That delivery dates varied - e n o r m o u s l y !!!
The shortest time was (1 postcard) to Australia - 20 days!!
Followed by an astonishing 22 days to the UK!
Two cards to NZ followed with 32 days!
Austria had 51 days and also 87 - yes you read this right - 87!!!! Days. Nearly 3 Months!!!
Worse yet - there is a twice daily flight from Rarotonga to Auckland - so the cards would all have left on 14 Sept and arrived in Auckland international mailing distribution center the following day!!
GO FIGURE!!!!!!
Worse yet - a Christmas calendar - posted much much later ex Chch - arrived at the same time as the late card!!
What the hell is going on with the postal services?????? You can no longer use Covid as an excuse - that's been done and dusted!!
Oddly enough - Mail C O M I N G to NZ is more or less in a timely fashion!! Well - except one parcel posted in January 2025 has yet to be delivered and also a Birthday card posted in May 2025 - never came - yet!!
I keep joking that they are using a paddle boat to deliver - or a bicycle and the Postie got lost in Uzbekistan!!
With apologies to Pat and his cat!!
Have fun!
The Long version ----->
Exodus 20
New International Version
The Ten Commandments
20 And God spoke all these words:
2 “I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery.
3 “You shall have no other gods before[a] me.
4 “You shall not make for yourself an image in the form of anything in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the waters below. 5 You shall not bow down to them or worship them; for I, the Lord your God, am a jealous God, punishing the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation of those who hate me, 6 but showing love to a thousand generations of those who love me and keep my commandments.
7 “You shall not misuse the name of the Lord your God, for the Lord will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses his name.
8 “Remember the Sabbath day by keeping it holy. 9 Six days you shall labor and do all your work, 10 but the seventh day is a sabbath to the Lord your God. On it you shall not do any work, neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your male or female servant, nor your animals, nor any foreigner residing in your towns. 11 For in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, the sea, and all that is in them, but he rested on the seventh day. Therefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day and made it holy.
12 “Honor your father and your mother, so that you may live long in the land the Lord your God is giving you.
13 “You shall not murder.
14 “You shall not commit adultery.
15 “You shall not steal.
16 “You shall not give false testimony against your neighbor.
17 “You shall not covet your neighbor’s house. You shall not covet your neighbor’s wife, or his male or female servant, his ox or donkey, or anything that belongs to your neighbor.”
The Short Version ----->
I am the Lord thy God. Thou shall not have strange Gods before Me.
Thou shall not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain.
Remember to keep holy the Lord's day.
Honor thy father and mother.
Thou shall not kill.
Thou shall not commit adultery.
Thou shall not steal.
Thou shall not bear false witness against thy neighbor.
Thou shall not covet thy neighbor's wife.
Thou shall not covet thy neighbor's goods.
Translation ----->
1 - I'm the only one for you
2 Do not swear (curse with Gods name)
3 Rest up on Sunday
4 Take care of your parents
5 No murdering rampages
6 Sex with your wife only
7 No filching other people's stuff
8 Tell the truth at all times
9 Avoid being jealous
10 Ditto for being Envious
LOL - I clearly remember a youth group meeting where we were asked to re-arrange them in order we thought to be most relevant, with the most important one at the top . . . fun times
Anyhow - did you notice the very bit at the very top -
( snip --> who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery) ? ? ?
So Abraham's Grandson (David) was sold into slavery into Egypt! He became powerful (still as a slave) and then the rest of his family seeks help, and after some 7 years of Drought (in Israel ) emigrate to Egypt for a survival and better life!
Fast forward some hundreds of years (or several generations), and the "Israel tribe" becomes too big and dangerous to the ruling Pharaoh and with Moses's help and post 10 plagues etc - eventually they are released and were free to go "back home"!!
So they wander round the Sinai dessert for 40 years! There is a reason for that!!!! It was during that time that Moses brought down the 10 Commandments!! In shortest simplest form - these were the rules that the Israel Tribe was told to live by - discarding the old known structures / rules and religious practices from Egypt!! And It would take a generational loss of memory to 'forget' the religious practices and the 'comfort" they had in Egypt!!
So lets break them down briefly:
From a multi - deity to a single deity - no cat statues or anything else
Don't curse using God's name
Rest on Sundays - the original txt is illuminating in this!
After this we go into the Social constructs!! Again in its simplest form - they say - be content with who you are and what you got - and think/ value other people in a positive manner before yourself!
Our Western World has most of its laws based on those 10 Commandments!
