Happy Australia Day!

[MelissaD]

Wishing all my friends "down under" a happy holiday :)

[Trish Brown]

MelissaD wrote:
> Wishing all my friends "down under" a happy holiday :)
>

Thanks, Melissa! I'm hoping to quilt like a demon today (got a few
projects that need finishing).

--
Trish Brown {|:-}

Newcastle, NSW, Australia

[Mike Burke]

On Sat, 26 Jan 2013 06:15:13 +1100, Trish Brown
<pmcb...@internode.on.net> wrote:

>MelissaD wrote:
>> Wishing all my friends "down under" a happy holiday :)
>>
>
>Thanks, Melissa! I'm hoping to quilt like a demon today (got a few
>projects that need finishing).

Wot Trish said, Melissa, but minus the quilting. Six year-old
grandson is doing the demon bit in our house. :-)

Mique

[Johnno]

Quiet Australia Day in Brisbane, as it's raining, and there are floods all up the coast of the state. I'm working on finishing a scarf for Gordon Kerry (Oz composer). I've already made a blankie for Gordon's dog, so I can hardly leave Gordon out. I hope I'll have the scarf done in a week or so, then I need to start on a blankie for my sister's new puppy.

Best wishes to all!

John

[Trish Brown]

Our weather's been all over the place today. I hung out a load of
washing into hot, dry wind and then (owing to incumbency in the dunny)
missed the chance to bring it in before a heavy afternoon storm. Buggerit!

Oooo! More information please, Johnno! I haven't heard Gordon Kerry's
music (where can I?). What kind of dog does he have? What kind of puppy
does your sister have?

While I'm on alt. beenz, I must tell you the conclusion of the boring
story about the fish (which were hunted by our recalcitrant cats, Seamus
and Genevieve).

If you recall, there were two occasions on which these wicked kittens
brought home fishes belonging to our up-the-road neighbour, Johnno.
(Different Johnno, obviously). On the second occasion, I managed to give
the misfortunate fish CPR and got it floating again. Thus, I was able to
send it back to Johnno in an ice-cream container of antibiotic-laced
water. I thought I'd done my neighbourly duty, along with offering to
replace the poor, defunct first fish.

No. This was not the case.

Yesterday, DH and I were guilelessly shopping in our LQS when Johnno's
missus (Vicki) came in. She was a bit chilly and at first I wondered
why. Suddenly, the fish occurred to me and I said 'Oh Vicki, I'm so
terribly sorry about the fish! Will you be putting more in your pond and
can I help with the re-stocking?'

'No,' said Vicki, 'that won't be necessary. We've decided not to bother
any more after losing so many fish'. And she turned away, clearly a bit
peeved about something!

'But Vicki!' I persisted 'I'll happily replace the fish for you. Did the
second one not survive? I'll replace that too if you like...'

'Hnf!' snorted Vicki, 'Your cats ate twenty six of my fish' and she
shot out the door, heading toward home.

OMG!!! I was *so* horrified, I think I could've shrunk into a hole in
the floor! I looked, aghast, at Hunn who was also bemused at Vicki's
displeasure.

'Oh piffle!' said a voice from behind the mixed gingham, 'That lady
deserves what she gets! If her dog pees one more time on my shop
doorstep, I'm going to dob her in to the police. Last week, it even did
number twos, right here in the doorway and she just walked off laughing.
Don't you worry about her stupid fish: what goes around comes around'.

I felt a bit better after that. Only a bit, though.

[Johnno]

Hi Trish and All!

Australia Day public holiday today, but it's still windy and rainy here in Brisbane. I can't complain, as so many people have been flooded, or have suffered other troubles. It's amazing how Bundaberg got six small tornadoes a couple of days ago.

