Yesterday, as it was from dawn to dusk

 

Wednesday 3rd June, started as usual.Coffee by the fire, check emails, make porridge, and then print my words for Judith’s funeral

That was when it all went wrong, The wireless printer  didn’t show on my laptop, the jar of flowers tipped over and spilt water everywhere, and I worried about my ability to be able to  stand   and say some words.

Off to the optometrist, a scheduled appointment for new distance glasses, new frames, and a  document I need to have when I get my driving licence  before my 75th birthday in July.

Lots of “ Look up, look down, then to the left, now to the right” Can you read the bottom line? NO, Can you read the top, second and third lines, NO, only the top 2. Try this, is it any better? Not much… Now I want to do ONE more test, this is after drops, a sort of tiny piece  of paper waved over my eyes, so I had more drops, and more trying not to blink.How hard that is.

Now, I don’t want to worry you with anything else today,,,, but….

Well I believe in straight talking, is there something else wrong.. as this is after I was given the news I have the start of cataracts,  in both eyes.

Well, the space?? Somewhere??? isn’t as good as it should be, maybe the  beginning of really early glaucoma. I want to refer you to the Eye Clinic at Wanganui Hospital.More sophisticated equipment….. Hooray, There might be a wait, the usual few months, this isn’t urgent.If they decide you need something done, they laser a small hole??? Somewhere??? and seemingly this will work?? For all time? a short time?? I will wait and see, and try SOOOOO   hard   not to consult Dr Google!!! I was too stunned to ask more questions, but will do when I get the wonderful new glasses with superb frames next week.

Next, a  visit  to Dennis , Judith’s son, a few flowers, a card, some muffins for the freezer, a hug, some tears, and a smile.

Home, connect my laptop to Hugh’s printer and print the words.

Judith’s funeral service, a truly loving   family  event, lots of tears, some laughter,  a slide show with photos of Judith, her family, her children, her Mum, sisters and brothers, and words from her sister  Chrissy,  her son Frank, her daughter Diana,  and on behalf of her daughter Veronica who was not able to come, she is in hospital, and then  others were invited to speak. Why did I worry so much, I didn’t need to look at my words at all,apart from a prompt at the end.By this time my eyes were full of tears, and I couldn’t read at all, even if I needed to.

 

“”The ship leaves the harbour and sails over the horizon, gone from our sight, but others on the distant shore shout “Here she comes”.”

True friends are precious and rare, and memories of our friendship will be with me always.”

Later, total strangers came and thanked me for my words. I guess that made our friendship so much more special, to know that others appreciated what I said.

Home in a light drizzle, the fire still glowing, and then that magical moment of sunset.

Looking to the west

 

looking to the East, above   the house rooftop

Down the driveway, cherry tree leaves glow, and give a carpet on the ground.

 

Quotation of the day, from Stanley Horowitz

“ Winter is an etching, spring a watercolour,

summer an oil painting,

and autumn a mosaic of them all”

Greetings  from Jean

Wellington scenes on the second trip

 

We had another trip to Wellington on Tuesday, to the airport, Kaz flew home to Dunedin, then a little further south to the farm. A fine day, no wind, but still big swells from the south. Along Cobham Drive are some sculptures, and here are some, photos from Hugh or courtesy of the internet. I now know how difficult it is to take window photos!!!

Artist
Leon van den Eijkel and Hutt Valley engineer Allan Brown of Metallion Ltd.

"All the trees in my city had been cut down for heating so we children didn't know what a tree was. We had only black and white images of them. So we made urban trees from all sorts of wood, trips of cloth, broken pieces of glass and iron we found on the street."

Phil Dadson's Akau Tangi has been unveiled on Cobham Drive, taking its place alongside the four other pieces in the Meridian Wellington Wind Sculpture series: Pacific Grass, Tower of Light, Urban Forest and Zephyrometer.
His sculpture is made up of 10 painted steel poles topped with moving metal cones shaped like windsocks. The cones move with the wind and make sounds in certain wind directions.

Kon Dimopoulous Pacific Grass

Pacific Grass is a 13 metre high composite rod sculpture by Kon Dimopoulos located on the Traffic island at Cobham Dr and Calabar Rd in Mirimar.

"Pacific Grass is a celebration of movement. It is like a ballet in which 1550 different characters have their own part choreographed and moved by the wind.

"Like music in dance, wind is the critical element in this production, shaping and forming with its influence." - Kon Dimopoulos

Presented to the city in 2001, sponsored by Meridian Energy, and assisted by the Wellington City Council.

