Wherever you are, and whatever you celebrate.....

....even if you don't celebrate anything at all.....best wishes for a season full of love and peace, and good health in the coming year.

And music.  Lots of music.

And, of course, chocolate, preferably good quality dark chocolate.

Enjoy your days!

As we march ever closer to the Big Day....

A small amount of decorating has been done, as you can see if you come to our front door.

Welcome - do come in!

Flossie the Angel is guarding the wombats; some of the wombats were gifts and some were bought by me.

Or.....perhaps the wombats are guarding Flossie?  Who knows?

The Canadian tree, once again some gifts and some purchases, but all come from Canada.  The tiny green lights are little pine trees, appropriate considering how many of them we have seen growing in Canada.

That's pretty much it for this year, folks.

We have bought a seasoned turkey roll so we can feel a bit festive, it will be cooked on Christmas Eve (if I am organised enough) or Christmas Day (if I'm not).  The turkey farm just outside town has a shop; it's been a local hangout for years but we hadn't been before, so yesterday we harnessed up the trusty steed and out we went.  Anything turkey - you name it!  We also bought some turkey sausages to try.

Now I think I have said that I never make new year resolutions, but I do have Hopes.  Some of the current Hopes are gifts from a friend in Canada that I plan to make; since making my tree hanging and my Canadian quilt I have lost my fear of fusible applique, so it's time these were done.

First will be the musical piece on the bottom right; the fabrics are mostly from the Grunge range in muted browns and greys, appropriate considering that guitars and ukuleles are mostly made from wood.

It may go on the wall, or it may become a table centre.....yet to be decided.

Some (many!) notes have been plinked, some diamonds joined although more need to be cut, not one stitch knitted.  Words have been read.  Rehearsals have happened.  The usual hunting and gathering took place, and so another week has passed.

The ukulele group played its last gig for the year last night at a small village not far out of town, and considering that it was pretty much thrown together with not a lot of organising it went off well.  The folk who ran it were lovely and they want us back next year; we sang our funny and happy Christmas songs, a choir sang a few songs, and there was a pianist leading everyone in the carol singing.  

Seasonal music is taking over the air waves, as they say, and we are being regaled with the usual December selection.  While I don't mind most of the traditional carols - indeed, I grew up singing them - I do draw the line at songs which are about winter but not about Christmas. Songs such as 'Let it snow'......'Winter wonderland'.....'even 'Jingle bells' was not written as a Christmas song, you know.  Our Christmas is in summer and it can be very hot, so we don't need songs about nostalgic winter Christmases in our December playlists.  Many Christmas songs are too sentimental and mawkish for my taste, anyway;  I don't put my foot down very often with the ukulele group, but under no circumstances whatsoever will I ever sing 'I saw mommy kissing Santa Claus' - I can't stand that song, grumpy Olde Pharte though I may be.

Some recent visitors to my blog have come up as "no-reply bloggers", meaning I can't reply to your welcome comments....if this is you, you might want to change your settings so I (and other bloggers) can reply.

 Continuing on with Etiquette of the Street:

"Bowing to strangers with friends.

If a gentleman meets a friend, and the latter has a stranger with him, all three should bow.  If the gentleman stops his friends to speak to him, he should apologize to the stranger for detaining him.  If the stranger is a lady, the same deference should be shown as if she were an acquaintance."

Indeed.  One should always be polite.  Politeness costs nothing, and leaves a lasting impression.

Enjoy your days!

Moving back into the neighbourhood

The big box which until recently held all the requirements for my Canadian quilt now has a new project - the house blocks have moved in.

'There goes the neighbourhood' is back!

Earlier in the week I took the blocks, the cut sashing pieces and my 1950 Singer Featherweight machine to quilt group, and sewed sashings to blocks.  Nearly half the blocks have now had sashing sewn on one side.

Some of the result laid out on my work table to be admired.  The sashings will be joined to one block side first, the blocks laid out to mix the house and background colours to my satisfaction then they will be joined into rows....after that the looong narrow sashings will be made and atttached, and the top made.

It will be a fun happy quilt, with a lot of yellow.

Some diamonds have been cut, no stitches knitted.  Words have been read, notes have been plinked, songs have been sung.  Hunting and gathering has taken place.

Because it's getting to 'that' time of year, here is some New South Wales Christmas bush.

We had a couple of plants in our garden in the Big Smoke but sadly they don't grow here, we're too far away from coastal humidity and don't have the right soil.  We could probably spend an exorbitant amount of money and buy some from a florist, but for now I'll live on the memory of it.  The flowers are teeny tiny little white blooms, nothing much to look at; the red - sometimes it is really vibrant bright red, not pink like this - are the sepals behind the flowers.

