A little work has taken place in the sewing room

The other day some tracing preparation for the Canadian mystery quilt from a couple of years ago was done.  No stitches yet, but that's getting closer......I can feel it......just trying to work up oomph for that foundation pieced cat face and embroidered features.......I only make these blocks for charity quilts because I am a nice person, you know, even though there is sometimes a distinct lack of enthusiasm.

Sigh.

Some good news on the pedal extremity front: my foot seems to be improving slowly although it still doesn't like too-long walks.  Our downtown area isn't huge but yesterday's walk from a favourite café to a jeweller then back to the car via the pharmacy was deemed a bit too much by The Foot, so I let it rest for the afternoon and evening.  Best of all, though, is the hip which has been plaguing me for so long has finally stopped hurting!  Yesss!!

It's so wonderful not to have that continuous throbbing ache.  I have become a much happier woman as a result.

Goodness, I don't want to become like my mother with an obsession about my body.  You never said "how are you" to her, because she would tell you in full detail.....she never quite grasped the concept that a greeting is not necessarily a question.  Aussies have ambiguous greetings, there's "how are you" and "how are you going" which mean the same thing - "Hello".  It doesn't mean I want full disclosure about your innards, and it doesn't mean I am inquiring about your chosen mode of transport.

Just realised that we have no photo!  Let's see what can be found.

Early fall in Toronto.  There was a bench in front of these flowers, a welcome place to sit on a hot day.

 This was a gorgeous tree - the photo doesn't do it justice.  We spent a few days in Midland, and each time we used the parking lot behind the shops I drooled over this tree across the road.

 Love the golds......have no idea what the trees are.

 Not what you are thinking!  Cones - pine cones? cedar cones? - which have fallen from trees.  Vancouver Island is the land of Tall Straight Trees.

If not for the cold winters I could live in Canada......and the hot humid summers.....spring is probably nice, and autumn is glorious.  Let's not forget butter tarts.....

Nowhere in the world seems to have an ideal climate, does it?

"Less formal invitations.
Invitations of a less formal character are sent for charades, private theatricals, and for archery, croquet, sailing and garden parties; but, however informal the invitation (except only when a visiting card is used), on no account neglect to give immediate attention to it, by sending a reply, for any want of courtesy in this respect is unpardonable."

How long has it been since you were invited to archery or croquet?  Or to a garden party?  My social life is sadly lacking, it seems.

Enjoy your days!

Winter time

Yes, I know to some of you our winter is very mild compared to yours, but it can still be quite chilly.  Let's just say I'm glad I am not trotting around outside with bare feet and shorty shorts and leave it at that, shall we?  Cauliflower and bacon soup is simmering away in the slow cooker as we speak, and Bianca is sunning herself in front of the fire.

Elderly kitties do like their comfort.

This was taken several years ago, an hour from here.....hooo boy, that was cold.  Snow is forecast up there for the next day or two.

I think I shall take a leaf from Bianca's book and stay inside with the sun pouring through the large back windows, by the fire.

Not much of note has happened this week.  My foot is most unhappy if I ask it to do what it considers to be too much, as happened on Friday, so it is being rested.  And rested.  And rested some more......eventually it will be completely happy again.  At least the painful hip is slowly improving, so one out of two is better than none.

Meanwhile the sewing room is calling, two blocks are waiting to be made.  One is the BOM for the Tuesday group (a foundation pieced cat face), the other will be for when it's my turn for the Tuesday group in September.  I found instructions for a nice easy block with no triangles, which should make the triangle-challenged among us happy; my idea is to use autumn prints and colours.  The foot can have a couple more days of not being asked to do much, then it should be able to stand while a few fabric pieces are cut.  At least the foundation pieced cat face is several steps up from fiddly-diddly cutesy-poo applique, and embroidery for the facial features can be done by machine.

The discussion about names over the past couple of weeks has been interesting.  While volunteering at a local gallery this week I was chatting to a young teacher who works at a small out-of-town rural school, and the conversation turned to names - as it often does among those of us who spent some of our working life in schools.  We both agreed that there are certain children who leave such an impression that it puts one off that name for life.  'Troy', for instance......it was over 30 years ago, but I remember he was quite a piece of work.....for my young friend, it is 'Amelia'.  If she ever has to choose names for a child of her own I suspect 'Amelia' will be way off the bottom of her list.  Funny - this year two friends in different parts of the world have both become first-time grandparents to 'Amelia', so the name will be in classrooms for a while yet!

