Catching up on 2015

So...2015. Quite a year, huh?

As I've mentioned in a previous post, I had a lot of trouble with my arthritis last winter, and it followed me into spring and summer (which were very late). I missed a lot of work, either not being able to come in at all or, more often, coming in late because my joints are worse first thing in the morning.

I finally got a mixture of medications that seemed to work pretty well, but by that time I'd given some serious thought to trying the work-from-home route. It's something I've always wanted to do but, as a secretary, my skill-set didn't lend itself to remote working. However, in the past few years I've picked up a fair amount of copy-editing experience and, more importantly, contacts. So, in August, I finished up my job and went into business for myself.

I am now sole proprietor of Taylor+Foote, freelance research and copy-editing. So far I have four clients, two of which are fairly substantial and one which may become so. I don't have enough coming in yet to match what I made before, but I think I can build it up in the coming year.

In the meantime, I very much enjoy getting to sleep in, slouch around the house in pajamas if I feel like it, and work whatever hours suit me (when the work comes in). I may have mentioned that I am not a morning person.

I'm also really loving having the time and energy to do more things around the house. Especially cooking. I've been making bread, and finally managed to get a wild-yeast sourdough starter going (after a few failures). I've also been experimenting with fermenting vegetables and kombucha, which I'll post about another time.

I've also been rearranging my work spaces. I decided to have the room upstairs strictly as an office and move my sewing and crafts to the basement (except the yarn, which, as Bartholomew-bait, stays shut up upstairs). I cleared a corner of the basement, moved down my sewing table, and put up some shelves and I'm gradually getting things organized and put away down there.

I haven't been knitting a lot - I suffer from startitis, but not much motivation to get things finished. I'll try and get some pictures of the few things I have done.

Now I'm off to peruse seed catalogs - it is January, after all.

Wendy

Happy New Year 2016

I only have one New Year's resolution this year...to write a blog post once a week, all year long. Unlike "exercising more", "eating more healthfully" or "losing some weight", this is specific, and do-able.

This first post, being New Year's Day, is on a Friday, but I'm going to try to post every Sunday here on out - the first will be a catch-up post since I haven't posted since last summer. We had some big events last year so I may spread those out over a couple of weeks. We will be traveling to some interesting places this coming year, including India and Turkey, so there will definitely be travel posts. I'm currently writing this in the United lounge in San Francisco airport, on our way home after 10 days with my folks over Christmas.

In the meantime, Happy New Year to all my friends, and may 2016 be blessed.

Wendy

I've done it again...

...and gone MONTHS between posts.

Here's an update of what's been happening in our lives during the (NINE!) months since I last blogged.

My parents came out on Amtrak for a month-long visit last November. It took them four days to get here and the only two complaints they had were that their cabin was too close to the restrooms and Mom had to climb the stairs to the second level for every meal (she doesn't do stairs). On the way back they changed their cabin to be away from the toilets and on the same level as the restaurant, and it was much better. Someday when I have the time (like after we've retired) I'd love to do that trip in reverse to visit them. It's a great way to see the countryside, and think of all that knitting time!

It was so nice to have Mom & Dad around for so long and to finally show off the house. They were with us for a week and then drove down to North Carolina to spend a week with Mom's cousin Lil. They came back for two more weeks and we all went to my Uncle Jim's (Dad's brother's) place for Thanksgiving. Lala's youngest son Bill, who I haven't seen since I was nine, was there with his family. I'd completely forgotten that when I was growing up I thought he was her only son, since he was the only one I'd met. When you are little, people you've never met don't actually exist. Since he was a step-cousin I always thought of myself as having 5 1/2 cousins. Jim and Lala lived in McLean, Virginia in a very nice, but relatively modest house, compared to some of the McMansions in the area - we're looking at you, Dick Cheney. They were planning on downsizing and selling the house, which they'd lived in for about 35 years, so it was going to be their last Thanksgiving there and there was a certain poignancy in the atmosphere.

