CONNIKA

LYREBIRDS

Have put together some of the blocks for my Lyrebird quilt.  Still another border to do, perhaps blue?  Then to quilt.

ESPECIALLY FOR GREER

It's rose time here at Summerfield and as Mr Cundall would say, "They're bloomin' gorgeous."  These are some of the Pierre de Ronsard roses on the verandah.  We have these roses scattered around the place and they flower forever. 

When the Crepiscule begins to flower in Spring you know the Melbourne Cup isn't far off.  This is one of the main flowering roses at Flemington.

Down at the fence the Sparieshoop is in flower always reminding me of dear Llois who introduced me to this beautiful rose.

This beautiful climbing rose is the Lamarque.  Its flowers are of medium size which form in small bouquets.  The petals have a touch of yellow at the base.  I took the first bloom to David when he was in hospital.  The fragrance is just wonderful.

 

And this wee beauty is the Climbing Cecile Brunner rose which grows near the water feature in the vegetable garden and also grows on the fence beyond the main garden.  Shall head back to my photographs and see if I can find a closer shot...

...And you know what I'm going to say now don't you?  Yes you're right, "That's yer bloomin' lot for the day."
 

A STRANGE ONE

 

This wee fella came into the garden the other day.  We assume he is a young pale-headed rosella although his head doesn't seem to be the colour it should be!  David searched his bird book and there was nothing to suggest this particular orange head existed in the current bird population.  But, isn't he beautiful?

And...a definite pale-headed rosella.

EXHAUSTED PUPPIES

A NEW PUPPY FOR ME THIS TIME

Dear Emma has bought me a new puppy for ma birfday.  Her name is Molly and she is a Bichon/poodle cross.  I haven't met her yet as she's going to be with Emma for a while.  Meantime, I've been discussing the situation with Dougal.  Dougal is around 14 and may take a bit of adjusting to this but then again a wee lassie in his life may be just the ticket.

WHAT A DAY IT'S BEEN

Left C's house around 5.00am to head home.   There had been thunder and lightening for what seemed most of the night.  Had to haul wee Dougal up on to the bed as the thunder was frightening the wee soul.  Every time the room lit up, he knew the thunder wasn't far away.  Sleepily, I spent half the night muttering words of comfort.  "There, there Dougal."  Finally got up, packed the car and made my way home.  Stopped off at the service station for petrol and milk.  The girls in the shop were running around in yellow coats and carrying torches trying to get the bowsers working.  So, no petrol.  Off again and the storm gathered again.  Turned up the radio to calm Dougie down and as I was heading down the dirt road towards home realized I would have to get out and unlock the gate.  Soaked to the skin, back in the car and out again to open the second gate.  Open gate, back in car, out car and close gate (we have dingoes hereabouts and a million wallabies).  By this time I was dripping and freezing cold.  Shall I park near the house or the garage?  Danny on FM102.7 announced a severe weather warning with hail.  Decided to put the car in the garage.  As I was driving in, the hail hit.  The noise!  I know I'm repeating myself, but poor Dougal.  We sat and sat and finally I got out the car and hauled down one of David's coats which was hanging on a hook.  Wrapped a towel around Dougal and headed up to the house.  Stripped off and into shower.  Then the power went out which not only meant no power but no water either. 

Kept myself busy organizing some old photographs and finally, after two hours, decided to head for town and do some of the jobs that have been on my list.

When I arrived home this afternoon, I took a look at the vegetable garden.  Oh dear! I think there will be a bit of work and replanting to be done. 

But...that's for another day.

 

 

THE HEDGE IS GONE

 
Following the floods in January, our lovely hedge became so waterlogged, it died.  Shall we plant another we mused?  Shall we plant climbing roses we asked ourselves?  Eventually we decided on a rustic fence and off David went, back into the forest.  Isn't it lovely?  And the white wisteria has already started decorating it.  Because of the hedge, the upper lawn to the right of the photograph was an enclosed garden.  With the new fence we now have a longer view from the house which has worked well with the size of the property.  We have also noticed  that the grandchildren are playing further afield too.

 

IN THE GARDEN YESTERDAY

 

Can you see the lovely trellis David weaved for the beans?  We saw something similar in the Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh earlier in the year.  So...off he went into the forest and came back with some branches and twigs.

 
 Another one for the snow peas.

And the last of the lemons.  Tree is now blossoming.  Is there anything nicer than lemon blossom?

 
A close tie would be the mandarin blossom

 
And we can't leave out the apple tree.

 
 

IN THE GARDEN TODAY

 

I DIDN'T KNOW THAT

 
In order to try to understand why our financial system is in the state it's in, I've been reading this book.  I heard the author being interviewed by Margaret Throsby and immediately contacted Mr Amazon and ordered it.  Now...did you know this?

"...In the 1890's the issue of gold became central to the US presidential campaign of William Jennings Bryan.  Southern farmers in the USA borrowed from north-eastern bankers to finance their farms, equipment and crops.  The debt had to be repaid in gold.  As gold prices rose and the price of farm produce fell, the farmers' earnings fell and their debt repayments grew, fuelling resentment.  The farmers wanted more money in circulation and advocated silver as well as gold currency - know as bimetallism.

At the 1896 Democratic Convention, Bryan spoke passionately:  'You shall not press down upon the brow of labor this crown of thorns.  You shall not crucify mankind upon a cross of gold.'  Bryan was defeated in the 1896 and 1900 election by William McKinley and the USA adopted the gold standard in 1900.

The bimetallism debate spawned Frank Baum's satire on the currency debate, the WIZARD OF OZ (actually the WIZARD OF OUNCE - of gold).  Dorothy, the Kansas farm girl, represented rural America.  The Scarecrow, Tinman and cowardly Lion represented farmers, factory workers and Bryan respectively.  Dorothy and her companions' journey down the gold road is the 1894 Coxey march of unemployed men (named after its leader Jacob Coxey) to secure another public issue of $500 million of paper money and to obtain employment.  Baum's plot has Dorothy and her companions exposing the fraud of evil wizards and witches, representing bankers and politicians, and establishing a new monetary order based on gold and silver.  Dorothy returns to Kansas City courtesy of her magic silver slippers.  In the film, Dorothy's slippers are red rather than silver, a concession to Hollywood cinematogoraphy."