Guess what this is?

I’ve spent the day trying to keep down toast and serious doses of Ibuprufen (the Ibuprufen is affecting the toast, and the tooth issue is demanding the Ibuprufen)… semi succeeding.

There has been a spate of amusing issues all involving electricity – will tell you about those when I have a head that’s not doing laps.

But… I decided to use up some yarn:

And noting that I’ve entered Darwin Royal that is… 10 days away from needing my entries posted.. and I have three items not yet done.

So I am making one……

 

And for the benefit of the more voyeuristic of mr readers and vistors… It is not a nipple.

Just has that mammalian teat look about it.

What it is….

A Bluebeary Rabbit

 

Version White.

Am I tempted to make a hat to pull him out of??

You betcha.

 

But that could be the Ibuprufen.

Anyway. Have been home, trying not to throw up too much, Aston has been groomed and polished off the life-expired crumpets for me – so he’s happy.

The Country Energy guy who had to explain why the power went off (several times) relieved that I’m biding time until I get to the Dentist tomorrow….

Hugs to you all

How to make someone smile with pure pleasure

Hand them a gratis Cyalume stick.

Jorja has excelled herself – she not only managed to get off the chain AND get out of the yard, but after I visited the owners of the Custard Yellow house, who also live on the property here behind the moat – just over the other side of some trees, to apologise for my wandering Canine – she escaped AGAIN.

During the course of the visit, their little boy was in dire need of AAA batteries, of which I had some spare. That which made him positively thrilled was being handed two green Cyalume (Glow in the Dark)  sticks.  He is under strict instructions to SHARE with his sister…..

I was thinking of something I read once, about the questions you get asked when standing at the gates of Heaven – What did you find joy in ? and What did you do to spread joy?

Admittedly – 36 hours before having a root canal – joy is a little hard to find…though the painkillers do help

But today I am grateful that I have bought a cast off (and cast iron) bathtub so Aston can stop kicking over his water bucket (I swear, he does it with this butter wouldn’t melt in MY mouth expression) and the former owner of the bathtub was remarkably happy that I had answered their advert to acquire the bathtub.          I got to practise my somewhat limited Francais in order to strengthen relationships between Australia et other countries.   And they understood me….

At least I hope so and I haven’t just started a coup d’ etat somewhere o.O

(BTW – I need Chinese next…..)

Joy.

Giving an unexpected cyalume stick to a little boy – Joy in the Megawatt scale.

Wish all men were that easy to please.

Have I mentioned that it’s COLD here???

It’s been subzero on a number of mornings (read – all of them) this week.  This is what Green Car, resplendent in both ACT numberplates AND a significant layer of frost, looks like most mornings.

There’s something quite risky in even standing next to him I can feel how cold it is.

Maybe not quite *this* cold:

   But I do think it’s a cute ad

Maybe this is a more Amanda orientated Animal driven way of illustrating how cold and frosty it is here

Frosting modelled by the smallest Equine – Roy.

Not sure if I have introduced Roy to you properly – he’s a whopping 9 hands tall and about 13yo. He was acquired as a future companion for Aston as I am hoping to be able to keep Aston entire…

And I will make the point that Roy not only has a perfectly good shelter to sleep in, he does have a Navy blue Ripstop Rug.

He just has worked out how to roll out of it and I find him as a Chocolate Brown miniature mammoth, curled into a small ball in the middle of the garden.

He and Aston play fun games like Biteybitey and  bellychompies and do seem very happy in the 1/2 acre that is the garden – though once I have the bathtub and about 40metres of hot-tape, they’re both going back out into the bigger grazing area.

If only so I can do the dishes without a nose looming in at me from the darkness…

Yarnishly, I have not bought yarn in a remarkably long time plus I have used up four balls this week…

 

It’s all good

Hugs to you all.

If broadband were a field of green grass…

you could call what I’m doing this afternoon the electronic equivalent of rolling down a hill.

The vote of gratitude for the day goes to Alex of Bigpond Installation fame; who summoned all his courage and walked into the garden with a ROCIOUS dog and then climbed onto the roof to install the Yagi directional antenna that is acting as a veritable fountain of reliable intawebs.

