Ruby and my Clayton's retreat - Week 3

 This is the last week of my time with Ruby as the family get back on Saturday. We are both still alive.

My first job this week was to cut a heap of scraps into squares or store as strips but before I did that I tested out my new little craft iron bought some time back to flatten the very crushed scraps that were donated to me.

Then I had to write instructions for our Rainbow group's next block. Elaine came over and we discussed ways it could be done and it is now ready to post out to everyone.

Then there were all the aboriginal artifacts to post off to the Central Land Council is Alice Springs to package up. They had expressed an interest in some of the items Surrey had collected when botanising in Central Australia since the 1960s.

I went to get my covid jab yesterday then wondered why I spent the afternoon just sitting at the back window. I was really tired. No other reaction though.

Once all the scraps were ironed I sat at the dining table cutting the squares while watching TV on my laptop. Having finished Clarkson's Farm I then started Young Sherlock and have been enjoying that. I thought Ellen and Pete might enjoy the background image that appeared on my laptop yesterday.

Today I went to my exercise class and met a new member who is a mad quilter. She invited me to hers on my way back to my car after our light lunch at the club. She has been trying out folded hexies which look like fun.

Tomorrow Cathy and I will be gardening and filling my green bins yet again then I hope to have time with Stephanie in the afternoon.

Ruby and my Clayton's retreat - week 2

 Ruby and I are now all alone and coping very well with both our health issues. My BP seems to have stabilised and my secret women's business health issues are less of a worry.

Ruby has taken up residence at the back window and protects me from all the birds she sees outside. At night she seems quite bewildered by the dark and shadows and the noises as we do our little walks.

My second jig saw progressed quite easily until I got to all the pale section in the middle.

I eventually got to the last little section.

Then I had a surprise visit from Geoff and the girls who helped with the remaining pieces.

Ruby loves the sun at the back door in the afternoon when it is not actually raining. We've had so much rain over the last few weeks.

Evenings are quiet times together while I watch Clarkson's Farm on Prime.

I have started sorting scraps of fabric and will soon be at the end of a huge box of bits I was given at Baradine when I was last there. Because most of the bits are quite crushed I am taking this opportunity to try out my mini craft iron. It is quite good and will be very handy.

I have done 2-3 loads of washing left behind by the family when they left for their holiday and by Ruby as we tested out various blanket options. Luckily it can actually dry under shelter but it takes a few days.

Only one more week for Ruby to have to put up with me. I've missed a few visits to Mum and have had to give up a few other activities so that I am home for Ruby's lunch schedule. However, apart from the loneliness all is well.

Ruby and my Clayton's Retreat

 My job for 3 weeks is to look after Ruby while Ellen and Pete have a holiday with their big kids. Ruby needs lots of care as she is allergic to anything other than her medial grade food going into her gut. No crumbs, no snacks and no treats. Therefore, the big clean last week.

We've had a week learning the ropes in my home while Ellen has stayed with me. The family left yesterday evening so now we are on our own.

I have decided with the high BP diagnosis, visiting my Mum every few days and being home to give Ruby her 2pm lunch every day that I am having an 'at-home retreat' for three weeks. The week started with Ellen, Pete and Ruby arriving last Friday.

Ellen had Ruby's bed all set up and a place at the back window for her to sit in the sun.

My first job was some handsewing on a quilt I am making.

We had a family gathering with Casey and Ellie to wish Ellie a happy birthday.

Then I started a jigsaw that I had borrowed from a friend whilst at Baradine. 

As the week progressed so did the jigsaw.

I did go to my exercise class on Wednesday but did not visit Mum. Then came home for more jigsaw. It is a very difficult one because although the patchwork bit seems all different colours, when you actually try to put it together they are all very similar. Also the pieces are all different shapes as you'll see if you click on the picture below. I don't think there is any piece the same as any other.

Cathy came to help with the garden on Thursday and Ruby and she were able to have a cuddle.

We hung the washing out in the first sun of the week.

We did lots of edging and spread my new wool mulch mat from Woolgrow Australia over my asparagus patch to stop the weeds growing over winter. I'll have to watch in spring and open a hole or two for the asparagus or even remove the mat completely.

