www.mikenyffeler.com

Welp, this is the official update to get everyone in the know, so you will know.

First of all, you if you are reading this you’re probably curious as to my where abouts in the last few months and where I am now this very second. Those, my friends, are fairly easy questions to answer, but perhaps a more complex one would be where I WILL be in the next few months. I will make an attempt to clear the perpetual fog that surrounds my future to give you all some idea of what is to come.

At this very second I am at work. Not really working very hard mind you but I at least made it here on time and right now it’s pretty slow. This place is called the Nebraska Television Network (NTV) and I am an assistant producer and photojournalist with hopes of being behind the camera full time. I basically edit, arrange, and cue all the tapes used in the news broadcast and sometimes shoot footage too. Im sitting at the computer in the corner looking at a photo collage of Brad Pitt on some woman’s desk and drinking filtered coffee (like a good caffeinated employee.)

In addition to tape hustling I also work nights at the Developmental Services of Nebraska (DSN) with mostly young adults with developmental disabilities living in group homes in Kearney. My full time status consists of three nights and one morning a week plus a few shifts here and there.

I have also been involved in starting a media production business called Focal Point Media. Myself, along with Mr. Ismael Torres, do all aspects of promotion, marketing, design, and best of all, video production. It’s still all on a small time scale mind you…just for now! Ismael is very motivated and has a good sense of marketing and public relations and I (of course) am the creative genius behind all things digital….go ahead and take my word for it. Since FP Media dived into the frenzy that is the media business in February, we have been busy with projects spanning from various video ventures, to posters, and billboards with an infinite amount of new jobs spawning in the mind of Ismael.

Perhaps the best news I can think of at the moment is that I recently moved BACK with the parents, whom I might add ,invited me to move back into the room that once housed my brother, then me, and now a few years later myself again. I was living close to downtown in a large house made larger with a “entrepreneurial” landlord who is continually adding apartments for more tenants. It was a glorious heap of decks, doors, and unknown planks of cheep 2X4’s sticking out of various parts of the exterior…and I don’t miss it.

The reason for moving is not complicated – I needed to save money.
Saving money, other than working, will be my main objective for the next few months. The world is too big and there are too many things I want to see to stay in one comfortable place. My passion is being out in the wild…the unknown, and not knowing (or caring) where I’ll be sleeping tomorrow.
I still would like to go back to school, I still would like to own my own house and car, and I still would like to pursue a career but at any point in the next 20 years Ill be able to have those luxuries. Right now, my network is on roam.

So there is the update. I will be uploading new pictures and video here soon so come back!
Peace and Love,—Mike

Well my year in New Zealand is now a week past and I still am coming to grips with the idea that Im another country again. Mom and Dad came for my last week and had a near perfect trip. We almost drove around the entire South Island in six days, which is a pretty big deal with dad. Glaciers, mountains, rainforests, wineries, penguins, whales, and too much else to list. I think for all of us, it will give memories that will last forever and I am so glad they took the time and money (lots of money to come visit.

Then they were off to Tasmania for another fun in the sun week with Rob and Rita Gunn (more penguins to be seen and wine to be tasted). I shot back up to Wellington for a day to attend Sarah’s wedding. And yes, this IS the same Sarah that came over with me a short year ago! So a long story short she met Devin in February, they started dating immediately, and were inseparable and rarely left each others’ side. Then the came engagment in September, and marriage on the 25th of November. Bing, Bang, Boom. It goes to show that you will never know what is instore for you until you show up and take the chance. Sarah and Devin are perfect for each other and Im happy that they found each other. Good on ‘em.

As for me, I wasnt too excited to start all over again and to fight for work and a place to live. I was excited to start a new journey in a completely different environment, plus I had the plane tickets already so why not! I was however in a funk in Wellington and needed a change that would put me in new surroundings with different challenges. After some sad goodbyes in New Zealand and a day layover in a great city called Melbourne, I finally caught up with mom and dad and the Gunns in Hobart on the 27th. The highlights of those few days were a tour of Port Arthur, Australia’s largest convict colonies built in the late 1700’s and seeing, hearing and touching Tasmanian Devils, which contrary to popular belief, are more short sighted than ferocious, and with only 50,000 left in the wild are extremely rare. Im glad for the chance to have seen both.

So now its a new journey. Beginning in Sydney and however far beyond with enough money to last me only a few weeks and no working visa we will only see what will happen when I show up and take a chance.
Cheers.
Mike

All living things contain a measure of madness that moves them in strange, sometimes inexplicable ways. Without it no species would survive. -Yann Martel “Life of Pi”

Back in Welly for the moment and moving on soon.
Wow it has been a long, long time since I have accually wrote anything up on this. It makes me feel so lazy when I look at this page…well calling it lazy is a bit harsh because I do sometimes update the header picture or very occasionally update with a video, but alas, I have realized I am just not a writer. I have tried to keep a daily journal where I would jot the tid bits down at the end of the day but it turns out to be a bit of jotting once every other month. And Im always loosing the damb thing.

This sort of reminds me of when two old friends reunite after a long absence and begin to delve into each others lives once again…you and I are, at this moment, doing the same. It is just completely one sided and when everyone (if anyone) will read it, it will be not until the next day or week or month. But in a way, we are now being connected once again.

