respiratory syncytial virus

i returned from our cruise and days later was desperately ill in hospital with RSV.  i have never been so ill and i would not wish it on my worst enemy.  pnuemonia, bronchitis, sinusitis, low blood pressure, violent shaking, chills and fevers, migraines and my taste buds left the building.  i hardly ate for a week and a half but the appetite has returned and i'm eating normally now.  my son and daughter have been marvelous, cooking for me, helping me shower (daughter), shopping etc etc.  i am very lucky to have them.  two stays in hospital and the nurse visited me at home for a couple of days to administer the iv antibiotics and do my obs.  well, although i'm over the worst of it the recovery is extra slow.  Maz said that's because i'm old, which may actually have something to do with it.  i'm feeling heaps better but am still weak and wobbly.  to add to this we are experiencing a major heat wave and i am not good in the heat.  i am praying for rain as much of australia is going through dreadful drought at the moment and that along with fires in a lot of the country is making things difficult all over.  my daughter helped me send out some cards, shop for supplies for Christmas and buy a few presents for the kids so our Christmas will be low key but we won't starve.

cruising

I took my granddaughter on a cruise returning Sunday last.  My friend was supposed to go with me but she had an operation.  Then my son was going to take her place but my daughter in law went through a nasty health issue, which turned out to be ok, thank goodness.  So, I decided to take my granddaughter.    We had a lovely time except for the disappointment of not visiting kangaroo island to see where her grandfather, my late husband, was born and grew up. This was due to the weather conditions offshore.  She’d missed out on a trip to KI with her study group recently because of family issues so, of course, she was looking forward to it.  I was looking forward to looking around the places he’d told me about so many times and seeing the post office that my in laws had for many years.  But we went to bunnings and bought some timber etc etc.  Nothing to do but get over it. We had a 43 degree day the day before and very strong winds were forecast.   After sitting in port (Adelaide) all day and again next day we finally set sail for Port Lincoln.  The weather had turned cool and we had a lovely time looking around the city.  We returned to ship and set sail for Phillip Island.  We had to go over by tender which was much easier than I envisioned.  There were free shuttle busses to get us around.  We returned to the ship and later that night we set sail for Melbourne where we were to disembark.  It was so rough on board that night I thought I’d fall out of bed but didn’t and my granddaughter slept through it without a complaint.  We got transfers to the airport and flew home to Adelaide. It was lovely to see my granddaughter enjoy herself and relax.

greek chicken lemon and rice soup

Maz is greek and puts lemon on lots of things.  we even joke about lemon on toast.  yuk.  i love lemon, it gives chicken a flavour boost amongst other things.  today she made a comfort food her mum used to make.  click here for the recipe.  well, it was unusual that's for sure.  i'm not sure that i loved it but it was quite nice.  very lemony :)  she also made an eggless sultana cake which was delish.  i just had some with my coffee.  Maz loves cooking.  she's had major surgery on her foot/leg and is slowly recovering.  of course she's doing far too much walking around on it.  i saw the scar today.  it's huge, and, she needs a letter from the hospital at the airport because of all the metal in it now.  eight weeks non weight bearing but someone isn't good at listening to the doctor.  say no more

Margaret news

Margaret's time ran out at the nursing home so her daughter in America said she can return home.  Margaret has no one at home to care for her and except for Brian, her friend, she has to cope on her own.  her dementia is so advanced now that she is not capable of caring for herself.  Brian brought her home and she fell over on her way into the house.  i've been going down there some mornings to make her tea and toast. the other day i'd been out all day looking after Maz, that's another story, and went down there to see if she was ok.  i heard her but she sounded far away, she was calling out but i couldn't hear what she was saying.  i went to go around the back and she had moved a massive block of wood from in front of the gate.  she said she's been locked out and was laying on the ground for ages.  i took her inside and made her a cuppa and put her back to bed.  when i went down there that night she had no idea what had happened.  her daughter is coming in a week or so.  i hope she does and Margaret is looked after.  she would have been better off in the nursing home, at least she would have been safe in there. 

