Camp Food

Planning food for five growing people, for four days might I add, is a lot harder than you think. Especially when I get involved in that group. I’m not saying that I eat a lot, or that anyone in my group eats a lot; I’m just stating that it’s difficult. However, we had the super organising powers of Brooklyn, which everyone knows trumps any other problem. So with a slightly secret weapon and an amazing group we set off on a foodies dream adventure.


To say our preliminary plan was small, and way beneath our limit, might have been classified as an understatement. It turns out that a year’s worth of William Pike Challenges can change one’s perspective on the amount of food that should be brought along on any trip. After being reminded multiple times, finally being told we could feast like kings, we managed to write out a pretty decent menu. With a plan under way, we made our way onto step two, which brought along its own challenges.


We arranged each person would cook on a certain day, a much simpler solution compared to some of our other ideas. Then we were all calling dibs, I was the lucky one who got Tuesday. I only had one major meal that involved cooking, which was pizza. It was more for the safety of the group than anything else. After the others had decided what days they’d cook, we gave Anna a picnic to organise (it seemed like her type of thing). Now we had completed the stage I referred to as ‘The Easy Part’ the next part required a whole lot of research.


I only had pizza, relatively simple dinner in my eyes, especially once I realised it had a maximum of six ingredients. I threw together my part of the shopping list quickly and a few more days flew by of calculating and finally we put our lists together as a whole. We finished with just enough money to spare, equalling the amazing number of thirteen dollars each. Then it was suddenly Tuesday and we were heading off to the camp grounds (absolutely stunning by the way). The clock ticked over and I was standing in the kitchen, looking at the folder in front of me. After making a joke about Masterchef, which I received a few laughs for, I pulled out my pizza bases and got started.


It was once I'd put my tomato paste onto the bases and went to reach for the cheese that I noticed a small problem. I'd forgot to get the cheese out, so with a huff went searching through the fridge. Sadly, I came out empty handed and a quick scan through the shopping list confirmed there was no longer a tiny problem, but a rather large one. During the biggest shopping trip I'd ever heard of, they'd managed to forget cheese, which is crucial to the making of pizza. After a few words were exchanged and a quick glance at the clock, one of the parents flew off in their car to purchase the missing item.


I returned to my station after being informed that the cheese had arrived and waited patiently as it was grated. Once the ceramic had hit the counter, hands were darting out to grab a handful, I covered my bases in cheese before going to get the my other ingredients. Two of the bases had been claimed as Hawaiian, seeing as it was most of the groups favourite. The other was reserved for Pepperoni, a way to appease Brooklyn and her non-Hawaiian ways. The cooking took by far the longest, my pizzas going into the oven last. Part way through the cook it swapped ovens, taking up residence in the better oven.


It took forever and all the other groups had finished eating by the time the were on a plate and being sent out to the table. It was worth it though when I took a bite of the pizza. I wouldn't claim that it was the best pizza ever but after such a long cook I wasn't going to be picky. After we had demolished all the slices, Brooklyn and I made our way into the kitchen to wash the dishes that was remained. There was a brief pause of anything food related when I went outside but that time ran by and soon I was back in the kitchen getting our dessert.


Though this time the key ingredient was there.


Overall, I had a blast cooking on Tuesday and I definitely enjoyed eating the other meals. I reckon we planned amazingly which is why we had such an easy time when it came to cooking, the only slip up being the cheese fiasco. If I was to go back and change anything, I would only underline the word cheese a few more times. This camp was definitely one to remember and I hope everyone else had an amazing time too.

Advertising Omaka

Omaka 

 

Located on the outskirts of Christchurch lies a hidden gem. Omaka Scout Camp. As beautiful as the grounds are, and all the added features, it's a wonder that it's not a well known holiday spot. A remarkable place for both rustic camps and glamorous weddings, Omaka is a versatile place anyone would want to spend a holiday at.

