Sunday Scribblings "Alchemy"

G'Day,
Today's Sunday Scribblings prompt is Alchemy.
I wish to write about the alchemy of love, attraction.
Do you know Al? Alastair, Allen, Albert. Al Chemy? No?
Well, is he the one who you gave it all up for.
The one you took the biggest risk of your life for.
Is he the one who you decided to stay with for all those years.
The one who fathered your children.
The one who put it all into his work because they needed him more than you and the children.
The one who would never desert or disappoint his "Friends" in favor of you.
Because they are the important ones in his life, you know.... those ones who he must impress at all costs.
Is Al that one. No, don't know him?
He is the one who left you at home with tiny children, a cold dinner and warm bed waiting for him. Until dawn, while he breasted the bar with another woman and his "friends".
The one, who in distress, you drove away from (more than once) with sleeping babies in the back seat of your car, but you came back because you couldn't stay away. Because you kept hopeing...one day....
He may be the one who left it all up to you. He was happy if the kids let him hear the television and relax, because he had to go to work. You did the rest. The cooking, cleaning, discipline. His needs always come first.
He is the one who wanted you waiting at home , you weren't invited , but waited in the bedroon for his return.
He was the one who laughed when his friends insulted you and when those old ladies whispered behind their hands when you walked past in the street, he felt like a stud. They were his friends. Until you moved on to another town, another job, another lot of "friends" and you were still there.
He is the one who comes home one day and says there is someone else more important to him. Someone who later stays in his mind. The one who makes him say that you are nuts about the situation when you have been sent that way by him.
And...you get angry!!!!!! Wondering what you did to deserve it.
And you try to understand and weigh up whether it is all worth the bullshit you have endured at his hands.
And you know.... but you love him.
What is that?
Alchemy. The alchemy of love. The biggest rip off that mother nature ever invented.
I am in a dark mood, aren't I .
Bye.
Love Linda.


Footnote;
Due to comments added in this post I thought I should add that this is only partly autobiographical. But...there are lots of Al's out there. Lots. They will defend their right to be as they see themselves....... as men. They are across all cultures, beings from a different planet maybe? hahaha. Change is in the winds. Mothers teach your little Al's well.

Sunday Scribblings "Demands"

G'Day,
The Sunday Scribblings prompt for this week is "Demands". What would you demand if you were a star in your dressing room.
I have heard of stars making demands to concert organizers etc when they visit other places or perform concerts. I shake my head and wonder what they are up to, what is their motive in demanding such silly things.
If I was one of them and thought I could get away with such behavior what would I want.
Well to start with, I don't think I would be very proud of myself for behaving like that....but... I would like a little luxury and pampering. What woman wouldn't like that if they could have it?
What would I like to pamper and spoil me?
How nice it might be to be able to hold people to ransom with silly behavior, for me to be considered important enough that they would bow to my demands.
How about a masseur and a big bubbly spa bath with pretty smelling stuff in the water and drinks of my choice beside the bath waiting for me, maybe a jug of slightly sweetened iced tea. The room would be all white with lots of lush plants and flowers to decorate it. Gentle music, soft thick fluffy towels and maybe some of those delicious liqueur chocolates that I love. Mmmm. Yep I could take that.
My room would be just the right temperature, about 24 degrees Celsius, slightly cooler at night, and have a big soft, but well supporting bed, following through from the bathroom with the plant and flower theme.
My meals would be calorie counted by the chef to allow me to have that extra little bit of indulgence with the liqueur chocolates beside the bathtub. And....nobody would step through the door into my retreat who wasn't invited by me!
Two way glass... yes! Two way glass... so I could look outside and see everything that was going on over the city and in the hall way. That would be fun. I would like to be able to switch it off though, when I wanted to.
How about someone to share it all with, someone who wanted and loved the same things as me, loved me. Hmmm, now who is that? That might be a little bit more difficult. If I was a star who could I trust? Who would there be out there in the big scary, fake and faithless world that didn't want me for my fame or my finances or the prestige of being with a star like me. Who could I trust? Who would love me? Not many I suspect.
I think I will stay the way I am. No choice there anyway. Hahaha!
Bye.
Love Linda.

