Post 515 Quite a week

It's hard to know where to start in a week with so much happening. The highlight, of course was Christmas Day, which I spent with Katherine's family - a fabulously happy time with lots of laughing, connection and love. 

 

I am loathe to post photos of people's faces so will make do with our deserts - Carol's Yule Log in the foreground and Katherine's pavlova at the back. Both were delicious, and it will take me a day or two to lose the extra 0.4kg they added!

The hats went down a treat and the bonbons added to the laughter.

I got a lot of interest and joy from the numerous messages received from friends during the week. I am more than ever convinced of the importance of this annual effort to stay in touch.                                                 

I also had a couple of lunches with friends. Jennifer and I had several months of news to catch up on Wednesday. The Christmas biscuits she made with nieces were demolished pretty quickly on Saturday night at Katherine's place.

On Friday Lorraine and I wore our Frida Kahlo outfits to lunch at The Flying Pan. This was Lorraine's idea, and she had excitedly prepared flower bouquets for our hair, a purple one for me, a white one for her.  

I managed to convince her that it would be impossible to anchor these (right)  with either the bobby pins or the scarves she had brought along, and that we should use a couple of the florets rather than the bouquets. 

Hers was bolder and better than mine. Her dress was also a better choice (helps to try it on, rather than buying online on a good-idea impulse!). I might wear mine once more, for my Mexican Embroidery presentation, but that's it. It is a most unflattering shape for my figure. Be that as it may, we had a great lunch, after which I dashed off to the dentist for a filling. At their request I got there early, only to find my dentist had an emergency, and was running an hour late. I got away 2 hours later with the filling done and a referral to an odontist, which, of course, can't be followed up until mid-January. This is no one's fault. It is great that the emergency was dealt with. The woman concerned was unnecessarily apologetic. One day it could be me. 

On Thursday, prior to Pilates, I finally had my one hour appointment with the orofacial pain dentist. She was terrific. It turns out I have a displaced disc in my left jaw. More than 30% of people apparently have this without knowing. The jaw locking I experienced back in June occurs when the disc slips completely out of position as opposed to being misaligned. There is no cure but a range of management techniques, several of which she taught me.The first message is 'don't panic', which is, of course, what I did back in June! Understanding what is happening is half the battle.  I've been practising, and can feel the difference. 

Encouraged by the dental works, I made myself another batch of corn and zucchini muffins for lunch on Saturday, this time trying a recipe that uses buttermilk. It is a pretty good result, although I still prefer the last batch I made using feta.

One of the best thing about these, when you live on your own, is that they are good for a couple of days, either cold, or reheated.

I spent much of Saturday embroidering the wings of felt doves I had bought from the Leprosy Shop, another slightly mad project covered off in my embroidery blog. 

After picking up my grab-and-go bag of crocheted squares as I left on Saturday for dinner, when I got home I thought it time I sorted out the squares to see where I was up to with the intended baby blanket. I then spent Sunday joining and filling in. 

I now have 19 squares to go, plus the edge. I will probably continue to use it as a grab-and-go project, but now more purposefully. This was designed to use up my surplus of 4 ply cotton. It has made inroads, but there's a way to go. 

In the meantime, I have two friends about to have major operations and I'm hoping to knit prayer shawls for them. I also have fabric to make more tote bags.

The angels and mages have watched over various sunsets this week, and also, it seems, over me. There were plenty of storm clouds and gloom, but also colour, light and beauty. 

I have been blessed many times over and I am grateful. 

 

Post 484 recipes, repairs, repertoire, and a rainbow

I had planned to begin this post with the doves who visited on Friday, but the rainbow that greeted me as I was preparing my breakfast on Sunday deserves that honour. 

I managed to snap a few photos before it faded away. It was a great way to start the day - which lived up to its promise.

The morning was spent at Book Club. The choices had been mine, Everyone in my family has killed someone, by Benjamin Stevenson, and Judgement Day by Mali Waugh. Both were well received and provided plenty to talk about. I'm grateful to Brigid for the Stevenson suggestion.

In the afternoon, Katherine and I went to the Adelaide Chamber Singers concert at St John's Halifax St, a well-planned program with two Byrd motets, the Vaughan Williams setting of Ben Jonson's Wedding Chorus, a couple of Ben Van Tiernen pieces and a fabulous rendering of Charles Hutchinson Gabriel's His Eye is on the Sparrow.

A pretty perfect Autumn Sunday in Adelaide.

The signs of Winter are appearing.  There has been a lot of rain this week, and day temperatures between 15C and 18C.     

   

The painters have finished, and on Thursday the doves huddled together on my balcony, looking neither for food nor water, just warmth. I was interested in an article in The Washington Post this week reported on the research indicating mental health benefits from watching or hearing birds.

On Wednesday, after a visit to the optometrist, shopping and cleaning, I made a batch of corn and zucchini muffins, using a recipe adapted from several I had compared, including one sent to me by Vivienne. 

It was remarkably successful. I had a couple for my dinner and, as Vivienne had promised me, they lasted several days, cold or warmed briefly in the microwave.

I will be making these regularly now. 

I was on standby for JEMS on Saturday, but not needed. Niamh has netball for the next couple of months so I spent Saturday shopping and cooking for Monday and progressing the St Brigid jumper.

On Wednesday I also had a message to say my Jacqueline Hick frame repair was ready, so called to pick it up, brought it home and hung it. I can't avoid reflections on the glass, but it hangs appropriately beside two of her paintings and is easily accessible. Jodie did a great job on the frame.

Early in the week I had trouble opening the drawer on one of the cabinets Nordic Design Furniture had made me.  Clearly there was something in the lower drawer  jamming the upper drawer's movement. All my efforts to free it failed and I could not work out how to remove the drawer. On Thursday, after Pilates, I called out at Nordic Design Furniture to ask them to show me how to open the drawer. Daniel, the owner, was there, and extraordinarily helpful. I went home and had the drawer open in about 3 minutes. Yes, of course, I had packed too much into it! It is such a joy to engage with sympathetic and kind people - and to solve problems. The young man who came on Monday morning to service my aircon unit was similarly helpful and professional.

I have also been eking out the Greek Easter biscuits that Panayoula gave me last week. I am putting back some of the weight I lost - due, I think, to the reintroduction of a modest amount of carbohydrates in my diet, including the pasta bake I made  for the first time in over a year for family dinner last night. I see the nephrologist on Thursday, and he will be unimpressed.  I'm going to need help to manage a sustainable diet that keeps my one kidney healthy, and have arranged to see a highly recommended nutritionist when she takes on new patients in September. Until then I need more exercise and fewer carbs. In the meantime, I fronted up for fasting blood and urine tests this morning, so fingers crossed.

It wasn't raining today so I spent the rest of the day doing washing, reading Christopher Fowler's The Waterhouse and making a big batch of Anzac biscuits. I seem to have cracked the recipe that family members (me included!) like. I ration myself - but they may be out of bounds after my visit to the nephrologist on Thursday!     

The St Brigid jumper is progressing slowly but steadily. I am now halfway up the front. Some Ink & Spindle linen remnants arrived today - I have some bag ideas for these when St Brigid is finished.

I wouldn't want to run out of projects!