Post 555 Birds, Blooms, Beans, Bookmarks, Bed, and Bereavement.

After last week’s post a friend from my days of employment contacted me to point out Feng shui principles of flower arranging dictate always even numbers of blooms - 1, 3, 5 never 2,4 6, not something I knew. I therefore removed one of the Waratahs, a good chance to use this elegant single stem vase. It’s an odd cultural mix, but pleasing to the eye ( mine at least). The Waratahs developed sprouts from the bracts, suggesting, apparently, they had been over-fertilised.

I did a bit of searching. As far as I could ascertain, they are best propagated from seed and can be propagated by cutting. While not frequently used, the sprouts should work for propagation, provided they don’t have to compete with the flower..

I was intrigued (and the flowers were pretty much ruined) but don’t have space here in the apartment to experiment. A phone call, and my Waratahs are now at a friend’s place where Frank, who also grew up in NSW, is having a go.

Wednesday’s WES Group meeting went really well. We looked at the work of Phoebe Anna Trequair triggered by a workshop I did in 2015 with Meredith Willett. Influence spreads a long way! This is the panel I made at that workshop. 

We also worked on a program for next year.

After the meeting I submitted, to the Guild's monthly newsletter, an article  about Lee's contribution to our group. It has been accepted and should appear next month.

While I was at the meeting, the Postie  attempted unsuccessfully to deliver the bookmarks I had ordered. I picked them up from a locker at the PO later. Once again, a box 20 times the size of the contents, which, in an envelope, would have gone easily through the letterbox. Sigh. 

One set of bookmarks, the Agave, was again, for my Pilates Studio - the photo of the Agave in full bloom 2 weeks ago. The last hurrah.

After I made my breakfast coffee on Friday, the coffee machine displayed the ‘clean me’ message. I’d been waiting for it, getting prepared, so this time didn’t rush in. I had breakfast, deliberately did a few jobs, then read the instructions again and set out to follow them. It went like clockwork. Everything happened as it should. I cleaned the coffee machine! - and had another coffee to celebrate. Pathetic, maybe, but I was hugely relieved. I can do it!  My joy, however, was shortlived. On Saturday morning the machine switched on and displayed as normal. It did not, unfortunately, deliver coffee. No messages, no warnings, just no coffee. The bean container was full, the water tank full. A grinding sound, return to ‘ready’. No coffee. Repeat several times. Same.

On with the jug, out with the plunger. First thing Monday morning I returned the machine to the shop, which, fortunately, is the licensed service agent. This morning I had a call from the technician. The coffee beans I've been using are too big! They don't make it to the grinder. Since 1985 I have been using Maragogype (or as it was then known here, Nicaraguan dark roast). It's only now that I realise it has an abnormally large bean (apparently the largest known!). As I also use two other coffee varieties with much smaller beans, this will not be too great a lifestyle change! I can only shake my head and laugh.

To keep my mind off coffee machines, a group of lorikeets arrived on the native frangipani and made a racket. Two stayed behind to feed when the others got bored, so I grabbed the camera.

Below, play spot the bird. 

Late on Friday I received a message that my friend Lorraine had died on Thursday night, her struggle with pancreatic cancer over. 

I am sad,  remembering the meals we shared, her enthusiasm for dressing up, and the mysteries she kept to herself. I am also glad her suffering is over. It is likely to be 12-14 days before her funeral.

Several years ago, Lorraine gave me a cactus garden in a shallow terracotta bowl. Over time one plant came to dominate and a couple died. I noticed while tending my plants this week that the weight of the dominant plant had pulled it right out of the bowl (left), so I have replanted it in a much larger pot. The shallow bowl is waiting, with a few other empty pots, for me to  spend a few hours replanting. Maybe a tiny memorial.

Throughout the week, a male blackbird has been visiting my balcony, flying in silently, often behind my back while I am hanging out washing, sitting in the same spot on my wall garden, and, except once, flying away as soon as I turn around. On the exception, I turned from hanging out washing, to see him watching me. I quietly greeted him and asked him not to chase away the other birds. I’ve glimpsed his arrival through my window, but he flies away immediately- seeming to sense I am watching. I don’t recall seeing him before. My mother,  would certainly, I reflected,  have said it was bringing me news of a death.