The Cymbidium orchids need some sun over winter so we moved them where they can be seen in flower from the back window.

At last I finished the jigsaw (1 week)

Now I have started another one that has been waiting for an opportunity since my birthday. It is a 67cm circular colour chart getting very pale towards the centre.

So week 1 of my Clayton's retreat is done, so is one jigsaw and one quilt. More next week.

Ready for Ruby

 I have spent the last week or so preparing the house ready for 3 weeks looking after Ruby. It is all now quite bare of mats with barriers to areas she will not be able to wander.

Cathy came yesterday and we moved all the mats and furniture so that we could do a deep clean, vacuuming, washing and polishing the floors. We have not actually done that since the renovations some years ago.

On the back deck there is a little fence to act as a Ruby trap when I need to go our to the chooks, garden or clothes line with my hands full.

 

Inside I have used the same black fences borrowed from Geoff and Jen to create a gate to avoid front door escape.

I also have a barrier with a gate in it to lock off upstairs. I hope she does not think she can easily jump it.

Now that I have organised myself I think we'll get on OK. I will basically have a 3 week at home retreat, going out as little as possible. Ruby has medical needs which mean she needs to be fed in the middle of the day as well as morning and night which restricts my outings somewhat. I was to go to the new house down south but the termite treatments have put a stop to that so it is an at home retreat instead.

A day trip to Underhill

 Last Saturday Geoff and family drove me down to Underhill for the day. We were greeted by our lovely new gate posts and they are even angled so that the gates stay open as you drive through. No chocks.

The dams are quite full.

We did some burning off which is always the main job in winter and Mei loved watching Geoff and Jen as they work. However, she still has to be tied up as she does not come when called. Here the womper-stomper has been used as they anchor.

Because there was room in the car Geoff loaded in the table and chairs from their back deck. We can now burn off the old ones that are falling apart.

In all, a great day and it was quite good for me to get to and from theirs to save quite a few kms on the round trip for them rather than coming to collect me.

A week of entertaining

 The last week or so I've had a lot of visitors which has been so good. Of course Ellen comes up when she works in Sydney but on Friday I decided it was time for a lamb roast (something single people don't get often) so I invited two other singles to join me and have a sleep over (so they did not have to drive home afterwards).

Janice brought a lovely collection of Banksias which we had fun trying to arrange in water.

Stephanie joined us for dinner and the sleep over. 

After dinner we had a game of Rummycub which was fun. Perhaps next time I'll set up a jigsaw puzzle.

I am having to prepare my house for Ruby (Ellen's very tiny dog) to come and stay so barriers are going up everywhere to try to minimise the area in which she is allowed to roam.

Then on Tuesday I hosted a birthday party for Ellen which included 10 visitors. Lots of chatter and laughter was had by all. It was so nice to see all her kids and Pete's parents but unfortunately Pete was not here as he was on Ruby duty at home.

Once Ruby is here I will need to be paranoid about food (even crumbs) being dropped on the floor as she is allergic reactions to most things entering her gut. Looking after her needs is quite intense but I have done it before but usually at her home where she knows the rules and I just go and live with her. This time the tables will be turned. Carpets will be rolled up, barriers closed and visitors instructed on the rules as well.

Meanwhile, my health issues seem to be sorting themselves out. Hooray!

I continue to visit Mum every second day with Desley alternating on the other 3 days leaving one day free of visitors. Mum is not eating much and of course is not happy. I entertain her with a playlist of hymns from Songs of Praise which she seems to love.

Interspersed with all this entertaining was a massage, the plumber, the termite inspector, the doctor, a mammogram and breakfast at mine with friends. I visited Elaine and also went to Geoff's to organise some of his deck. Our next job there might be replacing some rotting boards. 

I knew I'd had a busy week.

Coping with BP issues and all is good

 My week was spent starting my BP meds (a very light dose) and wondering what they would do to me.

On Thursday Cathy came for gardening but first there were some jobs inside that needed a step stool. I had avoided these due to BP and dizziness so she was able to get on the stool and reach what I needed to do. The jams were stored on their shelves in the pantry then the study cupboard doors were cleaned of the remaining sticky spots. Then we figured out how to hang the bookcase quilt on the doors.