I had the day off work, waiting for Alex the Installer, enjoying a very lazy morning in bed because it was COLD and it seemed like a good place to be.

Once I did find a reason to get up, on the agenda between waiting for electricial people  was to arrange the kitchen so that I  actually can lay my hands on any named kitchen apparatus if someone so wanted to challenge me.

This was of course supervised by Aston who is fascinated by the Hooman Show, though being a youngster, always gets that funny look when I drop something and swear.

Have to stop him licking the windows though.

The window ledge shows some interesting insights:

The industrial sized roll of Glad Wrap which is now 3 years old and still going. The pink bottle of Johnson Intensive Skin moisturiser because I’m that chapped. The empty tins of fudge which are useful for storing things in, like safety pins. The Cyclamen, The Avon Silicone barrier cream (Top stuff!!) the paperweights – I like paperweights and then the smaller elements of the collection of rocks from the Land of Shiny Rocks – once known as TB 2.

Which sometimes seems a long time ago :

It’s been more than two years since I went to the dirt to live deliberately..

A lot of frequent flyer miles since then.

Still watch an excavator going past on a transporter.

In other news… I’ve entered Royal Darwin Show : Crochet, felting and jewellery. Ok.. so the Jewellery is crocheted but hey.

 

Anyway… should go to bed – am going to work tomorrow, would much rather stay at home and potter. The Basket of Raspberry Afghan is going to go down in history as being the most time consuming piece of crochet you can do, and I haven’t got to the border yet. The trouble is that whilst I am using a 5.5 hook, it grows at a rate equivalent to half-double crochets.  Which means it’s s.l.o.w…..

Anyway – that’s me done for the day.. I shall go to bed now, safe in the knowledge that Aston is turned out on the OTHER side of the house…

 

Hugs to you all

A question sometimes you don’t want to ask.

As you can see in the photo, there is a young Warmblood in my front garden.

Usually, the young warmblood is in the paddock, two sets of fences below the front garden.

But at 10 oclock this morning…. he was merrily browsing in company with Roy, in the front garden.

Not a clue how he got there.

Anyone who knows horses, knows that a juvenile warmblood is:

a) mischevious

b) usually going through a gangling ugly duckling phase, magnified by the possibility of someone coming to visit and

c) expensive.

So… when anyone of the above two kick in… the owner of said Warmblood usually has heart palpitations.

And.. after a while, you accept that’s it just easier for the teenaged Warmblood  to stay in the front garden.

He is a bit wild and wooly but you have to look at the nice straight legs, the depth of chest and his compactness.

 

And the personality is hard to go past.

 

Otherwise my weekend has been quiet. I’ve unpacked a bit more, tried to find a greater semblance of order, helped a friend buy new furniture, Former Housemate K had an impassioned plea – their washing machine had packed up and she was out of underwear…..

The yarn sorting continues, and I’m now at the point where sanity is a long forgotten memory. I am however, as therapy, working on a Raspberry basketweave afghan….. from an enormous ball of Raspberry Soy & Merino. Not sure what I’ll do about the border yet. I’m becoming a fan of the basket weave pattern though..

 

I have the day off tomorrow as the antenna man is coming to hook up the intawebs proper-like

Hugs to you all.

You never lose the anger, you just deal with it in a different way

And this aint the place,

and this aint the time

and neither’s any other day.

 

Next time I find myself with the choice between moving house or being mugged, I’ll take the mugging – at least I know I have some chance of fighting back against that one.

Lesseee…. the bafflement from the latest Toad Event has translated into another bunch of boxes being unpacked (mem to self : Trip to the Tip this weekend), a new foray into the world of lasagna receipes (chicken pesto) ,  dealing with the World’s Most Disobedient Dog, an incredible number of lightbulbs that have  gone pfffzzzzt and killing of a spider that was only *slightly* smaller than the anticipated blessed event at Taronga Zoo.  Take that,  Berlin - we have a baby Heffalump on the way !

One of the plus features of the Custard Yellow house – not only that it is enormously closer to Work than I used to be, is that it is also remarkably picturesque.

And – as a small point – the water is *that* clear.

 

This was Sunday… lunch time.

