Mother's Day Miscellany

Had a pleasant Mother's Day with E bringing a lovely light banana cake and D,  Lindt orange and almond chocolate,  and potted blue and white pansies. I had bought a delicious chocolate and hazelnut gugelhupf cake which we sampled too.   Made a special chicken casserole, out of an early Alison Holst recipe book for dinner - Country Captain Chicken Curry which was very tasty.  Had made a trip to the supermarket to get currants to go in it but forgot to add them at the end. Something is happening to my short term memory it seems. 

The clutter around the house does not make it any easier easy.  I am searching at present for the red Murano glass dish I bought in Venice on my first OE in the 1960s but was delighted to find a turquoise  bullicante (with a myriad of bubbles) one in a favourite op shop.These would have been used as ashtrays in the olden days  but nowadays they look nice as an art glass "thing of beauty and a joy to behold". Also bought a couple of CDs as I passed the Ponsonby op shop but found when I got home the case of one was empty - the Elgar -  so was disappointed.  My resolve to stop hoarding didn't last very long.    I had listened to an interview on the radio with a woman who has written a book on how to combat this complaint (to put it mildly).  Have requested the boook from the library to have another go.   

Road Trip to Taranaki

Four of us took off to Taranaki with friend Sue at the wheel to see  the sights.  Stayed in New Plymouth  and from there explored the area, sampling  the excellent small-town culture dotted  round the province.     In the Govett-Brewster  I had seen a Lawrence Aberhart photographic exhibition , lonely views of old halls and dairy factories , shops and facades that were  so evident on our road trip round the mountain. In many cases women seem to be the new entrepreneurs in these small towns with a plethora of great  cafes, (Rhubarb Cafe in Eltham  - fabulous cheese scones, and Sugar Juice Cafe in Opunake - delicious seafood chowder at under $10) as well as   vintage shops crammed full of byegone treasures including lots of Crown Lynn. 

Sampled and purchased some cheese for the next little while from the great range available at the Cheese Bar in Eltham, home of the gourmet cheese sold there.  Stocked up on creamy blue cheese which I will add to a cole slaw recipe I like, cumin cheese I enjoy with a ciabatta roll and guava jelly and other delights.

The mountain unshrouded itself in spectacular beauty on our last morning and pleased Dierter no end. 

Eli's Graduation

Waited in chilly Queen Street for the procession at 9.30 but didn't see Eli in the throng of other students, all very colourful in their hoods and best dress.  Lots of proud parents including us  and we managed to meet up at Aotea Square which was filled with happy family groups.  Later in the day attended the graduation ceremony in the Aotea Centre.

Blue and White

Have reluctantly decided to downsize  this collection of china of mine, after coming to the realization that  I can't keep everything for ever,  and a change of decor looks good too. Just introducing a splash of green as a recent NZ House & Garden suggested,   provides such a lift.  I rung the changes up at Orewa where my display of blue and white china (Willow pattern and European Christmas plates ) now includes a green capsicum-shaped salt shaker, a green ginger jar which graced the family mantlepiece in my childhood and a beautiful green glass vase from an op shop in Orewa. I have been too busy up there recently to remember to take a photo of it and now it is too late as goddaughter Jane and husband Adam are moving in for a wee while until they find a place of their own up there.

I sold a turquoise Denby mug recently  - they are lovely to look at but when filled with tea or coffee rather heavy for my right  hand .  It went to a good home so I am pleased, as did the little Air NZ  retro china cup and saucer.  These were made by Noritake I believe, in the 1960s I suppose.  I like a small milky drink made in one of these  when I wake during the night.  I still have a couple of these left too.  They remind me of a dolls teaset I had as a child.  Next is the Blue Danube breakfast cup and saucer I sold yesterday.  We enjoyed using Blue Danube china morning noon and night in the 1970s, now I just use the dinner plates and dessert plates once or twice during the week, and two small tea and coffee cups  for occasional drinks during the day.  These two duos belonged to my Aunt Dorothy, so I think of her when I use them. 
Then there is an old Masons aqua preserving jar also gone west to Waiheke Island to a new owner .  I still have one of these under the house to be brought up  and used or more likely displayed  one of these days again. Lastly is this morning's stilllife with feijoas in a special Cauldon dish featuring chariots which Dieter gave me many many years ago.  I now use it for all sorts of things several times during the week in a bid to make the most of such treasures. 