Lala is the most amazing woman I've ever known. She is 90 and has more energy than a teenager on a sugar high. She also collects the most beautiful antiques. The table we ate Thanksgiving dinner at had once been owned by Captain Cook.

Three weeks after my parents left, we flew out to California for Christmas. We decided not to bother with renting a car so we arranged to fly from San Francisco to Modesto airport, which was the first time I've ever done that. It's tiny. Really tiny. The only commercial route they still operate was the one to San Francisco, the plane was the smallest I've ever flown in and our baggage was handed to us in the terminal directly from the tarmac through a roller shutter.

The daughter-child came over from England and met us at Mom & Dad's house Christmas Eve and stayed till Boxing Day. It wasn't long enough, but we have to take what we can get these days.

Just before Christmas I had my first root canal. I tell you, the minute I turned 40 I started falling apart - arthritis, varifocals, root canals and now, when I recently had a hearing test, it turns out I have some pretty bad hearing loss and may have to get some hearing aids! I'm turning into my grandparents.

Our travels this year have been pretty fun. In February we went to Portland, OR where David held some meetings, and our friend Lora, who runs Third Wave Coffee Tours, took us on an abbreviated version of her Downtown Tour. If you are visiting Portland, and love coffee, check her out. She knows her stuff, loves coffee, and is really fun to hang out with. I love coffee but I'm really a bit of a Philistine about it. As long as it's hot, milky and caffeinated I'm good. I did really enjoy learning about the different roasting, brewing and serving methods, although by the end of it was vibrating slightly. My favourite stop was at one of Portland's famous food carts. The owners make their own syrups and treated us to a coffee flavoured with lemon, rosemary and Douglas Fir, which I was initially skeptical about but which was awesome.

In early May we got to visit another friend from college, Lori-Anne, a freelance writer/blogger, who lives in Kelowna, BC. This was actually my first ever visit to Canada and as an introduction I think it would be hard to beat the Okanagan. It's billed as the Canadian Napa Valley and it's certainly beautiful, fertile and, in the winter, milder than most of the rest of Canada. We finally got to meet Lori-Anne's charming husband Kyle and her completely adorable children, Oliver and Amelie. Kyle is an artist and graphic designer who works at the Kelowna Art Gallery. Lori-Anne spent a lovely day with us, showing us around Kelowna and we stopped at the gallery where Kyle gave us a tour round. I also took the chance to snag another one of his paintings. He's a very talented artist and for the past few years has been working on a project called "100 for 100" in which he is creating one hundred 10"x10" original paintings and selling them for $100 each. A couple of years ago I bought one he'd done of pomegranates (my favourite fruit).

When we visited I asked Kyle if he still had the one he'd painted of Tintern Abbey and I was so pleased to find that he did! We visited Tintern Abbey on our first summer vacation in Wales, very early on a Saturday morning before anyone else was there, the sun was only just up, mist was rising from the river nearby and everything was so still and quiet. Just lovely.

I borrowed these photos off his website, but I'll try and get some pictures of them up in the house as well.

In the middle of June we took our annual leave in Australia to coincide with a work trip, so we had five days with David's brother Geoffrey and his family on the Gold Coast, and then five days with his mum in North New South Wales (yes I'm aware of how funny that looks), and then another five days in Sydney where we attended meetings and got to see his sisters.

We both came down with bad colds on the flight over to Australia and had just about finally shaken them off when we flew back to the States via California and stayed a couple of days with my parents to celebrate Independence Day and Cedric's 5th birthday. I was starting to feel like I was coming down with something again on the Sunday when we flew home and sure enough, it was another cold, but this time I ended up with a bi-lateral ear infection with perforated eardrums and resulted in having tubes put in both ears - leading to the ear test which indicated that I have some long-term damage. Sigh. As my mother frequently says, "Getting older is no fun".

