'Aint love grand' ....

DH and I went to an afternoon tea on Saturday afternoon to celebrate the engagement of DH's god-daughter. The happy couple flew down from Rockhampton where they both work, she as a GP and he in Aged care. DH 'grilled' the young man as to what he actually does in Aged care...is he a nurse or an aide perhaps? We still don't know but as long as J, his god-daughter, is happy that's the main thing I keep telling DH. The young man in question is several years younger than J and for some reason that concerns DH. (He also did look very much younger than he actually is!) It couldn't have been easy for him having family and old friends of J's family 'checking him out'. I took a number of photos during the afternoon and he always had his hands in his pockets...could be body language showing nerves perhaps; not knowing what to do with his hands???

Any way the family of J put on the most magnificent spread with all homebaked goodies. Her sister and mother along with her aunt and cousins set all the food out in the back garden and made sure everyone had tea, coffee or punch to drink. I could see the effort that had gone into making the garden area look its very best for the occasion. There were pots of colour and herbs as well as the garden beds; all so lovingly tended.

When we got the invitation we wondered whether gifts were required because the invitation said come to meet C and re-acquaint ourselves with J...quite informal really. J had been engaged before and we sent some special champagne glasses along with a card. We didn't hear from her as to whether she got the parcel. We sent messages of enquiry...still no response. Then suddenly after about 12 months, we heard the engagement was off...then we got an email explaining that she was no longer engaged and could we supply an address to send back our gift...we told her to keep the glasses and enjoy them. The gift we gave this time was more modest and I searched for a card that was 'low-key' in its congratulations and 'predictions for the future'.

I've decided to sign up got the Friday Night Sew In  (FNSI) on Heidi's blog here . So instead of knitting as usual at night, I'd better organise a sewing project. It could be stitching some long hexagons as Kath at Sisters Of Stitch last week,gave me a page of papers ready to copy and cut out. Then again it could be that I finish the Christmas stitching project I started at Christmas in July. Decsions, decisions, decisions! :-)

On my mind...my nemesis, Bindis!

As usual on a Friday, I'm joining in with other bloggers and linking in to Rhonda Jean's blog, Down -to-Earth for 'On my mind Friday'.
Every year since coming to live in this house, I've been plagued by the weed known as bindi. It has other names apparently too; lawnweed, common soliva, Onehunga weed, and field burrweed. This weed starts appearing in the lawn in the latter part of winter. It has a 'fern-like' leaf which has been described as like a carrot top. How pretty you might comment...but bindis have prickles even in the early green/pretty fernlike  stages. But you leave them in the lawn at your peril...and also at your pets' peril. When these plants turn brown, they are just one mass of sharp (very, very sharp!) prickles and dig into barefeet, shoes and animal fur/hair. One year I thought that I would go around and just dig them up...even with gloves on in the early stage, it was too painful. In the days when we had plenty of water and could use sprinklers, we would water the lawn which made the grass grow thicker and smother the bindis and even though some survived they weren't a problem.

Bindis thriving in our dried up lawn

So for the last 3 years I've used the chemical 'Bindie'. It works quite well but unfortunately doesn't completely eradicate them so the bindis are back the next winter. I even used boiling water last year as a non-chemical solution. The infestation was just too big...I got exhausted running back and forth to boil the jug and bring it out to the yard again and again! lol last year's bindi 'crop' was just so overwhelming and I had to keep repeating the bindie treatment. Then I started to get a numbness around my lower jaw and muscle weakness in my arms...It was diagnosed as suspected poisoning/reaction to the 'Bindie'. But that has not been confirmed...but it was enough to scare me!

They're really flourishing in this patch near the back door!

So that brings us to this year...using the suggestion of Jerry from 'Gardening Australia', I am watering the bindi with a solution of iron sulphate . It is a remedy that Jerry's grandad used. Ever the optimist, I'm hoping that the iron sulphate salt works and that next year the numbers of bindis coming up is much, much less. Yes I googled the chemical and there was one site that said that iron sulphate or the over-use of iron sulphate is not good for the soil. But the same site said that it is not harmful to humans! :-)

Will this be the solution?

One good thing though...in the suburb I used to live in, many backyards were infected with green ants...very nasty. If I had to choose my 'infestation'...I think I'd pick the bindis! lol

Hard 'yakka' in the garden...

I have been working very hard in my garden this last month but have very little to show for it! The majority of the work has been in soil improvement. Over the years I have put lots of compost , manures ,mulch and gypsum  into the soil of the garden beds to ‘build them up’, improve the PH of the soil and to break up the clay. The soil in the veggie garden beds had become rich, held moisture and the soil was no longer lumpy with clay. But then we had rain...well lots of rain actually and the garden beds became water-logged/saturated for weeks on end. 

