Stu makes good use of a sunny afternoon and washes his car. He often does it himself, sometimes with a bucket, sometimes with a water blaster, depending on his mood. Today it’s the hose. He’s been living in this house for more than twenty years, and it’s time to say goodbye to it. Towards the end of the year it’s going to be demolished, more than five years after the earthquake damaged the structure of the building. The delay is due to the slow process through the insurance company. The family will rebuild a similar house on the same site. “Once you have lived up here you never want to go back flat.” – Stu tells me with a laugh.