 

 Oh and the Lumix is back at the Camera Doctors’ again. So today’s shot is of course brought to you by Jorge the Nikon (D80 – don’t ask me about fstops – I haven’t got a shmoggy).

 The unpacking of the yarn stash remains possibly the biggest challenge since someone thought climbing up that big mountainy thing was a good idea. 

 

What gets me is the sheer quality (not volume – I can deal with that) but the Good-to-the-point-of-being-luscious mohair,   the dreamy-better-than-caramel-fudge hand-dyed sock yarn (just look on etsy) and the superfine-hand-cosseted-fed-on-truffles-and-champagne  Merino.

Seriously good positive bio-feedback, open a box and your yarn conglomeration has matured, like a cellar of vintage whatevers…

And the only left to do is a take deep breath..

and delve

Anyway.. thank you for your positive thoughts and hugs to you all…

Take one tin of Spaghetti…..

And demonstrate the following:

 

A.   Tolerance. 

B.   Acceptance of Other People’s Mistakes

C.   Forgiveness.

 

 

A. The fact that the contents of the Tin of Spaghetti  did not end up all over the Black Chrysler PT Cruiser in Mr Toad’s driveway.

B. That the can did not get pitched through any window of his house.

C. That after everything in the last year,  and a silence of five months, I didn’t tell him to get knotted last week.   (Which may actually better demonstrate D. Stupidity on my part.)

Which led to the shopping trip on Friday night… and his tin of spaghetti ending up in my car.

The “mistake” (apart from my obvious one) that I’m supposedly so not tolerant of  (oh - and thanks again for the suggestion of what I should do, when I asked how you would react if you were me) was again to agree to do brunch.. and then do the Famous Magic Trick that Toads are famous for:    Not be there.

Just a wonderful recipe for Disappointment.

With a nice side serving of Humiliation and a sprig of  “I told you so” as a garnish.

Pink Skies and Forgotten Angels

It’s hard to take a day seriously, when it starts out that pink.  I got up early because a BAD DOG decided to excavate an escape route (I *wondered* what she was doing with that tennis ball) and I wanted to try and prevent further Dog Departure.

I noticed that the sky was incredibly pink.   Really – you’ll think I’ve been playing too hard with Photoshop.

We’ve been having frosts, subzero temperatures and I’m getting used to driving to and from work in the dark. Also getting very used to having my horses out my door again. Having schnuggles with Aston and Orion every evening are a definite plus.

For the first time in a long time, today I had a performance review at work. It’s been over two years since I received written reporting on my job. So it was refreshing to hear that my boss (and his boss – the GM) seem happy with what I do.

Which reminds me – have to call the French tomorrow.

On the work front, Pig sniffles bit hard and caused the cancellation of the conference I was organising – say Bugger now;  I was looking forward to another trip to Queensland.

     Hopefully though.. there might be some more interesting trips in the offing.  Seriously more interesting

I have nearly finished writing another pattern – for the Wedding Ring pillow I made for Kay’s wedding.

It’ll be my first thread pattern and I’m just fiddling with how to express the making up of the chiffon insert. But I am pleased with how easy the pillow was to make and I’m hoping that I can replicate it for Darwin Show.

I decide to enter about 12 pieces in Darwin Show – and the terrific thing I’ve found is that all of them are done already!!

Speaking of done – I’m sure most people find WIPs and UFOs when they move – whilst trying to carve some order into the Yarnery, inside one of my forest of Plastic storage towers, I found – a stiffened, ready to go Thread angel – oh – she doesn’t have wings – but.. OMG… there’s an Angel in my cupboard.

So – thats a piece I can build on.

I’ve used up another couple of balls of yarn, the downside of unpacking (and blowingdry wet dogs) is that there just doesn’t seem to be enough hours in the day.   This weekend is already packed and I’m already planning November!

Things I did acheive today – 4 more boxes, and the faxing of the Damage report to the removal coordinators. I am still trying to find.. and I’m intrigued which box the somewhat creative packers in Darwin put my knives. I have three.

