Day 59: oh one, oh one, one oh.

And so the new year begins. Where I’m sitting, the day could only be described as perfect. My table is shaded by a large green umbrella, the expanse of lawn surrounding me is green in parts and golden in others, and the wide sky above me is crisp and blue, whisped across with light white clouds by cooling breaths of breeze. And it is hot. The dry heat that belongs to these farmland plains, the changeable country that sits equally as easily with icy conditions and swings violently between baking the earth and freezing it from one day to the next. There’s something I like about New Zealand’s way of doing things though. It’s raw and fresh and devastatingly honest. It does what it feels like. And last night it felt like being freakin’ cold, but clear skyed and perfect for a full moon and silver lighted sea. Because for the whole of last night’s party, that was the view that greeted every glance out the window. And what a party it was. The setting and house was vividly reminiscent of something you would find on the Hollywood hills, except for the temperatures. The short sun-frock I was determined to wear proved highly inappropriate for the weather, even with a hoody over top. Lucky Ren, usually residing in Tokyo, had a pair of thick and enormous outdoor kimonos. I adopted one as my housecoat and all was awesome. Those voluminous sleeves even looked quite high fashion. Radical. And the party was ace. Everyone else was getting pretty steadily hammered, but none of them were nasty drunks. As one guest observed, as you get older you tend to associate less with dickheads you don’t like, and more with cool people you do. I don’t know if that’s strictly true, but our crowd was a good one, a varied selection of fun, happy, relaxed and interesting people. Kiwis as a rule do tend towards relaxed and happy, especially ones actually living in kiwiland. It’s not surprising. I woke this morning, on the first day of the year, to the breathtaking ocean view I have already described (without a hangover and feeling awesome. Waahoo!). Now I am sitting in a rural setting rich in rustic charm. And a couple of days ago I was weaving my way along winding roads, through Giotto-esque hills, lush, green and sheep-dotted, to a winery in a quaint, quiet bay. It’s just prettiness galore. And there’s so much space. It keeps things calm. Accordingly, at last night’s party there was no fevered talk of resolutions. Everyone was pretty relaxed on the whole thing, and I loosely committed myself to only one. Apart of course from my non-drinking and my mission to create musical amazingness (and anything else cool that occurs to me), I have resolved to finally learn to drive. My lack of a license has been a shameful inclusion on my loser list for some time now, and this year I plan to do something about it. Indeed, the next time I visit this farm, I plan to be fully qualified to get behind the wheel. And funnily enough, for the first time in my existence I actually feel like I am starting to steer the course of my life, as opposed to going simply where I’m taken. What a coincidence. Did I mention by the way, that I literally started today with a bowl of cherries? I think I like the way this year is shaping up.