Pot 591 I dared

I was up early on Wednesday, cutting out and stitching the bag for the infamous screen so I could transport it safely for our trouble-shooting session. I got the basic bag made in time to leave home at 10.50, only 10 minutes later than I’d planned. 

I had made a protective slip cover for  the screen. The slip-covered screen fitted in the bag and the bag strapped up. It didn’t have  pockets and the front flap was loose, but I could carry it securely by the handle. At Margaret’s, after a cup of coffee and delicious Italian honey dunking biscuits, we connected my Mac using the HDMI cable had I purchased for the purpose, Margaret recording each step as we performed and checked it. The first trick, as Fionn had picked up, is that the connecting HDMI cable must be the only thing using the two ports on the Mac. Navigating to the external screen then takes several steps.

We disconnected my Mac and connected Margaret’s PC laptop using the HDMI cable that came with the screen. Two navigation steps and it connected - plug and play in action! Were we surprised? Yes. Were we triumphant? You bet! We inserted my WES Group USB, selected a PowerPoint presentation and were in business! If all else fails, we know Margaret’s laptop connects quickly and works. A baseline!

That called for a celebration of Margaret’s excellent minestrone .

At home I found bias tape and a zip, ready for stitching. The next morning I began before breakfast, adding a small pocket inside for cords and instructions, and a large, zipped pocket on the outside for a laptop. As the fabric is backed with wadding I used bias tape to cover all edges. 

I also added a third clip in the middle of the flap.

By now I had to rush to Pilates. No sooner had i got home than I had a call from the Coffee machine shop, to say my machine was ready.Back out again.

The two technicians came out to talk to me. They don't really understand what happened, but had descaled it and it was working. We discussed several possibilities, none of which make sense to me (and not a lot to them). They haven't had this problem with other customers. I seem to be having trouble interpreting the symbols on the screen. They have offered to visit my home if I have another problem, to see it in situ. I'm pleased to have it back, but I'm wary. Older machines have more direct instructions. If I continue to have problems I think I'll give it away. For now, however, I'm enjoying coffee.

           

I drank a couple of cups while working for about 16 hours on my presentation on Celtic Embroidery for WES. I've postponed this several times because of the sheer volume of reading required. I was scheduled to give it in October, but Margaret, scheduled for July, has had cataract operations and can't read to prepare hers, so we've swapped.

In addition to websites, I have 18 books, and needed to read them, or substantial sections of them, to find the big story thread. 

It took most of Friday and much of Thursday night, but I found it and now have a presentation with 34 slides, on my laptop, two USBs, my iPad and in the cloud, plus a bag with 18 books and  a few embroidered examples.

 

I am now ready to try the presentation on the new screen and hopefully use it on 9 July at the Guild. Unfortunately I'll need to manage the tech on my own on the day, as the Office Manager is on leave and Margaret has a medical appointment. I've worked out a back-up plan involving my Mac, two iPads and 4 printed copies of PowerPoint handout!

To give my head and eyes a rest I have knitted three more beanies. They are relaxing to knit and don't make great demands on my eyes.

On Sunday I skipped Book Club to go to a concert at Ukaria with Katherine. This meant I was home when the postman (presumably a contractor!) delivered my latest batch of 16 ply wool - another 1.2kg. Even in the 1950s there wasn't a Sunday postal delivery!

The concert, preceeded by soup and bread, was the result of a week long workshop that brought together an Adelaide choir chosen from The Festival Statesmen, Aurora and Adelaide Chamber Singers with Nobuntu, a 4 woman aCapella group from Zimbabwe.

It was an extraordinary performance -  Nobuntu's skill energising the combined choir and audience.

The winter solstice was just after midday on Saturday. 90 minutes later I took a photo of this Kangaroo Paw about to open on my balcony.  I haven't managed to grow one here before. It's a non-traditional  mark of the shortest day of the year!

Yesterday I risked hanging out washing. Although rain was forecast, it was sunny in the morning. I was in luck. The clouds had gathered but the wind was up by the time I hung it out. I tried to capture the vigorous movement. It was (just) dry when I took it in around 5pm. The rain has now set in for several days. Again, I promised myself I’d take a photo of the cooked meal, 

but when the time came my mind was preoccupied with carving and serving. There were five of us and this 4kg roast was the smallest piece of pork available in the cut I wanted, so Fionn will have plenty of cold meat to snack on today. The girls are buried in exam preparation, so an early night.

