Two treats

 I was feeling a bit down in the dumps again yesterday, so I decided I would live dangerously and rent MGM for 99p a month for three months, so I could watch the new Series of Blood of my Blood (Outlander followers will know exactly what this is about).  For non-Outlander followers, it is a prequel of the parents of the main characters in Outlander.  Set in Scotland and I was back in my happy zone last night as I set the final stitches in the Heatwave quilt binding.  I'm about to go in and watch some tv and sew in all the ends from the long arm quilting.

This morning was sunny but a bit breezy, and I decided that I would drive up to the Elan Valley and have a walk there.  As always I really enjoyed it.  

You can tell it was windy though, just from the white horses on the reservoir, which is still pretty low.

The Rowan trees had a good crop of berries, but some had been blown off or scoffed by wild birds already.

Amazingly, there were still ripening blackberries.  Perhaps I should go back and pick in a week as lots like this along the side of the pathway.

I rounded the bend, and could see the church on the far side, but boy, the wind hit me and nearly knocked me sideways, snatching the breath from my mouth, and so I turned around at this point, back onto the more sheltered pathway at the side of the reservoir.

I do appreciate it being a FLAT walk, as all the ones locally are hilly.

I have got some mince out thawing, and think I will make a Cottage Pie for my tea tonight and tomorrow.  

I've started on the first of the Library Books I got yesterday, Anthony Horowitz's A Line To Kill, set on Alderney.  In my just-before-Keith days I sailed there on a friend's yacht.  I had a stinking cold, and can remember us mooring in the Braye Harbour, and then being taken ashore on a water taxi, and walking up the road to the nearest pub, for sustenance.  The few cars that there were sounded like they were on their way to the breaker's yard, as no MoT's were required on the island.  

Well, this won't do.  Time to sew those ends in.

Four Chimneys . . .

Rosie with static hair yesterday!  She LOVED the big slide and would have been on it all day . . . She is very brave and intrepid, just like her grand-dad Keith.   She has us in stitches yesterday afternoon as she sped past saying, "I'm being a cheeky monkey!"  That's what Tam calls her.

 I've just been on one of the Dartmoor pages I follow on Facebook, and a photographer had visited Throwleigh and taken some lovely photos.  Oh, how I wanted to BE there . . .  Anyway, one showed a cottage which suddenly reminded me of one we had the details of in Devon, called Four Chimneys.   It ticked all our boxes, but of course was on the market about 5 years before we eventually got a buyer.  I hadn't thought of it since.  We were looking in Devon for years, online, but only viewed a few because it was a long way to go in a day, and if we stayed overnight, could get expensive.  We simply were NOT MEANT to move there . . .  Literally everything that could go against us did, right from the start.  In 1987 we had a buyer for our Dorset house, had offered on Beaworthy Mill (losing it broke my heart) and Keith's gold shares were worth the price of the Mill outright (£60,000).  He decided to wait over the weekend and sell them on the Monday, and then the Tokyo stock exchange shut for the weekend and dumped all its gold, and by Monday his shares were worth just a few pounds . . .

We loved the old building in Hatherleigh which had once been Hatherleigh Antiques.  We were there for an hour, viewing it, and it was very affordable - back then.  But, no sale at Ynyswen.  We loved the thatched cottage near Oakhampton with a red kitchen and a lake . . .  Ditto.  No, we were meant to be in Wales and stay in Wales.  Full stop.

Yesterday I suddenly thought of another house we viewed, but along the Welsh borders this time, just over the Shropshire border I think.  It had a kitchen with a range, but that was in a glass-house extension and apparently bitterly cold in winter, despite the range.  Work needed on windows, roof etc.  Oddly it had about 14 sheds in the garden, some overcome by laurel bushes etc, and that's where the children went off to sleep when they were being a PITA . . . How odd to parent that way.

Maples changing colour at the Groe.

I know, I'm wittering on about nothing.  I've had my walk (around the Groe today, nice and flat), collected my prescription, changed my library books and got cat wormers from the vet's.  TV and quilt binding this afternoon.

