My Life's Winding Roads: November disappeared - Merry Christmas everyone

My Life's Winding Roads: November disappeared - Merry Christmas everyone: Hi folks, here I am albeit a week late if I'm going month by month, this Blog will cover November as well as wishes for Christmas. Shees...

November disappeared - Merry Christmas everyone

Hi folks, here I am albeit a week late if I'm going month by month, this Blog will cover November as well as wishes for Christmas.

Sheesh where are the weeks going ?  This year has literally flown by and the last couple of months even more so, since I started my mending business.  It has been wonderfully busy as well as a learning curve all at once.  I still find it hard  to believe that I can earn money by sewing and mending.  If anyone had ever asked me where sewing was on my list of 'career objectives' it would have rated right down at the very bottom if at all, my Father God has a sense of humour. 🙂  I have had some unusual sewing 'jobs' but each one has stretched me and taught me something.  This past  week, among other things, I made and inserted pockets into three skirts, mended holes (some tiny and some enormous) in seven plush, fleece blankets - one blanket had twenty holes. And my favourite was removing a polo neck  on a brand new jersey, unwinding it to about 2 cm and reattaching a part of it onto the back neck of the jersey.  That one was fun.  A friend in the Village reminded me that I also mend and fix stuffed toys. I've had loads of experience with Princess and her Flopsy. The best part of all this is that I enjoy each item as a challenge.

Weather wise, we have gone straight from winter to a scorching summer - extreme temperatures and either a gale or not a breath of air.  Definitely not my favourite weather as most of you will know.  JB and I even put the Christmas tree up early in the vain hope of cooler weather 😂😂.  We figured that seeing as it has been yet another crazy year, why not start the Christmas season early and really get into the swing of the Season.  I am happy to say that apart from one stocking filler gift I have completed all my Christmas shopping. Yaaay 🙌.  I still  have some baking to do, my christmas cake amongst other things. 

Village news is that we are still mostly restricted from getting into Somerset West and Cape Town because we still have to go around the mountain and over the Pass.  Truly it now feels like a picnic basket and a flask of coffee is required for any trip in that direction, the result of that being, when we do go in I tak a detailed list for every stop.  The one thing I keep forgetting is Christmas Mince Pies 😭, only one of my most favourite things.

This past month did not pass without incident, and by would it ? Haha.  Over the time I have had my generic FatSak,  Jasper (BIG, fat, lazy tuxedo cat), has periodically peed on it to my immense frustration.  Up until a couple of weeks ago, I was able to get it clean. Then the piddle of all piddles and I tried everything I knew, all to no effect.  I was desperate and made a snap decision to cut off the offending section of the inner bag, wash it and then restitch it back in place.  I planned to remove any soiled foam at the same time.  Well ... The deeper I reached in the more smelly foam I pulled out. 🤦🏻‍♀️. This bag was originally 25 kgs of foam.  Washing the cover and the piece of the inner bag in the machine had worked perfectly, so that let me with only one solution - wash the inner cover and  the foam.  OMW do you know how many little pieces of foam make up 25 kg.  Hubby had the idea of pouring the foam into a queen size bed and base,  thick plastic, enormous bag.  Hmmm trying to lift that heavy a bag and pour the foam out did not work so we resorted to pulling out arm fulls and smelling it.  If it was not smelly it went into the bag, if it smelt it went into the bath.  We had a three quarter of a bath full of foam, soap, vinegar and bicarbonate.  My next job was to get it from the bath and spun and dried.  I tried a duvet cover it did not work.  Pillow cases did not work. Eventually I found the zip up inner cover from one of our couch cushions.  This worked like a charm, I half filled it in the bath dragged it into the machine, rinsed and spun, then hung the bag on the line.  I wore a path to the washing line with the uncountable  trips it took. Load after load after load.  All dry foam was then put in the big plastic bag which eventually split. Therefore there were two growing piles of foam 🤦🏻‍♀️🤦🏻‍♀️.  The inner bag got washed, the missing piece stitched back into place and refilling begun.  Good grief there was foam everywhere you looked, inside, outside, all over us and the animals.  We resorted to using plastic bowls to scoop foam back into the inner, together with liberal amounts of essential peppermint oil and citronella oil.  After much sweat, frustration and exhaustion we got it all back in, minus about 5kgs of foam  which I just tossed out because of total the exhaustion.  Despite the drama and hard work I now have a fresh, clean smelling FatSak.  This week one of my clients gave me a packet of linen savers  which I taped together and liberally sprinkled with citronella oil and I now drape it over the FatSak at night. 🙏🤞🏻 Please God that is the end of the story.

We also had a wonderful two day visit with Miss Muffet who did a flying trip back home.  It was really good to spend time with her and just reconnect and catch up.  Poppet also surprised us with a visit last weekend and we picked up on an old family tradition, which had slipped through the cracks the last few years.  We made yummy salad rolls and settled down to watch Dirty Dancing for the umpteenth time.  Our annual Christmas movie - my heart was warmed and full.

The rest of the family are all well and busy ahead of the holidays.  It is going to be a very strange Christmas this year because for the first time ever Princess will not be here (we will see her a few days later), Poppet will be with friends, the Bears will be away and Big Guy just cannot get down this year.  So for the first time since 1977 all but one of the kids, JB, will not spend the day with us. We are doing a mini Christmas with the CT based family on the 22nd with a video link up to Princess and Big Guy.  I am planning on cooking a big Christmas Eve dinner and then, on Christmas day the three of us will literally veg out and watch movies etc., no cooking just plenty of left overs.

This was a lot of news about a busy month, I will put the next Blog up before the New Year.  To all of you I want to say thank you for taking the time each month to stay connected to my crazy life. Thank you for your encouragement and comments.  From my family to yours I wish you all a truly blessed Christmas and wonderful holidays.  Please stay safe on the roads and wherever you may be. Ciao Ciao.

The jersey make over, before and after.

A glimpse of foam insanity

My Life's Winding Roads: What a month

My Life's Winding Roads: What a month:   Good morning to everyone wherever you are. Well ... What a month in just about every respect including  ending it off by winning the 2023 ...