Certainly the 'Do not Kill / steal' rules featuring large!!! For very good reason!
Oddly enough - Both Jewish and Christian faiths are rooted in this! The Muslim world has a very similar writing - almost borrowing directly from Exodus!!
While other religions do not have the same exact txt - they DO have similar constructs baked into their belief sets!
WHY????
Would have thought it is self evident!! Imagine a world were there is no holds barred on killing or stealing or whoring around!!! The strongest loudest bully will win and pity the rest who are near the bottom of the totem pole! Can you imagine living in a world like that????
Unfortunately - (certainly in NZ) as we are becoming less and less of a Christian (let alone religious) Society - eg - a Society where our own behavior is rooted in the 10 commandments - we see more and more examples where folks think of themselves first! You see it in their behavior!! (By their fruits they will be judged)
I used to say to my Son ten years back that we are rapidly becoming a society where "its all about me"!!! Egotistical / Narcissistic is the word . . . .
My Freedom
My Rights
Me First
My Feelings
I'm always right and everyone is always wrong
Killing another human (and celebrating that), just because they have a different social or political outlook on life is becoming rapidly acceptable in some parts of the world . . . .
Sighs
We could do with a biblical (christian) revival for a better world!!!
Like - ARE YOU - yes YOU - truly happy and contend in this world????
Have fun!
This is so wild!!
1 - Interesting that they turned comments of! I wonder what they are afraid of!
2 - Absolutely wild that anyone could think that an increase of the VERY life blood for EVERY single plant organism on our lovely planet, could be a danger to OUR environment / lives?!?!?!
I ought to download the video and then upload here - as I am sure the Google/ You tube censors will block this . . . . eventually
Hmmm
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FLWidki_drI
3 - I note that as our (mostly western) societies have moved away from being God centered (yes that's all Abrahamiac based Faiths ie Jewish/Christian/Muslim) towards a self centered faith, that those very self centered folks increasingly fear for their very own existence / survival - AND need a bogey man to justify their own fears and short comings!
4 - and lastly - anytime you go to your back yard and take a spade and dig over a patch of grass or soil (get ready for some potato or whatever planting ) Please NOTE - by its very definition, you are changing your own Environment!!!! Logically by that thinking the so called greenies would like to eradicate all of humanity - just in order to preserve the environment - but why stop there . . . . Even the wild animals by eating grass etc and then peeing or pooping are also doing environmental damage (not to mentioning farting greenhouse gases) so lets get rid of all birds/fish/mammals etc
Ahhhh the sound of . . . . . nothing, nothing but the wind rustling the leaves . . . not that you would have many trees without the wildlife helping with the dispersal of seeds and fertilizing/ pollinating the various Flora . . . .
To everyone who is so into the here and now and self - and does not like reflecting - or being reminded of history - T H E R E I S a reason why the story of Noah and the rainbow is in the Biblical writings!! In God I trust . . . . . .
Have fun!
Hmmmmm
Wed 30 April 2025
I always wanted to do this - buy a piano - remove the crappy strings etc - and make it into a decent wine-bar - that could be a show stopper in someones lounge - or even better - in that MAN-cave!!!!
Step one
Buy a piano - a worthy candidate!!
Well - almost easier said then done - Naturally one wants them as cheap as possible in order to max out any possible profit!
Hmmm - Trademe to the rescue!! All of $0.50 - that's right 50 cents!!! I had - well - I KNOW of a Oak clad upright piano in a place that would be free (and REALLY needs a work-over - birds-nests and all) - BUT its a 1.5 hour drive to it - AND there needs to be a trailer . . . . plus a extra helper to lift and secure then back again . . . Most other Pianos for sale are still in brilliant condition and going for - well - more then I can afford! I re-checked Trademe - and out of the 30 going for $1 or less - 3 were in the South Island - the rest all across the Cook straight in the North island! - Hmmm do I live in the wrong place?????
So I bought one of Trademe!! Wohooo - Go me! Mamabear naturally thinks I am nuts! Ok slightly nuts I admit! She thought it would not fit into the already crowded Garage / workshop!! No car ever made its way into that!!! She I S space-ially challenged, and I did make some room for it!! So I duly hired a trailer - all of $40 for the afternoon - in TEEMING rain!! My bad luck that the arrangements made some 15 days prior for that day - turned out to be a damn wet weather pick-up day!! I also asked a good friend to come and help with the lifting/shifting etc! That no doubt will be a bottle of red later in lieu of payment!!