Anyway - Gordon Kerry would have to be described as a modernist composer. Actually he's been featuring a few times on ABCFM over the past week or so, Trish, so I dare say some at least of his stuff would be available from their archived programs. He was the featured composer for 2012 with Musica Viva, so that's how I got to meet him a few times, and we've struck up a friendship, in a small way. Gordon lives out in the country in north-east Victoria, and his little Jack Russell was bitten by a snake while they were out walking a couple of months ago. Poor little Hector had to spend a couple of days at the vet on an antivenom drip, but he gradually got better, even though he struggled with some neurological problems for a while. I thought I'd do something nice for Hector, so I crocheted him a blankie for his bed, and apparently he loved it. Now I'm doing a scarf for Gordon - in red, according to his wish. I think it should be finished in another week or so, and it will look very nice. It will be very much a scarf for cold weather, as they're not that far from the snow.

(Hector's blankie was done in Bernat Super Value, for hard wear, in the Faded Denim colour, even though I doubt that he would have been too concerned about the colour. Gordon's scarf is in Debbie Bliss Luxury Aran Tweed, which is a touch more pricey than the Super Value. Ahemm...)

I hope all reader are having a lovely day.

John

[Johnno]

Talking of Gordon Kerry - just a few minutes ago I got an email from him, hoping that we're OK. What a lovely man. Where they live is still hot and dry and threatened by bushfires. That's Oz for you.

John

[Johnno]

And talking of emails - I got a 'stay safe and dry' message from Stephen Hough yesterday, just before he was due to step onto the stage in Boston to play the Liszt Concerto #1 with the Boston SO. Now there's another lovely man, and a dear friend.

John

[Trish Brown]

Good grief! Here am I, thinking all the rain's falling on Bundaberg and
the Lockyer Valley without realising that Brissy's in the firing line as
well. Put that down to my not watching much TV.

So, how are you situated regarding the flooding, Johnno? I had an email
from my cousin last night - she lives in a place called Jacob's Well and
had to leave owing to lack of power and imminent flooding. My knowledge
of Brisbane is a bit sketchy, since the last time I was there I was only
seventeen and on a national YCS conference.

I hope you're safe and dry and not worried at all - it must be perfectly
dreadful, watching the reports of other Queenslanders being so
tragically affected. Look after yourself, won't you?

I will certainly look up Gordon Kerry, now that I have a loose
connection to him! I've already heard Stephen Hough playing my favourite
Rach 2 and he's *amazing*!

I had no idea you were a crocheter. I think it's wonderful of you to do
a blankie for poor Hector - I bet he found great comfort in it. What
sorts of things do you like making? I find I most enjoy crocheting in
fine cotton and I had a veritable orgy of Irish crochet a couple of
years ago. Remember: I made a lovely Irish crochet lace bonnet for my
DSGD, only to find out it looked like a tea cosy. Oh well. I do enjoy
making the lace...

It's piddling down rain here ATM and we've had a plethora of frogs come
visiting last night and this morning. I think the rain is washing them
out of their hiding places. Or something. Anyway, it's all I can do to
keep them safe from the blasted cats, who insist on having rare Rack of
Frog for their tea.

!!!!

[Johnno]

Trish, I wouldn't describe myself as a crocheter. It's just that at Mum's place I couldn't help noticing all the lovely crocheted afghans there were, and I got the mad idea that I'd like to make one for Mum, so I went to a weekend class at a yarn shop and learnt how to make a granny square. The afghan I made for Mum turned out so well that I thought I'd continue, but I'm still very much at beginner standard. The one I made for Hector was a neverending granny square, which just required a slightly different start, and then you keep going. It's still square but really it's a spiral.

The scarf I'm doing for Gordon is also in crochet, but a bit different. You do a row of (US) doubles plus chains, then you go back over the loops you've just made with clusters. There's a bit more work to it than with a granny square, but it will look good.

Must tell you about the new puppy. My sister (and husband) had to take their Lhasa Apso for her final vet visit a couple of weeks ago. She was 18 years old (the dog, that is) so they were devastated. She was their second Apso, and they're especially attached to this breed. Anyway, they went searching for a new puppy (had to be a gold female, for heaven's sake) and I got a call from my sister to say there was a breeder in Brisbane who turned out to have a 10-week-old gold female when a sale fell through. Well I had a look and you've never seen such a beautiful puppy, so they've bought her and the breeder will ship her to Adelaide hopefully on Wednesday, as long as it's not too windy for smooth flights. The breeder doesn't want the puppy upset by a bumpy plane trip.