What a month

 Good morning to everyone wherever you are. Well ... What a month in just about every respect including  ending it off by winning the 2023 Rugby World Cup, well done to our Bokke, you are the best, it really came down to the wire , nail biting from start to finish.  As you may remember, we entered the month almost cut off from everything - that actually hasn't changed much.  We can get through to Kleinmond, our closest town with a stop / go at the bridge, which allows only one lane of vehicles through at a time.  From there we can get to Hermanus also with a stop / go at the turn off to Hermanus, which is actually a 3 way stop /go as it is a T junction and turning left is our only way to Cape Town via Sir Lowry's Pass. Despite being a national highway it is not a pleasant drive as well as being quite dangerous on the Pass, it also takes an extra thirty minutes. As a result ,  trips to Somerset West are now down to only the most necessary.  We are actually very blessed to be in the Western Cape because out of 154 roads which were closed we are now down to 37. In other Provinces in SA most of these roads would still be closed.  Our beloved Clarence Drive is being worked on from both sides as there were so many areas affected, there is hopeful talk of it being opened on a stop / go system possibly before the end of the year 🙏.   Our weather remains completely upside down with no two days being the same.

I had my reconstruction done on the 3rd and it is not quite the full stop I had hoped for; it is a comma as the Dr feels there should be one more next year some time.  Despite having really had no issues with the first reconstruction, this one knocked me flat and exacerbated a bad flare which is still plaguing me.  I actually made contact with the Anaesthetist to find out exactly what drugs she used, because the nausea was so bad and lasted well over two weeks. Never mind the pain and bruising, shucks.  Having said all  that I could not be happier with the results and am loving my somewhat flatter tummy 😁.  I am in no hurry for the next one, and after seeing my Oncologist last week I am now officially cancer free for 2 years and 12 days) I am now on a six monthly check up with her, whoop whoop.  It has been a very long road but one that has taught me a huge amount about myself, compassion and life.  For all who pray and support me, I thank you. I can't imagine having done it without your love.

Work wise things are going well, it was a bit quiet in the middle of the month so which worked out perfectly. Then last week someone called and asked if I can alter curtains. Not my favourite thing to do but I said yes and she duly dropped them off.  Oh my goodness 😳 those curtains tested every reserve I had and then some. Apart from a fairly complicated alteration they were 2.72 m long, made out of expensive block out fabric with another thick block out  lining.  There were some areas that I could not even get the material into my sewing machine (I did those by hand).  It took me the entire week where the dining room table looked like a tornado had struck.  I eventually finished them at 17.00 on Friday afternoon and she happily collected them on Saturday.  That one goes down in my history book 🤣.  Late Friday another client brought in a pile of clothing which needs repairing and small alterations and I was so excited to see what needs to be done. As for Dragon Drizzle the oils went onto the shelf in the Coffee Shop on about the 18th, I haven't been in to see what's happening there.  But I do know I am gong to have to rethink my labels.  Unless there is light behind the bottles the label gets lost completely.

Hubby has a steady flow of clocks and has just rebuilt one for one of our local charities, after being given just  a box of loose parts.  He certainly has  a talent for them.  On a different note I am still trying to get my head around the fact  that my precious little Princess leaves home next Sunday to fly up to Gauteng and prepare herself for Varsity next year.  What happened to the tiny bundle that captured my heart the minute she opened her eyes in the delivery room?  We are having a joint belated birthday and going away lunch for her and Poppet and Hubby this coming Saturday.  I am going to miss her beyond all words.😥😥 as is her Mommy.

On Saturday we went along to Stony Point, our penguin colony to watch the release of rehabilitated penguins. Jelly Bean and I have wanted to go for so long and always miss it.  So braving the cold wind we stood in place and waited. It is always so very soul refreshing to be able to just look at the ocean and not hear anything but the pounding if the waves and call of the gulls .. At the end it was well worth the wait when they released twelve penguins and we  watched them trying to orientate themselves and slowly, slowly approach the water. Eventually one brave guy jumped in and the rest followed almost as one.  We were on a complete high after that, a bucket list item  -  ✔️.  Yesterday we went to a craft market just up the road and it was actually really lovely, lots of unusual things, local crafts and some yummy edibles.  I did not take Charlie as I had read that dogs were not allowed, I had to come home and apologise to him because there were two dogs  there 🤦🏻‍♀️ oops.

Well folks I think that about covers the past month without going into too many details hahaha.  Now the trot up to Christmas starts and I for one want to try and get as much done, as early as possible. I also want to send out a virtual hug to all of you that are battling with pressure, stress, depression, illness or sorrow.  Take a deep breath and just take life day by day, hour by hour and minute by minute where you need to.  If you find yourself waking up in the middle of the night in a panic about something, write it down and hand it over to God.   Keep a pen and paper by your bed.  That way you can let it go and deal with it in the morning with fresh eyes.

Stay safe and stay healthy folks.  Ciao Ciao.

Shipwreck from 1926 at Stony Point.

Penguin Release.

My Life's Winding Roads: And it rained and rained and rained

My Life's Winding Roads: And it rained and rained and rained: Good morning folks from a somewhat soggy village on the Cape Coast.  October has arrived and who knows what is in store for us. I am so grat...

And it rained and rained and rained

Good morning folks from a somewhat soggy village on the Cape Coast.  October has arrived and who knows what is in store for us. I am so grateful that with God as our  anchor and refuge we do not have to fear the future.

Living down here has certainly given me a deeper respect for the laws of nature.  When the wind is blowing gale force and the rain unceasing it can be somewhat daunting. Over the last three weeks we have had two bouts of extremely bad weather.  The second coming last weekend and causing the most damage to an already water logged area.  Betty's Bay hasn't actually completely dried out after the storms in June and July so it is only to be expected that we were in for a heap of trouble.  It started on the Friday,  and unusually for the Cape, it just kept coming down.  Poppet came through on the Saturday morning - after having such a strong wind where she  lives that it blew their  two surfboards flat and right  across the tiny balcony in the middle of the night.  Fortunately knowing how vulnerable our roads are, she left early enough to get through on Clarence Drive, our coastal road.   During Saturday night a really large portion of Clarence Drive literally just collapsed and washed away.  Sunday morning dawned and we found out that our three villages were completely cut off from everywhere.  The only other road out is via Kleinmond which includes crossing the Palmiet bridge, not something we ever give a second thought to.  Well ... not anymore. Along with the roads went our electricity which remained off in our road for the entire day. Some homes were without power for much longer.  Within hours all bread and milk was sold out and then following them the only petrol station sold out as well.  I'm not sure why everyone stocked up on fuel when there was nowhere to go 🤷🏻‍♀️.  Our home and property were undamaged as we are a little higher, we did however develop a couple of really prolific leaks.  In typical Sharon style I put a towel under the leak, totally underestimating it and after twelve hours only thought to add two bowls (3 litre capacity each) 🤦🏻‍♀️.  By Sunday they were both half full.  The deck also sprung a couple of leaks but I have learnt that this is part for the course living down here.  Eventually by Wednesday the Palmiet bridge had been partially opened to traffic with a stop/go in place.  Clarence Drive remains closed indefinitely.  Sadly large areas were largely without water completely due to damage to dams and infrastructure etc.  The entire town of Hermanus was completely out of water as was Kleinmond. Some areas have been restored but not all to  my knowledge.  Yesterday the main road linking us to Hermanus and Cape Town had to be partially closed due to collapse.   I will say that being totally cut off and knowing that you cannot go anywhere is quite a strange feeling.  In Betty's we had a little baby born during one evening, a child was helicoptered out after being knocked off his bike. There were numerous other medical emergencies which were dealt with by our local emergency medical teams.  The biggest thing was how everyone stepped up to help each other.  People in Kleinmond offered help and did shopping, then met people on our side and exchanged goods by walking over the bridge. Chemist personal delivered medication to the bridge where they were met by the recipients.  The manager of the Spar was taking people, four at a time, in his own vehicle, to his store to shop and then returning them to the bridge to walk across.  The tough part of the walking across is that parking on our side was a kilometre from the bridge, uphill.  It is a very special place to live.