 

A family weekend

 I have Tam and Rosie here for the weekend.  Rosie still allergic to sleep and I was in bed before her last night!  We have promised to take her to the swings today, so hopefully it will stay dry.

I went to the butchers yesterday and got some of their sausages - their special lamb/mint/honey ones which were tasty.  Then lamb burgers for today's meal and bread and scrape the rest of the week!  

Some photos from Friday's walk.

I am hoping to finish the quilt off this evening, with a bit of help of course!  I have one and a half sides left to do.

I've just had a visit from part-time neighbour Sam.  He was telling me of his plans - holiday in Egypt with his Chinese girlfriend, then on to Portugal with his mate, then in December, 3 months in China, living with his girlfriend up in the mountains.  It sounds amazing.  Oh to be young, footloose and fancy free and newly in love again :)  I shall miss him - we've had some good chats.

I have a helper already . . .

 I sat down to start blind stitching the binding on the quilt this afternoon.  Of course, it wasn't long before I had a little helper  . . .

She was SO happy - it was so lovely and warm in there . . .

She was not amused when I had to turf her out so I could come and cook tea.  Not sure how I will manage to sew this without her "helping".

After forcing myself to change the bed, as believe me I haven't had an iota of energy all day, I set to and finished off the door curtain.  The colours tie in well with the wall tiles over the bath and shower unit.

I've just had the form for the Builth Fair next year and believe it or not, they have put their prices up yet again and it will be £235 next year.  I will have to see if I can get a smaller stall.  Short of going outside (not ideal because you never know what the weather will be up to), the only slightly cheaper way of doing it is to have a smaller stall in the South Glamorgan Hall, which was 2/3 empty the last time, and people don't even bother to go in any more.  Sigh.

Happy Friday tomorrow . . .

Being crafty . . .

 

I had a really lovely afternoon at my patchwork group yesterday.  Alex had finished the long arm quilting on "Heatwave".  Doesn't it look gorgeous?  I dutifully measured and cut out the binding and amidst chatting and laughing, sewed 3 sides of it in place.  I will get the rest cut and joined today.  Then will follow the slip-stitching on the back and there are a lot of ends to sew in on the quilting, as Alex had to do it in three goes as she had private quilting jobs to do.  We just pay her for the thread used.  I think it's turned out really well.

It was a lovely drive there and back too.  A lovely sunny autumn day, that quickly cooled when the sun went down. 9 deg C in the evening and 6 deg now at 1.30 a.m.  I woke for the loo, but then my brain was busy and I couldn't get back to sleep.

I have almost finished my Christmas shopping now, having taken advantage of Amazon Prime's deals.  I'm glad that is done in good time, as the car has it's MoT just before Christmas, but I have hopefully enough money put on one side to cover that.  

Rosie more comfortable now she has meds to help her, but Tam is still struggling to get her to take them.  The antibiotics are 5 times a day too.  Sadly Rosie's arthritis has flared up again, but the Paedeatric Rheumatology dept has brought her appt. forward and she will see them tomorrow.

This is a Pale Tussock Moth caterpillar.  He has a little red spike on his bottom, to frighten predators off. He was crossing the road, but I helped him across and onto the opposite bank before he got squished by a passing car.

Rain in the offing . . .

Glyn was here to do the autumn tidy up for me in the paddock, along the primrose bank and the bottom triangle.  The lawn has grown terrifically - it was only cut last week! - so that will need doing again soon.

I watched the final of the Great Pottery Throwdown last night.  What talented potters, all with great skill and imagination.  Then another episode of Magpie Murders.

Today's podcasts were 1 of 4 about Joan of Arc.  I will probably miss the other 3 as they were very detailed in background.  Then a couple from Time Team, which I really enjoyed.

I shall read for a bit now and hope my brain will unravel a bit.

Eye hopefully sorted . . .

 I saw the Consultant this morning, and he has put me on steroid eye drops because I have an infection in the oil gland(s?) inside the eyelid.  This is week 9 . . .  I recall that wonderful Spike Milligan epithet for his tombstone - "I told you I was ill"!!!  He wasn't allowed it in English so had it in Irish Gaelic instead!  It didn't improve until I had last week's antibiotics and still isn't fixed, so these drops should do it.

