Treats from Toronto, Presents from Peaches

We're no longer responsible for Peaches, her family are home from Canada and called round the other morning to tell us about their trip. They also brought a couple of gifts from Peaches, a photograph and a jar of caramelised plums from those I picked and put in the fridge. Good, well behaved, polite cat.

There were also a couple of very nice presents from the trip, a beautiful tin of maple syrup, which we just love, and a 100 g skein of pure dehaired baby alpaca that is making me very happy. This is so soft and gorgeous, its as delicious as the syrup and the colour couldn't be better. I don't know yet what I shall make with it, maybe gloves or a cowl, actually I could happily just wear the skein round my neck. Karen and Sheilagh said that even though they are not knitters they had a wonderful time in the yarn shop. I checked on the web and it does look amazing with some beautiful patterns available as well as fabulous yarn, though there doesn't seem to be a mail order service.

We're delighted with the gifts and the thought that went into them. We really enjoyed spending time with Peaches and our evening strolls up to the cottage, nice people, nice cat, nice presents.

Strictly so far

It makes me so happy that Strictly Come Dancing is back, close my engagement calendar until Christmas, I am not available during broadcasts of either SCD or Strictly Take Two. Having said that I was out both Saturday and Sunday last weekend, had to catch up when I got home which means I've had two very late nights and am still a touch grouchy today. I am so enjoying the boys, I love love that high kicking Austin and John Sargeant is adorable, like a proud dad dancing with his daughter on her wedding day. The standard is so high this year in every respect, the couples are well matched, beautiful routines, fabulous outfits, it is so exciting and there are many weeks to come.
Speaking to the working girlies last week they told me that the office Awayday - psycho speak for a day out of the office that involves meetings, presentations, activities and lasts from around 8 am to midnight with the expectation that you will catch up on missed work and not be exhausted next day - involved a high level assault course at a local climbing centre. They said everyone was terrified to the extent that several people couldn't even take part, how that is useful or motivational I fail to understand. Now if the directors had got Vincent and Flavia along to run a tango workshop that would have been different. Everyone could have trained with the gorgeous couple during the day and in the evening got fully costumed, fake tanned and made up for a dance off in front of an invited audience of key clients. That would have been team building, that would have had me begging for my job back.

Happy Birthday Catriona

Catriona who I used to work with is 40 today and sadly far away in New York State. I posted this clapotis off to her a while ago with instructions not to open the package before her special day. It was knitted in a wonderful Noro wool, silk, cashmere mix, a delight to handle, and it blocked out so well, big enough to wear as a wrap but soft and light enough to use as a scarf. I hope she likes it, I hope she has a wonderful birthday, I miss her.

Peaches and Plums

For the last two weeks we have been feeding this young lady, Peaches who lives up the lane from us, while her family is on holiday. Peaches has one of those automatic feeders that dispenses 5 meals opening twice a day, we were told how to fill it with dry biscuits, set it going and that she would be fine. We asked if she would be lonely if she didn't see anyone for a couple of days but her family said she would be perfectly happy as long as she had food and water. The first time we went up to set the feeder Peaches was torn between getting her nose into the dish or winding herself round her legs, so we stayed on while she ate and then gave her some fuss which she loved. We decided we would visit her again the next day so she had some company and to make sure the mechanism was working, and we've gone to see her every night since.As I said Peaches lives up the lane from us, in this gorgeous little white cottage with a beautiful garden and I've loved spending time there. I generally prepare our dinner before we set out to walk, we spend about half an hour in the house, I check the greenhouse and fill the bird feeders while Mr FF tops up the cat biscuits and entertains Peaches. Then we both pick a few plums from the tree that grows outside the back door to munch on the way home before dinner. We usually leave just before it gets dark, we love the views from the cottage, the darkening sky and the noises from the farms as the birds and animals begin to settle in for the evening. Tomorrow will be our last visit, its been a very enjoyable duty, in fact not a duty at all.

Quick Update

In case you were wondering about a few things from recent blogs, I can confirm that

(a) Our Italian bank has now received the interview forms, Mr FF scanned them, got a translation on line and filled them in. We are able to move our money back into the interest paying account, though in the current climate this may not be a good thing.

(b) My car is still in the garage, one of the pieces of metal I picked up on the road was indeed mine, a spring to do with the suspension had rusted. A new part has been ordered and should be fitted fairly soon.

(c) Cleo continues to eat the diet cat food, over 10 days on the same dried food and she a cat who was bored before reaching the end of a tin of Whiskas. She had put on some weight and is doing well, bless.

(d) I am still gardening and not patchworking, but Joanne, queen of the quilts, is coming round tomorrow evening with the other girlies from my ex-work, so there could be some progress soon.

Betwixt and Between

I seem to be between seasons at the moment. Its official autumn now and I've been trying to keep the flowers in the garden going a bit longer by dead heading and generally cutting back. Really there's not much return for all this effort, a few feeble blooms, nothing like the riot of colour in high summer. I'm also revamping a couple of beds and have been digging out some thuggish plants that have taken over. Lots of new planting opportunities for me to enjoy. Because I'm still able to do things outside I am not reconciled to crafting in the daytime. I had a brief period when I started my patchwork mainly listening to radio 4 in the afternoon which seemed like a worthwhile use of time. Patching isn't as easily picked up and put down as knitting, which I do whilst watching tv in the evening, on long journeys in the car, on the bus into town or just sitting waiting. For me patchwork requires a bit more concentration and effort but that may be because I'm such a novice.I got all my patchwork pieces laid out, its my intention to put together 8 large coloured squares and join them all with patches of the cream material (somehow). I've made 3 squares so far but haven't done any more since before we went to Italy. I'd really like to crack on with this not least because my hands are in a dreadful state from all the gardening and time spent stitching would let them recover, but the sun is shining and I can't sit down.

Where does this bit go?

I'm hardly using my car nowadays but I noticed when I did take it out recently that it had developed a rattle somewhere towards the front. That's as specific as I can be, whenever I say that my car is making a noise Mr FF asks me what kind of noise and I am never able to elaborate. So Mr FF drove my car briefly and said he wasn't sure what it was but didn't think I needed to worry about it.

Then yesterday I had to take my car into town, I did mention again the rattle but Mr FF thought it would be fine. There was no rattle on the main and fairly straight road into town just on the bumpy back lanes near our house, so I didn't worry too much. I'd just got into Edinburgh when there was a horrible clank and the sound of metal bouncing down the road. I stopped the car as soon as I could and walked back to find out what had come off. I picked up a large semi circle of very rusty metal with jagged ends and a shiny long silver coloured pin. I phoned Mr FF who was in a meeting and left a message explaining what had happened, describing the bits that had come adrift. I decided to press on for my appointment, the exhaust still seemed to be secure and at least the rattle had stopped.

Afterwards I drove home very slowly and feeling quite sick wondering what major part of the car those pieces secured and if the wheels were going to fall off. I got back safely and showed Mr FF the pieces of metal. He had a look round my car and under the bonnet before announcing 'no way did those parts come off your car, you've brought the wrong bits home'.

The car is going to the garage at the weekend, be interesting to know what exactly happened and how the rattle was cured.