Random stuff

It's an awful  day outside today, winter decided to let us know she hasn't quite finished with us yet. We were going to head over to the Rotary book sale at Wingatui but decided to just hunker down for the day. It's on for another couple of days so we have time to get there before it finishes. So I thought I'd just do a bit of a random post and keep in touch.

First of all let me tell you I was really surprised to arrive back at the bookshop after my holiday and discover some of our Christmas stock was already on the shelves! Not only Christmas cards but books, tote bags, nativity sets and decorations! I know it's only three months until Christmas but...

We don't have any fruit trees on our property but the neighbours feijoas overhang our drive which gives easier access to the bio security officers when they come round to monitor them for pests. We get a nice thankyou note and a card from them at Christmastime. This is one of the officers doing an inspection below.

Youngest daughter has had a birthday so we bought her a nice crystal flower. It didn't have a box when i picked it up so  asked the young fellow behind the counter if there was one with it. I'm sure there should be. It will have been stored away from the display area.

This is what he came back and gave me! I just grinned and said I'd make it work but I'm sure there is now a stray box lurking in a storage area somewhere!

Halloween is on display in the shops. Some of the stuff is nicer than others. I liked these friendly looking pumpkins and ghosts but didn't buy anything. We don't get anyone much coming trick or treating but usually have a few treats on hand just in case.

The North Island great grandkids were down for a few days recently but we only saw them briefly at their grandmother's house. They were here for a graduation celebration for the other side of their family. This is a photo of them with one of their southern cousins - you can tell who the southern one is, the kids who are born here don't seem to feel the cold :)

And because i haven't really done a springtime post I thought I do a couple of collages of some of the photos I've taken around town in the last week or so.

Mosgiel is very pretty in the springtime with the blossoms in full bloom and the spring flowers out in the gardens and on the verges.

The daffodils from my last post are on the edge of town.

And that's it from me for another day or two ... or three.

Keep well.

blessings,

Diana

Wiliam Wordsworth

 

I wandered lonely as a cloud,

That floats on high o'er vales and hills,

When all at once I saw a crowd,

A host, of golden daffodils;

Beside the lake, beneath the trees,

Fluttering and dancing in the breeze.

*****

I remember learning this poem by the English poet William Wordsworth in our English class when I was at high school but can't get beyond the first verse these days. So that's what we have above. I thought of it as soon as we saw the daffodils along the side of the motorway. We had to take a short  detour from our normal route to get the pictures but that was no problem. 

Does anyone else have these things spring to mind when you see or hear something like this?

Blessings,

Diana

Lets Blog - Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4

 

Let's Blog!

Welcome once again friends to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4 and how about talking about blogging this week since it's something we all do anyway.   

Get yourself a cuppa, come sit down at your computer and let's think about blogging for a bit....

Blog is short for Weblog, a log or diary on the World Wide Web or internet.   Your journal or diary can hold personal stories, ideas, opinions of all kinds and can be private or public as you wish.  It is an excellant way to document your life or interests.

1. Why did you begin blogging?  

My niece mentioned she was blogging and I had no idea what she was talking about but she showed me her site and I thought "if she can do it so can I". So I had a go and found I enjoyed it. I started off trying to copy her upbeat style but decided that wasn't me and so now it is more "me".

2. What benefits does blogging offer you?

It keeps my brain active. I'm at an age where the words don't always come as easily as they used to so I need to keep it exercised. And I get to interact with people from all over the world - how cool is that?

3. Have you made friends from blogging?

I like to think so. I appreciate when you take the trouble to comment and although I've never met any of you I look forward to reading what you've been up to and how you're faring in your corner of the world.

4. Where do you get ideas for things you blog about? Do other bloggers influence you?

Sometime other bloggers will give me an idea but I like to take my inspiration from what is happening around me including what is going on with the family. And I do enjoy taking part in a collective blog like this occasionally, it makes me think!

So if you want to join in or read what others have to say join us here at  https://tuesdaysplace.blogspot.com/

see you in a few days,

keep well,

have fun

Diana

Church and cake.

 It's been quite a special day. 

This morning was the first service of our new church plant here on the Taieri. Our new pastor has been here for several months and there has been a lot of background work and prayers going on to get us up and running. But today we did it with a small group of just 25 plus four children. We're meeting in a school hall and it was freezing with snow on the local mountain. Some mentioned bringing cushions and a blanket next week :) But the morning tea and conversation afterwards in the staffroom was lovely and warm and I met new people which is always good.

