Just a Quickie

Is just what I've been having each morning this week. No, naughty, not that kind, though Mr T wouldn't be averse!

Just a quick walk before breakfast is what I have been doing. And, what a difference it makes to my day. I am spoiled in that I get a cup of tea brought to me each morning, I drink that and take my pills (yep, still the back ones) then, get dressed in the first things I find and troll out the door for my morning perambulation.

Luckily, I have a choice of going up the hill, or down the drive to the gate. No, I'm not a rich landowner, but rather I work for one. And, each morning I am greeted by nature! The other morning was frost and sunshine, and a woodpecker morse-coding on the weather-vane; Tuesday morning was a red squirrel running circles around the trunk of a tree.

Then, this morning, at the un-heard of hour for me of 7 am, I caught sight of the white powder-puff bottoms of four roe deer I had disturbed, who loped quietly off up the hill.

Sorry, I have no pictures, as I keep getting caught unawares. I think I'll have to set something up on purpose.

Library Visit

Nanny's lolly-dolly-pop had her first ever visit to the library this afternoon, for story-time. Her eyes lit up at the sight of all the books about the place, and she didn't want to sit still to listen to any story, thank you!

She eventually did settle down a bit, once mummy had removed herself from sitting nicely on the carpet, as a good example. And, one of the highlights was crayoning in the drawing (which the librarian had made up to suit today's stories,) and glueing pictures onto the paper for the first time.

She enjoyed herself so much, and we squealed with delight when we saw her name on her very own library card!

We'll be regular visitors, from now on.

No Problem

Me: Hello?

Mr Boss: Hello, Karen, how are you?

Mr: I'm very well (shouting back, he's hard of hearing.) How are you?

Mr Boss: Good, good. I've been thinking about the 15th of August, and I think we'll have a fork lunch.

Me: er, okay. Now, when is that date again?

Mr Boss: I'm coming up in June, but not July, and we'll have a fork lunch, hopefully outside. And, it won't matter how many are coming. Is that alright?

Me: So, you'll be here in June, and then again in August for your party?

Mr Boss: Yes, that's right!

Me: That will be wonderful, Mr Boss. We'll look forward to it.

Mr Boss: Right-o, goodbye then.

It appears there will be a party to organise, which we know will be on Saturday the 15th. And, I've to organise a 'fork lunch' - presumeably a buffet where plates and forks, no knives, are used. It could be indoors or outside, and numbers have yet to be confirmed, so that could be for twelve people or forty, or fifty, or sixty..... then.

Shall we have goat's cheese and red onion tart and merangue roulade with raspberry cream? Or sausage rolls and cheese with pinapple on sticks, followed by tinned fruit cocktail with evap? Do you dare me?!


Ah, that'll be me busy then.

A Big Ask ...

.... is Oz for an appeal, apparently. These people all need all of our help. Some have lost everything - their families, their parents, their homes. Everything.

Please Help.

Click on the link on the right there.

HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!

Yep, a snowy picture

Boy, did we have some snow yesterday! It started about 7.30 am, just when I was due to go out the door, and didn't stop until late afternoon, about 6 inches in all. Unfortunately, it fell upon ice so a tad dangerous.

However, it has started a slow melt today, which is a relief.

The day previously, some of us from our craft group and the rural attended the funeral of one of our members, Anne. It was a very sad occasion, despite her family wanting the service to be a celebration, and we all had some tears. I didn't know Anne all that well, we were not close, but we did like each other - she did have some funny views though, and I will remember some of the shockers she would come out with, none of which I could repeat here. But, she was a quiet and gentle lady-like, warm and giving person. She will be missed very much. And, the weather was absolutely beautiful for her send off.

Although we are trying the services of home delivery grocery shopping from A*d* today, I needed to go to town for some errands. As we were travelling at a good pace, I was third in line of the traffic, and the sliver car in the front was losing the covering of snow from its roof. It was so comical, the way the snow was being thrown off, willy nilly, into the path of the middle car. Made I laugh out loud!

A lovely Award!

I just got this lovely Award from Dusty Spider isn't it Lovely! Thanks, Flick!

Now then, I have the great pleasure of passing this on to eight deserving others, along with the following text:

"These blogs are exceedingly charming. These kind bloggers aim to find and be friends. They are not interested in self-aggrandizement. Our hope is that when the ribbon of these prizes are cut, even more friendships are propagated. Please give more attention to these writers. Deliver this award to eight more and include this cleverly-written text into the body of their award."
I pass on the praise to:

Primrose Hill who is currently curled up by the fire, in hibernation X

Spiral Skies who needs no excuse for procrastination

Ducking for Apples who couldn't use a cuddle?

Jane's Probably Knitting already itching for Spring

Sound of One Handed Knitting who sports a sparkly straight-jacket for us all!

Random Thoughts from Another Dilettante who's now 50 + (followers) yay

Random Blethers another one hitting the books

Shabby Chick who is just 'hip'

Plus one extra, for Silly Gilly who is part of the 'Hand Made Help' appeal, for assisting those survivors of the Victorian Bushfires - go check it out, please.

What fun this was, to remember such lovely, and friendly people in blogland - thanks for this, Flick x

Edit Update: Please take one, too Alfazema You lovely, lovely lady x

middle, muddle, puddle

I don't have anything to show this week, though I have finished a pair of fingerless gloves, which I started probably about a year ago. The yarn is Rowan cashmarino aran, and is not hardwearing at all, and the pattern is knitted in the round on 4 dpns.

My workroom is more or less finished, just needing 'my touches' you know the things that go to make it personal.

We went to see 'Valkyri' yesterday and, while I was perching on the edge of my seat, as it was a cracking good yarn well told, that Tom Cruise (euyuck,grr) did spoil it a bit for me. There were close-ups of him that showed his 'internal angst' but, I felt he was just being Tom Cruise for the most part, whereas the others in the cast were marvellous. Go and see it. To my shame though, I didn't know if the plan to kill off hitler had come off, as I didn't know the date of his death! Crap, I am at history.

Which is quite pertinent, actually. Mr T was telling me, yesterday, that I am crabbit, as they say, here, for mardy or moody. And, apparently, I was blaming him for stuff that just wasn't his fault. You know the way we do.

Well, I had a think about it and realised that yes, I was being crabby, and it was because the start of my OU course was on Saturday, and I need to get down to it and just get on with it. I always get nervous at the start of a course, thinking 'EEk, I just don't know about this!' Whether I can do it etc So, I guess I'll just start at the beginning, and see where I get to.

And, let Mr T know that I forgive him!

Sheltering by the fire

Well, at last we're feeling a lot better, thank goodness. But, I don't seem to have been very busy.

Just a couple of things, though.

Hats for Sailors! These are a couple I did this week, from donated wool, for our charity knitting group. They'll be given to somebody who will distribute them (along with all the others which have been done) to sailors and fishermen. It is a lovely group, and one person had not really knitted before, yet she knitted a whole hat in one week! An impressive lot, too.

Also, along with my wanting to make as much as I can this year, I have made this,

It's a little bit of needle felting for my neice's birthday card. I've never done this before, but luckily have a book on it here which I got when I went to Twist Fibre Studio recently. I think it looks like a birthday cake from here, don't you?

The reason I've not been doing a lot of crafty stuff this week is because - ta da! - I have my new workroom nearly done!

Pictures will follow shortly.