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!

Alas....it was not to be

The Cunning Plan to have all the binding sewn down on my Canadian quilt didn't happen in time for show and tell yesterday....but that's all right.  It can be shown at the meeting at the end of January so I don't have to rush.  It is more than half done, anyway.

So now my thoughts have turned to houses.  To be specific, the box of house blocks and sashing strips and setting triangles.  And backing fabric.  And Stuff like that.

Very merry and cheerful and bright, yes?  It's going to be a fun quilt.

Gorgeous fallen leaves in the car park at Butchart Gardens in autumn, taken just because the ruby and garnet colours were so lovely.....a good reason to visit Canada in fall.

The cone is one of the lights found throughout the garden.  We have been lucky enough to visit in summer when the roses and other flowers were in bloom, and also in autumn with foliage colours.  On our last visit the annual display featuring the twelve days of Christmas was being set up, which was fun to see.

What a busy week, I'm glad to draw a line under it!  Two ukulele gigs and a choir concert, all of which went well, plus the usual weekly rehearsals, and hunting and gathering, and socialising.....next week is looking (slightly!) less hectic, thank goodness.  An end-of-year dinner with the choir on Thursday night will be the highlight; I always enjoy a meal I haven't had to think about, prepare, cook and clean up afterward.

Words have been read.  No stitches have been knitted, no diamonds have been cut or sewn.  More had better be cut soon, the waiting-to-be-joined stack is perilously low.  Notes have been plinked and songs sung.  That's about it.

Here in Australia the concept of 'Black Friday sales' has never been big but over the past couple of years its popularity has, as they say in the media, soared to new heights.  Our traditional big sale day is Boxing Day but if one is shopping for Christmas pressies it makes more sense to shop a few weeks earlier, doesn't it?  To that end we betook ourselves out a few days ago and I was able to find some cropped navy pants to replace a pair which are still fine for wearing at home, but less so for wearing out.  That's probably my not-very-major purchase for the year done.

Last of the big time spenders, me.

It has not rained all week!  Today is quite warm and sunny, a foretaste of summer.  A couple of days ago Kevin rolled the outside blinds down to shade the windows on the north side - our sunny side - if the sun doesn't hit the windows so fiercely, the rooms inside stay cooler.  They were a purchase several years ago, and we are so pleased we did it.  It won't be so hot after tomorrow so we will enjoy the cooler weather before summer really hits hard.

Continuing on with Etiquette of the Street:

"Intrusive Inquiries.

If you meet or join or are visited by a person who has any article whatever, under his arm or in his hand, and he does not offer to show it to you, you should not, even if it be your most intimate friend, take it from him and look at it.  That intrusive curiosity is very inconsistent with the delicacy of a well-bred man, and always offends in some degree."

In other words, don't be nosy.  If your friend wants to show you the article, she/he will do so.  If she/he doesn't wish to do so then, in the immortal words of Kath and Kim, "mind your own beeswax".

Enjoy your days!

A corner has been turned!

A cause for much rejoicing, let me tell you.

The binding was re-joined correctly, and all is good.  Even the final join (often a bit tricky) was done without incident, although I noticed when pinning the binding to the quilt that there could be, just might be, a very small tuck where there shouldn't be one.....but I won't tell if you don't.

The binding is now being sewn down on the back with tidgy widgy little stitches, and more than a quarter is done.  I always start a little way down from a corner so, by the time the fourth corner is turned, there isn't much binding left to be sewn.  The Cunning Plan is to have it finished for show and tell next Saturday morning....not sure if it will be, but I'll give it a go.  I sew until my fingers get tired, have a break, sew some more....

Last week was very busy, this week is quieter.  There is still one ukulele gig on Wednesday evening, and that's it for the month.  Four gigs - I don't think we have ever had that many in the space of just a few weeks!

This morning we played for a fundraiser fair and it was fun, although it's always hard work being outside.  We were under cover which is better than being in the open - at least we could be heard - but by the time we finished I just wanted to go home to peace and quiet.  The local pipe band played and, much as I love the sounds of the pipes, they are definitely an outdoor instrument!  Another band played in the same space as we did before and after us, and they were good; a bit jazzy, a bit boppy, and they played songs that we knew so we sang along.

One thing our town is famous for is its beautiful jacaranda trees and this year they have been late to flower, probably due to the cool wet start to the season.  However they have caught up, our trips towards town are now brightened by the beautiful trees in full bloom along the way.

Here we are - we made number 5!  This pic though was taken in our back yard in the Big Smoke where we had a self-seeded jacaranda; it appeared as a small seedling twenty years before we moved out, and we enjoyed its beauty every year.  Looking at maps and satellite pics, though, that lovely tree has now gone.  It wasn't a large yard and by the time we left the tree took up most of it, but we enjoyed it for its shade and its flowers.