Today would have been Jim's 78th birthday. I'm grateful to family and friends who shared photos, memories and messages on Facebook. He loved sharing his birthday.

 

After picking up new orthotics from my podiatrist  I went to Haigh's chocolate outlet to stock up. I have finally finished what I bought for Easter. 

It has been a cold, wet day, so good to be home and warm.  I settled for soup for dinner. 

I haven't unpacked the chocolate, although I can hardly say I'm saving it for a rainy day! 

Post 513 December in the Rain

There was a spectacular sunset on Wednesday night, before the clouds descended on the city (in fact, on the State) on Friday, blotting out the sun, hosting electrical storms and then floods.

Much earlier in the day, after breakfast with Panayoula,  I had a hairdressing appointment in the CBD, to which I caught the city loop bus.

As it crossed the Square, the bus was stopped at the lights, giving me an interesting view of the back of the Cook Island pine in the sunset photo.  I'm not sure what has given it a hair cut, but it looks as if the tree has a mullet!

I do hope it recovers.

My hair looked good when I left the hairdresser. No mullet in sight.  

It's much less sculpted now, but manageable! 

While monitoring the rain  I finished the third Buggieflooer Beanie from the Jamieson and Smith wool. I'm pretty pleased with the results.  As usual, detail is in my embroidery  blog.

The Yarn Trader advertised some classes in Shetland knitting in 2024, with MJ Mucklestone, and I was tempted by a one-day class in beanie design. At the same time, Morris & Sons advertised a preorder on Rowan Magazine 74 and a blanket kit by Martin Storey.  I went for the magazine and kit, and ordered MJ's books on Fair Isle and Scandinavian designs, instead of the classes.  I've got plenty to do while waiting for the Magazine to come out, and the rest will likely not arrive until after Christmas. 

The rain and thunderstorms have continued. I have spent a lot of time staunching the leak in my back window, eventually coming up with a temporary fix using flexible putty.  I realised that my leak had localised  at one end of the window, so dug out some putty strips and applied them to the spot. A second application largely stopped the leak, but some water came in at the other end in one of the torrential storms. It is, however, very much better than it was. I've washed and dried (in the drier, not on the line!) 8 towels and there are still two in place.

Sunday night's storm brought down a lot of branches and these were piled outside our carpark entrance Monday morning when I returned to the podiatrist to have new moulds taken of my feet, and ordered a new pair of orthotics. I'm pleased to have done this. A test of my current orthotics indicated a need for more tilt on the inside, so the old moulds would not have sufficed anyway.  I will take care where I store the new ones!

At Unley shopping centre there was competition for car parking so exiting a space was a challenge, with a car positioned for a full 5 minutes to take my place.  Good job I had placed a Christmas decoration on my rear vision mirror to keep me calm in such circumstances!

My reliable Barrow and Bench garden centre had sold out of red poinsettias so I settled for a pale one with red tinges, which won't go astray. They are getting more red ones later in the week, so I shall return. I could get red ones in the supermarket or greengrocer, but Barrow and Bench usually have more advanced specimens. 

On Sunday afternoon Katherine and I had a very calming couple of hours at the Adelaide Chamber Singers performance at the Cathedral. The program was too detailed to photograph as a whole. For musical friends, this is the first half of the program. The second half was a performance by the ACS, Rising Voices and Baroque Ensemble of Messe de minuit pour Noel H.9  by Marc-Antoine Charpentier (1643-1704). Just the thing for a wet Sunday in December.

Monday's moussaka went down well. I had forgotten to buy additional milk for the cheese sauce and used almond milk I had in the fridge, which was fine. Brigid was working, Football was cancelled, so the rest of us stayed dry and full.

The bats were also very active last night.