Which is good for smallish dinner parties. Not so good for trying to set the table for 4-squares.  Given that the couch feet were under the cushions for the outdoor setting, and the terracotta turtle was thrown in on top of the lampshades (result: squooooshed lampshades) the flatware could be anywhere.

Welcome to the Yellow House of Chaos!

The score currently stands at:

Number of boxes unpacked : 116

Number of boxes still to be unpacked: 49

Number of balls of yarn I own: At least a room’s worth. And it’s beginning to spread. 

Number of balls of yarn consumed as diversion: 11

Number of arguments with Telstra: 9

Number of arguments with a German Shepherd re staying in the yard : 6

Number I lost: 3

Number of Rabbits in the bathtub: 1

Number of discussions with German Shepherd whilst driving (pulling horse float in the dark) about not eating Rabbit: 4

Yes.. it’s been a disastrous week. I’d like to thank Telstra and Bigpond for the absolutely @%$^&&&   awful service they’ve provided. If you’re reading this, and you work for TELSTRA or BIGPOND – I have made the complaint to the TIO, and this time … I’m not going to be bought off. People pay for reliable internet – not a Router that crashes after 2 hours and is now sitting dead in the laundry.

 If you remember the Gundaroo Triathlon (with sheep assist) here in Nanima (where I have been reliably informed I live) we do the Nanima Steeplechase. It involves a series of mild jumps over Books, Spare Bedding and Towels. OH CHRIST – the towels.. how do I manage to have so many towels????

The yarn has been corralled into what the Removalists started referring to as “The Wool Bedroom”, though there are balls that have boldly left to colonise the rest of the house.

The Rabbit – after I signed the lease on The Custard Yellow House I decided that Plan Woolly was going to take on a whole new aspect. And I found some Angora and Cashmere bunnies. I now have Picnic, a chocolate Cashmere lop who is remarkably cuddly, and despite the instructions on the box I brought him home in, not best when cooked to Golden Brown. As we arrived home in the dark, I opted to leave him in his hungry Jacks’ box, in the bathtub. He was somewhat unimpressed about this, but is now happily chewing grass and taunting Jorja behind chicken wire.

Anyway – I’m here, I have limited Internet and almost no mobile reception… and I live 20kms from the Capital city. Standby for me to implode…  Aston and Jazzy are currently in the front paddock, enjoying plenty of good quality grass and Aston is enjoying frequent cuddles

 

Hugs to you all.

“Will you *please* Stop referring to the Pandemic as ‘Pig Sniffles’?”

Really.  Some people have no sense of humour.    

They didn’t even like my joke about calling internationally and apologising for the crackling on the line.

I thought it was a good name.  There ’s been Mad Cow, Equine influenza (the highest Scrabble Word Score virus…), Bird Flu, SARS… What’s next? Turtle Herpes?  It’s reaaaaallly slow to get you?

Anyway – I spent last week travelling to try and organise a conference I’m putting together for, ooohhh, 40 odd people in the north Queensland city of Cairns (yes, it’s beautiful, yes, it’s touristy, yes, it takes you to the Inner Reef, and yes, it’s expensive) (and for crying out loud, who needs to buy a packet of 20 clip-on Koalas anyway???) which, now, some countries are a little unwilling to attend due to the potential for coming home with a variant of the Flu.

Noting my propensity for getting viruses..   the idea of the Flu as being one of my souvenirs from a conference (personally – I like a nice leatherette compendium with the screen printed logos blurred just enough so that the person trying to decipher it upside down has to squint) is a little disquieting.  In the same way, that the person squinting sitting next to me at the Flying Marsupial’s Business Lounge seemed somewhat O.o’ish about the fact I was rewriting text on Distress Beacons and Maritime Survivor Life Saving Systems (Think Granny Alert buttons for sailors) before flying somewhere.

Oooh – and as a shoutout to the Baggage Wreckers at the aforementioned Flying Marsupial - I’ve flown four times in a week and you didn’t lose my bag once? What’s going on?? It used to be so good between us!  I mean – even the zips on my bag still work! 

Anyway – I have posted one new scarf pattern, finished a second scarf – which has a disturbingly hyperbolic thing going on at the ends. I was just trying to use up the last of the ball – I SWEAR. The scarf used 2.834887 balls of Spotlight’s Baby Layette – the Bamboo Merino Blend I fell for (HARD) before Canberra Royal 2009.  And you would not believe the number of DCs I tried to put in to eat up the last bit of Ball #3.

