Blogger back online at last!

 

Last nights dinner consisted of most things coming from the garden. The New Zealand yams (otherwise known as Old Mans Toes) are dying back so I went and bandicooted a few for dinner last night. Then I went and gathered some rocket and Asian lettuce mix, radishes, which I forgot to put in the picture, tomatoes from the grow house, mini chocolate capsicums and grated carrot which was not from the garden. In the home made meat pie, made from scratch, I included some of the mushrooms out of the bags of mushroom compost. The yams were baked in the oven and even M commented “It’s pretty good”. Tonight we’ll have marinated steak from our friends happy cow, rice and the remainder of the salad, easy!

Autumn is well and truly here and the weather is being pretty unpredictable. The nights are cold this week but we do have sunshine during the day (oh doh – we’re not going to get it at night are we?). Stupid comment Jan. I finally succumbed today and pulled out all the eggplants, sob. I only got one eggplant off about six bushes in the grow house. There were still flowers but nothing much else was happening. So it is done. Now, what shall I try in the grow house through winter? I’ve already put some silver beet in and the capsicum and tomatoes are still going strong so I might try some bush beans and peas perhaps. The sugar snap peas are still growing in there so I might take a gamble with some seeds. Plus some lettuce I think. I have some Drunken Woman lettuce seed to try, yes I bought the seed because of the name!

                           

You can see by the lack of leaves on the old oak tree that Autumn is definitely here. M spends a lot of time raking up the leaves to put on the compost pile – and then the wind blows and he starts all over again.

I’ve started the pruning of the apple and plum trees but there’s still about six to go. That’s what I should be doing now but I haven’t been able to access Blogger for a few days so I thought I’d do a quick post whilst I can.

Next Sunday in Hobart will be the Climate Action rally. It starts at 11am at Franklin Square so I might try and get to the farmers market in Hobart first, just to have a look. That’s one of the problems about living an hour’s drive away from the city, you never do just one thing when you drive up there, there’s always a list of things to do/collect/visit! Please send us dry weather for the rally, just like today would be perfect!

Well, I’d better get out there and prune whilst the sun is still shining! Have a good week everyone.

Jan

And I’m really mad that I missed the Aurora last night here in Southern Tassie, double bummer!

Oh lordy it’s cold

This past week has been very cold – and wet. The ground is soft and the leaves are falling quicker than ever. But the poor pear tree is totally confused! I saw blossom a couple of weeks ago and now there’s a tiny pear growing. I have to prune the tree in the coming weeks so no doubt it will end up in the pile of clippings.

I actually started the first paragraph one week ago and then the weather fined up! We had a glorious weekend with sunshine and warm temperatures and I was able to get outside and start the pruning of all the fruit trees. I’m still pruning. And clearing up all the cut off pieces to put on the bonfire – ready for the man. Men luuuuvvvvv bonfires! And now – well it’s bloody cold and wet again!

Other news – well the daughter who said that she wasn’t going to get married until 2013 has decided that they want to go and live on the Whitsundays so they’re going to get married now on 17th December 2011! Yes, only six months to lose this belly of mine. It’s taken me ten years to grow it (since I moved to Tasmania) and now I have to lose it in six months. So, last Monday I started the seven day soup diet to give me a kick start, so to speak. I have lost 2.5 kilos but going by the number of times I had to go pee I’d say it’s mostly fluid. I didn’t get hungry on the diet as it was a thick vegetable soup and there was fruit and vegetables on various days, but – and it’s a big but – I don’t think I can eat another bowl of soup for a while, at least not vegetable soup! So I’ll try and boost the exercising and stay away from the vino, sigh.

Tonight we had mushroom risotto for dinner with a green salad. The mushrooms were from the mushroom compost bags that we bought in bulk locally and the salad greens were from the garden. The radish, rocket and Asian lettuce are doing fine in this cold weather. I collected the tomatoes, sugar snap peas and capsicum from the grow house and there was dinner. The rice, unfortunately was from the local stupormarket. I’m sorry there’s no pictures but I’m hopeless with cameras and always forget to take any photos. I will try harder.

And for all those that can make it to Franklin Square, Hobart at 11am on Sunday 5th June, you’ll see M and me there at the rally for climate action. It will be a good day and a very important day too. Speak up now before it’s too late.

