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Goodbye Summer

It has been an odd summer, very hot and humid most of the time when we usually have low humidity at Kandos.  It has me looking forward to the cooler weather of autumn.   The bulbs that welcome the change of season are currently flower in our garden.  Because it has been too hot to be outside much of the time I stayed inside and progressed a patchwork project that I began ages ago. It has been a fun project using my husband's old neckties.  
Recent posts

Round and Round

Like the petals of a dahlia my life seems to go round and round doing the same things at the moment, though the end result is nice.  I will only be popping in at the beginning of each month for a while. It has been a good year for dahlias.  The rain came at the right time.

Back Home

We are both now well and got back to Kandos at last during this week. I found the crepe myrtles are putting on a stunning display this year.   But they are early and so are the belladonna lilies which usually herald autumn. For those of you interested in a more detailed record of our Indian Pacific journey I have have done an extra post this week for you to read.

Indian Pacific 2023-2024

  The train left from Sydney Central Station a few hours late so we got to spend time waiting, eating and drinking in the Eternity Bar and Grill at the station. Soon we were on our way over the Blue Mountains which is a very familiar line for us, but we don't usually dine in style on the way like this.  All the meals on the train were fabulous.  Outside it was raining and the country was very green Soon enough and before we headed west towards Broken Hill we bedded down in our cosy beds.  We chose to travel in two single cabins because neither of us wanted to climb the ladder to the bunk bed.  And the showers in the single cabin, though shared, are roomy unlike in the twin cabins.  We had rooms opposite each other and there was room for us to sit in each others rooms so still very companionable. I woke up early the next morning to catch a glimpse of the Menindee Lakes which is 100 or so kms outside Broken Hill.  The trees had become much shorter overnight. After a break at Broken H

Happy New Year

  Christmas is packed up and the new year has begun.  Happy New Year!  It is belated and I missed sending Christmas greetings but I have a couple of excuses. Just before Christmas we went on a wonderful trip right across Australia in the Indian Pacific.  We spent a week in Perth before getting on the train again and returning.  It was a wonderful trip which I would happily do again.  Unfortunately I picked up COVID on the return journey so have spent a week or so recuperating.  Now I am fit as a fiddle and ready to get into 2024.  I hope you all have a had a lovely Christmas and have a wonderful New Year ahead.

Fruit harvest

This year the summer fruit harvest has me baffled.  The sweet plums which have always produced a bumper crop gave me not one single plum this year.   The apricots which have not provided any fruit for four or five years gave me this small but very delicious harvest. Why has this happened?  I dunno. The citrus trees are just about at the end of their time. Lemons are dropping off the tree daily.  

Finished at last

When I first retired I decided to finish some old embroideries which had been languishing unfinished for about 20 years.  After completing the embroidery they then went on to languish a further four years because I had to do the lace edging.  My Mum always used to do that bit for me.   Eventually I decided it was time I learned how to crotchet but I found it very difficult to do with fine thread (it's easy enough with wool).  When I sent my sister a photo of the finished piece, she congratulated me on trying but reckoned it looked like our blind Nana had done it -- I agree.  So for the second piece I reverted to tatting which I do know how to do properly   Ah, that’s much better.