Next!

Harley and I had a late start this morning!

We got to bed late last night.

Harley’s sleeping pen/cage fills the doorway from my bedroom to the ensuite. Half of it sits on the bathroom tiles and half sits on the bedroom carpet. Harley ‘runs’ hot so he prefers to sleep on the cold tiles most of the time. His pen folds flat during the day, it’s very lightweight and is easy for me to manage.

So I was heading to bed at 10pm when I remembered that I’d put oil of cloves on the grout in the ensuite in the morning. It has to sit for 12 hours before cleaning the tiles and grout. The 12 hours was up. 

Clove oil is very toxic for dogs - not just ingesting it, but also breathing it - so I had no choice but to scrub the shower recess at 10pm and attempt to get the smell out of the room.

I was very impressed with the cleaning fluid. It both killed and removed the mould in the grout. I used my Koh sanding sponge block to clean the grout but it didn’t take much elbow grease and it came away easily.

I opened the bathroom window to help clear the air as well as turning on the pedestal fan and directing at the ensuite. 

Because I’d been in the room for so long, I couldn’t tell if the clove was still strong or not so I moved the pen into the bedroom just to be on the safe side.

I stayed awake for almost 2 hours checking on Harley often to make sure he wasn’t displaying any of the symptoms of toxicity, which meant it was around 1.30am when I finally fell asleep.

Thankfully, Harley didn’t wake me until 6.15am so I got around 45 minutes longer than usual.

Apart from the usual Harley play and cooking breakfast and dinner, my other pleasure for the day was starting a new piece of octopus art. It’s finger painting!

It doesn’t look much yet, but I’m loving the colours and effect so far.

Dinner was a very disappointing snapper. Thankfully the side dishes were ok.

Crazy Rich Asians is on TV and I think I’ll be falling asleep listening to it.

It’s almost 11pm and I have a big day in The Bay planned.

Nite all.

Nothing Much

It was a rainy night and we had a few scattered showers this morning, the temperature dropped a little and for the first time in months, we didn’t need the air conditioner on all day.

The temperature is going to increase again to the 30s for at least a couple more weeks and there’ll be some big rain in about a week.

BGWLBH is almost back to good health. She did some ironing today and has started short walks in the mornings to rebuild her strength. 

We all started the day with bacon and eggs.

Even though it rained on and off, I played in the pool area with Harley for about an hour.

I baked some banana bread.

I added more to the dragonfly art and then decided what my next piece is going to be.

We watched the latest Adam Sandler movie - don’t waste your time on that one.

We watched two games of footy and I cooked a lamb roast for dinner.

The MAFS final dinner party was on - a viewing must with lots of juicy stuff happening.

Now it’s after midnight! Time to sleep.

Nite all.

Fool’s Day

Today is the 1st April. How quickly time passes!

It’s raining as I type this and I can hear it on the tin roof.

There is a Clint Eastwood western on TV which I’ve muted so that I can listen to the rain. It’s called “Hang ‘em High” and the ominous music is very annoying.

Today I cooked bacon and eggs, french toast, caramelised banana, 12 mini quiches, chicken breasts stuffed with bacon, spinach, ricotta and feta and sun dried tomatoes, sweet potato chips and a garden salad.

I did some more art, adding to the dragon fly …

Lots of footy on today with one surprising result that caught everybody by surprise. Manly and Newcastle drew 32 all.

Broncos had a very handy win.

I’m extremely tired so it’s sleep time for me.

Warwick this morning …

Nite all.

Juxtaposed

I think I’ve finished this juxtaposition art. There may be a couple of touch ups here and there but it’s pretty much done.

My day was filled with Harley play, art, cooking, Netflix, football and eating.

I baked a blueberry butter cake which is already half eaten.

I watched 3/4 of a movie called “We Have a Ghost” and I’ll watch the end of it tomorrow.

I didn’t eat dinner but I did have dessert 🧁 

I made a list of chores for Adoring Husband to complete.

I received 8 parcels in the mail - not all for me personally - only 3 for me.

We all had no choice but to listen to the tradies on site across the road grinding something ALL DAY LONG.

I’ve got two out of three in the footy tipping so far.

Now it’s time to sleep because I didn’t have a nap this afternoon!

Nite all.

Good Morning

My morning was way too productive!

I was up at 6am, thanks to Harley, so I made a cup of tea and sat for 20 minutes before giving him some breakfast.

My emails hadn’t been checked for a few days so I took almost an hour to clear some of the 8,555 that were sitting in my inbox.

The usual bacon and eggs for breakfast for us all and while Adoring Husband cleaned my mess in the kitchen, I took Harley out to play in the pool area for about an hour.

I sent Adoring Husband to the shops to pick up our order from the butcher and to check the mail.