The Zephyrometer is a civic sculpture by Evans Bay, Wellington. It was made by Christchurch artist Phil Price and installed in 2003.^[1] It is a kinetic sculpture consisting of a concrete cylinder holding a 26m tall needle which sways to show wind direction and speed (Wellington is known to Kiwis as "Windy Wellington"). The needle consists of fiberglass exterior around a wooden framework. After being damaged by lightning on August 14, 2014, it was restored on May 13, 2015.

There was so little wind along this road, nothing waving, but nevertheless, all are wonderful, either static, or moving.My favourite is the “ Pacific Grass” the reeds rattle in the wind, so real.

Quotation of the day, author unknown

“ Go with the wind, or change your direction in life”

Greetings from Jean

Blogger Problems as we are in Wintertime mode.

There is a problem with Windows Live Writer and Blogger,

This is world wide.

 I have already tried to do one post here, clicked on something, and... it vanished!!! Photos take so long to load, have I been spoilt for too long with what I am used to?
Today was the official first day of winter. The Cherry Trees have glorious colours in their leaves, and most have fallen to the ground.

Meantime all is OK, Boris is doing so well, Ginger Boy has a thick winter coat, Lady Felicity is still in denial that a new feline person is living here!!!

 

Last week a very dear friend left this world forever. I miss her so,

 life is fragile, precious, and friendships are to be valued deeply.

 

Quotation of the day, from Abraham Lincoln, ( maybe)

" The problem with internet quotes is that you cannot always depend on their accuracy"

Greetings from Jean

The “AYES” are in the blue corner

 

Yes, to the wee fellow living with us forever. He has doubled his  weight, is toilet trained, and has a purr like a train engine. Cuddly, affectionate, spunky, and at night, if we let him stay  there,  ( which we don’t as he is way too small yet) …goes to sleep snuggled up on Hugh’s chest. Boris , where did you come from, the biggest mystery of all.

Yes,  we had a trip to Wellington yesterday.  A  328 km round trip.

Some views from the window, farmland near our home.

Kapiti Island, almost covered in mist and cloud

Wellington waterfront and buildings. Westpac Stadium, affectionately known locally as “ The Cake Tin” where major sports events are held , coming soon  are  the FIFA U20 World Cup matches, Elton John,  AC/DC,  and next year
The Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo” and for me, the last one is what I would really like to see. 

Te Papa, Museum of New Zealand

Currently showing Air New Zealand, 75 years of it’s history. Outside is  the  cockpit of a Boeing 737, you can climb inside , and  sit in the pilot’s seat .

On  30th April, 1940,  a flight from Auckland to Sydney marked the first scheduled air link between New Zealand and the rest of the world. I was born 3 months later.

 

Waiting at traffic lights

 

Next stop, Wellington Hospital, help desk in a prominent place, Hooray for that.

We were given a map, follow the “ Orange Line”, but there on the wall was an “ Orange Lion”, was this for the children, as the ward for them was along the same corridor? I think the link was totally lost on so many people!!

We duly arrived at the Orthopaedic  Clinic, waited, and had an assessment, well Hugh did. The oversized wheelchair took my eyes, and I couldn’t resist a final photo, as we made our way outside. All went well, and Hugh will be back there for the much needed, long time waited for, and so gratefully accepted spinal surgery in 4 months or so.

And all the boxes were ticked  correctly, so another “ Big Fat Yes”, I could cry!!

Thank you all so much from my heart for your words,prayers, thoughts and more, another friend has sent messages to the Universe regularly, and friends here in NZ are happy all have been answered.

Our daughters are overjoyed to think the end is in sight, at least the first part in being on the surgery waiting list.

A long day, left home at 8.15.am and home again  at  6. 05 p.m.

 

But the best of all, a wonderful contraption called a’”Knee Walker” , a patient had just had a leg cast taken off, and whizzed down past us to radiology.NO, I didn’t get a photo, Kaz and Hugh were way ahead and almost ready to go without me. But this is what it looks like. A whizz for fast mobility, I am sure he could go a mile a minute!!!

Photo courtesy of the internet

Quotation of the day, from Thomas Goodwin

Those blessings are sweetest that are won with prayer and worn with thanks.”