On Monday he once again flew away as I tried to take a photograph. This time, however, the camera clicked, revealing a female amongst the plants.   My mother, once again, would have rolled her eyes and said 'For an intelligent child, you can  be very stupid at times'. 

Yes. a pair of blackbirds seem to have made a nest on my eastern balcony. I can't get high enough, without a ladder, to look inside.  I panicked a bit, read all I could about blackbirds nesting on  balconies in Adelaide (not a lot) and followed one suggestion of hanging some aluminium foil strips to put them off. I felt a bit mean, and it didn't work. They may or may not have eggs according to local bird advice.

My inclination now is to leave them alone. I might regret it, but so far the male has not been aggressive towards me. This afternoon they appeared to fight over who was to sit on the nest. At sunset tonight the female was quietly bunkered well down in the nest. *

Installing a webcam is beyond my technical ability. Hopefully in 4 weeks time they will leave and I can either spread some netting over the wall garden, or instal a deterrent WhirlyBird. I don't want to become a permanent nesting site but can probably put up with one clutch.

When I delivered the Waratahs to my friends to experiment with, they gave me a bunch of their beautiful roses for my dining table that evening. They look, and smell, divine.

Niamh not only helped me extend the table, but to move the dining table and chairs off the rug, and turn the rug around, so the trip-risky creased corner of the rug is now safely where it gets no traffic. It's been troubling me (and my cleaner!) for some time. With the table extended the flowers AND the food fitted!

Today  I have been to a Retired Secondary Principals' lunch, half an hour's drive into the foothills. I haven''t been for a couple of years. It was pleasant to catch up with some of the 15 who were there and, after a lunch of grilled fish and chips,  hear about some research into school leadership. On my return I had a phone call to say my new bed is ready. Delivery (the scary bit) sometime next week.

It's been quite a week! 

I progressed the second left-over-wool shawl a bit, and started work on the lovely Chaffinch kit. 

It's a joy to work on. I won't be posting any detail in my embroidery blog, as it would breach copyright. It's interesting, varied stitching - and lovely to look at. Great to be working Crewel again.

Above is Sunday's sunset, left is tonight's moonrise.

The rhythm, and beauty, of life. 

Carpe diem.

Post 554 Spring, a long weekend and daylight saving.

You know Spring is here when Waratahs appear in the florist. These had been picked on Friday morning, in the Adelaide Hills, a few hours before I bought them. They are not native to South Australia, but I am, after all, a native of NSW! 

Apart from people, I don't miss much from my first 24 years in Sydney - Southerly Busters, humidity and flowers native to the Sydney region - flannel flowers, Christmas bush, Christmas Bells and Waratahs, none of which are commonly seen in Adelaide. I still love them and if I see them for sale, I buy them. My English migrant parents and grandparents cherished them, gathered them and tried to grow them. Uplifting.

In front of our apartments, and at the Pilates Studio, the wild irises are at their best.  Gentler than the Waratahs, they are nevertheless intricate and cheerful.

The Agave has finished flowering at Pilates. I took a final photo. I can’t resist the shape, perfect for a bookmark, so accordingly ordered another set. Hopefully my Pilates classmates will find a use for them. Again.

I had a quiet day as desk hostess at the Embroiderers' Guild on Wednesday. The computer tech was there setting up the new admin computer with our office manager while a couple of the Museum team were doing a handover on the Museum database. When left in charge I failed once again to answer the phone! It’s a tricky handset, and doesn’t respond to my button pressing. I progressed my knitting and wrote a tribute to Lee for discussion with WES group next week.  

The Bottlebrush- which IS native to South Australia, is on display everywhere, including in the Guild garden.

I saw my GP on Friday, getting the results of last week’s blood test. I’m pretty happy. My kidney is in good condition and my weight very slowly coming down.  My blood sugar is lower than last time but ideally should be a little lower.  We’ve agreed our current regime is working so should continue. I’ve made an appointment in about 4 months time. I like this new GP.  He listens, checks records, explains his thinking and provides data. It feels like a conversation and a joint effort.

Afterwards, having completed and tidied up all last week's work on passwords, I took a sealed package to my solicitor to add to the deed package before shopping for the long weekend and buying the Waratahs. 