Apart from the weather which was somewhat consuming, it was a busy month.  Hubby has made an incredible recovery and three weeks post op was given the green light to continue normal life, and respecting his knee.  He had ditched his crutches within ten days of having the surgery.  

Tomorrow I am booked in for what I pray will be my last surgery, the second part of my reconstruction.  It will be five days short of two years since my bilateral mastectomy and for me is a personal goal, or a full stop if you will, to say I am finished and healthy.

As for my little foray into business - Overstrand Mend and Patch, I have been more surprised than anyone else that I have actually had a fair amount of work.  On Thursday I had a lady ask if I could alter/ make more comfortable three dresses for her little daughter, before Friday evening.  Each 'job' I have had come in has been a challenge which I have really enjoyed conquering.  I have to think out of the box some of the time, but it seems to be working and my customers appear to be happy.  I also have an order with our very popular local Coffee Shop / Deli, for my Chilli Oil - Dragon Drizzle.  Delivery for the middle of the month, so will fit around my recovery.

In coming to a close I want to wish Poppet and Hubby a Happy Birthday for Tuesday and Thursday respectively.  Enjoy both of you and I pray each of you has a special day.

Folks that's enough for now, the weather really was the pivotal point of the entire month.  Despite all the issues for our area some other places were worse off and the list of road closures remains as long as an arm.  To all of you out there stay safe and stay healthy.   Until next month Ciao Ciao.

Clarence Drive

R43 Hermanus to Cape Town 

Franschoek mud slides

None of the above pictures are my own 

My Life's Winding Roads: Wait... What ??

My Life's Winding Roads: Wait... What ??: Hi folks, I can't even say good morning because noon has come and gone.     Is it just me or is anyone else feeling like they are on a t...

Wait... What ??

Hi folks, I can't even say good morning because noon has come and gone.   Is it just me or is anyone else feeling like they are on a treadmill and not quite keeping up?  Life seems to be getting busier and faster by the day. Wow !

Ok enough about me and why I am late with this months Blog, sorry all.  Even the weather is a tad confused I think. It is supposed to be Spring and is in some parts of the country, but the Western Cape is receiving mixed messages.  Warm(ish) for a couple of days and then wham cold front.  There is a saying down here that when you leave home be prepared for all four seasons before you get home. So true, I have so many locations tabbed on my weather app, because the temperature can be 15 c cooler or hotter not even 50 km away.  You've got to stay prepared 😄. 

August, if that is what just blew past, was one busy month.   Sadly,  the Bears had to say goodbye to their precious, eldest fur child, Gandalf.  G was diagnosed as a diabetic some years ago and had been sick for some time.  Despite doing absolutely everything humanly possible, with the best Vets, they had to make the incredibly heart breaking decision to  let him go over the rainbow bridge. It is so difficult to lose a member of the family and has been enormously difficult for them both. Galdalf you were a true legend boy. As some of you may know from previous years we as a family are in what I call birthday season. We had three in the last week of August and more coming up.  It was myself, BigBear and BabyBear and we were all blessed to be able to meet together on the Sunday in Stellenbosch (for a change of scenery) and had a super lunch at a quaint,  Italian Restaurant and then wandered around a bit and finished off with the most mouth watering, decadent Italian ice creams.  This was quite an event actually as Hubby had, had his knee replacement on the Tuesday just 5 days before.

The surgery went exceptionally well, he was discharged the following day and his recovery has been nothing but amazing. I am so surprised and yet not because it is exactly what we prayed for.  He has had no pain in the knee itself, only muscular aches and tightness.  Still walking with crutches,  more for balance than actually taking the weight off his leg. I walked in on him last week and he was walking holding both crutches in one hard .... as he saw my face he said "I've got both crutches "  hmmm yeah they should be in each hand carrying you.🤦🏻‍♀️   He has done so well and we are super proud of him.  The watches and clocks proved too much of a temptation for him and he goes to his garage almost every day and spends time working on them.

I conquered my overlocker, yaaay,  as a result and thanks to some encouragement from the family I have started a small business doing Mending and Patching.   Right now I am feeling a little overwhelmed as I had my first non-family client here earlier and she has left about 10 pairs of kids and adults jeans and pants that all need mending and fixing. I am probably more surprised than anyone but there you have it, people need someone who can just repair the tears and rips and give the item a few more years, hopefully. Poppet has been more than generous in offering to be a guinea pig and has endowed me with a whole heap of clothing that needs re-making, not even repairing 😜🤦🏻‍♀️.

My Calcium Drip last month knocked me for a bit of a loop, painwise which added to the fibro flare and my right arm was incredibly sore, it was a tough month. I have been going for Physio which certainly helps.  Having stepped in for the Hubster has also been a challenge, but one that is a delight to see him recovering so well, is so worth it.  I am not in the best place physically but take each day as it comes. God has been and is SO good to us, without His strength I would not be able to cope.