Two days after the tube insertion (which was NOT fun - about on a par with a root canal, but quicker) we flew back to California where David was speaking at the Northern California Conference camp meeting, which is the best camp meeting on the planet. This has nothing (well little) to do with the fact that it's the camp meeting I went to growing up - it's just an intrinsic fact. It is located in the Northern California redwoods, just south of Fortuna, California, and is actually located right in a redwood grove. My family reserves the same spot every year - my parents take their 5th-wheel (and when I go they put up a tent), my brother, his in-laws and his brother-in-law each take their trailer campers, and they set everything up around a large central area. We call it "circling the wagons". Tarps are strung around the perimeter for a bit of privacy and laid on the ground between the campers and then several tables are put end-to-end along the middle for everyone to sit and eat at. There are about six pretty good sized redwoods in their campsite so they've worked out the best position for each camper to take account of the trunks, and everything is shaded beautifully. That's especially good in summers like this one, when we had several days in which it was nearly 100 degrees in the sun.

As a speaker, David had a hotel room in Fortuna, which he returned to each night. He's not fond of camping so that worked out well for him. I like camping, and I wanted to spend as much time with my family as possible, but I also like hot showers and sleeping with my husband, so I spent alternate nights in the tent and in the hotel. It worked out well.

We were pretty busy but David and I did get one day to see the sights, such as they are. Fortuna's not much to write home about, but we did drive the Avenue of the Giants, which is beautiful, and also visited Ferndale, which is chock full of Victorian gingerbread-y goodness. Unfortunately, we didn't get there until after 4.00 and they appear to roll up the pavements in town at 5.00, so we didn't get to see as much as we would have liked. I did my research though and made sure that Foggy Bottom Yarns was the first place we went. I got a skein of forest green laceweight, to remind me of the redwoods.

The BIG news of the year is that my baby girl has moved to California. After a year of post-graduation, being a grown-up, supporting herself with coffee shop jobs, themed hen nights, and teaching Lindy Hop and Charleston at dance studios, she decided she was sick of living in Reading (since she was four) and wanted to try something new. She has a lot of friends in the Bay Area from our two years there in 2008/9 so while we were in Australia she packed up and flew to DC, where she house/cat sat for us while we were away. She stayed with us for three weeks, flew to California with us, and we dropped her off in Santa Rosa on our way up to camp meeting. She's staying with her friend Claire (who is a complete sweetie) while she settles in. Amazingly she found a coffee shop job, a free bike and the possibility of some dance teaching, all within the first couple of weeks she was there, so now she's house-hunting. Or, rather, room-hunting, because even a one-bedroom apartment in the Bay Area is too expensive for her at the moment.

Have I said how proud I am of her? She's an incredible combination of fantastic creativity and focused determination. She can be very goal oriented when she wants to be and once she decides to do something she is very good at figuring out how to achieve it. I like to think she gets a lot of her creativity from me, but she definitely gets her focus, determination and self-discipline from her father.

This is a much more text-heavy post than usual because sometime after Christmas I discovered that I'd lost my camera. I knew I'd had it at Christmas because I could remember taking photos of the kids with it, but at some point I must have "put it somewhere safe" and now couldn't remember where it was. (I can't tell you how many things I've "lost" that way.) All the photos taken so far this year have been with our iPhones. A week ago I opened a bag in which I'd brought Christmas presents back, that I was sure I'd emptied when we got home, and sure enough, there it was. There was much rejoicing.

Since this has gotten rather long I'll post later on the (lack of) knitting/crafting progress this year and put up a few pictures.

Wendy

Knitting Update - September 2013

It occurred to me recently that I haven't written much about knitting for a while. This is mainly because I haven't done a lot of knitting for a while. Not sure why. Partly this summer was just so hot and sticky that wool didn't hold its usual allure for  me. Also, there was so much going on this summer - both good and bad.

In May the sump pump failed and our basement flooded. We got someone in to rip out the soaked carpet and put in dehumidifiers and fortunately our home insurance paid for this (although, unfortunately, not the cost of a new sump pump). Just when everything dried out we had monsoon-like rain again, and again came down to find water all over the floor. But this time it was coming in one of the basement windows (which is not covered by the insurance) so more carpet ripped up and more dehumidifiers. By the time we figured out why the water was coming in that window the basement had flooded a third time, and we had to pay for a third lot of carpet-taking-up and dehumidifiers.