The camp as a whole is wonderfully simple, nothing too flashy jumping out for attention. This allows for you to enjoy the natural environment that has been created, a serene surrounding anybody hoping to relax would love. Omaka is the perfect place to go if you want to take a step back and enjoy nature at its finest. The land available to you is filled with lush grass and even a secret hideout or two.

However, if you're interested in a more lively vacation, Omaka accommodates that too. There's plenty of space to get active, the ground offering you options such as a flying fox or even an obstacle course. Both amazing choices that only scrape the surface of what's available. The spacious land is divided by a stream that only adds to the personality of the camp. While it gives you the opportunity to enjoy water based activities, animal lovers can instead make friends with Omaka’s pets. The eels.

If the quiet nature of camp isn't what you're in the mood for then the city of Christchurch is only a few minutes drive. The distance is only one of the best factors, because Christchurch itself has plenty to offer. All the way from The Christchurch Tram to the art spread throughout the city, it's guaranteed to have something for everybody. If the town life isn't for you then a less then five minute walk away lies a lake, suitable for everybody and can provide entertainment for hours.

So after my sales pitch, and the highest recommendation that I can offer, I hope you realize that Omaka is as good as it can get for a holiday you'll remember. Where else could you find a gorgeous stream with wildlife and enough space for everyone to get their own share? If you're looking for your next holiday destination I hope you choose Omaka Scout Camp.

Travel- Christchurch

Christchurch is filled with many amazing opportunities, something I learnt recently. From parks you could spend all day in, to a unique way to travel through the city. Seeing as there are so many great places to visit that not many people would think to go to, I’ve decided to share my experience in hope of giving others ideas for an enjoyable trip into the city.

While planning our day we needed to find a form of transport, walking from point A to B would be tiring if we were to do it throughout the whole day. We then found the Christchurch Tram, a way to move through the the city I highly recommend. With seventeen different stops to get on and off at, the tram makes getting around Christchurch simple. Add on the interesting information given to you by the tram driver during the ride, the Tram is the best option.

 

Now you have a form of transportation you need somewhere to go. The first place I went to happens to also have been my favorite. The museum is a hard place to miss when considering going to Christchurch, but most of my group was unaware of the amazing exhibition inside. If you ever get some spare time, you need to go to the Air New Zealand 75yr exhibit. With a variety of interactive activities this is the best way to go. My personal highlight was definitely the virtual reality I took part in, which everyone should try.

 

The new addition to Christchurch, The Margaret Mahy Playground will definitely have caught your eye if you went for a day out. So instead of selling you this park which should already be on your agenda, I will instead give you a few tips about what you must do. The water section is great for kids, so long as you don’t mind them getting wet. The twisting slide that draws your attention first, gets a bit cramped near the top when you’re getting up. The slide down is well worth it though.

After such tiring activities you’re going to need a break for lunch. If the proud advertising surrounding

the shipping container mall settled near the middle of the city didn’t draw you in, then the promise of food should. The mall offers you plenty of choices on both the food and shopping front, though located next to the Cozy Cafe is a set of signs that I wouldn’t advise thinking about for too long.

Now if you plan to head to Christchurch there is a very tiny chance that you haven’t heard about the earthquakes. While devastating natural occurrences, they have proven to be an intriguing subject many have wanted to learn more about. If you happen to be someone who does wish to know more, Quake City is definitely something you should check out. With a spot to make your own earthquake, video footage to examine and a section to build your own house from Lego, they have something for everyone.

I came across too much on my day in Christchurch to out into this, but having shared with you some must see places I hope it inspires you to take another look at the city. It’s evolving every day and new things to see just keep popping up. So I hope if you make a trip through this ever expanding place you find it as enjoyable as I have.