My sister's Apsos are always Heidi plus another name, so this little one will be Heidi Rose. Now there actually is such a thing as a rose called Heidi, and it's a very nice pink, so of course I've bought pink and green yarns this morning for the new blankie. Don't say it - I know I'm bloody mad.

As for the Brisbane weather, there are parts getting flooded, but it's nowhere near as bad as 2011. That's no comfort for those who get their houses flooded yet again, however. I think the bad weather will diminish over the next 24 hours or so. A while ago there was even some blue sky fighting to peek through.

And I'm glad you like Stephen's Rachmaninov recordings. Was it the CD or on radio? I love his Tchaikovsky concertos too, and he's just rerecorded (after 24 years) the Brahms concertos in Salzburg. I know I'm a bit partial, as he's such a lovely friend, but I don't think there's another pianist on the stage today with the same combination of technique and artistry. His recital here about 18 months ago was I think the greatest musical experience of my life, which was followed afterwards by dinner where he was his usual naughty self.

John

[Trish Brown]

Johnno wrote:
> Trish, I wouldn't describe myself as a crocheter. It's just that at
> Mum's place I couldn't help noticing all the lovely crocheted afghans
> there were, and I got the mad idea that I'd like to make one for Mum,
> so I went to a weekend class at a yarn shop and learnt how to make a
> granny square. The afghan I made for Mum turned out so well that I
> thought I'd continue, but I'm still very much at beginner standard.
> The one I made for Hector was a neverending granny square, which just
> required a slightly different start, and then you keep going. It's
> still square but really it's a spiral.

Aha! Well, then, let me send you here:

http://www.antiquepatternlibrary.org/html/warm/priscil.htm

If you scroll through the zillions of publications, you'll come to the
Priscilla books of Irish Crochet. Just have a leetle look. The patterns
are really pretty easy: just single, double, treble with chains and
things to interweave the stitches. I reckon you might quite enjoy this
sort of thing (being a ply-splitter and all...)

I *love* working with cotton. I find it feels so much nicer in my hands
and the stitches are so much easier to make without the 'fuzz' of wool.
Have a go with a bit of leftover perle cotton in a number 8 or 12. You
could consider making a cotton jumper for yourself. It'd be quite useful
in Brissy, which never really gets cold.

>
> The scarf I'm doing for Gordon is also in crochet, but a bit
> different. You do a row of (US) doubles plus chains, then you go
> back over the loops you've just made with clusters. There's a bit
> more work to it than with a granny square, but it will look good.

Yes! There are other interesting granny square patterns out there too.
Most of learned to crochet with scraps of wool, but you can get some
*really* gorgeous effects when you plan the colours in your squares.
Also, some of the more modern patterns (such as bobble stitch - google
it, it's easy) are very attractive! My best mate, Muso, is a knitter and
he has made some exquisite lace things for his wife and daughter. Sadly,
knitting doesn't 'do' it for me the way crochet does. I can knit, but I
prefer not to. Matt is our family knitter - he has knat zillions of toys
and puppets and things and his knitting is really, really good. Sadly,
he just can't bring himself to knit clothing. Dunno why... But I have
bought him lots of sock wool and nice 14ply wool and he just turns it
into scarves. LOL! (We call them 'long, useless strips of knitting'
because they're usually about eight feet long before he gets bored with
knitting them).

>
> Must tell you about the new puppy. My sister (and husband) had to
> take their Lhasa Apso for her final vet visit a couple of weeks ago.
> She was 18 years old (the dog, that is) so they were devastated. She
> was their second Apso, and they're especially attached to this breed.
> Anyway, they went searching for a new puppy (had to be a gold female,
> for heaven's sake) and I got a call from my sister to say there was a
> breeder in Brisbane who turned out to have a 10-week-old gold female
> when a sale fell through. Well I had a look and you've never seen
> such a beautiful puppy, so they've bought her and the breeder will
> ship her to Adelaide hopefully on Wednesday, as long as it's not too
> windy for smooth flights. The breeder doesn't want the puppy upset
> by a bumpy plane trip.
>
> My sister's Apsos are always Heidi plus another name, so this little
> one will be Heidi Rose. Now there actually is such a thing as a rose
> called Heidi, and it's a very nice pink, so of course I've bought
> pink and green yarns this morning for the new blankie. Don't say it
> - I know I'm bloody mad.

