Curious Kuri

We talked about getting a pet - perhaps a dog, so we decided to check out the Christchurch City Dog Shelter to see if there were any that we liked. We wanted to adopt a dog from a shelter because there are already so many dogs out there that people regard as objects to be thrown out when they are not wanted anymore. We also wanted to avoid purchasing a dog from a pet store because many pet stores get their dogs from "puppy mills."

It is often possible to find great dogs from a shelter and it is amazing just how many dogs are not adopted by folks through these organizations. So about a week ago we decided to visit the Christchurch City Dog Shelter, where dogs are kept for a period of 8 days, after which, if they are not picked up, are sent to Dogwatch, a shelter here in Christchurch. This is good because the Dogwatch shelter is a "no kill" shelter, which means it will board these animals until a home can be found.

Our first trip to the shelter was a quick trip on a Saturday and we spent about a half hour looking at the dogs they had. We both liked one particular dog - a puppy - which was not barking even though the other dogs' barking made for quite a cacophony. After we left the shelter we decided I would return to the shelter on the following Monday, and if that dog was still there I would put my name down to adopt him.

I drove to the shelter on Monday and the dog was still there so I put my name down by his number. I was informed that if no one claimed the dog by the following Saturday we could adopt him - Great! We talked about what we would need to get for a dog and wondered about a name (BTW, I was not sure if he already had one :-)

The next Saturday Gaby and drove by the shelter to see if the dog was still there - he was! - and made the necessary arrangements to pick him up. They then informed us he did not have a name and asked if we had a name picked out for him for their records. We didn't have one.

I had a friend who once had a dog name "dog" (pronounced "dee-oh-gee"). I asked Gaby to look up what "dog" translates to in Maori and she said it was "kuri" - which sounded like a good name to me. So, now we have a dog named Kuri. We were informed by the folks at the shelter that he was a 5 month old male. He is a mutt; or, as the Kiwis say, a "bitsa" - bits of this and bits of that. Of course, without knowing what breed his parents were we will never know exactly what he is a mix of (his parents could have been mixes themselves.) That being said, the best consensus I have heard so far: he appears to be a mix of a staffordshire terrier and a fox terrier. He has the brindle coloring (black and brown stripes) and white paw(s) common to a staffordshire and the forward flopping ears common to a fox terrier.

Yesterday Kuri had an appointment with the vet for neutering and a general health checkup. I picked him up in the afternoon and the vet said he was a very healthy dog. He seems to be doing fairly well today given the type of procedure he had only yesterday :-)

Since Kuri is only five months old, he is very curious about his new environment. I know it takes quite a bit of love and devotion to raise a puppy to a well behaved dog; however, I know the effort will be worth it.

"It seems our Kuri likes to please/
Let's hope we have the expertise."

Flower Power

One day I noticed flowers starting to bloom on the cherry trees in Hagley Park. Soon every cherry tree was ablaze in color as the flowers were in full bloom, so grabbed my camera and walked to the park to take a few images of the Spring Fling. We do live in the Garden City after all!

Cherry Blossoms along Riccarton Avenue


The day I was out taking pictures the wind started to pick up. By the following day practically all the petals had already dropped off the trees. I am glad I took some time to walk around and see the flowers in their glory.

More Cherry Blossoms


Not every tree was in bloom. Some trees had neither flowers nor leaves and provided a dramatic contrast to the vivid colors of the flowers and grass.

Stark Trees Along Hagley Avenue


Even the clouds seemed to cooperate, providing a great backdrop for the scenery.

Tree and Clouds


Daffodils planted along the perimeter of the park were also in full bloom. It reminded me of the daffodils planted near my house in Arrowbear, California. I could not believe just how many daffodils there were!

Field of Daffodils along Hagley Avenue


These flowers are large and the petals have a great texture. Most flowers were some combination of orange and gold for the petals and the center of the flower.

Outstanding In Its Field


The perimeter of Hagley Park along Hagley Avenue is quite a wide area, perhaps 100 meters. This border area separates the playing fields of Hagley Park South from the street.

Flower Palette


As it turns out, Christchurch has a fairly shallow water table. Much of the area that is today Hagley Park was originally swampland. To drain the water from the swampland ditches were dug to nearby rivers. Many of these drainage ditches are still evident in both Hagley Park and around many parts of town.

Contrasting Branches


While touring the park, looking at the scenery, I noticed this curious exoskeleton hanging from a tree. Upon closer inspection I noticed many of these. Interestingly, I only saw them hanging from the trunks and branches of certain kinds of trees and only on the north side.

Hanging Suit of Armor


When we moved from Southern California it was late Winter and when we arrived in New Zealand in late February Winter was just beginning, so this will be our first Summer down under! I look forward to seeing what Summer at 43º south latitude has in store! My mind seems to still have a Northern Hemisphere bias. I mean, here it is - mid November - and when we get late Spring storms like the wintry blast we had last night I keep thinking that it figures, since we will be heading into Winter soon - Wrong! I am having a hard time adjusting to the fact that it's Summer during Christmas time here - folks out camping, wearing short pants and short sleeved shirts.

One evening Gaby and I attended a kayaking group meeting here in Christchurch. At one point one of the guys was describing a kayaking trip to Quail Island in Lyttleton Harbour for a spot of tea for Christmas. As he described possible weather conditions to expect he said, "It probably won't snow - probably."

"The daffodils are blooming bright/
And Spring is here to my delight."