Tag Archives: All things family

Down the rabbit hole….

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I know what started it……middle of last year (2020), little internet messages between sisters. ‘Do you remember this….when we did this’ backed up by photos floating through the airwaves (or whatever you call what the internet runs on). Thoughts on what we inherited from our mum….I got the knitting gene…..middle sister got the sewing machine gene….and little sister joked and said, all she gave me was her arthritis. Which sent us into fits of ‘LOLs’ because we all inherited it in one place or another. Them in both hips, me in my spine and little brother in his knees.

Feeding the pigeons in Trafalgar Square 1954 – we ( just we three girls then plus mum….baby brother was there but not in person….yet) were on our way to Germany. Dad was there already, he’d been posted weeks before, so we made our way with lots of other service families on a very old ship across the North Sea from Harwich to Hook of Holland and then by train to RAF Wunstorf.

This photo of little sister’s beret shows mum’s love of fair isle knitting, something I enjoy as well. I’ve never attempted to knit a beret, wouldn’t it be a good project to take on I thought. Maybe even try to reproduce one like little sister’s. No pattern in my pile so off I go the source of all things knitting (preferably free if you know the right way to ask)…..yes, I changed my name to Alice…..which incidentally was my mother’s and my gt grandmother’s name, ……and made my way down the rabbit hole of the WWW.

I came up trumps with this pattern (pictured on the right) but it’s in 3ply so saved it for another day, however the site itself (Vintage Knitting Pattern Archive) is a fantastic source of free vintage patterns.

Another find was this picture of a very unhappy looking little boy wearing a really good looking fair isle style jumper/sweater similar to some I’d made for my children…….if you’re interested the pattern is here…. A Boys Jumper.

Look what came to light this past weekend when I sorted out some WsIP I’d tucked away in favour of doing something else. So enthused at the time by how easy the pattern ( as in the colour work stitches) appeared to be (and actually turned out to be) I’d started on it there and then, finishing the back and a sleeve before putting it to one side. Even though I like the distinct sharpness of the suggested red, white and blue on the cover and knowing I have no control of wherever it goes and to whom, I feel the softer colours will make it suitable for both girls and boys whatever their circumstances.



Looking at the wrong side you can see that like traditional fair isle there’s only two colours to each row, short breaks between each colour meaning short strands. And I tried to have the same colour on the top as I went along the row.


So when I get around to giving some attention to those half finished projects I think this little jumper will be the first cab off the rank.

First book for this year will be A Month of Sundays- Liz Byrski. Four women who have only seen each other on screen during their monthly online book club sessions decide to spend some time together …in person…at a property in the Blue Mountains. A soft read, with lots of tears, revelations and decisions coming up I think.


Yarn Along can be found at Ginny’s. Do pop over to small things to see what others have worked on this past month. 
Unravelled Wednesday hosted by Kat is here at As Kat Knits. Lots of knitting and reading to see there.

When does it happen….

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This is going to be a bit of a ramble so you’ll have to bear with me as I gather my thoughts together.
What I’m wondering is when do your children decide they are the parents and you are the child?
Did my daughters make a conscious decision to change roles…they were to be my surrogate mothers – I was now their daughter. How long did it take them to consider it. Did they have to think about it or has it been happening slowly …just below the surface ….and I’m only just noticing it.

Before Christmas we drove further east to Woori Yallock, to see a grandson’s ‘new’ house, his first house. One he’s saved hard for since he first started work, in fact right from his first ‘after school job’ in the local supermarket when he decided to deposit some of his pay into a designated ‘house account’ Now aged 25 that decision has paid off.
Anyway there were little ‘remarks’ from one of the girls as I went up to the high part of the back garden with its great view of the Yarra Ranges
“Be careful of the steps Mum, we don’t want you tripping.”

Someone called out to me while we were up…..of course I didn’t catch what they said.
”Mum, I reminded you to put your ‘ears’ in, did you do that.
Have you got your hearing aids in”

Then there were the ‘instructions ‘ on how to care for the lovely little succulent garden given to me at Christmas by the other girl. “They are so easy to look after Mum, especially for people of your age bracket”. “If you like I’ll explain slowly how you can get new plants from the older ones”

I was a little taken aback by that but did have a little smile at her new found hobby – role reversal of daughter talking to mother like you would a child…..didn’t like to remind her I’d been growing them for more years than I can remember and they’re not ‘just succulents’ but have names that I know ……..when I can remember them😊

(Of course, thinking about how hard a year it was for us all, maybe my girls had been good at covering up their feelings but subconsciously became tetchy with everyone …..including me.)

I mentioned the other day I had no ‘word ‘ chosen for this New Year……at the moment I’m seriously thinking about using consider – to think about. Thinking about it there’s lots of things I have to consider this year – so much to deliberate on – talk about- but as it’s only the first Monday of January I’ll reflect on it at another time.
First things first – I feel the need for another cup of tea coming on 😊

Have you come up with a word/ thought/saying to deliberate on…
Or is it all balderdash to you??