For some of the funnier moments of the month, most were vehicle related.  On the day of Hubby's surgery, it poured the entire day and JB and I were in and out the whole day. Going in he had told me to get some Automatic Steering Fluid and the garage would put it in.  Well garages don't sell it, so I went to the spares shop.  Such a nice guy who served me and then, in the rain, showed me where to put it and actually did it for me.  On my way to the hospital later the car was jerking and spluttering which was concerning to sat the least.   I mentioned it to Hubby, and in his doped up state he suggested I go to the garage and get them to blow air over the ECU 🙄, in case it got wet during the pouring of steering fluid, which it  did.  So ... off to the garage and they obligingly blew the air which did the trick.  Score 1 for drugged Hubby and 0 for Citroen.  This past Friday I took JB through to the Bears as she was house sitting there for the weekend.  This time we used her car.  All good until we got close to Cape Town when there was an engine alert sound but no signs or visuals.  I took care and eventually the sound became consistent but still no clue as  to what it was.  I could not explain to Mr Hubby because he was without a phone ( he dropped his and shattered the screen. I had just dropped of shattered phone for screen replacement).   The car appeared to be behaving  itself, except for the flashing red line and the beep.  On the return as I neared Somerset West I noticed steam coming out of engine, yet the temperature was not going up, my stress levels were though, rampantly.  I stopped at the first available garage and low and behold the water tank was empty which we refilles - gauge still normal.  Being the resourceful woman I am, I bought a 2 L water just in case I needed to refill the tank, this however was not needed. Apart from the red line there was no further issue and on arriving home Mr Mechanic hobbled around and cleared the computer fault. When he checked the water earlier he had closed the lid too tightly and pressure was building up and there must be a sneaky leak somewhere 🤔 🤷🏻‍♀️.  The moral of both stories is I now know exactly where water, oil, steering fluid etc go on both Citroëns.   Yesterday I took  his car to CT to fetch JB and oh I did so enjoy the smartness and smoothness hehe.  No issues either what a pleasure.

In closing folks I promised I would post pics of the plates Jelly Bean and decorated in our Sip and Paint class.  They came out tons better than we ever imagined whoop whoop.  We will be doing that again for sure.

Have a wonderful week all, wherever you are and please just remember a bad hour doesn't make a bad day, a bad day doesn't make a bad week and so on.  When the fan of life gets 'dirty' do what you can, step back, breathe and move forward.  If we don't do that we will forever be tossed around by the catastrophes and bad moments. Ciao Ciao

R.I.P. Gandalf the Great, 

Mine 

Jelly Bean's

My Life's Winding Roads: It was a long month

My Life's Winding Roads: It was a long month: Greetings everyone on this lovely mild late winters day.  July felt like it was a very long month in all ways; good grief, so much packed in...

It was a long month

Greetings everyone on this lovely mild late winters day.  July felt like it was a very long month in all ways; good grief, so much packed into one month that I am not quite sure where to start.  Weather wise July was COLD, there is no other way to put it.  We thoroughly enjoyed having our fire going most days and every evening as well. It almost feels like the weather knows the date because the moment August rolled over on the calendar it picked up a few degrees and has become a little bit milder.  I know I am definitely nowhere ready for summer 🌞.  

One of the highlights of my month was the most wonderful day out at a wine farm with the Bears.  They decided that it was Mom treat day and took both myself and BabyBear's Mom for the most splendid lunch and catch up time.  We spent the whole afternoon eating, chatting, laughing and then dozens of photographs were taken.  I came home on a high of love, feeling very special.  Thank you both again for such a special memory.

Another highlight was I just happened to see on Facebook a gentleman who recovers old Bibles.  My favourite Bible goes back to the 80's and is irreplaceable in terms of my notes, references etc. After having a chat with him I very carefully packed it and couriered it to him, here in the Cape.  Three weeks later I got it back, looking like new.  The original cover was so worn and even  torn in places and he has literally breathed new life into it, we are good to go for another 40 years.  If anyone wants his number please send me a message and I will be more than happy to pass his details on.

There have been lots of quick 'pop in' visits with the girls on various trips into town,  and in between her trips up to Pretoria we even have Princess come and stay for a few days which was very special.  I know that I am trying to squeeze in as much time with her before she moves as possible.    On her last trip up country she caught  flu which the Dr initially thought was swine flu, but turned out to be the RSV virus.bthank goodness there is no such thing as distance when praying.   She was really ill to the point that her return flight home was delayed by a few days.  Shame it was a rough month health wise for her  but thankfully she is now looking and feeling tons better.  

For those of you who are in South Africa you most probably know about the Taxi strikes we have had during the last week in the Western Cape.  Unfortunately Poppet had to go into the office last Thursday and the strike started sometime during the morning.  She left her office at 2pm and it took her until 6.45 pm to get home.  A journey of normally 40 minutes.  Every single road in and out of Cape Town was grid locked, the highways were at a standstill as the taxi drivers filled all lanes and then switched off their vehicles. So much stress and heartache. The roads are still being closely monitored by the authorities and not quite back to normal. More opportunities to pray unceasingly.

The culmination of all my tests and procedures was a visit to the Oncologist who is delighted with my results and has officially given me the all clear.  Apart from having the bi-annual calcium drip tomorrow I am done.  Hubby saw the Orthopaedic specialist and is booked to have a total left knee replacement on the 22nd of this month. We've known it was on the cards at some point which it turns out is now.  He has the same surgeon who operated on Princess and is excellent so we are praying for and claiming a successful operation with a trouble free, quick recovery. 🙏  There is still one final reconstruction operation for me, which I will schedule more towards the end of the year when Hubby is up and about.  This op for me is important in that I see it as the final, I'm done and dusted, door closed.

Miss Muffet and the family just came back from a summer holiday to Turkey and as the boys are on summer break and at a Camp for a week she and Mr Muffet jetted off to Ibiza for four days on their own - I'm not jealous at all 😉

Last Wednesday evening Jelly Bean and I whisked ourselves off to Kleinmond to do a Sip and Paint Pottery Class.  Oh what fun it was.  There were about eleven people and each person chooses an item to paint, chooses their paint colours and gets busy.  They provide wine and we had the most delicious sourdough breads with it.  Lots of chirping amongst everyone, lovely music and a general, all round evening of fun.  When we get our items back from being fired etc I will post a picture.  I must say that since CoVid there are now so many things to do in our area and surrounds, that we really do have the privilege of being able to choose whatever we want.  JB and I will definitely go back to the Sip and Paint evenings.

On the hobby side of my life I am 3/4's of the way through my biggest Diamond Dot Painting to date.  It is a custom picture I ordered of the sea and I cannot wait to see the finished canvas.  I was given another DDP on the Mom's day and have called that one the first of my 'stash'.  During a chat with the girls one day Poppet asked why I don't buy an overlocker and get to do more sewing.  It is something I have always wanted but never got around to making it a priority.  I know absolutely nothing about them and so phoned a friend who I knew years ago had one.  Well ... Within minutes she told me she hasn't used hers in years and promptly blessed me with it even though I wanted to pay for it.  I was speechless and on Friday my Overlocker arrived via courier, wrapped and stickered up with Fragile / this way up covering every centimetre of the box.  On Saturday I sat down with a YouTube tutorial and successfully threaded everything correctly, to my astonishment 😀.  Hubby then took it to the garage to give it a quick service but somehow broke the two needles.  I have now sat the entire weekend just itching to try sewing something / anything and looking at it.  First thing today is new needles and then the all important test......so watch this space folks 👀.  

