Love Those Sports! ~ Tuesday 4

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Love Those Sports! ~ Tuesday 4

Welcome to Tuesday 4 friends!  I am always so happy to have people come and take part.  The Olympics are taking place and  we just had the Super Bowl for American football so perhaps we can talk about sports a bit.  Thank you to Diana of  Doodles and Daydreams for suggesting sports as a subject for this week! So, let's think about sports this week...........

 1. Do you enjoy any of the sports from the Olympics either Summer or Winter? Would you tell us about it?  

I love watching the summer and winter Olympics but probably more so the summer ones. I always wanted to take part in the Olympics, swimming, but never made the grade. When my sister was picked to go in the regional coaching team as a teenager and only stuck at it for about a month I was so disappointed. I couldn't understand why she didn't make the most of the opportunity. I gave up going to Swimming Club not long after. I guess my siblings and I were quite sporty when we were young. I'm thoroughly enjoying the winter Olympics just now, especially the ski and snow boarding events.

2. What sports have you taken part in and what good did you get out of participating? If not, was there one you wish you had taken part in? Did sports help you in life?

My summer sport was swimming, I was passionate about it, Our public pool wasn't covered and so we had to wait for the warm weather before it opened and that waiting was a terrible time for me :) I played cricket one year during High School and softball one year at Primary. Marching was another summer sport I really enjoyed. I loved the discipline of the marching and taking part in competitions, and I loved our gold and royal blue uniform. Athletics was once a week but I wasn't very good at them.

During winter there were two sports for girls to choose from, as far as I knew, basketball (not to be confused with today's basketball game) or hockey. I opted for basketball. Teams were nine a side and I was a wing defence, couldn't shoot a goal if my life depended on it :) I loved that as well and it is the only winter sport I played until I left school. 

in my netball (basketball) uniform aged about 16

Once I left school I didn't play sports until I came south to live when I played basketball (today's game) for a season but I didn't enjoy it and wasn't very good. Then when I met my hubby I played darts, because he did. I was picked for our local rep team once but played so badly it wasn't funny. We were in a large warehouse in the middle of winter with no heating and I was frozen. That's my excuse anyway :)

 I loved the team sports as they gave me a sense of belonging, when you're shy you need that. But I also loved the competitiveness of the swimming, me against the rest :)

3.  Is there a sport you still engage in or one you enjoy watching a lot?

No, I don't play any sports now, although my girls keep wanting me to join a leisure marching group. I consider it :) Hubby watches sport all the time and I think you can have too much of a good thing. I've tended to stop watching a lot any more, after you've watched the darts every day for almost a year you go off it a bit :) 

4. Have you any favorite teams you cheer on? Or perhaps a favorite sports figure? How about both??

I don't really follow the local teams unless they are playing a rep game, then I'll watch if I'm home. And any of the national teams, after all we're only a small country so we've got to cheer them on. We're a very sporty little nation with some of the top teams in the world for some sports.

What's the most memorable comeback or turnaround you've ever seen in a sports game, and what made it so special?

None that I can think of off the top of my head.

************

Well It's a rotten summer's day today. I have soup simmering on the stove for tea, the rain has been bucketing down and the Silverstream at the bottom of the street is in flood. Some schools have been closed and there is some surface flooding. But I won't complain - the North Island has taken a hammering in the past fortnight, first the top half and now the bottom half and top of the South Island. We're only getting the tail end of the weather bomb.

photo courtesy Taieri Community Board

So keep well until next time,

 blessings,

Diana

Hello there

 I've just been for a stroll down to the Silverstream to have a look and it is almost back to normal levels but running swiftly. A new path has been built up to the flood bank which is great, it'll save walking through the. grass and getting wet feet after it's been raining. People and their dogs and kids on bikes are using it again on this lovely, warm (for winter), sunny day. An enjoyable walk really.

My GKB Bob has had another birthday, he's reached the grand old age of 83. We had cream buns with chocolate icing to celebrate, he didn't want to go out, and the girls came over for the afternoon. He had phone calls and messages from other members of the family as well and I think he quite enjoyed a nice relaxed day. The girls pandered to his sweet tooth, giving him ice cream, fudge and chocolates, which he is being very good with and only eating a couple of pieces a day. And yes, he is sharing :) Though we haven't tried the ice cream yet. Maybe tonight :)

Apart from that there is not a lot going on. I am working 3 shifts a week at the moment as one of the volunteers is away, but I'll have my turn in August when we head to Aussie to visit my sisters. So we're looking forward to that. 

