Post624 Triumph of small and friendly

This week’s highlight would have to be Sunday’s 80th birthday celebration for our Book Club convenor - a 90 minute high tea cruise along the Torrens, the river on which Adelaide is built. For 50 years, Popeye boats have taken visitors on tours, between the Zoo and the weir that ensures there is water in the river. I’m not sure how long the high teas have been available but it was a great experience. It’s at least 20 years since I was on Popeye, and I’d forgotten how interesting and peaceful the river is. 

I couldn’t think of a better way to relax with friends, celebrate longevity and appreciate our city. 

There was plenty of food, and refills of coffee, but the joy was really in the conversation, the smooth ride and calm of the environment.

The skipper told jokes about falling in, and one person admitted to not being able to swim. I felt somewhat smug, as I had finally got back into a swimming routine (but not in the river!). 

I haven’t been in a swimming pool  in the nearly two years since I had Covid. Before that I had been doing Aquarobics at the small Unley State Swim pool once a week. After the break I decided I was over travelling home wet in the middle of the day or queuing for a shower. The much larger Adelaide Aquatic Centre, of which I’ve been a member in the past, has been closed, demolished and rebuilt in that time. I  have been waiting for the reopening to set up a new routine. It reopened at the end of January and I scoured the new website for subscription details. While the charges were clear, the services were opaque. There appeared to be a lot of pools open for lap swimming throughout the day and a number of different classes, but finding a timetable defeated me. I emailed a query. 

That was a week ago and I still don’t have an answer. I discussed it with Panayoula last week, and on Wednesday took myself back to Unley State Swim, not for the 11am class but, for the afternoon lap swimming. So far this has proved  a good choice. Lap swimming suits me, I’ve had friendly, helpful service, a lane to myself, no wait for a shower, and security for my bag. I have swum laps for half an hour three times and worked out a schedule to swim at least once a week. I enjoy being in the water and feel invigorated (and a little tired). I’ve also been reminded of muscles I’d forgotten I had.

The bag is finished. Details in my embroidery blog. 

I’ve also progressed the shrug, discovering I had misread the pattern. I’ve adapted for the error and am now back on track.  It's stretchier than it looks here!

The Yarn Trader has come up with an ingenious concept, a Chapter and Yarn Book Club.  It will meet once a month to discuss a book while knitting. The first meeting is early in April and the book chosen is The Full Moon Coffee Shop. The really interesting bit is that Hannah, from Circus Tonic Handmade is creating yarn inspired by the book to go along with the discussion.

It’s hardly my kind of book, and I don’t want to attend a meeting, but I’ve ordered the Shindig Donegal Tweed set of yarn and bought the book. When I have read it, and I pick up the yarn, I will knit a shawl. I’m sure it will make a great gift - and I really want to see how the club concept plays out over time,

Hopefully the delay in creating the yarn will give me the chance to use the two skeins I received for my birthday before it arrives.

Post 605 Slow but Steady Progress

After the busyness of my last post, it was a treat on Wednesday to take the city loop bus around to Elder Hall, next to the Art Gallery,  for an Adelaide Symphony Orchestra Matinee Concert. 

I was drawn by the Fantasia on a Theme by Thomas Tallis, but enjoyed the whole program. It was fabulous. 

I breathed a bit easier as the sun went down on Wednesday. 

It was back to business on Thursday. The B&O technician arrived about 10.15am on to assess my TV. While there is work that could be done to retune, even I, the great repair advocate, think it is time to move to a proper Smart TV. We discussed B&O options. My initial thinking was to move to a model that sits on a cabinet, rather than my current floor stand. 

When the technician left I moved furniture and rugs around to measure for cabinet possibilities, before rushing to Pilates. By the time I returned, the technician had sent two options, one with an integrated sound bar, one with it separate.

Also in my inbox was a draft of my Income Tax return, ready for me to read, check and amend or sign. I gave priority to tax, which took some time. It’s the first time I have done it online. Pleased with my success, I then spent some more time shifting furniture and measuring, before replying to a email from a friend wanting me to check his memory of a meeting I chaired in 1967, before he submits a motion to Synod! Fortunately, I had stopped at Queen St Cafe for a late lunch, so didn’t need to cook dinner. 

By the time I went to bed, having played with TV measurements, I was changing my mind about a cabinet. I slept on it.

In the morning I graphed them up and settled on a floor stand. No matter how I configured it, a cabinet model blocked part of the painting, even when the cabinet is only 18” high. I could move the painting, but I don’t want the screen to dominate the room. On a floor stand the replacement will be about 3”higher and 3” wider than the current one. I can live with that. Maybe a cabinet to fit behind it?

The hardest part of living alone is having no one on hand with whom to talk over these decisions. They are normal, inevitable decisions well within my capacity, but the benefit of a sounding board in immeasurable.

In the course of finding a ruler to graph the space, I found the missing Swift! As I had begun to suspect when the new one arrived, I had been looking for the wrong shape box. It was in plain sight. It is possible, of course, that the elves have been at work. Whatever the explanation, I now have two. Unfortunately I can't manage to wind two balls at once, so I now have one to lend out.

On Friday morning  my copy of the newly released Richard Osman Thursday Murder Club Book 4, was ready to be picked up in store and two parcels arrived, the completely indulgent Ehreman tapestry around 10, and the environmentally-friendly Leprosy Mission Christmas bonbons around 11. 

Once they were stowed I headed west to the Brickworks to pick up the book, then back across town to B&O to discuss the TV.  I have ordered the 48” floor standing version.  An installer will visit tomorrow to inspect and confirm an installation cost. I’ve paid a deposit. While there are cheaper options, this one hopefully gives me peace of mind. That evening the quote for my network backup came through from Sean the Geek (my spelling amended now I have it on paper!) and I’ve accepted that too. I'm still waiting to hear from Will about a panel to cover the exhaust box. I fear he is not interested. And the coffee machine techie hasn't been. I continue to use the machine.

After so many big decisions and transactions in a few days, things went quiet on the weekend. Saturday was the AFL grand final, followed by the girls’ 18th birthday party. I don’t follow football and 18th birthday parties do not need to accommodate 78 year old grandmothers privileged to celebrate on the actual day, so I had a quiet time at home reading Richard Osman, readjusting furniture and knitting. It's also school holidays, so no Monday dinner. Several days, therefore, on my own for stitching, reading, gardening - and losing track of which day it is. 

Since I indulged in another tapestry kit, I needed to get on with the one barely started  on my Lowery stand. I've now worked a section.

I've also knitted 65cm of the back of my cardigan,  finishing two balls of the yarn. The two extra balls arrived yesterday, neatly wound by the shop, bringing my number to 9. The yarn is going further than I anticipated. I'm now planning on 80cm length. For that I will need at least 8 balls. As knitters know, there is always a risk of too much or not enough. I don't want left-over yarn, but not enough is worse. I might be able to add pockets. And yes, there is a discernable colour difference between the two balls even though they are all from the same (I suspect only) dye lot. Part of the interest and charm.

Today the beaded silk/wool yarn I ordered from WA arrived. Here it is with  silk I wound last week and the pattern I found for it. I think it's going to work really well. The  top and bottom edges are worked in the beaded yarn with plain in the middle. First I need to finish my cardigan!

I dropped a couple of things today at the Guild where the bottlebrush is in full bloom. I still love the unfurling stamen.

I finished  Julia Baird's Bright Shining. The first quarter aided my thinking. The rest I found repetitive without adding much understanding. Richard Osman's The Impossible Fortune was a lot of fun, though with rather too many strands and characters to keep track of - a risk with series as they progress - a bit like life.