Ah well
Sighs
NOW - some design questions need to be made first up!! Where goes the rack? The bottle storage?? Marble or timber servery place-mat?? Hmmmm let me sleep on that!!
Wed 7 May 2025
I am no dummy!! Wait - no comment required from the sidelines!!!
I did Google the "disassembling" of a piano - etc - and - it seems straight forward! Most of it sits on dowel / pins etc!! So easy peasy to get to the hammers etc!! Almost no un-screwing required! The designers figured that an easy access to "re-tune" or "repair bits" would be needed from time to time - so that made it easy to rip apart the piano's!
Yikes the layers of dust!!! Sneezes . . . .
Well - ok - so far so good!! First design decision - is to leave the strings in place - As the metal sounding board does have TWO nice crests / names of the original Piano maker!! This particular model - so the research seem to suggest has been in the Factory fire - either, well see ---->
1913 In the Birmingham Gazette dated 27th August 1913 -- there is an article about a fire at the Sames’ piano factory. The company states that their factory comprises three separate blocks of buildings and that 200 pianos in the first block only are destroyed. The other two blocks were not affected by the fire and they state that production will not be disrupted.
1923 In the Birmingham Gazette dated the 31st August 1923 there is a large advertisement stating that the fire at the factory will not disrupt manufacture of the pianos. At that time there were 350 pianos in stock, they have large quantities of seasoned wood available and that the high standard of the pianos will be maintained.
https://www.pianoandtheory.co.nz/resources-page/2023/8/12/sames-pianos
Yes there are some very dark sooty parts of timber - mostly out of sight!! Second decision - well - actually the first really - was - to re-use as much of the original timber where ever possible!! There is some Pine / and Oak and - lovely to see - some Rosewood - maybe some Mahogany!! Yussss
As you can see - there are a number of white pieces missing!! I did get SOME spares - but there are a few that were lost forever! So I was thinking of just biffing them - them re-thought this - they might be after all - REAL Ivory!
Quick look - no such luck!
I did however find some lovely ideas on how to re-purpose them!! 
OK - first step - to match the loose bits to the keys and then one at a time re-glue them to the hammers!! And seeing I have only so many clamps and things - its 4 pieces at a time!
Then once that has been completed - there has to be a REAL wash/clean up! Some of them are no longer white - rather some dirty grey - almost yellow-ish!! Guess they got a good workout over the years!! Then the original timber used has been coated with Dirt/dust - so that needs a light re-sanding/wash to bring back the original grain - ready for a Linseed-oil bath!
Sighs - MORE sanding - my least favorite part of woodworking!!
Right - Urm - Ok - must remember to keep a time stamp log!!
So far - not counting the rainy day pick up - it's some 6 hours just to get to this stage . . . . . .
Right - while that process is progressing - time for a proverbial red health drink!!
PS - at this stage - I could re-assemble and on-sell the piano - If I wanted too - no permanent damage has been done - yet!!!!
Sun 11 May 2025 - Mothers-day
The day dawned fine - no clouds in the sky and after the obligatory txt's had been sent - and other Mothers being congratulated - it was time to get back to work!
Once that was done - the Black and White keys got arranged and glued to the newly made backing board! There is no going back now!! I am committed!!
I should have said that yesterday I went to a hardware store and bought some hooks and a couple of hinges/hooks for the back board! I need to keep track of my expenses . . . . .
On that note - the backing timber - which I had deliberately left 5-9 mm wider - needed a trim too - time to get out my new Spiral router trim gadget - it worked a treat - no tear-outs!!!! Expensive that was - hmm I should get myself a second one - for that - yeah that other job . . . . . .
So last jobs to be done - trim the paddles and screw into the back the hooks and maybe a second oil bath and then take some real GOOD pictures and send this of to Trade-me for sale!!!
Hmmmm How much do I ask for ? ? ?
Only 4 more to make - and yes - they will all be unique and individualized!!
Right - may need to go on a Lettering hunt!! Spotlight ought to have something suitable or yet another hardware store visit coming up?!?!?!?!
Thur 15 May 2025
Hmmmm - My problem is that apart from being the resourceful / creative chap - visualizing the art work and all - I also need to be a roving sales-chap!! 3 units on trademe and no nibbles at all!!! Am I making the wrong product??? Do I need to hire a marketing expert? Serious doubt creeping in here . . . . . .