Joining Corinne for this weeks  Monday Musings  – sharing thoughts with others. 
Joining Denyse for the latest edition of Life this Week

The New Year cometh….

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And with it those ‘will I/won’t I……shall I/shan’t I’ thoughts.
Those yearly thoughts about…..resolutions- goals – intentions- aims – pledges.
That have on occasion been known to invade some people’s minds
Mine included !

I have none of those or even A Word of the Year chosen for this coming year.
At the moment I’m hoping the encouraging phrases above will continue to guide me.

I’ve been a fan of the much maligned LLL for a long time using it as the blog’s Tagline
And what could be more simple than two little reminders of trips to far away places

Roly Poly Santa from Ketchikan Alaska – Long legged Santa from Calgary Canada

Or breakfasts eaten in the early morning sunshine


Right this very minute I’m going to have to work on staying positive ……. My sister was sedated and intubated the other day to assist her recovery.

Oh and I do enjoy every comment that’s made and hope you are patient with me – I’m planning to reply to them this coming year. New ones that is. Trouble is sometimes I think too long before I speak and then the moment has gone😊


I’m done….

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I’m sure the best of us (and maybe even the worst of us) have had thoughts of family during this year. Like them or loathe them, live on their doorstep or on the other side of the world, I’m sure they entered our minds at some time or another. And like those times when you ‘can’t have’ something you seem to ‘want it’even more, that longing for family might have been more pronounced for some than it had ever been.

My close family is spread all over the place, some in the UK, some in the Middle East and us down here in The Colonies …..as my mother used to describe Australia. This separation has never bothered us, we are another generation in a long line of generations raised in military style, used to packing up and moving on every few years, settling in but ready to move again when necessary. Keeping in touch, knowing we would ‘catch up’ with extended family when the time was right.

Next sister – Me – Little sister – Baby brother 1998

My little sister Patsy is sick…….really sick.
And for the first time in a long time I miss her.

We had already planned to visit her again this year in Cyprus where she lives.
Well, that didn’t happen did it.

Looking ahead and making new plans to visit late next year has been one of the things that’s kept me going over the past few months.
Well, they aren’t looking too good either.

Our international border (in and out) closed back in March this year and with the way things are going……with the worldwide escalation of new cases – not a slowing down, and now a mutation, a new strain, a variant of the virus evident in the UK (and possibly other countries) I really can’t see it opening in March 2021 as has been mooted.
Yes, vaccines have ‘arrived’ but they won’t be available to the general population for quite a while and my personal thoughts are that the virus isn’t going to disappear ‘just like that’

Trying to look on the bright side of things I know Patsy is being given the best care available but it’s so hard to be upbeat when someone you love is in pain and there’s nothing you can do about it.

So I’ve decided I’m done with here for this year. I can’t concentrate anymore
I’ll be back in 2021.
Hopefully in a better frame of mind …..because I’ve been a real misery lately.
And hopefully having heard better news about my lovely little sister.

She (in yellow) and me Paphos 2014

Joining Corinne for this weeks  Monday Musings  – sharing thoughts with others. 
Joining Denyse for the latest edition of Life this Week

British Rail Red Bench Special

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First there was us…….

Catherine’s sister Catherine’s Dad Catherine The Golfer
Retford Station 1985

Then there was them….

Duke and Duchess of Cambridge.
Batley Station 2020

I wonder if their Red Bench was as uncomfortable for them to sit on as it was for us
And I wonder if their train was as late as ours was as we continued our journey south to see the other side of the family. First trip back ‘home’ after 13 yrs away
Also wondering if all UK railway stations still have those red metal benches

Does anyone have the answers 😊

How can Peggy be short for Margaret….

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Often the names of our ancestors recorded on census returns or other papers never seem to line up with their given names. I’ve been struggling to find the ‘real’ name of an ancestor recorded on documents as Minnie.
Is she Mary or Martha?
There were oodles of females named as Mary and also Martha in this family.
And to complicate matters I can’t find documents with either name for the time period I’m looking at so I can pinpoint which name she was given.

In another line I’ve got a Kathleen known as Kitty and a Mary known as May.
John was Jack and Charles was Chuck, oh and James was Jim

Nicknames- the bane of a genealogist’s life

If you’ve ever wondered how they came about you might be interested
in these (safe) links.
They are all similar but fun to read and could supply the answer
As to why your Aunt Margaret was often called Daisy

https://www.buzzfeed.com/katangus/how-is-polly-short-for-mary

https://www.mentalfloss.com/article/24761/origins-10-nicknames

https://www.familysearch.org/wiki/en/Traditional_Nicknames_in_Old_Documents_-_A_Wiki_List

https://usefulenglish.ru/vocabulary/womens-names.

https://www.behindthename.com/glossary/view/diminutive

https://cafemom.com/parenting/172329-30_nicknames_that_make_better

Your Searchable Guide to Female Ancestor Nicknames

Fun Friday – the day you forget the worries of the week. 
I think we all deserve a smile at the moment 😊

And just like that

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You’ll discover things will change right in front of your eyes!

