Oh what a feeling

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By Paul Jowsey
Published on 02/02/2009 15:03PM

I have a passion for Jaguars, in particular the XJ series. I was once leant one in England, a right dandy. I discovered two things on the M5. There are two gas tanks and no need to hitch hike for petrol, there being a switch on the dash. The other thing I got wised up to is that people who lend one a brand new Jag usually don’t actually own it. Anyway, in the thoroughly unlikely event that I should ever slide an XF into the company fleet I know I would have a feeling. It would be a lasting blend of excitement, incredulity and guilt.
So there we were in the 12-foot clinker up against awesome ponga fern dappled limestone cliffs echoing laughter and lifting in the slight Tasman swell, two sons and myself. Wetting a line. Backdrop being the Kahurangi National Forest, New Zealand’s largest. The Whanganui Harbour was our hostess and we stopped at one of her gorgeous beaches for a hike and drovers breakie. One other boat on the harbour, deer on the ridge, rock oysters at our feet. Then we lured some kahawai & headed for home. Absolutely fantastic, five weeks of total freedom, real life with the family, books, ale, oysters, venison, whitebait, pipis, smoked eel, tents and birdsong and a very special previously unknown event; no contact with the office, none.
So now we’re back (ish) and although production was halted for 2.5 weeks the Dec Jan sales figures are 114% filling me with a lasting blend of excitement, incredulity and guilt. Oh and there were and are no problems here at the Jtagz plant, none, everybody is happy to see us back and make tea and “are there any calls you don’t want today Paul?”
Funky. Austrade have been hard at it in Europe for us. We fast tracked the relocation of our injection moulding & toolmaking from Melbourne to Brisbane the week previous to vacation two months ahead of schedule. And all specifications have been met in line with the systems and procedures developed during our arduous Switzer business coaching, just in case anyone wondered why I feel like Bhagwan Krishna at the opium den. The lasting blend of excitement, incredulity and guilt has altered somewhat due to fact that I have booked myself, just me, to return to NZ for the month of March under the guise of doing my commercial chores by remote when actually I have submitted plans for construction of accommodation on our 6 acre bush block over looking Golden Bay & the southern Alps.
Not that I’m spruiking up Business Coaching in the least. As my kiwi neighbour says, “If you’re not laughing you’re not living”.
Kia ora.