The Little Things

In general this will be a positive post : just one little bad thing today. My keyboard got its knickers in a knot, and so I am having to write this by hand with my Surface pen and l am not used to this old fashioned technique........But Mac and Simon have found me a keyboard now and although it is awkward, it is better than writing by hand.

   This morning I got my jobs done earlier than most mornings in this first week of lock down, because I had a coffee date with my Raglan Maties. I needed a bit of uplifting after a night of little sleep. I collected small joys with my camera and feathers in my pocket.

The chooks have almost finished moulting, but the ducks are still going strong.

An autumn nashi leaf.

A Lisbon lemon - only a couple left, but I still have enough Meyer lemons to keep us going.

Sun shining through Liquid Amber leaves.

Then it was down to the mailbox to leave another bucketful of apples for neighbours to help themselves to, and I found two pheasant feathers on the way - I guess they too are moulting.

Today's collection:

                               

It was lovely to spend time chatting with my friends. How lucky we are to have the technology to do this at such a time.

In the afternoon I sowed peas in my newly cleared garden, and put my tatty old flag up to deter birds from stealing the seed. The flag is quite shredded: I shall make another soon.

This afternoon I packed up the kumera which have been drying in the sun to harden their skins for storing.Usually I store them in sawdust, and once before, in newspaper, but I have neither, and am not allowed to go get any. So I raided my craft room, and wrapped them in tissue paper and dressmaking patterns!

This evening I again met the Countdown truck at the corner of Te Mata Road and SH23, but sadly it will be the last time for a few months, as they are restricting deliveries to those more at risk than us - if only Mac was five months older we would qualify. Lordie, I hope this thing isn't still happening in five months time, but I fear I will still be avoiding supermarkets even then. In the meantime we will shop at Raglan 4 Square, and I will learn to do without my gluten-free treats. A Waikato Civil Defence car stopped to see what I was doing, which I thought was fairly obvious, as the truck driver was putting food bags in my boot while I stood at a distance, but glad they are out patrolling all the same. I also got to have a loud and distant conversation with my neighbour as he cleared rats from traps from behind the community rubbish skip. We could hear more rats squeaking and scrabbling in the skip, so no dumpster diving for either of us! But it was so nice to see and speak to someone I know in real, if distant, life.

To finish the day off nicely, I watched my usual Friday night talk from Liz Constable at Book Arts Studio: https://www.facebook.com/139173826115266/videos/616073642573457