October is birthday month for both of us so more often than not we have
‘lunch at the golf club to celebrate ‘.
(sadly not this year though)

Lunch at The Golfers favourite home away from home in Healesville
(a short 30 min drive up the road) is always special
The food is good – the views from the terrace even better.
A table at the window a must.

October 2016 ……at 12.43pm we saw blue skies
along with some cloud build up over Mt Riddell and the nearby ranges
(which are part of The Great Dividing Range)


Eating, drinking and enjoying ourselves we didn’t notice what was happening outside
This was the scene at 1.16 pm – just half an hour later
Big black storm clouds overhead
changing the look, the mood and the outside temperature


And here we are one hour later (2.26 pm) misty grey skies.
very wet underfoot but much calmer.
(don’t you love being able to know exactly…to the minute….when photos are taken)


I’ll tell you what though….I was really glad parking was under cover
when we finally left for home it was pouring again

And just out of curiosity I looked at historical weather information for October 2016……..cooler and wetter than average……especially east of the city😊.
http://www.bom.gov.au/climate/current/month/vic/archive/201610.melbourne.shtml

Linking to Skywatch Friday – where the sky’s the limit.
Also – Travel Tuesday – My Corner of the World – Our World Tuesday.

Week of discoveries….

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Last week was a week of discoveries. Some really good ones.
Some cool rainy days gave me an excuse to head back to the family tree
where finally… after what seems like forever…..became aware of my GtGt Grandfather’s death registration. Seems he’d been dead a lot longer than we thought. A little mystery solved.

Earlier in the year (after much searching) I ‘found’ another sister of one of my maternal gt grandmothers…..one I had a feeling was there but couldn’t document.
(People born in Ireland before 1864 when civil registration of BDM began can…at times…be difficult to locate.)

I became interested in her when a name appeared as a witness on several marriage certificates, a shortened version of one that turned up on children from those marriages
She was referred to as Bella…..the children were all named Isabella.
Her surname was the same as the bride’s.
I knew she wasn’t the bride‘s mother (different given name). So was she an Aunt (the father’s sister) or another sister?

It was only after an Irish records site (https://www.irishgenealogy.ie/en/) released more documents I made headway.
Then a further site I belong to connected her name to another which allowed me to find more records in a married name. Lots of little bits of information pointed the way, the witnesses at her wedding had the same names as my gt grandparents, the bride’s father had the same name and occupation, her children born were registered by the same person.
Each time I looked, the story unfolded so at the end of the week I knew she was who I thought she was. Big smiles all round 😊

Census records have oodles of information- some surprises too. Looking at one I see her name, her husband’s and children….then there’s another two whose surnames are the same as her maiden name. Under relationship to head of household I see…..brother in law and sister in law.

So that would make him Bella’s younger brother!
One I have no record of…..

Monday is when I sit and think and wonder.
today I’m wondering where this brother came from
why there was no mention of him previously
I certainly hope it doesn’t take me as long to discover his past as it did for his sister 😊
So how’s your week gone? Did you make any discoveries or have any surprises?


It’s just different…

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Going back a long way this morning.
This is The Golfer and me in 1960 – just after we were engaged.
Living and serving in Cyprus
He was a young airman – Me, the 18yr old daughter of a not so young airman.

Kyrenia Beach Cyprus October 1960

The Golfer had spoken to Dad, Dad had said yes. We were like Love’s Young Dream
Always smiling, always looking in each other’s eyes.
As far as we were concerned neither could do any wrong.
Mum, who also approved, took me to one side and said “he has led a different life to you. He will say and do things differently. Just remember – none of us are perfect (you included), he’ll try your patience at times…so will you him” Coming from her I thought that a bit much, then she followed up with… keep this little saying in mind.

It’s not right – It’s not wrong – it’s just different

Let me tell you, it wasn’t an easy task to bite my tongue when I young and thought I was right all the time . There was an awful lot of accepting done along the way…on both sides 😊

He comes up with the strangest ideas at times. I just shake my head and think about my mother’s words. Not right, not wrong, just different

Take our morning coffee at home for example.
For years (since retirement) as well as instant Moccona this has been our other coffee preference. Made in the plunger with beans from Queensland that we both enjoy the taste of.. Coffee grounds in plunger, pour on water, insert plunger in top, wait a certain time then push down carefully. Even I could do that!

Morning coffee as it was for years.

Then one year for Father’s Day he was gifted a small machine… from Aldi… certainly not à la posh…complete with pods and a small milk frother. He found it easy to use, I was not impressed. With the taste more than the fiddling around to make it.