i have good news

i should label this post found found found.  yay.  i cannot believe it but i found my lost keys this morning.  in my jeans pocket.  i'd only worn them twice and hung them up in the wardrobe.  i was shocked because i didn't think i'd ever see them (the keys) again, although that didn't stop me from having a look every now and again.  my neighbours and i were going out for lunch today so i'm so lucky that i decided to wear those jeans.  my neighbour cancelled so i went off to meet Maz early.  we went to kmart.  oh dear.  so many bargains.  then we went back to Maz's place and had some lunch.  my son is coming over tomorrow to help me silicon a few holes on the shed roof.  it's leaking.  :) 

lost lost lost

i hate it when i lose things.  it happens much too much too and stresses me out a lot.  this time it's my spare house keys.  i've been cutting up old rosemary bushes down by the letterbox lately and i'm thinking i've dropped them there and perhaps someone has picked them up.  there was no ID on them.  i may have dropped them in the green bin.  that's a possibility.  the thing i hate most is that i stress and obsess about it.  it all happened when i (don't laugh) lost my spare car key.  i pulled everything out of the dresser and stuff was all over the place.  i found the (first) lost key.  yay.  but in the meantime i've lost the spare house keys which lived in the dresser with the car keys. i've replaced the three main ones but i can't remember what other keys were on the bunch.  bugga.  i've also searched the house high and low.  i'm hoping they dropped into the bin or they are hiding in the house somewhere.  never mind.  as my cousin said, noone has broken in so far.  lol 

i saw Margaret

she's been moved to a nursing home which is not too far away.  she's looking a bit more frail but generally is doing well.  she fixates on coming home which may not be possible.  i don't know.  when i got there she was in the community room playing a quiz game.  i helped her with the rest of the questions, well, not really help as we got some wrong answers.  it's a sad place.  lots of residents have dementia and were not doing well.  they'd just been served tea and coffee and spring rolls with sweet chilli sauce.  i proceeded to lean over the table to get Margaret's pen and dunked my sleeve in it.  yuk.  sticky mess.  she's worried about her garden but i explained that it's been raining a lot and her garden is fine. her daughter, who lives in america, has been in touch and Brian, her friend, visits every day.  he's a gem. 

pigeons and Margaret

we have a lot of pigeons around our unit block.  there's always dozens on the roof above my bedroom and i can hear them most mornings.  noisy as they are.  i thought about getting my grandson to throw a rubber snake up there to see if it will deter them but i probably won't.  Margaret, an old lady who lives on the corner, feeds them, as does another neighbour, and there are lots of young ones around.  i usually don't mind them too much.  an old work friend had terrible trouble with them on her fence as they pooped everywhere and her young daughter played in the back yard.  never mind.  talking about Margaret, she's 89, i was at the letterbox the other day when she got a visitor.  i actually hadn't seen her and her gates were shut so i assumed she was out with her friend who calls almost every day.  the visitor rang the doorbell three times and i called her home phone.  no answer.  later that day i noticed that the house was dark.  most unusual.  she wasn't there the next day and i got worried.  i didn't see her friend's car either.  i used to have his number but it didn't transfer to the new phone.  note to self, write these things down. anyway, i didn't see her all morning so called the police.  they came and said an old report mentioned her friend's family name so i looked in the white pages online and found an address that might have been him but when i rang no answer.  i gave the address to the police and they said they'd check.  luckily it turned out to be him and he rang me soon after to explain that Margaret had fallen in the garden again and broken her arm.  she's in the hospital and they are talking about respite after hospital.  she's got dementia and is getting so frail.  it's unusual to not see her in the garden when i go down there and there's always a light on at night.  so i rang her yesterday and will go and see her today after old people's exercise. 

nothing in particular

i've got nothing of much interest to report, just stuff.  i've been pottering around in the garden.  the handy man has mostly finished the shadecloth and it doesn't look bad.  he put a big blind up at one end to, hopefully, block out the summer sun.  it's horrible having a westerly facing back of the house. never mind.  he fixed my hose reel which broke again today when i turned on the water.  a build up of pressure i expect.  i've tried to fix it and he's coming back tomorrow to look at it.  he took my old washing machine out of the shed (rat house) and will fix up the floor.  my son came over the other day to help me put out some hard rubbish.  there wasn't much and i found the piece of hose with fittings on it i needed for the hose reel.  i thought i'd thrown it out.  it was buried under the bamboo litter.  no wonder i couldn't find it.  it's suppose to rain again over the weekend so the garden will be happy :)

a very fancy hose reel.  mine is nothing like this 

Happy Mother's Day

another not so good day

but i survived and let's face it most of the issues were first world problems and not important in the long run.  firstly, i went to quilting class and it did not go well.  i wanted to chuck the quilt in the bin and just go home and go to bed, everything that could go wrong did.  this tiny quilt has been frought with problems, all of them human error.  mine.  ahhhh. after all of that i got my corners done with the binding and packed up.  my sewing machine is extra heavy and hurts my back to carry it around.  i use the wheely thing sometimes but it's so hard to get in down the stairs and into the car and then into venue.  so the binding is machined on, i finished it last night, and i'm going to hand finish the back.  that should go smoothly.  i hope.  then after several other problems i started the dishes and my knife dropped to the floor.  i was amazed when i went to pick it up and it was broken in half.  my favourite knife Maz gave me years ago.  it never needed sharpening, it was nicely balanced and i don't think i'll be able to buy another.  oh well.  i do have another knife to use.  it's not the end of the world.  Kevin came and finished the shadecloth and the outside blind so that's good.  i made miss Lan two pillowcases today.  i'm afraid one might be a bit small.  i did french seams and that might have taken up more seam allowance that i allowed for.  they are not too bad.  and someone from my past smsed me to meet for coffee.  it didn't end well and i've been so undecided about going or not.  i will see.