Friday Fertilizer.

G'Day
Friday Fertilizer peoples. I hope this fine perfect autumn day finds you all well. Autumn is the gentle season isn't it. Beautiful weather, not hot, not cold, just right.
This prompt is hosted by Tootsie Time. Her link is on my side bar, go have a look what other contributors have to share.
Lookie....... I have roses out in my front yard. A bit stunted because they were neglected during the summer heat but they are now enjoying the more gentle autumn sunshine. Pruned by my Mum when she was here in November after their first flowering, fed by me a couple of times but most importantly of all watered by nature. The best kind of watering they could wish to receive.



And last but not least a lovely new flush of blooms on the small gardenia plant out the front near the garage.
There are some other flowers around the yard at the moment, courtesy of natures beautiful rain. The zephranthes have had a second flowering and the oleanders still have some flowers on them though they are in decline. There are a few other roses around, and of course my ivy geraniums have still not been without a flower on them since spring time. Some of the succulents have a few new flower stalks too, the alysum is still blooming happily and there are some scrawny flowers on the verbena and the fever few. Bulbs are starting to emerge in early anticipation of the spring to come. That is a bit strange isn't it? The rain we have had has thrown the seasons out of whack a bit I guess.
Bye for now.
Love Linda.

Sunday Scribblings. "Books of Influence."

G'Day,
This weeks Sunday Scribblings prompt is to write about books that have influenced you and changed your life.
I guess there have been many many books that I have loved and read in my life time. I am no academic type person and while I was thinking about the prompt today I thought about the books I do have, Hoarded up downstairs in my rumpus room. A mixed collection of reference, and fiction, like flotsam and jetsam from my life. There are boxes of them and last time we moved house I culled and passed many books on. Books that I had read and had sentimental value to me. How many books did I want to drag around from place to place with me after all. Some of them I just couldn't...just couldn't ever get rid of.
You know those special ones. Like "Where is Baby" my daughters favorite book as a toddler, and "Little Bear" my second son's favorite or 'Wombat Stew" read rhyming to my own rhythm. Or "Boy with a Drum" my eldest son's treasured favorite when he was a toddler. So many precious memories tied up in those books. Who knows, one day if I am lucky I may get to read my grandchildren their Mum or Dad's favorite children's story and watch with excitement for a similar reaction that my own children had to those stories. I used to laugh when they corrected me for swapping the words around to test them. Stories they knew off by heart long before they could read the words.

The book that came to mind for me was a book I went searching for in the room downstairs this afternoon. I have put a picture of it above. It is my Mum's old gardening book. When I was a child I can remember it well. I used to love to thumb through its pages and pictures. Long before I was able to read and understand its words. I looked inside the cover and it was printed in 1966. So I was 6 years old when it was printed. Somebody, long ago covered it carefully with plastic to keep it clean and preserve it, probably my Dad. It is in very good condition considering it's age, and considering it was thumbed through many times by a 6 year old. Some of the gardening methods in the book are now a bit dated in their practice, but some have come full circle, for example the products used then to fertilize accumulated in and poisoned our soils.
I am still dreaming of having a great garden and growing my own vegetables and....having a little patch of dirt I can call my own to nourish and play with. It will happen. It happened before and I let I go away from me. I left it behind to move to the city. But... I will have it again, one day, god willing.
So... this book, this book! It is one that has influenced me and what I am today, so many years later. A would be if she could be gardener.
The lady who loves her birds, back yard, plants and parks. This picture shows my family of Magpies. They came to visit me this afternoon and I gave them some crumbled grainy bread. There were six of them today. They come and sit near the back door and warble to call me out and tell me they are there. Clever birdies.
There was an environment day at the botanic gardens today. I tagged along on the end of a bush foods tour. The plant above is an Illawarra plum. The fruit on this isn't quite ripe yet. But you eat the part of the fruit that is closer to the branch, not the end part. Pete and I also got to taste some other stuff. Lemon myrtle, wattle seed coffee, strawberry tea, wild native raspberries, pepper berries, and some other stuff i can't remember the names of. Cool, great stuff for people of my interests.
Don't know what this is called, pretty though isn't it. I love going to the botanical gardens here in Canberra. For each season there is something new to discover in flower.
Some of the plants you wouldn't even notice while walking through their natural habitats for they are very inconspicuous but, when they flower.... ah yes.
A blurry pic of one of the everlasting daisies.
Just kicking back relaxing on the lawn in the park, listening to the music. An old duck who still wears her denim. I rode on the bike today. Daring in my old age, beating a life long fear of motor bikes, the second ride in my life.
Yes. Years ago I probably took plants like this bottle brush for granted, as a common old thing. The gardens here have shown me otherwise. Shown me that there is great value in the beauty of our native flora where as before, much more notice was taken of imported garden plants. The roses, azaleas, rhododendrons and bulbs etc, that we love so well are a big part of our garden culture. They are however now blended in our gardens with native plants which were previously ignored by us . There are of course purists that will only grow one type or the other in their gardens. I prefer a mix of the two, honoring both the plants from this continent and others side by side.
We all know gardening stories about the damage done by plants running amok out of their natural habitat. We learn from experience where they are concerned and adapt our practice to compensate.
Hope you like this.
Bye
Love Linda.