Greetings from Jean

Plunket Update on “Boris”

The little ginger chap is thriving, Hugh has named him “Boris” but I have always associated this with a burly, maybe Russian giant of a man. In Slavic, the meaning of this name is “Warrior” and maybe it  does suit him, as he must be the ultimate survivor, arriving late at night, from somewhere??   Nevertheless, he is doing well. He sits in the plastic bowl on the scales, waiting for a feed, when he gets his daily “weigh-in” ….
See below, did I say Sleep Deprivation rules my life??
Weight Chart for Boris, May 2015

Monday	11thMay	670gm
Tuesday	12thMay	730gm
Wednesday	13thMay	820gm
Thursday	14thMay	850gm
Friday	15thMay	875gm
Saturday	16thMay	905gm
Sunday	17th May	975gm
Monday	18thMay	980gm

Waiting for a game

Lip licking in anticipation for breakfast, second sitting, as he has already had one meal at 4.15 a.m.

( Did I mention BROKEN SLEEP???)

The bobbles on Joyce’s pink slippers were passed by in favour of the little box.
                       I really like to have first go at the crosswords?

He is almost toilet trained!!! Hooray!!!
Now all we have to do is wait for the vet clinic to find his new home, even though Hugh really, really, wants to keep him. I have too much else going on to keep him,much as I would like to as well.
Now all we need to do to finish his story is find where he came from, no-one nearby has a cat with kittens, no-one has listed him as missing, a mystery of huge proportions!!!

Quotation of the day, from Boris Pasternak

“ Surprise is the greatest gift which life can grant us”

Greetings from Jean

The Tiniest Gift, arriving from where???

 

First of all, so many heartfelt thanks for all your caring loving words and messages. The final opinion, when I looked at the typed discharge form, was “ Muscular-skeletal” , so maybe a strain of some kind. No more moving furniture for some time!!! A warning to all who might be in the “senior-age” category, take life slowly, savour every day that is good, and be so thankful for friends and family who love, and care so much.

Mother’s Day, a quiet day at home, a beautiful pot of scented hyacinth from Joyce, as she said “ You are the Mum in this home”. A gift to be enjoyed for many years, as they will bloom again and again.

Dinner was finished, I was updating some paper work, and heard this tiny “MEOW”, thinking it was  on TV, ignored it. There it was again. I turned on the outdoor light, and right on the step, the tiniest ginger kitten, walking round in circles, tail wagging. Picked him up, showed Hugh, and went to take him into Joyce.

“Close your eyes”, she did, I placed him in her hands. “Oh MY, where did he come from?”  He is a mystery, no other cats round, no other little kittens, no lost ones reported locally on Monday a.m. He is feisty, hungry, and the ultimate in purring.

So affectionate, and maybe 6 weeks old!!! What do we do, Hugh would like to keep him, Joyce too, I would, but am practical, maybe a little sad,( amended to hugely so)  but we already have Felicity ( who  growled and spat at the sight of him) and Ginger Boy, and the local Vet Clinic think they have a home for him. After 2 days, how much of your heart can this wee fellow take over??

Quotation of the day from Leonardo da Vinci

“The smallest feline is a masterpiece”

Greetings from Jean

Autumn Colours Galore

 

We have autumn here, not really cold in the mornings, but cooler than several weeks ago.The leaves are falling, summer flowers are still blooming, and Ginger Boy has a thick winter coat and sleeps inside most nights.

Brunsvigia Josephinae, glorious, with so many flower heads on one tall stem. I have 4 bulbs, and treasure them so much, given to  me from a very dear friend some years ago.

The Red, and the pink Alstromerias have had a second spurt of blooming.

Down the driveway, the Cherry trees are losing their leaves fast, and glorious colours, I could see a quilt design right there somewhere.

 

 

Life continues …each day, slowly and steadily, as surely as sunrise and sunset… we are off to Wellington on 20th May for Hugh’s appointment with the specialist at the Spinal Clinic. After waiting so long, I hope for a miracle, they do happen, maybe it will be his turn.

This week, I needed a short holiday. A  private room, with full room service, warm blankets on arrival, and everything a girl needed. PUO, and BIBA, the usual acronyms for “pain of unknown origin” and “Brought in by Ambulance”. Severe pain, unable to walk, even with Hugh’s spare crutches, so a few hours rest , ( I was in the plaster room , were they already thinking of something serious?!!!)..pain meds, an X-Ray to rule out a pelvic fracture!!! They could not  diagnose any particular thing that contributed, so if I could totter to the bathroom, and get on and off  the bed when I tottered back, I could go home, Well, I did say to myself, very quietly… 4 hours rest is better than none at all. the pain has almost gone, and I am taking each day VERY slowly. Friends have phoned, and offered any and every help imaginable , Joyce and  Hugh have taken up the reins for a few days.       All is well.

Quotation of the day, author unknown

“It’s the friends we meet along life’s road who help us appreciate the journey”

Greetings from Jean