Happy birthday to me......

......Happy birthday to me,
Happy birthday, happy birthday,
Happy birthday to me!

Falling into winter

It's only the start of May, but winter has arrived early!  We have had a fire for the past couple of days, much to Bianca's happiness.  The cold winds of the past few days are easing, for which we are thankful.

How are you all faring under house arrest?  Our conditions have been lifted slightly, we are now allowed a visit from two adults and their children, but somehow I suspect many people will stay right where they are until the plague settles down a little more.  There will, of course, be more plagues in future, but with a bit of luck our various authorities may have learned something from the current one.

I reckon it's Mother Earth saying to us: "Now hold on a minute there......there are way too many of you, and you are messing up the place.  Just stop it for a while."

I am missing out on autumn, and that makes me sad.  Our annual Easter trip to Canberra has, for over 25 years, given me a glimpse of beautiful autumn colours as we drive further south to cooler paces.  You can keep spring, you can certainly keep summer's heat......I could happily live in autumn all year round.

Ah well.

The penultimate block of my Canadian mystery quilt, British Columbia, is done.

The bear needs a nose, it will be embroidered.  This block nearly came to grief - as with all these pictures the background (in this case, dark blue) was cut to size and the rest of the picture made in stages, then fused to the background.  Shock, horror, gasp.....it was only cut 8-1/2in wide instead of the required 9-1/2 in!  So a one inch strip was cut and fused to the back upper edge of the sky, the rest of the background was lined up with it, and you can't tell.

Autumn in British Columbia, on one of our Canadian trips.

Lots and lots of maple leaves and glorious colour.

Meanwhile, the tumbler quilt keeps tumbling along, the scarf has actually had some stitches knitted, but the tree hanging hasn't had one stitch sewn.  Once the Canadian blocks are finished next week, work will recommence on it.  No more little houses have been made but more have been cut; the plan was to sew outside in nice weather, but of late it hasn't been nice at all!  It's going to be a pretty wild neighbourhood......

During the week a family milestone was passed.  Last Wednesday, if he had still been alive, my father would have turned 100.  He was quite an odd bloke; apparently he didn't have a good home life as his father was very harsh and he ran away from home before joining up during WWII but, according to his Army service record, seems to have spent quite a bit of time AWOL.  Once war ended he and my mother married, but I can remember times in my childhood when he wasn't there; apparently the habit of 'AWOL' didn't stop when he left the Army.  Early in 1972 he hopped in the car one night and drove away (to visit a work mate, my mother assumed) but - he never returned.  Turned out that he had been obtaining money by different means and gambling it away, living a double life that my mother never knew about.  The end of a 25 year marriage.  He moved interstate and never again contacted my mother, my brothers or me, or any of our family again although he made contact with his brother.  Mum started divorce proceedings, she wanted nothing more to do with him and neither did we.  Eventually he remarried and died three years afterward although my brothers and I didn't find that out for several years, our mother having died in the meantime.  We obtained a copy of his death certificate in case we needed to know about medical stuff which could affect us, and under previous marriages it has "Not known" - under children it says "None".  So whoever gave the information for that certificate (possibly the new wife) had no idea that he had three living children in their forties.

Talk about putting "fun" into "disfunctional".......even when one is an adult, one's parents splitting up in such a way is a huge shock.  However he (I can't bring myself to think of him as 'Dad') never met Kevin, he knew nothing about his four grandchildren, so he missed out more than we did.

I enjoy visitors to my blog, and I love reading your comments and always reply - but if you are a no-reply blogger I can't, so if you haven't had an answer I'm not just ignoring you.

"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 initiative.  If she is well-bred, she will certainly respond to his salutation.  As politeness requires that each salute the other, their salutations will thus be simultaneous."

A simultaneous salutation would be a good thing.  In these days of 'no touching' a bow is probably a courteous way to greet a friend or acquaintance without causing offence.

Enjoy your days!

Rolling along nicely

But - we don't have much choice, do we? 

We have noticed that there is less traffic on our suburban street than usual.  It forms a semi-circle joined at both ends to a minor highway so doesn't get much through traffic, even though there are a few short streets leading off it and for whom the only access is our street.  It's always been a quiet street, and has become even quieter than before.  There is also very little air traffic over us, it's a rare thing to hear a plane!

How are you all coping with your house arrest?  We make one, sometimes two, trips out during the week for hunting and gathering, and one to the pharmacy for a drug run if needed.  It's enough to give us hope that other people are still alive out there, and if we are very lucky we even meet a friend to have a sociable chat.....at a suitable distance, of course.  Apart from those trips, we stay home.

