Bowry Dells at the Renaissance Faire

I rather liked these little bower shops at the Renaissance Faire.  It seems to me you could do some little hideaway in the garden like this.

Christy

New Year 2012 - Gandhi Quote

I ran across a quote the other day that I thought particularly applied:-

Live as if you were to die tomorrow.

Learn as if you were to live forever.

People think of the New Year, Life Lists and Resolutions, but I've found it best to take each day as it comes.  So I feel the above quote most appropriate.

Christy

Where Has The Day Gone?

Thank goodness I have Monday off too, because today has whizzed by Saturday is our Special Assembly Day and Sunday is a long day of service.

I was up by 5:30AM did minimal cleaning up in the kitchen and took the trash out.  Then sat down to a cup of tea and blogging. Wrote a letter and chatted with Rob, so I said would he like to be treated to a Japanese lunch and he said yes.  So by the time I showered and washed my hair, then Rob, it was time to go.

I thought I want to spent the day enriching my psyche not my physicality, in other words No Housework, it's always there. Had a lovely lunch with Rob chatting and sharing and guess who was there too my Boss with his family, it was his birthday.  Good job I actually did have a day off work and was not playing hooke.

 

Drinking my green tea, I love the mugs, very tactile as Rob would say.  I seem to have worn the same colour scheme as our surrounding.

We started out with miso soup, then a salad and our meal. Rob had beef, I had salmon.  It was all delicious. ours was called a lunch box meal, I loved the serving plate trays.  All this for $10.00 each.  I think for the style food and surroundings that it's very good value.  Plus I used my chop sticks, I can eat pretty well with them, amazing myself.

Christy

Renaissance Faire Jousting

The grand pageantry of jousting before Queen Elizabeth.  Although I think they've got their history muddled up between the era of knights and jousts and the era of Queen Elizabeth, but who cares it's all fun.

Christy

African Red Wing Hawk and a Scottish Eagle Owl

This is the African Red Wing Hawk, not too dissimilar to our Red Winged Hawk in Pennsylvania that you see quite frequently.  It seems even more so now since they have moved into the urban landscape.

This wonderful fellow is the Scottish Eagle Owl.  They live to quite on old age eighty odd years.  He said that he will pass this Eagle Owl on to his son, who accompanies him.

I was especially thrilled to see this show at the Faire, because when I was in Perth, Scotland several years ago, a family had brought a baby Eagle Owl to the Convention.  Yes I know a little different, but it seemed that many friends brought their pets to the Convention, at least the ones who had parking by the stadium, it made for a very interesting lunch hour.

The baby owl needed feeding every half and hour, it was only six weeks old with downy feathers beginning to drop, however it already stood over a foot tall.  The babe could not be left on it's own.  I think the brother worked on a Scottish Estate. Such a joy to see.

Christy

The Taming of The Shrew, Renaissance Faire Style

Just wanted to finish the year out, by finishing out my Renaissance Faire pics.  Here is the play we saw, The Taming of The Shrew.

Christy

Quantify Quiet

Today will be quiet, Rob is out running, then to stereo stores and off to work, probably followed by the gym.  He went to the movies on Saturday.  Plus he bought himself a couple of goodies.  Black Watch Plaid boxers, a nice cabled grey scarf and a lanyard.  I asked where did you get the lanyard from, he said oh! a shop that has a lot of Paisley, and then I recognised the pattern as the same one on my Vera Bradley journal, so I showed him and he said yes.  He also had hanging on the lanyard a cute Darth Vader little torch.

Yesterday after the meeting I was invited to lunch at the Bush's that was a lovely surprise as I was at a loose end, Rob was working.  They are both almost ninety years old and have such a wonderful balanced view of life and people, that just comes of years of experience and faithful service to Jehovah.

When they were in their early forties they moved out to Nebraska with their four children and served where the need was great.  In their early sixties they moved back to this area to look after her mother, who did come into the truth.

