Post644 More Music, More Embroidery and Much Love.

 

My car was booked in for service on Wednesday. As usual I had chosen the option to have two mechanics work on it while I waited. It takes two and a half hours. The waiting area is warm, comfortable and serviced with a coffee machine. I found a seat that did not face the TV screen and got to work to finish the Corinne Lapiere mouse.  It took most of the time with enough thread and time for me to also make a twisted cord. The cord is a bit thicker than it needs to be and I might adjust it.

It has given me an idea. Although it is cute, I doubt many libraries would use a book-carrying mouse as a mascot or ornament. They spend too much time keeping mice out of the stacks.

When the car was ready  (no problems, tyres rotated, oil, brake fluid etc changed, battery chacked) I headed for Centennial Park Cemetery. It was Jim’s birthday. 

The site looks terrific.it is a very serene, contemplative place, silent except for birdsong. He loved his birthday.

As I have done on each visit since October 2024 I checked out Lorraine Trotter’s burial place and was delighted to find, for the first time, a headstone in place.  It is shiny black marble, which reflects the grass that now covers the grave. Quite lovely. So much about Lorraine’s life was secret. I seems important  to mark her life and death in a public way.  

From the cemetery I went to Create in Stitch to buy some felt for the idea the mouse has given me. I came home and worked on it - but I’m not ready to share yet.

I did however, get another idea. I had bought two tea boxes from Create in Stitch a couple of years ago along with kits for embroidery to go on the lids. I made one for my Adelaide daughter to use at work and promised Brigid one when she got her own work space.

Create in Stitch still has the boxes in stock and it occurred to me I should offer to make one for my Canberra daughter, so Thursday morning I was up relatively early to return and buy another box - just in case they sold out! 

Friday was fine so I hung out washing and waited for a parcel before heading to the supermarket. The post also brought the account for the traffic offence I managed to commit last month. I was relieved to get it. It is nearly 6 weeks since it happened, and I was worried it had been stolen from my letterbox. I went straight to the Post Office and paid it. I now have 3 demerit points.

This book (left). was in the parcel.  I had stumbled across it and managed to find a reasonably priced copy through World of Books. My mother, as a newly arrived migrant in 1929, went to Banksmeadow Primary School where she learned a lot about Joseph Banks, all of which she imparted to my brother and I. She would have so loved this book. It contains 181 of the drawings Bank's commissioned. The selection from Botany Bay begins with his illustration of a flannel flower. I'm toying with the idea of embroidering some of them.

I spent the rest of Friday beginning work on Anna Scott"s Jewels of Summer  for the tea box lid.  Anna's instructions are precise, her colour shifts subtle. I think Joseph Banks would approve. It's fun to stitch.  

The weekend was going to be busy with performances on both days. The Gesualdo Six were in town again. I had booked months ago for their performance on Sunday  afternoon at Ukaria - the only Ukaria concert I had booked for the year. While it’s a fabulous venue, I am finding the drive up the Hills tedious and the drive home in winter, into the sunset, stressful. Katherine, however, was going to pick me up.

The Saturday concert at the Cathedral was a later announcement, a performance with the Festival Statesmen Chorus and the Cathedral Choir and Katherine booked. Had the announcements been timed differently I wouldn’t have booked the Ukaria one.

The timing wasn't great. The cathedral is close to Adelaide Oval where the Showdown, between the two State AFL teams was being played that evening, meaning there were parking restrictions and traffic issues. A friend kindly picked me up so we only had one car. The downhill walk from car to cathedral was paid back by an out-of-breath exercise afterwards.

The  concert was superb. The newly installed cathedral lighting system was in full swing, as was what appeared to be a smoke machine! While the latter produced interesting effects, it didn’t do wonders for my accompanying friend’s respiratory weakness.

The cathedral was packed. The Statesmen and the Gesualdo Six performed brackets separately and together. The finale was a performance of both with the cathedral choir, organ and trumpet. The audience was blown away. We left on a high - higher than I remember from any concert. I have included a copy of the program at the end of this post for anyone interested. There is also some audio on the Festival Statesmen Chorus FB page.

I went to bed that night savouring the experience and almost regretting the next day’s booking. Katherine, however, had developed a severe cold from the excursion, slept badly and wisely took to her bed on Sunday, so I opted out, choosing instead to spend several hours checking EOYF payments needing to be made, then working on the tea box lid and my upcoming WES presentation. There is not yet a date available for the broadcast of the concert, but I will keep an eye out.

Commitments and illness meant there were only four of us for dinner on Monday. I had bought family pies because I anticipated being out much of the weekend. The pies worked well and we had a lot to talk about. On examining the tea box, the girls decided they would like to have one each when they are ready to leave home, so I ordered two more online and picked them up this morning from Create in Stitch. There is (fortunately) no hurry.