On that newsy note I am going to end off (I need to get to the Haberdashery shop hehe) .  The last few weeks have been so busy that I have had a bit of a battle physically, in keeping up.  Apart from having the drip tomorrow my plans for the next week or so are all centred on catching up with myself and getting out of the nasty flare I've been in so that when Hubby has his operation I am ready to pick up his reins during his recovery💪🏻.  Folks thank you for your constant support, I wish you all a wonderful week and wherever you are please stay safe and stay healthy. Ciao Ciao

My gorgeous recovered Bible

Charlie back from the groomer sporting the latest Teddy Bear cut

My Life's Winding Roads: July has blown in

My Life's Winding Roads: July has blown in:   Hi folks, happy Monday to you all.  I am a little late today,  apologies it has been a rather busy month. With winter throwing all of its...

July has blown in

 Hi folks, happy Monday to you all.  I am a little late today,  apologies it has been a rather busy month.

With winter throwing all of its might at us throughout the month of June, the last two days have been like spring 🤷🏻‍♀️.   It has been the first proper winter since we moved down. Raining for days on end and gale force winds kept things interesting - I am absolutely revelling in it.  We lost a couple of plants but nothing serious.  My heart breaks for the people who were flooded and lost their homes and possessions .

Today was my last 'screening test' (I pray) for the year.  I had a Mammogram and Sonar and everything is normal. Gee it feels like the last six months have been one test or procedure after another. But, Praise the Lord I am fine and everything came out normal.  Fibro definitely upped its game though and so I have been trying to keep things as controlled as possible, not always successfully.
The girls moved on the 19th , we are praying that is is the last time in a while 🙏🏻.  They are now in a stunning apartment much closer to the sea in Somerset West and are so happy and content there.  The ten days before they moved both of them were in Pretoria and Jelly Bean, Charlie and I house sat and oversaw the packing up of the house.  We tried to get it to a state of just the big stuff to move on the day, and I would say on the whole succeeded. It was a smooth and hassle free event. By that night everything was unpacked, all boxes flattened and removed. Barr one or  two mirrors and art work they were done and dusted.  It seems that is just how we do it as a family. Haha. Humph flew up to Pretoria the day before the girls and is now staying with Princess' boyfriend in readiness for her move at the end of the year to go to Varsity.  I cannot believe  she is now 20 (she had her birthday in June) and on her way to study.  I know I am going to miss her dreadfully, we all will.
The rest of the family are doing well, working hard and in general keeping the work/play balance healthy.  At least Big Guy will be close to Princess when she moves.  She was an enormous blessing to her mom ahead of and during the move, organising, packing and doing the running around.  Well done my angel, I am so proud of you.  As a result of said move our house has filled up just a tad.  We are using Poppets huge fridge / freezer (ours is in the garage), her dining room table/chairs and benches have come here and look perfect on the deck, it is nice to sit and eat out there. We are storing quite a bit in the garage loft as well so it has been a bit of a knock on effect

A day or two before JB and I went through we had coffee with a very old friend of mine from our Bloemfontein days.  Oh my what a wonderful catch up and chat time we had with her. It really recharged my batteries.
The last Sunday in June the girls, the Bears and the three of us all met up for a delayed birthday/Fathers Day lunch at the Spur steakhouse on the beach on Gordons Bay - it has been about 7 or 8 years since we went to a Spur and it was lovely and relaxed, and again soo good to be together as a family, as usual missing those who live far away.

After really dragging it out I eventually finished my abstract Diamond Dot Painting.  I had a very clear vision of how I wanted it to look but alas when it arrived there were no gold drills.  I placed an order for gold and the wonderful woman that I order from, knowing what I was trying to achieve added a packet of deep yellow Aurora Borealis - AB -  drills at no charge, she truly knows her products.  I had left the gold until last and when I put the first few in they just disappeared in the design.  Taking them off and placing the deep yellow AB drills was absolutely perfect.  I am so happy at how it has turned out 😁.  Now onto my custom print, I started last week and am thoroughly enjoying the diversity it is giving me.  It has given me a challenge in the way the symbols are marked, my normalbway of labelling just was not working.  On Saturday I sat and relabelled all 44 colours with a different system and that has made it much easier.  My next challenge is finding non reflective glass for framing them.   In between DDP and everything else I am learning new crochet stitches.  I have a few projects awaiting me and want to do something different with them.  I made JB a bath mat and want to do one for our bathroom, except I want it to look like it was knitted. It shouldn't surprise me but there are a number of stitches that will give this effect.  I have a sampler next to my chair and when i get a chance I practise on the latest stitch I have seen.
What would my life be like without a bit of 'drama' or the unexpected.  We had two enormous ugly spiders, one whilst JB and I were away and one last week. Oh my goodness they are not good for my peace of mind LOL.   Then last week I could not find Zeepha.  I kept asking if anyone had seen her and Hubby said he had heard her scratching in the litter box.  By supper time she still had not out in an appearance and we went around checking her usual haunts only to come up empty.  As I walked past the deck I remembered taking something out from one of the benches earlier that morning.  Upon unclipping the latches and lifting the lid, guess who jumped out ?  🐈  Little Z had been in the benches all day and the scratching Hubby heard was her, just not in the litter box.  This is a cat who can't meow above a whisper 🤦🏻‍♀️.  We also realised, after a visit from the girls that Jasper has picked up quite a lot of weight.  He has always been a huge cat and we had noticed he was looking definitely more avocado shaped but didn't realise it was extra weight.  A whole 2 kgs.  What makes this a mystery is that he eats the same as Zeepha who still only weighs 2.8 kg.  A mystery for sure. He is an indoor cat so doesn't get to eat from neighbours etc.  We have changed his food to a weight management type and are watching to see if it makes a difference.  ⚖

Well folks a little bit late but I got it out.  Have a wonderful week and wherever you are please stay safe and well.  Ciao Ciao.

Abstract Diamond Dot Painting

The latest addition to the deck.

My Life's Winding Roads: Winter in the Cape.

My Life's Winding Roads: Winter in the Cape.: Good morning one and all from a very wet, flooded and cold Betty's Bay. 😁. For the first time since we moved down we are having a norma...