Not long after the first flood David was away on a short trip and I popped out to the bank. As I was pulling up to the stop sign to exit the parking lot a woman coming from my left tried to pull up to the stop sign as well, without noticing I was there. She plowed into the front, driver's side corner and just seemed to keep going forever. Eventually she noticed she'd hit me and stopped her car - she had a dog in the back seat of her car so I assume it had distracted her because otherwise I can't see how she failed to see me. Her car was hardly scratched of course but my poor car was a mess. I had to really shove the door to get it open as the front panel was buckled.  We exchanged the usual information and she left, both of us thinking I'd just drive home and then contact a repair shop. Unfortunately, when I got back in the car and turned the key, absolutely nothing happened. It didn't even turn over. So I had to get the car towed and in the end it was in the shop for nearly two weeks. Fortunately the woman's insurance paid for everything, including a rental car, but it wasn't good timing at all.

Then our airconditioner failed - twice. During this hot, humid summer.

So not a lot of knitting over the summer.

I did make a fair number of baby things earlier this year for the Washington Adventist Hospital's baby unit.

A few of the hats (the super tiny ones are for the babies born too early)

A few of the cardigans - aren't they cute?

Squishy baby blankets

A close-up of the thermal stitch

A burial gown set

Most of these I knit with my very favourite baby yarn - Bernat Softee Baby - the softest, squishiest baby yarn I've found.

I did do some knitting while we were on vacation.  A pair of slouchy socks for myself from the Verdant Gryphon's "Bugga" I bought at the Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival in May and a lacy hat for Evie (she declared she doesn't wear socks) from the Miss Babs. The hat didn't take up a lot of the yarn so I still have more than half of it left to make something else.

I cast on a pair of socks for David while we were still in England but only finished the first sock about a week ago. I've cast on the second sock but haven't got very far with it yet.

Earlier in the year I bought enough wool to make David the knitted waistcoat from Jane Austen Knits and Evie has recently expressed a desire for a hooded scarf for when she's traveling this winter.

She also wants these -

(c) Ann Kingstone

 So I really need to get on that second sock and get them done.

Our knitting group at church has reconvened after the summer break and is re-starting our knitting for the homeless project. Last year we collected nearly 200 items so this year I'm hoping we can make it to 300. So now that it's finally cooling down I will hopefully have more on the knitting front to report later in the year.

Wendy

Knitting Update July 2011

Finished Objects

Hufflepuff Scarf - Oct 2010

Because in the Harry Potter World I'm a total 'Puff.

Felted Tote Bag - Feb 2011

I crocheted the tote but it ended up so enormous that I threw it in the washer on the hottest cycle and it felted down to this perfect size.

Lacy Summer Socks - June 2011

I started these on the coach trip in Europe at the end of May and finished them on the plane to California in the middle of June.  They are Cookie A's "Summer Sox" pattern and were so much fun to knit up.

Stashbusting Bags for the Kids

And some charity knitting

Recovery Buddies

Handmade Especially for You 

and a random alpaca hat for a homeless charity

I've also knit about 8 cotton dishcloths but haven't bothered to take pictures of them.

What's on the Needles

As of this moment I'm a couple of inches into a second sock for mom.

These are Cookie A's "Monkey" socks and are looking good in the self-striping wool I'm using.  I started these at Mom & Dad's in June and will hopefully finish them in time to give them to her for campmeeting in a couple of weeks.






I'm also knitting an "Old Shale Scarf" from bamboo sock yarn and I love the way the self-striping is creating the wavy pattern in the scarf.

Hibernating

I haven't worked on my pink alpaca cardigan since I finished knitting it in the winter.  It just needs blocking and sewing up but I just haven't found the initiative to do it yet.

I finally started the "Crow Waltz" shawl in my beautiful "Old Maiden Aunt" yarns in April.  I knitted up the lace border and then picked up the 200 odd stitches to make the body but several inches in realised I'd been doing something wrong and had to frog back to the border.  Since then I've been too demoralised to pick it back up again.  I think I will take this to California with me later this month and make it my campmeeting knitting.

