Month: October 2022

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Today is…..


Here in Australia today is Rattle Ya’ Bones Day.
Rattle Ya’ Bones Day is an outcome of a consumer survey report
‘Making the Invisible Visible’

Rattle Ya’ Bones Day is a National Day of Awareness for all muscle, bone and joint conditions. It’s held every year on Halloween (31 October).
Also known as musculoskeletal conditions, these conditions are often downplayed as “normal wear and tear”, “just aches and pains” or “part of getting older”. source

Musculoskeletal conditions involve pain that may affect bones, joints, ligaments, muscles, bursae and/or tendons. The pain can be acute (sudden and severe) or it can be chronic (long-lasting). Depending on the condition, the pain may be localised around one area of your body, or it may affect your entire body.

Because musculoskeletal conditions are internal structural conditions, many patients feel as if their pain and suffering is invisible, which is why, in many instances, mental health issues and musculoskeletal conditions come together. source

Muscle, bone and joint conditions such as osteoarthritis, back pain, gout, rheumatoid arthritis, osteoporosis, and fibromyalgia are the leading contributors to disability worldwide.  And yet, most people are unaware that seven million Australians live with these conditions.
Musculoskeletal Australia says that’s why Rattle Ya’ Bones Day was created; to make these invisible, painful conditions visible and to let people know that help and support are available source

Would you like to see what my ‘bad back’ looks like?.
I try not to (because who wants to hear someone moaning & groaning) but I know I have mentioned my ‘invisible ailment’ before
Lumbar Spinal Stenosis

(notes from my Chiro in case I needed treatment whilst away.
“Catherine’s most recent CT scan does note marked disc space narrowing at the L1/2 level with marginal osteophytes. Spinal stenosis is evident throughout the lumbar spine; severe at the L3/4 and L4/5 levels and moderate at the L2/3 and L5/S1 levels. Facet joint degenerative changes are also present at these levels.”
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Monday morning has rolled around again, I’m finding it a bit cool this morning so after I’ve finished my early cuppa will have porridge for breakfast.
Then a little later I’ll be off down to the pool.
Some exercises – some water walking or even ‘running’ – a bit of swimming
They all help keep me moving

Andrew spoke about his recently – other bloggers talked to him about theirs
Are you willing to talk about your ‘invisible ailment’

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Out of his comfort zone

Towards the end of last year, because of ‘you know what’, there were still difficulties obtaining interstate border passes which meant we stayed longer in Queensland, enjoying some other towns along the way. In this post last November I mentioned an exhibition we went to in Mackay…..(well The Golfer was persuaded to come along – or choose the option of sitting in the car while I sauntered round for an unknown length of time). I’ll be the first to admit it wasn’t his cup of tea but he did come in and have a look around.

Aircraft museums – Art galleries = give and take. Happy wife – Happy life 😊

This is a little bit more of what we saw – just a few things that took my fancy.
The wall plates explain the displayed works – I’ve added some bio info about the indigenous artists that you might be interested in – to see more detail don’t forget to Click/ tap or finger slide to enlarge.
(Please note there are photos of deceased artists on some of these links.)

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Mr R Peter – https://www.jgmgallery.com/artists/103-mr-r-peters/

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Mick Namarari Tjapaltjarri – https://www.artgallery.nsw.gov.au/collection/artists/tjapaltjarri-mick-namarari/

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Jennifer Wurrkidj – https://maningrida.com/artist/jennifer-wurrkidj/
Josephine Wurrkdj – https://maningrida.com/artist/josephine-wurrkidj/

Fiona Omeenyo – https://www.kateowengallery.com/artists/Fio957/Fiona-Omeenyo.htm

Artspace Mackay have a fabulous page on their website where you can do 3D virtual tours of past exhibitions – the one we saw ran from 30 July – 17 October 2021.
https://www.artspacemackay.com.au/learning/online_resources/3d_virtual_tours

I forgot to snap the info on this work below but through the marvel of the 3D feature I was able to find it 😊

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But wait there’s more…..actually there is more….one room had the most unusual but marvellous handiwork on show which will have a post of its own

Linking to Wednesday’s Words & Pics hosted by Denyse …..  Denyse Whelan Blogs. 

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🧶 Style…..

Style – a form of appearance, design or production. source


Most of my knitting these days is for the baby & toddler programme of a local charity but recently they’ve been asking for larger sizes – so I’m looking through this pattern book and this caught my eye.

