Post 458 Challenging weather and lots of activity.

It's been a week of appointments and service. medical work, Vergola have finally appointed a technician and he's coming tomorrow! I've had dentist visits, blood  and eye tests and checkups. I have more dental work next month and I won't have blood  test results until tomorrow. I do, however, now have a fairly good report from my optometrist. My eye condition is under control, I passed my driving vision test and I have a new pair of glasses on the way.

My dentist is close to the Hameji gardens and I managed a visit after my treatment. It is a calming and meditative place. I love the way individual flowers, or rocks, or  plants, are given space and position. These two stood out.

There were also a couple of cockatoos and a duck feeding on the grasses outside, the duck silent and the cockatoos very noisy. 

We had an electrical storm on Wednesday night. Thunder. lightening and rain around 8pm but apparently most of the action was between about 2 and 5 am. Several friends lost power, which was restored just in time for an even bigger storm on Saturday.

Wednesday had been a busy day with WES group - giving the talk as well as running the meeting. Lots of discussion, plenty of sharing and things to discuss as well as the talk itself. A few members sick, a number caring for partners or family, fitting in between commitments. A really great group. The meetings and follow up take quite a bit of my energy - and gives me great satisfaction.

Saturday was the Christmas Pageant - a big event on the Adelaide calendar, signalling the arrival of all things Christmas. More important to me was the phone call to tell me the two cabinets I ordered 20 weeks ago from Nordic Design Furniture were ready to  be inspected on Pageant day. There are road closures all around me, so I planned my escape. It certainly rained on the parade and for much of the day. It didn't deter the crowds. The city was abuzz, families everywhere, and traffic crawling. I got to Nordic Furniture, signed off on the two pieces and paid the residual. To my delight they were delivered on Monday.

Leanne, the owner and manager of the Pilates studio I attend, has been making plants in clay pebbles for sale. I am hooked. I bought a couple more this week, now that my front balcony is restored and I don't have balcony plants inside.  

So far they are doing well. I'm looking forward to seeing how they go in the long term.

I organised the printing of my Christmas cards and spent a few hours redoing my list of address labels so I could have them printed at OfficeWorks. I picked up the  labels on Sunday and went for another walk in the Hameji Garden. There was a group of Magpies occupying one area and occasionally disturbing the peace.

Most of the flowers I had photographed earlier in the week were wilting but this new one had burst open along a path. 

At home I cooked up a couple of pies for Monday dinner - since I had my lengthy optometrist appointment,  late Monday morning, and the two cabinets being delivered Monday afternoon.

In the light of the delivery, I emptied the Indian trunk which has been storing some of my family history treasures and moved it so the new cabinet  can be put in its place. I discovered a secret section in the trunk that I had not known about. It was (fortunately, I'm inclined to think) empty. The trunk is going to Veronica, who is quite excited about it. Both she and Niamh found the secret compartment with little trouble. It isn't difficult once you know there is one. It's hard to believe I have used the trunk for about 15 years without noticing the space oddity. 

I spent this morning at the hairdresser and this afternoon transferring things into the family history drawers.  

There is a drawer for items from each of three generations 

 -  my grandparents, my parents, and mine. The fourth drawer at the moment is holding a variety of documents. 

I need to do a lot more work to determine what goes in the drawers and what goes into archival folders. There are more Bibles in the grandparent drawer (although they were not churchgoers in Australia) than the others!  There is satisfaction in the task, but also sadness. I'm happy for today to have got this much sorted and the drawers closed.  My main frustration is that I can't find the unfinished embroidery of my mother's, which I planned to put on the top of this cabinet, under the glass I had made for the top. Yes, it is in that safe place. I'm trusting it will turn up.

 

The other cabinet is a replacement for an older, elegant sewing cabinet which opens by the lid sliding in two directions, meaning it needs to be placed with plenty of space on either side. I think the drawers will work better for me.        

It's been a busy and eventful week. My thoughts with friends in NSW in the line of floods yet again, and those still without power in SA. I've nearly finished my brother's vest - and planning my next project - a story for another day.