Until next time, keep well and enjoy life.

Diana

Not so silver Silverstream

 It has been raining non stop for the past 27 hours.

 Not heavily but steadily. 

It's not forecast to stop until sometime tonight and the council have had a sandbagging station operating since yesterday morning. 

We're lucky in that our house is quite high off the ground and the flood banks keep the water of the Silverstream contained. Unlike in earlier years when the properties at the bottom of our street would flood.

I took a walk down to have look this afternoon and these are the photos. It was very muddy on the bank and slippery so I stayed well back. I didn't fancy slipping and getting a dunking.

We haven't seen the local news today but know there was bad  flooding further north yesterday, in Marlborough, and I suspect there will be flooding in South Dunedin today. 

Take care.

Diana

The end of autumn

The feijoa tree is absolutely laden with fruit and with the recent winds the fruit has been falling all over the drive. I stewed the little ones this morning after sorting out some of the larger ones to go to Daniel, youngest grandson, who loves them.

Then after I'd kept some for ourselves I put a bucketful at the gate for people to help themselves. They didn't last long and the lady who took them came back and gave us a jar of jam she'd made previously and a couple of kid's wheatbags, which can go to a couple of the great grands.  :)

It was such a beautiful autumn day I decided to go for a walk down the Silverstream after lunch. The sun was shining and so I didn't need a jacket but wore the vest my daughter had given me for Mother's Day. It was just the right weight for the day.  :)

 

It's the last day of autumn tomorrow although you wouldn't be blamed if you thought it had ended several weeks ago. Anyway the wildlife was staying out of sight, maybe it was still a bit early in the day for ducks (that's as wild as the wildlife gets). There were quite a few dogs out walking their people but I never got any snaps of them.

The trees were in different stages of losing their leaves, this one has almost none but the walnut tree further back in the picture still has a lot on the branches. I think there are a couple of dogs with their walker under it.

There were still some red summer roses in bloom on the fence.

 And a nice seat to rest and just enjoy the view if you feel so inclined.

An apple tree in someone's yard with a wonderful crop on it. The birds were certainly enjoying them.

And a tiny solitary pansy along the fenceline. (Ignore the rubbish).

Isn't it pretty and really an old fashioned colour.

And now I need to go and get tea on.

So enjoy your week and I'll see you next time.

Diana

scavenger hunt

Lost/found

 Lost...and not yet found.

I was getting ready to go out a couple of weeks ago  and was changing my ear rings. I always stand over the bed when taking them out so that if they drop I don't lose them. Haha. One of my good pearl studs fell and disappeared. We have searched, the floor, the bedding and shaken out the bath robe that was on the bed. Nada. A mystery. 

Prints

I received a lovely Christmas card this year from my 

granddaughter and her husband. Granddaughter is quite 

arty crafty so she made her cards this year - with help

 from young Arlo. He played in paint and we all received 

cards with his handprints and footprints on them :) 

Something to treasure.

Lunch

Every now and then I go to a daytime concert with one of my friends.  A light lunch is included in the cost of the tickets. It's usually a sandwich and a muffin with tea and coffee. I had to take something out to the car between the end of the concert and lunch this week and when I got back all that was left were the sandwiches in the picture.

Starts with M

 Breakfast doesn't start with M but Marmite does. Yum. Nothing better than tea with marmite on toast for breakfast - unless of 

course you're an Aussie and you'd probably prefer Vegemite :)

Ends with T

Windfall walnuts are sometimes on the path where I walk along the Silverstream. This is one of them. I know because I couldn't work out what they were when I first saw them so I picked one to bits - and ended up with beautifully stained fingers :) Walnut.

My choice

A lone sheep, a lost sheep or just left behind. 

On the bank of the Silverstream one evening.

Joining Hawthorn for her photo scavenger hunt on:
http://livelovecraftme.blogspot.com/2020/01/januarys-link-up-party.html

Well my intention was to join up with Hawthorn but I have been away for a few days and the link wasn't up before I left and it was finished when I arrived home. Never mind, you can still
have a look at what others have done if you follow the link above. 

Diana

A stroll along the Silverstream

I went for a wander along the Silverstream today.

It was warm but with a bit of a breeze blowing at times and the fragrance coming from these lilies as I walked by was lovely.