Mt Grey

I finally did my mountain! With the help of my mom and Mr B I walked to the top of  Mt Grey.  The way up was slippery, not ideal climbing conditions at all. However, I much preferred it down there once we arrived at the top. There was so much wind and no shelter. To make matters worse the top wasn't as close as we thought it'd be once we came out of the trees. After a grueling trudge to the actual top we waited for a bit, snacking on some food. We then found a road down, a much nicer way compared to the sloped path that twisted, no surface to really grip to. We ate lunch, then began our trek down. We finally arrived back to the car at 4 PM. The trip was fun, don't get me wrong, climbing up mountains isn't at all my strong suit.

Pink Walk

This year I decided to do the Pink Walk once again, and it was just as fun as last year. I raised, with the help of my mom, $383. It was a great cause to be walking for and I'm glad I did it. I walked alongside Zoe and Piper for a small section near the start but I lost them in the crowd while going to get a drink of water. I hope I'll be able to participate in it next year.

Here's a photo of us before the walk.

Hockey

For my hobby in the 2016 WPCA I chose Hockey, and I'm extremely glad I did. I enjoyed participating in Summer hockey alongside with the club hockey I did in Winter. Apparently, I did a great job because at the end of winter hockey we held a prizegiving. Turns out that I'm the most improved player.

Kayaking

On the 9th of November all of the Yr 8's, including myself, went all the way to Christchurch for kayaking. I was placed in a group that I would remain with for the rest of the day. The day moved quickly, with us all trying to steer our kayaks properly and ending up bumping into others anyway. During one of our activities we had to stand up in our kayak, it turns out that I have terrible balance because as soon as I tried I promptly fell into the water. Though, I redeemed myself later in the day by successfully standing up. It was at the end of the day when my favourite part occurred, Jack and Eb had decided that pushing a kayak down the bank, while in it, would be great fun. After failing in a few of their first attempts I was called to help. I proceeded to spend the majority of the time left pushing other people in kayaks, though I did get a turn myself.

Overall, I had a blast kayaking and now it's safe to say I've finished all my WPCA Activities. 

Covert Mission

For Writing we have been working with a partner or independently to create a Pick-A-Path. I chose to do mine on a mission. I tried my very best to keep the main character gender neutral, so I haven't put any strictly female or male descriptions in there. If you notice any please tell me so I may change them. 

Hope you enjoy my slide.

Lake Daniels

Lake Daniels*

It all started with the long drive, winding and hurtling down roads. Not quite racing to our starting point. It was an amusing car ride to say the least, and I was getting excited as we drove on. It was around 5-6 when we arrived and began piling food onto our flimsy plates. The looks on everyone's face when we found the pasta was still warm is still etched into my memory.

Once we'd all finished and Westport arrived we were split up (much to my dismay) into two groups. However, it mildly redeemed itself when I noticed I had Haylley, Anna, Brooklyn and Hayato to keep me company. This is when the painful yet hilarious trek in the dark started.

At first the path was easy to spot, no need for the headlamps and torches we had put on earlier in preparation. This was also when we weren't getting pain in our feet or bored enough to start up games. It was then I decided to complete the challenge we had been given. We were to find someone (we didn't know, so sadly I couldn't pull a trick) and learn 3 facts about them.

I found Coral and discovered her and her mother came from england when she was 16, her favorite track is the Heffy because the scenery changes and she knew a girl who winged her entire speech and got through. It turned out later that no one would check of we actually did it.

It was a few minutes after that, that the Boredom settled in. And the chaotic singing erupted from our little cluster, which I can say proudly, was at the very front of everybody. All through the track we were belting out lyrics, and singing off key. We were running off of the adrenaline that came with the very loud, very out of tune songs. It was a blur for most of the track, except when we were filmed doing our little haka.

My feet were beginning to hurt, the ache setting in as we settled into walking along a flat path. It was just as we were starting to voice our complaints when we heard the sound of ducks. The normally irritating noise, I figured out, meant we were likely near a source of Water. A Lake to be more precise. Mere seconds later our little section was sprinting towards the sight of a cabin.

After snacking on some food, I decided that this was definitely enough for one day. Sadly, I was the one of few who did that. Everyone else kept on talking and talking.