The forthcoming season is now making its presence felt more and more.  Shop displays....ads on TV......people out and about today in seasonal clothes.....goodness, I don't even think of getting out my Christmas earrings until at least the first of December!  Our younger son's birthday is 2nd December and we always celebrated his birthday before starting the family Christmas, and even though he has been in Canada for nearly 18 years and had moved out of home before going there, we still keep the same tradition.  He was born early, he wasn't due until 20th December; The One And Only Grandkid's birthday is 19th December, which is even closer to the big day.  

Continuing on with Etiquette of the Street:

"A crowded street.

When a gentleman and lady are walking in the street, if at any place, by reason of the crowd, or from other cause, they are compelled to proceed singly, the gentleman should always precede his companion."

One thing which I notice in old street scene photographs is the number of people out walking.  There would have been few distractions such as movies, television, even radio, so if you wanted a social life you went out.  One could stroll along showing off one's new outfit and admiring - or not! - others' new outfits, too....and of course one would definitely need an escort to precede one, through such a crowd.

Enjoy your days!

There's the right way, and there's the wrong way

A few days ago the binding for my Canadian quilt was cut, diagonal seam lines marked - because if seam lines are marked the strips are sewn together correctly, right? - and the strips joined.  The wrong way.  Thse seams have now been fixed, and there is one long strip instead of strips going off at strange angles to each other.

My calculations were correct; the seven strips called for in the pattern were much too long so I cut five strips and measured them after joining, but it wasn't quite long enough for that final join and for corner allowances.  Another strip has now been joined on, making it (hopefully) long enough.  It just needs to be pressed....then it can be pinned to the quilt, yay!  The second label is also done.

Aren't these cute little flowers?  Over the years we have taken some interesting pictures, so every now and then the photo vault will be dug into and something retrieved.  This was taken at Mount Annan Botanical Garden the year before we left the Big Smoke behind.....these are paper daisies or everlastings, and are popular for dried arrangements.

It is raining again....another flood warning is in place.....we'll all be rooned, said Hanrahan, if this 'ere rain don't stop.....a line from a poem by John O'Brien, the pen name of Father Patrick Joseph Hartigan.  Patrick Hartigan was born in 1878 to Irish immigrant parents in Yass and grew up with a great love of country Australia and its people, serving as parish priest in small towns before moving to Sydney many years later.  'Said Hanrahan' is well known, many Aussies recall studying it at school, and the line "we'll all be rooned, said Hanrahan" has become a byword for lighthearted pessimism.

Now that both labels are finished, other projects can be resumed.  A few diamonds have lately been joined but more need to be cut for the Tumbling Blocks quilt; not long ago I calculated how many would be needed to make a smallish quilt, and the answer was - 449 hexagons each made of three diamonds, making a total of 1347 diamonds.  There are already nigh on 70 hexagons made....they go together very quickly, and are fun to make.

Not one stitch has been knitted.  Words have been read.  Notes have been plinked, indeed two gigs in just a few days has kept us busy!  Our midweek performance at the seniors' village was well received, and afternoon tea was indeed as delicious as was promised.  We'll be back there in a few months, by request.  Yesterday's fun day also went successfully; the acoustics in that club were bad, but we soldiered personfully on.  Now we have a week's rest, then another gig at a charity fundraising market next Sunday.  We have played for them a few times, the organisers are lovely people and very appreciative that we give our time.

Thoughts are turning to the occasion late next month which is now starting to make its presence felt.  For many years we have gone out to lunch or dinner to make the day more festive, otherwise we would just sit around and grin at each other.....but not this year.  Prices are so steep that we could buy food for a few weeks with what that one meal would cost, so we will stay home.  We realise that restaurants have to pay staff higher holiday rates, and food costs are increasing everywhere, but two Olde Phartes are not going to eat $300 worth of food at one meal.

Oh well......so long as I can have a couple of mince pies with good quality cream and don't have to do much cooking, I'm happy.....

Continuing on with Etiquette of the Street:

"Recognizing friends in the street.

No one, while walking the streets, should fail, through pre-occupation, or absent-mindedness, to recognize friends and acquaintances. either by a bow or some form of salutation.  If two gentlemen stop to talk, they should retire to one side of the walk.  If a stranger should be in company with one of the gentlemen, an introduction is not necessary.  If a gentleman meets another gentleman in company with a lady whom he does not know, he lifts his hat to salute them both.  If he knows the lady, he should salute her first.  The gentleman who accompanies a lady, should always return a salutation made to her."

Interesting, isn't it, that "walking the streets" has come to have a different meaning these days.

Enjoy your days!