Friday Fertilizer,

G'Day,
Friday is here so I am back to take part in the Friday fertilizer prompt which is run by Tootsie, you can find her link listed under "Tootsie Time" on my side bar in the my favourite reads section. Go see what everyone else is up to.
In my part of the world it is just coming into Autumn, which means Mushrooms and autumn harvests and golden leaves and big scary fat orb web spiders. I went for a walk this morning to find some mushrooms along the park that runs into Woden just two doors down from my house. Last time I posted about mushrooms I got comments saying that most people don't pick mushrooms because they don't know what they should or shouldn't pick. Rightly so, if you are not sure which mushrooms are poisonous it is safer not to eat any of them except the ones you can buy in the shops. I have gone mushrooming ever since I was a small child and have some idea which ones are o.k. and which ones you don't eat. But there are a lot of others that are edible that I wouldn't touch because I am not knowledgeable of them. So better safe than sorry.
The first picture above is of a little pufftaloon mushroom. I don't know if that is the proper name that is just what I have always called them. They grow without stems. Do not eat these little guys. They have a yucky green mustard coloured mess inside them, when they dry out it turns to a powder and I used to like popping them when I was a child.

Ah yes.....some flowers, Sweet alysum. Always a flower on these,,, but after the rain we have had they are doing very nicely.
The picture of the white stuff above is another type of mushroom related plant. Some sort of Fungi. I haven't seen this one before but it is growing in the shade of my caravan at the side of the house, strange isn't it?
Out the front of my house is a rock garden where this nice little azalea is living. Flowering out of season but welcome color just the same, the rain tricked it into flower again .
This was flowering in the park this morning....some sort of legume going by the leaves but I don't know what it is otherwise. Pretty though.
Little skinny grey mushroom. Don't eat it if you don't know what it is, I wouldn't try this one, pretty though, fine and delicate.
My haul. I don't know what these guys are called but they are one of the common ones I know you can eat that grow at this time of the year. They start out pink when they first open up and then change through the browns as they age , eventually turning black underneath. I don't pick the black ones as much, they have a strong almost muddy flavour as they age and too many tiny bugs in them. Ah well a few don't hurt...and add a bit of extra protein lol. Now I just have to clean them up. Peel them and wash them in salt water, drain well, cook in a blob of butter, a bit of salt and pepper, into a fry pan. A lot of water comes out of these and you need to thicken the gravy with some cornflour mixed with water, or milk, or cream. Onion and bacon go great with mushrooms too.