                                                       

Post 438 Satisfying but Tiring Week.

It's been a busy week one way and another.

On Wednesday the much awaited lunch actually took place! John, being the gentleman and caring friend he is, brought flowers as well as champagne.

The moussaka was excellent and the gingerbread well received. There were little bears as well as angels. I invoked the angels to make sure we did get to meet this time! 

Cathy bought me a plant, an Almanda Blue, a form of lobelia I had admired at her place. I don't have a photo, but it is on my eastern balcony in a tray of water as it needs to be kept damp. Here's hoping I can grow it into its full glory.

It was a relaxed and sustaining afternoon and lilies have opened, providing continuous interest and joy. 

My Thursday optometrist appointment brought some sobering news. The eye treatment we have been following has modified the condition but not prevented it advancing to a stage of beginning to damage my cornea, so I now have an appointment with an eye surgeon in ten day's time to see if further intervention is required.  My Pilates class was taken by Leanne, the owner, because my instructor's teenage son has Covid. Leanne is always interesting - she always varies standard routines with additional challenges very specifically focused on each individual.  

Inevitably, the wine I had succumbed to ordering from a promotional phone call arrived while I was at Pilates, so was taken to the Post Office for me to pick up. Ironically, I'd have been home to receive it if I hadn't stopped at the PO on the way home to send a letter by express post!

I also had a phone call from the agency that supplies my cleaner, to say they are branching into carpet cleaning. Since I still haven't heard back from the carpet cleaner who visited my 2 months ago, I made a booking, which was today. 

This is the first time I have lived in a carpeted home - and the first time I've had the carpets cleaned - so I could only follow instructions to prepare. I was up early this morning to move all my indoor plants, small furniture, ornaments and sundry bits on to the balconies, bathrooms or kitchen. When Matt, the carpet cleaner arrived, we moved chairs and a bit more furniture. He cleaned all my carpets - 3 bedrooms, hall and living room and the arms of my 3 seater lounge. 

After getting him settled, I went out and came back when it was dry.  It took about an hour to move everything back in but it looks fresh and clean. I now need to do this regularly.

While it was being done, I went to the State Library to meet Michael, a man who went to Teachers' College with John, my lily-bearing friend above. Michael runs a weekly program on community radio, in which he interviews people and tells their stories. He has done several hundred broadcasts. When Michael asked if he could interview John, the latter deflected him to me - arguing my Baby Boomer Teacher book would be of interest. Michael meets with his subjects 2 times to get to know them, before recording an interview. I agreed to meet him today - and ended up spending two and a half hours sharing stories. Our second meeting is next week. John will keep!

While I was on this organisational roll, I ordered a Sutton Hoo Beastmaster kit from Tanya Bentham. This is an indulgence, but I plan to talk about Sutton Hoo in my Anglo-Saxon embroidery presentation later this year, and this looks like a good example, not of Anglo-Saxon Embroidery, but of Anglo-Saxon design being repurposed to a different craft form. Left is the Sutton-Hoo original in metal work and garnet and right is Tanya's embroidery kit version.

My Guild mate Margaret Morgan finished her knitted Shetland Shawl. The size isn't discernible from the photo but it is around 90cm square. I love the work and the colour.     

I finished the horse blanket (perhaps I should call it the pretty little horses blanket!) and consulted with Margaret about washing out the solvi. Her advice was sound, nothing ran the folds came out, solvi dissolved and the blanket is clean and ready to gift. It is very hard to photograph. I will publish a bit more detail tomorrow in my embroidery blog.

I managed to add the pocket to the second of my summer dresses that I dragged out last week. It's called spot the pocket!

Yesterday the fire alarm went off in our apartments just before 2pm. I evacuated down the stairs with my handbag, meeting up with 11 other residents on the footpath as the fire brigade came within minutes, blocking the road when they could find no parking space. 

After about 15 minutes of checking, they concluded it was a malfunction caused by pressure in the water pipes in our carpark - presumably related to sprinkler systems.  

I was pleased to back inside in time to turn my oven on for Monday dinner! It is reassuring to have such prompt service.