If you are not my parents or my brother or sister…you may not know a whole lot of what I have been up to this past year. Like I before mentioned, I am not a writer so it is hard for me to write what its like living in another country for a year of my life. Its hard to put down with clarity the strangeness, excitement, beauty, and unfamiliarities of this place. There will most likely never be a book published about my travels, only a hand full of pictures and a few tapes worth of video clips that express some of the places and people along the way, but in no way, shape or form will it capture the emotions, thoughts, and even growth of a person. I do feel that New Zealand has changed me. I dont know if it would have been any different if I would have ventured to another place but I dont care, I like what has happened here.

- sublime |səˈblīm| |səˌblaɪm| |səˌblʌɪm|
adjective. of such excellence, grandeur, or beauty as to inspire great admiration or awe : Mozart’s sublime piano concertos | [as n. ] ( the sublime) experiences that ranged from the sublime to the ridiculous.

– Sublime landscapes do not introduce us to our inadequacy; rather, to touch on a the crux of their appeal, they allow us to conceive of a familiar inadequacy in a new and more helpful way. Sublime places repeat in grand terms a lesson that ordinary life typically introduces viciously: that the universe is mightier than we are, that we are frail and temporary and have no alternative but to accept limitations on our will; that we must bow to necessities greater than ourselves. -Allan de Botton

Hello everyone, I hope you are enjoying your warm summer and your nice golden tan bodies! I am braving the cold (near arctic) winter but with hope that there will someday be warmth again to my extremities and I will be able to play frisbee without gloves.
I will first start with the good news because everyone likes good news. I finally got a job! I work for Maui Rental at the Queenstown airport detailing cars, making them nice and clean and smelling great! Its a pretty posh job because I get to drive all the nice cars into town to get petrol and for repairs. That means lots of time to check out the local radio stations for some good kiwi music My first paycheck is this wednesday and it couldn’t have come soon enough!

The bad news is that I had lost my plane tickets somewhere in the process of moving and after a frantic search, I had to fork out the remainder of my bank account to cover the reprints before my flight became invalid. Then a bad week got worse as I let a friend borrow my car for the day which he was quite nice and put petrol in it but decided to parked it illegally. The next morning (June 30th) it was towed, parked outside of town, and was quickly robbed of all my valuables inside. Anything and everything that could have any value was taken, including things that didn’t have any value to anyone else but me (like my journals, letters, and postcards) BUT THANKFULLY all the really expensive things (my computer, camera etc.) were locked safely in my room!

Well I hope everyone is having a safe and fun summer! I am now in the process of getting a working visa for Australia…and if anyone would like to join me in the oz tour, no worries mate, there’s always plenty of room!
peace.

I arrived to my new destination late evening May 12 under the cover of darkness. There was no moon that evening so everything was pitch black except for the road signs telling me how far i had to go (QT is a five hour drive from Christchurch, which is another five hours from the ferry terminal) I didnt realize how beautiful and rugged this area is until the next morning when i looked out the window. I saw lake Wakatipu and the remarkables bursting out like the back of a giant prehistoric monster arching its back ready to strike (...yes it’s that dramatic). These mountains are much smaller in scale compared to the rockies, at a hight of only 7,000 meters, but with absolutley no trees and sharp layers of rock gouging out, The Remarkables are one of the most beautiful sights in all of new zealand in my opinion. Much of lord of the rings where shot right here in Queenstown and the surrounding areas and for good reason. Everything is very much untouched. I think i will like it most in a blanket of snow and me on the summit with a board on my feet and a line to ride. Life here is much slower compaired to Wellington. It gives me time. Time to think, watch movies, read, explore the mnts, take pictures, explore my tastes in NZ wine, be bored, and sit in front of the computer. That is what you get when you arrive in a new place with no job, no flat and nowhere to go and everyone to meet. I spent the first two weeks looking for work and enjoying a bit of time off. I stayed my friend Marina from Vancuver. We had met in Wellington through one of our exchange program pub meetings and kept in touch after she moved knowing I would be soon to follow. Luckily there was room in her appartment so i greatfully took the couch. It is always nice to have a friend to be able to show you around town, but more importantly in my opinion, it invaluable to have someone to be able to enjoy a new experience with (especially in a place a beautiful as this).
Now I have been in Queenstown for nearly a month…still jobless and flatless. You get a greatfullness of the city when you get here and see how hard it is to find a flat or a job in a town of only 9,000. I am currently working for accomodation at a hostel called the discovery lodge. I work 18 hrs a week for a room shared with seven other travelors doing the same thing. i am getting used to dealing with changing beds and cleaning kitchens in return for the ease of not worring about bills. I am also saving anywhere from $90-150 a week…but you can subtract the gin and tonic’s and muliple games pool from the Altitude bar joined directly to the hostel.
I am still on the hunt for a more proper fulltime work at a bar or restaurant in town…and my fingers have been crossed so long they are starting to cramp.

I have updated some pictures of my first week in Queenstown and I must say this place is so spectacular that it is easy to take a great photo. The Crown Range road is the only direct rout between QT and Wanaka that cuts through the mountains. Truly beautiful scenery but be careful if you have a rental cuz they DONT insure on this road!
Sit tight and I will give a full update of what Im doing in QT soon! Enjoy the picts
-mike

FINALLY! The Wellington tribute is up for you all! I think its the most entertaining installment so far so I would like some feed back of your thoughts and concerns, fears and wants, joys and sorrows! ....or just give me an honest opinion

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