Now when I am on Zoom in the study I will have a decent background rather than the fading curling photos that were there.

This last weekend was our Chorus Oz performance in the Opera House and, having looked forward to this and practised my parts, I was very concerned that I may not be able to cope with rehearsing for 2 days then performing on Sunday night.  In fact I was fine. You can see me (😂😇) as a shadowy short figure in the centre of the far back row under the organ, just past the left hand corner of the screen. 

I even ended the weekend by walking up the hill to Martin Place. By the time I took my BP that night before bed it was the lowest it has been in some years. I had to walk to Martin Place because the crowds at Circular Station were so thick due to Vivid. Desley had a wander after the concert and took this photo.

So for our normal gardening afternoon Geoff and I decided we could do this. He had sent me a photo and said we could tackle this garden which had been used as a dumping ground for huge pieces of sandstone, rubbish and weeds.

So Geoff, Mei and I started moving things out. Of course I left Geoff to move the huge stones and edging and Mei found all the rubbish for me.

Once we had cleared up to the corner Geoff tied up the Dragon Fruit plant and found a planter to put in the corner to protect the pvc pipe that we had exposed in the process. He was also able to lift out the metal corner post that had been set in concrete.

With some extra bags of soil mix I was able to level the garden and planted some Durban Grass runners. Mei was disappointed she was not allowed to dig in this patch any more.

It is all done now except for the huge rocks that need homes. Geoff was just too done in to carry them to the right place and has to decide what they will be used for. Some are lovely pavers but others are great lumps.

We now need some rain to start it growing and to germinate the grass seeds we sowed as well. Geoff found an open box of seeds in the garden storage.

So now I know what I can cope with. I'm not dizzy any more. Today will be an easier day and I'll have time to do more sewing.

A lot's happening here

 The season of Pentecost has begun at church and our bright tablecloth is back! The colours of Pentecost are the colours of flames.

Last Monday I went to the Art Gallery for a private after-hours viewing of the Archibald/Sulman/Wynne artworks. It is an opportunity provided by the company my financial adviser works for. Last year it was raining and again this year we were dodging showers and puddles to get to and from the station. It looks really pretty in the rain!

The rest of the week was filled with normal activities of visiting Mum, gardening with Cathy and then booked for gardening with Geoff on Saturday.

However, when I got up Saturday morning there was an invitation to a Chookshed Zoom so upstairs I went at 6am. But what to do? Desley had given me a scarf she bought in Japan so I decided that as she had chosen her colours for her new quilt I would incorporate the scarf. First I found some polar fleece that would be a perfect backing for a stitch n flip quilt.

Next I sorted what I had and considered options. Most of the fabrics I had sorted with Desley were ones I had bought in Japan in about 2011.

Then I spent the morning laying out alternate designs on my design wall. I even used some red braid to simulate what I thought would be red peepers to highlight all the beautiful Japanese fabrics I had. Desley did say they were too special to use but I know other quilters amongst us know that at my age nothing is too special to use.

Long Chooky Zooms are great and as long as things are organised we sew all day while chatting and catching up or asking for help with our latest projects. People come and go as they are available and, because there are quite a few international participants, as their timezones permit. I left just after lunch to garden at Geoff's but when I returned home the Zoom was still going and I was able to sew the short strips of small patches together.

While this was happening our new gate posts were being erected at Underhill. They now look amazing but none of us have actually been down to inspect them yet.

Then on Monday this week I decided I was sick of being dizzy and would go to a physiotherapist for an Epley Manoeuvre. I had done this before and it worked well. However, the physio took my blood pressure and said I should go to the doctor immediately. I went down to our local Emergency care clinic and was eventually sent home with moderately high blood pressure and some stematil for the dizziness. I had already organised an appointment with my own doctor for Tuesday.

So yesterday, Tuesday, I sewed for a bit and pottered around the house slowly. When the doctor took my blood pressure in the afternoon it was VERY high. She has started me on blood pressure meds!!

I have cancelled activities that require me to drive anywhere until I see what effect these new meds have on me. So today I am taking it easy. I'd be happy to have visitors anytime but won't be going out for a few days.