Finding my feet again

After having finished most of the garden jobs I set out to do - tomatoes and beans are in their pots and should have settled in quite nicely - things haven't gone quite to plan this past week

It seems my idea of lifting bags of soil and fertiliser without asking Dh to help wasn't as good an idea as I thought it would be.  He was relaxed and enjoying the sunshine totally engrossed in a book so it seemed a shame to disturb him - I had everything to hand and it seemd logical to set to, fill the pots then plant out the seedlings.

Had a hot bath that evening, slept well, felt my back seemed a tad sore the next day, no more than the days before when I'd been working outside - ha can you be fooled! - thats when the dreaded sciatica began. Foolhardy me forgot that these days each time I lift bags that heavy I seem to pay for it.

Consequently I've been wandering around with a painful leg as well as a pained expression on my face.  No walking as its been aching too much and I jump each time it spasms and sitting for a time here on the computer chair hasn't done it any good either hence the lack of posts.

To go along with my miserable demeanour I've been feeling a bit on the big side

Actually I feel like this wideload we encountered on a back road one Sunday morning in Queensland

We are off on another trip in a couple of months - a cruise this time - so even though it might seem a little early to think about what clothes to take I've been going through my wardrobe.

The other month I came across some really good websites showing what can go with what - mix and match - actually called wardrobe capsule dressing these days- I thought it might cheer me up and  help me forget about the dreaded pain in the leg - trouble was I discovered some of my homesick kilos have returned to take up residence again and some of my clothes are a fraction on the tight side:((

Must go as this is about as long as my leg will let me sit on hard chair - its rather awkward trying to type standing up - will tell you about these sites another day

The Home Gardener

There's a saying here in Melbourne that if you don't like the weather just hang around because it will change soon.  Yes we have grown to accept it's unpredictable nature in that we sometimes are likely to experience 4 seasons in one day. 

http://oz.siyambio.com/weather-conditions-in-australia/melbournes-unique-four-seasons-in-one-day/

Believe it or not, it actually was the inspiration for a song 

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

and this is a link to a youtube video

For Seasons in One Day

1992 Crowded House  

So after coming home from warm sunny Queensland to a rather cold miserable Victoria it came as no surprise that the past few days were absolutely beautiful.  Dry and sunny with really great temps reaching the high 20c's (28c/82f) yesterday, then changing quite dramatically with thunder lightning torrential rain overnight to a rather wet cold day today lol    The shorts and tshirts have been replaced with nice warm fleecy track pants and windcheater.

Mind you the good weather was a great help for me in the garden.  Remember last July I spoke about trying to grow vegetables again this year - well I'm determined to have another go so the other day had a look at the chosen  spot.  Beside/behind the back of the old garage, near the washing line and the water tank meaning it definitely wouldn't/shouldn't be overlooked or forgotten. 

Oh dear it was more of a mess than I thought.  Somewhere to the right of this picture behind that old barrow and those buckets to be precise.

all photos enlarge

Having those warm days meant I fired up and cleared most of that area, turned over the old compost heap and gathered up some containers.   Weeding the left hand side (left that that little crop of Snow in Summer Cerastium there as it always reminds me of my Dad) then papering and mulching that area did me in - a long soak in the bath Sunday evening meant I slept sound and was able to finish the container bit yesterday. 

Still more to do tho' -   I have to attack the grass growing round the side and try to get some gravel or like to help keep it at bay.  Must put my thinking cap on for a cheap and easy solution. 

Looking down from the deck it's reasonably tidy

Will have to find a good spot for those big black pots

somewhere visible so they get the same attention as the others:))

The Lone Seagull

Remember the lone seagull in the previous post

(you can see him here)

click the photos to enlarge further

Several people mentioned him in the comments

so I went looking for the rest of the photos I had taken  

and what's surprising is that they all look very similar

I spied him/her as I was walking at the rocky end of a beach one day

There he was having a paddle in the shallows all by himself

Not another gull near him

Or even on that part of the beach as far as I could see

He just stood there as the waves came rolling in

Looking out to sea!

I walked closer and moved about a bit

but he wasn't in the least bit fazed

Just let the waves roll in and out around his little legs

When this man came down on to the rocks I thought he'd be up and away

but no he continued to stand there in world of his own

The man moved around but not the gull lol

I had to move on - he was still standing there

I did begin to wonder if his feet were stuck in the sand

but when I looked back a short while later

there was no sign of him

Chance encounters that made me smile

A series of road signs near Rockhampton designed to keep drivers alert

and inject a bit of humour into the car

Distance sign at BP Proserpine - almost there!

Summer footwear - tossed to one side as you do

Dh's runners neat and tidy - only worn a couple of times

Dh's tanned arms and knees

Just one solitary gull looking out to sea

Still smiling!

Bowen Qld - Most frequented sites

Heres a little glimpse at the sites we visited more frequently than any other during our recent six week 'sojourn in the sun' in Bowen Qld

For me it was the long stretch of sea and sand at Queen's Beach

Just a five minute walk from our cabin

visible down through the Casuarina Trees that run along the foreshore

For Dh it was the fairways and greens of the Bowen Golf Club

A ten minute walk from our cabin

within sight and sound of the Coral Sea

and Queens Beach  

We'd been there before and knew exactly what to expect

That was the attraction

Solitude by the sun sand and sea 

Peace and quiet

Enjoyment alongside all the other Grey Nomads

exchanging the colder winter months of southern Australia 

for the warmer milder days of northern Australia 

The term Grey Nomad is applied to the section of the ageing Australian

population who use their retirement years as a time to experience travel and

holidaying activities once freed from the constraints of work and family commitments

Source

Thank you for your words and thoughts

Just a quick note to say Thank You to all who left comments and emailed me over the passing of Aunty Pam.   It is always good to know that even tho' we may never have met there are others who care.

It was a different journey home from Bowen knowing that we had missed saying goodbye - her life ended so quickly once the decline was noted which in a way was a good thing as I wouldn't have wanted her to linger any longer than necessary.

This won't be a long post either as this machine has decided to play up - we've been off air for quite a few days (seemed like an eternity) and I'm crossing my fingers I can get this finished. 

After Dh spent days in front of it, muttering and fiddling with all the insides he paid a visit to 'his man' - who knows more than him, can supply him with the new bits for the inside and even tho' is classed as a 'friend is 'in business' and can charge hefty prices for it as well. 

So far so good but it must go back this afternoon for more running repairs - hopefully to recover some of the info on the other hard drive.

I'll definitely tell you all about our 'Sojourn in the Sun' when all is well and I know I can sit here relaxed and not tense wondering if I'm going to be faced with a blank screen and a look of horror on my face wondering what just went wrong.

Bye for now
Cathy

Wordless Wednesday - almost

We travelled home early

knowing we would be too late

Her service was yesterday

She would have been thrilled with the turnout

Rest in Peace  Aunty Pam

edited to add:

Regular readers will know I have spoken about Aunty Pam  several times over the years.

She suffered from Alzheimers Disease and we lived on tenterhooks at times as she deteriorated.

Never knowing what was going to happen from one week to the next and when our next trip to the A&E dept would be

She spent the last two years in a nursing home - where she was safe and protected