New Stash

I got money for my birthday and the very next day went to Muse in St Helena and blew it all in one go.

The bright pink with a hint of green is Zauberball sock yarn and I've been coveting this colourway since the first time I saw it.  Initially I thought I'd make a pair of socks with it but then I saw a picture of it make up into a Citron shawl and due to the semicircular shape it looks a bit like watermelon so I think I'll go with that.

The other two skeins are Manos Serena, made of baby alpaca and cotton and I just couldn't resist them.  One is a solid purple and the other a variegated purple.  I'm not sure yet what I'll make of them yet but in the meantime I'll enjoy petting them.

So thanks to Lauren and Fin for the funds, and Maria R-B for her excellent enabling!

What I'm Listening To
Mostly I've been listening to books on CD lately, rather than music.  Right now I'm alternating between Agatha Christie's "And Then There Were None", and William Gibson's "Spook Country".  I've also, belatedly, discovered knitting podcasts and have been working my way randomly through some of the ones I've found on iTunes. I particularly like the Knit Picks podcast as it's well produced and extremely informative and entertaining.

What I'm Reading
As I've been listening to books on CD I haven't done a lot of reading of actual books but at the moment I'm re-reading Laurie R. King's "The Language of Bees" before I read the sequel, "God of the Hive".

Blog Fail

I should NEVER have so blithely declared that I'd post every day this month.  Sigh.

I have been so busy since we got back from Maryland (and consequently so tired) that I've been collapsing into bed at 9.00 most nights.

The news so far:

1. The sellers agreed to give us an escrow check for the ENTIRE amount of the re-roofing quote.  They originally countered with half, but our realtor, the awesome Phyllis, pointed out to them that there was an identical house in the next street over selling for £50,000 less and that if they wanted us to buy their house, rather than the cheaper one, they'd better offer some incentive, because the roof was a deal-buster.  The reason, by the way, that we were going for this house, rather than the cheaper one is that the cheaper one was a short-sale, and it can take 6-9 months to get an offer accepted on short-sales.  Also, the house we chose is move-in ready.  All we are waiting for now is the valuation for the mortgage lender, and a background check to make sure there are no liens on the property.
2. We've had contractors round our house here to give us quotes on some of the work that needs to be done to get it up to scratch for renting out.  There are a few things I can't do, like removing the old gas fire or replacing the toilet cistern (it's one of the old fashioned two piece toilets), and a lot of things I could do but which would take me much longer and much more effort, like fixing guttering and resealing the bathroom and kitchen.  So the contractors are going to do most of the repairs on the house, and I'm going to do all the painting and decorating.  We are getting a certain amount from the Conference towards the costs and I got a small tax rebate, so that will cover the contractors work, and the materials I'll need, with a little bit left over for emergencies and getting professional cleaners in at the end if necessary.
3. Evie has settled in really well at University, is getting on pretty well with her course, but has really found her true love in RUCAS (Reading University Circus Arts Society) and contact juggling.  If you've ever seen David Bowie in "Labyrinth" you'll know what contact juggling is.  If you haven't, this is the sort of thing...and she's getting really good at it.

The plan is still for David to go mid-March and for me to finish up with the house here and follow at the end of March.  If everything goes smoothly we'll be able to move into the new house shortly after I arrive (although we'll have to get a few pieces of furniture to tide us over until our shipment arrives).

Our House (fingers crossed)

We've put in an offer and it has been accepted.  The home inspection was this afternoon and it flagged up some issues with damp, the electrics and the roof, so our realtor is going to negotiate to see what she can get for us.

So, if everything goes according to plan, this will be ours on 22 March.

Isn't it preeeeeety?

If you're the praying sort, we'd really appreciate a mention or two.

Short & Sweet because I'm jetlagged

We've found a house to make an offer on.  I have two job interviews before we go home.  More anon.

Moving Again!

