Berry
I have recently spent a wonderful week in the Southern Highlands/South Coast area, firstly Berry and then
Tapitallee. It was cool, but not freezing, mostly sunny and with a couple of truly outstanding crystal clear nights, where the milky way winked and sparkled overhead. Star gazer's nirvana that's for sure.
there were multitudes of birds, from tiny thornbills to the enormous eagles soaring overhead on afternoon, dear little wrens and such wonderful songbirds. the thing that always makes or breaks a holiday of course is the company. This time round I was very blessed to share with one of my sisters, Catherine, and along with our knitting and cooking we spent many companionable hours just watching the world go by as we knitted on the little verandah or on the sunny apron of the driveway, catching up on our lives and getting a little vitamin D.
no trip to the south would be complete without the obligatory visit to Sew and Tell at Berry, so of course we stopped in (maybe more than once) for a little yarn refreshment. The inaugural "
Tour de Berry" was in full swing in the town too, with events, food tastings and various things available for purchase. funds were being raised to build a new wider footpath/bikeway around the local schools, a very worth cause, and so of course we had to have the French cheese tasting platter and drink bottle,and other bits and pieces.
it was also the weekend of the Berry Fibre Muster, so of course we had to attend there as well. We entered the knit the fastest square competition, where I finished third and won a ball of yarn my friend Anne will be pleased to make something of. we bought raffle tickets and had lots of fun, meeting up with old friends, Hi Shirley from knit camp, I'm waving at you .... and saw some outstanding fibre art.
Photos may follow if I can get used to this "new" computer, or not, but know that I had a lovely time and returned to work refreshed and ready to tackle the next six months with verve!
Labels: Berry, holidays, knitting, Tapitallee
holiday
Since there are really a lot of photos uploaded to my flikr page, I will just post the most amusing ones today on the blog.
The holiday week away encompassed my mum's birthday, so there is the obligatory birthday photos, but with a twist.
Also the sock saw a good time, and has been rewarded with many photos.
Our holiday this year was at Easts Beach Kiama, staying in a cabin. Mum stayed for the whole seven days, volunteering her car for transport as it is the smallest and most economical to run. My sister Catherine arrived on Saturday and stayed until Wednesday, at which time the pressure to return to her ratty kids (the youngest is 11 or so, and the oldest 19) forced her to return home, but hopefully the time away did her some good.
I spent a lot of time either in the surf beyond the breakers and away from the small children who always delight in squeeing and yelling in really obnoxious tones (of course my children never did this, why they were always and at all times perfect angels), or in the pool just treading water in the deepest part, so mostly the kids stayed on the edges and splashed about there. (That reads like I don't like kids, but that's also not essentially correct, I love kids, just give me a little space that's all I ask).
Unfortunately the neighbours at the caravan park decided to hold a couple of all night drinking sessions, which I slept through ok, but Catherine is a light sleeper (years of night duty in intensive care?). I always think the funniest thing about other people's parties is when one of the group is slightly sober, and spends lots of time sushing the others, and then they all giggle and just get louder. Sorry Catherine, but really I did not hear them, although in sympathy for you I must admit I rattled the tin garbage bin rather ferociously around 7am the next day. slightly more than once. (hey its all part of the living in each other's pockets that is caravan park life).
We visited the blow holes (little and big) several times, and sadly the only time either were performing their acquatic show was on the last two days, after the southerly change blew through.
On the way home but before leaving Kiama, we did a drive around to the Kiama Harbour and then the rock pool. Is it just me or is it wierd that two men at two different, but extremely public places, just decided to drop their daks and get changed? One was in the car park at the rock pool, under the blow hole lookout. Right beside his car but clearly in view one 55ish man just was standing there drying off and getting changed, buck naked people!!!!! (and he was nothing special I can tell you). The other was one of a pair of foreign back packers who were camping (illegally) outside the very stinky loos beside the rock pool. The young man (who was completely the opposite of car park guy) was standing and stretching after obviously having a morning dip in the pool wearing only his birthday suit. Now if you have to be exposed to some stranger's nudity first thing in the morning, all I can say is I still have a smile on my face after that show!! He was shortish (5.8 or so) but with no tan lines, and rather nicely built. Thank you universe.