Then, magically produced by the power of sleep, it was morning! And we all very slowly woke up. I quickly consumed y up and go, along with some of food before choosing a spot on the bench. After I had claimed said spot Lachlan, Jack and EB made an appearance. Absolutely soaking wet. They had. Either bravely or due to some bad choices had decided to go into the lake.

More Walking occurred. Jokes were said. Things were lost. Those things were found. We walked faster. We met some men with brooms. Then the trees stopped.

We had finished. Technically.

*Doesn't include the Lewis Pass

Writing Workshop

Yesterday, I went along with Anna, Brooklyn and Holly to a writing workshop in Christchurch. There were five stations all covering different aspects of the subject. We started off at poetry and made our way around until we finished with illustration. The stations were Poetry, Structure, Character, Language and Illustration. My favorite is a toss between either Language or Poetry because we had time to write in them.

I'm really grateful that the school gave us the opportunity to go and learn from these five talented authors, I learnt plenty of tips on developing stories and can’t wait to implement them.

Wildboy Book

For silent reading I was recommended a book by Miss Hanna. I was unsure since it wasn't the type of book I normally read but I decided to give it a try. Since I am now over halfway through the book I think it's safe to say I enjoy reading it.

My book is called Wildboy and it's about a man who decided to walk all the way around New Zealand. I myself would never even think about doing this but reading about all the adventures he's been through it definitely sparked my interest in travel. Although I like this book it does have some downsides. For example it can drag on in certain places if nothing exciting is happening, it also means that you can be tempting to stop reading. I'd recommend this book to those who enjoy Non-fiction stories, or travelling.

My Speech

Here is a ScreenCastify of my speech for those who wish to see it. Highly suggested that you do not put your volume on full; HIGHLY SUGGESTED. I wasn't going to speak to it in front of the class but due to the tremendous amount of static you couldn't hear a few words that I thought crucial to hear. So as a result I ended up speaking in front of over 30 people. Hooray for me! I believe I wasn't too bad on the speaking front.

My topic is Social Media. I chose this as my topic for my speech because I’m often on the internet and I find myself constantly going back to Instagram. I wanted to find out why that was. Voila! My speech was born.

It turns out people enjoyed it so I found myself headed off to Quad Schools.

Community Service

I am glad to announce I have completed my twenty hours of community service. And more.

First I must say that starting it early on was amazing advice given to me by the previous Yr 8's. It's a great feeling to have nearly everything you need to do done by Term three. I get Term four off! If anyone was to ask me advice about Community service starting early would most definitely be my answer.

I got most of it done at the library in Rangiora, by shelving books and blacking out the tags on books they were giving away. It was great to give back to them especially since I get books out frequently. I also used the chance given to me by the school to do Rotary Club. Time flew by really quickly when I was in charge of the stove. Although my face almost got burnt a few times! I plan on adding a few more hours to achieve my goal of 46 hours at the end of the year. I think I might cook for the local church, where they'll give it away to those who can't cook for themselves.

I hope others found this as rewarding as I did. I feel grateful that I was given the opportunity to give back.

Hockey

Sadly, the one true exercise that I will do willingly is coming to a halt. Yes that is right, the glorious Hockey season is coming to an end. So in response to my last game in a few days I decided to reflect on how I've improved since starting.

Firstly, when I began I was utterly terrible at moving while clutching on to my Hockey stick. I would drop it or swing it too high. Maybe even drop it while i was swinging it too high... However now I am glad to be able to tell you, I can successfully sprint down the field with my hockey stick in hand.

Next on my list of pre-season problems is durability. At the start one look at Nunweek's park and I would already be tired. I was also a Fall back back then as well (the person who stays at the back, not really running).  Although I still dislike, hates too strong of a word, running I am doing a lot more of it now. Especially after being moved to a half, the people who are there to run.

The last item I have on the short reflection I'm writing is my aim. I am not saying I can hit the goal more than sixty percent of the time, I'm saying I'm less likely to miss it by more than four meters. I almost great on the passing to people though which I find a considerable improvement.

