Post 418 Mostly Sky.

Much of my attention this week has focused on the sky.  It began with my attempts to capture the bats as they come at twilight to feed in the large Morton Bay fig tree in the Square. Left is the best so far.

I have also taken time most days to  enjoy the view from my living area as the sun is going down. 

It has mostly been temperate enough to have the doors open , so I can catch the breeze and sounds of the birds returning to roost - an hour or so before the bats. Another photographic challenge! This group looked like geese or cranes.

Coincidentally, there have been some lovely skies - too good not to photograph.

The Scots, I think, are right to use  'gloaming' rather than 'twilight'. It still captures the idea of 'glow' that was in its Old English root word 'glōwan'. 

I've found this time of day relaxed and peaceful this week, a time for reflection and thankfulness. 

While I've been focused on the sky, I have neglected taking photos of activities. At our Friday Sit'nStitch Barbara blocked her shawl on Susan's design wall, but I didn't photograph it. It looked good but wasn't completely dry when we left. 

Sunday was Anthony's birthday and on Saturday we went to the River Cafe for a birthday lunch . It was a lovely meal and a fun gathering in a beautiful setting, but I forgot to take photos. Monday was the first family dinner of the year at my place. It was a privilege to hear first hand impressions of the first day of face to face learning for 2022.   I made an impressive pastitsio in filo, and had every intention of photographing the table but again, forgot at the critical time. Multitasking seems to be eluding me.

The plants I bought last week are looking splendid on the back balcony, as long as I keep the water up. They droop very quickly if I forget, but reward my attention with harmony and cheer each morning.

What's more, it isn't only the evening sky which attracted my attention this week. This was taken at 8.45am on Monday, looking East.

The sky, however, has not got in the way reading and stitching. The first of the Bush Sentinelle cushions is finished. I have recorded the detail in my embroidery blog.  

I have now begun the second Bush Sentinelle, alternating with continuing the Authorised Version of the Mosaic Carpet Bag. 

It looks a lot  more compact than the first version. It will be interesting to see how it comes together in construction when finished.  

I am being very cautious. I know people with Covid or who are close contacts. My doctor's appointment today was  rescheduled as a phone call and postponed for a couple of weeks so I can get blood tests done. I saw the podiatrist and picked up some printing from Officeworks. I'm still treating my eye about 8 times a day.  Two positive milestones: my weight loss hit 21 kg today; and  I now have enough resources to put together something about the long history of Goddess Embroidery for the WES Group. Better knuckle down and do it!

Post 417 A pouch, plants and stitching progress

It's been another quiet week. I like quiet weeks. The most excitement was that Shafaq and Ali arrived back in Australia safely after their flying trip to Pakistan to visit Ali's terminally ill father. They have tested negative to Covid twice since arriving back a week ago. They bought me two of these phone pouches.  I am delighted to know their family is safe and well, and delighted to have the pouches. I spent some time earlier in the week looking for a similar one amongst my bag collection. I thought I had one somewhere and couldn't find it. I had put on a loose summer dress with no pockets, and needed a way of keeping my phone on my person. 

Voilà!

After Pilates on Thursday I called at Bunnings and  bought some more plants for the empty planter boxes on the Eastern balcony. 

I haven't as yet replaced the seed container that blew away in the winds last month.  

One of the doves has resorted to extracting seed from the portulaca.  

I don't think the new plants will help out on that front!

The other bit of good news is that my Vergola is once again operating. The abseilers have gone, taking their coverings with them. The new plants don't show up very clearly - but the idea is blend into the landscape.

I've continued attempting to capture a photo of the bats in flight as dusk. This is the best result so far. 

I've done a bit of checking as well. These Adelaide bats are the biggest in the world, with a wing span of 1metre. They roost during the day at the Botanic Gardens, and feed at night in the Morton Bay Fig tree in our Square. 

Barbara joined us stitching on Friday. We were all knitting. That's a little unusual in the height of an Australian summer, but somehow we've all landed here. 

Susan helped me work out what I should have been doing with the Mosaic bag. I think we've got it sussed.  I have written the story of the bag to date in my embroidery blog  In summary, this is the completed adapted bag. I am now working it as it should have been worked. 

It turns out to be very easy to knit when you know how!

I have not, however, abandoned embroidery.  I've been working on creating some large embroidered cushions using the Bush Sentinels, created by  Dijanne Cevaal during the 2020 bushfires. I am writing more about these in my embroidery blog, since there's a lot to work out, but in the meantime, these are the fabrics, which arrived this week.

I've been on a bit of a roll in the last few days and have  progressed one figure. 

I also finished reading a pre-publication copy of The Way From Here  by Jane Cockram, to review for NetGalley. In spite of it switching back and forth between several time-frames, a technique that I don't much like, I was very moved by and engaged with it. It unravels the secrets of women across three generations. The woman of the oldest generation is Nellie. Part of my engagement came from the fact that I am trying to tell the story of my maternal grandmother, also Nellie, and struggling in the process with her family secrets, some of which she knew and tried to share obliquely with me, some of which belonged to earlier generations and were probably not known to, but undoubtedly impacted, her. Jane Cockram has done an extraordinary job  of creating a world in which many women's experience and secrets are made manifest. My goal is much simpler - to tell what I know of my grandmother. It has helped me immeasurably on many fronts to have read this book.

This time two years ago I was preparing to travel to Stratford for the retreat that initiated this blog. An email this morning from Genevieve indicates I am not the only one missing the gathering of those friends. While we can't gather, I am so grateful for and enriched by the ongoing friendships.