It’s one I’ve made a couple of times previously in a 2yr size – described as ‘a child’s jumper with yoke patterning front and back’

I found it a ‘relatively easy knit’, the shape reminded me of a fisherman’s Gansey. Patterned yoke, drop sleeves, straight up and down.

And the instructions are available in sizes up to 8yrs 😊


(Use of the word jumper (or other options such as “pullover” and “jersey“) is largely determined by the regional version of English used.[1] In the case of Ireland, Britain and Australia, “jumper” is the standard word, “jersey” is used in South Africa whereas “sweater” is mainly found in tourist shops and in North America. The word used in Irish is geansaí (“guernsey”). Source)

There’s just one problem – one that probably only I see – my plain stocking stitch knitting is becoming very uneven. And there’d be an awful lot of it to be seen on a four/six year old sized jumper 🙁

Sometimes I’ve used other stitches or cables to ‘cover part of the ground’ but that doesn’t always work. Remember how uneven the fronts of those little shirts were…..

I’m not sure why, it was the same brand yarn I’ve used before. Of course it’s possible my hands are losing their grip/strength and I’m getting sloppy in the way I hold the needles so that’s something I’ll have to work on.

However…..

I think I might have found the answer to my dilemma

Do what I’ve done before

Knit Aran style or similar

No (or very little) stocking stitch to worry about

Here’s a couple from my collection – vintage now, fashionable when I bought them!

Last week’s book was set aside when a friend loaned me this
The Night Tiger – Yangsze Choo

“A captivating and magical story set in 1930s Malaysia about a dancehall girl and an orphan boy who are brought together by a series of unexplained deaths and an old Chinese superstition about men who turn into tigers.”

Much writing about customs superstition expats life in Malaya  Brought back memories of life as expats during the 1960s when we lived in that part of the world.

Oh and I have a rather nice Royal Blue waiting in the wings
That’d be the big boxes in the garage 😊
I’ll keep you posted
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Wednesday’s Words & Pics hosted by Denyse ….. Denyse Whelan Blogs.
is on again

…..  Unraveled Wednesday  hosted by Kat…….As Kat Knits……
is also on again!

Click/ tap or finger slide to enlarge

Ganseys

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aran_jumper

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aran_knitting_patterns
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https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cable_knitting

Cable Knitting Without a Cable Needle

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He sometimes wonders why….

[I really must keep a check on my blog drafts folder – I’m not sure how old this one is – possibly been sitting there since last Spring – I do remember the last episode shown on abc tv here was back in July (early Winter) this year]

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One of the afternoon quiz shows on tv here is Tenable. It comes on late in the afternoon, an opportune time to sit down and watch because at the moment it’s still uncomfortably cool cold to be outside
The Golfer has a fascination with this show.

He seems to enjoy trying to find/remember the ’10 things’ far more than trying to find/remember the one answer to questions on some of the other shows. It’s almost like multiple choice on steroids😊

But there’s something he often wonders about – how do they choose the subjects to use

Given the contestants are all supposedly British….…..

Why do they always ask questions about – and expect their contestants to have in depth knowledge of – the United States of America.

A couple of recent questions were:-
Top ten states names ending in letter A
Top ten US presidents (which of course means ‘in order from 1-10’ not in popularity)

And do all contestants have to have in-depth knowledge of Soccer (worldwide teams, leagues, competitions, players) because it seems every show has it as a category??

Have any of you watched it – are you big fans?
Do you rack your brains for the answers or cheat by asking Mr G….?

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tenable

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Do you fancy lunch….

‘Come on we’ll go out for a drive and maybe stop for lunch somewhere’.
Days come and go in our house, even special ones and there was nothing really planned for last Wednesday (12th)
I did think….lovely – it’ll save me having to cook on my birthday😌

Not a lot to see as we drove along under grey cloudy skies and from the direction The Golfer took I thought we’d end up in Healesville but surprise, surprise, the car turned right at a ‘favourite’ winery. Zonzo Estate – on the Healesville – Yarra Glen Road.

We chose a spot inside…..too cold and windy outside….lots of other people there so the tables by the fire were already taken
But hey, the whole of the restaurant was cosy and warm and I knew the food was going to be good.

