Anyway, the final show - a two-hour auction special - was on Friday evening and we were out of town at a conference that could not be missed. So the show was taped.
Now the format of the auction was this - a reserve price was set and the couples could keep all the dosh the house sold for above that figure. Not a bad deal, usually, although we have seen some people going away with nothing after three months of renovation hell.
The couple that made the most money would win the competition and gain an extra $80,000.
So we tootle back from Rotorua, stopping at Okere Falls Cafe for a much-needed coffee. It was heaving and so we ordered and went out the back to sit at tables there.
A family was talking about something and I heard the words The Block. "Noooooo," I said, "Don't say anything more we've taped it and don't know the result."
They laughed: "So have we, we've been avoiding everything so we can watch it today."
So then followed a natter about the show.
A few hours later, it was comfy chair time and let's find out who won. Sitting there my only hope was that they all made lots of money.
The first couple Alex and Corban - favourites to win - come up first and their home sold for $247,000 over the reserve. Whoa, great going guys.
Next up were battlers Maree and James who made $147,000. Congrats, well done.
Third couple were young parents-to-be Quinn and Ben who hadn't renovated before and were behind the eight ball throughout the entire show. They squeaked past the reserve and made only $10,000. Boo, hiss, boo.
Last up were the popular Jo and Damo, and they pocketed $61,000. Good effort, if unlucky not to make more.
Anyway Quinn and Ben's result left us feeling - to quote a great Kiwi expression - stink. They deserved more.
What happened next is why The Block is featuring in this column. The overall winners Alex and Corban gave Quinn and Ben $30,000 out of their winnings because "Your attitudes deserve so much more."
How nice is that? There is not enough generosity in the world and that act of kindness from Alex and Corban deserves to be recognised.
Well done to the New Zealand rugby league team, in the Four Nations final against the mighty Kangaroos.
The Kiwis were superb and while I wasn't thrilled with the result - 22-18 to the men in black - I do admire sides that can stand up to Australian league sides and give us a thrilling test.
I prefer league so much more than the 15-man game because the players are not little tin gods unlike another sporting code. Speaking of which ...
There has been some discussion about English crowds booing Richie McCaw at Twickenham.
In my view New Zealand rugby crowds are possibly the most boorish, ill-mannered mobs of supposed adults since the sans culottes took to the streets of Paris to bring down Louis XVI and Marie Antoinette during the French Revolution.
Ask any Australian who wears their national colours to a game in any of the pens that double as rugby grounds around this country.
And I'll tell you where crowd booing took off - it was back in 1978 at Athletic Park when Wallaby Ken Wright had a late penalty attempt to win a test match against the ABs.
Wright was subjected to a storm of boos and whistles, missed the kick, and was then cheered when he missed.
The media of the day condemned the crowd behaviour and in the years that followed NZ rugby crowds have proven to be particularly bad sports.
All I can say is if you can't handle it, don't dish it.
-Richard@richardmoore.com
Richard Moore is an award-winning Western Bay journalist and photographer.