The natives like this grevillia are still thriving in the compacted, rock-hard, dry soil

Before we went away in early March, I dug over the vegetable garden beds, spread compost and then mulched and left the beds fallow for the time we were away. When I started gardening again in earnest recently, as the weather started to warm up, my established beds were full of weeds despite the thick mulch, and the ground was like concrete...so disappointing after years of building up the soil. So I’ve done lots of weeding, lots of digging with the mattock and fork and breaking up mud/clay clods. Then lots of gypsum to help break up the clay and lots of cow manure and compost. I’m hoping that the crops do a little better this season as most things died of ‘wet feet’, (root rot) or mildew or the bees stayed away so pollination didn’t take place as effectively as usual.

I haven’t planted much yet...2 lots of potatoes (one in a large pot), lettuces, capsicum, rocket, eggplant, telegraph peas, basil and Italian parsley. Still to be planted are cucumber, zucchini, carrots, silverbeet and comfrey, a grafted eggplant and the little Tommy Toe cherry tomatoes, as well as some lima bean seeds I bought on Ebay. Oh and another lot of potatoes. I’ve given up growing the larger tomatoes in the warmer months as the fruit flies get them before we do. Talking of pests, I must also plant a few marigolds in and around the veggie plot to discourage the said pests.

One lot of potatoes

Some planting in bed #1 . the teepee is for the telegraph peas

#2 planting of potatoes; these are in a big plastic pot

last year's Tommy toe tomato plant is again bearing fruit

Some of the garden helpers that I buy

Another view of the potato bed

As well as the veggie garden, I’ve also been tidying up other beds with the shrubs and smaller flowering plants. I think I will need to put some Saturaid granules in the front garden because the soil is so dry. Again I’ll need lots of compost, manure and mulch to get those beds viable again. Last year in early spring I potted up lots of petunias because in early November we were hosting a 30^th birthday BBQ for a DD’s (DH’s DD2) partner. Even though the yard was muddy for that night the pots overflowing with red/mauve/purple/white/pink petunias looked pretty good. Well those annuals died off at the end of summer and the pots just sat around (shocking eh?) but last week I emptied all those pots with their worn out potting mixture into the wheelbarrow. At first I planned to heap up this dirt and plant out bromeliads around the base of some of the mature trees. Change of plan this weekend; the mixture went into the base of the new raised garden bed. We’ll put the ‘good stuff’ on top.

The raised garden bed I bought with my birthday vouchers

Old, spent potting mix from last summer's potted colour

You might have noticed that I haven't mulched yet. Because I have used a lot of our own homemade compost, I'm waiting to see what 'volunteer' plants come up. Already I've got some rockmelons and tomatoes coming up and they are usually quite strong little seedling. As the weather warms up next month, I'll start adding mulch.

Still on the census...

I’ve mentioned a few times in posts that DH is an Area Supervisor for the Census. He has trained and then supervised 8 collectors and one reserve and this afternoon he did another training session with them on the final phase of the process...Collection.  Tonight is CENSUS NIGHT Australia –wide but many people have already completed their forms online...DH and I have!

A number of months ago I stayed around home one Friday when all the boxes of Census materials were being delivered. These boxes took up a fair bit of room in the bedroom that DH is using as his office during this contract. Then after the first training session, the collectors came to our place to pick up their boxes, thus freeing up some room here.

There were 4 stacks of boxes just like this one!

DH ran today’s session from 4-6pm, so 11 (2 people from another area came to the session) people plus DH squeezed into our dining room for the training. The session also moved to the lounge room to watch the training DVD; DH commented that all 11 fitted on our modular suite!  My task for the session was to provide some refreshments. I guess I’m like a catering managerJ.  

During the 2 hours of the training I set myself up in my ‘sewing room’ where I crocheted around some donated squares and finished off the session reading some ‘Gardening Australia’ magazines.

All that was left! Enough for DH and I to share over a glass of red after jobs well done! lol

Dave Earl and the Blues...

While DH and I were in San Francisco in March this year, we spent a lot of time down at the Embarcadero which is the eastern waterfront and roadway area of the city. It's a lovely area with beautiful gardens, piers with interesting shops etc and of course those seals at Pier 39.

A bit of topiary here

One of the lovely garden areas in front of the piers

There were lots of buskers and one guy in particular impressed me with his music. We saw him a couple of times and I decided that I wanted to take some of his music home so I bought 2 of his CDs. His name was Dave Earl and here is his webpage with a sample of his blues music.

I uploaded this CD to my iPod when I got home and found the music on it to be a perfect   accompaniment for when I ride my exercise bike. On the days that I play Dave Earl, the half hour just goes in a flash. The Shadows album is also pretty good, as is the Blues brothers and Suzi Quatro...but Dave is the best! :-)

On my mind...gravity and getting older...

