To Blog or not to Blog:
That is the question...
Why have I been unable to write a blog this past month?
Is it called Loss of Blog Mojo?
2018 has been a strange year for us, one of highs and lows.
We were in Canada for our exciting White Christmas and New Year,
and came home to some business difficulties which made preparation for our European cruise difficult.
But we made it, and it was wonderful.
Then, as you know, Mr Cardinal had the misfortune of a broken hip and prolonged recovery without any weight bearing ...
meaning we have spent waaaaay more time at home than we would regard as normal.
I think we both know that retirement is not our preferred way of life right now.
Mr Cardinal has this week returned to full-time business, and looks much the happier for it. Having not had a day to myself for many months, I am happier too, and can catch up on some neglected chores and pastimes.
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| Toowoomba prize winning Cottage Garden |
At last we were able to go driving in the country, and went to the Toowoomba Flower Festival. I have never seen it before, and enjoyed a day exploring about ten prize-winning gardens.
Here are a few glimpses:
Pansies, pansies, everywhere...
This gardener made a map of Australia -
complete with a little orange Tasmania..
Love sweet-peas...hardly anyone grows them anymore
We ended the day at historic Spring Bluff railway station, which is only used for passenger trains during the annual festival.
The train arrived to take a large crowd back to Toowoomba..
The station won a prize for its volunteer Community Garden..
Meanwhile, the Brisbane Festival was happening..
including the Qld Opera concert performance of Benjamin Britten's 'Peter Grimes'.
It has been 60 years since it has played in Brisbane, and we had never seen it. I thoroughly enjoyed its spectacular and at times sinister and dramatic music..
The orchestra in the middle of the stage represented the roaring ocean.
A large chorus dressed in a drab grey/white of fishing villagers, surrounded the orchestra, moving and swaying like the ocean in the storm.
Spectacular.
The Craft Show came to town, and with it a display of Australia's Best Quilts -
this yellow one appealed...
and this one of sweet little animals.
I'd love to make it if I can find the pattern.
And I bought a project.
This snowy quilt scene comes complete with tiny lights and a battery pack to be inserted from the back. The panel is printed, but you add white paint, and glitter, as well as the lights.
Will it be done for Christmas?
Perhaps with help from Little Aussie....
In the bird-watching section of the blog, cockatoos and ducks playing nicely, after a recent storm..
a rare King Parrot sighting, pictured through the security screen because they are very skittish...
A young Kookaburra, an infrequent visitor to our tree.
Because they eat snakes, reminds me that we have already had our first Brown Snake sighting for the Summer.
Sigh....
New makeup and free samples arrived by Carrier Post today.
Goody.
I hope all goes well in your part of the world.
Cheers from the Red Cardinal nest
XXXX
The Craft Show came to town, and with it a display of Australia's Best Quilts -
this yellow one appealed...
and this one of sweet little animals.
I'd love to make it if I can find the pattern.
And I bought a project.
This snowy quilt scene comes complete with tiny lights and a battery pack to be inserted from the back. The panel is printed, but you add white paint, and glitter, as well as the lights.
Will it be done for Christmas?
Perhaps with help from Little Aussie....
In the bird-watching section of the blog, cockatoos and ducks playing nicely, after a recent storm..
a rare King Parrot sighting, pictured through the security screen because they are very skittish...
A young Kookaburra, an infrequent visitor to our tree.
Because they eat snakes, reminds me that we have already had our first Brown Snake sighting for the Summer.
Sigh....
New makeup and free samples arrived by Carrier Post today.
Goody.
I hope all goes well in your part of the world.
Cheers from the Red Cardinal nest
XXXX
You have had an up and down year haven't you. We went to Toowoomba last year and it was really terrific.. I can't believe you haven't been before! Those quilts are lovely and I shall be very impressed if I see that winter scene on your Christmas post!
ReplyDeleteI can hardly believe there are Christmas things in the shops already- I feel like 2018 is just getting started. Fingers crossed for the snowy Christmas quilt!
DeleteHello Dearest! I hope you keep blogging because I love seeing things from your side of the world. So many things different from mine.
ReplyDeleteLove catching up and seeing all the things you share: flowers, culture, family, wildlife, royal family etc.