Sorry to hear about the poor old dog. It's always a wrench to lose a
family member like that! But *how* exciting to get a new puppy! I hope
Heidi Rose has a happy journey and settles in very quickly. You should
also buy a Heidi rose, just for the edification! Roses are *so*
salubrious, especially when you've got a great bowlful on your table.
Sigh. I love roses. (NB. We've got Double Delight, New Duet, Old Duet
and Scout's Honour in our bowl ATM).

I know you're bloody mad, but we love you anyway! LOL! I see no problem
in making a blankie for a new puppy. I once made Alice a most beautiful
red coat out of a man's Onkaparinga dressing gown. Sadly, she ate it,
but it was very beautiful until then: had a red cord girdle, pockets and
a bound cowl neckline and everything! We must both be mad, eh?

>
> As for the Brisbane weather, there are parts getting flooded, but
> it's nowhere near as bad as 2011. That's no comfort for those who
> get their houses flooded yet again, however. I think the bad weather
> will diminish over the next 24 hours or so. A while ago there was
> even some blue sky fighting to peek through.

Well, the weather bureau didn't lie when they said it would move down
the coast. We've had driving rain all day and the paddock's well
flooded. The Ugly Sister is phuming, because she hates having to wade
through deep water to feed the horses. (NB. The horses are on good high
ground, but the access road is through a sort of sunken culvert that
crosses the creek. Usually, there's snakes in it... :D :D :D)

We went to visit Mum this morning and got royally drenched in doing so.
(Don't you hate it when the rain rains down the back of your neck and
all over your glasses?) Mum was in good spirits, but kept insisting she
wanted to go home, which is sad. Also, she has an obsession about money
and keeps wanting to go to the bank and get some. We have considered
giving her a wallet-ful of play money, but what if she tries to buy
something with it? Hunn suggested photocopying real money, but I do
think that's counterfeiting and can't allow it. LOL!

>
> And I'm glad you like Stephen's Rachmaninov recordings. Was it the
> CD or on radio? I love his Tchaikovsky concertos too, and he's just
> rerecorded (after 24 years) the Brahms concertos in Salzburg. I know
> I'm a bit partial, as he's such a lovely friend, but I don't think
> there's another pianist on the stage today with the same combination
> of technique and artistry. His recital here about 18 months ago was
> I think the greatest musical experience of my life, which was
> followed afterwards by dinner where he was his usual naughty self.

It was on good ol' ABC Classic FM a while back. They had recordings of a
concert in which he played the Rach 2 as well as the Rhapsody on a Theme
of Paganini. You're right: he does have both technique and artistry
(passion?) and is very, very easy to listen to!!!

Another thing I've been meaning to tell you is that I've actually been
listening to the Ring Cycle and *enjoying* it! I must be growing up at
last? I never thought I'd manage to find my way into Wagner, but there
y'go: you've been a good influence and thank you for that! ;D

Hunn is just about to don his raincoat and go out to try and mend his
wiper blades (O the irony!), which aren't working. He says 'G'day' and
hopes you're well. Off I go to watch the fun... ;D

[Johnno]

Just quickly - if you're tempted to become a Wagner fan, listen to Lohengrin. It's very much the young Wagner, but I love it. And I think Die Meistersinger is my favourite opera of all. He must have been one of the most appalling people who ever lived, but after Meistersinger I can forgive him anything.

John

[Karen C]

Trish Brown wrote:
>
>
> Yes! There are other interesting granny square patterns out there too.
> Most of learned to crochet with scraps of wool, but you can get some
> *really* gorgeous effects when you plan the colours in your squares.
>

Hint, hint, you can also use some of your smaller XS patterns to
assemble solid color squares into a lovely picture. (For which you'll
want to use invisible joining.)

