What an absolutely stunning weekend.
Hawke's Bay's amazing autumn has finally arrived with its cool mornings, warm days and beautiful blue skies. The past couple of days have reminded me of a saying someone told me years ago and it's never failed me: "With dew on the grass, rain will never come to pass."
There's been plenty of dew about at the weekend.
There were loads of people out enjoying the sunshine. We went and sat on the beach at Ahuriri and watched the powerboat racing.
I know nothing about powerboat racing but I'm guessing the conditions would have been perfect. The sea was flat and there was hardly any wind.
Napier was actually bursting at the seams. Car parks were rare as hen's teeth and the playgrounds were packed. I guess that's a sign of the times. People don't have big backyards anymore.
Parents can hardly tell their children to go outside and play when there's no room to swing a bat, or for a swing. So playgrounds have become the new backyard.
There were also heaps of people out biking. I saw lots of people without helmets on, including a dad and three little children.
It is compulsory to wear helmets on our cycle tracks but if the dad doesn't want to wear one, that's his choice. However, the children should be wearing them, especially when it's so busy and they have to dodge people, other cyclists - including children just like them who are very unpredictable on bikes - dogs and pushchairs.
We have all heard the arguments about wearing helmets.
Some people say that since wearing helmets while cycling became law in January 1994 that fewer people ride bikes.
They need to come to Hawke's Bay on a sunny weekend.
We've had plenty of time to get used to it and, just like wearing a seatbelt, the law is there for our own protection and for others using the cycleways.
Another saying I was reminded of on the weekend was "age is but a number''.
It was my sister-in-law's 65th birthday on Saturday (the same day as my brother's).
We gathered with family and friends to celebrate.
I was chatting to my sister and she said she'd been invited to a 135th birthday party.
It's a combined party, of course - a 65-year-old man and his 70-year-old partner. She pointed them out to me.
My eyes just about popped out of my head. Was she really nearly 70? Apparently so. She looked amazing.
Black boots, black tights, a short black skirt and a silver top. Before you ask, no, she did not look like mutton dressed as lamb. She looked elegant and beautiful. She danced just about all night with not a sign of weariness.
Of course I had to ask her what her secret was. She said she walked 5km every day and that she just took care of herself.
I'm thinking maybe 70 is the new 50. It just goes to show that attitude plays a huge part of who we are.
If you hit your 60s and start telling yourself you are old, you will be. By the time you reach 70, you'll be ancient.
Instead of telling yourself you are getting old, tell yourself to get outside and go for a walk.
There's plenty of time, if we are lucky, to be getting old.