what a mess!

i went to ikea yesterday for my twice yearly visit.  i didn't need anything (that i remembered) but i bought stuff.  of course.  i remembered when i got to the lighting department that i needed a shade for the kitchen.  i got the same one as my bedroom and that's been fine.  very simple.  the existing one in the kitchen has been looking a bit sad.  i got the shade home and it looked different inside so i was going to take it back today.  i noticed this morning that the extra bit inside is removable.  so, before my morning coffee, i got a chair and started to take down the old shade.  it disintegrated before my very eyes.  made a heck of a mess.  and ... the new shade wouldn't go on.  it was crooked so i attempted to straighten the rod things inside and got my finger nail stuck.  really stuck.  i couldn't drive to my son's for help.  none of my neighbours were home.  oh dear!  i got a screw driver and forced it down (or up, i'm not sure) and removed my fingernail.  it had started to hurt.  not good.  so i vacuumed up the mess and decided to start again after coffee.  i'll let you know how it goes.  lol  

ps. it didn't work.  i'll wait for my son to come over :(

my big day out

Miss Lan and i had a lovely day today.  firstly we went to our usual physio for massage.  my physiotherapist was holidaying in japan so i saw his brother for the first time.  it all went well and we shopped for fruit and veg after that.  then we came home and made sushi.  yum, it was delish.  better than the shops.  it didn't look as nice as shop bought though.  we made two each and one of mine was quite passable.  one was not.  it was my first attempt so not too bad.  Lan's were quite good.  we had roasted pumpkin, avocado, salmon and the usual rice and mayo.  really nice.  Lan bought over some beautiful material and asked me to make a pillowcase for her.  i've been looking on youtube and i think i'll be ok.  not too complicated.  i hope it works.  she was about to leave and said she was calling in to costco.  well, i've never been so i tagged along with her.  wow.  i was impressed.  they sell just about everything.  televisions and fridges.  fruit and veg, a cafe with great pizza (apparently, although we didn't partake). i was amazed by the selection.  the jewellery was gorgeous.  mobile phones, electrical etc etc.  when i got home i had some deliveries from the dreaded ebay.  i've been waiting for a phone case for the new phone and it is lovely (the phone case as i'm not totally happy with the phone).  i also got a nice rotary cutter.  i'm rather tired but determined not to nana nap as i want to sleep well tonight.  :)  it's getting quite chilly and i believe some rain is forcast for the end of the week.  it's been so dry here.  very sad.

ours didn't look this pretty but it tasted nice 

simples

i bought some sard foam/liquid pre wash recently.  i thought i'd try it on the stain left when i spilt my turmeric chicken last night.  however, the stain was shocking.  i washed it twice and it faded a bit so thought i'd try this new sard whiz bang stuff.  that's when the trouble started.  i couldn't get the fancy nozzle open.  i had to actually read the instructions and what do you know?  it was easy. i had a bit of a rant about the fancy nozzle costing much more than just the old fashioned spray bottle of old.  the stain has faded a bit more though.  i suppose i'll just keep washing it.  oh well.  on a positive note the bank finally gave me back MY money that i transferred to a friend in early december.  it didn't turn up in her account and i had to jump through hoops to get it back.  four months.  unbelievable. 

the joke's on me

i bought some socks recently.  they're made from bamboo.  i haven't worn them much it being summer and all.  i got them out the other day to take to exercise and they felt funny.  i tried them on and i was quite put out that they had such a major manufacturing fault.  no toes.  i thought who makes socks without toes.  that's not socks.  i thought about taking them back but couldn't be bothered looking for the receipt.  anyhoo ...  it finally dawned on me.  they are not socks.  nooooo  i bought them on ebay for when i had plantar fasciitis  recently.  they are compression 'socks'.  maybe i'm getting old  hahaha

please excuse my unpainted toenails 

i'm a quilter and starting small

well, i've sewn my first row together so i'm almost there. lol.  and the cutting out was challenging to say the least.  nowadays they use a mat and a rotary cutter.  i did quite well.  i joined a quilting 'circle' today.  there were so many women there that it surprised me.  they were all so helpful and nice.  our 'teacher' was so kind.  she helped me layout my squares and i made a mistake somehow and she was so nice fixing it up with me.  so i'm going to carry on at home making my rows.  the lady next to me had the same sewing machine as me, i bought it many years ago.  i took my own coffee and mug and promptly broke the mug, which is glass, getting into the car.  i've cleaned that up now.  and the other bad part of the day is that my machine is heavy and i've hurt my back badly lugging it downstairs and out to the car etc.  i'll rest it so hope it gets better.  i'm sure it will.  it's quite exciting. 

