Four day quilt bliss ... day 1

I can’t believe it.  I didn’t sew a single stitch today.  

First off, as we let the dogs out for their morning ablutions, the eldest and silliest (Teddy) took off through the gap in the fence where the plumbers are installing the new rain tank.  My husband ran out after her, in his pyjamas, and managed to catch up with her half way to the highway.  I was following in my ratty dressing gown and caught up with both of them on their way back to the house.

That put paid to getting any breakfast together before showering and leaving for the airport at the planned time.

We got to the airport only to discover that the flight was going to be delayed for two hours.  Flight delays are common, according to the travel agent who is arranging my trip to Hawaii and California later this year.  So much so that she recommends flying to Sydney the day before any connecting flights. 

I was disbelieving.  The Eurobodalla Shire has a growing population and real estate agents espouse the proximity of a local airport to new buyers who may want to commute to Sydney and Melbourne on a regular basis.  It’s hardly a great sales pitch if, in fact, you have fly up the day before your business meeting is actually taking place!

Plus, for me, it means overnighting in Sydney which adds considerably to cost which I am keen to rein in. I may be getting the dreaded coach instead.

Anyway, this morning we asked the people at the airport to take my husband’s mobile number to phone him closer to the time of departure so that we could pop into Moruya for coffee and breakfast instead of waiting in the tiny airport lounge.  I had planned to just drop him off, kiss him goodbye, and hot foot it to tennis before coming home to sew.

He took off … eventually.  I missed tennis and dropped in to see a friend before getting a few groceries and a bottle of wine to celebrate four days of sewing, and then headed home.

I’d left the lower back door open to let the plumbers use the downstairs bathroom, so I came in that way and noticed a musty smell.

This is what I found when I opened the cupboard in the kitchenette.

It seems we have had a slow leak in copper piping behind this wall that actually leads to the bathroom on the ground floor.  Luckily the plumbers managed to locate the leak in a cupboard above that.  

They’ve repaired it and ripped out that cupboard lining to get to it. This will need to be relined.

Now I will have to rip the kitchenette cupboard lining out and somehow figure out a way to put a new back in without removing the entire cupboard and bench top. Mice and rats arrive with the Autumn looking for somewhere warm to nest, so I have to replace that backboard in case they find their way into the downstairs unit via the cupboard. With other house renovations going on we simply can’t afford to put a new kitchen unit in.  We know a local handyman and I will give him a call later to see what he can come up with.

Sheesh.

It was such a lovely Autumn day that I decided to tackle the enormous dogwood rose growing in the small backyard and prune a large hibiscus that’s blocking access to the gate.

The thorns on the dogwood are wicked, and despite wearing leather gloves, I’ve got several cuts and scratches. I even got one in my head and one thorn managed to work its way under a fingernail.  Ouch!  I’m hoping that I haven’t cut the rose back too far.

The hibiscus had a big haircut.  Unfortunately, I’m removing a fair few blooms, which don’t last long in a vase of water sadly, but I’m tired of fighting my way past the shrub.  Last year this particular shrub suffered a lot with hibiscus beetle and many of the buds were munched off before they flowered.  It’s been lovely to see it flowering this year.

Next gardening job was weeding. If you’re wondering why I’m out in the garden instead of sitting at the sewing machine (the original plan) its because we have had quite a bit of rain and weeding is much easier in wet soil. And this week is garden waste day so I can get rid of all the pruning as well as the weeds.  (The next thing on my wish list is a mulcher.  We missed out on a second-hand one recently, but I think it was too small for our needs).

After all that, and a quick vacuum and sweep so that I can actually sit down at the sewing machine without a trace of guilt tomorrow, I am relaxing with that glass of wine watching My Kitchen Rules, and I'm surrounded by dogs who are missing their favourite person (my husband).

Me too.  He's enjoying his glass of wine on the shores of Sydney harbour, and I'm not the least bit envious!

Hubblebird