Sun 25 May 2025
Wooohooooo - first sale completed! Actually it sold via Market-place on Facebook! I know - I know - a bit slow there!! I am on FB O N L Y because I admin a rugby page - and seeing that FB changed the rules a little while back and I needed to be a REAL person (like I am some Fatah Morgana) urm anyhow I needed to have a real current login email and a minimum of three friends!! Sighs!
Still - I listed for the first time some items and had 945 views - or clicks as they say!! Long may it continue - as I need to sell something else, just to break even!!
Ah well - back to the workshop . . . . . .
Fri 13 June 2025
Turns out - I sold 2 more - so as off right now - I am actually in credit Dollar-wise with this endeavor! Two more to make and one of them is on FB already. Pretty soon I can start working on the actual Piano bar conversion . . . .
Tue 16 June 2025
Outch!! Not a lot of progress has been made - as I am battling 2 Kidney-stones!!
Dang - Not wishing this on anyone; Friend or Foe!!!
Sighs
Wed 16 July 2025
Well - I guess I have been slack! That said - I have two good reasons . .
1; - Those darn stones are moving from time to time and while I have some very good medication to suppress the pain - it does leave you drowsy and it is not recommended to drive, while ' on the pill' so to speak! That also means - just like having had a glass of red nectar - NO woodworking - eg operating machinery - big or small!! I prefer to keep my fingers . . . .
2; - While 'on the pill' - and the weather has been really cold and damp - even in the garage/workshop - I have been doing a bit of reading - working my way through Harry Potter (again) to be precise!
TODAY - a bit of sun and no pills and -- well - I needed to finish this particular key-hanger - meaning a bit of cutting to shape and sanding - l o t s of sanding and then as you can see a oil-bath!! Once dry - just need to re-attach the picture/backing-board and screw in the actual hooks and I can take this to the market! Woohoooooo
Just need to become an expert in marketing /sales!! So far its proving deadly quiet (again) on the sales front! Lots of 'views' but no $$$ in my account!
https://www.facebook.com/share/19XpJGhAf8/
Ideas????
Anyhow
That's for another day!!!
The really good thing - in-between Pills and the occasional refreshing red nectar - I get to contemplate next steps . . . . the rest of the keyboard holder needs removing and some sort of flat "BAR" surface needs fitting!! Hmmmm Timber or Marble - or a timber/glass combo?? I do like the marble look - it would make it VERY heavy . . .
Hmmmmmm - right - one more re-fill me thinks and maybe some research on the i-net re whats what in terms of best fit . . . .
Thur 7 Aug 2025
Thus I open the garage door and and let some warm air flow - and then grab my trusty old screw driver,
(which reminds me of an old joke)
urm - moving along - 'cough' and do a bit
of un-screwing!! Various additional bits of piano timber needed to be
removed - so that a runner can be fitted and a suitably firm flat nice
looking bit of timber can be laid in - which will make the "BAR" bit so
serve / mix up whatever alcoholic (or not) liquid drink one may want to
concoct!! Yikes - some came out dead easy - others needed a bit more
persuasion!! Ugggh - still a lot of dust in this - may need to
water-blast the whole thing to get it clean!! Reluctant to do this - as
the timber is bone dry and may "drink" up the water - and end u warping .
. . . Hmmmmm
But the space is empty - so I can measure up and work out what best to fit in!! That is - AFTER I found some suitable timber!! I also would like to inlay a bit of marble plate thing - for when you make those spills etc . . . Hmmmmm, me thinks a hardware store visit is coming up asap
I may yet cut this up into individual sections and remove some pins (they just 'sit' in their holes) and try and upscale them as a wall mountable 'Scarf' holder for those folks who walk round with them as a sort of 'cool look at me' uniform thing. . . .
You can clearly see where the other bits of timber were originally fitted - that clean 'white' look - the rest is dusty - dirty!! A century of grime!!! Hmmmm historic grime and dirt - do I leave it ? ? ? ? ?
Nah!!
A lengthy discussion with the designer and piano surgeon as well as the sales team and accountant (all ME!!) was held re taking out the piano strings!! The are jolly heavy (as a total weight) - BUT do add character!! That meeting has concluded with no decisions - thus another future discussion is being planned, between all parties concerned. No doubt that will involve one glass or two of red nectar - in order to get the creative juices flowing!! What do you think?? In or out??? Meanwhile - as is typical with that particular weather pattern - a cold southerly directly ex Antarctica is coming up - bringing sleety showers and def snow in the foothills and Alps!! Sighs!!