Slow cooked lamb in red wine accompanied with roasted potatoes
Folded Italian pastry filled with strawberry and hazelnut chocolate
Nougat gelato encased in meringue, domed on top of a sponge

A trip to the loo (just outside the main building but top class just like inside) means wandering along beside the little herb garden surrounded by a rustic fence made from realistic ‘metal’ pickets.
Wisteria hanging from the pergola, a very large garden urn on a pedestal , a dividing wall of logs plus views of the vineyard all help to soften this service area.

Unfortunately just as we were leaving the rains did arrive so I didn’t stop to take more photos.
I’m not grumbling because that was the start of this ‘weather event’ we’ve been experiencing in Victoria. Thursday turned out to be a doozy of a day…..resulting in one many Victorians will remember for a long time.
It would appear all the eastern states are now struggling to contend with the aftermath of floods.

https://www.9news.com.au/national/australia-breaking-news-today-latest-headlines-live-october-14-2022-weather-updates/0a05d80d-cc0f-420f-9a4d-24da9e7c2d7b

https://www.9news.com.au/videos/weather/clean-up-begins-in-victorian-town-devastated-by-floods/cl9aefm3i001q0jlwy19etn1o

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Wednesday’s Words & Pics is hosted by Denyse – pop over and see what interesting blogs have linked this week. Perhaps you’d like to join in as well.

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Dirty Deeds Done at Woolworths

(Surprises galore when I discovered a ‘joke’ folder inside another folder…… I don’t think I’ve posted this one before)

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So, here’s the story……..

Tired of constantly being broke & stuck in an unhappy marriage, a young husband decided to solve both problems by taking out a large insurance policy on his wife with himself as the beneficiary

He then started arranging to have her killed.

A ‘friend of a friend’ put him in touch with a nefarious dark-side underworld figure who went by the name of ‘Artie.’

Artie then explained to the husband that his going price for snuffing out a spouse was $5,000.

The husband said he was willing to pay that amount, but that he wouldn’t have any cash on hand until he could collect his wife’s insurance money.

Artie insisted on being paid at least something up front, so the man opened his wallet displaying the single dollar bill that rested inside. 

Artie sighed, rolled his eyes, & reluctantly agreed to accept the dollar as down payment for the dirty deed.

A few days later, Artie followed the man’s wife to the local Woolworths store.

There he surprised her in the produce department & proceeded to strangle her with his gloved hands.

As the poor unsuspecting woman drew her last breath & slumped to the floor the manager of that department stumbled unexpectedly onto the murder scene.

Unwilling to leave any living witnesses behind Artie had no choice but to strangle the produce manager as well.

However, unknown to Artie, the entire proceedings were captured by the hidden security cameras & observed by the store’s security guard who immediately called the police.

Artie was caught & arrested before he could even leave the store.

Under intense questioning at the police station Artie revealed the whole sordid plan, including his unusual financial arrangements with the hapless husband who was also quickly arrested.

The next day in the newspaper, the headline declared….

(You’re going to hate me for this…).
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‘ARTIE CHOKES 2 for $1.00 AT WOOLWORTHS!’

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Just a little bit of fun this Friday – to help you forget the worries of the week.

Will be back on Monday – see you then!

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🧶 I’ll get there some day…..

A gentle reminder from an ‘acquaintance’ (just someone I see at a group) that I’d promised – one I have no recollection of – to knit some clothes for her granddaughter’s doll had me scrabbling through the garage looking for a long forgotten Tiny Tears. One of those things left behind years ago but ‘please don’t give it away Mum’ so it lingers out there along with various other bits that really should have been given away….guess when Mum’s gone those 60yr old children will finally make that decision they should have made years ago.

The 16” dolly clothes will have to wait a bit (Christmas is a while away yet) – Mum has been making decisions of her own since she returned home and discovered an awful lot more yarn in the garage than she remembered – several of those interesting 400gm ‘sealed so you have no idea what the ply is’ mill end bags suddenly appeared (tucked away in a box below another box – no idea when they were bought) so it’s use it or lose it. ‘Mill ends’ are the surplus yardage of yarn produced by mills every time a production run ends. source

Meaning I’ve some planning to do…….decide what to make and if I’m capable of offloading/donating/giving some of it away.

