So much has happened on this trip involving only “my” sunglasses that they are now a story on their own.
Let’s start in Belleville some time during the initial preparations of our gear in January. While collecting our small stash of American money from the (insert secret hiding spot here) I found a pair of brand new sunglasses! Sweet. These, long forgotten, had been part of a 2 for $20 deal from Rexall some time prior to Covid. Shiny and new, they found themselves in the “packing pile” where they stayed until our departure on February 9.
These were polarized and proved to be valuable in sunny Hawaii and on our coast-to-coast walk in Auckland. You’ve already figured out that they didn’t last too long into our journey. On the 22nd of February, I had finished building enough of the tractor shelter at Debbie’s farm, that I needed to test the floor and ramp. I drove the tractor down the lane, fit it in and drove it back. On my return walk, I noticed a random lens on the ground. “That’s weird” I said to myself. Seconds later I focused on the other lens and frames- all separated. Dammit. My sunglasses - which were also serving nicely as safety glasses, had fallen off my hat and were no more.
It was only a day or two until we left, so I planned to make a purchase somewhere on they way back to Auckland. That did not work out so, in the tourist town of Paihia, where there are multiple, way over-priced options, I settled for a $10 pair at a discount store. (Feb. 25th). We had a boat trip planned that day and sunnies wound be imperative.
Fast forward only a few days to the Corner Stone Cafe wwoof. You may remember that I was very excited to use the wood chipper (Mar 1). After a couple of minutes, Gayle shouted to me that I should get ear protection. Since I mostly had to lip read her, I agreed and found some ear muffs. I put them on over my “new” glasses and snap - the spring was too much and the frames broke. Number 2 down.
We attempted to find a replacement pair in Rotorua (between the Forest hike and the shoreline walk) but could not find what I wanted. Shadeless for a day or two more, we found ourselves on a rainy day self-guides walking tour of Christchurch (Mar. 5). The Two-Dollar store, which sells everything for 2.50 was happy to decorate my face with something serviceable - not well-fitting or good looking or even safe. They would do in a pinch and made appearances in the gardens of the Food Farm a few times. They are not broken, however they were replaced.
During a clean-up of the workshop at the Food Farm, in the bottom of a box of random stuff, I found a pair of safety shades that fit well. They had been well used and had some scratches, but they were better than the 2.50 pair for sure. Well, that is, until today (Mar. 14), when I couldn’t find them.
At 8:30 we were loading into Nicks Ute (pickup truck) and getting dropped off at a trail head for a 13km hike on a cloudless day near the ocean and I couldn’t find the scratched safety glasses, so I opted to go without.
During the late morning assent from the beach, I saw something shiny, beneath the overgrown edge of the trail. Expecting to find a rare piece of litter that needed to be re-homed, I shifted the blades with my foot and reached down to find - you guessed it- sunglasses! They weren’t anything special, new or scratchless, but a step up from “none”!
So, to be clear, for at least 3 years I used only 1 pair of sunglasses. In the last 5 weeks, I’ve needed 5 pairs. I am absolutely confident that there will be a “part two” of this story some time in the near future.