Tomorrow is the winter solstice

But I can promise I won't be dancing naked around a bonfire at midnight to welcome the gradual warming and lengthening of days.....it's too cold. There are some things for which the world is not yet ready.

Of course in the northern hemisphere it's summer solstice, so to my overseas family and friends - have a good one.

Some lovely autumn brightness in a park in Bathurst, in late April - aren't the colours scrumptious?

Tomorrow I am off to the Big Smoke, and when I return I will report on the quilt show which is one of the reasons for the visit. Last weekend a member of my quilt group was telling me about the horror trip she and her husband endured the previous weekend when returning home. Because of track work the trains were not running the full distance from the Big Smoke to here, so they had to travel by bus for the first few hours.....on the motorway with heavy traffic and large trucks whizzing by.......in pouring rain. The windscreen wipers were working so hard that they fell off. When they finally managed to board the train, having been several hours without food or drink, they were told the train staff would not begin serving food until it left the station - which didn't happen for another hour. There were apparently more details she didn't tell me, as she is a kind woman and wanted to spare me any anxiety.

However I have checked the website, there is no track work scheduled, and my trips both to and from the Big Smoke should (hopefully) proceed without any similar incidents.

"A lady obliged to travel alone.

A lady, in travelling alone, may accept services from her fellow-travellers, which she should always acknowledge graciously. Indeed, it is the business of a gentleman to see that the wants of an unescorted lady are attended to. He should offer to raise or lower her window if she seems to have any difficulty in doing it herself. He may offer his assistance in carrying her packages upon leaving the car, or in engaging a carriage or obtaining a trunk. Still, women should learn to be as self-reliant as possible; and younger women particularly should accept proffered assistance from strangers, in all but the slightest offices, very rarely."

Of course I shall endeavour to be as self-reliant as I can......and should a gentleman, or any person of the male persuasion, offer to help with my packages.......I shall keep a close eye on him. Can't be too careful these days, can we?

Enjoy your days!