Sunday, August 23, 2020

THE WESTERLY WINDS OF AUGUST

 

Greetings from the Red Cardinal.
Here it is, August already - and I don't know where I have been lately.
How are you all?  I am so impressed with the bloggers who continue to post through lock downs and difficult days.

It is our coldest month, and this year the Westerly Winds do not disappoint - biting through the air and blowing us to smithereens!


The flowers in our garden are going really well this...
The combination of cold mornings and sunny days seems to work for them.
Our vegetable attempts, on the other hand, have come to very little.
The tomatoes have flowers, but refuse to fruit...


Our zucchini flowers produce a little fruit which disappears in a day..???


Best display of iris we have had in years..


This is the deep waterhole I pass on my daily walks.
Local reports say there has been a platypus there lately,
 although I have not seen it.
The shy platypus is Australia's most unusual animal, and I have never seen one in the wild.  Every time I walk past, I pause, hopefully....

For the unfamiliar, the platypus has the bill and webbed feet of a duck, a beaver style tail, furry body and tail like an otter, and the male has a venomous stinger on the rear feet.  They are mammals, yet the female lays eggs in a burrow on the water's edge.  Their preferred environment is in the water where they feed on insects, shellfish, worms etc, and they are awkward on land.  As this one has not favoured me with an appearance, here is a Google image:



We Red Cardinals have continued with our weekend jaunts into the countryside, visiting some historic villages settled in our State's infancy...




At Forest Hill, we enjoyed the old Post Office cafe, gift shop and restaurant...


and a most delicious carrot, walnut and macadamia cake, with berry syrup and icecream.   And pansies...

A few days later we had guests, so I made my own interpretation:




In other news, I actually braved going into a change room at the Mall, and bought a Marimekko dress at Uniqlo:


I think we will be very happy together.
To my horror, today the Health Department has released a list of venues, days and times, associated with a new Covid outbreak.  And I was there, right in the time frame, the day I bought the dress.

Seems we will be isolating again for a while...



Our GoMA (Gallery of Modern Art) reopened recently.  
Prominently displayed is this pretty flower monster 'Flowers that Bloom at Midnight" - one of a series by the famous Japanese artist Yayoi Kusama [1929-]

Flowers are a staple motif for Kusama, along with polka dots.  
Here the great staring eye makes us think of alien flora in science fiction and fantasy tales.
Perhaps it makes you think of something quite recent??


Our first grandson, Young Aussie, has a birthday coming soon.
He will be Eleven!  Who would have thought...

I have been looking at his baby photos:



Here he is lying on a little Peter Rabbit quilt I made for him..


and enjoying his first Christmas.  What a little cutie he was (and is :)

And here is my best news:

Young Aussie is going to be a Big Brother .... very soon.

I will tell you all about it, when it happens.


Be well, be safe, take care.

XXXX




28 comments:

  1. Lovely photos to brighten the day here. Very cold here in Adelaide and not much sunshine either. Your cake looks delicious and is one of my favourites to bake and to eat. Hope you stay well.

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    1. Thank you Rosie. It sounds cold in Adelaide, but I enjoyed your lovely photos on your blog. Adelaide is a beautiful city. Fingers crossed, we have a little flare-up here. Take care, be safe.

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  2. Mmmmm, maybe you are right - possums do come along there from time to time and eat the parsley. Make sure you use the cream cheese topping on your carrot cake, and add the macadamias, they are delicious :)

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  3. Hi Patricia lovely post my friend,I love your new dress and I pray that you will be covid free,it is a worry for you. Oh I love your garden and that's puzzling with your zucchini plant. Oh wow how wonderful to see a platypus I would be so excited to see that. Yes our grandies sure do grow up fast and what a handsome young man he is now,take care my friend and stay safe xx

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    1. We are isolating ourselves just now, as Brisbane appears to have a new wave of covid. Fingers crossed. I'm off to look for the platypus now! xx

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  4. Your cake looks amazing! The dress is beautiful.
    Prayers y'all will remain healthy & Safe!

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    1. Thank you - I do find surrounding oneself with some pretty things helps keep up our spirits. Prayers for your country too - be healthy and safe!

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  5. Imagine Young Aussie being 11 years old - how time seems to fly. That cake has made me feel quite hungry and sadly we don't have a single piece of cake in the house, I shall just have to look at yours.
    Such pretty pink pansies which look delightful in your (is it Art Deco?) green glass dish.

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    1. I know, I wish he could have stayed about five years old for a few more years, such a sweet, artistic little man. Soon he will be in teenage angst! Yes, the green glass is from the 1930s, Art Deco style, which I bought at a garage sale in Sydney. The pink flowers are actually orchids and those blooms last for weeks and weeks.