In the meantime, I cooked up a big pot of broccoli, sweet potato and pumpkin to add to 3kgs of raw beef mince, 3 eggs (shell included), 2 tablespoons of hemp seed and a special mix that strengthens joints. That made up seven days of meals (twice a day).

I bagged two loaves of bread - two slices in each bag - to freeze.

Next I cleaned the toilet. Toilet duties were not mine for the past year so I needed to give it a good solid going over. Believe it or not, it took almost an hour! Now it is shiny and sparkling! I wiped down the walls, washed the door, scrubbed the floor and dusted all the tiny little spaces that always get missed, 

All of that by 11.30am.

The remainder of the day was me watching a few episodes of ‘Daisy Jones and The Six’ on Prime Video followed by my quiz shows.

There was a huge storm coming so Harley’s and my play time was very short and NOT in the pool area.

I crumbed some chicken and made some salads for dinner.

Watched the football.

Let’s see if I can be productive tomorrow 😳

Nite all.

Number 5

This morning we welcomed our 5th ‘pool guy’ through the gate.

Dave.

Every pool guy in the past has guaranteed that they would return every month to maintain our magnesium filtered pool but none of them ever returned.

Dave has made the same promise and he services three of our neighbour’s pools as well so we are hopeful that Dave will be our guy.

Fingers crossed.

Magnesium is very hard to come by at the moment and very expensive so that could be bothersome in our future.

Before the pool guy arrived, I finally put all the market gear away.

When we arrived home from the markets on Saturday afternoon, Adoring Husband had piled everything onto a folding table in the carport for me to sort through and put away.

It’s taken me until today to do it! I’m surprised Harley didn’t find something interesting to steal and chew up.

My next decision was to make some apple and cinnamon muffins. I chopped up a whole apple and added it to the mix - delicious!

Lasagne for dinner tonight.

Lots of play time with Harley as well as cuddle time on the couch.

It’s been a good day.

Nite all.

The Magic

Today was fabulous because I received this …

I’ve waited weeks for it to arrive and when I finally got it in my hot little hands, I didn’t want to open it! I wanted to savour the moment. I kept rereading the handwriting and held the envelope close to my chest for the longest time before tenderly peeling it open to reveal the magic inside.

The letter was only half a page long, beautifully and carefully written and I think I’ve read it ten times already.

Receiving this letter today is better than all the christmases and birthdays I’ve ever had and my heart is full. It’s very special.

This morning I was preparing for a visit from Miss Maggie when I remembered that BGWLBH was still sick and I shouldn’t be inviting elderly people to share the germs!

So I phoned MM and suggested that we meet at the park or at her place instead.

I pedalled to her house for what I thought would be an hour over coffee and cake (I took some of my banana bread with me) but it turned into 3 hours 20 minutes of non stop chatter and it took all my effort to drag myself away and head home just after lunch.

That’s when I sent AH to the shops with a list which included checking the mail.

I got adventurous for dinner and made spinach, feta, ricotta pastries to have with our sausages and salads. I used pre-packaged gluten free puff pastry and they turned out ok but I think I could have rolled the pastry a little thinner. Still tasty.

Harley has been a good boy today.

Now I am off to reply to Chicklet’s letter.

Nite all.

Rest Day

Saw this today and it resonated …

The Lie said to the Truth, "Let's take a bath together, the well water is very nice.” 

The Truth, still suspicious, tested the water and found out it really was nice, so they got naked and bathed. 

But suddenly, the Lie leapt out of the water and fled, wearing the clothes of the Truth.

The Truth, furious, climbed out of the well to get her clothes back, but the World, upon seeing the naked Truth, looked away, with anger and contempt.

Poor Truth returned to the well and disappeared forever, hiding her shame. Since then, the Lie runs around the world, dressed as the Truth, and society is very happy...

Because the world has no desire to know the naked Truth.

After yesterday’s big market adventure, I slept soundly last night for a solid seven hours and woke feeling quite refreshed.

Until I had to water the garden, because BGWLBH is still too weak to get about, and after almost 90 minutes out in the morning sunshine, I once again felt drained and in need of rest.

I changed into my swimmers and slid into the cool water of the pool and spent an hour swimming and playing with Harley, listening to Adoring Husband carry on about unexpected water that he found in and on the kitchen cupboards in the pool kitchen (until he realised that he’d accidentally done it himself about a week ago).

I gave up on any further conversation with him and returned inside to make banana bread - gluten free of course - because sugar helps everything feel better.

After I served BGWLBH a cup of tea and a still warm slice of banana bread, I planted my butt on the couch and watched part of a movie before the football started. 

Needless to say, I fell asleep on the couch for about an hour!

I cooked chicken in a tomato base with baked vegetables and greens for dinner and of course, some more banana bread for dessert.