But the picot Mesh has this nice effect around your neck as a scarf – this is about the 5 th picot scarf I’ve made, and there was one a friend made as Occupational therapy to rehabiliate his hands after a nasty car smash. And if a 6′4″ Military Policeman can learn to crochet……

 

We’re now at 3 days until moving to the Custard Yellow House, which will be known as “CYH”, all variations on the theme of Chez Chaos can go hang…. I feel a little like it’s the brain teazer with the Turkey, the Fox and the bag of grain, you have to get all three from point A to point B without any of the items being consumed or consuming the other. Moving 4 horses, 3 Alpackages, 1 German Shepherd, all the horses’ gear, Yarn Stashes Domestic and Storage Unit, plus myself and clothes is going to be nothing but FUN.

Kill. Me.

And in a stunning twist of I’m-not-sure-what, the Modem that has served me admirably in places so far flung that it’s easier to get to them by going the other way round,  when in CYH, will not work.  20km from a capital city, THE capital city for that matter… and it won’t work.

Nor will my phone (replacing the one that was munched by Mr Toad’s hound and mine – not sure who – they were both grinning)

So I have had to get a *wait for it* home phone attached.  As well as wireless broadband.

OH MY GOD. For this first time in two years – I will be living somewhere that actually has ….A PHONE attached.

The plan is to abide (with me, fast falls the eventide) in CYH until Plan Woolly Version (I think it’s version 3.0 now) takes a more solid form.

And by solid, I don’t mean frozen – it’s currently -1.6deg. And the forecast was for -4???

Where am I? Siberia???

This is the point where I console myself that the Ambulant Stashes will be forced into growing better fleece if it’s subzero.  And try not to cry that any one of the three Equines designated as “Riding” horses will also, despite more expensive blankets than I have, be trying to emulate hairy yaks.  “Now competing in the Novice test,  Amanda M riding Manton Park Woolly Mammoth”.

In other news : I can recommend seeing both State of Play   and Night in the Museum 2.  Seriously.

And rollon Moving Day

hugs to you all!

I used up 2 balls of yarn!!!

Noting that I have more than 8,000 in my combined possessions… that’s maybe not so great actually.

Anyway, the Noro Basketweave scarf is done, and if you’re looking for a free pattern, you can see it here.

I rather like the oil pastel look it’s got going. But still can’t say that I would sell anyone into slavery for more Noro. More Baby Cashmerino perhaps….

Anyway, today is the first Sunday of the month which means there is two (Count ‘em) crafty markety things happening today and… to make matters much betterer:  tomorrow is a Public Holiday.  Which will be followed by a week that includes a trip to the dentist, a trip to Melbourne, Mr Toad taking a trip to the Supreme Court courtesy of his ex-common-law wife and a bunch of trips between places where my belongings are and where they are all going to be.  

Given that it’s a short week, that’s a lot of things going to be happening. Followed by next week , when I go diving into some 300 odd packing boxes.

Still have visions of me looking like a small hermit crab with my legs sticking out of a packing box as I try to unpack yarn.  Though I do have a Cunning plan. Any more applied cunning and I’ll have to use boltcutters and a balaclava.

The local Scout Group (don’t get there before me) is looking for jobs to do to raise money to send scouts to Jamboree.

Yep.

Now I’m thinking a great blow can be made in the direction of child slavery sending Scouts to Jamborees with the inherited benefit of actually sorting my yarn by composition, colour and conglomeration, if I employ a number of Scoutlets to unpack boxes and then play a Super Fun Matching Game! Followed by the even more fun game :  Place All The Yarn in Ziploc bags and then write on the front of the Zippy what the hell is in it.  Bonus points if I can remember to note down what I planned to make with the contents.

Unpacking is going to be fun – if only because i’m going to indulge my Fraggle side and watch seasons 1 & 2, back to back while I do it. And then I have:   The Dark Crystal, extended Gladiator and all the other DVDs I own I haven’t had a chance to watch in over a year.