So once the pods had all been used (byThe Golfer) the novelty wore off and it sat quietly in the corner until earlier this year when lockdown 1 came into force and a certain person seemed to become bored with all things familiar and wanted some different – didn’t know what, just different. So off he goes to the supermarket. First box of pods aren’t right (too small) so it’s into Aldi for the ones that ‘will’ fit. I’m still not keen on the taste but have to steer him away from buying more, I can live without a home made ‘proper coffee’ and I don’t want to be trying boxes and boxes of different ones until I do find a blend I enjoy.


Try that, he says one morning. Oh dear…what’s he up to now
He’s discovered that by dropping one of the small Lavazza pods inside an empty used Aldi one, then securing with a bit of sticky tape they can be used in the machine.
Another day I thought he’d used the plunger then added frothy milk…..but no he’d actually refilled one of the larger pods with some of the grounds from Qld, replaced the little cap, then wrapped it in cling wrap. It worked – refill and reuse!

My goodness these weeks are flying by…..it’s Monday morning and once again I’m sitting here thinking out loud with my early cup of tea

I know my experiences are different from others but oh dear, sometimes it’s been hard living with someone who thinks outside the box. Most times, like with the coffee, I’ve just shook my head and gone with the flow. Other times I’ve certainly
‘made my views known’
Do any of you know what I mean? How have you coped with similar situations

Linking to #MondayMusings hosted by Corinne (Everyday Gyaan)

Lifelong Friends

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You know how sometimes you meet someone and ‘click’
Both of you are comfortable with each other
Pick up on things straight away each time you meet
no matter how long you’ve been apart

I’ll tell you about two such people I know who were like this
Over the years in previous posts I’ve talked a lot about my Aunty Pam
who sadly developed Alzheimer’s and after leading us a merry dance in many ways, moved into a nursing home before dying in 2011…..my reflections in the link

She was married to my mother’s brother 
She was raised in India and thats where she met Uncle John
He was serving there as an officer in one of the Gurkha Regiments
So due to life’s circumstances there was a slight difference in what would have in those days been called ‘class’
BUT
She and Mum got on like a house on fire 
from the moment they met
which would have been in the late 1940s when troops and families 
returned to England after war ended and Independence was declared in India

A Pam had lived a sheltered life
from a respected family she had wanted for nothing
and Mum – well Mum knew about the world
and how to raise a family on almost nothing
so Mum taught A Pam an awful lot about running a home 
and A Pam taught Mum
Well I don’t know what – ‘cept how to be a lady I suppose lol

Here they are together (1953)
Mum (Alice) on the left – A Pam on the right
along with my Dad and my Grandad (Mum and Uncle John’s father)
In front of our little post war prefab in Cosham
A Pam and Uncle John left England the next year to settle in Australia

Here they are again in 1997 when A Pam was visiting England
They had only seen each other a few times in all those years
but it seems from what I heard they laughed and giggled like couple of schoolgirls all that afternoon

Mum died well before A Pam was diagnosed (My reflections in the link) but in later years each time I used to visit her (A Pam)In the nursing home she would often call me Alice and ask if I’d like a glass of wine.
Always the hostess, right to the end – sadly for me, but not for her lifetime friend

When this pandemic is over I think we’ll realise
it was the ones who would just occasionally ring or text, always asking how ‘you’ are
rather than the longtime ‘friends’ who were persistently at our ear all the time
(moaning and groaning)
who will be our new version of lifelong friends.

It was a cold and frosty morn….

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This is ‘our big girl’ – born in Norwich (Norfolk England) early February 1963
a bitter day in the middle of what has been called The Big Freeze of 1963. 

And this is ‘our little girl’ who came along later the next year whilst we were living in Singapore.  The hot humid climate suited us all much better lol 

Anyway Our Big Girl won’t be happy if she found out I told you how old she was – but what her birthdate also means is that that like most babies born at that time (and previously) in England she was born at home.

Yes, after The Golfer rang her from the phone box at the corner of the street a midwife (very precariously because of the icy roads) came round on her bicycle and delivered our big girl right there in the comfort of our bedroom..

We laugh about it now, but because the bedroom wasn’t exactly the warmest room in the house (slight understatement) she slept in a huge drawer taken from the bottom of a big wardrobe similar to this one.


It was laid on a couple of chairs beside our bed, with the high sides protecting her, she was cosy and warm and out of any draughts – and there certainly were plenty of those in that old house.

How we survived that winter is still a mystery to me. Snow on the ground…two little ones……tiny coal fires (definitely no central heating). The house In Clarence Road was up behind the station, The Golfer was stationed at Coltishall so needed the car, which meant for me it was a walk into town for groceries and back up the hill with a pram loaded with babes and food. Certainly no taxis for us in those days!

Recently I’ve been rewatching the BBC series Call the Midwife – and even though the series was set in a place very different (both in location as well as the mix of people) to where we lived, it certainly brought back some memories of the system used ….like weighing newborns this way ….in a nappy on a hanging scale

Source


I know it was a huge hit in UK as well as here (shown on ABC) and I believe it’s shown on PBS in the USA.  Does anyone else keep watching it?