OK, here's the deal.  After spending two great years in California we moved back to England last January. We felt strongly that England was where we were meant to be this year.  David even turned down a job in Tennessee that would have been a solid, secure alternative.  And I really liked Chattanooga.  But, after thinking and praying hard, it just didn't feel like the right fit for him.  So we took a step in faith and came back to England, in the dead of winter, with no guarantee either of us would find work, and not sure how the move would affect Evie.  We had seen providence working in our lives over the past two years and really felt that this was the right thing to do.

I'll tell you now that that belief has sometimes been the only thing that's kept us going over the past 10 months.  I was lucky enough, after a couple of horrid temp jobs, to find long term temp work at the hospital, but neither of us have been able to find permanent work and we've had to survive on my temp pay, some articles David's written, and the kindness of friends and family.  Fortunately David got a three month fellowship at the Folger and was able to send some of it home to cover expenses here, but it was a really tough summer.

The good news is that while David was in DC this summer he was offered the position of Director of Archives and Statistics at the General Conference (of the Seventh Day Adventist church, for anyone not in the know).  Which means that come early next year we'll be moving back to the States.  And, without having to stretch the imagination much, we've seen providence again.  David was in the right place, at the right time to be able to attend interviews, meet with the right people and make all sorts of arrangements before he left. We had some long talks on the phone while he was there, and then when he got back, about whether this was the right thing for us to do, especially bearing in mind how strongly we felt we needed to be back in England.  We concluded that everything seemed to be coming together to point us in that direction.

God works in strange ways.  Funnily enough, not having a car or any money has meant that since we've been back we've rarely been able to do the things we love to do here in England: eating out, visiting National Trust sites, theatre trips, days out in London, weekends away, etc.  That, combined with the fact that, after living in Angwin, Whitley is shabbier, dirtier, noiser and generally more unpleasant than we remember it from before we left, and that we lost our wonderful neighbours and now have to listen to  the new neighbours screaming at each other and their kids all day , has prevented us from being as attached to life here as we would have been otherwise.

So, the plan at the moment, contingent on his work permit coming through, is for David to go out early in January and for me to follow in March.  They will pay for me to come over for a week to have a look around so I'll go with David in January and do some mad house-hunting.  The I'll come home and tie up the loose ends here, get our house in shape to be rented out, and arrange for the movers to come and take our stuff away.  My Dad's trying to organise things so he can come over for a couple of weeks in February to help out which would be fantastic as he is totally Mr Handyman.  David will fly back over at the end of February to help out with the last minute things, spend time with Evie on her birthday, and then we'll fly away in early March.

We sound so organised don't we? Ha!

More later on what we are hoping for the next few years.

What do you mean it's the middle of October?!

It was a weird summer.  Basically I worked, I came home, I occasionally forayed into the town centre to do some shopping, I got out of Reading exactly once per month (and actually I'm not sure about September, it's a blur), I neglected my garden, I really neglected my housekeeping, and I did some knitting.  That was my summer.  It was hot, and then it was wet, it was mostly boring, it was lonely (my other half being in the States for three months) and I felt sorry for myself a lot.  Hence the lack of views from the manor.

However, since 1 October, when the husband returned, it's been all go.  I got aforementioned husband back, lost my job and packed my daughter off to college, all within three days.  I then came down with a vicious cold that laid me out for the whole of my first week off work in eight months.  I'm now working part time in the orthopaedic department at the hospital, aforementioned daughter comes over every few days for food and laundry and husband is off to Geneva for a few days.

So, that's me caught up!

Oh, and we're moving back to the States next year.  But that's a whole separate issue.

Actually it hasn't been all bad.  At the end of July I had a wonderful day out with my knit night friends at Knit Nation in London.  I'd just got a £100 bonus from my doctor in the Renal Department so I blew it all on my day out - yarn, lovely, lovely yarn.  My Wednesday nights at Outcasts in Reading have been my salvation - the nicest bunch of people on the planet, I tell you.

Here are a few pics of Knit Nation, and some of my knitting from the last few months.

The totally awesome Wollmeise stand.

The smaller but equally awesome Renaissance Dyeing who use only natural dyes, including their speciality, woad.  How cool is that?

This was our combined haul from the day.