And in this post those quilts stole my heart! That Christmas one is awesome!!
Blessings on the rest of your week Trish. Xo
Hi Carrie, glad you enjoy seeing the Southern Hemisphere - as I love seeing your part of the world. The quilt show was so amazing - all the best of Australia's quilters. Hope the Christmas one gets finished by December :) xx
DeleteYou sound like you have come through this recent bad patch with a renewed spirit...perhaps you will find returning to blogging therapuetic and a tonic? Those gardens are beautiful as are the birds...
ReplyDeleteXO
Thank you, I think you are right, blogging can be good therapy. Now there is something more to write about it is easier. I am so thankful for the birds and the gardens - without those I feel suffocated!
DeleteI was so happy to see you had a blog post up today. I had just been thinking about you and wondering if everything was okay. I hope the remainder of 2018 ends with no new drama. You've had more than your fair share this year already!
ReplyDeleteThank you dear Kristie, it has been a bit of a strange patch lately. Onward and upward, and I love how you cope with life and the world. I'll get the Christmas tree out in a week or so :)
DeleteLovely to hear from you. Glad you enjoyed your cruise. Beautiful gardens. My grandfather used to grow sweet-peas. They are a favourite. Here's hoping that the rest of the year goes smoothly. Sounds like it's been a bumpy one but things are sorting themselves out. XO
ReplyDeleteHi Jen, aren't sweet-peas lovely? My mother always grew them too. We had them as bouquets at my sister's wedding, so pretty. Cheers xo
DeleteFlowers, quilts, birds AND free make-up? You love the same things I do! So nice to see your blog again. Glad your hubby is better. Blessings to you both. x
ReplyDeleteAll the good things rounded up, Kay. I will get around to visiting a few more blogs tomorrow. Blessings back across the ditch! x
DeleteDear Patricia - I know that feeling about blogging - if I take time away from writing a post then the longer it lasts the harder it becomes to knuckle down and write again.
ReplyDeleteI can't believe that I used to write two or three posts, sometimes four per week - now it is more like one every eight or nine days sometimes even longer.
Anyway I am pleased to see you back here, and to learn that things are well with you both, and that Mr. Cardinal is doing so well and returning to full time business. My husband is off to London in the morning doing some consultancy, he will stay in a hotel overnight do some more work, and then return later the next day. That means that I can then go off and do some of the things that I want to do - it is good for both of us to do our own thing from time to time.
The Toowoomba flower festival looks absolutely spectacular.
Dear Rosemary, thank you for your thoughtful and lovely reply. I also used to dash them off several times a week, and am even wondering if it is old age slowing down my brain. Mr C also works as a consultant, and while he is working locally for now, I quite enjoy when he flies off around the country for a day or two. As you say, good to have time for our own pursuits at times. The Spring flowers at Toowoomba were gorgeous - it is located on a plateau and a bit cooler - and this combined with volcanic soil makes it a gardener's Paradise.
DeleteGood to see the blog in action again. Loving all the photos.
ReplyDeleteHi Caitlinsgrandma, I guess I had plenty of blog options all along. Glad you enjoyed. We have to catch up before Christmas! xo
DeleteHi Trish. You have Definitely had one of THOSE years. I think we bloggers all have these feelings. I also think we that we can get caught up in the "nothing exciting has happened to blog about" feeling. But the tales of the ordinary and everyday of women is as special as our moments of excitement. I love reading your posts Trish and you do it so beautifully. Hoping you continue to blog. Best wishes to hubby for continuing good health and work satisfaction. Hugs xxx
ReplyDeleteThank you Michelle, so happy you enjoy my ramblings. After all the lovely heart-felt responses, I think the blog will survive a bit longer. Best wishes to you and yours too. xxx
DeleteNice to catch up with the Cardinals. I too have been lax when it comes to blogging. My hands are mostly busy knitting. Enjoyed seeing your visit to the gardens with the little orange Tasmania. For some reason that made me smile. Keep blogging when you can.
ReplyDeleteLittle Tasmania made me smile too Darla, sitting out there like an afterthought. Enjoy your knitting, which is always lovely: your Winter is on the way!
