Semester Break 2015!

Exams are finished (campus wide), and I have already been on holidays for a week!

Its funny when there is no Uni to do or even think about (unless I jump ahead into next semesters textbooks) and none of my flatmates are here... It has become very quiet and very cold as no one is constantly in the lounge resetting the heater when it turns off (every half an hour...)

Although I have spent the last 4 days at home (yesterday I came back down), and I'm going back tomorrow...  (so my car can get new brake pads and its oil leak fixed and so I can go and see Mum Friday).

Last Tuesday (16th June) I went to Piha with Caitlin as the others were going into the city, and we went for a walk/hike to the waterfall half an hour or so into the Waitakere Ranges.  It was beautiful! Once we got over the rocks around the waterfall we found a track of mud and used tree roots as footholds to climb up a further 15minutes above the waterfall and found a second one.  (We did have a little difficulty getting down though...)

After going to the waterfall we drove over to Piha beach to walk along it and make footprints in the sand... and ended up shin-deep in the ocean- boy was it cold!!!

Photos to come...

Early Morning Beach Walk

This morning I woke up at 4.30am.... Yes, that early, and couldn't get back to sleep.  So at 5.40am when I had had enough of lying in my nice comfy warm bed watching the sky I decided to get up and have a shower and throw some clothes on and head out to Browns Bay beach.

Its morning like this where I wish I was back in Orewa and had a the beach a two minute walk away... as it is now a 10minute drive to the closest beach!!

Looking out to Rangitoto Island

North end of the beach

I got out there at 6.30am when it was still pitch black and went for a walk along the beach and took some photos as I went, there were a couple of other people but not many.  The sun rose at 7am and it became a little busier.  Once the sun was right up I went to find the closest supermarket for bread and milk and well... I went to put the bread in the toaster earlier and found it was mouldy. Yuck! And the milk.. well, can't have a coffee without can I?

About 6.45am

Browns Bay

South end of the beach

Browns bay beach at 7.15am

I plan on going into Uni as soon as the library opens at 10am to finish (hopefully) my essay and sheets to do to hand in on Monday.. well that are due Monday.

Update on my knee

As you know I had knee surgery last week.  10 days on and I am finally back at school for the first full day on Friday 7th June.  I have been in for the critical lessons needed to keep me up to date for a math internal that I will be sitting early next week.

Everyone thinks I am crazy weird for wanting to be at school when I have medical permission not to be there - even my doctor.

Wednesday (5th June) I went back down to my surgeons clinic in Auckland to have the bandage taken off and stitches removed with strips put on to hold the incision closed and waterproof dressings put on.  The bruising also started coming out pretty nicely, and the swelling has also meant that I haven't been able to wear my jeans yet, but I kindly got given a pair of track pants that have a zip up the side to borrow so that I can have pants to wear and not my skirts and shorts all the time, as it is winter over here.

My knee has caused a lot of pain when I'm not sitting down with my leg up, so I ended up at my local doctors clinic being prescribed with a higher dose of pain killers which have worked wonders!

Top view of my knee- 2 incisions (one for the camera- small one about 1.5cm in length, and one for the lateral release procedure- bigger one about 4cm in length)

Side view of my knee- yeah, thats the bruising, it continues round the back of me knee too.  The swelling isn't so bad at the moment as I have been from my bed to the lounge and had my leg up all day so far.

I am still on crutches and could be for quite sometime (a couple weeks+ most likely), I am fully weight bearing but not walking correctly as I can't bend my knee at all when standing or walking, though I can physically move it with my hands when sitting down.