I thought I still had a copy of Jennifer Worth’s book Call the Midwife (first book in her memoir trilogy) on the shelf but it’s nowhere to be found. Shame as I was going to reread it, probably moved it on in one of my ‘clearing out frenzies’.

I’m not sure about you but I find it hard to know whether to read a book first and then see what is offered as an adaptation on the screen (tv or cinema) or do it the other way round. See the adaptation and then read to find out what the original ‘idea’ was all about.  Often description in books never seems to get onto the screen and yet sometimes the visuals can turn out much better than the written word.

There are good points whichever way – how do others feel, which way do you prefer?

X Marks the spot

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Rustling around in the box of books out in the garage and discovered this old one. No idea when or why it came into the house but look….it’ll be ideal for that challenge. You know the single word one I got myself into at the beginning of the year. There was I thinking X was going to be a hard one to find and it was sitting there right under my nose all the time!
Not sure about the genre though…..sci fi isn’t the norm here….but we’ll give it a go!


Thinking about the letter X – the third most rarely used letter in the English language- I found this online:-
X is typically a sign for the compound consonants [ks]; or sometimes when followed by an accented syllable beginning with a vowel, or when followed by silent h and an accented vowel [ɡz] (e.g. exhaust, exam); usually [z] at the beginnings of words (e.g. xylophone, Xenon), and in some compounds keeps the [z] sound, as in (e.g. meta-xylene). It also makes the sound [kʃ] in words ending in -xion (typically used only in British-based spellings of the language; American spellings tend to use -ction).
It can also represent the sounds [ɡʒ] or [kʃ], for example, in the words luxury and sexual, respectively. Final x is always [ks] (e.g. ax/axe) except in loan words such as faux (see French, below).
In abbreviations, it can represent “trans-” (e.g. XMIT for transmit, XFER for transfer), “cross-” (e.g. X-ing for crossing; XREF for cross-reference), “Christ” (e.g. Xmas for Christmas; Xian for Christian), the “Crys” in Crystal (XTAL), or various words starting with “ex” (e.g. XL for extra large; XOR for exclusive-or).
There are very few English words that start with X – the least amount of any letter. Many of the words that do start with X are either standardized trademarks (XEROX) or acronyms (XC).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/X

Once you’ve read that you will realise X is an unusual letter to say the least….

Many people over 18 here in Australia would know of this though

XXXX (pronounced fourex) is a brand of Australian beer brewed in Milton, Brisbane by Queensland brewers, Castlemaine Perkins. It enjoys wide popularity in the state of Queensland and is commonly found on-tap in most Queensland pubs and bars.

Then theres that saying 
X marks the spot

Supposedly from British army officers pinning a piece of paper 
with X on it to the chest of someone about to be executed

But could also come from 
a myriad of places …..a game show

something the Hubble Telescope saw
or 
even a spot on a map
(like a pirates’s treasure map)

but the X our family is really interested in is this recently discovered one
The one The Golfer’s Great Grandmother Julia made
when she registered his Grandfather’s birth in 1878

These days we take reading and writing as a norm
but evidently from what we see on this copy of the birth certificate
Dh’s ancestor was unable to write her name
so made her mark (signature) with an X

I certainly hope she would be pleased with the standard of education available for all children these days whether they live in the city or country village as she did.


Have you made any new discoveries recently? Are you surprised to learn about lack of education in your family?

Where did it come from

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My mother and her sister were twins. Fraternal not identical. Two eggs producing two sisters who were so very different. One blonde – one dark. One out going, talkative, loving life to the full, an extrovert – the other quiet and retiring very much the introvert. One definitely liking the drink – the other very much the teetotaller.

Children of the 1920s when money was a bit hard to come by. I love these photos of the two of them in their homemade shifts, with my grandma standing to one side, smiling at them getting to know the parrot in the big cage. Mum (the dizzy blonde with the curly hair and her drawers hanging down) is trying to open the cage, Aunty Madge (the dark haired quiet one) is obviously not that interested.

That’s the way they were all their lives.  Aunty Madge (below L) quietly and politely waiting  her  turn.   Alice (my mum) ‘quick’ impatient, impulsive, outspoken, always wanting to lead, never wanting to be left behind.  Sometimes known to bite her tongue when she saw things she didn’t like but decided that wasn’t the time to let people know.   Not quite sure what it was the photographer was doing she didn’t like but her tongue was obviously being bitten lol

They grew up ‘motherless’……my grandma died when they were just 7 so an aunt helped raise them as well as their two brothers.  All mum ever said was ‘it was was fun when her father was around, not so the aunt’.  
So come the time of WW2 what does a very high spirited young woman do when advised by her father (a career soldier mentioned in dispatches for bravery during WW1) that women do not go to war but take the overnight boat from Belfast to Heysham and enlist in the WAAFs.  Yes she ran away from home to join the Air Force.  