This little sweater/cardigan is so easy to knit it’s become a favourite of mine ( see the very well used, bit tattered and torn pattern…..priced @ 6d! One I bought for my first born – 1962😯)

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And it turns out this particular ‘mystery yarn’ knits up like a dream. Soft and comfortable to work with, smooth on the needles and using 10/3.25mm with 8/4mm needles is sizing to the pattern measurements.
I’m sure it could be used in the same way as an 8ply……Watch this space 😊

My latest library book turned up a couple of days after we got home…..I definitely timed the putting on hold process just right
It’s a new to me author so I must have seen it recommended somewhere
The sea, the sea by Iris Murdoch

As they say…in for a penny, In for a pound. If I don’t get on with it, it can go back😊

Remember Violeta – I mentioned her back at the end of August and again in September.
After a few false starts I finally made it to the end of over 300 pages.
Different – Interesting – Readable – no plot as such, more a letter to her grandson.
it did seem to go on and on at times so I had to stop for a breather now and again
Having said that I enjoyed it but sometime or another I’ll try another, with a ‘storyline’, to get a better feel of the author

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…..  Unraveled Wednesday  hosted by Kat…….As Kat Knits……
is on again!

Others are sharing their knitting (and reading) – pop over if you’re interested.
Maybe join in – they’re very welcoming.

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Four days on the road…..

(Sometimes through a dirty windscreen – sometimes at about 100km an hour 😎)

We left Bowen driving south and said goodbye to cane fields at Proserpine with the little ‘cane train’ railway that runs across the road and where the mill (like others in the area) was working non stop processing the harvest.

Smiled again at the fun signs on the road to Rockhampton (aka locally as Rocky 😊)
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rockhampton

Had what (at first glance) looked like a very ordinary curry for dinner
Never doubt the talent of pub staff of Indian origin – local beef plus spices
Delicious!

Drove off early the next morning, waving to the ‘bull’ on the roundabout.
See ya next year!

We crossed rivers and creeks – some with water because of recent heavy rains…..some still dry….but waiting until the wet arrives further north later in the year and the water runs south when they and the nearby floodplains will fill.

And it’s that annual flooding rain (plus the flooding caused by recent La Niña events) as well as the constant heavy road transport vehicles (Road Trains) that has cause ‘pothole hazards’. Reasonably easy to see and hopefully manoeuvre safely around in daylight (not good for your car if you don’t) almost invisible at night or worse still downright dangerous when covered in water.

We found the overtaking lane round the corner where we ‘dutifully’ didn’t speed up but let others pass……

Including this big brute further down the road – not that we’d have much option where he was concerned 😟

Lots of other ‘big things’ moving along the road…..as well as…..
well, we’re not sure where this one was trying to go – the shredded tyre tells the tale!
(Nobody hurt and luckily no stock on board)


My last fish ‘n chip pub meal for a while I think – you can only have so much of a good thing. My water was served in a very ‘posh’ crystal looking glass 😊

Another early morning start, a goodbye wave at the Gunsynd statue in the border town of Goondiwindi – then across into NSW.

Where for most of the day it was All Change 🙁☔️

Nothing to see but rain until late in the day when we found a rainbow!

And guess what greeted us the next morning ……yes, more of the same😊

A dreary drive made better by ☕️ & 🍰 at the Tocumwal Pavilion across from the river

Source

Then it was over the Murray and into Victoria.
(I was driving so no photos – the river was the highest I’ve ever seen it)
Things changed, became brighter so by lunchtime we had blue skies and fields of gold

No matter where we’ve been or how long we’ve been away I always have a little smile when this view at a roundabout near Yarra Glen appears. It means we’re nearly home!
Just another 20km to go!
The tv masts on the hills are those very same ones I can see from another angle – much closer to home – from my little library 2km from home 😊

For the next few days we thought Spring had arrived – the sun shone, it was pleasantly warm and a lot of the garden plants thought so too.
The clocks changed – happy summer days are on their way!

Unfortunately the weather had other ideas……it’s back to wind cheaters and tracky dacks round the house plus brollies at the ready if I venture out! This was the forecast yesterday when I was putting this together. Warm clothing still needed.
Come on Spring…it’s nearly November- come out come out wherever you are!

(Please don’t think my whinging about the weather here in Victoria doesn’t mean I’m not thinking about those in other states who are once again ‘living with heavy rain storms and possible flooding’. It must feel like living in a war zone with the prospect of more destruction coming their way….and – rightly or wrongly- we have been led to believe – not much help coming from governments.)

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Linked to Wednesday’s Words & Pics hosted by Denyse – you’ll find many interesting blogs there. Perhaps you’d like to join in as well.

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