Friday, February 9, 2018

GETTING BACK TO BUSINESS

Hello
I returned to rehearsal with my Ladies Choir today, after a long holiday break.
So much fun to see everyone again, catch up on news, lunch together...

And Sing!
A whole folder of new pieces to learn, including some Gershwin.
love Gershwin...


It has taken me much longer than usual to get back to normal after a month overseas travel.  Perhaps it was the extremes of temperature, but I have been most depleted of energy, and struggling with several infections over the month since we returned.


Our absence during the height of Summer led to the loss of quite a few plants from the Red Cardinal Garden of Neglect.
A little too much neglect and they were unable to fend for themselves without adequate watering.

Getting some new colour and greenery has been part of 'nomality', and I have several bright new geraniums and other pops of colour...





and a fresh fern, replacing several lost ones..


'Normality' for me also includes a bit of sewing.
I am making a denim shirt dress - it's been months since I sewed anything..

Pablo Picasso 'Woman with parasol on the beach' 1933.  QAG

and going back to being a guide at the Art Gallery.
 Currently showing is a complete set of Picasso's 'Vollard Suite', on loan from the Australian National Gallery, Canberra.

Made during the 1930s, the Suite features many engravings of Marie-Therese Walter, perhaps the best-known of Picasso's many loves.  That is her in the above painting, which belongs to the Qld Art Gallery and is also currently on display.  Picasso was going through a 'Classical' phase, and he spotted the 17 year old outside a department store, attracted to her 'Classical profile'.  In many of the prints, Picasso represents himself as a classical sculptor, with Marie-Therese as his muse and model.


Other favourite subjects of Picasso include the Circus, the Bullfight, Rembrandt, and The Minotaur, all represented in this autobiographical series of 100 prints.




Our son and daughter-in-law spent Christmas in Ireland...

and brought me a silver angel Christmas decoration:


She is the most exquisite little piece...


and look what she is holding:  a tiny bird.

Beautiful.




Best of all, Little Aussie has been here for a visit.
His Lego skills are becoming very sophisticated these days...


Happy Weekend

XXXX




22 comments:

  1. So sorry you have not been well, Patricia...happens to the best of us.
    Your gardens will flourish, now that you are back.
    What a beautiful thoughtful gift from your son and DIL...
    Sing your heart out, dear Patricia!🎶🎶🎶
    Cheers!
    Linda :o)

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    1. Thank you Linda - old bones, feeling it these days :)
      So special to receive the silver angel - that's where DIL's come in handy... Happy travelling Linda.

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  2. Sorry you are under the weather Trish but glad you're on the mend. Geraniums are always so cheerful when everything else decides it toooo hot! I love your gorgeous angel xxx

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    1. Thank you Michelle. The roses have given up, so geraniums rule over here - they are wonderfully tough. Glad you like my sweet angel too. xxx

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  3. Hope you are better now!
    I love the angel holding the bird, what a special gift.
    It is sad when you lose plants when you are away but you have replaced them very well!
    The LEGO creation reminds me of our son when he was little, we were a LEGO house! :-)

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    1. From our Lego house to your Lego house:
      Yes, feeling better now, thank you. The silver angel will be a family favourite, I can tell.

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  4. Travel and visiting loved ones is fun, BUT it's always wonderful to get home again, isn't Patricia? Sorry about the 'bugs' you caught. I've noticed over the past several years I can never travel without catching something or other - they are mostly really nasty bugs - and I often bring them home. There are always people coughing on the flights back - it does make one wonder just what's blowing out of the plane's air system!

    Lovely photos - you are going to be a busy lady by looks of it these coming months.

    Take care - rest up as much as possible to get back to good health.
    Hugs - Mary

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    1. Oh yes, always good to be home, thank you for your kind comments. Your last one is exactly what my doctor said :) We have also caught things on planes, definitely a travel hazard. Being run down, some old health problems have resurfaced.
      I will be busy indeed this year, as we have another trip to Europe to plan!

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  5. Hi Patricia, I'm sorry to hear that you've been unwell since you came home. I really hope you're feeling all back to normal very soon. I'm so happy to read that you're involved with a choir! I don't think I ever knew that before. I would love to do it someday myself. I sang in choirs through high school and college and always loved it. I'm sure it will help you perk up a lot. Take care and be well. :)

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    1. Thank you Jennifer, nothing worse than feeling too washed out to do anything remotely normal. You must find a choir some day; you are a musical family. I have sung in choirs most of my life, and it is wonderfully uplifting - think of all the endorphins released!

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  6. Your new plants have a pop of color to brighten up your house. I love that little white table and chairs, and Jess has one very similar to it. The silver angel is very pretty and a treasured gift from your son. How fun having little Aussie visit for awhile. I bet it's so nice being back in the Ladies Choir again. : )

    Happy Valentine's Day, Patricia.

    love, ~Sheri

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    1. Thank you Sheri, I like to surround myself with little pops of colour and beauty. Adding in some singing is the next thing to do. Loved my day at choir. Happy Valentine's Day to you too Sheri.

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  7. Oh, beautiful flowers and interesting art from a master.

    Perhaps you caught your infections on the plane. Lack of fresh air -- as it gets recycled on airplaines. I have gotten sick myself after overseas flights. Get well soon, dear Trish!

    Debbie
    xoxo

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    1. Hi Debra, yes, the air on planes can be a worry. It has happened to us before, and in fact the trip home I was bothered by the lack of a fresh air outlet above my seat, and was quite uncomfortable. Might try another airline next time!

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  8. Viewed from cold, wet and windy Blighty your blog looks joyfully colourful!
    Travel is great but I've picked up so many germs on planes that I now travel with a little bottle of de Mamiel altitude oil and that seems to keep me healthy. Hope you will be back to full energy levels soon.

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  9. Thank you for dropping by, and welcome to my blog. I have never heard of de Mamiel altitude oil, but will investigate. I remembered this week that I took a solo trip to England exactly ten years ago this week, to visit our daughter. And yes, it was cold, and wet, and grey..but there were daffodils!

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  10. Poor you, Patricia!it seems unfair to be ill when you come home from a holiday, but yes, extremes can do that. How lovely to be a guide at an art gallery! Your new pick me up plants look very pretty there. It’s a shame you lost some while you were away, but I think that is inevitable. I lost lots of plants and the grass in my garden too while we were away last summer. Look after yourself, Patricia, and get well soon!

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  11. It seems lots of people catch things on holidays. Perhaps we all need an 'at home' holiday afterwards. I love being a Gallery Guide, which keeps my brain ticking, as we write our own tours and have commitments to training lectures etc. It is rewarding meeting visitors and sharing the exhibitions with them. Seems we love our gardens, but they are a bit like pets - we can't just go off and leave them!

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  12. Hi Patricia hope you are felling better now ,not much fun being ill.Your garden has some beautiful flowers my friend,take care xx

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    1. Thank you, I am not having a great year re health, but fingers crossed for Autumn!

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  13. Picasso is quite amazing. He could do art as easy as breathing I sometimes think, but I know that really he took it very seriously. I am sorry about constantly feeling ill. This "feeling tired" bug has been going round the world, it seems. It will pass and I hope soon.

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    1. Hi Jenny, I know you have had the bug for quite some weeks too, very debilitating.
      I love that as a little kid Picasso could do a perfect drawing starting from any point he chose. Genius!

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