20 March 2020

Weekend reading

We went to Bunnings during the week to buy plants, seedlings and seeds so we'll have a decent garden to tend in the coming weeks. I chose only one vegetable seed, rainbow chard, to plant in with what we have here now. I'll write about what we're doing in the garden soon and if there are some new or inexperienced gardeners out there, I'm happy to help with your questions if I can. The rest of the week, I took advantage of the time to think about our current situation and work out our best response. We won't be going out again for a while, Sunny and Kerry are doing most of our shopping, and I don't want to waste any opportunities provided by these extraordinary circumstances.

 Seedlings waiting to be planted.


It's a sign of the times but nevertheless, I apologise for so many references to coronavirus on my reading list this week.  In other news on the home front, I found this little chap on a chair on our front verandah yesterday; he was hiding under a very soft cushion. It's a pink tongue skink, cousin of the famous blue tongue lizard.  This fellow has a blue tongue when he's young and a pink tongue when mature. 


I hope you're well and safe at home and you're thinking about how you'll live through the next six months.  It's worrying to be going through this but it also presents opportunities. Each person will be different in that they have different expectations and responsibilities but most of us will have extra time. That time can be a gift. What have you been wanting to do at home but never had the time for?  Learn to bake, cook from scratch, declutter, develop routines, connect with family, start researching your family tree, start a garden, sit and observe, learn to draw, do online courses, listen to podcasts, explore YouTube. There are many things out there to enrich your life and now you have the time to dive into whatever takes your fancy.

And here is Gracie this morning with her typical terrier head tilt.  She does this when we talk to her.

Quarantine with Jam and Clare - This is a FB group run by two firecrackers, Clare Bowditch and Jamila Rizvi. They are running little singalongs and washing-folding sessions Wednesday nights on FB Live via a new FB group. You have to join the group to see it.
Here’s how to watch live music from home
Don't tinkle on my tinkle paper - Many of you already know grandma Donna, this link is to her last post with instructions on making paperless toilet cloths.
DIY Simple Play Kitchen Sink and Stove

Take it easy, have a good weekend and try not to worry. We're all going through this together so let's all help each other too. I send my love to you. xx




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20 comments

  1. A perfect antidote to fear and panic Rhonda. I too am putting my garden into production after letting it slide. I love rainbow chard such a wonderful cut and come again veg and pretty. Take care it was so nice to see the pink skink (my spellcheck and I fought over it insisting on changing it to skunk)��
    Lucky us will also get our Vitamin D helping our immunity while we plant. Stay safe and well.

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  2. Hi Rhonda,

    thank you for the reading list and your lovely words of encouragement.

    Love to you too, Maria.

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  3. Grandma Donna was the one who sent me your way!

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    1. Donna and I are good friends. We have a lot in common. 🙂

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  4. We are sharing the same advice today with our readers, it seems. Your reading lists always help me learn something new.
    Continued blessings, daisy@MapleHill101

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  5. I too bought seedlings and seeds to plant out in the Autumn veg patch, Rhonda. I got rainbow chard too! I think not only will the garden provide homegrown veg in the months to come but also the 'wonderfulness' of being outside, under a blue sky, in the fresh air each day. Time outside is so good for us too. Xx

    Today, I am making carrot cakes. One for us and one for our neighbours whom we adore. I rarely do icing but today I am going to make cream cheese icing because I think that's just what one has to have with carrot cake. Walnuts to sprinkle on top too.

    Thanks for the reading links and have a lovely weekend at your place.
    MegXx

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  6. I love that lizard. He's gorgeous! I am doing a lot of the things that you mentioned. I have been studying Youtube videos on dividend stocks. My dad taught me to live off of the interest and dividends. It's a foreign area for me, but I'm getting the hang of it. I just baked peanut butter cookies, and planted several new fruit trees in the backyard. I also bought some zucchini plants, and a few berry bushes. I'm actually enjoying the time at home. I started knitting a new pair of socks today with wool German sock yarn from my stash. This morning I made spaghetti with turkey meat sauce, and enjoyed a glass of lemonade with lemons from the Meyer lemon tree. It's a joy to be at home. Thanks for all that you have taught us over the years. I was prepared, because of you and my parents. (My dad lived through the Depression.)