Winter in the Cape.

Good morning one and all from a very wet, flooded and cold Betty's Bay. 😁. For the first time since we moved down we are having a normal winter, and oh boy is Mother Nature making up for being late the last six years.  Last week in the space of twenty four hours we had 165 mm of rain, and it has rained every day.  Seeing the sun has actually become a novelty haha.  Praise the Lord we have been fine and only had a couple of small leaks appear, there are many homes in our Village and Pringle Bay who have not been so fortunate and have been completely flooded.  Given that most of our roads are dirt that has compounded the problem - some were washed away completely.  Our local municipality and Fire Volunteers are really on the ball and have provided sand bags, shelter, etc, where needed. Our beloved Clarence has been closed and re-opened couple of times due to rock falls and mud slides.  Last Monday JB and I drove into Somerset West amidst one of the strongest winds I have ever driven in.  It was fascinating looking across False Bay because the wind was so strong that it whipped up spray making the Bay look like a huge pot of steam.

May, like every other month recently was a busy month but in a super way.  We had the Bears as well as Poppet and Princess over for lunch on Mother's Day and were able to 'christen' the deck with family.  I am most confused re this deck as I have discovered that in choosing cotton calico for the curtains, they absorb all the moisture in the air and get so wet that at times they leave damp patches on the cushions ... what on earth??  Apparently cotton and towelling absorb the humidity and voila - wet curtains.  Having said that, after the last few days of non stop rain they have remained bone dry 🤷🏻‍♀️.  It would seem that we are going to have a investigate dehumidifier options.

We also had Princess come and spend a few days with us which was absolutely awesome and such a treat.   She was busy working on a model for her University application and we heard this past week that she has been accepted for her Interior Decorating studies. Very sadly that means she will be moving back to Pretoria at the end of the year, I can hardly believe it. 😢 Oh how she is going to be missed.

As for the whole family at least half of us have had and recovered from a nasty type of flu grrr, Princess is still shaking hers off.  The girls are moving in the middle of the month so there is a lot happening on that side of the mountain.  Hopefully this will be the last move for quite awhile and I pray that they settle quickly and happily in their new apartment, there is a lot happening in their lives.  Hubby has had an absolute influx of clocks and watches, he has been churning them out at quite a rate.  

On Friday I had to take Sasha (JB's little Maltese poodle of nearly 14 years old) to the vet because I could hear a wheeze when she breathed.  Thank the Lord she is a sturdy, healthy little girl and it turns out she has Bronchitis and is on a handful of meds, I'm not hearing anymore wheezing 🙏.  On the subject of dogs Charlie also had an interesting event earlier on in the week.  He had the zoomies and didn't see or didn't realise that the glass sliding door to the bedroom was closed and ran right into it. Well, you can imagine, there was a mighty yelp and cry and he was very subdued for a couple of hours and somewhat less energetic for a couple of days.  I felt so sorry for him, but we also couldn't help laughing because he wouldn't go anywhere near the door for the rest of the the night.    He just said stood staring at it with great suspicion.

 Last weekend I got down to making both of the dogs some new jackets which are a 50/50% success haha.  They are fleece and somehow at night when he snuggles down under the duvet he manages to get one leg out of the neck.🤷🏻‍♀️ The first morning when I saw him he was lying in his back and the jacket had wrapped around him so it looked exactly as if he was wearing a nighty 🤣  We have seen Tilly the tortoise a good few times, but she is really good at hiding, I was so worried about her with the cold and rain and have has to console myself that in the wild she would be no better off. Oh my word there are never two days the same in this house.  On a quick side note, my Bamboo tree survived and is looking fairly happy despite being accidently poisoned, whew.

As for hobbies 😉 I finished JB's gorgeous socks.  I also finished my big Protea diamond painting.  I know you are all waiting for pic's but I want them all framed before I do that.  The Protea is framed but I am going to paint the frame with a pewter effect.  The scarry part of finishing it, is the abstract that I had waiting is small in comparison.  I have ordered a custom print painting which will only be ready on the 27th June and so here I am trying to drag out doing the abstract or I will have nothing to work on.  I can tell you now it's not going to work  because it is 3/4 done.   I am also going to substitute one of the colours with gold Drills/beads and they will arrive with my new one.  Oh what a horrible position to be in 🤔😥

I had my last investigative procedure on the 8th May and the Dr was happy to report a clean and healthy colon and a not so happy tummy.  Apparently I had the Helicobacter Pylori bacteria which caused lots of small ulcers.   He put me onto two antibiotics as well other meds and I trust and pray it is all sorted. 🙏

Well folks, as they used to say in the Disney cartoons, that's it for this month.  Already June is looking to be varied and busy.  Wherever you are please stay safe and healthy, if you are in South Africa stay warm and dry.  Ciao ciao.

Not my photo or videos.  Bettys Bay last week.

One street below us

Good bye April, hello May

That reminds me of a song from waaay back when : Goodbye Sam, Hello Samantha sung by Cliff Richards.  The minute the music starts I can remember all the words, but cannot always remember why I walked into a room 🤦🏻‍♀️.  Good morning folks both near and far, for those in South Africa, enjoy the last day of long weekend and for those everywhere else, I hope you are ready for the new week and month ahead.

April was a good month here in our abode.  The curtains are now hanging and look stunning as well as keeping the bright sun off the deck.  Let no one ever say that eyelet curtains are easier or cheaper than the normal tape ones, they are not ! So now we have a finished deck, curtains up and just cushions to make.  'Our' next big project which is due to be started now is to  retile our shower and refloor the bathroom as well as paint the roof.  We have a very real challenge down here with the bathrooms (particularly the showers) not drying properly and growing mould.  This being despite the actual shower having a window directly in it.  

On Saturday after MUCH searching for a sock pattern, knitted on two normal needles, I began a pair of socks for Jelly Bean.  We bought some really lovely sock wool last Monday and eventually I found a pattern in a Vintage Pattern online.  Once I got going it became enjoyable although it must be noted, we have a much simpler way of writing patterns nowadays haha.  I  am working downwards towards the toes of sock one currently.

Diamond paintings are coming along and we are both about two thirds completed with an extra waiting to be started.  My next one is going to be very different from the first three in that it is an abstract design 👏🏻.

There have been a few trips into SW throughout the month, which have turned out to be mostly enjoyable.  We discovered an Asian grocery store, right next to Geldorf's Chocolates (oh dear that is definitely a shop to be avoided as much as possibly).  JB and I  went looking for material for the cushions and after months of indecision, finally found exactly what we need and I envisioned.

