Raindrops on Roses and Whiskers on Kittens

RAINDROPS ON ROSES

I thought of that song as I went outside this morning and noticed some beautiful blooms on our "Peace" rose.  Yes, we had just on an inch of rain yesterday and last night.  Glorious, steady rain.  Just what was ordered.

WHISKERS ON KITTENS

OK, he may be twelve years old, and everyone comments on what a big boy his is, but my Joey is still my little kitten.  His whiskers are lovely and long.

These are definitely a few of my favourite things.

We live in such a topsy, turvy world at the moment and it is nice to be reminded of the simple things in life that bring us joy.

I don't want to focus on the coronavirus COVID-19 pandemic, but still want to record about it here, as it is a part of our current life.

We are not in lock down.....yet....but many businesses and all social gatherings have been shut down.  My work is still operating, but I wouldn't be surprised if that goes to all of us working from home soon.  As I only work for three days a week, we can lie low for the rest of the time, other than doing the groceries.

This time of year is one of the busiest.  The weather is usually rather pleasant, everyone has settled down after the start of the year, so lots of events take place.  We had things planned for just about every weekend for the next couple of months.  Sadly, they have all been cancelled.  Fortunately, unlike so many, we have not had to cancel any travel bookings......yet.  We do have one for October, so fingers crossed, that still may happen.  We'll see.

Fortunately, also, I do enjoy being at home, when I actually stay there.  Hopefully there will be more stitching taking place and I still haven't read the book I want to this month.  Now I will have time to do that.

Mum's nursing home, like all others, is in lock down.  She & I decided I wouldn't take her to town last Thursday, and when we popped up to see her, were advised that from last Friday there would be no visits except for compassionate reasons.  She is fine with that and we just chat on the phone.

I visited the hairdresser last Friday to remove the silver sparkle and am glad I did then, as now hairdressers can only have a client in their salon for no more than half an hour.  I'm not sure how much longer they will be able to stay open at all.

The panic buying in supermarkets has been crazy.  Coincidentally, we had topped up on loo paper and liquid soap refills just before the panic buying.  So far, we have been able to purchase anything we have needed.  I normally keep a well stocked pantry most of the time anyway.  I've just made sure that it is kept topped up.  The one thing we would run out of if we were to self-isolate for two weeks would be milk, so I have enough long life milk in the cupboard now to cover that length of time. Having said that, we are a household of two.  It would be so much harder for large households or for rural families that only travel to the supermarket once a fortnight or month.

In the meantime, away from the constant barrage of news reports, people seem to be looking for positives and things to be grateful for, which is encouraging.  Here are a few of the things that I have found:

The autumn trees are starting to change colour.  I took this photo as we went for a walk last week. The evening was a lovely balmy one.  It won't be long until daylight saving finishes, so it's good to make the most of the evenings while we can.

We've been collecting plastic giveaway toys from the supermarket for our little next door neighbour.  She and her mum came to our front door with two beautiful cupcakes as a thank you.  Isn't that so sweet.  They were delicious. I had to bring out our two flower plates to serve them on.

A stunning sunset.  Despite the reduction in flights, there were still lots of vapour trails.

Who needs to eat out for breakfast.  Homemade pancakes, berries, yoghurt and maple syrup on the back verandah.  You can't get better than that.

Our dahlias are blooming nicely, now that we are experiencing some better weather.

As is our bottle brush. I love the peachy colour of this one.

We are grateful for our rainwater tanks, which are just about full, after last night's rain.

We are finally getting loads of beans.  Many meals worth have been frozen for use throughout the year.

Our recently planted rainbow chard is already providing some small leaves to use. One of the few veges that we can use through the winter. The basil in the background is going nicely too.

Our first few raspberries.  We didn't think we would get any.  There are quite a few coming on, but they are much later than last year.

More preserves have been made.  This time tomato sauce from my Grandma's recipe.

So, despite all the doom and gloom, we can still find loads of good things in this world.

I hope you are keeping safe and well and are hunkering down.

Hopefully, with everyone's cooperation, life can return to our old normal sooner rather than later.  In the meantime, we'll just do whatever it takes to make the world safe again.