Nov 7 2025
Yes - It has been a long time! In my defense - There has been a significant Birthday to celebrate (Mamabear's) and apart from the fact I did not fancy working in a freezing garage - I took 2 weeks out from the cold arctic air and escaped to Rarotonga for some R+R!!! NICE it was!!
Then (yes there is more) urm - my focus was re-directed to some medical issues - (darn that Kidney Stone!).
TODAY - I sold another key hanger!! Go me!!!! I am financially in credit!! Now I feel inspired to go and do some more work!!!
Whistles a tune and makes a cuppa . . . hmmmmm WHERE did I leave that tape measure?????
12 Aug 2026
Hmmm - the work continues! Yes there has been a long break! Firstly I had a TURP!! Go look that up! Then there is the follow-on from that - suffice to say - my Loo got a good flushing - every day!! Christmas came and went and we had a good 10 days in the North Island on holiday - so the camper-van got a good run too! Following from that - I - urm - cough - well - lets be honest - I procrastinated! I just did not feel the muse - or be inspired!! It's not like I have been sitting still - far from it! Christmas presents have been - or are - still being made (wooden coasters for some folks and some special cross stitch) and then I got really keen on re-doing - or should that be - finishing the laundry in our garage! Actually all I had to do was pay the bill and sometimes point the contractors into the right direction!
THUS - I rugged up and stomped into the garage and with some blood sweat and yes tears - I managed to cut up the right under-timber support and then butchered the old headboard into the appropriate shape! - I tell you - making something from scratch is fine - everything is straight and true. Try fitting something new into an old existing frame thing! With time and moisture (seasonal) the timber goes into all sorts of funny directions!! Sighs, nothing ever straight forward!! I really needed 4 hands - so had to make do with clamps! - then of course the piano walls were not - flush straight - so there was a lot of fiddling and shaving of half a mm by half a mm - till it 'fell' into the place!
It's so tight - no glue or screws or nails needed - its not going to move or ever fall out again!
<-------------
Hmmmm - ok - at some stage that will need a sanding down and also a re-coating of whatever the original finish was/is!
The beauty consultant came and offered - no real opinion - thus I am not sure how to move forward! I do have some left over porcelain tiles from the Laundry work that could be fitted - or at least one of them - for those olive cutting Martini making times . . . . . BUT that would require . . . . . hmmmmmm
Time for a 🍷🍷 !!!!
26 Aug 2026
I should have known . . . I unboxed it and noticed that it looked out of plum, and then - def not level!!! Check the gaps . .
So unless someone will convince me that this is a "design" feature . . . . . 🙅🙅🙅
Worst of all - I got two!! Fingers crossed by the time they are mounted underneath the lid - the glasses will hang just fine . . . .
Anyhow - the reason I bought THESE particular glass holders was that they seem to fit best - everyone else's was just to long - eg nothing to fix too and poking out at the front!
These ended up 2mm to long too - dang - some creative extension was needed - and recycling and glue-up . . which will require more sanding and re-coating and THEN - it can be glued up to the mainframe and be a fixed feature! At least there was enough left over timber from the dismantling session! I also saved the long trim - which will need cutting to size and glued on the left and right-hand outside - at the ends. This is proofing to be more bothersome then initially thought!
9 Sep 2026
weight themselves - roughly 1kg per bottle . . .
They needed lining up - just at the right height in order for for everything to sit just right / flush! OK - about 4hours for the glue to dry - time for a cuppa and sit in the sun and soak it up, all the while contemplating the next step!
Well - the bottom part wine-holder thingy gadget with three levels!
Kind of! :)
10 Sep 2026
Those support runners ain't going anywhere. Then used the same procedure to actually fix the tray to the runners itself! Rock solid! Just need a little wood putty to fill up the screw heads. Then I was going to cut to measure the actual support runners for the actual wine racks! BTW - That would be the first time any nails/screws were used on this project!
S i g h s
He has put on it, a decent dollop of silicone sealant - to make it weather proof - for now!
Today I am chasing the insurance - making a claim - in the rain!
At least there is a membrane underneath - which seems to wick the rain-water away - so nothing getting into the house itself; - yet
- still;
sighs - there is always something to worry about or fix!!
12 Sep 2026 ??
aaa
Have fun!
A fitting quote for today, reflecting on pain, fear, and anger, could be: (from Yoda)
"Fear leads to Anger, Anger leads to Hate, Hate leads to Suffering"
This quote highlights the destructive cycle that can arise when we succumb to fear and then let it fuel anger and ultimately hate, leading to suffering.
Here's why this quote is relevant:
It acknowledges the emotional journey:
Have fun!
