If you’ve spent the past few days ankle-deep in mud, staring at a soggy tent and questioning your life choices, you’re very much not alone. 

Do I envy you? No, not at all. 

Footage from Rhythm and Vines has been doing the rounds online, showing festival-goers battling relentless rain, thick mud, and campsites that are more suited to gumboots than jandals. 

 “Couldn’t think of anything worse,” one sour New Zealander commented. 

The official Rhythm and Vines page posted people making the most of the rain, and in the most Kiwi way possible, just vibing through it. 

 I could sit here tapping away at my computer, criticising festival-goers from the comfort of my warm, cosy home, but the truth is I’m not immune to this awful New Year’s weather - nobody is.

Across the country, summer plans have been thrown into disarray, with heavy rain, strong winds and power outages affecting large parts of both islands.

Powerco confirmed this morning that thousands of properties were without power in western regions of both islands and the Coromandel Peninsula, with cuts affecting parts of Manawatū, Horowhenua and the West Coast of the South Island, including Karamea and Little Wanganui. 

MetService meteorologist David Miller told NZ Herald that rain across the North Island is expected to “gradually ease” before shifting South, although she’s still a bit unsettled. 

A band of rain has been tracking from Waitomo through to the Bay of Plenty, with thunderstorms possible in places like Waitomo, Taumarunui and Taranaki, alongside strong wind warnings.

Further south, it’s looking to be a wet and windy day for areas east of the Southern Alps, as well as Nelson, Buller and Grey. Not exactly the blue-sky postcard many were hoping for while cracking into the chilly bin.

Still, if there’s one thing New Zealanders are good at, it’s laughing through slightly grim conditions, sharing the chaos online, and getting on with it. Mud washes off, power comes back on, and summer’s still got a few weeks left to redeem itself.

Until then, maybe keep the gumboots by the door and the weather app close. Just in case.