I'm a bit late posting this. I haven't had a lot of time to pull it together today. It has been that kind of week!  

Post 412: the first of 2022

The first part of the week was hot in Adelaide - over 35C from Wednesday to Friday and 30C on the weekend. It's not unusual at this time of the year, and could be a lot worse. I don't enjoy the heat and was happy to spend most days inside with the aircon on low. 

It did make for some pleasing sunsets. 

Like much of the world, we are in the midst of an Omicron outbreak. Although the raw numbers in South Australia are not huge, 16558 active cases, 101 in hospital and 12 in ICU, this is high on a per-capita basis, and higher than at any other point in the pandemic. Testing demand has been so high that the definition of close contact has been modified and testing on arrival for interstate visitors removed.  There is considerable unease in the community. I, like most friends and family, are being ultra-cautious. Rapid antigen tests are in very short supply. I have managed to obtain a pack of 5 from Sydney which arrived today.

New Year's Eve fireworks were moved from the usual riverbank location to a smaller park with ticketed seating and controllable entrance and exit.  They are a fairly tame affair in Adelaide anyway. I was pleased with the move, because my view of the riverbank is blocked by high rise buildings, whereas  I have a view of the sky over Rymill Park, the new venue.

I enjoyed 8 minutes of fireworks at 9.30 and again at midnight. While waiting I watched the three episodes of the BBC's excellent Scotland from the Sky. It brought back memories of walking Roman roads and visiting many prehistoric sites when living in Scotland.

I discovered on Thursday that Christmas cards I had sent overseas on 30 November hadn't arrived yet, so I sent out an email version. I don't expect all my absent friends to send cards, but I love getting news from them at Christmas. Cards suit me because I love the medium of photographs with narrative and make my own.  I'm not fussy, however, about the medium in which I stay in touch with friends.  It's been lovely this week, between Christmas and New Year, to catch up with a number of friends by phone, email or social media. I've had lovely long conversations one way or another. That's hugely satisfying.

It can also be sad. Today a Christmas letter brought news of the death last year of a favourite NZ cousin of my mother's - not much older than me - who I met as a teenager. My mother (on bride's left) was at her wedding in England in 1966.

My only two excursions for the week were to family for dinner on Saturday night and to the optometrist on New Year's Eve. My eyes have improved significantly. I have now weaned myself from the steroid cream but need to continue the lubricant at least 6 times a day and the hot packs at least once. The condition, it seems, is genetic and treatment long-term. I also had the eye test for my driving licence and went straight to the Post Office, put it in a registered envelope and mailed it. I usually deliver it to a Government Service Centre but figured it wiser to trust the mail than mingle in a place where I would likely have to wait. 

One thing I accomplished at home was to organise the needle box my brother bought me at an auction. I am still looking for packets of needles in the various project bags and pouches I have but I can see how useful it will be to have a place where all the packets are together and visible.

There were about 40 packets of vintage machine needles in the box, mostly size 2 or 1, with a couple  1/2  and a 0. While I might try a couple in my machine, there are way too many for me to use in my lifetime. A dressmaking friend will find good use for them. We've agreed to meet up once there is less Covid circulating. 

In between conversations with friends and family, I've read several books, including some more research on the Celts and Anglo-Saxons for my WES workshop this year, and worked on a couple of pieces of embroidery. 

This is the next stage of the Hearts and Roses project. 

I need to complete six of these sides (left), six matching lining  pieces (right) and six inner pockets.

So far I've completed 3 sides and 3 lining pieces.

I've also worked on a mandala to cover some of the zipper holes on one of my tops. 

Mandalas make good grab and go projects and I plan to do a few more for other tops.

