Hi All,

Here's is the long-overdue update on what Jo & I have been up to over the last five months or so.  Our web site still contains reasonably updated stuff - it's now been moved to: http://users.actrix.co.nz/dannyandjo/ but the old address will get redirected for a while.

We moved into our new house at the beginning of June, and so far it hasn't fallen down around us, despite now having no landlord to come round and do stuff.  The garden looks good and things are getting greener than were a few months ago, but that's all I really know about gardens.  I had a go a few weeks ago with the Roundup, but was disappointed to see that things were still alive a few days later - no instant death and destruction.

In mid-July I started a new job at Pan Pac Forest Products, as a Production/Systems Engineer in the pulpmill.  We make, well, pulp, mainly for export to Japan where it's turned into newsprint.  My main project for the first four months or so is to implement a data historian system which collects real-time process information from a variety of control systems, databases, etc.   And I'm also dabbling with monitoring wholesale power prices, which will be increasingly useful to know as NZ runs out of hydro storage!  I'm planning on wangling a work trip to California next March, and hope to also spend a few days (or more) catching up with Mark in San Francisco.

Jo is still involved with developing soups and things at Wattie's - her manager is away on project in Aust for a few months so she's also doing some team-leader stuff.

In the first week of September we had an excellent week skiing down south with Bruce & Janet.  We had a day at Mt Hutt, 4 or 5 days at Cardrona, and a half-day at Treble Cone.  The weather was excellent and the snow was fantastic (except for TC which sucked - hence the half-day).  We stayed in a bach at Hawea, and rented a pretend 4WD to get us around.  We've started to post some pictures on the web site, and more will be added as we get around to it!

This week it's Jo's birthday (the big 30) so this weekend has been party central with loads of people coming and going and rather a few empty wine bottles outside on the back deck.

Next weekend we are planning to climb Mt Ruapehu.  We did it at Easter with no snow, so this time we are keen to dust off the crampons and ice axes etc and have another bash.   We may even take the skis up, but then there's a cost-benefit to work out: the weight of them going up versus the awesome run down from the crater.  Or we may just take up big plastic bags and make slippery nappy things like last time.

We don't really have any plans for Xmas yet, if indeed I get a break at all other than the stats, but we'll probably do something on the cheap like tramping.  We will also be in Wgtn for Chris & Erica's party in early January.

Anyway, must send this now or we never will (it's already been in the Drafts folder for a week!),  Hope all is well with you all in your parts of the world, and there's not too much mischief going on without us!!

Cheers, Danny & Jo

Danny has pretty much summed it up - we are in preparation for summer with a few BBQ's which led to an outdoor furniture purchase plus a cheap bed for the deck - fantastic idea for sleeping in the sun (accept it is raining this week so isn't the best). I am trying to train Danny in gardening - all he is good for is lawn mowing, picking up weeds and trying to kill some off!! We are getting better and already the veges are growing well! Take care Jo