I'm enjoying the one I'm working on and hope to have the box finished by my posting next week.

Post 437 Walks, anniversaries and a productive workshop

 

Although it was grey and wet on Wednesday, I took advantage of a break in the rain to do another walk in the Pakapakantha Wetlands(!) sticking to paved paths for the first and last stretches, but on to the packed soil paths in between. There was a lot of water around and I was very careful on the numerous slippery patches. This was the first of my 30 minute Week 3 walks for the Heart Foundation program. While there were few birds visible this time, they were making a lot of noise - a flock of sulphur-crested cockatoos way up in the tree tops.

I was so pleased with my walking success that I stopped off at the General Havelock pub for a late lunch. I haven't been here for over a year and it turns out they have a new chef and menu. The garfish I previously enjoyed is replaced with barramundi. I eschewed the batter and, as well as feeling virtuous, enjoyed the moist, succulent fish inside. I did eat the chips - and yes, that is a glass of prosecco, only the second glass of alcoholic drink I have had in a year.  It was a little chilly sitting outside when the sun wasn't out, but still pleasant.

I capped off the day with a spectacular sunset and advancing the little horses. I love the way this building reflects the last rays of the sun.

Thursday was dry and sunny so I took advantage, washed and hung out some woollens - dry in 4 hours. 

After Pilates, I shopped, buying the ingredients for moussaka for Monday night - and also an extra one for tomorrow's rescheduled lunch with friends.  I indulged a bit. Iceberg lettuces have come down from $10 to $6.90! Expensive by past measures, but now a bargain. Thursday's sunset was quite a contrast - more like a cloud blanket!  

The bougainvillea at the Pilates Studio was shedding flowers, so I retrieved one to photograph on my phone. It matches the top and socks I was wearing!

This one (left) is pretty much the actual size. There has to be a way to use these in embroidery! 

A couple of books also arrived on Thursday - a bit of a mixed blessing, as they signal a lot more work to be done. These are part of a 'how to' series, so provide leads to follow up - so signal a lot more rabbit holes to explore.  I am, as I've said before, a glutton for punishment

On Friday Jim would have been 75. Katherine and I had lunch at the River Cafe - a low key affair and a welcome time out. We had to rely on electronics to connect to Alison. It remains an indelible marker.  As a friend said to me, Jim would have been pleased.

Saturday brought a fabulous Guild Certificate Course Workshop - Boro with Barbara Mullan. It was such good fun. I have finished the pocket that Barbara suggested we make. Details in my embroidery blog.

Sunday was Book Club, another great session. There is a lot of sharing in this group - the books we've read or discovered, the sub-genres we like, what we are or are not doing. I didn't greatly like either of the books we read for this session (Twelve Secrets by Robert Gold and Distress Signals by Catherine Ryan Howard), but it doesn't matter - views differed, are respected and worth discussing.

Monday's moussaka was a big success - which was great, as I have another one in the fridge for tomorrow's lunch! One interesting thing is that for the first time I've made this (and I've made it more times than I can count) the eggplant cost more than the lamb. Our economy is changing. I suspect that the secret to the success of this one is the half bottle of red wine I used up! 

I had planned to make a batch of gingerbread biscuits for after-school snacks, but didn't get to it. I made them this evening as part of tomorrow's dessert.

                                         

I've finished appliqueing the woollen horses behind the embroidered ones and am working blanket stitch around the edge. I've decided, however, that I need a few more horses in some blank areas in the corners.  The girls agreed with me yesterday on this, so I have printed another sheet of Solvi with 6 horses. The blanket is hard to photograph.

I also whipped up another needlework roll from a banner I found while looking for Boro fabric.

Yesterday marked twelve months since I began my weight loss project and daily weight record. The loss at 1 year was 21 kg. For a couple of months now, I have settled around this weight. My renal specialist is happy and both my renal and diabetes readings are no longer at levels of concern. While I'd like to lose more weight I have enjoyed adding a little bread, potato and pasta back into my meals. I haven't reintroduced alcohol, nor moved above 2 serves of fruit.  I think I will rest here for a while over winter then reduce further.  I will continue to weigh myself each morning to ensure my weight doesn't creep up, but think I can now stop recording daily weight.

Today I did the first of this week's Heart Foundation walks in the South Parklands. I've moved from 3 walks a week to 4. A challenge. The sun was out and it was very pleasant. I managed to get close to this magpie, but I missed my chance to photograph a couple of Adelaide Rosellas.

My balcony gardens are doing well in the colder and wetter weather. I'm still waiting for the carpet cleaner and Vergola servicer to get in touch. It's just about time to make more phone calls. I've also been closing the heavy curtains at night and using the heating sparingly, preserving power where I can in times of shortage. I haven't suffered from cold.