One of my innovations was to make an afghan of solid color squares, with
crocheted seams in a different color.



--

Karen C - California
Editor/Proofreader/Translator www.IntlProofingConsortium.com

Finished 12/1/12 - crocheted baby blanket, hat, sweater and skirt

WIP: Stitchers Days of Christmas
http://www.crossstitchjoy.com/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=3865
Nativity from "Countdown to Christmas" book, Oriental Kimono (Janlynn),
MLI The Teacher (gift to the library), Bethany Angel (Marbek)
Retrieved from UFO pile: Marbek's Snow Angel, MLI Farmers Market

www.CFSfacts.org -- where we give you the facts and dispel the myths
Myths, with research cites: http://www.aacfs.org/images/pdfs/myths.pdf

[Trish Brown]

Johnno wrote:
> Just quickly - if you're tempted to become a Wagner fan, listen to Lohengrin. It's very much the young Wagner, but I love it. And I think Die Meistersinger is my favourite opera of all. He must have been one of the most appalling people who ever lived, but after Meistersinger I can forgive him anything.
>
> John
>

Oh yes, I've listened to Lohengrin! I think it's the final part of Die
Meistersinger that got me in - it's heartbreakingly beautiful! I need to
listen more, though, because I'm only beginning.

[pecan]

On 28/01/2013 04:20, Trish Brown wrote:
> Johnno wrote:
>> Trish, I wouldn't describe myself as a crocheter. It's just that at
>> Mum's place I couldn't help noticing all the lovely crocheted afghans
>> there were, and I got the mad idea that I'd like to make one for Mum,
>> so I went to a weekend class at a yarn shop and learnt how to make a
>> granny square. The afghan I made for Mum turned out so well that I
>> thought I'd continue, but I'm still very much at beginner standard.
>> The one I made for Hector was a neverending granny square, which just
>> required a slightly different start, and then you keep going. It's
>> still square but really it's a spiral.
>
> Aha! Well, then, let me send you here:
>
> http://www.antiquepatternlibrary.org/html/warm/priscil.htm
>

What a wonderful link!!! Dammit!

[Trish Brown]

pecan wrote:

> What a wonderful link!!! Dammit!
>

Thenk yew. My work here is done.

[Johnno]

Yes, I had a look at this video some time ago:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UGy1QrtFIdc&feature=fvwp

Sickeningly brilliant work.

John

[pecan]

Hmmm.... sufficiently complicated to stimulate my need for failure! lol
Joking. About the the need for failure. I think.
I confess that though I am not keen on crochet at all, I had the sudden
urge to pull out my crochet needles and cottons from a long-forgotten
project, and start something new. I slapped myself a few times to
recover, and will, instead, continue knitting my lace scarf.

[Trish Brown]

'ave a go at this one:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHwhpjb_WnU

I've always made my clones knots by winding the thread around the hook,
not the hook around the thread. This lady is amazing!

[Joan Erickson]

On 1/27/2013 10:20 PM, Trish Brown wrote:

> Matt is our family knitter - he has knat zillions of toys
> and puppets and things and his knitting is really, really good.

Trish, did Matt ever finish his Nativity set?

He might also like this that I just found out about!
http://tinyurl.com/cs9ycq3



--
Joan

See my pictures here: http://ndjoan.shutterfly.com/pictures

If worries can cure your sickness, prolong your life, or replace
happiness, then go ahead and worry! If they can't, why worry?

Enjoy every moment of your life...there is no second chance.

Unknown

[Trish Brown]

Joan Erickson wrote:
> On 1/27/2013 10:20 PM, Trish Brown wrote:
>
>> Matt is our family knitter - he has knat zillions of toys
>> and puppets and things and his knitting is really, really good.
>
> Trish, did Matt ever finish his Nativity set?
>
> He might also like this that I just found out about!
> http://tinyurl.com/cs9ycq3
>
>
>

Oh yes, he finished it just in time for Christmas and it's lovely! I'll
show him the Knitmare on Elm Street and see what he thinks. ;D