ALMOST THE END OF A (RATHER MUDDLED!) YEAR.

I make no apologies for my absence from here. Suffice to say, moving house is not really recommended when you reach a “certain age.”

Apart from the body parts not always moving like a well-oiled machine, some of us STILL seem to accumulate stuff we no longer need.

So, down-sizing, whilst highly commendable, is bloody difficult. You get clothes packed into suit cases, books packed into boxes, the bigger kitchen utensils packed likewise, flower pots and cuttings assembled in a shady place for later transportation and you very wisely get the heavy-duty pros to shift the whole lot.

Nice theory! So how come the “spare” bedroom is still piled high with things?

Ah, well, I daresay places will be found for them. I must say I’m loving my new drawers! (No, Muriel, not the new knickers…). The kitchen has wonderful deep drawers with, oh joy! even more wonderful easy-glide hinges.

Did I mention that we are not far from the beach? Hmm…would have been closer, but new building approvals have seen some “new people” restrict others’ access. Ah,well, the walk will be lovely in cooler weather.

We had some drama over having the telephone transferred. Finally, after TWO HOURS on the ‘phone, being switched through THREE states and assigned a new number I was told I could expect it to be completed in 2 to 3 days. Guess what? No one could get through on the new number!Why? Our old number had been transferred. I may have said some cuss words…

Anyway, here we are, loving our new place.

Of course, Sporran was not allowed to roam alone and for the first few days tolerated a harness-and-leash outings. She seems fine with the new place and comes home when called (if she’s ready!)

Let’s play a guessing game! I’ll put a picture up and you guess what it is. What? You want a prize? Dream on, Sunshine!

Here’s a snap of some plants, still sheltering in the front entryway…with temperatures into the 30s I’m not going to risk planting much until autumn!

There are two trees in the back yard which I think are a native known as riberry https://www.gardeningwithangus.com.au/syzygium-leumannii-riberry/ . I doubt the birds will leave enough for jam! That’s OK- it’s far too hot to slave over bubbling pots of jam!

One more small amusement before I do something about lunch…

This is not our house; we have cleared all our gutters, lest we end up with a similar nightmare.

So…a little more tinkering and tweaking and I think we can call it done.

But I should back-track a little…I have also tinkered with some photos .

My friends’ Eden garden.

Dendrobium speciosum
Here’s a link, should you live in a suitable climate https://www.australianorchids.com.au/pages/dendrobium-speciosum-the-sydney-rock-orchid

A pretty little grouping of soft pinks on the front terrace.Perfect for that early morning cuppa.

Castanespermum australe.  This is down near our beach and is what my “bean trees” would grow to if I let them!

Acacia holocericea spent seed pods. Known as Velvet Wattle for its very soft leaves.

And we had a visitor! A niece was over from NZ for a conference in Sydney and she spent a few days with us. We took her out and about, walked along the beach, paddled in the sparkling water. And decided a swim would be just the ticket! So good, we did it again the next day!

That pesky cyclone that was hanging around finally went out to sea after making a bit of a mess up north. No serious damage here and most of us were very happy with the rain!

My sweet little Pigeon* orchid, Dendrobium crumenatum,  was, perhaps, the happiest- it produced 7 sprays of flowers! True, they do not last long, but they are so delicate.

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*And I’ve been calling it a “dove” which is the common name of a different one, a Peristeria. Mine is the “pigeon.”

Well, folks, in my world breakfast beckons. And I have a busy day ahead…

IS IT A BIRD? IS IT A PLANE? NO – IT’S A BLOGGER!

A very lazy,uncaring blogger. But I have had one or two other spanners in the works. Hopefully, said spanners now removed and flywheels operating normally.

Around the traps (the blogging world, that is) there has been some discussion of similar laziness.Why do so many of us seem so disenchanted with what, after all, has been our chosen means of expression and intercourse with other writers? Some of us write for a living  (hah! in my case, a few miserable coins.Occasionally.), some of us write as an adjunct to other work, some of us just enjoy the company we find on the platform. But for whatever reason(s) we have not felt the old urge. No, Muriel, not that urge! Muri-  Nurse! 

The long, cold winter? The debilitating heat of summer? No, I think it’s a relentless overburden of what we’ve been told is “news.” It streams at us, endlessly.Repeatedly.And it’s not always nice. In fact, it’s almost always bloody horrible.

The lovely Miss Scarlet has had a similar malaise, but she’s pulled up her brastra    bootstraps and is posting again http://wonky-words.com/2015/04/28/drive-sexy/

The Banished One never really left us. He sometimes says he has nothing to say.He lies. Even when he’s economical with words, he has pictures. Today, he reviews a New York play.

And the lovely Jane is hosting another round-the-blogs flower show. She’d also noted that many had slipped off the carousel of blogging.

There are many others. And many reasons for slipping quietly away (no, Muriel, not you.)

But I’ll try to pop in here , maybe with something worth reading.Maybe not. But I’ll start with some flowers.

A proper, professional bouquet! My Main Man had a spell in hospital and his office staff sent him these gorgeous beauties. The gerberas’ heads were collared and stems wired.Very impressed, I was! And, with a little trimming of stems and fresh water they survived very well.

Sadly, there is little  that is pickable in the garden Chez Dinahmow, this being the edge of what we call winter. But two of the plumeria and several Hibiscus mutabilis have put on a good show.That old stand-by, Dietes always stumps up.

Plumeria (aka frangipani)

Dietes.Grows with all the vigor of a weed.

Michaelia figo, “port wine magnolia” outside the back gate. It has set seeds this year!

We walked down to the beach the other day.First time we’ve been there since the wretched crocs and jellyfish closed it a few months ago. I had the little camera in my pocket…

Looking south east through the curtain of Casuarina. Those clouds? The remnants of the storms that battered the Brisbane area.

Looking north, across Sunset Bay to Bucasia Beach.

And I’ll close with a Calliandra, also from the beach walk. I think they’re garden escapees, growing beneath coconut palms at the edge of the mangroves.