Jan

A big week

Last weekend (not the one just gone), I had one of my favourite friends come for a visit from Adelaide. She had a meeting to attend on the Monday so she came on the Friday and stayed with us in far south Tassie. She arrived on a 9.15pm flight into Hobart so M and I decided we would go a bit earlier so we could pick up a few things in town first and have a bit of a treat and maybe see a movie or eat out for a change.

Harris Scarfe (HS) had a sale on cast iron cookware and I was interested in the large oval Dutch oven, reduced from $400 to $70. We arrived in town about 4.30pm and HS was the first and most interesting shopping venue (well he wanted to go to “Nuts and Bolts” and Bunning's) for me. M parked in a 5 minutes loading zone (it was the closest park) and I ran in to HS to discover that kitchenware was on the first floor, up a large staircase as I couldn’t see the lift. Anyway, I found what I wanted almost straight away and wow, they even had the green one. I paid and refused the plastic bag after finding out where the lift was (this was one heavy Dutch oven) and staggered over there. Naturally, the lift was at the opposite end of the store where I had come in so I hurried the best I could through the shop and out into the street.  M saw me coming, but did he leap out of the car to assist me with this heavy parcel (I’m pretty much panting and red faced by now)? No, he flicked the switch for the boot of the car from inside the car, and I carefully placed my precious parcel in amongst the assorted “necessities”, i.e. tools, bits of rope, telephone directory????

“Thanks for helping” says I. But sarcasm is wasted on someone who is fixated on nuts and bolts don’t you think? Anyway, the next part of the day was pretty boring as it was his shopping and I was glad when he had finished and time to find somewhere to eat. I had previously checked movie times and nothing had fitted into our time schedule. But, we did find an absolutely fantastic Turkish restaurant in North Hobart called Anatolia and if you ever have the chance, do pay a visit. There was a guy playing the Spanish Flamenco guitar and the banquet for 2 was just divine. Dips and bread, followed by an assortment of lamb and chicken kebabs, meatballs, falafel etc. and baklava and Turkish coffee to end. We stayed there for two and a half hours, it just felt so friendly and the food was perfect. Needless to say we’ll be going again.

Off to the airport to meet my friend. Well she arrived but her suitcase didn’t! So over to the desk, details given and a promise that she would get the case the next day. (It didn’t come until lunchtime). She wasn’t that bothered about the case but the delicious cheeses, Maggie Beer pate and quince paste and South Australian wines were in it. Would the cheese and pate survive? Well, if we lived in Queensland or the Northern Territory where it is warm I may have worried, but here in Tassie – not a problem! Lunch on Saturday was very enjoyable as to complete the meal we opened a bottle of organic strawberry champagne and spent a lazy afternoon at the table talking – a lot.

The next day we decided to be a bit more adventurous and not just sit around talking (and eating) and off we went to Hobart again to visit MONA (museum of old and new art), which opened at the beginning of the year and we had yet to visit. Wow and double wow, we all loved it. We spent the whole afternoon there and will have to go back for many more, there is just so much to see and absorb and it’s all pretty much exciting. There’ll be future posts on MONA for sure.

Meanwhile, my friend was dropped off at the city hotel and home we went. One thing I have neglected to mention was that my friend didn’t recognise me straight away at the airport because I Have had my First Haircut in twenty years! Not just a trim, a hair cut. No more Janis Joplin a bit more Germaine Greer I think! (Although another friend has used the words “ becoming a bit bag-ladyish”) It was nerve racking (for the hairdresser too) and I worried needlessly because I am very happy with result. Yes, all the blonde has gone and I’m now totally grey, but it does have some interesting silver highlights. But, boy, did I choose the wrong time of the year to have it cut! My neck is freezing! Luckily, I have scarves that people have given me over the years and I have never worn because my hair always got in the way. I now wear them – all of the time.

From this:                                 

 

To this:                                                           

All in thirty-five minutes.

Apologies for photo’s – M used his telephone, not his camera. Little Miss D is still not sure even though it was her Mum who cut it!

So now I’m wearing all the ear rings that I never used to wear as they couldn’t be seen and I don’t think I look at all like a bag-lady anymore!

Jan