We went out to dinner twice, once for mum's birthday to an Italian joint called Chiachi's which was nice, but we felt like they were rushing us the whole time, and even though it was only about 7.30 when we wanted dessert, they had already run out of the only thing mum wanted, creme brulee. 7.30 people, what about diners who started their night out much later than us??? I mean it was a menu item, not a special (whinge, moan here!) Had the baked riccotta antipasto as a starter, and then chicken/mustard/ sun dried tomatoes with avocado in lemon cream sauce (me), tortoleni bosciola (mum) and steak and sauce with veges (Cat). Too much food, but we took the leftovers home for another night.
the other night was at Monsoon Moon, which is a wierd mix of Thai food with Italian (pumpkin ravioli anyone?). Dinner was delicious, and even without a booking they accommodated us. Thoroughly recommended, we had a vegeterian/tofu with steamed rice, beef massaman curry, and pad thai noodles, with a mixed entre to start. Really fresh and delicious.
We visited Berry twice, but had a disappointing experience in Sew and Tell, when we tried to buy the pattern for a piece on display they refused, but we had spent over $200 the day before in their shop buying the exact yarn to construct this very piece, very frustrating ladies, and guess what, apart from the Cascade 220, we can get everything else you sell at Tapestry Craft (Morris and Sons) in the city, or online too, if we want, so that's one day trip off the itinerary.
We went to the Berry markets and had the best time, bought various condiments / pickles / chutneys and some candy too! I took my spindle (as I always do) and while waiting at various times for my sister or mother, stood under the nearest shade and spun away, amazing both small children and adults, and I'm not even very good at it, but I suppose if you have never seen yarn made from fluff before it is an astonishing thing.
All in all we have had a very good week.
And dear scarf pal (ise 7) I also worked on your pressy of a night time, when I was sitting and not watching the 3 / 4 hours of news per night (mum, get broadband for your computer and you will never watch television news again).
sexy garbage can photos, lactating asian babes, skany earings.Labels: holidays, Kiama
Our Holiday
.... in Mudgee, known far and wide for honey, wine, olives, and hence forth as the home of the really creepy, crazy frog .....
also the odd water tank (and art work)
tree of recycled water bottled (and disco ball)
And truly odd garden statue ....
When at home base (3 bed room cottage on Thistle Hill Vineyard)
we read and knitted with the slow combustion stove for warmth
watched the olive trees growing (and on a sunny day this was perfect)
and went for long walks around the property (where behind Kat, though you can see them are a pair of geldings), looking at the sheep, cows, bulls and horses. There was a fox who took up residence on the day before we arrived, and spent the next four nights driving the farm dogs on all the surrounding properties (as well as Milly and Molly at our place) crazy, teasing them and running around the place. Even I saw it for about 2 minutes as it frolicked among the olive trees.
We just "tapped" one kangaroo while driving, as evidenced by the slight cracking of one headlight guard. The bloody kanga was fine, Kat and I slightly less so ... very shaky. We were on our way to Mudgee Observatory (yes world I get the irony of taking Kat away from univ, the observatory, and the PhD, and taking her to another observatory, what can I say, cruel mummy is cruel! that's why we call her cruel mummy.) The night was a huge success (apart from Skippy) with even the Magelenic Clouds visible. The Milky Way was perfect, and there were many shooting stars between looking at galaxies I had never seen before, and I have a new favourite "t
he hamburger galaxy". It was a very clear night, and by 9pm the frost was coating the outside of the telescope (yep that's cold).
Labels: burning mountain, crazy frog, holidays
Things I have learned this week.
1. If you have to pull a file apart, a chuppa chup is an excellent tool for holding the pages together.
2. Spinning outside my comfort zone is a good thing. Shiney, coloured fluff makes great yarn!
I am undecided whether to ply this to itself, or add a neutral thread to stabilise the twist. But I love having choices ..... yay and thanks again Kathleen. It's really pretty.
3. Entralac is not as hard as it looks, just time consuming and slightly tedious. But add in Noro sock yarn and you get art. (why yes I may have dropped a stitch, that just makes me human).
Monday will see me drive out of Sydney for five days of R & R, staying at the
Thistle Hill Winery at Mudgee! A house almost all to myself, only one of the offspring were able to take advantage of the offer to go away this time round. (Will have to see who's free at Christmas when I have a place at Kiama for a week, right on the beach.)
Will let you all in on a secret, I will be spinning, knitting, reading, wine tasting (the vineyard where we are staying is a certified organic vineyard and produces verrrrrry acceptable wine, know this from past visits, but this is the first time I am staying.) Its a new moon next week, so the night sky, far from city lights should be spectacular, and we are thinking of kidnapping one of the 10inch telescopes from uni, but if not that then Cath's little telescope will be coming along as we are both hardy souls, with much wooly goodness to smother ourselves in, so there will also be observing. Bliss!!!
