These people are nuts.

And I mean that in the most admiring of ways.

I am starting to think that the Ministry of Tourism somehow wired my brain on the plane ride over here so that it could always gauge my unspoken satisfaction, disappointment or boredom. It seems that every time I start to get the slightest bit apathetic towards this country, or the thought comes into my head that New Zealand is basically a smaller, funny-sounding island version of the United States, something occurs to disprove this dimwitted theory. Take for example, this morning.

I have been feeling a little , shall we say, indifferent toward my temporary home, as if I have seen it all. But then this morning, I'm flipping channels and basically have the choice of infomercials, or "Good Morning", a guilty pleasure which is basically a segmented infomercial sporting the guise of a morning talk show with a rowdy handful of quirky hosts. My favorite is Astar, who shows you how to make beautiful flower arrangements, often while chomping on gum and regaling the way that she came by said flowers which usually involves a certain degree of petty theft. Imagine a funny, better dressed, less obnoxious version of Rachael Rae under the influence of a hefty amount of caffeine. Don't forget the Kiwi lilt. And she actually does make some really tasteful flower arrangements. Unfortunately, Astar wasn't on today and someone else was making arrangements, but, she caught my attention otherwise. The guest flower-arranger/event-decorator extraordinaire was demonstrating some lovely mid-winter Christmas ideas. This was not a rerun, this was filmed specifically to be aired today, June 18. This guest to the show was discussing how in the last few years more and more New Zealanders are celebrating Christmas in June or July so that they can take part in some of the traditional festivities and symbolism that hinge so much on Northern Hemispherian December weather. Now that "winter" is here in New Zealand (and it's really a lot more like a pleasantly warm October or November than December in the Midwest), why not air out your Christmas ornaments on a sprig of fresh pine from the backyard and make them the centerpiece of a turkey dinner? (And here I thought they were called 'Evergreens' because they are ever green. Apparently they're greener in the winter.) While you're at it, dust some pine cones with glitter and arrange them in a bowl filled with Christmas lights. Best of all, you can give gifts to the people you forgot about or didn't give a chance to present with gifts last Christmas (in December)--people actually do this!!

My other favorite part about "Good Morning" is that they always have a musical artist perform at the beginning and end of the show, with an interview in the middle. It's a very eclectic selection from day to day. And this morning I was not let down. The Wellington International Ukulele Orchestra played their 4 piece arrangement of The Beatles' "I Feel Fine". Leave it to New Zealanders to form a ukulele coalition. They were really good, and they were all just moonlighting ukuleleists having fun together. I actually think that Bret McKenzie (one half of Flight of the Conchords) is a member of the WIUO.

I had to get my day started so I couldn't watch all of "Good Morning" this morning, but just to give you an idea, it also often offers extensive previews of a show called "Country Calendar" which is a show that highlights one New Zealand farm a week and discusses an innovative technique or new equipment or some otherwise special feature on each particular farm. Last time I saw this segment, the featured farm was in Central Otago and it specialized in Angora goats.

So, if you want to see Christmas (seriously) in July, an average man playing the ukulele with more than one other average man, learn about goat breeding and then some, all showcased in a single hour, or, more simply, if you want to go somewhere that will always have another quirk up its sleeve to satisfy your taste for surprise, come to New Zealand.