Sewing has happened.  The next block, Quebec, has been stuck down.

Only two to go!  Although it doesn't look like it, those fabrics were pressed first.

There has been a bit of a thing online about making house blocks lately.  Many people seem to be quite taken by this one, which I quite like......but I wanted my houses to have a garden, which would make the blocks longer.  Aha, I thought to myself, I wonder what EQ7 has in the way of house blocks?  So I checked; there are several but I quite like this six inch square block called 'Little house', because it has a garden.  So.....fabrics were chosen, a purple house with an orange roof, a blue spotted sky, yellow window and bright checked door, plus a beautifully manicured lawn.  I can see many more of these in my future.....my Vintage Singer Featherweight (nigh on 70 years old) and I made it outside, in Birdland.

I did make a change to the sky; the original block provided templates to cut two pieces reversed but I thought again to myself, I reckon you could sew diagonally across a 2-1/2 in square of sky fabric for each corner and it would still look good - as well as being easier.  It does, it was, and the roof pitch is now a different angle.

Meanwhile the knitting continues, the tumblers keep tumbling, the tree hanging is not much further along.  When it comes to machine quilting I hesitate because I know my skills aren't very good, but then - if I never practice they never will be, will they.  I would really like to get it done so will have to hoick up my big girl pants (which used to be much smaller......sigh) and Have A Go.

Meanwhile, we spend a lot of time online, not much time watching TV, and are having fun discovering online radio stations which play music that we like.  I also managed to get an arrangement done for the uke group.

Yesterday I really pushed the boat out and made Anzac bikkies.  Some people like theirs thick and chewy, I prefer thin and crispy - which these are, but they are also a bit crumbly.  Because I have some I added 1/2 tspn of pumpkin pie spice, which doesn't hurt the flavour at all.....even though I am sure purists would shudder, but then they don't know what they are missing.

"Pastry should be eaten with a fork.  Everything that can be cut without a knife should be eaten with the fork alone.  Pudding may be eaten with a fork or spoon."

If you would like to try one of my crumbly Anzac bikkies with a fork alone, good luck to you......these are definitely finger food only.

Enjoy your days!

Well, that's April more than half done

This month is going by fairly quickly, considering that not much is happening.  If Kevin's mother was still alive she would be celebrating her 107th birthday today.......that's quite a number, she has been gone for 13 years.

Some quilting was done on the tree hanging, but it's a way from being finished yet.  The leaves haven't stuck very well to the background - perhaps having the fusible ironed on for a couple of years before it was made may have something to do with that?  That'll teach me not to leave it so long again.  The trunk and branches have all been sewn along their edges; after the leaves have been stitched down I'll go back and quilt in some details.  First, however, the leaves need to be fastened firmly so they don't have their own fall and I am left with a bare tree.

Speaking of autumn, it has cooled right down here.  The ceiling vents have now been closed off as we're not going to need the cooling system for several months, windows in seldom used rooms have been closed......we've had the heater on a few times now, and have even started thinking about a fire. 

Some stitches have been knitted on the belle étoile scarf.  The tumblers are tumbling along nicely.  I am trying to keep the number of projects being worked on to a minimum, rather than taking tiny nibbles at a lot of projects and getting nowhere with any of them.

Manitoba is done.

 We haven't been to Manitoba, but we have seen buffalo - bison - we drove past a bison farm in Ontario.  They are quite large beasties.  We've eaten bison sausage too.

Earlier in the week a couple of rainbow lorikeets decided to mooch around in the Eremophila bush for a while.  Trying to photograph mostly-green birds in a green bush against a green background through the back window was a challenge that the camera didn't ~quite~ rise to, but it made a valiant effort.

First time we have seen lorikeets in this bush, although we have sometimes seen Eastern Rosellas.  The flowers have nectar at the base so honeyeaters can stick their pointed beaks in, but rosellas and lorikeets have parrot beaks - which are not pointed.  We have seen rosellas nip off the flowers then chomp on the base for a minute or two before dropping them to the ground......whatever works, I suppose.