DeleteWe have quilt makers in our family, Trish. I use a Ralph Lauren French inspired quit from Macy's department store as my bedspread. The animal print quit is so adorable. I hope you can find the pattern.
ReplyDeleteThe gardens and single flowers are lovely (as usual).
Lately, I order quite a bit online, often cheaper than what I'd pay in a brick and mortar store. But I still try to throw some business at rhe brick and mortar stores as I don't want them going out of business. I don't mind shopping as some folks do. Doing your errands is a way of seeing one's neighborhood and staying connected, I feel.
Enjoy your beautiful spring!
Your quilt sounds very chic Debbie, you must show us some time... I try to buy local as well, to keep the stores in business, including the makeup from a local pharmacy. Sadly, on a visit last week the cosmetician there insisted that my particular Clarins makeup had been 'repackaged' and sold me a different one obviously intended for the young and fresh! It was hopeless, and I went online to find that my personal one is still there, and they just didn't want to stock it any more. So online it was, with a new lipstick and free samples, free delivery, and arrived in 2 days. When I need to replace I will try once more at the pharmacy and see what I can negotiate. We definitely find the local village a great way to see the neighbours and friends of our area.
DeleteIt is not easy being stuck at home with a recuperating partner. Meals and company are needed, so there is more demand on the partners time. I think many ladies dislike their husbands retiring because they loose their precious "me" time. Men tend to view retirement as time to spend with you ...which means more meal preparation and more time doing things they want. My last few years have been a bit this way with the added demand of doing his practice paperwork. It does tend to dampen creativity, which requires energy. I am sure you will get back to blogging now life is returning to older patterns.
ReplyDeleteDear Sarah Liz, You are always a source of wisdom! That is exactly how it has been, and I even have a few extra kg to show for it - the meals, the snacks, the chocolate...and no proper opportunity to exercise. Onward and upward, apart from renewed thinking of the blog, I have finally found the necessary creativity to make sense of the photos from our trip and create an album. Thank you for your comment, and best wishes to you and your husband.
DeleteHello!
ReplyDeleteSo happy to see you here!
Blogging has changed since I began, yet it is still an important part of my life.
I hope you will be able to continue as I always enjoy visiting with you here.
Beautiful photos!
Hello, thank you for dropping by. Times change, and so does blogging, but Instagram will never substitute for the beautiful friends dropping by with lovely comments from all around the world. Glad you enjoyed.
DeleteI love that Christmas quilt, Patricia. It's so charming with the snowman and the trees and the window. I will definitely want to see it being made if you work on it for Christmas. And it can be lighted up, how cool is that? I love quilts, and my sister sews quilts as well. Such a talent. That cheerful yellow one is a treasure too.
ReplyDeletelove, ~Sheri
Hi Sheri, I have to promise myself to start the quilt! So fun with the little lights - of course, am thinking of the grandchildren (he he). American quilts are the best.
DeleteHi PAtricia!!!
ReplyDeleteI am struggling to blog as well...seems like such a chore to me nowadays! wonder why??
Those Pansies are incredible...didnt pick up any this Fall...but I will get some at easter!!
Enjoy your weekend!
Cheers!
Linda :o)
Yes, a chore, that is how it became. However, I am feeling more inspired now, so will get back into it. You have so many gorgeous flowers, I did not notice the lack of pansies. On the other hand, they are one of the few flowers tough enough to last half a year in a Queensland Summer! Happy weekend to you Linda.
DeleteHaving been "confined to barracks" myself for quite a lot of the summer, I can empathise with your feelings. I am glad you are getting out again. What a lot of work has gone into the gardens - they are lovely indeed, although if I am to be honest, I usually prefer a rather more informal look. I always enjoy quilt shows, and I think that of the ones you showed, the yellow is my favourite. But it is always so very hard to choose!
ReplyDeleteThe yellow quilt was my favourite too - perhaps because I am a definite Yellow Fancier. Must admit our garden is much less formal than the prize gardens - and we like to try a bit of this and a bit of that, just to see what happens. Lovely to look at what can be achieved by the dedicated gardener though.
DeleteIf you have a knack for writing, write articles and submit them to article sites. satta king Doing this will not only increase your search-able content, but it will also bring in hordes of new readers to your website.
ReplyDelete