The doves have been looking after each other on my balcony, looking for lice and cleaning each other. The weather has been a lot cooler, although not as cool as Canberra this week, with regular morning temperatures below zero. Here in Adelaide we've had a few 15C mornings and most days in the low 20s. On Sunday I put my winter quilt on. The summer one is washed and put away.
lI haven't been out much this week. Much of my time was spent researching my grandmother's family story or preparing for the World Embroidery Study Group meeting tomorrow and the Certificate Course Workshop I'm giving in June.
Outings were lunch with a past neighbour after Pilates on Thursday, food shopping and dinner with family on Saturday night. Our scheduled Sit'nStitch didn't happen on Sunday because Jennifer had returned from Queensland the night before and was self-isolating while waiting for her re-entry test results. The results were negative- and arrived so promptly we could have met - but it was too late.I very much wish we had met. I was feeling miserable because I had done a stupid, stupid thing while driving home from the family dinner on Saturday night. My blogger brain took over.
On Saturday nights I often pass the police greys - the mounted police unit that operates in Adelaide - leaving their stables and walking to their patrol in the city. Last Saturday night they pulled up alongside me at a red light on the corner of Hindley St- six mounted police looking splendid. Immediately, I think what a great photo this would make for my blog, take my phone from my pocket and attempt to take a photo. It was dark and glarey and I couldn't see much of the horses on the screen as one of the riders came around my car and asked me to wind down the window to ask if I had used my phone. It was only then that it hit me that taking a photo was using my phone. Totally humiliating. All I could do was apologise and cop the rap. He asked to see the photo. It hadn't taken! Did he believe me? I'm not sure - but I think the action was too stupid for me to have made it up. He took all my details and I will receive a letter - and I expect a $600 fine. The fine is bad, but the embarrassment is worse. I can't believe I used my phone to attempt to take a photo of police! I could hear my mother saying, as she did not infrequently " For an intelligent child you can be very stupid at times"
I am somewhat, but not wholly recovered from kicking myself. And I don't even have a photo to show.
Now that is out of the way, I can write about the more productive parts of my week.
I prepared the 20 kits for the June Certificate Course workshop on Icelandic Embroidery that I wrote about two weeks ago. The kits contain two pieces of wool flannel, one cream and one coloured, along with bundles of threads and two motifs printed onto sheets of Sulki - the printable stick-on, dissolvable paper I mentioned. The cream flannel is for a 16th century figure (pictured), the coloured for an 18th century one.
I cut the wool flannel in A4 sized pieces, printed the patterns on to the Sulki on my home printer, cut and packaged Appleton's threads and had sets of notes printed at Officeworks before packaging them up into ziplock bags.
The most time-consuming part was sorting the threads. I had a bag of sundry Appleton's wools from the Guild's trading table, supplemented by my stash of surplus Appleton's from my chair projects. I created bundles of threads in colours suitable for the projects. I want students to at least have enough to get them through the workshop.
It took the best part of two full days to get the 20 sets finished, but I was very happy to get them ready to go.
I am now working the two figures as examples. Right is the 16th Century figure, just off the hoop and with the Sulki still in place. The surplus can be cut away or dissolved in water. I used a 6" hoop and took the photo with the ring mark in to show the size. I am now working the 18th Century example - very different. 
I realise this is two months away, but the deadline for the publicity information about the workshop is this week and I wanted to have the logistics worked out before the publicity was due. I'm feeling very relieved I've prepared it all.
These are the flowers at the cocktail evening Pat Manser threw last Thursday to celebrate the launch of her book More Than Words: the Making of the Macquarie Dictionary. I was invited, but a trip to Sydney is not on my agenda until I am vaccinated.
It went well - and the flowers look fantastic. The building continues to rise next door. I took this from my back balcony.
To add to the building activity, the installation of solar panels on the roof of our apartment building began yesterday. We already have some panels which provide solar power for shared areas. The new installation is of, I think, 170 panels whose output in power will be allocated to individual apartments and off-set our personal electricity use. It has taken several years to negotiate and satisfy all regulations, but is finally happening. Those of us, who, like me, have apartments on the top (3rd) floor, right under the roof, will be subjected to quite a bit of installation noise over this week and next week - but it's worthwhile!
Yesterday I treated myself to very pleasant late lunch of swordfish at Mr Nick's at Frewville before doing a bit of supermarket and chemist shopping. The fungal nail infection I thought long cured has returned and I'm hoping to get on top of it quickly with help from my podiatrist. My GP also called me to discuss my second blood test results. I've agreed to a urine test when I see her in May and not to take any protein supplements!
Today I spent hours reducing my email backlog which has gotten out of hand in the last year. I found and paid overdue subscriptions, read things I’d saved for a rainy day, deleted expired offers and filed useful articles. I still have a way to go, but it’s progress.
A well-bred woman in the Midsomer Murders episode, Vixen, that I watched on the weekend made the comment that "Most of the best British families breed out now and then". It made me smile.
This post has become too long to add the story that is emerging of my grandmother Nell's family mystery. I'll save it for another week, except to say that this shop today, in Cavendish St, Marylebone, London, was, for over 60 years, Noble's Newsagency, established and run by a woman who was very likely the mother of my grandmother's eldest sister. It's been a fascinating piece of detection and a very good emerging story.
Tomorrow is the World Embroidery Study Group meeting and we are looking at the collection of Bulgarian Embroidery I have on loan from Nelly Ivanova.. My PowerPoint is ready and I’m looking forward to it. Afterwards I have a bone density scan and on Thursday my first Astra-Zeneca shot. Stories for next week.
