The hustle and bustle of the inner city life and living situation was wearing me out, so when an opportunity to make a move came knocking, I answered with a resounding “yes!” I wasn’t planning on making a move given that it would be a lot of work to find a place and move my stuff without a car (and it would mean that I’d be separating myself from Shannon and Lindsay), but in the end the decision to shift was a wise one.
Anna, one of my wonderful teacher mentors at Avonside, picked me up on Saturday morning for a “tikki-tour” (Kiwi term for a quick sightseeing trip) to the Waimakariri River where her husband, Steve, was trying his luck with Salmon fishing. Anna’s true teacher-nature was shining bright as she annotated a tour around Christchurch that included a delicious picnic lunch on the bank of the Avon at the picture-perfect Mona Vale park; a drive-by of the Arts Centre Market; and ended in Sumner for coffee with Marie and a preview of the sleepout.
I work with a wonderful teacher, Marie, who mentioned that she had a “sleepout” available for me to rent if I was interested in spending the rest of my teaching time living at Sumner Beach. I was kind of hesitant to say yes…until I saw it and fell in love. The sleepout is a fully-contained apartment situated in the back yard of the main house. It’s a cinderblock building with a bathroom, kitchen, living area, and separate bedroom. There’s a huge table for me to spread out all my school work AND a luxurious espresso machine to keep me fuelled with caffeine!
The seaside community of Sumner has such a peaceful, yet trendy, atmosphere. It takes less than a minute to get from my door to the water – and this beach is slightly different from the beach at Gull Lake. This prairie girl is looking forward to the sound of waves, the tidal changes, surfing, walks, and all that the ocean has to offer. There are coffee shops, restaurants, pubs, and galleries abound…certainly heaps of places to exercise my MasterCard.
So here I am, a week after taking a look at the place, and I’m now a resident. I’ve spent the day packing, unpacking, and breathing the fresh sea air. It’s lovely…peaceful…and just what I need.
Tomorrow I’ve got my first surf lesson.
Thanks for reading,
L.
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