And then of course it is Father's Day and so both the girls arrived over to see their Dad and bearing cake. 

It was great to see them and catch up with the news over tea, coffee and cake. Vanessa and her hubby have just arrived home from their holiday in Perth, Australia and so we had a fun time comparing notes on our respective holidays and travel experiences. Only the second time travelling to Aussie for Vanessa and her hubby's first time. He's a real homebody and I don't see him going again any time soon :)

We're anticipating a phone call from Aaron and Sofi this evening, it would be unusual for them to miss calling on a special occasion.

And with that I will finish.

Keep well until next time,

Diana

Tea Break - Tuesday 4

Welcome once again to Toni Taddeo's Tuesday 4.

The longest living cat on record, Creme puff,  lived to be 38 years old and was given coffee at breakfast all his life.  Breakfast for him was bacon, eggs, broccoli and coffee.

The previous owner of the record was Grandpa Rex Allen who\ lived to be 34 years old on the same diet.

Coffee reduces chances of Alzheimers, Parkinsons.  

Tea without adding milk can "tan" your bladder making for many problems  Milk binds the tanic acid making it safe to drink.

Homemade food increases an animal's life span too.  Let's talk about it, okay?

1. Coffee increases a bee's memory and does the same for you.      Bees love caffeinated coffee  flowers.  What do you love about coffee or tea?

I love two cups of tea first thing in the morning with my breakfast and I'm quite fussy about it so like to make it myself. It sets me up for the day.

2. If you opened a tea or coffee shop in your neighborhood what would it be named?  How would you decorate it? Would pastry or cake be served?

I'd have to call it 'Tea Break'. I have no idea how I'd decorate so would have to give my daughters almost free range, but it would have to be cosy and comfortable. And definitely cake...and pastries. And biscuits (U.S. cookies) and scones with cream and jam, (U.S. biscuits).

3. Beethoven required 60 beans per cup of coffee.  How particular are you about your coffee or tea?

I'm quite particular about my tea. I like Dilmah, preferably English Breakfast. If I'm away I'm happy with whatever the hostess gives me but it's always good to get back home to my preferred tipple.

4.Italian clergy in1600s  declared coffee the devil's brew and forbid it.

Pope Clement the VIII wanted to taste it, loved it and blessed it ... today, new research shows black coffee is drunk mainly by psychopaths... 

Sweden banned coffee in 1746 as dangerous and Islam banned it for causing free thinking!

How do you take your coffee you free thinking, radical and what's your favorite brand of devil's brew?

I love my Dilmah tea, none of this free thinking radical stuff for me, mainly because it triggers migraines, unfortunately!

Have a good week, 

blessings,

Diana

A day out in Devonport

We're home again and adjusting to the cooler southern weather.

We stopped over again in Auckland for a few days with Sofi and Aaron and attended church with them on Sunday. I wanted to show you the altar table, dressed by one of the Pacific Island congregations. I thought it was so pretty I had to photograph it.

On Monday we spent the day over in Devonport - drove 40 minutes to get there and didn't leave the city. We small town people aren't used to those sort of distances in the urban area :)

Devonport is a nice little village with a lot of well kept colonial style houses and I suspect, a lot of money. I tried to take some pics of the houses with their delicate iron latticework and white picket fences but the car was travelling just a little too fast.

 

After some op shopping, where some of us found stuff to buy and others decided they couldn't fit anything else in their bags we found a nice wee cafe for lunch... 

...and then decided to go and explore the Naval Museum.

Below is a model of HMNZS Otago which my brother served on and went to Mururoa Atoll with when the New Zealand and Australian governments sent ships to protest the testing of nuclear weapons in the Pacific in the mid 1970s. The man in the photo is our then Prime Minister Norman Kirk who died in office a few years later.

And this is the medal awarded to all personnel taking part. The New Zealand Special Service Medal (Nuclear Testing). My brother didn't apply for his medal but his twin sister decided it belonged in the family and applied on his behalf - and received it!

Then it was time for coffee, or tea in my case, and a chat then we went outside to play :)

Captain and crew, Bob and Aaron.

Admiring the Auckland CBD across the harbour and rainbow spotting. We guessed it had been raining where we'd come from so a good day to get away for a while.

Aaron and I 'played' chess. Well Aaron did and I pretended to. I've only ever played on the computer and that was years ago so he finished me off in about three moves, mainly because the only moves I could remember were the pawns and then I went blank 😂

Then it was time to head home and pack our bags for the trip home the next day.

And guess who was waiting to board with us? Mary Poppins! was my initial thought but then - no, it's one of the Marx brothers!

