Two thousand magnets, two boys, tons of imagination.

Ten or fifteen years ago, I fell in love with magnets. Or rather, more in love with magnets. I had always liked them. As a kid I dragged a horseshoe style magnet in a plastic bag down the 'Junky Road' in Wakefield, collecting iron ore sand. Later, I learned how to make a magnet out of a nail using a dry cell battery and wire. I had no idea then that I would rediscover the wonders of magnets in my 'old' age. 

It was when I heard about Buckyballs that I again became aware that some very cool sorts of magnets were available. I started researching and buying them. And having fun. 

There is quite a history behind the Buckyball saga that I think is interesting. In the interest of brevity however, I'll just list some of the important moments...

• Richard Buckminster "Bucky" Fuller was an American architect, author, and futurist who designed geodesic domes.  (Read more about him. What a fascinating person.)
• In 1984, a form of carbon was first generated, (C60) which would be named Buckminsterfullerine, because it's molecular shape was like that of a soccer ball, or a geodesic dome. 
• Maxfield and Oberton Company introduce neodymium magnet spheres that they call Buckyballs. 
• Several babies or children swallow some of the small magnets, which can cause intestinal injury and death. 
• Buckyballs are banned from 2014 to 2016. 
• A whole bunch of imitators now produce similar products. (Zen magnets, Neocubes) They now carry warnings about age restrictions. 

This is a drawing of a nanotube of C60, 50,000 times smaller than a human hair. Compare it with these structures the boys made of magnets 

These are neodymium magnets, the strongest type of magnet currently made. 

It's a rainy day. Just the sort of day to hunker down inside, and play with super magnets.

Amiri is holding up a single strand of them.  They're amazingly strong. 

A close up 

 Amiri is rolling up 1,000 spheres. 

 They're beautiful.

 As you rotate the cylinder, the string of magnets on one end of the cylinder comes loose while the string on the other end is reattached to the body. The size of the cylinder remains the same of course, but it's fun to watch. 

Arram, who wanted to dress up that day, shows how he can roll a ring down a string . 

 This is 'free-form sculpture # 1

 And free-form sculpture # 2

I once made myself a pen/pencil holder that I used on my desk. This is a small vase that Allie made.

Over time, I had purchased all sorts of magnets, in different shapes. My stongest were cylinder magnets, two inches diameter by one inch tall. Pull strength was 220 pounds each. There are much stronger ones available. 

This is the link to one of the sites I bought magnets from. Check it out if you're interested. 

 http://www.magnet4less.com/index.php?cPath=1_11                                -djf

Sheep World

Last year, we drove past Sheep World when we went up north on holiday. Later that summer, Allie and the boys went back and camped there over a weekend.  Allie reported that it was 'Kiwi as.' 

Well, the boys were in the mood for another day's visit some time back so off we went. Here is a brief look at what we saw. 

 We have arrived 

 And were greeted by a grandfather sheep.

 The photos, above and below show the before and after shots in the shearing shed.

 We bought bags of food of course to feed to the critters.

 One of the highlights, based on the time spent there, was the home made obstacle course. Jeanne and I sat this one out. The boys must have done at least a mile on it and Allie not much less. 

 Petting was popular

This guy wasn't furry like so many of the others, and his beak meant he wasn't a favorite of the petters, but he's colorful and so earns the 'final picture' place in this post.   -djf

Its bark was worse than its bite.

Here is a brief look at a storm that came, seemingly out of nowhere and went on its way, almost as quickly...

Looked like it might be intense. The clouds came up so fast and were so dark. The sun disappeared...

It downpoured, and it departed...

A fine day...

Hmmm, clouding up a bit...

Whoa, look at this...

Hey Hon, we could lose power with this one, I think...The wind is coming up too, I'll put the deck chairs under cover.  

It's getting closer...

But look, there's a bit of a rainbow. Hope that's a good sign...

 Not the sun returning, just a street light that came on in the gloom...

A double rainbow like a wave good-bye as the storm leaves us. It wasn't bad at all.        -djf

Western Springs

Western Springs is a natural, spring-fed lake and once provided the young city of Auckland with its drinking water. Its Maori name is 'Te Wai Orea,' and means 'waters of the eel.' The lake still abounds with eels, although I didn't see any the day I wandered its many pathways. 

Besides the park, this area of Auckland is home to the Zoo, MOTAT (the Museum of Transportation and Technology, a golf course and a speedway. 

Let's walk a bit.

 Great place, and chock full of birds to admire. But watch where you put your feet. You know birds...especially big ones. 

 An idyllic setting

 There are so many trails and paths, and walk ways that it's hard to do them all.

 Fishing for the lake's eels is forbidden.

I believe this is a pied cormorant. Looks like he's taking a bow. 

 The 'Ubiquitous Chicken' of Auckland

(Gallus gallus domesticus, 'ubiquitous')

 I learned that black swans are native to New Zealand. They were here when the first humans arrived and were described by the first European explorers when they in turn arrived. However, the birds were later hunted to extinction. They were reintroduced from Austrailia in 1860, but their numbers grew so rapidly and in so many locations, separated from the reintroduction sites, that it was thought that they may have occasionally immigrated  on their own from Australia.  This has not been confirmed. 

They are now doing very well here and there is a hunting season on them. About 7,000 are harvested annually. 

As I left Western Springs, I came across this warning sign set in the sidewalk. Trams from MOTAT make a trip back and forth in front of the park twice and hour.  

 The chances of being hit by a tram are not high. They procede at about a fast walking pace, clinking and clanking noisily, and the driver is right out front. 

 Here's another photo of a stationary one.

 As I crossed Great North Road to the bus stop for the return journey home, I saw this colorful sightseeing bus go by.  Although this one was almost empty, when the cruise ships are in port you often see them packed full.  

I've told you several times about the small storms that sweep across our island, sometimes many times a day during the winter.  Here comes a perfect example of one now. They are fast-moving and can dump a surprising amount of water in a short time. I don't think this one will hit Henderson though so I should stay dry when I get there.                -djf

The White Lady

With all the walking I've done in and around Auckland, I can't believe that I hadn't run across The White Lady before this. It's true that she's on a street that's a block beyond my usual route. I'm a little embarrased that I apparently follow such predictable paths. Nevermind.

I know about her now and intend to give her some business every now and then. She's the grand old lady of Auckland nightlife. Come and meet her. I'm sorry I can't buy you a hamburger of some sort. We could find a bench nearby, watch the crowds walk by and eat our fill. 

Here is my very own 'white lady' standing in front of Auckland's White Lady.

 There is a recipe in this cookbook for The White Lady Hamburger.

 This is Jeanne's copy of the cookbook...

 and the recipe as it appears.

Jeanne and I tried burgers slightly smaller than The White Lady Burger, but equally as delicious.

Here's her menu:

 https://www.zomato.com/the-white-lady-food-truck/menu

I'm pleased that Jeanne and I are now part of the history of The White Lady. Check it out. 

https://www.thewhitelady.co.nz/

What do you think Dianne? Shall we do lunch?        -djf