I’ve been having a good run of things lately. Going down to the pool in the mornings, doing bits and pieces around the house… starting to feel like I might get back to “normal”. That’s until last night – pains that I haven’t had for a while, keeping me awake, and then in bed most of the day. I’VE GOT THINGS TO DO!!! 😆
I’m not entirely sure why – lugging stacks of large, heavy books around yesterday may have something to do with it. I struggled with the “shoulds” today, then eventually realised it would be a day of resting, not doing much… small movements and small joys where I can find them!
I didn’t get to do the laundry, or finish organising my bookcases. I did do a bit of photography – little vignettes of my small things dotted about to make the place bright. 🙂
Little vases, with little bouquets…
A brightly coloured insect I fished out of the pool the other day
…and a single frangipani with a yellow-tinged feather!
Today was our normal scheduled fortnightly shop. There’s usually no dramas – we go in, get what’s on the list, go home, have coffee. Today just happened to coincide with the hours before the three day lockdown for Brisbane and surrounds. Notice that it’s for…three days.
Thankfully we tend to get there not too long after the shop opens, so that we still have the rest of the day to do stuff. It was a bit busier than usual, but we got a parking space, and there was still plenty milk and toilet paper. By the time we got to the checkouts there were lines stretching towards the back of the store. Trying to get out of the car park was another story… there were lines of cars circling, waiting for a space. Someone offered me money for my trolley as she waited in her car for us to vacate our space (I refused, as we use a token that I wanted to get back). I could see here point, though, when I got back to the trolley park – there were none left at all! I really enjoyed that coffee once we got home…
This lockdown goes until Monday night. I presume it will be reassessed when there’s more information about the possible spread of the new strain of COVID, so perhaps it will stretch for longer than Monday. I’d be surprised if anyone is likely to starve within those three days, though. Especially if you can afford to fill trolleys full of …stuff. Still, I can’t really talk. We have a full fridge.
The uncertainty of 2020 looks like it will pop up throughout this year as well. I hope we remember the lessons learnt last year, of giving to those in need and taking care of the vulnerable, of simplifying life and relishing the quiet spaces.
Here’s a bowl of frangipanis. Because the trees are still flowering. ❤
My angel is presiding over the tree for her 26th year.
Once again the boys enjoyed spending the time with us – they badgered us a bit about when we’d get round to it, and kept asking this morning until we eventually started. They have their favourite decorations to put up. Biggest Boy asked about the “birdnade”, which I hadn’t yet found… it’s a quite pretty ornament of a robin on a pinecone but, yes, it does look a bit like a bird sitting on a grenade! 😆
I do love decorating for Christmas! ❤ Most of these have been around for a while, but we’re a bit overrun with tiny gnomes this year.
What other news? I finally got around to getting my hair cut. With COVID and everything else this year, I haven’t had it done…it was probably around this time last year I had my last cut. I like it short, but I hadn’t realised there was quite so much grey!
Went down to the pool this morning, for the first time in a while. I had been picking up the fallen frangipanis whenever I went down. It seems to be their flowering season so because I hadn’t been for a while there were a lot more than I usually get. I’ve put them in a bowl, which looks nice and smells sweet.
At least it seemed like it at the time. Yesterday I was in for an endoscopy, a procedure I have done every couple of years or so. It requires fasting from food and drink for a period of time, so this was a feast by the time I got to see it. Everything went smoothly – the procedure itself apparently takes about ten minutes, but there’s the waiting around and the prep and recovery time. For some reason, in the last year or so, I’ve had trouble having blood taken/drips put in. My veins seem to hide or disappear, and even when they get a line in the blood doesn’t always come out… the anaesthetist had trouble yesterday and had to use an ultrasound machine to find a vein. She got the line in but it only drew blood sporadically, so she had to use the other arm, and eventually put it into my hand. I find that very painful, but you have to go with what works… Apparently as you age your veins can get a bit “valve-y” (obviously a medical term) and the valves resist the needle. At least it worked in the end, and the sedation went quickly.
I can’t remember how many endoscopies I’ve had, but I know they’ve changed a lot since my first one. The first time I don’t remember as much talking, although the procedure was explained to me. This time I had a good old chat with the nurse, the anaesthetist, the orderly who wheeled me in, and a little bit with the doctor. This was mostly about procedures and any fears I might have, but also about our families and whatever else. These days I believe the sedatives are a lot lighter – just enough to keep you under. My first time I had to be wheeled in to recovery on the bed and then come to at some point. I don’t remember a lot of that, as I was unconscious. Eventually I was able to get off the bed onto a chair, then try to eat something. This time (and last time) I woke up in the procedure room, walked to the recovery area, and had my gourmet meal straight away. I hate the process of going under sedation, and always feel a bit panicky at that point. It’s quick, though, so I don’t have time for too much panic! There’s also the memories of earlier times, when I would feel a bit sick and scarily disorientated after. It would also take three or more days to get over the sedatives. Thankfully it’s different now! I was having a lovely dream when I woke up. Something about books, but I can’t remember what… I still feel groggy today (I feel like I’ve been in a fight…), and will probably take it easy, but it’s a lot different to earlier times. I still have to have a “responsible adult” around for 24 hours after the procedure, so if you want me to sign anything or operate heavy machinery, you’ll have to wait 😀
That was a lot more writing than I thought I was going to do! Long story short, hospital procedures don’t need to be scary, at least the planned ones – I’ve not had emergency surgery before, so I can’t speak to that. I do know that whatever I’ve had done lately, I’ve come across competent, professional people who know what they need to do but also understand that we might be a bit worried and need reassurance.