We had our usual quiet week, a trip out for our own hunting and gathering, another one to hunt and gather on Bianca's behalf because cats don't drive (she is on an Olde Catte mobility diet which we buy from the vet, it works so well for her that we're tempted to try it ourselves) and a drug run to the pharmacy.  While out on Bianca's trip I called at the quilt store to collect a ruler which I had ordered some time ago, and which will be used when I get to continuing on my autumn leaf quilt.  It's so nice chatting to other people on these outings - at a safe distance, of course - sometimes it feels that we are the only two people left alive.

In recent times an ad has been popping up on TV occasionally for an an insurance company.  We have no idea what is being said (our remote has a 'mute' button for a reason) but the wording on the screen is "we'll keep you covered in hardship".  Now I don't know about you all, but I wouldn't like to be covered in hardship.  I would much rather be covered in flowers, or perhaps antique jewellery......emeralds would be nice......someone was probably paid good money for thinking up that slogan, but I don't think they earned it.

"Satire and ridicule.
Young persons appear ridiculous when satirizing or ridiculing books, people or things.  Opinions to be worth the consideration of others should have the advantage of coming from mature persons.  Cultivated people are not in the habit of resorting to such weapons as satire and ridicule.  They find too much to correct in themselves to indulge in coarse censure of the conduct of others, who may not have had advantages equal to their own."

I will venture to suggest that the person who was paid for that badly-worded slogan was younger than I am.

Enjoy your days!

Today is.......

......whatever day you want it to be.  It could be Wednesday, or Friday......it could even be Sunday, if you wish.  Our weeks aren't divided up by our usual pastimes and activities so, unless there is an appointment that you are permitted to keep, it doesn't really matter what day it is.

If the world was perfect we would be enjoying the folk festival right now at this very minute as we speak, their slogan is "Five days in a perfect world".  However it's a long way from perfect right now, and we are stuck at home.....trapped......imprisoned, without even having committed a crime.

Sigh.

Block number nine is done, Newfoundland and Labrador.

I've never seen a puffin, they are odd looking little birdies! 

Stitches have been knitted.

This gorgeous yarn went all the way from Montreal where it was dyed, to Vancouver Island where I bought it, across the Pacific Ocean in a big tin box to the Big Smoke in my bag, then it was driven home here to the Small Smoke - so it is very well travelled.  It's sock yarn but mine is on its way to becoming a scarf, it's way too pretty to hide inside shoes - it should be out flaunting its glory to the world.

Stitches have also been sewn, more quilting has been done on the tree hanging, and the tumblers are still happily tumbling along.

One thing I seldom if ever do (although Kevin often does) is watch daytime television but yesterday afternoon I succumbed and watched two old black and white movies, one from the late 1940s (!) and one from the early 1960s.  I've done it now, I'm on the slippery slope......next thing will be daytime soapies......

At least we are being spared the usual amount of sport on TV because there isn't any being played.  Every cloud has a silver lining and that's mine, shining like a diamond - although some of the TV stations have replaced their endless sport programs with programs on the progress of the current plague.  I'm not sure which is worse!  

Sorting of the bookshelves has ground to a halt because the book sale is closed.  One of the Rotary Clubs hereabouts has a lease with very cheap rent on a former industrial building, and one of their fundraisers is a used book sale every year in early May.  (The Lions Club also has one, in November)  The book sale has been ongoing twice a week for nearly a full year now; it's between here and town, so very convenient to pop into to drop off anything we have culled and to fill any gaps in our (my) collection.  Due to the plague it is closed for the time being; I have a small pile of books and magazines ready to be dropped off, so it's easier to leave the books on their shelves until things change.

"On public promenades.
Bowing once to a person upon a public promenade or drive is all that civility requires.  If a person is a friend, it is in better form, the second and subsequent passings, should you catch his or her eye, to smile slightly instead of bowing repeatedly.  If an acquaintance, it is best to avert the eyes."

A bow is not a bad idea, as it entails no physical contact.  One could sweep into a deep curtsey, but these days one would be darn lucky to get up again if one so much as tried it.

Enjoy your days!

And now - it's autumn!

Something for which we are thankful.  It wasn't a great summer, although we have had worse.  If the world was normal and things were different we would be on our way south now, arriving in Canberra tomorrow......but it isn't, so we aren't.

As well as missing out on catching up with family and friends and missing out on a music festival, I am missing out on my annual re-stocking of my supply of home-made jams and pickles.  Kevin doesn't eat jam, pickles or relishes, so when we travel I take the opportunity to buy some.  Many towns have a craft shop selling produce made or grown by members, and I have had some very interesting (and yummy!) purchases from small towns.  My weekend breakfast is a slice of toasted fruit bread spread with jam and topped with ricotta; one of my current jams is a dark whisky marmalade bought at a farmer's market in Canberra last year - not the cheapest ever bought, but oh sooo good.