I had decided to walk as far as the walnut tree about halfway along this section. It hangs over the path and I guess if you went along at the right time you might be able to pick up the windfalls. I've never been so lucky :)

As you can see it was quite a dull day and I actually had the path to myself - usually there are dogs and walkers or runners there. 
There are seats every so often, some donated by Rotary and others put out by home owners. The ones above look like they came from Carisbrook, the local football stadium, when it was pulled down.

I sat for a short while and just looked about and enjoyed the tranquility. Butterflies, bees  and birds flew past but 

I couldn't see any ducks in the stream, it was probably 

too early in the day for them.

On the opposite bank it was quite pastoral with sheep and

 cows in the paddocks. I didn't see any rabbits about but

 it was probably too early for them as well. We had a baby one in the front yard one day last week. I don't know where it 
came from and we haven't seen it since.

 

There were a few windfall walnuts but not worth gathering up. 

I'm not sure I'd know what to do with them in this green state anyway.

**********

And for those of you who expressed an interest in seeing 

Alice's Christening gown up close here is a photo her 

Granma took of her on the tapa cloth mat.

And I will now finish and make my GKB a coffee, 

he's been out mowing the lawn so I think he deserves one :)

Until next time,

Diana

Weather watch

 I wondered what I was going to share this week as it has been a quiet time around here. But the last  24 hours gave me something, be it ever so little. A few of you might have seen the odd post where I've shown our benign Silverstream. Well it's benign in the summer but today that has changed.

summer on the floodbank

We had some of this weather below today which rapidly changed

 to extremely strong winds and very heavy rain.

autumn on the floodbank

Resulting in a not so benign Silverstream.

today

A lot of sandbagging was happening in the Silverstream area during the day.  This is at the bottom of our street but our house is built quite high off the ground, luckily. The rain is still coming down, it hasn't let up since it began this morning.

So now we wait to see whether it breaches the floodbank.

Well that's snow and rain out of the way, I wonder what's next?

Diana

Oh dear, there's just been a snowy forecast for tomorrow :)

Randomness

I haven't been up to posting for a few weeks as my Little Mother hasn't been at all well and I have been seeing to her needs.  

I have been looking in on you though and catching up on what you are all doing but I'm sorry I haven't had the energy to comment. 

It's relaxing just to read sometimes.

But I was looking through my photos and found some 

I've taken over the last few weeks that I could use to take part

 in Five on Friday with Amy and her lovely friends.

So number one: A shot taken one day while I was walking along the Silverstream. That is a cabbage tree (cordyline australis) on the bank. It is over the back fence from where a friend of mine used to live. The cabbage tree was given to her and her husband as a gift but she didn't think it went with her garden so she planted it on the floodbank instead. This way we all get to enjoy it. A lot of people think they are ugly but I like them. They are New Zealand natives and native birds find their berries very tasty.

Number two:  Do you remember a few months ago I told you that my friend's cat had departed to where all cats eventually go? Well shortly afterwards  she was offered this little lady. She is a real character and a lot of fun. She loves playing in the box and is a real blessing to my friend who missed her ginger boy dearly. But the thing that really struck us was that her lovely ginger boy was already named Leo when he arrived on the scene and when this little lady came along she was already named Cleo! I'd say it was meant to be, wouldn't you?

Number three: The Children's Marathon challenge. Out walking around the town one day I was passed by these kids out on a run. I see in the paper that a lot of the schools in the area are taking part in a  marathon of sorts. For the past 6 weeks they have been running around courses at the schools until they have clocked up almost  40 k's.  The final section of the run is then done at Logan Park on a running track and when it is over a ballot is taken to see who gets the donated prizes of sports shoes. A good prize for the lucky ones, only 10 to give out I believe.

Number four: My reading challenge books for a couple of months. I'd had the Joyce  Meyer one, Look Good, Feel Great, for quite a long time and had read a couple of chapters but no further. So I decided now was a good time to finish it. Easy reading, common sense stuff, but something to give you a prod into taking a little bit of action as well. That was the August read completed. :) 

The September book is going to remain unread I'm afraid. Too cynical, hard, and brittle for me. Nothing relaxing about it or even, for me, entertaining. So after persevering for six chapters I've given it the heave and shall probably be putting it in a bin for a book sale instead. What was it? The Best Awful by Carrie Fisher. 

