Who Ate All The Pies?

Well, I’m on the second of my four days off, although strictly speaking it’s more like three days, the fourth being a travel day on which I head for Melbourne. 

More than a handful of people have asked me, “You’re going to Australia for just one show?”, and yes, I am, the reason being that when my man in Oz, Dominic Finley, told me of this potential gig that was part of a festival in a place called Emerald, Victoria, and he said, “do you want to do it?”, my mouth just seemed to open, and the sound, “yes”, came out. Not sure how it happened, but it happened, and being a man of my intended or otherwise word, I will be heading in an Aussie direction tomorrow.

To tell you the truth, I’m very much looking forward to it - everything bar the logistics of getting there and back; I mean, there’s the waiting, and the checking in of luggage, and the waiting, and the filling out of customs declarations, and then the … yes … the waiting … and they’ll be examining my golf shoes at Melbourne, and then again as I return to NZ. If I’d have had any sense, I would’ve become a rock star years ago, and so now be travelling by private jet. 

Speaking of golf, yesterday I played with good friend, Jim Hall, at Takapuna golf course. He’s what’s called a ‘bandit’ in golfing circles - with a handicap so high that you have to perform out of your socks if you are to have any chance of beating him. So after I’d hired my clubs, paid the green fee and bought some golf balls, with considerably lighter pockets I proceeded to play decent, steady golf, let’s say I played out of one sock, and with a stake of a dollar on the front nine, a dollar on the back nine, and a dollar on all eighteen, my pocket was a further three dollars lighter at the end of the round.

New Zealand is a country with unique and notable attributes, there are things here that Kiwis are particularly good at. That’s not to say the same doesn’t apply to many other places, but if we take Scotland as an example, if it’s a choice of … let’s say, sunshine, beautiful wine, and avocados, compared with … lets say, gale force winds, Iron Bru and fried Mars Bars, New Zealand does have notable attributes.  

Another thing they do incredibly well here is pies. And they stick just about anything that tastes good inside them, which makes a lot of sense really. I’m currently sat outside the Euro Patisserie in Torbay on Auckland’s North Shore. This hive of pie production states quite clearly on its shop window that it is a ‘NZ SUPREME PIE AWARD GOLD WINNER’. Now the one thing I’ve begun to notice is that most of the pie shops have won some kind of award or another, and I doubt if anyone actually takes these people up on such claims. Could it be that the awards are very much like the pies themselves - there are enough for everyone? 

Waiake Beach, Auckland North Shore.

The pie I just had was ‘chicken, Camembert and cranberry’, and on the basis of that alone - even if it were an award 'selfie' - I’d say it was well deserved. Of course, the only snag with this kind of food though is the calories, but it’s nothing that another round of golf won’t cure.