I also have another source of comfort…I knew on Monday that I might be a bit out of it yesterday, so I did my Bible readings for both days. Here’s my verse for yesterday –
“So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.” – Isaiah 41:10
😀
What other procedures yesterday? More like “procedurals”, and murder mysteries. Since I knew I wasn’t going to be good for much in the way of deep thinking, I decided to just read and sleep yesterday. I went with the classics (Ngaio Marsh, Agatha Christie, P.D.James) Also – zinnias! ❤ They’re Mambo Pink, and are bright enough for this greyish day.
Generally, we only go out for coffee or a meal to celebrate something special. The other day we went for breakfast, just because we could… It wasn’t for a particular reason, but it was still a chance to celebrate just having the opportunity.
And with food like this, why not? Also the accompanying drinks – chai tea and caramel latte, with separate components to combine as we wished.
There was a time when we had no spare money to go anywhere, and family holidays were out of the question. We told ourselves that they weren’t necessary, and we were happy without. Then some friends found they weren’t able to use their timeshare on the Gold Coast, so they gave their time slot to us. It was wonderful! We hadn’t realised how stressed and worn out we were, and it gave us the chance to have some peace for a bit. Holidays aren’t necessary – there are many people who don’t have the luxury of time off – but we realised that we wanted to at least try to go away as a family whenever we could. We haven’t been able to for a few years now, but we still see the value of time away.
My garden is still alive (yay!) and has been enlarged by some plants from a friend. They’re looking a bit sad at the moment, but I’ve been watering, so hopefully they’ll settle in soon.
These are at the back, and don’t look too great, but are bouncing back!
This popped up sometime today 😀
These are at the front. I chose the ones that seemed sturdiest for this garden. Also – more flowers!
I’ll keep watering, and probably keep peering out the window each morning to see what’s new…
My good life doesn’t really have to do with expensive things (although they’re OK 🙂 ) It’s enjoying what’s living and growing, and experiencing the beautiful in everyday. ❤
My new garden is three days old, and seems to be doing fine 🙂 My little Pig Faces are growing lots of flowers!
These were taken in the morning – sunny little faces smiling at me, making it hard to resist smiling back. Unfortunately a little neighbour thought the same thing this afternoon, and a couple of flowers were picked… I gather a little chat with Mummy will prevent further issues, though. It seemed a shame to waste the flower that was dropped, even though it was already closing for the day…
I’m not a natural gardener. Every so often I decide to fill some pots with herbs, or vegetables, or sometimes flowers. None of these have survived. I have some pots full of succulents, but they seem fairly indestructible. The aloe vera is spreading across the front garden. And I do have a large rosemary bush that just keeps hanging on. I just can’t get things to grow in pots. I had decided to give up, after getting tired of seeing the array of dead, dry dirt and sticks in the line of pots out the back. I emptied them out yesterday and swept away the spilled dirt, along with my high hopes for a lovely garden… This morning, though, we got some more plants. I’m going to try just planting in the garden outside the front window – this is where the rosemary and aloe vera is, and seems to be the best bet for survival. We bought a new hose as well, so it’ll be easier to water regularly 🙂
Not an especially inspiring image so far, but we’ll see… There are sunflowers in the back, zinnias dotted about the middle, and that biggish bush is lavender.
It’s bigger to start with, which hopefully will give it a better chance.
My final choice was a flower I’ve seen in other gardens, but didn’t know its name. I looked round the garden centre and eventually found some. I think it’s a lovely flower – bright, cheerful, just the right size. It also, for some reason, is called “Pig Face”.
Amidst all the home concerts in these isolation days, here’s Kermit, sharing a rendition of “The Rainbow Connection” from his swamp.
I remember when this first came out, and I’ve always loved it. I probably wandered round my backyard singing it when I was a kid, and it never fails to cheer me up!
Have a listen. You’ll be glad you did 🙂
Excuse me as I wipe away a tear, while grinning like an idiot…
Went for a walk yesterday. It’s been ages!
I didn’t go far, but reveled in the fresh air. Took some photos of blue skies and trees that aren’t the ones I can see from my back patio…
The light is still shining 🙂
…and here’s my heart-for-the-day!
(I didn’t see it until I looked at my photos)
On the way back home I stopped for a chat with the neighbour – we’ve got some good sized grassy areas for kids to run around in (with shoes on, because of the prickles), so we could chat while keeping our distance. They were looking at a tree with hundreds of butterflies, so I took a video, for when I need some relaxing beauty…
…or, at least, people who start a recipe without checking they have all the ingredients!
I’ve been meaning to make banana bread for a while – we’ve had bananas in the fridge needing to be eaten. Slightly over-ripe bananas are apparently ideal for baking. Unfortunately these had long since gone past just over-ripe…
I also didn’t have enough brown sugar, but since the bananas were unusable, that didn’t matter too much!
I looked through the cupboard and the fridge/freezer, and ended up with –
Cinnamon, blueberry and lime cake!
Yum! 😀
I was very pleased with how it turned out, particularly since I didn’t use a recipe.
What should I make tomorrow?
a bit of creativity, a bit of eco consciousness, a bit of inspiration.... hopefully not a lot of pompousness and blathering :D
i'm not entirely sure what's going on here... let's travel along and see...
1000 Fields of Roses 