Last night we atttended a concert featuring instruments not usually seen here.  We had a saz....and an oud.....flamenco guitar, double bass, clarinet, soprano and tenor saxophones, piano, a singer.....it was a fun night and the music was really interesting, a mix from different cultures.  We were told that there will be more similar music next year - looking forward to that!  It makes a change from twanging country music guitars, usually a popular choice hereabouts.

The weather folk have told us to expect some rain tomorrow, and it will be very welcome.  You wouldn't think that after all our rain and floods of recent times that we would need more rain, but we do; the warmer dry weather of late has really dried out our gardens, our skin and our hair, so we are looking forward to some moisture.

Continuing on with Etiquette of the Street:

"Always recognize acquaintances.

One should always recognize lady acquaintances in the street, either by bowing or words of greeting, a gentleman lifting his hat.  If they stop to speak, it is not obligatory to shake hands.  Shaking hands is not forbidden, but in most cases it is to be avoided in public."

I wonder why that should be the case?  A handshake is not an intimate greeting like a hug or a smoochy kiss, something which a bystander might find embarrassing to witness.

Enjoy your days!

Jennifer

Yay! Double yay and triple yay!!

Yay even unto the nth degree yay!!!

It is done!

I am very happy with it, too.  When I can I'll get a better pic, but it is done.  The hanging split sleeve still needs to be sewn down on the back, but that doesn't count towards done, does it?

During its making I earned a lot....I learned how to quilt as you go; I learned how to do raw edge applique, something I had done very little of before this.  On our last trip to Canada our DIL and I went to a quilt show which had one of these hanging, but I didn't take a pic - because I wanted to photograph my own when it was done.

However, the most impotant thing I learned was - don't ever do anything like this again!

Now things can be moved around again in the sewing room.  The house blocks have been brought back into daylight and will now be worked on, likewise a foundation pieced project which needs its turn in the sun.  Each project has its own box; for some time now the biggest box has had fabrics and patterns for the Canadian quilt because it was large enough that the blocks could stay flat, but now it will be used for another project.

A few diamonds were cut but none joined.  No stitches were knitted; it's getting a bit warm for knitting.  Words have been read.

A few nights ago Kevin was standing over the barbecue on the back verandah (which we call the beer garden although we seldom drink beer in it) and a few of the neighbours popped by for a visit.  I think the one on the right should be wearing a "baby on board" sign.

There's always one who likes to be Nigel or Noreen No-friends on its own....

The year is slowly winding down.  A few nights ago the choir had its end of year dinner at a restaurant for a very nice meal and in a week or so the sewing group is doing lunch.  The quilt group had theirs last Saturday but I didn't go as it clashed with the choir concert, and as it was probably our very last performance ever there was no choice, was there?  Choir won't stop meeting, but we won't do concerts.

Ads are starting to appear for so-called 'talent' programs starting back on TV next year (nothing like getting in early, is there) and one young feller shown was singing, head back, eyes closed, throat tight, face contorted in agony.....if you don't enjoy it, mate, don't do it.  Simple.

Houses in our street are putting up fancy lights, the neighbours two doors down at no. 72 have a large display with just about every light flashing merrily.  When we came home from our dinner on Thursday night we passed several houses with their flashing displays and it was already 9.30 p.m......if we lived near one of those displays I would be asking (nicely, of course) (at first, anyway) if they could be turned off no later than 9 p.m.  Or preferably earlier when it just starts to get dark, because flashing lights annoy the bejabbers out of me.  Bah humbug.

This year will be just the two of us so the house will be quiet, but there will be a few decorations put out.  My Canadian tree - a small tree with decorations from Canada, some bought by me and some gifted - will go up, and the Chrissie wombats will of course make an appearance.  Even Flossie, the Jim Shore Christmas angel, might pop in for a visit.  She can keep an eye on the wombats, because Santa Paws doesn't come to naughty wombats, you know.  Even Christmas decoration wombats.

Continuing on with Etiquette of the Street:

"The first to bow.

In England strict etiquette requires that a lady, meeting upon the street a gentleman with whom she has acquaintance, shall give the first bow of recognition.  In Australia, however, good sense does not insist upon an imperative following of this rule.  A well-bred man bows and raises his hat to every lady of his acquaintance whom he meets, without waiting for her to take the iniative.  If she is well-bred, she will certainly respond to his salutation.  As politeness requires that each salute the other, their salutations should thus be simultaneous."

I remember being out with my maternal grandfather, Pop Davis, when I was a child, and he would always raise his hat if he saw someone he knew - particularly a lady.  I don't, however, remember if their mutual salutations were simultaneous.

Enjoy your days!