I also took more jewellery to Pink Carat for repair. An 80cm long gemstone necklace given to me by a work colleague some 15 years ago had broken. I often wear it.  The central stone is heavy and had worn through the wire. We decided to make up the necklace without it. Can I find a use for a 3.5cm stone? Clasp on a bag?  (It's much more brown than the photo indicates.)

I also took the glittery clip-on earrings to see if they could be converted. Removing the clips on the back was not possible but I convinced them to add hooks through the little picots on the edge. They hang nicely, clips hidden behind. I often wear the matching brooch so now I can be truly glam! The amber pair were originally hanging from smaller amber beads on posts. One had detached and was lost. I prefer hooks anyway so got them to simply hang the teardrops from silver hooks. I also took advice on cleaning the sterling silver brooch.   This result was just using a silver cleaning cloth.

This morning I dug out both the ultrasonic cleaners I own.and experimented using the tips provided by Pink Carat. The tank on the older white one is larger, so I tried a silver pin tray in it. In the green one I placed 3 pieces of trench art, a coin medallion, a ring and a WWI medallion on a chain.

After several sessions all came up reasonably clean and shiny. The ring is made from a 1947 coin from India, the chain holds a regimental medallion engraved Div 5 1920-21. Once the pin tray was clean (relatively) I was able to see a hallmark, and out of curiosity, looked it up. I have never done this before, and had to dig around for a bit to find it. However, I am now confident the tray was made by William Aiken, silversmith of Vyse St., Birmingham in 1904! It seems amazing to have been able to discover that.

I experimented with a couple of vases for the Waratahs before settling on the one above. The dark vase looks good here, but was a bit heavy and dominant. 

It was the Labour Day long weekend and the commencement of daylight saving. As forecast, there was some rain on Saturday. The dripping noise came back. As promised, I notified the tradie who came last week, who, as I expected, did not come. He did ask if water was leaking into the apartment (it's not). It seems that other apartments also have leaks, and the Strata Committee is taking it up with our management company, so I'm happy. A problem shared....  Fortunately, contrary to the forecast, the rest of the weekend was rain-free.

As three books I had ordered on Libby were suddenly available to me, I spent much of the long weekend reading. In the Blink of an Eye was an interesting fictional projection of the use of AI in policing. My review, for anyone interested, is on Goodreads.   The Ledge by Christian White, as I realised too late,  is a thriller (with echoes of Lord of the Flies). I don’t much like thrillers. 

The treescape behind my apartment has changed with recent pruning and rainfall. I have a better view of what turns out to be a Callery Pear (left). 

I can’t remember seeing the golden leafed tree (right) bloom, but it is now beginning to do so, declaring itself, I think, a jacaranda alba. The next month or so should confirm or disprove this theory. Either way, it’s a lovely outlook.

I finished and blocked the Uradale shawl over the weekend. Details in my embroidery blog. I'm pleased to say spreading it in the sun yesterday has removed the sheep smell, and the woolwash has made it wonderfully soft. (The red is from the geraniums below the shawl!)

I have begun the next shawl based on a Dathan Hap pattern in Kate Davies' Knitting Season book.  The pattern is simple and interesting, increasing at the centre as well as the edges in a four row sequence, a lovely encircling shape with plenty of scope to vary colour.  

It will use up a lot of the Rowan wool left from the coatigan and blanket. It's fun to knit and nice to try something other than an expanding triangle.

I've also worked another small section of my sashiko square, and prepared two pieces of Huckaback for the hand-towel pattern in The Handpicked Collection 3. It's been a long time since I did Huck weaving, So I had a quick try. It is marvellously relaxing and effective.

I confess that this morning I dashed out to Create in Stitch  and bought the Chaffinch  kit advertised in their weekend newsletter. A Chaffinch, I know, is not a Bluebird, but it is a blue bird,  and I'm partial. I also know what I am going to do with this when finished.

I seem to have achieved (and committed to!) a lot this week. It is a product of spending much of it on my own over a long weekend with family away and few outside commitments. I have had trouble remembering what day it is. Tomorrow, however, is WES Group, and I need to make a presentation. Better check that over and head to bed.