On my mind today is gravity, surgery and questions. For a number of years gravity ‘acting upon’ my nether regions has caused some discomfort. While I was working I preferred to battle on rather than face surgery. So finally I went back to the specialist last Wednesday (after 3 years) and we discussed the surgery option as well as the ‘do nothing’ option. DH and I had discussed the issue before I went and we tended towards the surgery option if the specialist offered it, as things weren’t getting any better.

These days most specialists try to avoid operations if possible; well in my experience this has been the case. It wasn’t just my imagination but apparently ‘things’ had worsened. Dr C recommended surgery as I require what is euphemistically referred to as a ‘Repair’ as well as what I call, ‘the Big H Operation’.  Dr C then discussed with me the procedures, the things that can go wrong, the recuperation phase of 6 weeks and... ah hem...some delicate matters...I know that these days they have to tell you about the possible bad parts...but it’s still scary!

I’ve been sent away to think about it and then I need to make an appointment in which to ask the doctor any questions I (and DH of course) may have and also at that appointment the bookings will be made. Dr C prefers to operate at a large private hospital on the south side of town as that's where her main practice is and as she likes to see her patients every day, that hospital is more convenient for her.

The very elaborate entry to the Mater Private Hospital

So far the only question I have is about exercise during the 6 weeks. I remember friends who had the Big H op had to go for a walk each day...well more like a shuffle for the first few days...somehow I think the exercise bike may be out for a while...and the watering of the vegie garden with a watering can filled from the tank.

Like most of my garden, these plants are  suffering from lack of rain and I water them with the watering can at least once a week...good exercise lugging the water to the plants!

I should be able to knit, as long as I don't lift down heavy boxes of stored yarn but  gardening may be out of the question for a while. Cleaning the bathroom may have to be handed over to DH for a while also. But I do like the sound of that extra time for knitting though...and I've only watched 1 1/2 DVDs of all the series of Wycliffe. And someone told me that nowadays you can upload talking books from the library...that could be handy also...although I have a pile of books waiting for me to read them... Then there are some embroidery kits I have bought at various times that need to be completed. I think I can do this! lol

Slow cooking...

When I was a child, many Australian households would have a roast dinner for Sunday lunch. But not at my place...we would have spaghetti and my mother would simmer the sauce for hours on the stove top. The smell would drive me mad...I would pester my mother constantly, wanting to know if it was nearly lunchtime...lol   Mum used to put an asbetos mat over the gas flame which would allow a very low temperature. The resultant sauce was delicious.
By the time I was married and cooking, these mats were no longer sold due to the asbestos in them and I always found it hard to simmer the sauce for the number of hours that my mother did...3-4 hours without it sticking or worse...burning. When I moved in to this home it has electric hotplates but I still found it hard to get a very low simmer. But then I bought my slow cooker...and voila! I have been able to make pasta sauce that tastes just like that which mum (or dad occasionally) made. I don't have to worry about it burning or sticking and can go on with other things. Because I bought the large capacity slow cooker, I make a double batch which gives us 3-4 meals for the 2 of us.

My younger daughter works for a major bank and each year the staff raise money for a chosen charity. Last year they compiled a recipe book from favourite staff recipes and sold them to raise funds. DD2 put in my pasta sauce recipe.

Pasta sauce; Maria-style
810 tin chopped tomatoes (mum used fresh tomatoes, plunged in boiling water, then cold and then peeled)
425 can of tomato puree (tomato paste can be used but only about 4 tabs)
400-500 g, good quality beef mince
pinch of salt
4 cloves fresh garlic crushed or 2 teaspoons crushed bottled garlic
1/2 teas dried oregano
1 teas dried basil (or 2 tabs chopped fresh basil added at end of cooking)
1 teas sugar
1 tabs oil, preferably olive oil

• brown mince in oil. Use a frypan for this; drain off any fat.
• Stir in garlic, herbs and salt
• Add tomatoes and puree; stir in the sugar. Bring mixture to the boil and ten turn down to a simmer
• Simmer the sauce uncovered for at least an hour. Continue to stir at intervals to avoid sticking or burning.
• Serve sauce with cooked pasta, use in lasagne, cannelloni and even pinwheels made with puff pastry or bread dough.

Now to adapt this to the slow cooker, I double all the ingredients except for the meat which I just increase to 650-700 grams. I brown the meat before I put it in the slow cooker. I set the cooker to high for 3 hours and then to low for another 1.5-2 hours.
When I cooked this the other night I used my latest 'toy' which I bought at the recent tupperware party. It's a little pull-cord chopper...and I think I love it!!! I chopped up the fresh basil leaves in it!

A few pulls of the cord and chopped basil!