I'll do my best to catch up with some blog reading over the next few days. Have a good week. 

Diana

Time to head home

Our bags are almost packed ready for the off tomorrow. The time has gone quickly and although we haven't done much in the way of tourist stuff it's been lovely catching up with everyone one way or another.

More pics of our activities.

We had a drive out to see if we could see the whales another day and this time everyone saw them breaching while looking through the binoculars but all I saw was a tail :) Just my luck. We stopped at this cafe for a bite to eat and a drink on the way home. Lots of ibis hanging around - the Aussies call them bin chooks.

A day at the mall getting a few essentials we older citizens had need of. We girls decided to have a bit of pampering so went and had our eyebrows waxed and left Bob to wander for a half hour.

Another day we went for a walk around Queen's Gardens and had our pic taken under this enormous Banyan fig tree.

And visited the Orchid House. Not a lot flowering but still lovely to see.

I  packed up four of these cute wee koalas and sent them off to all the great grandkids.

Yesterday friends picked us up and took us up to Eungella National Park for lunch. A two hour drive. We stopped at a viewing platform over a creek and were lucky enough to see several platypus and some turtles. One of the turtles had a baby on its back and they were lying in the sun getting warm. They were too far away to get a decent photo though. And a large goanna ran across the road in front of the car as we were leaving.

This Giant Golden Orb-weaving spider was on a wall nearby while we were eating lunch. It was big.

And a hand for size context. The hand belongs to a big six foot man.

So we have had a good holiday just enjoying people's company. This time tomorrow we'll just about be in Auckland.

So until next time, blessings,

Diana

A social week.

We've been in Mackay just over a week and it has been quite a social time. We've caught up with relatives and friends over morning and afternoon teas, a birthday dinner, a meal out one evening and tonight we have a barbecue to go to. We went out to see if we could spot some whales one day but they weren't really  cooperating. Saw some big splashes from the tails but they weren't breaching. Well not while I had the binoculars anyway :)

I'll just post some pictures with a short description if they need it.

I was trying to get a pic of the plovers, there were five in all, but they weren't having any of it either. Sisters  front lawn.

Sis with her son and daughter in law.

Trying to spot whales. Both my sisters and Bob just out of the shot.

The shipping harbour...

...and the marina in Mackay. There's a lot of money tied up here.

Sisters sharing a laugh, that's me on the right.

Another morning out, I liked the way they presented the sandwiches.

Morning tea at a friend's house. We knew them in New Zealand and he is a rally car driver. 

He took both Bob and I for a spin in one of his cars, very exhilarating. And noisy :)

A short clip of our ride.

And last night we had another couple of family members arrive for a few days. So it will be nice getting to know them. They're from further south and we'd never met them until now.

And until next time,

enjoy your week,

blessings

Diana

A quick round up.

Last Saturday we flew out of Dunedin to Auckland on the first leg of our trip to see the family in Australia. Our youngest grand daughter and her husband took us to the airport and sat and had a coffee with us while we waited. It was a nice time.

 Aaron and Sofi met us in Auckland and we had a nice relaxed evening catching up on the news. On Sunday we all attended the church Aaron is pastoring. The congregation is small but welcoming and consists mostly of pacific islanders. Below is a picture of a tapa cloth on the wall. Tapa cloth is highly valued in the pacific communities and traditionally represented a woman's wealth. It is made from beaten bark.

After church we went out to Maraetai Beach for the afternoon. It was a really pleasant day and we enjoyed being able to sit there in the sun and watch everyone enjoying themselves, swimming no less. 

We had hot chips for a snack with a hot cuppa. 

And just as we thought we were going home Sofi thought it would be nice to show us Sylvia Park Mall, which is the largest one in the country. So we strolled around there for an hour or so and some of us spent money and some of us didn't :) It was a long day.

On Monday we did a trip down to Cambridge to visit our grandson who has a 'retro and collectibles' shop there. AMPERSAND is what he calls it. It wasn't open but he took us in to have a look...

...after which we all went for lunch and then strolled down to the local museum for a browse.

Below is a mosaic on the footpath. 

Cambridge is the main horse racing stud area of New Zealand. This is one of the horses, 'Mainbrace', very famous in its day.

Next day was a rest day :) it had been very busy then on Wednesday we flew to Aussie. Below is Bob coming out of the chair lift from the plane at our final destination - Mackay.

I'll leave you there until next time. 

Have a lovely week,

Keep well and enjoy yourselves,

Diana