this is not my quilt.  

a very bad day

it all started with another letter from my credit union about an external transfer i made in december which didn't go through.  one email, three letters, three phone calls, two branch visits and they've refused to give me back my money.  they sent me a stat. dec. which i filled in and sent off today.  i also rang the banking ombudsman who advised me to start a formal complaint.  i mean really.  well, i went down to the civic centre to get a jp to witness my stat. dec. but they are building a new library down there and have moved the customer services dept. up here to the library.  so i came back to the library.  then i posted off the stat. dec. at the shopping centre where i lost my glasses.  i backtracked and at the last place there they were.  so thank goodness that ended well.  then i took a long lost lotto ticket into the branch to check it.  no, too late for that.  i was told to ring the head office which i tried to do but couldn't get through.  i'd probably checked it and not thrown it away.  there is a procedure to go through which has a fee attached if it's a winning ticket.  let's hope not.  i tried to log into their website but couldn't.  i also had a hard time trying to delete one of my devices and put norton anti virus on the ipad.  that took forever. oh well.  i just had a nice dinner and bought myself a mango as a treat.  the season is nearly over and i vowed next year to buy one more often.  my favourite fruit. 

ants and a present to me

i just noticed when i came into the dining room a little line of ants high up on the wall/ceiling going all around the dining room making their way to the kitchen.  no shortcut for my ants which is what i call my grandson anthony btw.  i admire their work ethic.  i noticed a few ants recently in the kitchen and was annoyed as i haven't had them inside for years.  i just sprayed but the spray from aldi smells horrible.  it's supposed to be non-allergenic. they are coming in the front glass door.  how rude!  there's not many but enough to be a nuisance.  on a nicer note i bought myself an ipad for my birthday next month.  it's an older model and i must say i like it.  i've always poo-pooed apple because of the ridiculous cost and they seem to break more often than not.  i hope it's ok.  i'm an android/windows woman and always have been.  i volunteered on a magazine years ago and used an apple computer.  that would be an antique by now.   well, i had a fab day yesterday and saturday playing with it.  i've got it sorted i think.  of course i ordered a nice wallet for it and a screen protector.  and i've justified the expense because it's a significant birthday and i deserve it.  lol

shade or lack thereof

i've been asking my son to repair the shade cloth out the back for ever.  he's patched it at times.  he tries.  i asked my friend's gardener to come and have a look at it.  it looked like a crazy person had put bits of shadecloth at random places including several different colours all joined together with cable ties.  so i helped kevin take it all down and moved everything to the side of the house.  it looks dreadful.  he's going to do it in stages apparently.  i might get rid of the fish pond too.  as you know i saw a rat on the back gate recently.  i put baits down but haven't seen any dead bodies or live ones come to think of it.  the first baits disappeared but the others i put out are still there.  i feel quite exposed now.  there is nothing between me and the back gate or the shed.  it's not good.  kevin put a piece of shadecloth over some plants and i cover the fish pond when the sun is out with yet more shadecloth.  i wonder if it will ever be finished and look presentable. 

we're having a heatwave

which is not surprising as it's january in adelaide.  middle of summer.  i'm not a fan.  i went back to exercise this morning and i must say i didn't really enjoy it.  i had to force myself.  i have nothing newsworthy to report which is probably a good thing.  my friend whom i went to bali with is on her way to japan with her family today.  she's away for two weeks and it's freezing there.  my neighbour is going to new york soon where it's 8 below.  talk about a change :)

rats

i am really scared of rats, mice, sharks and snakes.  not much chance of seeing a shark around here thank goodness and i haven't seen a snake either so that's really good.  i think i'd die if i did.  rats on the other hand do invade my space.  i was sitting on the couch once, just minding my own business, when a large rat ran along the fence.  i nearly died.  omg.  anyhoo, i was getting over the shock and horror of that when a few hours later it ran back in the other direction.  yuck.  yesterday i put some bread crusts on the lawn for the birds.  when i went to bed i looked out of the front door and i saw a small rat eating the crusts.  it saw me and ran off and set off the lights.  omg.  the crust is completely gone this morning.  i must have been a bit rattled because i came down this morning and the tv was still on.  oh dear.  they are plentiful in bali and i usually spot one or two.  years ago they were everywhere and one year i didn't see one.