I had a good morning tieing up the grocery shopping in Llandod with my appointment, and have pretty well done a two week shop.  Two chicken breasts, a small tray of 5% fat mince, stir fry veg and sauce, two smoked gammon steaks (several meals from all of those), and a big 120 Earl Grey teabags as it was on special offer (£1.40 off).  More cat sachets too, as the little ratbags have suddenly started turning their noses up at Felix - and guess who bought an 80 pack of those last week!!

Two nice pieces of copper from the shop which is usually shut, and I treated myself to a new Codeword book as down to the last 25 in my current one, as well as an orange Sanpelligrino, as I was thirsty and that's my favourite cold drink. 

I've just had a local walk but my heart rate for some reason was very high, so I cut it short.

I shan't be making Sloe Gin this year, that's for sure!

This was my indulgence for forcing myself to do the Fair on Saturday, when I really didn't want to. Plus finding I had a little bit of extra money in my card payments - except that still hasn't come through yet.  I have to wait for delivery until the 14th Oct, as I think this is sent to Amazon from the States.

Now back to the curtain making . . .

Looks like rain is heading this way.

Today's podcasts was another one from Three Ravens, which was ending half of the Dorset podcast, then one about Unicorns from their Bestiary.

Fun at the Fair

 

I really did not want to get up yesterday for the Fair.  My alarm was set for 5.30 but in the event, Alfie woke me at 4 a.m. for food, then wanted to go out at 4.15.  I didn't sleep after that.  The first part of the journey was in the dark, but it gradually lightened.  I don't enjoy driving at night nowadays.

Despite there being a steady footfall, by late morning I had only sold two things, and vowed never to do this Fair again!  Gradually it improved though, and we had two lovely young men who were having their own Bargain Hunt challenge, to spend I think it was £150 each, and putting what they bought in auction.  I wish them well.  There was some cheerful banter as they perused our stalls.  Our little group are good friends and at the end of the day, the couple at the end (newbies here) helped ferry all my heavy boxes downstairs and then Tom and partner who do all the heavy lifting, carried them out to the car for me.  Socially I love this Fair, even though much of the time incomings only just cover the cost of doing it. Copper seemed to be on trend yesterday . . . I dressed the French fish kettle with 4 little Cyclamens (it looked lovely) and put it front of house, and it sold early on. No interest in my mirror, so I will ask Ed to help me hang it in the guest bedroom.

I didn't realize that when my card payment provider changed this year, I would have to register my bank details all over again, and when I checked on getting home, a small but handy sum had amassed in my account and will be transferred in the next couple of days. A relief to have money coming in instead of it all going the other way. It was nice to be told by a potter that I had chosen some interesting ceramics too.  Not even a second glance at the little teddy chair . . . which was disappointing. 

Everyone tries so hard to put on a show with their stands at this little Fair.  Here is a glimpse at other stands:

I should imagine that the Black Swan taxidermy is very hard to pack around. The porker too!

Lots of French things here.  Some of the dealers were discussing going to Belgian markets for their stock . . .  I was thinking, their profit margins must be slim?!!  You'd have to treat it as a holiday.

Dolls for Lizzie On The Beach.   The two little ones below are Baby Jesus figures from nativity scenes (French).  

I am glad I have a rest for two months now.  I will slowly unpack today.  Tomorrow I have my appointment with the Specialist at LLandod hospital.  The stye has started healing properly since the antibiotics, but the new eye drops the G|P gave me are useless at night.  I need the thicker ones like the Hycosan gel from the Opticians.  I'd rather not have to buy them though.  

I will try and do a little bit of an Autumn tidy in the garden.  It looks better for the lawn having been cut last week, and the gardener is coming back to do the two triangles for me and the hedge as well.  Then upstairs to crack on with the curtains.  I cut and sewed several dozen pairs of squares on Friday and will assemble them into bigger blocks today.