While there I admired a sampler and she said Betty Lair had done it and I knew her so we phoned her up in Florida, along with phoning their daughter Wendy who still lives in Nebraska and also phoning another older couple who live in northern New Mexico, he was from Holland and a baker at Bethel for many years.  They showed me a book he had published on bread.  We spoke with his wife Ingrid from South American and she said 'Guess what?  He's baking bread.'  Dorothy said she's the one who picks up the phone and keeps in touch.

They are such a perfect unison of how a marriage should be.  Respecting headship but each letting the other have their own personality, sharing spiritually and if she cooks he always washes dishes.  Their zeal in their answers at the meeting still burns bright.

So last Thursday I did a run to the food bank and came out with a loaf of fig bread; which I will toast for breakfast with tea of course.

The girls are with me in their respective favourite places.  Tink on the arm of my chair and Tupp in front of the fire, but not center, because every time when I put wood in the fire it disturbs her, so now she sits off to the side and is not disturbed, oh yes! they have it down pat.

I walked in the kitchen sun was streaming in showing up every streak on the tile counters and all the dirt on the windows, but I don't care because I'm not spending my day off cleaning.  There are several things I need to get sewn so will work on those.  Maybe watch a classic movie.

I'm here, this is my day.
Christy

P.S.  I did some embroidery on a sample Raphael grey jumper that I bought.  It was cheap three dollars, but as it was a sample they cut it on the lower back.  A small gash, so I sewed it up and embroidered little flowers linked together with a chain stitch.  I did it in a deep burgundy color I picked out of the Irish Tartan pleated skirt I bought at the thrift earlier in the year.  The type of thing you would like to buy in Ireland while visiting if you had enough money, and here it was brand new less then $6.00 a bargain, in muted pinks, reds and grey. 

I also sewed up a cut I had to make in a brand new jumper I bought at the thrift, because it still had the security lock on it, I didn't notice when I bought it.  It was an ink one, so no good forcing it open.  So I cut it out, and then had to sew up the hole.  It doesn't show though.

The last sewing job was Rob's Continental Quilt;  which used to be my Continental Quilt and some of the seams are going.  At this point it's 41 years old.  It was quite a feathery job. 

I feel good all those jobs done.

Firelight and Friends

Saturday morning was busy and at the last minute a decision was made to get together that evening and do some crafts.  But in the end one friend could not make it and another friend was invited, so the three old musketeers got together, that's Joni, Janice and I.

Since Joni isn't  crafty person we played Scrabble.

Janice bought some goodies including her home made olives and a bottle of wine, I supplied a few other goodies and there we were an enjoyable get together without too much stress.

So here we have firelight and friends.

Christy

Good Name

Good name in man and woman, dear my lord,
Is the immediate jewel of their souls:
Who steals my purse steals trash; 'tis something, nothing;
'Twas mine, 'tis his, and has been slave to thousands;
But he that filches from me my good name
Robs me of that which not enriches him
And makes me poor indeed.

William Shakespeare, "Othello", Act 3 scene 3 Greatest English dramatist & poet (1564 - 1616)

German Teacup and Saucer

From a friend a little thrifted German Teacup and Saucer.

Christy

Something Good from My Nemesis

Yes something good came out of Walmart.  I didn't actually buy it from there, here it is:

 

When I saw this rustic pie dish in the Thrift it certainly didn't look like it came from Walmart, but of course that's a terribly biased opinion.  It really is rather nice.  So now I have to cook something very rustic in it.

I also found two very nice thin sweaters for Rob, one in a red wine color and the other in a deep Merlot color made in Australia of beautiful Merino wool, very fine and soft just lovely.

I also found for the boy a lovely toiletry bag with an Eiffel Tower on it;  which reminded me of our trip to Paris together, brand new with all tags still on.  

He was pleased with my purchases.

Well I've got the fire going after a morning out on service.  With being out all the time it's hard to keep it going thus the house gets a little chilly.

Christy