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  7. Thankyou for your post, Rhonda. I'm a teacher in NZ and it looks like I may have more times on my hands this winter so I looked up your blog for some garden and home ideas. Glad to see you're posting again.
    :)

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  8. My Beagle would do that too when I talked to her. So cute...she made me laugh. Thanks for continuing to be here, Rhonda. We are in our 70's and it's still hard to think that we are one of the "elderly" who needs to be more vigilant. :)
    Elaine

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  9. Thank you for the photo of Gracie. Our dogs are a great consolation and company at the moment - they are obviously unaware of our concerns and continue to play and cuddle up as normal.
    Love to you too Rhonda.

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  10. Glad you guys are okay.

    I am currently planning my garden Looks like I may attempt seeds for vegetables again this year. We shall see.

    I want to add on to the vitural musuem idea with two other ways to relax. One is watching the Live Cams at the San Diego Zoo.
    The polar bear sleeping is so cute!!https://zoo.sandiegozoo.org/live-cams

    The other is using explore.org https://explore.org/livecams
    They have live cams of all sorts of animals and landscapes. Sort of reminds you that the world is more than just us.

    Stay safe everyone!

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  11. Hi Rhonda. Just wanted to let you know that after being a regular borrower of your books from my local library, I decided to purchase hard copies of all three online last week. The current situation has definitely lead to me reassessing our home and how it is run. My hubby and I have had itchy feet to go travelling with a caravan around Australia lately, and will hopefully do so sometime down the track, but right now we are realising what a blessing our home is. Your words have always been an inspiration to me, so now I’m happy to own hard copies of your books that I can devour whilst I have this extra “home time” on my hands.

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    1. Thanks for buying my books, Anita. I hope you enjoy reading them. Stay safe. xx

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  12. Thanks for sharing these ideas...laughed reading the lady who uses cloth to wipe with...I just made ours last week, from some old washclothes...well, for now, tis just me as I do not want to deal with cleaning from poo...so will just be a lady wipe. The merchants are so less than smart here in our area of Washington state in USA...we may like some ideas so well, we might never buy as much in future from them as we have in the past. I am angry at how poorly they have handled things...and it really leaves the older people in the dust as they are not able to fight for their rights etc. I plan to keep using my cloths the rest of my life...hopefully saving at least half of the TP. My daughter here has always wanted a bidet...and says, Ok, now I am getting one!! I cannot feel that is very clean...but that is just me... Years ago, one of my friends took care of mentally deficient adults...and always had such things to clean up. She told me to always wash out in cold water and that way there is no smell remaining. So I plan to wash first in cold water...then run another tub with hot for towels etc. We will see how it goes. The stores here are still very low supply in many things. So we are learning...now? We buy if it is something we will soon be out of...or we think they many not get more of for awhile...whereas before we mostly got what we needed for a few weeks at a time. I am worried about water because I buy spring water as I am so allergic to chlorine which they dump in the house water in huge amounts...you can smell it often. I have used Brita in past...but I think we may need to find something better...we will see.

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    1. I'm making some 'lady wipes' too, Elizabeth and I doubt I'll go back to total TP when the crisis is over. I think it's a really good use of old fabric. I just have to sort out my containers. I don't expect our visitors to use it and I doubt Hanno will, but I'm happy to go solo of this one.

      It has always been my understanding that chlorine evaporates out of water when you leave it to stand for 24 hours. Have you tried doing that? We use a filter on our water tap in the kitchen the water is very good and we never smell any chemicals. The filters need to be changed every 12 months. Stay well, Elizabeth. xx

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  13. I'm rereading Down To Earth, what a comforting book in these times. Everyday day I'm trying to sow something,fix something, make something and learn something new. That should keep spirits up I think. Take care, I hope this passes with as little pain as possible.

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  14. Thank you for all the wonderful resources and links! Stay well! I have been self-quarantined for years! LOL! And my daughter says I'm the happiest person she knows. I am never bored nor do I feel lonely. Maybe I should write a book on "The Happiness of Being Alone"? LOL!

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  15. Hi Rhonda, I would LOVE to see more of your garden. Please feel free to post as many pictures as you like. Mandi

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  16. Stay safe and healthy Rhonda. Virtual ((hugs)) and thank you for sharing your experience and wisdom with us. xx

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  17. I went shopping after work NSW - Aldi was mostly fully restocked (except hand sanitiser) but was pleasantly surprised that Bunnings was nearly sold out of seedlings, all that was left was a few rainbow silverbeet and rocket. I guess growing your own veges has become mainstream.

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