Hubby has delivered the bulk of clocks and watches he was working on and received a very sad little cuckoo clock this week.  It is missing the 'lady' who comes out, a decorative mushroom, the pendulum and the weights. So , a little bit of a challenge to track down the requisite spares.

Yesterday Poppet came over with Humphrey, Princess is in Pretoria for the weekend.   I made a big pot of beef curry and we had that with naan bread and samoosas.  Followed by a delicious rainbow cake, all three supplied by Poppet.  It was a lovely, lazy, quiet day where everyone was laid back and chilled.  I managed to squeeze in a batch of gluten free cheese muffins just as she arrived, so that takes care of snacks for a day or three.  Warmed up in the microwave with melted butter ... Nom nom.

I must confess I think I may have inadvertantly killed my bamboo plant.  It is a  few years old and it has done really well.  Earlier this year I bought a tall vase for it (the cats broke my other one) and not being sure if the vase was going to rust I decided to coat it with a waterproof lining.  After much serious discussion with the hardware store and reading numerous labels we settled on a product which seemed perfect.  Eco friendly, coated well, waterproof etc.  I followed all the steps and left it for almost two months to make sure it dried properly, before putting my bamboo into it.  After a good few weeks I noticed the lower leaves had turned yellow and took it out to investigate (it is a water bamboo). Shock and horror, my bamboo's leaves were all coated in grey. As I emptied the vase all the 'waterproof sealer' washed down the sink together with the water.  It had just absolutely dissolved 🥺.  Immediately I gently rinsed off the roots and placed it into a clear container where I can monitor it.  First of all it looked ok but in the last week or so I have seen more yellowed leaves.  I was so proud of my bamboo and am going to have to start all over again from scratch. Grrrrr.

Health wise my 'month off' was enjoyed and greatly appreciated.  My Bone Density tests and breast Sonar were last week and went without a hitch.  Bone Density has improved but I will still need the Six monthly Calcium Drips.  The Gastroscopy and Colonoscopy are scheduled for the 8th then I am done for a couple of months 👏🏻🙏.  I have had very intense reactions to something which we initially thought were mosquito bites, now not so sure.  The 'bite' becomes incredibly sore and itchy, they also feel a bit like a cigarette burn. Then a large area of cellulitis appears which can last for two to three weeks, Fibro is such fun ... NOT !!! 🤷🏻‍♀️

Weather wise it is absolutely glorious.  Warmish days and cool nights, we are even in winter pyjamas already 😀.  We have had some lovely rains and some pretty hectic gale force winds.  You never know what you will find in the garden after a night of crazy wind, thankfully apart from a few broken branches nothing unusual has been found.  My heart does go out to the birds trying to get to the water feeder, they fly towards it but end up going backwards even quicker, eventually they figure it out.  Currently we are having our 'annual' bee suicide event where they wiggle their way into the bottle and then drown. For the next few days I will leave the water feeder empty in the hopes that they go somewhere else.

Have a wonderful month folks, stay safe and stay healthy.  Ciao Ciao.

From a glorious Betty's Bay

From this, after we put the roof trusses on

Sleeping pals.

My Life's Winding Roads: Good bye April, hello May

My Life's Winding Roads: Good bye April, hello May: That reminds me of a song from waaay   back when : Goodbye Sam, Hello Samantha sung by Cliff Richards.  The minute the music starts I can re...

My Life's Winding Roads: Wishing you all a blessed Easter.

My Life's Winding Roads: Wishing you all a blessed Easter.: Greetings and salutations to you all on this lovely Easter weekend.  I hope wherever you are you have relaxed and have a safe journey home. ...

Wishing you all a blessed Easter.

Greetings and salutations to you all on this lovely Easter weekend.  I hope wherever you are you have relaxed and have a safe journey home.

For the first time since we moved down autumn started on time and we have had a cool wet Easter weekend, in the '80's the first cold front always arrived over Easter.  For the last number of years the heat and absence of rain have lasted right through into May so, imagine my delight at being able to wrap up a little 😁 truly a happy bunny.   Last month was, as expected filled with all sorts of things.  Despite his concern and the rush, my surgery went well, the Gynaecologist removed a tumour which was benign Praise God, everything else went as planned. I have finished with Physio for my arms and everyone is delighted with my progress.  My right arm is still a little stiff but exercise is working.  I also had to see my Oncologist for a scheduled check up, everything is good there and all tests normal 🙏.  She still wants me to have a Colonoscopy and Gastroscopy but agreed to give me a 'month off' to recover and with no procedures.  It feels like I'm on holiday haha.

It was Jelly Bean's birthday and she really wanted to go and see the penguins at Boulders Beach, Simonstown. We went with the girls and decided to make a day of it.  There were so many people crowding the walkways which was quite a surprise, it has become a huge tourist attraction.  No one can get close to the penguins but it was very special seeing them and seeing their eggs in their nests.  From there we went to a wonderful restaurant in Kalk Bay where we sat and played Kwirkle, a really fun card game.  Afterwards we decided that the next time we want to see and get close to the penguins, it will be to our colony 900m up the road from our house 😀.

Deck news - I spent one and a half weeks making curtains for the deck, oh my goodness....never again.  I bought 2.8m wide material and just trying to cut the drops was a mission, eventually we cut the last four on the floor of the deck.  The widest curtain is 5.6m wide 🤦🏻‍♀️. I had ordered eyelets for them from Takealot as I needed 120.  Once the time came to put them in I realised they were totally unsuitable and also too small grrrrr.  That is the point where you just want things finished.  The next trip to town and I purchased the correct ones, not cheap by any means, and then spent two days cutting the holes and clipping them in.  I asked Hubby to go after me and just click in the bits which I wasn't strong enough to do. He then tootled off to buy rods to hang them on which, once we started we realised the rods were not thick enough.  So this week back to the shops for thicker, stronger rods and then HANG the curtains.

Awhile ago we had the Volvo towed into a Volvo repair centre where it sat whilst they tried to figure out the problem.  It took a good long while and they came back to us saying that it needed a new ECU and a new Harness (I'm just repeating what I know, doesn't mean I KNOW what they are 😃). Again these things cost a small fortune.  We had claimed on our householders policy for water damage to the ECU last year.  With a prayer and crossed fingers we submitted the new quote and Praise  God they paid out in full.  We have had the car back for over a week and she is running well and Hubby is a very happy man.  All in all it was just short of two years that she stood here. God is so good to us.

