The Honest Lawyer

…..a great name for a hotel / pub or what?

The word “oxymoron”…..

is described by the Oxford Dictionaries as follows;

“a figure of speech in which apparently contradictory terms appear in conjunction”

If you continue north westerly on Songer St in Stoke, then after you pass over the deviation bridge you’ll find the hotel occupying its own small peninsula before you reach Monaco.

Kokomo was a hit for the Beach Boys

now she is a hit with local photographers.

MV Kokomo.

I was sitting at the Seafarers Monument at Sunderland Pier having a sandwich, watching the fishermen, with my Mum who’s visiting and noticed the pilot boat coming back in through the cut.

Scanning the horizon though, I couldn’t spot any large ship leaving or arriving.

Only then did I spot the massive tall mast approaching on the other side of the Boulder Bank, even though it was low tide it was still very clear. And at 63m’s tall that mast wasn’t too hard to spot.

Then a photographer from the local paper, the Nelson Mail showed up with his Canon EOS 1D and snapped happily away…muttering  “there could be a story in this.”

She was a might impressive yacht, 58+m in length attests to that.

Marine Traffic’s website is showing her …….

currently at Port Nelson on their radar too.

……..having tracked around the top of the South Island to get here.

Further info & photos here at the the builders site.

Official Kokomo site here.

Some Turbine activity at Nelson Airport…

over the last few days, as can be seen from these photos taken today 29th Dec 2010…….

You might even spot a recent US arrival in the background too

Something that maybe you weren’t aware of at first, and that is……..that Nelson Airport actually has classification as an International arrival / airport?

So…….what does that mean?

Well it means that trendsetters or A-listers can fly almost “incognito” into New Zealand’s official sunshine capital, avoiding the usual Paparazzi infested major entry points of Auckland, Wellington or Christchurch….that’s what…..and can almost start their holiday “immediately.”

Then after their off-camera “holiday break” they can embark on the Official Stuff.

Not a Usual suspect for……..

Nelson Airport was this afternoons arrival of Air National’s Akld based ZK-ECO.

Only on the tarmac apron for a short time (turn-around)…….

left at about 5pm….and as I hadn’t ever heard one of these BAE 146-200’s leave Nelson before I can now vouch for why they were nick named “Whisper Jets”

Santa Rides again

Tis the season………..to see the Jolly old man out

and about, around town.

…….and getting some exercise in……for the long night ahead.

Private Jets – they are a comin’

maybe the secret is getting out about NZ’s sunshine and lifestyle capital..

…last year we had a couple of these millionaire owned beasts show up

…like this $50m beauty here back in October of this year…

but just an hour ago today this $50m + beauty just landed…and I’m just as puzzled as the next guy as to who it belongs to?

Plane Spotters HELP!

The one in October was a G550 I think, one just like Sir Peter Jacksons????

BUT tonight’s has many more windows than that and what…at least to me looks like bigger engines? 650?????

If its true to form…like most before it…it will belong to Wells Fargo Bank, c/- somewhere in the States.

Any assistance appreciated.

UPDATED 29-12-2010

Turns out that Global Express XRS VH-OCV is the Goodmans latest unit, see UPDATE here.

imitation Tiltshift experiment

featuring a photo of Port Nelson.

Normal Photo of Port Nelson zone.

Rugby World Cup 2011 comes to Nelson

next year but did you know Nelson holds a special place in NZ’s rugby history?

This, above, the Botannics Ground in Nelson East, is where it all started.

Nelson in fact, was officially where Rugby in New Zealand started back in 1870, with a certain Mr Charles Monro introducing this english game and funny shaped ball to Kiwis.

Related article here.

One can only wonder why

……it is, that this garage has the following….

…….marking inside reflecting its street number?

Creative Local Advertising

noticed this week outside the local Volkswagon dealership.

Did a double take when I was passing one of our new car dealerships……where you only usually expect to see professional hand painted or printed signs.

This hand written sign……twas quite an ingenious method to gets ones attention actually.

Collingwood St, Nelson

This photo offers another visual of Nelson. Upper centre left of photo is the Port Nelson region, adjacent that is the Haven, and if you look closely you may be able to make out the Boulder Bank centre right of photo, beyond which is the open sea.

Taken from the top of Collingwood St, and looking in a northerly direction you can see why in the past this street was the location for our annual Trolley Derby Races.

Nelsons Matai River

wanders through the Matai Valley and then on ………….

through town and empties ………………

out into the Nelson Haven.

Made by the Sun

quite a neat advertising billboard has popped up again

in Richmonds main street, Queen St, on top of the old Mitre 10 store site.

A-merri-ca

Its the season to decorate with Xmas trim,

so why not make your ride to work into a “merry car” – these folks have.

Number plates are sometimes amusing and is want to be the Kiwi way, are oftentimes intended to bring a smile to ones face.

Stoked to WIN National NZ Award

is my home town of Stoke in the Nelson Bays at the

top of the South Island of New Zealand.

It started back here…… and finished up here.

Oh …….and my little hometown did also win another major NZ “best of class” last year too, read the full story here.

Standard Issue New Zealand Seagull

Here I was taking a photo of Nelson across the bay from Mapua

















...then I see a flash in the viewfinder - what was that....

















seems someone else wanted to get in the photograph too.

Where in the World?

I hear you ask…….South of France…..

when you look at this photo.

Kina Peninsula is where. Near Mapua / Motueka in the Nelson Bays.

Must admit though by holding the lens of my Polaroid sunglasses over the camera’s zoom in photo at top is a bit more pleasing that just the standard one out of the camera at bottom.

Cricket ~ Big Wicket coming up

Ooophs that was meant to say big weekend coming up

and in the last few days there has

been a few folks eagerly anticipating what’s coming

and none too soon for them I think. However I should point out here

that “forces that can be” in Nelson and Tasman have spent “megabucks” to see this Cricket Ground

come to fruition…and I couldn’t be happier with their decisions. With this one we are blessed….

and it comes as yet another fabulous addition to the Saxton Fields Sporting Complex.

Gotta agree with this lite system

Yes I’ve seen the many Merc’s and Beemers around town with their LED “daytime” lights but

today was the first time I’d seen this idea implemented at the back end….LED style (and from Japan no less)

But it works!

Watch Out!

Surely no one can consider that locally we don’t appreciate the effort of locals that may be of …..what can I say……a slightly different chronological persuasion to you and me?

Poor Mr Bloomberg…..he didn’t stand a chance

from the moment he was born it would seem he had “the call”….

….how else could you not be “born into the job” with a surname like this?