This was my personal haul from the day.

I was especially chuffed about the green and purple skeins in the middle from Old Maiden Aunt.  The green is called "bitter bug" and the purple is "derelict daughter".  I've wanted that one since I first heard of the name of it!  I'm going to make this shawl with them.


The yarn on the far left is from Wollmeise and I made these socks for David out of it.

He has worn them but I have yet to get a picture of them on his feet.

Here are a few more of my projects from over the summer.

 Tabi socks for the girl child.

A cardigan I did for a finishing class at knit night, which just happens to fit Bear perfectly.

 A scarf for me (modeled by the ever obliging child) made of bamboo.  It's been a steep learning curve this knitting thing.  A few months ago I didn't know you could buy yarn made from bamboo, soy, corn, milk or seaweed - and now I do!

And finally, a hat for the Child (it needs a little stretching out, yes) - my first lace project.

I've also finished the back of my birthday cardigan but I won't post pictures till it's done.

And for those few of you interested in my foray into vegetable gardening, I don't have any pictures but at the end of September I harvested a big bowl full of little potatoes, five fairly motheaten red cabbages, and two enormous courgettes that had hidden away under the leaves and which I could hollow out and use as canoes.  All in all, considering how much I had neglected it in its later stages, my garden did pretty well for me.

Update

Ok, quick recap of the last six months.  We left Angwin just before Christmas, spent Christmas in Australia, moved back to England in January and have spent the last few months looking for work.  It's been stressful and I haven't been posting because stress tends to kill off any creative impulses that might be lurking.  In fact I haven't really been in touch with anyone lately because I'm afraid all I'll do is moan.

However...despite the fact that we still don't have permanent jobs, it's spring in England, my itty bitty garden is looking good and I've discovered knitting, so blogging is on the to do list.

More when I've uploaded some photos of the aforementioned garden and knitting.

Home, Sweet Home?

We are finally here and starting to settle back in, and it feels really strange.  The house is smaller (and shabbier) than I remember and I'm racking up items on my to-do list (mostly small repairs and lots of painting).  There's a leak in the bathroom sink, all the sealant around the tub has turned black, the tenants left heaps of junk in the backyard, it's cold, and grey, and the pretty snow is gone.

But...I'm home.  My house. My home.  So there's lots of work to do - I expected that.  So it's small (cozy) - I can adjust to that again.  So it's a little shabbier - paint's cheap and therapeutic.  And, I've got new carpet! Installed by someone else, so I got to come home to it all done and ready.  

We are also having fun pulling boxes out of storage and rediscovering things ("why did I pack that up and not just throw it away?").  I feel like an archaeologist.  It's a small but significant joy to find a favourite tea towel or wooden spoon. 

So, back to the unpacking and excavation.

A Warm Respite

After weeks of running on adrenaline, now that I'm relaxing all the stress I ignored is taking its toll.  I'm tired and headachy and generally feeling rundown, but at least I don't have to be anywhere or do anything and can go take a quick nap if I feel like it.  It hasn't helped that the past few days have been horribly hot and humid which saps me quicker than running a 100-metre dash (not that I've done that in 25 years but you get the picture).

Today the weather was perfect though.  The monsoon rains of the past two days have blown over and it was hot and dry and sunny and I had a gorgeous swim in the pool, although I'm pink and tender tonight.  It's been so long since I've swum and I was enjoying it so much I stayed in even when I could feel my shoulders starting to feel the sun.  I'm not crispy and it's not too painful, but I've lived in England too long. I've lost my tolerance and burn like an English Rose.

We're getting lots of reading and websurfing done and periodically play with the puppy.  Geoff and Anne have a beautiful Cocker Spaniel puppy named Baxter who alternately amuses and infuriates.

Well it's 8pm and I'm wiped out - off to bed.

