In its essence I've always had time for the commute; I love the daily transition from life to another. Flying out of London and over the Alps every week was beautiful but by 2005 my lifelong love affair with with airports was over. Now I catch a ferry, crossing theHokianga Harbour every morning and hopping off in downtown Rawene. Last summer, someone undid the ferry moorings over night.Luckily the tide was incoming and the ferry drifted upstream instead of out into the wild Tasman sea. That next morning, there she was lodged amongst the mangroves looking like a scene out of Fitzcarraldo. Enterprising locals offered to get us across and the harbour was alive with boats whizzing across it like mosquitoes. These two gentlemen were on last nights' ferry : MrElegant due south on his way to a ball and Mr Casual due north on his way back home.