This morning my phone rang at 7.10am. I was still in bed. It was the roof repairer, due at 10am,  who had arrived to do other jobs in our building, but the access key was not in the box. He wondered if I could let him in, so he could inspect my leak and access the roof from my balcony. I hastily threw on some clothes and complied. He had a plumber and a ladder with him. He said it looked as if the leak was coming through the seal. Yes, I say, but the water is coming from the roof, not the sky. It shouldn't be running down the wall. Plumber agrees with me. Flat roofs are difficult, says the roofer. Hmm.  When he discovers I have a Vergola over my balcony he changes his mind about accessing the roof from there.  They turn down an offer of coffee and leave. Before long I hear them on the roof. Is it fixed? Who knows? I doubt it, but if the plumber is helping out, maybe. 

I  made the first of my Christmas hats in record time. I'm very pleased and am now on the second one. Details, of course, are in my embroidery blog. I had to work out the pattern for myself, helped only by a chart of the head repeat. Doing so gave me confidence, and reinforced my decision to buy books rather than enrol in the design class next year.  I'm sure I would learn from it, but I'd rather mull over a book and experiment.    

The rain continues, along with bursts of clouded sunshine and periodic electrical storms. I thought I would miss Aquafit today as the Council's huge mulching machine was blocking our carpark exit door when I tried to leave. The workers, however, were on the alert, stopped mulching and moved the cumbersome equipment to let me out. Not easy working in this environment. Unlike the Arkansas fiddler, repair workers go on, rain or shine. 

The last of my Christmas shopping arrived today, along with a free NZ fantail decoration, bamboo on acrylic. It joins a few other treasures hanging on my plants this week. I bought the pewter reindeer and dragonfly at a market at Mt Vernon the day before 9/11. 

Later in the week I will begin the bagging of gifts and a final check. Can't rely on my memory, but I haven't lost the list I made!

In the meantime, it’s time to open the panettoni and stick to my Santa knitting as the sunset shines through the NZ fantail!

Post 487 Books, birds, bookings and bounty

I spent quite a bit of time this week looking at the sky. It has rained a lot. On Thursday night I drove home from friends' place at about 9pm. It was raining and the streets were awash. One stretch of suburban road was a sheet of water from one side to the other, my tyres spraying a wall of water into the air as I made my way. Fortunately there wasn't much traffic around. Adelaide drains are not built for torrential rain. 

The rain also delivered rainbows, and a few bursts of afternoon sun.

I have largely stuck to my knitting, but ventured out on Wednesday to my periodontist, who gave me a good dental clearance, but wouldn't venture an opinion on my jaw problem. Instead he referred me to a Orofacial Pain Clinic. I rang them straight away and got the next available appointment - on 21 December! It seems there is a bit of an outbreak of jaw problems, perhaps attributable to raised levels of stress in the community resulting in jaw clenching.  My problem is manageable, and I have registered for cancellations.

On Thursday, after Pilates, I took my Hap Stretcher to a friend's place and helped her stretch a lace shawl she has just finished. It looks fabulous - and we got the hang of the stretcher. Each time will be easier.

I also visited The Yarn Trader, and bought a copy of Kate Davies' Yokes book.

The pattern I am interested in (left) doesn't have a traditional yoke but I get why it qualifies. The book also has a lot of background on the history of yoked garments in Shetland, Iceland, Greenland and Norway - all grist for a WES session later this year.  When I've finished the knitting projects I have lined up, I hope to knit this one for myself.  

                            

        

Friday was the quarterly lunch with a group of friends, this time at Fugazzi Cafe & Bar in the city. We chose the tasting menu, which turned out to be a good move. The food was really good. These were the main course plates, Ricotta Gnocchi, a pork and fennel sausage pasta, wood-grilled southern calamari with Cannellini Bean & Caper Gremolata salads and straw fries.

We took our time. I caught the city loop bus and got there and back before the late afternoon rain

It was the King's Birthday long weekend for most Australian States, including South Australia, so no school on Monday and no family dinner for me to cater for. I used the time to progress St Brigid and catch up on some reading.

I've been reading Salonika Burning  by Gail Jones, a fictional account of Macedonia in August 1917 drawing on the documented experiences of four medical volunteers, Australians Miles Franklin and Olive King, Grace Pailthorpe, an English surgeon and Stanley Spencer, a medical orderly/painter. I was drawn to read it because my maternal grandfather was posted to Salonika with the Royal Fusiliers from December 1915- May 1917. Although I am wary of fictionalised accounts of fairly recent lives, I'm very glad I read it. It is a powerful evocation of a surgeon and well-intentioned volunteers trying to make sense of a war that is destroying lives they are trying to restore.