This is one of the mushies I picked, the edible ones. you can see around the edges it is starting to dry out and is getting a bit old, that means it will be hard to peel and black underneath.
Magic fairy circle in the park this morning. I remember when I was very little my Mum and Dad would take us mushrooming and we would always look for fairies underneath and try not to pick or step on any of them. Cute. These ones are not the edible kind though. If you turn them over you can see they are white underneath. They are also chunkier than the ones that grow at this time of year. Don't eat these. Close ups are in the next two pictures.Don't eat any that are yellow underneath either. I wonder if the fairies danced around them before dawn this morning?
Even the little bugs don't seem to want to eat these white Mushies.
White Mushie. Poisonous.
On the way back from our walk I was excited to find these Gang Gang cockatoos in the tree out the front of the next door neighbour's house. These are not as common as some of the other cockatoos, quite rare in most areas, and I was able to sneak right up to within a few feet of them and get some pictures. Love it. Gang Gangs have a harsh screechy cry , a bit different to the other cockies, and I have often heard them in the area but not been able to see them or get close before. The bird in the picture above is a male, happy eating the autumn harvest , probably why I could be so close without him flying away. Isn't he great. These birds are our state animal emblem. Um...I think they are anyway, nah, dunno, maybe those wonderful little fairy wrens are. I would love to be able to get a picture of a fairy wren they are absolutely delightful but they are so tiny and quick. I have no chance.
This is a female Gang Gang. She hasn't got the dark pink, almost red head like the male but her feathers are more striped and defined than his.
You can see her markings more clearly here. In size they are slightly smaller than a Galah or pink cockatoo and quite a bit smaller than a sulphur crested cockatoo.
Aw pretty boy. He has a very dirty beak I wonder what else he was up to this morning.
This is a sulphur crested cockatoo. What ya doin up there fella? Huh?
More sulphur crested cockies, same tree as the Gang Gangs. What is this tree, the birds love it?
A lot of the street trees around here have a carpet of seed and greenery underneath them at the moment because the cockies have been eating their seeds and pruning with their powerful beaks as they go along.
Kitchen in progress at my parents old house, last weekend.
My second son David, built this from scratch. Can't wait to see the final result. My Mum's house is about 2 years younger than me and the kitchen has never been changed before, except by painting. David and Peter laid the floor too, it is vinyl panels, looks like wood but you can't scratch or dent it.
That is my contribution for this week.
Bye Love Linda.
Got to go and get ready for work.

Sunday scribblings "Fluencey"

G'Day ,
I am late to address this weeks prompt . I spent the weekend in Wagga.
What am I fluent in? The one thing that comes straight to my mind this morning as I sit down at this keyboard is the word "Idiocy". Sums it up pretty well.
All of my life I have let people shit on me, even the people that matter, the ones i have depended on and loved, and walked away saying oh well, I am big enough to let you win, and save your feelings in the process. I can let you come first even to my own detriment.
I did a silly quiz on the Internet the other day and their answer was "You are a mouse".
They were right.
At any moment I could fall down the well into wonderland and I hate it.
I will keep plodding on and see where I end up. Or down.

In Wagga on the weekend, I stayed in a nice motel in the centre of town. My son Dave has built a new kitchen for my Mum's old house and was ready to install it, we went to help, it is not finished yet but it going to look great very soon. A big improvement on the original , nearly 50 years old now , kitchen that was there. I mostly cleaned. He is a clever boy, I can't wait to see the finished product.
It rained from Saturday night onwards through Sunday and Wagga got 162 mils in total. When we were coming home the Tarcutta creek had broken its banks and the Kyeamba creek had too. No really bad damage in that, except to maybe some fences, that I could see. A small village nearby, Ladysmith had to be evacuated during the night though were allowed back in the next morning.Just a few miles down the road, closer to Gundagi, the creeks were hardly even flowing. It is so pretty down there at the moment with the recent rain we have had turning the hills and paddocks a bright emerald green. Water was glistening on the rock cuttings along side the road. Sheep and cattle happy to get some fresh feed. There was a small hatching of locusts. Even the animals with pin head sized brains know that water means life to this country. In other parts of the country they have had flooding. The dams are filling up and the world is being washed clean and nourished. When I was walking around on Saturday night I went down to the river and it was very low in the town. On Sunday afternoon it was rising and the Wollundry lagoon that I had walked around just a few hours earlier was up, and there was 3 foot of water over the walkway under the bridge. After so long I am hopeful that the drought is coming to an end at last. We have had 10 years of drought in my part of the world. I hope the cycle has come full circle.
The days are getting shorter and cooler now, heading into autumn. Some of the birch trees are starting slowly to change color.
O.K. gotta get to work.
Bye. Love Linda.