Aunty Madge bided her time and was ‘allowed’ to work in a munitions factory where she found a husband and lost the tip of a finger.  Mum spent her time dodging bombs on an airforce camp, packing parachutes and dancing.  She ‘reacquainted’ herself with Dad (who she had known in Belfast) and the rest is history.  

Alice and James 1985

During this time of lockdowns and restrictions I’ve been trying to do something different for a change – I gave up on ‘teach yourself crochet’ because I just couldn’t get a grip on manipulating the wool in my left hand – so dug out some cross stitch that’s been on the go for a fair while.    
A little something for The Golfer, ( a sampler of historic buildings in Colchester which is where he was born and bred) supposed to have been a surprise birthday gift a couple of years ago it never got finished in time and has been loitering  waiting patiently for me to rediscover it.  Yes I know I should have rolled it……..I’ll have to wash it so hopefully the crease will come out when it’s ironed/blocked before framing.

I know my love of song and family was passed down from my father, the thrill of dance came from both parents, my delight in knitting was given to me by my mother who ‘was a whizz with the needles’ but I’ve often struggled wondering where did my interest in needlework come from.  
https://cranethie.com/2017/06/23/putting-it-all-together/

I certainly didn’t inherit the sewing machine gene – that delight was passed on to my next sister and I don’t ever recall mum with an embroidery needle in her hand.

But see this lovely embroidery hoop and floor stand – it was given to me years and years ago – by Aunty Madge!  Unbeknown to me my quiet patient retiring aunt shared the same interest and thought I might like it.  It’s great for large pieces, I can adjust the height and angle of the hoop or remove the hoop and use it on my lap.  Perhaps as she had no children of her own she had silently (Invisibly) gifted me with her passion for threads of all sorts.


Linking to Monday Musings 

 

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Metoo….

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The other day EC mentioned a cat of hers that ‘enjoyed’ being really close to her.
To the point of wanting to spend time in the toilet with her
I was sorting some old photos over the weekend and came across this
Taken in 1984 – its me in a dress – don’t wear them very often these days
(lack of a waist is a terrible thing).
Me with my lucky black cat called Kitchy

Kitchy had the softest fur coat and the most gorgeous tail – long and fluffy
His mother was a brown Burmese who escaped while on call
– and his father – 
well only his mum knew who that was 😊

Supposedly a pet of one of our girls, he was my shadow.
He would sit on the side of the bath, keeping me company 
splashing away with his paw
all fun till the day he thought he’d try to sit on my boobs
and promptly slipped into the water

He was also one of those cats who would sit outside the toilet door
After a while he’d get fed up waiting
which meant there’d be frantic scratching on said door wanting to be let in
so he could try to jump onto my lap whilst I was ‘doing my business’

He loved to sing along with me – had a very good range of miaows.
He was the apple of my eye for many years
finally leaving us in December 1989 aged 16yrs

Monday morning….welcome to Sprinter…

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Because of a timing factor with medication I take on waking, breakfast comes at least an hour later so most of my days start with a cup of tea or maybe hot water with fresh lemon. However there have been some mornings recently when I’ve craved a cup of coffee, proper coffee, served in real cups just like at one of our (favoured) local coffee shops where it comes with one of their handmade chocolates.

They aren’t open at the moment (stage4 restrictions and all that) ……but if they were and we were having coffee together I’d just say….this says it all! My week in a nutshell!

Welcome to Sprinter….the time when it’s not quite Spring but still Winter.
Spring arrives officially in 8 days time (1 September) but…….

After the school bus went by early in the week we had a glorious day, the cherry plum started to blossom a couple of days later, it was warm enough for no heating during the daytime.

There was time spent outside enjoying the sunshine, warming sunshine, maybe a little cool at times but sunny and dry.

Then it was all change again- more cold air made its way up from Antartica bringing ‘polar blasts’, freezing rain, hail, you name it even snow in the hills. We’ve spent the weekend inside….no walks, no gardening, no reading knitting or even coffee on the back deck.

Remember the Dr’s appointment I had marked on the calendar, a necessary regular renewal one, also one for a little niggling problem that needed discussed. Timed for 10am I rang as they opened at 9 to make sure it was the same procedure as before……arrive at stated time (now with mandatory mask), sanitiser at the door, take a seat in well spaced waiting room, Dr will call you in.

You’d never guess what what I’d done, I’d only marked it on the wrong day. It was for the previous day……all those weeks with nothing else on the page and it was written on the wrong day. Luckily there was a spare one later that day……so I spent the morning reading……you really didn’t think I was going to do housework did you ??
Hopefully the prescribed medication will sort out the reflux, lump in throat feeling plus dry cough I’ve had because simple meals and Mylanta haven’t. If not it’s a gastroscopy for me to see what the problem is…… I suppose a camera down my throat is better than up you know what 😊

Visiting (and commenting) is still a problem – for a while even publishing was a pain. I need a quiet day to sort this problem out……or go back to my previous (very old and unupdateable) iPad which I’m loathe to do. Our desktop is The Golfers domain….I’ll just start to do something and it’s…..are you finished yet? So rather than make waves I’ll plod on as much as I can. Hopefully you’ll see me / hear from me during the week.