Now, I know that my Winter hockey is finishing. This is were the great thing about hockey comes in, it's made for both the hot and the cold. So I'll be back to hitting that hockey ball down the field soon!

Drawing Time Lapse

I decided to do a time lapse of a drawing I recently did. I apologize for the poor quality.

Ropes Day

Ropes Day

I’m not sure about how I felt before we started climbing, or before our team building games for that matter. Most of my attention was focused on the high ropes course, half of which was suspended and swing in the breeze. I vaguely remember feeling anxious and a slightly excited but I'm blaming both of those emotions on adrenaline.

Thankfully the didn't just shove a harness in our direction and send us up the climbing wall. They only sent us up the climbing nightmares later. First we had to split into groups and play some games based around teamwork and trust. I enjoyed most of them, the rope swing one wasn't too bad in the end except for the fact your personal bubble was not considered.

Now, after we had eaten, they gave us a detailed explanation on how to out our harness on correctly, placing a big emphasis on the ‘do it right or you'll severely injure yourself part’. Or maybe that was just me. Then we put on our helmets (mine wasn't as secure as I would have hoped but it finally tightened) and watched a quick belaying tutorial by the instructors.

Now, I only have time to share one climbing wall in detail so picked by random I'll be doing The Vertical Terror Playground.

It started with a pole, the holds a decent space apart and it looked easy enough and when Ellen said an adult could stabilize it I shrugged it off as it being a slightly wobbly. Until I put my foot on it and it started swaying and twisting as I climbed up higher. My favourite part of the whole climb was the next one I came across on my journey upwards. A totally stable, unmoving, held in place by strong wood, simple climbing wall. Although one of the vital hand holds was slippery and near impossible to grip I made it up surprisingly quickly.

Then it was on to a wooden X with hand holds scattered on it, I used more of the structure than the intended holds though. Next on the treacherous towering object was a net, I personally believe it was designed to torment me. I hung there clinging to the rope and struggling to grasp the red seat above me. Eventually though I managed to swing my leg over and grab the elusive rope that I used to haul myself up. Then I was travelling back down, bumping along the obstacles that I had previously struggled to pass.

After completing many courses both similar and different to the first one I conquered, we began to head back to school. I went home with many bruises, a set of sore arms and a bang to my head. And some good memories.

Clubs

On Friday I was apart of the animation club, I chose this club because I like the technique they use. Photo by photo. It's a slow process but that's how they make Disney Movies (and Disney owns Marvel, which helped me make my decision). So I decided I would try it out.

I hadn't expected my first try to be amazing, but I had hoped it would be great. Sadly, I ran out of time and the end product wasn't what I had envisioned. I however, had expected that there would be an almost agonising amount of photos for just a few seconds worth of video. I just wasn't prepared to take those many photos.

I enjoyed making the props for the video, especially the fox that came in through the corner. The broom was definitely the easiest to make, and came in handy when we tidied up the crumbs. Watching the finished product was probably the best part of the club. We could finally see what we had accomplished with the the many photos.

When I got home I decided to try making one by myself, so after I got a similar app I set to work. I managed to make two small videos. One was of a fish coming out from beneath a seashell and the other was of some origami (I had limited resources). My goal is to make videos of similar quality at the next clubs.

The Unwind Popplet

Here is what me and Holly were working on in the last session. We used Popplet to link together all the events we have read so far. It is still a work in progress.

Unwind Popplet by Derrin & Holly P

NZ At War 'Google Map'

We have been studying New Zealanders at War. Piper and I worked together to create an interactive Google Maps Presentation.

Google Map Presentation

Wattpad

I decided to take a look at who reads my online book and thought I should share the result. These are the places where my viewers are:

United States 

Canada

UK & Ireland

Germany

Sweden

Finland

Czech Republic

Italy

Portugal

Turkey 

Greece

Indonesia

Philippines

Brazil & Chile

And NZ & Australia