Someone else may enjoy it.

And finally to Number five: These beautiful daffodils are growing at the boundry fence between our house and the neighbour's. They are the only true daffys I have and so I am reluctant to pick them. But the bonus is that I can see them from my kitchen window and can enjoy them anyway. They are a real promise of better days to come. We have had a few stormy days, snow and hail lately so it is lovely to see this splash of colour along with the jonquils all along the front of my house. See the header picture for a look at a small section of them.

Five on Friday

These five photo's are only related in that

 I took them while out and about this week.

Along the right bank of the Silverstream on a wet, drizzly walk.

The view from a friend's back deck. 

The cows are heading to the milking sheds.

The groynes at St. Clair beach, Dunedin.

Surfers coming in on the swells to the right.

The salt water pool and tearooms at St. Clair.

We popped in here for a cuppa.

Rural view along the left bank of the Silverstream.

Scroggs Hill in the background and beyond that the Pacific Ocean.

Little mother's bushes getting a bit of a trim by my GKB.

And I'm pretty sure that is six photo's. I'll just pretend I can't count, 

or we could say the two from St Clair constitute one :)

joining Tex at:
Good Fences
and Amy at:
Five on Friday
and Stepanie at:
roses of inspiration

Walking and strolling

We have been very good with our walking and strolling, my GKB and I.

Sometimes we stroll along the Silverstream and have views like this to look at.

This was along the 'left bank'. 

When you get to the end of our street and go onto the floodbank 

you can turn either left or right. 

One side is flanked by the Silverstream and farmland and in the case of the 'left bank', 

it is farmland on both sides.

If you turn right it is private dwellings on one side, 

most of them have lovely gardens to admire, 

and the Silverstream and farms on the other.

It is a shared space, 

cyclists, joggers, walkers and dogs with their humans.

It's never boring.

We met a dog with her man a couple of days ago,

she takes him out at 1:30pm every day

 regardless of the weather, so he said.

I meant to get a picture of them but got so busy talking I forgot.

Oh well..

Sometimes, like today, we head for a park. 

I wanted to go to the library before we head up to the caravan 

so we took a walk around the gardens at the adjacent park.

They are dressed in their mid summer frocks at the moment

and are rather pretty.

House sparrow.
 I believe he is a male, as the males wear a bib on their chest.

We had a bit of a sit before we headed home again

and this little fellow came looking for crumbs.

He had a few mates with him but I'm afraid we disappointed them all

 because we hadn't really thought about feeding the birds.

Maybe next time we'll be better prepared!

We are off to the caravan in a couple of days,

so until we get back look after yourselves.

Have a good week everyone,

Diana 

Walking plans

When I first started this blog it was because I was bored and I saw one my niece had started.

"If she can do it, so can I", I thought.

"Mmm, I guess you need to have something to write about though. 

Well I'm trying to get fit enough to walk the 'Rail Trail' with my sister, that'll do. 

No matter if no-one is interested, it'll keep me on track."

Ha! Famous last words!!

I was very good - for about a year,

 then sis didn't arrive over from Aussie when expected.

Disappointment and then discouragement.

But suddenly, out of the blue, she's got it all planned!

All I have to do is lose about a stone in weight, 

get fit, and comply with the plan!

Thank goodness we don't have a date yet 

and it isn't happening till next year, 

so I have some time. 

I hope.

I think I might be doing the bookings too, but we'll see.

cows grazing

So today I went out walking. 

Along the Silverstream. 

ducks on the bank 

It is the boundary between the urban and the rural areas.

So I walked the footpaths first because I had letters to post.

(Not everyone has computers and 

it's quite nice to write with a pen and pad occasionally).

Then I got myself through the gate and onto the banks.

Lovely, not many people although it was such a lovely day.

It's hard to believe this is winter.

It has been very mild so far, 

apart from the odd snow fall, and flood etc.

Tomorrow I will go out again and continue along the path,

under the bridge, up the other side...

...and along the bank to the bridge further down. 

I haven't been far down this side before so it will be interesting.

The aerodrome is over that way as well as more farmland.

I might go to the gym too, 

they have a special for old people like me, haha,

and some of my friends already go.

Anyway that is the plan so far.

Oh, by the way, did I say I haven't been out walking since Easter?

And the Rail Trail is 150 kilometres or 93.3 miles long. Hmm.

Have a great week folks.

Diana