Contrary to how miserable I sound all is well in our house…..the day will begin soon……also the rain. Being Monday the big wheely bins get emptied today, lifted off the nature strip by a long extending arm protruding from a huge truck operated by one driver in the nice heated/cooled environment of his cab. Gone are the days of football players running along hauling bins up and emptying them into the back of the truck, training runs in all weathers.

I’m hanging out for my breakfast this morning but never mind that…..for some reason I could kill for a proper coffee, one made by someone else (not in The Golfers wizz bang machine) We do have some other coffee shops close by that were previously allowed to open for takeaway …….I wonder if The Golfer would pop down the street for me. I can always decant from the ghastly cardboard cup into a china mug at home……trouble is it just isn’t the same is it?

Chooseday….A day in the life…

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It’s TUESDAY! Chooseday!
Today I Choose to Smile. Choose to be Happy. Choose to Love. 

It was a late breakfast for me after a late night spent ‘talking’ to o/seas sisters on fb. Birthday smiles for blond haired one along with thoughts about how life was on her 7th birthday in 1954. We spent it at the pool, one of our baby brother’s first outings since his birth in the July. Living on an airforce camp in Germany at that time was certainly different to life in the UK. And even though the sun was shining we were freezing – those were brave smiles in the water !


A little look at morning tv, general pottering (bed made, dishes done, tidy up) then I chose to have a lovely long daytime bath with Rebecca. Definitely a happy choice! Which took us up to the morning briefing…..I know, I know, I said no more facts & figures…..The Golfer had it on and had made coffee so I couldn’t be rude and walk away. Another 331 new cases plus 19 deaths here in Victoria! So much better (well 0 would be a far better number)than the recent 500/600/700 confirmed cases per day but worse on the death.

He made lunch as well! Gotta love a man who’s willing to feed me! Eaten out the back where it had turned ‘warmish’ enough to sit and knit, though the sun kept playing peekaboo and of course when it was behind clouds it went chilly, so now and again I left the knitting and turned to my cosy chair inside and had more time with Rebecca – which I’m thoroughly enjoying. I’ve discovered ‘the crime’ so there’s not much more to read.

All is not lost tho’ because there’s a Kate Atkinson plus the first in series by both Michael Robotham and Robert Bryndza waiting in the wings……part of the big stash I brought from the library way back in early July. Plus quite a few others I’ve been meaning to read, just sitting on the shelf waiting patiently for their turn.

In amongst the knitting and reading I managed a few weight exercises but my heart wasn’t in it….call me lazy 😊 – yesterday I had a long walk round trundling round the local park several times with some photo stops along the way so will take my allocated 1hr again tomorrow weather permitting (90% chance of rain). I also managed to get tomorrow’s main meal prepared…..plain ol’ savoury mince….now cooking away in the crockpot. Might be topped with mash as Shepherds Pie or maybe just served as is with veg.


It’s late afternoon now, nearly time for one of those quiz shows, then the early news followed by dinner which will also be courtesy of The Golfer – crumbed fish served with steamed veg.. Plain and simple….yes frozen prepared fish but something he can do if I’m not able…..or not here for one reason or another.

After the ‘proper’ ABC news at 7pm – what then? Who knows….
So how was your Tuesday? Did you make the right choices?


Monday Monday….

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A little blessing I saw online – a little something for us all

Here’s wishing you….
A great start on Monday 
No obstacles for Tuesday
No stress on Wednesday
No troubles on Thursday
Many smiles on Friday
A joyful Saturday
And a relaxing peaceful Sunday

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

So here it is Monday….how shall I start?

I’ll be the first to say that my life’s been a bit me-me-me recently so knew it was time for me to stop feeling sorry for me and think about others for a change. The latest stricter change in restrictions had me news hungry again, facts and figures hunting……pointing fingers at suburbs with high case numbers, blaming, ‘what on earth are they doing on that side of town, if we can follow the rules why can’t they’. That had to stop, so to clear my head I ‘worked’ on the family for a while last week and was ‘rewarded’ with a couple of photos posted (publicly) on other trees

Say hello to an uncle of my paternal Gt Grandfather John….brother to my GtGt Grandfather John…..or if you prefer,  my 3rd Gt uncle!
 John and Ralph’s father was called Archibald and their grandfather was Ralph – lol….if I had a penny for every descendant in the family called John, Archibald or Ralph I’d be rolling in it. Born in Co Fermanagh, he migrated to Canada as a young married man in the early 1830s where….from the amount of DNA matches I have associated with him…..he grew a large family.

