Gordon Matthew Thomas Sumner, CBE

It's a beautiful morning with not a cloud in the sky nor a care in the world (well perhaps that's a bit of an exaggeration).  The cicadas are making their usual din and the Fantails are tweeting merrily in the trees adjacent to The Cottage.  Two lots of washing are drying - perhaps even dry by now -  and I've spent most of the morning on the phone and computer catching up with the parts of the world I inhabit.

I woke up early when Mike got up to get ready for the second day of the tournament he's playing in.   Given that I'd got to bed at 0130 after the Mission Concert,  surprisingly I don't even feel tired today.

The Mission Concert is one of the events in Hawkes Bay each year with the 25,000 tickets being sold almost as soon as they are released.  I have no idea how much money it brings into the community here but given that even a basic ticket costs (so I was told) $120 it makes the Winery the odd bob or two after all the wine has been sold as well.  Friends let their house at $1000 a night and moved out for a couple of nights.

My night out (from 1530 to 0030!) was a Christmas present from The Family.  It was the whole works with everything from champagne, the meal, priority seating, and after-concert hospitality all included in the ticket.  It was the sort of thing upon which, even for all that hospitality and Sting and the New Zealand Philharmonic Orchestra, I could never have spent that sort of money.  It was a wonderful experience with Martin and Wendy and a group of friends I don't see often enough.  I may never go again but I will certainly never forget last night.

24601 with better perks

Drinks and canapés on the terrace

We know where you're going!  Why can't ladies go without a companion?

Settling in

Dinner

Eats and drinks

Our own 'glasss' to take to the seats

Some of the 25,000

Just couldn't resist

Even sting needs support

And whilst everyone queues to escape....

...we retire to finish dinner.

A Tribute Concert

On Saturday we went to a Tribute Concert for Billy Joel and Freddie Mercury at the Askerne Winery. The acts had received acclaim in the press here and were excellent. My catholic music tastes extend very much to the music of Queen and not only was the artist a very good representation vocally of Freddie Mercury but he was very adept at getting in amongst the audience and getting them going. Yes it was well worth the suffering.

The suffering? The wind and the cold. The day until about 1500 had been very warm - about 30 degrees at The Cottage. The concert started at 1630 and by the time we were in our place the wind had got up and the temperature had dropped to under 20 - with wind-chill factor probably around 17. Anyway it was COLD. To those of you who would remind me that there is no such thing as the wrong weather only the wrong clothes, I would say in our defence that such a drop in temperature after days of heat, is very unusual and few were prepared for the change.

Our pitch, Catriona sheltering from the cold,
Ben, a friend, finding the inevitable computer game more interesting.

Well, it is Queen isn't it?