I've also watched the first and part of the second series of Brokenwood and, as a break, replayed the first of Ben Fogle's Scotland's Sacred Islands. which I love. When I was in my teens, I can remember a conversation about what I would be doing when I was 21. My father said, out of the blue, that if I had any sense I would be travelling in the Hebrides, the most beautiful place on earth. He didn't elaborate but it stuck with me. I didn't make it when I was 21, but when I was 25 and Jim and I worked in Scotland, I made sure we explored what we could of the Hebrides. We got to Skye, Mull, Iona, Harris, Lewis and Orkney. I haven't seen all the world, so don't know if my London-born father's assessment was accurate, but he was definitely on to something. Ben Fogle raises the concept of 'thin' places - where the 'real' and 'spiritual' worlds are close together. Or magic. I don't have a travel bucket list. The Hebrides, however, still call to me, or, as the song says are puttin' love on me.

This morning there was a crashing on the roof, signalling the return of the abseilers. They have covered my Vergola once again. This time they are painting the wall. It began too windy today to paint, but they have holes to plug. The plastic pipe seems to go into the gaps between the wall sheets. I'm hoping they will get most of their work done while I'm (hopefully) at Carrickalinga next week, assuming the Covid situation allows.

Post 300 The Eyes Have It

I spent a couple of hours this morning working on the flower using the food natural light in my bedroom chair. At least three times I thought I had finished and took a photo only to find an area where coverage wasn’t total. That’s the trouble/advantage of taking photos in good light, it shows up every flaw. 

I’m now happy with the result.

Both Black Tips and Turtle showed up for seed. Black Tips came first, had a feed then took off. Several minutes later Turtle arrived.                                                                            Did Black Tips tip him off? That’s how it appeared,

I had my optometrist appointment at 2pm. My prescription was significantly changed last year, and seems to be working well, but I had a couple of issues to discuss, most importantly, my left eye gets bloodshot and weepy after I’ve read or stitched for an hour or so. This has been happening to a greater or lesser extent since February when I saw a GP about it before I left for England. All the COVID drama rather pushed it from my mind, except that I kept using the eye wash my doctor suggested. 

As I expected, my sight is pretty much the same as last year. The left eye issue is caused by damage to the layer of fluid over the skin, basically caused by dryness. I now have three things to do - cream to apply before sleep, drops to apply first thing in the morning and four more times during the day, and a wet heat pad to apply twice a day.  I realise that this were pretty much the recommendation from my GP in February, Travel, then COVID and lockdown, drove the detail out of my mind. I now have a specific eye mask and an appointment in two weeks time to make sure I follow instructions. I’m pretty relieved to have advice and a plan and have used the drops and mask this evening.

 

I also ordered an additional pair of glasses with a graded lens set for a computer screen - plus a clip on 3x magnifier for counted thread embroidery.  This is a bit of an indulgence, especially since I chose an expensive frame. I expect, however, to be able to use these for embroidery as well as for reading and writing. I probably won’t get them until I get back from Normanville. 

I had a long conversation with my Sydney friend Pat. She’s had a cold on and off for a couple of months, and several COVID tests, all negative. It’s frustrating her. She has also urged me to have a check up with an ophthalmologist. 

As we talked the sun moved into my Western balcony and lit up the poinsettia. I haven't put up Christmas decorations this year, apart from the bunting on my Western balcony rail and my wise men, who have lived on my curtain since last year. There is also, of course, my tiny fir tree.

Unexpectedly, the postman delivered a parcel this morning that I was not expecting until next week.. four garments from Taking Shape, two day tops, one PJ top and one pair of jeans. The jeans were the unknown  but are miraculously, a perfect fit. 

I’ve been working another crochet square because it doesn’t strain my eyes. I have been gradually undoing the squares I first did, assuming US terminology was intended in the pattern. I've been waiting to see how consistent my squares now are before I undo the old ones. Also, of course, I had a vague idea I could make something else from them. Because the old squares used more cotton I could get two circles out of one old external layer, hence the two white circles.

I had lamb cutlets and salad for dinner, treating myself to eating from the bowl with the  celadon-like glaze made and given to me by my friend Robin in the Blue Mountains. Delicious.l did finish two squares without much eye strain.           

I've been keeping an eye out but so far haven't seen any either reindeer or six white boomers pulling a sleigh through the sky, but of course my eye is not the best. I think it's time I put that cream in it and took myself off to bed. There is indeed something wonderful about Christmas Eve.