I’d like to introduce you to a sister of Gt Grandfather John, a niece of Ralph (above) …..my GtGt Aunt Eliza 😊. She’s new to our family…..well she’s obviously been there for a while but I’ve not long met her.   It was DNA matches that sent me to her family and the realisation she really was ‘family’ as in really close to a direct ancestor. Eliza (born in Co Fermanagh) also moved away……as a young married woman to Australia in the 1850s. Firstly to South Australia then on to Victoria! Once this ‘Rona problem’ is fixed and we are free to roam again I’m taking a drive over to Footscray Cemetery to ‘Hello’.


And now I’m ready for my breakfast, porridge fruit and coffee today.
How are you keeping your mind busy? Our 2nd wave here in Victoria doesn’t seem to be subsiding so I’m wondering if this 6 week hard lockdown is going to be enough.

We’ve been there….

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East Alligator River Crossing
aka Cahills Crossing.
Northern Territory Australia
Ford across East Alligator River where dangerous salt water crocodiles may be seen close – up or more safely from the track of the Manngarre Walk through a monsoon vine forest.

Something turned up on fb today that reminded me of a trip The Golfer and I took
up to the Northern Territory many years ago.
I wrote a little bit about it in another post HERE
(photos….which have deteriorated a bit…. were taken in 1992)

We drove from Melbourne to Adelaide
where we hitched a ride (both for us and the car) on The Ghan to Alice Spring
(It only went that far then)
and made our way on up the Stuart Highway to Darwin https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stuart_Highway.

We went out and about visiting as much as we could
Came across Cahills Crossing one day but decided not to cross
The water is tidal and deceptive. higher than you think
and the mention of ‘swimming handbags’ on signs
puts me off anything 😊

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2018-05-27/gary-lindner-cahills-crossing-crocodile-manager-kakadu/9786650


And this is what turned up in my feed that brought back that memory. The car in the video is going towards the high side, towards the side where I took my photos from.

A week is a long time….

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I’m sure we all have them.
A week of highs and lows. 
In no particular order here are some of mine from last week

The dreaded C virus is still wreeking havoc with life for us Victorians.
High case numbers each day, sadly high death numbers as well.  Well meaning ‘lectures’ on not taking this second lockdown seriously haven’t gone down well with some of the community.  Wearing a mask is now mandatory…..with no finish date supplied that also hasn’t gone down well with some.

I got to go to the hairdressers again!
Unlike other countries, here in Australia they are classed as ‘essential services’ so after last week’s approved ‘mask less’ appointment I made another another one…….it’s going to be interesting having a trim with a mask on.

Some of Mr Morrison’s money or to give it it’s ‘proper’ name – The Economic Support Payment’ was spent.   My very old iPad mini was replaced by a new one delivered to my door. Well, placed on the ground in front of the door after I’d identified myself.

For my needs there’s not a lot of difference, the main plus is it’s much faster and I can now load apps I couldn’t on the old one. I think I’ve got enough jigsaw apps to keep me entertained for a lifetime – here’s hoping this lockdown doesn’t last that long!

There are a couple of things I have to look into though – I can’t comment on blogger blogs, so have to use the old one. Can be frustrating! And the camera takes some strange coloured photos.  All I did on the camellia up above was not move position (where I was standing) but zoom in and the flower colour changed from wish washy to closer to true. This bloom is very early, the amount of buds is a promise of things to come later.

This is going to sound like a broken record……we had wet days, dry days, dull days, bright sunny days, beautiful sunrises followed by freezing cold days where the temp. did not reach the forecast.  The good thing is those sunrises are coming earlier than they were a month ago.  Yes, the season’s changes are becoming noticeable.  ‘Close the curtains’ time is getting later as well – for geeky readers, Sunrise, Sunset and Daylength (worldwide) can be found HERE

We have lived in this house for over 40yrs so why am I just noticing a draught round my knees.  

If the furniture hasn’t been rearranged for several years and they weren’t apparent before where are they coming from?   lol we haven’t spent a winter at home for years so maybe they’ve been there all the time 😊  It’s an older house so windows have been checked, doors closed,  I’m beginning to sound like my father when The Golfer goes outside……I have memories of him yelling ‘shut that b*******door, I’m heating a house not the whole b****** neighbourhood’! Roll on Summer!

Kathy ( kathy’s kampground kapers) lost her ‘wife’. Kevin had been a long time permanent at her van park for many years, Friday was the day we knew was coming but didn’t want to read about. This post is a beautiful tribute to her friend.

And to finish, this lovely little posy arrived the other day.  From our big girl, she knows her mother well…..the card read – just something to brighten your day’

I’m looking forward to my breakfast and a ‘nice cup of tea’……coffee later.  The Golfer has been experimenting with our oldish machine and different pods – a high and a low I’ll tell you about another day.  Oh and how was your week just gone?  Any highs or lows – you would like to share ?