It’s the MAFS finale this week so naturally, I watched that tonight.

I’ll be having a visitor tomorrow morning so it’s time for me to sleep now.

Real places …

Nite all.

Too Much

I was out of bed at 4.35am 😳

I showered and dressed while Adoring Husband kept an eye on Harley who was a bit confused about being woken so early.

AH finished packing the car while I finished gathering the loose ends.

I decided to ride the trike and take Harley for the day so I packed plenty of water, food and treats to keep him happy. 

The car was packed to the brim, including the passenger seat so AH went on ahead to find our site and start unloading until I arrived.

It was a pleasant ride at 5.30am. The temperature was mild and it was the first time I’d ridden the new path that stretches from the service station to the bowls club. The markets were held in the field beside the bowls club so it was easy for me.

AH had just removed the gazebo from the car, so I kept Harley in the trike while I helped open and set up the gazebo and tables then AH emptied the remaining paraphernalia from car and kept Harley happy while I set up the tables with old stock from the shop and some of our art.

I didn’t take as much art as originally planned because with just me to serve the customers, I didn’t want to overdo it. As it was, there was more art than I had space for anyway.

Nobody looked at the art. They just made a beeline for the stock that I was selling for half price.

I got to chat with lots of people who I haven’t seen for more than a year so I really enjoyed catching up with them.

The weather was comfortable for most of the day, with a nice breeze blowing to keep the temperature down. Sometimes the wind got wild enough to knock the art over and I was worried that the gazebo might take off because it wasn’t pegged down so AH tied it to the hubcaps of the car!

From about 11am it started to get uncomfortably warm and by the time we were packing the car and pulling down the gazebo and tables, it was pretty horrible.

In the full heat of the midday sun and with no shade for protection, the last 15 minutes was almost unbearable.

Worst of all, I then had to climb on my trike and ride home against a head wind with 20kgs of Harley in the basket.

The path had very mall rises in patches, which under normal circumstances, aren’t even worth mentioning, but in 30°C humid heat and under the midday sun with a strong wind trying to blow you backwards, those small rises felt like steep inclines!

By the time I arrived home, my face was glowing red and the perspiration was dripping from me. Poor Harley was panting like he’d just run a marathon himself, so I unhooked him from his harness and leash and led him directly to the pool where he slid straight into the refreshing water.

I only went in up to my knees and Harley shook all of his excess water over me, which was cooling and helpful.

AH brought out a large bottle of ice cold filtered water for me and then demanded that I go directly inside where the air conditioning was cooling the house. He was very concerned that I was suffering from heat stroke and kept feeling my forehead and the skin on my arms.

I was fine. Exhausted from the days activities which was much more than I’m used to but I just needed to rest a while so I lay on the couch and closed my eyes for a bit of a nap.

Sales were good for the day and I made a tidy profit so it was worth the effort.

Harley was exceptional considering it was his first market and he was tied to his leash for almost 7 hours!

It was the first time that he’d pooped away from home and I needed to use the tidy bags to remove his waste from public walkways!

He loved meeting new people and he got tangled in his leash a few times but mostly he found a comfortable spot to sit or lie down and was as quiet as a mouse. He got excited seeing other dogs walking by but didn’t make a scene at all.

It was a good day.

AH is exhausted and has already gone to bed before the football has even finished.

BGWLBH was too ill to join us but she has improved considerably and ate some food for the first time since Wednesday so that’s a good sign.

Unfortunately, I was so busy setting up, serving customers, chatting to old friends and pulling down, that I completely forgot to take a photo! I’m very disappointed in myself for that, being our first market and all.

Ah well.

We had a blackout last night! Just as I was about to turn out the light to sleep, everything went black. It lasted for about 90 minutes apparently.

Time for me to rest my weary bones now. I’m getting too old for this s#*% haha.

Nite all.

Stress Levels

I’m watching the Dolphins vs Broncos game as I write this and Dolphins have just hit the lead. I tipped my team - the Broncos. 

Ugh.

BGWLBH is still very sick in bed so I’ll be doing the markets by myself tomorrow. That will be interesting.

Adoring Husband has filled the back of the car with the gazebo, three folding tables, 2 x big tubs of stock and a few bags of goodies, BGWLBH’s art (not all of it), plastic bags, tissue paper and sticky tape.

I’ve charged up the Square reader so that people can use their card to pay. AH went to the post office and got some cash to make up a float and I’ve put it all in my leather bumbag.

I still have to make a couple of signs and grab some table cloths.

I do my best work under pressure.

So between the football, caring for and worrying about BGWLBH and then preparing for the markets, I’m feeling a little bit stretched, stressed and pressured.

Broncos have just won!! Wahoo!!! Winning!

Time to do the signs now. I’ll post pics of the stall tomorrow night.

Nite all.