Sunday, March 30

Plans

It really doesn't pay to make plans. Often they are thwarted. At least at our age & stage of life, it doesn't matter if we have to change our plans.

My current quilt plans came to a halt. In spite of a stash to sink a small ship, I couldn't find what I wanted to fit my plan, so off to Spotlight for a hunt for 'just the right fabric'. Of course it was not there, but I did find a suitable substitute, so Thursday saw me laundering & ironing the fabric.

Had a call from our daughter to say she was not feeling well, had some sore on her face, which would not stop weeping. Friday morning she rang to say she had gone to the Doctor she will not go unless she is dying or worse so I knew she was bad. Her whole neck & face, were swollen, & the huge 'sore' had grown in size & was weeping even worse. Doctor thinks she has been bitten by a some insect, or spider, & has her on antibiotics, & antiseptic cream for the site of the bite. I went to see her yesterday, & she looks terrible, said her tongue is so swollen it interferes with her breathing & sleeping, so it is a worry. SIL told me she looked 100% better yesterday to what she had been!

Thank goodness she did go to a Dr. Small Grandson was very good, & quietly played. SIL is off for the weekend, so he can minister to Daughter.


Our Son B, who lives down in the city, wanted a washing machine, & one of the large stores had a good special on, so off he went to purchase one, only to be told they were out of stock. He was livid, as he regards a lot of those 'specials' as fake come-ons to get you into the shop. I told him our local branches seemed to be good about stock, so we found out they had stock in store, so off Gom & I went to get one of the machines.

Round we drive to the loading dock to collect it. Supercilious storeman delcares it will not fit into our car boot. Will not set foot on the ground & sneers at us laughingly, telling Gom, "You are on your own Mate! Good luck. Don't like your chances at all. I can't touch it, can't be liable!"

Storeman appeared to have been bashed up the side of his head, had a black eye, & bruises, & a sticking plaster over a wound. I briefly wondered if his wife had socked him about, or if an irate customer had taken a swing out of frustration at his smarmy attitude. As he closed the shutter, I got out of the car, to look at the situation.

Sized up the carton, looked at the back seat, & decided it would fit into the car. Gom had his doubts, but agreed to try. It fit in with a little judicious manoevering, & off we zoomed. I guarantee the fatuous little twat storeman was watching us secretly, & I bet he felt cheesed off!

As we swished homeward, I would have liked to stop for photo opportunities but Gom is a man with a mission, & interruptions don't come into the plan.

Saturday, we decided to deliver the machine down to our Son, so off we set. Gom has admitted he doesn't enjoy driving much these days, & the trip down to the city is fast & furious, what with the Freeway, & huge Semis thundering along. Roadworks were to slow us down a little, though many cars ignored the slower speed limits, & continued to thunder along at breakneck speed.

The stop start pace of the inner suburbs is nerve wracking, & there are plenty of cowboys who seem to feel driving like a race car contestant is ideal, ducking & diving in & out of slowmoving patches. It was not a bad trip though, & I was not scared witless once- for a change.

Our son met me going up the stairs to his flat, & we duly installed the machine & then took a stroll down the streets. I love visiting the area he lives in, it has a lovely feel, & Saturday is a day when lots of folk are out & about.

Son bought us lunch, & took us to a park where we sat in the shade & ate our lunch, & chatted & watched the passing parade. I would like to spend a weekend down there, just exploring all the little shops, & parks. It is an old suburb, was once working class, & now, because of it's proximity to the water, & the city, it is very expensive, & very fashionable. Our son has lived there for 14 years, & really feels he belongs.


Following are some of the glorious flowers for sale at one of the shops. I have posted photos of this shop before, & never tire of looking at the glorious show of flowers. These colours are beautiful, & restful to me.
The tulips are lovely & bright.

Lillies & Chrysanthamums, plus quite a few Dahlias, & rose buds.



Lots of buds, to bloom later as the days pass.
The hot, fierce colours of the Gerberas are lovely.

I love the fact that this suburb welcomes dogs. Shop keepers set out dishes of water for all the dogs that come out to visit with their owners. There are quite a few resident dogs who accompany their shopkeeper owners all day. They come out to inspect the passing throng now & then.
This lovely Border Collie doesn't have a lead, she just waits patiently for her owners, & watches their every move, following them when ever they move on.


Safe trip home, & a flurry of phone calls. No time to sew.
Off to visit our Daughter, to see how she was feeling.
Gold is where you find it! This, last evening's lovely display. It will do me, for gold!


We are having lovely crisp Autumn mornings, & evenings. Sleeping under covers for the first time for months. Bliss.




Joan Baez, Farewell Angelina
















26 comments:

Andrea said...

Hope your daughter gets better soon - sounds nasty. Beautiful photos. I'm not a gardener but I love flowers.

Rosie said...

how i hate small bitey things...hope she is feeling better

Christine Thresh said...

Your un-planned day was pretty nice overall. The flowers you snapped should inspire a quilt soon.
I hope your daughter is recovering.

