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Friday 6 September 2019
NEWS FROM THE ISLAND
TODAY IS THE DAY when the latest litter of kittens have been put up on for sale. Thought you may like to meet them. Enjoy.
Sunday 4 August 2019
NEWS FROM THE ISLAND - 5TH AUGUST 2019
THOSE LAST 3 MONTHS WERE NOT as I planned it. I expected the litter of kittens would all have gone to their new homes by late-May which they were, except for one that I kept to replace her now spayed Siamese Mum. Then there was the older dog to spay, plus the grand-twins year old birthday party to attend in June. I was making plans in the meanwhile checking out a possible house sitter so I could go and visit a friend, who now lives in New Plymouth, in late June while I had a gap of free time before I would be confined by a new litter of kittens due to arrive at the end of July.
Within a week of the birthday party though I was flattened by a flu I don't want to ever repeat, and even managed to give it to my pregnant cat ( don't put your lovely warm cat on your lap to cheer yourself up and then proceed to cough all over them). 4 weeks later the flu was basically over and though still feeling a bit shattered I was back in the world again and the house was first in line to get straightened out, but that afternoon I ran to answer the phone and broke a couple of middle toes on the way. Back to I'm not going anywhere.
Yes, I'm getting to the part why these two photographs go with this post.
By the 28th July things had changed. I now had 5 beautiful new kittens. The kitten I had held back to breed with, decided she would be the only animal in a household and would fight anyone who said different, got a her wish and now has a new home. She has been replaced with a young chocolate point Tonkinese kitten I brought up from the South Island. And the manuscript of my latest poetry book? That is also finished and with a New Zealand publisher,
New kittens take a while to not only be trained, but for them to train me. Anything and everything will be played with and I found when I went to use my microphone that its thin wire had been chewed through in multiple places. How many times have I brought out this handy woman's tool pouch ( daughter Anita gave this to me over 30 years ago ) to successfully save the day? After much fiddling and having to start all over again the microphone is now repaired and back in working order.
You are sure to see new kitten pictures in the near future.
Within a week of the birthday party though I was flattened by a flu I don't want to ever repeat, and even managed to give it to my pregnant cat ( don't put your lovely warm cat on your lap to cheer yourself up and then proceed to cough all over them). 4 weeks later the flu was basically over and though still feeling a bit shattered I was back in the world again and the house was first in line to get straightened out, but that afternoon I ran to answer the phone and broke a couple of middle toes on the way. Back to I'm not going anywhere. Yes, I'm getting to the part why these two photographs go with this post.
By the 28th July things had changed. I now had 5 beautiful new kittens. The kitten I had held back to breed with, decided she would be the only animal in a household and would fight anyone who said different, got a her wish and now has a new home. She has been replaced with a young chocolate point Tonkinese kitten I brought up from the South Island. And the manuscript of my latest poetry book? That is also finished and with a New Zealand publisher,
New kittens take a while to not only be trained, but for them to train me. Anything and everything will be played with and I found when I went to use my microphone that its thin wire had been chewed through in multiple places. How many times have I brought out this handy woman's tool pouch ( daughter Anita gave this to me over 30 years ago ) to successfully save the day? After much fiddling and having to start all over again the microphone is now repaired and back in working order.
You are sure to see new kitten pictures in the near future.
Tuesday 2 April 2019
NEWS FROM THE ISLAND - April 2019
A WET DAY IN APRIL and the mind returns back to the kitchen, for I feel cold and I am wanting something yummy to eat.
For my birthday daughter Kay sent over a box of mixed groceries and fruit - what a welcome gift because it includes things I pass on as being an unneeded luxury. Not much now left - a few apples and a red pumpkin-type vegetable. Time to transform them into dinner.
Counting calories, I thought at first pumpkin soup followed by stewed apples, but it seemed a shame to not elevate the ingredients into something rather special. ( also it took forever to cut just a slice out of the pumpkin as wrists not strong enough to really attack it - scoring and re-scoring until finally I could break through ). Into the hollowed out space went salt, black pepper, a good knob of margarine instead of butter, a little bit of water instead of white wine, piece of garlic, piece of root ginger, a little cinnamon and then popped back the wedge I had cut out and into the oven to bake. Zilch to no calories according to Weightwatchers so it had to be decadent Apple Crumble to follow! Think Americans call it Brown Betty instead?
That is what I call a perfect wet day in April dinner, and easy to take off the little bit of burnt edge to the Apple Crumble.
For my birthday daughter Kay sent over a box of mixed groceries and fruit - what a welcome gift because it includes things I pass on as being an unneeded luxury. Not much now left - a few apples and a red pumpkin-type vegetable. Time to transform them into dinner.
Counting calories, I thought at first pumpkin soup followed by stewed apples, but it seemed a shame to not elevate the ingredients into something rather special. ( also it took forever to cut just a slice out of the pumpkin as wrists not strong enough to really attack it - scoring and re-scoring until finally I could break through ). Into the hollowed out space went salt, black pepper, a good knob of margarine instead of butter, a little bit of water instead of white wine, piece of garlic, piece of root ginger, a little cinnamon and then popped back the wedge I had cut out and into the oven to bake. Zilch to no calories according to Weightwatchers so it had to be decadent Apple Crumble to follow! Think Americans call it Brown Betty instead?
That is what I call a perfect wet day in April dinner, and easy to take off the little bit of burnt edge to the Apple Crumble.
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| pumpkin ready to add ingrdients |
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| Apple Crumble has desicated coconut this time added to topping. |
Wednesday 30 January 2019
NEWS FROM THE ISLAND - last day of January
SUDDENLY ALL IS STILL - the kittens as of last Saturday, after 3 months of being my top priority, are now all grown and as of last Saturday, have new hands to clean, feed, hold, pat and love them and my little house is very, very quiet; it is mid-summer and HOT. The lawns wait to be mowed, but they are going to have wait longer for a cooler day and some motivation from me.. The last hedge to finish cutting has a paper wasp nest deep in it somewhere and I have already been stung as a warning to back-off ( by the way straight cloudy ammonia for wasp stings , vinegar for bee strings, neat bleach ( Janola) for white-tail spider bites). Otherwise all the things I have promised to do are now done and it's time for me to think of summer and what to do with all my freedom - as a start I've read 3 books already - lol.
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| today is a cooler day. |
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| Kittens have now gone to new homes |
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| The mumma cats choose outside on the deck |
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| The dog chose the fan |
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| The monarch butterfly caterpillars I'm raising just keep on chewing |
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