Have a good week all, and be kind to one another.
Labels: hand spinning, holidays, noro sock
Wahoo! Back from my real holiday, one week at beautiful Broulee Beach. Half of Canberra apparently travels to Broulee for their holidays, hi Canberra people, in fact according the the guy who runs the caravan park where I stayed, 70% of all who stay there during the year are from Canberra, 20% from Melbourne, and I fall into the 10% other category. (
Broulee Beach Holiday Park).
Photos are being uploaded to the Flickr page, even as I type, but here are a couple as I love photo blogs.
We travelled to Bateman's Bay for the day, and as well as eating 2 dozen oysters, we went on a lunch cruise up the Clyde River to Neligen. What a lovely trip, the second time I had done it in three weeks, and still fascinating how they have to raise the bridge for the boat to travel under it and up the river.
Sometimes it works better when people don't know you are taking their photo, but mum always looks now to see what I am doing so I can't sneak one in on her, so here she is posing in front of Broulee (not an) Island.
Still four days till I return to paid work, but much washing and cleaning has ensued, since even the best children (and I think I have four of the best) can not quite clean the way I want the place done. (Thanks Davo and the SIH for mowing the lawn and doing the edges, that was a great surprise to come home to).
And here is teddy, modelling the scarf of bamboo (a sample of fibre)
Oops, no idea how that one got in here ....
Labels: holidays
This was so much more beautiful in real life, but you get the general idea. There was frost, and glittery morning sunlight, and by their powers combined there were little diamonds sparkling all over my car. I'm a bit of a freek but I love cold weather, and frost (which is something I never had as a child, living as I did much closer to the coast) brings out the little kid in me - besides at that time of day none of my kids are up, so I can be a little silly, not just sensible mum. I sure love winter, and this one has been so perfect.
And just to remind me of whats ahead, the daffodils are poking their shoots up and promising spring. Yay
An answer for Kate, the shawl I knitted in Vintage Hues was the
Triangles with Triangles ShawlPublished by Fibre Arts, it was an easy knit, and of course when done in a bulky yarn also very quick. Its seen a lot of wearing this week because its so soft to snuggle into.
I've just spent the past week away from home, staying at a B'n'B on Camberwarra Mountain, just north west of Nowra. So quiet, situated on the corner of two streets, maybe twenty cars passed the place in the five days I stayed there, and the postie only visited three day .... cows mooed, frogs croaked, birds sang... well you get the idea. When I booked the lady who owns the place apologised that they do not get television/mobile phone reception (guess what I said to that!), so as I say it was perfect. There was rain for three out of five days, and sun for one, but all I did was knit and walk, and take lots of dopy photos of cows etc. I stayed in a renovated (?) settlers cottage, bedroom, eating type room (not a kitchen), bathroom, and verandah, all extremely rustic, but beautiful, with an overgrown and wintery garden, complete with some plants from my youth - elephant ears and may/hawthorn bushes - no idea what the correct name of the elephant ears is, but will post a photo tomorrow when I remember to bring in the disk. Silly Gemma, already took them off the camera.
Much knitting was done, monkey socks, hand spun cardigan (2 fronts and half the back), hand spun cashmere (yum) worked into a scarf, mitts for my mum, french market bag. Everything is not quite finished, but I really needed some time to start going on some new things and this was the perfect time, and better yet all was knit from my stash, except mum's mitts, which was wool left over from a pair of sock she knitted! How well behaved, I told myself, and then on the way home I stopped in to
Victoria House Needlecraft at BowralI bought a little Jo Sharp because I always wanted to see what the hype was about. The Alpaca Kid Lustre is so lovely to knit with, I bought two balls to make a scarf for a present in the palest mossy green (almost cream) and it knits up so perfectly, I almost wish I had bought more (bad Gemma, you absolutely do not need any more neck protection, yes but maybe a sweater or something? Stop it! Get a grip woman!) So dragged myself out of the shop and went straight home.
Of course with housework, and real work, and offspring, knitting progress has slowed back to normal, but it was so much fun for that week. I came back to the office so refreshed, which is the point of a holiday after all, and having used almost all of my hand spun am now free to spin some more. Of course when I visited the Quilt Show in Sydney I bought some fibre to spin from Bendigo .... mmmm everyone loves Bendigo, and there is still the camel and the lovely fibre from Ewe Give Me the Knits, oh what to choose first ..... be sure I will show you here ASAP.
Labels: holidays