Mike said...

Years ago my grandmother got bit by some kind of horrible spider and it was months going away. Hopefully your daughter's problem will clear up faster.

Your autumn = our spring. It has been an awfully long winter.

Jellyhead said...

Sounds like you're having a lovely weekend, apart from the concerns about your daughter. Hope she recovers quickly.

I've been pulling up a blanket, too. It feels cosy, doesn't it?

Unknown said...

Hope your daughter mends quickly! Lovely pictures of flowers, just what I needed as winter still has a grip on us here!

smilnsigh said...

Best wishes to you daughter. Dang but bug bites can be badddddddddddddd.

Mary said...

Yes I too hope your daughter gets better soon - it sounds horrendous!

I love it when you visit your son in my old stomping ground and post photos!

Leslie: said...

I do love coming by to hear about your life. Hope your daughter is feeling better and glad all worked out re the washing machine for your son. The flowers are gorgeous yet it seems strange to see tulips there when you're going into fall and tulips, to us, are spring flowers. lol That shot of the clouds would be great for Skywatch Friday. Cheers! :D

Tanya Brown said...

So sorry about your daughter; that does sound serious. Beautiful flower photos! Thanks for sharing them. Is there anything more wonderful than gazing at a flower stall?

Storemen like the one you described are really irritating, aren't they? I don't know where they get off being so rude. Sounds as though you and GOM had the last laugh, though. Perhaps Storeman's head looked bashed up because someone smacked his brains out.

Linds said...

I hope your daughter is better soon, Meggie. It sounds awful for her.
Great you managed to outwit that storeman!And lovely you could see your son and have a good time with him too. Our clocks went forward this morning, so it feels more like spring now. At last! The tulips are up in the garden too.

fifi said...

What a lovely day, flowers, family, and all.
Hope the bite gets better and I hope the son realises what a gem of a pair you two are for looking after him!
Wow! all that effort, including loading up the machine yourself! what a legend.

Anonymous said...

I was going to guess either glebe or balmain but you answered me in your tags at the end!

That dog - oh my goodness - that dog is the dead spitting image of my dog. I wonder if that's where she goes when we all head off to work and school in the morning!?!

Pauline said...

An altogether lovely post. Hope your daughter is feeling better! The flowers are gorgeous, the sky beautiful, and your humorous account of the store man humorous. I always leave here feeling chirked up.

Anonymous said...

Meggie, I laughed at your comment about driving with your husband ... I now do hand sewing when he is driving to avoid the sheer terror! Even if it is only just around the corner ... rather risk motion sickness than a argument over road rules! I just realised after re-reading that it may be the traffic not you DH - either way hand sewing is the answer.
Hope your daughter is feeling better and is taking an antihistamine?

Thimbleanna said...

Beautiful flowers Meggie! Sounds like you had a fun adventure with GOM. Hope your daughter is soon feeling better -- that's awfully scary!!!

Q said...

Dear Meggie,
Oh dear! Hope your daughter recovers soon. The unplanned days sometimes can be very fun.
Your story had me laughing...
Thanks,
Sherry

ancient one said...

I knew you had been missing.. I check you every day, sometimes more than once...

Hope your daughter gets well fast! It's good that she went on to the doctor!

I know how unplanned days can turn out so well sometimes. Those flowers were beautiful and I know the visit with your son was fun!

I don't know what to think about the rude store person. I think I'd have to tell the manager about that rudeness! Can your believe how people don't have any respect any more?

The sky was beautiful. I'll take that kind of gold too!!

Pam said...

I have this fantasy that when I retire, I'm going to have lots of spare time and blessed peace. Like that day of yours...?

BBC said...
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Lucy said...

I don't know whether it's better or worse to be bitten by a spider and know at the time or not, it sounds horrid. hope she's better soon.
Times like that are good, when you've got through the hassles and can relax, eat out, take in the scene unplanned. The trouble with things planned and long-awaited, a little part of you is always questioning if they're up to expectations. No expectations, more pleasure, perhaps!

Stomper Girl said...

Your poor daughter! that sounds awful. And yay for you, with your superior sense of spacial capacity!

Lee said...

What happens if you plan not to make plans?

Life, i guess.

(Greetings from Malacca).

Flea said...

Oh Meggie, your poor daughter, I hope the meds help and it clears up quickly.
Love the flowers, it's so beautiful.
Same here .. sleepin under the doona, aaahhh :-)

Ali Honey said...

It sounds like it could have been a white tail spider to me. The bites swell and go septic.... often that is the first thing the person knows about being bitten - doesn't hurt at the time but creates problems later. I hope she comes right quickly.

Just love the flowers. They are all lovely but somehow gain extra beauty when all displayed together like that.

Tanya said...

Hope your daughter is better.

I loved the dog picture. That's how I believe dogs should be. Unleashed, content to wait for their owners, secure that they are loved and protected so why go elsewhere? Why my dog will not take up my philosophy I don't know!