New Zealand: Auckland and beyond

Well, well, well, I'm finally here. The land of the long white cloud... actually it's been hot, humid and sunny and it feels a little like Cost Rica where you get that thin coat of slime on your skin. I love it. I'll be calling this country home for a year.

The 12 hour flight was relatively painless. I watched 3 movies (one was "W." - so glad that idiot is gone!), got served free New Zealand Chardonnay, and fell asleep listening to the sexy accents of the Kiwi stewardesses. I don't know what it is but when I hear a kiwi girl talk my body goes limp and I start drooling all over myself. Not the best first impression I know. Funny thing is a day later I'm walking down the street in Auckland and a car stops in the middle of the road, a blond girl stares at me, takes her sunnies off for a better look and starts screaming and pointing... it was one of the stewardesses, then she invited me for drinks. Ha! And so I hear that's the way shit goes down in New Zealand. Friendlyness squared.

On Saturady I picked up some hot wheels at the weekend car swap from a couple Brits. A '93 Nissan Caravan DX!! Pictures to come soon.. I'm waiting until I pimp my ride a little more, then I'll do a photoshoot in a proper NZ setting. And driving on the other side of the car on the other side of the road is absolutely nuts! Add a stick shift to the equation and you've got yourself a scary good time.

Right now I'm staying at a family friends place out NW of Auckland. They are super nice! 10 acres with horses, donkey, pig (see picture of Sophie below) alpacas, cats, dogs, pond with island... the whole bit. The home cooking and solar heated pool is definietly a plus. The view has the famous Auckland Sky Tower and a nearby island volcano in the distance. Pretty good gig. (Rebekah and Renny, you guys rock!) And I got a chance to clean out the van and wash some stuff before I go rogue for a while up the East coast to find some supossed swell that's coming to meet me for a barrel or three.

6 New Originals in the Store

Before I left for NZ, I boxed up 6 experimental pieces (which is why they are so cheap) I had been working on over the last few months. I'm actually really liking them. I've been cutting up old Surfing mags and gluing them on simple shapes and patterns. These are all 12.5 x 12.5 inches with plywood frames, ready to hang. $100 each USA shipping included.

Check them all out right HERE in my store. If you want any, my lovely state-side studio assistant will gladly get that shipped off to you!

My Store: www.abelstore.blogspot.com

Offshore Score

I picked off quite a few of these yesterday evening. The sun was setting over the islands, nearly a full moon rising in the East, psychedelic colors everywhere, straight offshore winds, overhead A-frames... wish I had a camera in the water. It's sessions like this that make life well worthwhile.

Words of Wisdom

"The world belongs to the energetic." - Ralph Waldo Emerson

Some NW Waves

Just finished up these two commissioned pieces for a Portland client and his new condo. 48" x 24" and 24" x 30"

Grandma's Present

Finally got to paint on one of the 32 new panels I made, I'm happy with how they look. This is a Bird of Paradise for Grandma, she gets a new flower for every birthday and Christmas... she's got a pretty good wall garden going now.

Wild Cactus Hair

Sometimes you just get the urge to make something... in this case, a few little modern cacti out of reclaimed wood. Note the rock pattern stencil. They sure made for good holiday gifts, and they never die! Let me know if you want one.

Wahoo's Colorado Shirts

If you live in Colorado and you like delicious fish tacos, head on down to a Wahoo's Fish Taco joint and you'll likely be served by somebody wearing one of these nifty shirts I designed up. pretty outdoorsy eh? Signal Snowboards is your friend.