Another Busy Week

We had an interesting week, really. It was deadly in relation to lots and lots and lots of work but we did have a few nice social occasions. I finally had to resort to writing The MOTH a list of jobs the length of his arm to do this weekend simply to get everything done. Oh gosh, I felt so guilty. Nevertheless, the jobs are done. The house is clean from stem to stern & the yard mown - we live in a veritable House and Garden home tonight.

So what social events did we get involved in? Like all days on the calendar, we took Lucy & Harry to the local park for a run and a 'hello' to the usual suspects. It's amazing how many people we know through the dogs! On Thursday, we went with friends to the Sidney Nolan exhibition at the Qld Art Gallery. I liked his use of colour, but found some of his Australian work rather childlike in execution.

Then on Saturday evening, would you believe that The MOTH & I had dinner with my ex-husband's parents? I kid you not. We did. I haven't seen Bill & June for a while, so it was lovely to catch up again over a nice dinner. The crown princess and her consort cooked. The crown prince and his consort arrived just in time to eat. A great time was had by all.

So what's happening this week? For The MOTH, it's a week-long trip to Sydney (he leaves first thing tomorrow morning), and, for me, it's the usual exercise routines around dogs and working out each day, work on Monday ^ Tuesday and study - again. Plus, we are also celebrating the Crown Princess's consort's 30th birthday (gosh, 30 already? Wow!). He's a lovely man. Hopefully, I will catch up with his mother for lunch on Thursday as she's in town from Toowoomba for the week.

Have a good week, one and all.

Bliss

Popping in to say 'Hi'

I'm not doing any stitching at all nor collecting any new stash, as you know, but the good news to tell the world is that Chatelaine designs has finally re-released the Medieval Town Mandala pattern. This means that some time in the next week I'm going to buy me a copy. I've wanted it for such a very long time.

Other news: My version of the Lizzie Kate Living with Charm is in being framed. At first, I started with the country look white frame, but it sucked. Next, The MOTH and I tried a brown and gold frame. I'll take a pic and show it off when it's finished.

Life's still over-busy, but it's fun.

Happy stitching to one and all.

Bliss

P.S. (Tuesday evening) Snowmen are on sale at 123Stitch!

Comeuppance

Yes, right! I got what I deserved this week. I thought wanted to rule the world, so what did I get? Stomach flu. LOL.

Stomach flu (when you are febrile and vomitting for three days) is not fun. It brought me down to earth, anyway. It's brought me back to my reality which is back to the grind of working in the shop on Mondays and Tuesdays and doing my studies on the side while The MOTH travels Australia (and sometimes the world) with his company.

Drink a glass of tap water for me, will you? I need it, but it's gonna take a while to get back to full strength guzzling on my part. Such is life, huh?

Somehow or other, it didn't dampen my spirits. I'll be scrying for that solar-system to influence again next week. It's probably gonna take some divine intervention, but what the heck.

Meanwhile, tomorrow is Fathers' Day here in Australia. My father died in 2002, so I have only lovely memories of him to celebrate, but to all you dads out there, have a happy day. To all you off-spring, spoil you dad. He's worth it! The MOTH popped into Laurieton, NSW, to visit his parents this week for a day and a half (while I crawled into my batcave - er, sickbed).

Paul Harvey (google him, he's quoted often on many URLs) wrote the following sermon. It's kind of sweet.

What are Fathers Made Of?
A father is a thing that is forced to endure childbirth without an anesthetic.
A father is a thing that growls when it feels good--and laughts very loud when it's scared half to death.
A father never feels entirely worthy of the worship in a child's eyes.
He's never quite the hero his daughter thinks, never quite the man his son believes him to be--and this worries him, sometimes.

So he works too hard to try and smooth the rough places in the road for those of his own who will follow him.
A father is a thing that gets very angry when the first school grades aren't as good as he thinks they should be.
He scolds his son though he knows it's the teacher's fault.
Fathers are what give daughters away to other men who aren't nearly good enough so they can have grandchildren who are smarter than anybody's .
Fathers make bets with insurance companies about who'll live the longest.
Though they know the odds, they keep right on betting.
And one day they lose.
I don't know where fathers go when they die.
But I've an idea that after a good rest, wherever it is, he won't be happy unless there's work to do.

He won't just sit on a cloud and wait for the girl he's loved and the children she bore. He'll be busy there, too, repairing the stairs, oiling the gates, improving the streets, smoothing the way.

And here's another one that I liked:

What Dads are made of

God took the strength of a mountain,
The majesty of a tree,
The warmth of the summer sun,
The calm of the peaceful sea;

The generous soul of nature,
The comforting arm of night,
The wisdom of the ages,
The power of the eagle's flight;

The joy of a morning in spring,
The faith of a mustard seed,
The patience of eternity,
The depth of a family's need;

Then God combined these qualities,
and when there was nothing more to add,
He knew His masterpiece was complete,
And so, He called it

Dad


author unknown

Happiness & laughter always,

Bliss

Fathers Day 2008

Father's Day is a celebration inaugurated in the early twentieth century to complement Mother's Day in celebrating fatherhood and male parenting, and to honour and commemorate fathers and forefathers. Father's Day is celebrated on a variety of dates worldwide and typically involves gift-giving, and special dinners to fathers and family-oriented activities.

Sadly, my own dad died in 2002, so I have no father to spoil today. Fortunately, my kids do a wonderful job for their own father. This year they bought him a computer so that he can get online and be in more regular contact (not that I'm sure that that is going to work).

I'm one of the lucky ones. I had three lovely men who were male role models in my early life: a fabulous, slightly eccentric (some would say 'very eccentric') father and two lovely grandfathers.

Today, I'm cooking The MOTH a special dinner for his day. Paul's both a wonderful son and a wonderful father. He took Friday off and travelled the 600km south to spend Thursday evening, Friday and part of Saturday with his own elderly dad. He's disappointed that his boys have let the day slip under the radar again.

Never too old

Wanted: Solar System to dictate

To accomplish great things, we must not only act, but also dream;
not only plan, but also believe.

Recently, I went to see a careers psychologist for a couple of sessions. I'm not overly fond of teaching high school kids and would like a change.

The outcome is that I need a solar system to dictate. My strengths are telling people what to do, it seems. Er ... setting goals, working out how to do them and then telling others to do them (the royal family - my off-spring - can relate to that). I'm very strongly analytical etc, but can't be bothered wasting time on persuasive techniques - no wonder I don't like teaching high schoolers. I have high expectations of the students which they don't have for themselves. It's also why I found nursing so frustrating at times (everyone telling me what to do but never wanting to listen to any observations I had made). I hated seeing people die who, if someone had listened early enough, could have been saved. It happened too many times.

Quite seriously, the psychologist said to start a post grad in medicine. With my personality, half the fun of it will be getting the qualification so it won't matter that I'll only practice for about 20 years. I'd love to be a surgeon. Gotta get in the stitching somewhere if I'm not working on my projects.

I'd also make a whiz bang systems engineer-slash-industrial psychologist. Yes, I can imagine me trouble shooting and working out how to fix stuff.

It's nice to know that all that study I'm doing at the moment isn't a waste; however, if I really want to be a librarian (I'm studying IT & info management), it will have to be one who is organising large acquisitions and collection takeovers cos the day to day minutia would become too repetitive.

Dreams pass into the reality of action. From the actions stems the dream again; and this interdependence produces the highest form of living.