On Good Friday we were invited to the Bears for lunch and I must say it felt very smart driving along in the Volvo.  We had the most delicious lunch, they truly outdid themselves and we enjoyed a memorable afternoon with them just chatting, catching up and  generally relaxing together.  Thank you both for such a special day.

The diamond art is still being thoroughly enjoyed by JB and myself.  Princess has also been busy as she did a multi panel one for her boyfriend, after completing her first one.  Poppet is also busy but I am not sure how far she is.  JB and I sit and do ours in the afternoons during loadshedding.  I have finished three and she is on her second.  I ordered a beautiful one which I want to put in the bedroom and for Jelly Bean's birthday I was able to order her a custom painting of a Nebula, which is going to be stunning when done.  I eventually found the right product to seal them with and now they are waiting for Mr Hubby to make frames.  It is an addiction but quite the most rewarding and relaxing one I have come across.

And  that folks is my month of March in a nutshell, as always busy with a number of different things and thoroughly enjoying my 'month off'.  We have been given some plants which we are currently getting into the ground, cushions to make for the deck benches, watches and clocks to be repaired, frames to be made and so it goes on.

I pray you all have a good month of April, may it be a month of answered prayers, blessings, good health and God's protection.  Ciao ciao.

Gorgeous view from Simonstown across False Bay to Rooi Els.

Penguin Colony at Boulders Beach

Probably wondering why everyone is staring at them

Junior nagging mom

Not old enough to nag.

'Tilly' currently somewhere in our garden

My Life's Winding Roads: Whoosh we are in March.

My Life's Winding Roads: Whoosh we are in March.:   Hi everyone   from a windy and somewhat cooler little Village by the sea.  Yesterday and Saturday we had some god rain with a Level 6 warn...

Whoosh we are in March.

 Hi everyone from a windy and somewhat cooler little Village by the sea.  Yesterday and Saturday we had some god rain with a Level 6 warning of high winds, thunder storms and heavy rains.  So far it has been bearable, although the humidity levels are still unbearably. uncomfortable. The one thing I dislike intensely is humidity, it must be a sign of global warming because I remember back in the 80's  when we lived here it was virtually non existent, the winters were colder as well 😢

Well, just as predicted February was a crazy month but with nothing outstanding to report as such.  It was tons of trips to Somerset  West for one thing or another. Thankfully there was somewhat of a reprieve as far as Clarence Drive was concerned.  It reminded open with stop / go's in place and just my luck will be closed from today until the 23rd.  Closed from 8 am to 6 pm.  What I mean by just my luck is tomorrow I have to go into hospital for yet another 'procedure' as a result of the Dr's appointment I mentioned in my last Blog. (I know, it is hard.to.keep up). It is going to be an invasive day procedure which means that we will have to wait it out at Poppet's house until  6 pm rather than taking the double length trip back home when I am discharged.  Having had the anaesthetic and manipulation on the 17th Feb for my shoulders, which was a great success in that I have a much better range of movement (the specialist was delighted and signed me off on Thursday at my post 'op' appointment.)  I had been hoping to delay this new event until the end of March but the Dr was not at all happy about that, so here we go again.  I will say this - I am praying, I am positive but, I am also tired. Tired of the constant unknown as well as recovery times which just seem to roll into each other.  My shoulders were quick despite being discharged with both arms in slings.  The right strapped to my body and the left just in a sling, Sheesh talk about awkward.  There is still a a lot of black bruising and pain but so much better than what it was, thank You Lord.  Tomorrow's little deal is going to put me on downtime for about a week, grrrr.  To that end I have spent the last week or so getting up to date on all chores and spent the weekend baking Hubby's risks and some gluten free biscotti for myself.  If anyone knows how to cut biscotti without them breaking I am ALL ears, it doesn't matter if I wait 5, 10 minutes or cut them immediately they come out ... They break 🙄

On Friday Hubby finished the cat litter box - a kist like box in which we have put their litter box and some artificial grass to stop / greatly reduce the tracking of litter (something that really bugs me).   We also purchased the material and tape for the curtains, which we need to get to and then, apart.from the cupboards we can finally sign the deck off.  I sat outside there yesterday reading with both Charlie and Zeepha curled up next to me, it was heaven for awhile until it just got too hot. The curtains will help with that in the mornings, but the afternoons are perfect out there.  We have hung up the hammock seat as well so it is really starting to look lovely and inviting.  

Family wise everyone is well.  Jelly Bean and Princess spent last weekend house sitting for the Bears and had an absolute blast. They walked the length of Sea Point despite one being on crutches and just had so much fun 🙂.  The diamond dot painting urge has spread from Jelly Bean and I to both the girls, Princess is like a little machine, she goes so fast.  JB and I try and pace ourselves so as not to finish too quickly hehe.  It is one of the most relaxing hobbies I have done.

What would my Blog be without a bit of drama and humour ?  On one of the numerous trips to SW, the last time Princess came to visit, JB and I did all the necessary stops and shopping before collecting her.  When we pulled up JB heard a hissing and Lo and behold my left back tyre was in the process of going flat.  So a speedy collection and I drove to the closest garage which is right opposite their Estate.  The guys there although helpful, were unable to help and no one could find the spare, it took awhile to realise it is under the car !!  Seriously what were Citroen thinking in terms of a women having to change a tyre ? 🤷🏻‍♀️.  The garage was just a filling station with no workshop.  May I note here that the temperature that day was about 43c in SW. So, I asked them to pump it up as much as possible, enlisted Google and took off for the nearest tyre place. I was waved immediately onto the ramp and within minutes the guys and manager were at work.  It took two of them to get the spare tyre out from under the car.  We were shown into a blissfully cold, air conditioned waiting room.  The guys called and showed me that the side tyre wall had in fact cracked from old age, apparently those tyres were fitted in 2010, way to go Michelin.  The spare was retrieved, tested, pumped and fitted in short order with the now flat tyre being wrestled into its nest under the car.  By now I was just short of a melted puddle of humanity and duly went to pay and collect the girls.  Imagine my surprise when the manager said there was absolutely no charge and to have a safe trip home.  Wow... So unexpected and a top class level of service.  

Well folks I think that covers most of the highlights of the last few weeks, I am truly counting the days to winter and some lowering of the mercury, it has been a brutal summer.  I have armed myself with a new stack of books for on the library, and between that and my Diamond Art am more or less geared up for this week.  I wish you all a wonderful week / month ahead.  Stay well and stay safe.  Ciao ciao.

A few quick peeks at the deck as it is currently, awaiting cushions, curtains & cupboards. (Cat litter box 'kist' under the window)