Archiv für den Monat: März 2011

I managed to get two bonus bins of apples, plus I got given an hour’s wage for time we had to spend all doing a row of apples together because one of the bosses missed it. All up I earned $107.50 before tax – I’m trying to ignore the fact that it’s half of nothing. It’s a hard life these days ;o) Shot another rabbit, either it’ll end up on the barbecue or I can trade it for some other meat. Nothing against rabbit, it is very tasty, but everyday? I wouldn’t mind some change of meat in the menu.

My career as an apple picker is going to take off. Today I picked with one of the experienced guys and he showed me some tricks with the ladder and how to get faster. I was awfully afraid that I’d slow him down and that’s not good when you get paid per bin. I didn’t do too badly though and I learned a lot. Back home I had a long shower, cleaned the terrace and put the next homemade bread on it’s way into the oven. Later I will go rabbit shooting, maybe today I’m lucky and can have fresh … Continue reading →

Another long day in the orchard is over. Apple picking is a fucking hard and poorly paid job. Today we did „real“ picking – you have to watch which apples you pick, they have to have the right color and no defects on them. The pay still works out to be much better than juice apples though – in addition to much more fruit on the tree you get paid twice as much per bin if you pick good apples and get a bonus. I picked my first bonus bin in under 3 hours – not too bad. Unfortunately in … Continue reading →

Got another gift for the apartment – the old barbecue from E.’s family. It’s really old and dirty but I think after a cleaning it’ll work fine. I have managed to squeeze it in next to the table on the edge of the terrace. Speaking of which, my terrace is going to be very nice. I have some planting boxes and pots in which I planted lettuce, cucumbers, beans, herbs and radish. Maybe soon I’ll have free veggies and herb supplies. Today I was in the Ocean Spa pools in Napier, it’s a spa bath with hot ocean water pools … Continue reading →

Today is my first day working in an orchard. C., the woman with the bus and now my colleague, brought me in. She is a Quality Controller and has worked in the orchards for seven years now. Apple picking is exhausting but I can manage. The first day of picking was on juice apples. This is the last pick of the tree after they have taken all of the good stuff off it already. What is left is stripped off the tree and sent off to be made into stuff like fruit drinks and cider. It’s not worth as much … Continue reading →

Today we went rabbit shooting. Got two rabbits! The first one I hit with the third shot and somewhere in the belly but luckily the bullet missed the guts, otherwise you couldn’t use the meat. The other one I hit with the first shot right in the head, perfect! After one day’s practice not bad at all. One rabbit will go to C. as a thank you gift for the carpet. The other one provides me with enough meat for the next days. The appartment is almost finished. J., a friend in Hastings, cut the rest of the MDF board … Continue reading →