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  6. It's so strange to me that August is your coldest month and here it is our hottest month haha. The Iris' color is beautiful, Patricia. And it's my favorite color too. How nice that you got to visit the Historic Villages. That carrot cake with berry syrup looks amazing! Wouldn't that be something if you saw the Platypus on your daily walks at the waterhole? Such a strange looking animal. Aussie's baby photos are precious, and he's going to be a big brother soon - that's wonderful. So happy for you, Patricia. That green glass dish at the end of your post is so unique and beautiful. I really like that. Enjoy these last days of August. Looking forward to Fall and cooler weather. : )

    ~Sheri

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    1. I hear it is quite hot over in North America - while we have our treasured but very short Winter. It is a joy to see the iris, for just a few weeks. Glad you like my green glass lady, I always wanted one of those and found it in Sydney at a garage sale. Yes, I am doing baby sewing right now - so much fun.

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  7. Now we are twins, Trish. I bought a Marimekko dress at Uniqlo too earlier this year, the same exact pattern, a little different. The dress I bought has 2 pockets but it is very similar. You have fantastic tastes.:)

    Oh how I'd love to see the platypus too. I hope you get lucky! I also love in the the colder months you have beautiful flowers. On the east coast of our Western hemisphere, flowers die. and we must wait months for them to bloom again.

    Keep up posted on the newest baby grandchild … and young Aussie too. Keep safe, my friend!

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    1. Debbie, I love that you also bought a Marimekko dress - we both have excellent taste, he he.
      We have a sunny day after about 10 dull days of cold, West winds and grey skies. I'm off to look for the platypus - maybe he will pop out for a swim around the pond. Busy making a baby quilt right now :)

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  8. Lovely to see where you've been and what is growing in your garden. I am stunned by your beautiful green glass figure. What a treasure. I can't believe your Grandson is growing up so fast. Nice news that there will be a baby in the family soon.

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    1. Hi Darla, we are very excited to be grandparents again, especially during a bleak year. Glad you like the glass figure, it was a cracking buy at a garage sale, they are very expensive in the antique stores.

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  9. You have some lovely blooms in the garden Trish. I have the same luck with my vegies although I have lettuce seeded from last year looking and tasting wonderful plus a whole lot of tomato plants that have come up themselves. I am ignoring them hoping that may produce some fruit lol! I had the privilege of seeing Platypus out at Caranavon gorge. I love your new dress...gorgeous! I think we all gotva scare again with this latest cluster. Happy birthday to your lad and best wishes for the impending edition Take care xx

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  10. Thank you Michelle, it is good to have something exciting to occupy our minds right now. I am stitching little rabbits on onesies, and other fun projects. We have done best with lettuce too, but I think we will give up on the tomotoes and zucchinis. How lovely to see a platypus at Caranavon, lucky you. At least I know one is down at our creek, and one day I might be lucky if all is quiet. Take care xx

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  11. I'm forever fascinated by your wildlife there in Australia, Patricia. There's nothing like it anywhere else. The platypus is such an unusual creature, isn't it? Your adventures into the countryside look lovely, so I hope you don't have to forego them because of being in the wrong place at the wrong time. Keep well, my dear!

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    1. Dear Val, the platypus is very weird indeed, but actually also really cute. I love seeing them in an aquarium at a zoo, frolicking in the water. Fingers crossed no more lockdown because that will end the Sunday driving! Be safe dear Val.

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  12. Your grandson is adorable! That smile! I see a lot of mischief in your future, Patricia.
    Amalia
    xo

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    1. Yes, the more grandchildren, the more mischief! I enjoy them so much. xo

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  13. Wonderful dress my dear! It looks full of styling opportunities! Huge congrats all around on the impending addition!! xox

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    1. Thank you Tamera - I should go back through your blog archives for ideas, you always do interesting combinations of neutrals. So excited about the big event, coming soon :) xox

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  14. Patricia, Yes, that was my house that I grew up at. It was a greenish/grey color, and my Dad always did such a nice job with the lawn. That photo was taken around the time when my brother sold the house, so I was glad to have a picture of the house I grew up at. When I lived up north, my church was in the same town, so I drove by my Mom's house all the time. It was a happy home with Mom cooking all the time and my Dad out in the garden and brothers and sister coming and going. We were a close-knit family, and my parents were great role models for us kids. : )

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    1. I love that we grew up in similar houses! And similar families too, I think, Dad in the garden, brothers and sisters, mother in the house. Lovely memories :)

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  15. Hello beautiful Trish!
    Happy Spring to you! I hope you don't blow away. Lol That's so weird about your garden attempts, but your flowers are beautiful. We are kind of the same thing here. Some places open and some not. I hope you continue to remain safe and healthy!! Your grandson was such a little Pumpkin. ❤️ And how exciting about being a brother soon! yay!! 🎉 Blessings to all. xoxo

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    1. Thank you Carrie, we are very excited about the coming event. It is a weird time we live in, but the gardens and flowers give pleasure and we look forward to our grandson visiting us on Saturday - all day! Blessings to you too. xox

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