The last section from "Naming the child".

"The plan of reviving the old Saxon names has been adopted by some, and it has been claimed that the names of Edgar, Edwin, Arthur, Alfred, Ethel, Maud, Edith, Theresa, and many others of the Saxon names are pleasant sounding and strong, and a desirable contrast to the Fannies, Mamies, Minnies, Lizzies, Sadies and other petty diminutives which have taken the place of better sounding and stronger names."

This book was published in 1882, and my maternal grandmother Edith was born in 1887.  She had a sister Ethel and brother Alfred (both of whom died as children), as well as sisters Emily and Laura, and brother Percy......all of which would probably be approved by the writer of this chapter.  I thought the custom of giving a child a shortened form of a name was a modern trend - Kate instead of Catherine/Kathleen, Zac instead of Zachary -  but it seems not to be.

I wonder why so many parents name their child after a state in the U.S.A. when they don't live there. I also wonder why they feel the need to get creative with the spelling of the child's name, thereby condemning said child to a lifetime of having to spell out their name.

Enjoy your days!

Free at last!

The dreaded boot is off......gone......removed, and how good it is.  Even the pain in my hip is settling down now that my world is level again.

On Wednesday afternoon the doctor said my fractured foot is not ~quite~ healed, but is well on the way to being so.  You can leave the boot off, he said, but make sure you wear supportive shoes, it will be healed by summer, he said, and you can wear sandals then.  I could have kissed him, but feared that if I did he might mistake it for affection when it was only relief.

However since then I haven't run any marathons or danced any polkas, taking it easy has been the order of the day despite having a uke gig yesterday morning.  I prefer to play standing up and did so, but sat down each time we took a break.

Now to decide which sewing project to tackle first; it doesn't matter which one is chosen, fabric will still need to be cut.

While that is mulled over, here are some of the pretties that don't grow here - these were taken on one of our trips over to the coast.  I don't know the name of this, but it's pink and fluffy.  That should narrow it down, for the botanists among you.

 This is interesting, I bet the bees love it.

 Gorgeous foliage......the new growth on many Aussie plants is a pinky-bronze colour which is beautiful in spring.

It almost (but not quite!) makes up for our lack of glorious fall colours.

A month ago I wrote about the block which would be handed out at my quilt group meeting for members to make if they wished, and a few have already been handed in to me.  Well......what can I say.  Some are well made, others are not; one is way too small (the 1/4in seam allowances are very creative) and I suspect, in fact I know, that this particular member never bothers to press as she goes along.  A quick touch of the iron when it's together and she calls it finished.  Another one has pieces of sun block curtain fabric in with the quilt cottons.  Somehow I suspect those less-than-wonderful blocks may end up at the bottom of the "completely last resort" pile, that's if they are even used at all.

Ah well.  Onward and upward.  Perhaps I will just make for myself and not worry about anything else.

The other day I pulled a couple of large pieces of fabrics from my stash, and decided that it's time they had their day in the sun.  One is a repro from......oh, it would have to be the mid 1990s; it was bought to make a dress but not used for that, it will be useful for a border.  The other is daffodils, yellow, gold and white, probably from the same era.  It is yellow.  Very very yellow.  Just as well I like yellow, nearly as much as green......it, too, will become a border.  There is a lot of yellow in my stash, a friend recently invited me to join an online stitch along, so ideas are starting to percolate in my brain. 

Continuing on from last week's thoughts on names:

"With some it is customary to name children after some renowned person, either living or dead.  There are objections to this plan, however, for if the person be still living, he may commit some act which will bring opprobrium to his name, and so cause both the parent and child to be ashamed of bearing such a disgraced name.  If the person after whom the child is named be dead, it may be that the child's character may be so entirely different from the person who bore it, that the name shall be made a reproach or satire."

Well, yes.

My paternal grandmother's first names were Florence Gordon (her father was Scottish), but one of her brothers was named "Australia".  That's right.  Australia.  He was born in the 1880s when Australia was heading towards Federation, and patriotism was strong; he wasn't the only child given that name.  A friend from years ago told me she had an Uncle Ozzie, the family assumed it was short for Oswald - but no, his name was also "Australia".

Makes "Jennifer Grace" quite ordinary by comparison, doesn't it.

Enjoy your days!