Another block is prepared for stitching - Ontario.

Reminds me of the song "Sittin' on the dock of the bay.....watchin' the sun go away......"  The next block is traced but not yet ironed onto fabric.  The goal is to prepare one block a week.....and then there will be all that stitching down.  Tedious won't be the word for that, will it?

Quilting has started for "Hanging on".  It will never win a prize, but then finished is better than perfect!

Are you all bored out of your brains?  I'm not yet, but I think I'm heading that way.  One outing a week to the supermarket, one to the fruit and veg store, and one if needed to the pharmacy for our drugs.  That is it.  That is the only contact we have with the outside world.  We are in the age bracket which is being told to stay home at all costs, but I just can't do that.  If I did I would be a mental wreck by the time this all ends.  Knowing that there are actually other people still in the world does wonders for one's spirits, and a conversation with a shop assistant can really make our day.

At least being in a country town is better than being in the Big Smoke, there aren't as many people around to avoid!

Daylight saving ended in the wee small hours this morning, and so did lovely dark mornings - for a while, at least.  I am not and never have been a morning person, I am not one of those folk who bounce out of bed to greet the day at the first crack of light......I'm more likely to shove a rag in the crack and go back to sleep.

"Shaking hands.

Among friends the shaking of the hand is the most genuine and cordial expression of good-will.  It is not necessary, though in certain cases it is not forbidden upon introduction; but when acquaintanceship has reached any degree of intimacy, it is perfectly proper."

Oh no - no shaking of the hand at present.  Distance and isolation is the order of the day.

Enjoy your days!

Rolling along nicely

Block number seven of my Canadian quilt, Prince Edward Island, is stuck down.

The Cunning Plan is to prepare all the blocks first then stitch the applique - hopefully (fingers crossed) the same fabric in all blocks can be done one block at a time before the thread colour is changed.  The next block is Ontario; some of the pieces have been traced, I'm not sure if they all have.  Will need to check.

'Hanging on' is still hanging in there.  It has been layered, now needs to be pinned.  I don't envy me trying to pin through - in some places - two layers of applique plus the background, so will just try for the empty background for pinning.

Meanwhile, the tumblers keep tumbling along.  Another row strip was finished a few nights ago which makes two done, four to do.  Each row strip is four tumblers high by 31 across.

Are you all staying safe, and staying sane?  We popped out yesterday for a spot of hunting and gathering and were surprised to find out that there are actually people in the world besides the two of us!  We will need to venture forth briefly tomorrow as the last of our nice dark chocolate will be eaten tonight, and a chocolate-less world doesn't bear contemplating.  Supermarkets hereabouts are opening at sparrowfart o'clock for oldies like us, so we will go then.

There is a small up side to the current shut-in situation.  Because we are wearing 'home' clothes nearly all the time, as opposed to 'out' clothes and 'home' clothes, there is far less washing than usual!  On the down side, looking like a dag each and every day is a tad boring.  Perhaps I should wear my tiara around the house, just because I can.  I do have a tiara, you know; a gen-u-ine rhinestone tiara from the 1960s, very pretty and very sparkly.

The kitchen smells nice thanks to 'Matrimonial Cake' not long out of the oven.  The recipe came from a friend on Vancouver Island and was her mum's recipe.  I added a little pumpkin pie spice mix to the flour/brown suger/rolled oats (oatmeal) base and topping; my friend hasn't tried that, but I thought I would give it a go.

The golf club where Monday's ukelele group met closed last weekend.  A few members came here instead, we were able to sit apart outside.  However, cases of the plague has now been diagnosed here so we have called a halt for the foreseeable future.  Yes, I can play here by myself, but......sigh.  Some things are more fun in company, and making music is one.

"A letter of introduction should not be given, unless the person writing it is very well acquainted with the one whom he introduces, and the one to whom he writes.  If the person who receives such a letter is really well-bred, you will hear from him or her within twenty-four hours, for a letter of introduction is said to be like a draft, it must be cashed at sight.  The one receiving it either invites you to dine, or to meet others, or to a drive, or to visit some place of amusement.  Too great caution cannot be exercised in giving a letter which makes such demands upon an acquaintance."

No letters of introduction in our changing world now, sadly......an email instead, perhaps? or a text?

Enjoy your days!