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A Whale of a Tradition

It's just plain good timing that my parents sent over these instructions mere weeks after a whale washed up on the shore down the coast from us.


We didn't end up going down to see the whale and although I think its remnants are still there, I think it's a little less awe-inspiring by this point.

It would be cool to see it just to see the size of one! Sure, Dustin has swum alongside Whale Sharks so he might be tough to impress but I have only swum with dolphins so it would probably look pretty big.

Friends of ours work for the department of conservation and Dustin texted one last week only to get a reply a couple hours later: "sorry was down at the whale and there was no reception"

That was a totally normal response that neither of us batted an eye at. Good ol' New Zealand living.

The friends are tasked with taking photos of the decomposition and tracking how long it takes - among other sciencey stuff.

But I haven't heard what's happened to the blubber. Hopefully it's stored properly to prevent botulism.

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