Up close and personal - the Dreamliner experience

Early this morning I was standing on the tarmac staring at this massive aircraft.

It was the first one built by Boeing, and is the only one kitted out like this.

Sitting in the cockpit was pretty cool...

..as was being able to walk around and inspect all the equipment as well as talk to the Boeing engineers. I also love the view from up here...

...and here.

It's not until one gets up close and personal does it really sink in how big this thing is.

Isn't it amazing what man is capable of?

There are heaps more photos - I've added an addendum for this post.

Art at our park in the dark

Our park, at the end of our road, was the place to be tonight. It was home to Art in the Dark, and I was willing to have Kien stay up a little later to attend. But alas, he was grumpy and needed to go to bed, so he missed out this year. Jef stayed home to do the sitting duties, and at 10pm I meandered through the park.

Our playground was transformed with strategically placed lights and balloons, and "movies" were projected onto the double slides - interesting effects.

The Rainbow Laser was awesome.

Then there was this bizarre dance called "Fighting Kitten Friends" (I think).

They were good dancers, bopping to some drum and base. Then they got inside the "game" and started fighting objects. I sat there entranced for a while, then moved on up the park toward Ponsonby Rd end.

I like lights, so any exhibition with lights are pretty cool as far as I'm concerned. Doesn't this look pretty?

There was also a miniature display made out of clear plastic called "A Small Act", and at the central area was a QR code with tiny little instructions to use your smartphone to get the message via a QR Code reader app. Interesting concept - so I did. It took me here.

Then on the path around the side there was this an interactive exhibition whereby you take a plastic thing and lie down in the tent and watch the dancing lights. So I did it, and I couldn't interpret what the hell I was supposed to be looking at. The colours dancing on the sheets were pretty - was that it?

I actually asked people who where lying next to me if they got it, and they didn't - so I'm not alone!

It was a fun hour, and as I headed home it started to rain. Somehow that made me feel like that added to the experience.

I told Jef to go, but he's too busy reverse engineering an iPad app to care about going and seeing some trippy arty stuff.

Next year baba will love it!

The Dreamliner salute

At 9:50 this morning we were standing on Bastion Point watching the new Boeing 787-8 fly over the Harbour Bridge. I can't believe how excited I was, especially knowing that tomorrow I will be one of the lucky few to look through the test equipment filled interior of the craft.

What a beautiful sight - so streamlined.

Up here where we were the view is fantastic over the harbour to Rangitoto.

We went back to the open field and attempted to fly our kite in the light breeze.

Kien loved it, and despite the pictures showing you of successful kite flying let me tell you it really wasn't. The thing stayed up maybe a minute each time before quickly plummeting to the ground again. It was only after we packed up did the wind pick up - typical Murphy's law style.

Life in the flesh

He was in there. I could feel him swirling. I felt his kicks, his hiccups.

I looked forward to meeting him whilst still savouring every moment of having him growing inside. It was the only time when he was truly mine.

I saw him wave to the world outside of me. It was so special.

I was so excited the night before he arrived.

It was also extremely painful.

But it was all worth it, and I got to hold his beautiful warm body against mine, on the outside.

Here he was, life in the flesh.

~~~~~

I'm linking this post with other bloggers who have been inspired by this weeks theme - Life.

Flying objects and discoveries

How many youtube videos of helicopters can one 22 month old child watch? It turns out the answer is countless. We were stuck inside this morning, so in order to keep Kien amused we played helicopter clips through the Apple TV; big ones, small ones, heavy lifting ones, fighting ones, Westpac Rescue ones in action. You'd think after an hour of watching 5-10 minute clips he would move on and do something else. But no, "more hey-ta-ta?" was the most frequently asked request of the day.

Mechanics Bay

After his nap we braved the wind and headed off to the heliport at Mechanics Bay.

We went down the walkway and hoped we would see a take off or landing.

We sat for a while, watching, waiting...no emergencies requiring the Westpac Rescue helicopter to take off (is it bad to say unfortunately?).

We flew the other one around while we waited.

By this stage the wind had picked up, and the rain that we could see in the distance had now arrived.

We ran to the car and got a little wet. All I can say is that I was glad I wasn't doing a half marathon.

Auckland War Memorial Museum

The Stevenson Discovery Centre is an amazing place, and is fantastic for days when the weather is not conducive to being outdoors.

Kien had a good time exploring all the nooks and crannies this place has to offer.

This place really is amazing. We have been here a few times before, and as Kien gets older I can see the notable level of interest rising. In a place like this there is so much to explore and discover.

But at times he just wanted to mess around on the squabs.

We then made our way up the stairs to next level of the museum to look at the WWII planes. These flying beauties are pretty special, and the people who flew them were pretty special too. I remember seeing a documentary where some Battle of Britain veterans recounted stories of comrades landing aircraft as their last act before dying. Stories like that make me want to join the army all over again.

We finished off our afternoon outing by driving to the summit of Mt Eden. The view across the harbour, as always, was spectacular.

Saturday at dusk

Our tomato vine grew from seed back when daylight was at a minimum. A few winter months at the top of the stairs outside our apartment door, a little neglected at times, and now it is bearing fruit.

Kien has picked many inedible green ones and brought them to me excitedly. I can't tell him off for that, he loves to pick things to give to me.

We went for a walk around the Freemans Park complex late this afternoon with the SLR camera. The blossoms had bloomed, the great oak tree outside our backdoor sprouted an abundance of leaves seemingly overnight, and patches of daisies had cropped up all over the lawn. It was a perfect Saturday at dusk, with the sun low on the horizon. My child explored.

He must have not realised he was stepping down from the footpath, and I watched in slow motion as he face planted onto the ground. I heard his forehead hitting the asphalt, the sound similar to when you strike two stones together. There was a second of silence before the scream. I picked him up immediately and cuddled him as the blood seeped from the wound. I felt awful.

The neighborhood boys who were riding around on their kick scooters saw what had happened and immediately came over. They watched as I wiped Kien's blood off with my fingers and transferred it onto my cardigan. Lovely boys, they were genuinely concerned, and they smiled back at Kien when he realised he had an audience and beamed them a grin after the shock had warn off. I still felt awful.

I went upstairs, I cleaned him up as he giggled.

A little while later he decided he was hot?!? So the clothes came off. But he was adamant on having his socks and shoes on.

He danced on the table top as he flashed the world.

He also said "Poo", which usually means he's already done one. I rushed him off to the toilet, but nothing happened. He went back to playing.

Look at that tummy, filled with rice and bbq pork. He ate so much at my Dad's this afternoon. It surprised us all.