Shop Assistant

After failing miserably to find work in Taupo, I came back to Napier, interviewed at a couple of places and now have a job at a supermarket. The moneys good and its only a two minute walk from my backpackers and minutes from the rest of the town centre. Im working from 7am till 3pm (plenty of overtime available aswell) so I still get to catch some good hours in the sun. Although it will take time adjusting to a 6am get-up!

My hostel is letting me work there to pay for my accommodation, so im saving quite a few bucks. Its just $105 a week (instead of the usual $210) and any extra work I do brings that down dramatically. So far Ive been scaling ladders to clean hard to reach areas, wiping dead bugs off the ceiling and tops of lampshades, and changing the emergency water supply. Have got to clean a BBQ grill and repair a bench later - so just general handyman jobs that pass the time and save more money. Its definitely worth doing the extra work because the hostel is right on the coast, with the beach on my doorstep, and the town and work a couple of minutes walk away.

My shop job involves climbing ladders and stacking shelves and lots and lots of heavy lifting - which is what Ive been after (because its so different to the office work).

Its the first job interview Ive ever been for while unshaven and dressed in a short-sleeve shirt(no tie), brown shorts and sandals - and actually got it! Good luck trying that in the UK! They employ a much more common-sense approach to things here. Suppose I would have looked stupid in a suit with the 33 degree weather...

Since Ive been living off rice, coca pops (with no milk), muesli bars, buns, and baked beans, Ive had very little outgoings (because I nearly run out of money) and if I carry on with the cheap basic food I'll be saving quite alot of cash every month. Once the summer has past, if I have enough cash I could look to going somewhere else for awhile (my visa allows me to leave and re-enter as much as I like)but we will see. Im in no rush to leave this job. Taupo was ruthless for job seekers. Twas mandatory that you had previous experience for coffee shop work and couldnt get a job at a bar unless you know someone who works there. It was so busy I think nobody was interested in investing time training anybody. Still, had some great weather there and it was always lively with plenty of stories to tell, like the time my drink got spiked...

So I was sharing my room with this Dutch guy, Frank. On what was supposed to be my last night in Taupo, me and Frank hit my favorite bar. Afterward, we were supposed to meet this girl I knew in a bar near my backpackers. So, quite drunk at this point, we went to the bar and I distinctively remember Frank saying he needed my help approaching some girls. Being the awesome (sidekick?) friend I was, I helped him on the approach with the easy-but-sleazy opener "Haaaaave, you met Frank??" and introduced him, left him to it - everyone was happy. Only, that's all I remember. Because unlike every other generic drunk story where 'everything was just a blur', I don't actually remember a thing after that. Just black. Oh I had a vivid dream I was being violently sick. Only when I woke up, the half of my bed nearest my head, was covered in sick (literally covered, not a little pool or dribble). As were my clothes. And the toilet. Realizing I was in no state to travel 2 hours on a stuffy coach through the mountains, I stumbled to the reception and held in some more sick just long enough to check in for another day.

Frank woke me up a few hours later (more sick followed) and when I asked him what the hell happened he just laughed, took my facebook details, and then checked out. This freaked me out a little as he is, till this day, the only person who knows what happened. Did I hook up with the girl I was meeting? Did we get it on? Or did things get disastrous and I threw up on her? Or on someone else? How the hell did I get up 3 flights of stairs in whatever state I ended up in?

I know I didn't drink a fraction of what I did on New Years Eve so it wasn't the booze. Given the sheer memory loss of it all I think its safe to assume my drink got spiked, but its unclear why. I had my passport on me (for ID), my phone and wallet - and woke up with them buried underneath my sick-soaked shorts, so I wasn't mugged. My butt didn't hurt, so I prefer to believe I wasnt involved with a few of Taupos more flamboyant crew. I suppose I may have aggravated a jealous boyfriend of someone during my set-up approach for Frank, and I did leave my beer unattended. Ill never know, and I survived it all just fine so I suppose the only lesson I learnt was to never leave your pint alone in Taupo. Or trust Frank the Dutchman.

And there was me thinking Taupo was dull compared to Wellington. Then there was the time two Swedish blondes broke into my room late at night just to ask if I wanted to party. After a few seconds pause (convinced this was either the beginning of a really good dream, or one very cruel set-up) they locked themselves in my bathroom before I could answer (which was obviously 'YES!'). Judging by the smattering of white powder they left behind on my toilet, I think its safe to assume they had a whole different party on their own.

Crazy times indeed.