Magpies have been active in the Square - and one has visited my balcony, perhaps foraging as winter sets in.  I've been feeding my plants and am pleased with the strong revival of the poinsettia from a few Christmases ago. It has been alive, but without red until now. Perhaps it is preparing for Christmas in July.

Today roofers were meant to be redoing the flashing on the southern wall of my back balcony, but weren't evident - perhaps put off by the wet and windy conditions. The postman delivered my latest indulgence - a  heavy (in all senses) book in preparation for a WES session later this year on cruelty-free textiles.

At the moment I am half way up the second sleeve of the St Brigid jumper. Unless something goes wrong, I should have it finished before I post next week. I'm pleased with it - and striving to finish it before our Winter solstice.

I also booked myself in to a half-day class on steeking at the Yarn Trader in August. In for a penny.....

 

Post 483 One season following another....

Monday 8pm

This week's weather has swung from heat wave - with low of 22C overnight, to storms, rain and a 20C maximum today.  I guess autumn has arrived.

Sunday 6pm

That certainly doesn't mean the end of the hot weather, but I live in hope.  Forecast 29C next weekend.

This week I managed two lunches at the Grange Hotel, couple of hours helping to block a couple of shawls for another friend, a couple of hours at the Guild Exhibition on Saturday afternoon while some JEMS helped out with visitors, a visit to Adairs to buy a 60cm pillow, a Sit'nStitch, grocery shopping, 5 books read, some knitting, some embroidery and a little crochet.

Last night I made Osso Bucco for the family dinner. That worked well. Half a bottle of wine seems to do the trick.  I wanted to try making potato cakes to go with it. Ideally these should be made and served straight away. That's fine for a couple of people, but too much of a challenge for potentially 5-7 with limited time. I've checked out recipes for oven-baking them, but none get the same effect as cooking them in a hot pan. Yesterday I got brave and experimented. I grated 10 potatoes, added 5 eggs and cooked batches of potato cakes in a hot pan before anyone arrived. I placed the hot cakes into a basket on a tray (bought, I am pleased to say, from the Innovations catalogue, of which I am controversially a fan). This I heated in the oven for half an hour before dinner. They were a success! The potato cakes on the top and the bottom of the basket retained their crispness. The layer in the centre didn't. They were eaten anyway, but the answer may to to make fewer, so there is no middle layer.

I delivered this baby cardigan on Saturday to Christine for her Welcome Baby Packs. She has requested some coloured ones, so I have started on an aqua one to match a blanket she is using a the base of another pack. 

I enjoy making these, they are being put to use, and it's good to be working in colour. The gift packs have also prompted me to revive the crocheted baby blanket I started a couple of years ago - using the same cotton yarn.

Ecru border

 I had planned to make the blanket as big as my yarn would allow (until I realised that would probably cover a sports field!). I think I have enough squares for a baby blanket, so I am now putting a consistent border around them and joining them up. With a bit of luck this can also be put to use by the Guild.                       

I tried ecru cotton to border and join them. It seemed the best I could do with the yarn I had. OK, but a bit dull. Then I remembered some white cotton yarn with pastel variegations that I had in a drawer, so dug it out and worked another sample.

This is much better.  I hate undoing work, but I think this is the solution, rather than the ecru. I have about 250 gms of the variegated cotton, which should be more than enough. So I'm on to it! 

These projects are making a dent in my 4ply cotton, but there are a good few  cardigans to go before it's gone. I'm giving myself another week or so before I move on to the Glazig embroidery. 

Finally, I'm very pleased with the second Banksia cushion I finished on Sunday. It's harmonious, comfortable, and looks good on the couch. Details, as usual, in my embroidery blog.  Along the way I also ran up another 5 gift bags from fabric I found lying around.

I'm very satisfied to have made progress on reducing some of my stash and works in progress - but I have been less successful in reducing my weight. While I've continued to restrict my sugar intake and quantities, I have put some weight back on and need to reverse that. Looks like carbs need to be eliminated - and a bit more exercise would assist.

Tomorrow WES Group is on Exhibition duty, and I am the coordinator for the day. We are short of volunteers for the day, so maybe I'll be busy enough to burn some calories!