Taking a Deep Breath

Well, we did it.  After a day of packing and cleaning and more cleaning and more packing we finally got everything into (or onto) the car.  David, bless him, packed the car up and then came in really pleased that he had managed to fit everything in - and then noticed the carpet cleaner my mom had loaned us (which in the end we didn't even use because we ran out of time).  After some cursing and walking round the car, he took out a suitcase and we strapped it to the roof of the car with bungee straps.  We collected up our coats and bags, turned out the lights and locked the door for the last time around 8.30 last night and then drove down to my parents' in Ceres.  I was so exhausted that I zoned out while we were on the 12 and didn't wake up again till we were on the 99 and then zoned out again till after we'd exited the highway and were on my parents' road.  I have to be REALLY tired or sick to sleep in cars or planes so it's an indication of how worn out I was that I slept for nearly half the journey.  When we finally got to the farm at about 11.30 we got out and the suitcase we'd bungeed to the roof had slid down to the back of the car and was hanging on for dear life.  We only unpacked the essentials and made our way upstairs as quietly as we could so as not to wake Mom & Dad (which half worked - Dad sleeps like a log and Mom wakes up if a fly lands on the window screen).

Today I've been achy and slow and have spent most of the day sitting in front of the log fire, chatting with Mom or reading old Period Home magazines.  I've been down here to visit so often over the last two years that it doesn't feel like we've moved - just like we've come for a long visit.  Tomorrow we are visiting with friends and family, Monday is a shopping day, and Tuesday we fly to Brisbane, so after the last few weeks it was essential to have a day like today.  We will be seeing family in Australia but I'm hoping that most of the time will be for lounging around the house and the pool, relaxing and soaking up the sun before the whirl of getting ourselves back to California and then on to what will no doubt be a cold and wet UK.  Evie got an email from a friend in Reading who said that it was snowing there today.

I do want to try and keep up my blog but it's probably going to be patchy for the next month.  So if my dear readers (all two of you) will be patient I'll try and occasionally write something worth waiting for.

A Moment of Reflection in the Midst of Chaos

I'm taking a very short break from everything I have to do today to pause and think about the implications of today, Friday the 18th of December.  This week the movers finally came and took away all the things we had put aside for shipping and when they were done our voices echoed around the suddenly empty space.  Since then I've been trying to get the apartment clean while packing up what we have left, going to work, and saying goodbye to friends.  Yesterday Holly Hughson came and helped with the cleaning - she scrubbed the stove and oven, bless her! Last night we went out for dinner at Armadillos, our favourite Mexican restaurant, for the last time.  Today is my last day at work and I have four hours to get all the last minute jobs done.  When I finish work at noon I have to go home, finish packing, clean the bathroom (bleh) and shampoo all the carpets (bleh bleh) before we can finally try to fit all our stuff into the car and head down to Mom & Dad's. 

So the upshot is that I think I'm going to be too busy today to really appreciate the fact that after two years, it's our last day in Angwin.  It's been an amazing couple of years and I'm hoping to write a post on what it's meant to me - but today is not the day.

The Long Goodbye

The past few days have been full of lunches and dinners to say goodbye to people here at PUC.  Saturday Bruce and Audrey had a crowd of people over to their house to say goodbye and many very nice things were said about us, particularly Evie's involvement in Drama and of course David's contributions as the Utt Professor.  I was very proud of both of them.

Sunday night I had dinner with Cherise at Boskos in Calistoga (fantastic roasted artichokes) and we sat and talked long after we had finished eating.  She's off on a mission trip to Zambia at the end of January so I'm looking forward to hearing how that goes.

Tuesday I had my 'goodbye lunch' for work - a little early so everyone could be there.  I decided we should go to Cindy's Backstreet Kitchen in St. Helena, since I'd really liked it the one time I'd been before.  I had excellent steak with garlic mashed potatoes and for dessert a lemon flavoured pudding with huckleberries.  I really got it for the berries, so now I can say I've had huckleberries.  Tuesday night we went to Armadillo's in St Helena (our favourite local Mexican restaurant) with Maria.

We don't have anything else scheduled for the next week but we've got several meals with people the weekend we are with my parents, before we head off to Australia.

It's just as well that people are feeding us because I've been so busy I forget to eat (and if you know me at all you know that's just not me - I never forget to eat).