Bus trip to South Head

Had a very pleasant outing with the Historical Society to look at the alpacas at South Head  and then the museum at Helensville.  The fleece is delightfully light and silky and when spun makes a soft warm yarn  which they knit into garments. D bought me a pair of pale blue fingerless mittens  in a pretty lacy pattern.  Must get out my spinning wheel and spin some yarn  myself.  It has languished in a corner for 2 or 3 years now without having been used.  Watch this space.

Somes Island

Somes Island  is about 20 minutes out in Wellington Harbour - in its time it has been  a POW camp, internment camp and also a quarantine station .  Now it is a conservation area and very nice for walks.  There were a couple of school parties and a few oldies like us.  We could use our gold cards to get there on the ferry  which was good. The flowers were beautiful - white ones from the lace bark, hebes and the bright orange berries of the coprosma.  We were delighted to see a large tuatara sunning itself  conveniently along the way.

Sojourn in Wellington

Had a wonderful holiday in Wellington.  Enjoyed the good weather and  change of  scenery getting around and about by train , bus and boat.  Took in Te Papa twice, went out to the Dowse, to Somes Island , on the train to Paekakarariki and sampled the restaurants in Courtney Place -  Mexican (Sweet Mother's Kitchen), Thai and Moroccan (Casablanca)  each evening.

Brainy

Spent all day yesterday up at the university  at the Brain Day organized by the Centre for Brain Research.  The CBR choir put on a performance/workshop, moreorless one of our usual sessions with audience participation. From where we sat it sounded great.

 The theme of this year's day was Brain  Fitness. Somehow when you know the physiological  reasons for the way the brain and its synapses work,  or don't work properly in the case of those with a brain disorder, the pesky symptoms are easier to put up  with . It was good to hear about all the interesting research going on in this and related fields  so people  can be hopeful that spin-offs for people with brain disorders are not too  far behind.

In the meantime there were plenty of tips for people to take home along the lines of stimulating the brain in the evenings too by not vegetating in front of TV.   Of course using the computer  with its bright screen is not conducive to good sleep afterwards  so it is a matter of striking the happy medium.  Developing the habit of concentrating on one thing for 25 minutes or so (the Pomodoro Effect) is good for training the brain  to function well at doing one thing properly rather than being distracted by emails/Facebook/texts etc. 

Then there are the usual things like a healthy diet and exercise .I will increase mine to encompass the weekends by including a long walk, each day. We are taking a neighbour's cute little dog Katie for a walk regularly  which is a new experience for us and adds a dimension to "just walking".  

Trip to Whitford and Howick

Well home again from our jaunt to Orewa and from there on a Historical Society trip to Whitford. It is not far from Howick and has a small village of shops and cafe but we went to see this Bob's Toy Museum, a private collection of hundreds of dolls, trikes, scooters, pedal cars, Matchbox toys as well as some bottles and kitchen and other household gear for good measure.  It took me back to my childhood when I first  got my walkie talkie doll, earlier a lovely dollspram.  After lunch at one of the cafes in the village we went to look over All Saints Selwyn church in Howick.  It is the oldest Selwyn church still in use, the one in Russell is older.  They also have a new church next to the old one, which they just  use nowadays  for weddings, special services etc.  The seats were pretty uncomfortable but the atmosphere was prayerful and inspirational.   Then  it was homeward bound again after afternoon tea in the parish hall. 

Stayed another night in Orewa then took in the storm which wafted over our way  from NSW, gaining momentum and  causing havoc throughout the country  - mainly branches and power lines  falling down.  Thankfully not in Orewa, nor  at our place in Ponsonby.  It has suddenly got a lot cooler with a southerly wind.  OK inside of course, now that we are home.There was heavy rain and showers and strong winds all day.

Made a nice roast lamb shank dinner with roast pumpkin and potatoes seeing I had enough time to do so.  We are staying in this Saturday night and going to a concert of the Auckland Symphony Orchestra tomorrow that a friend of mine is in.  It is a benefit concert for  a music therapy centre for children.  Our choir leader is the music therapist there too, and she has composed one of the pieces to be played tomorrow.   

The CeleBRation Choir and Me

I agreed to be interviewed  in order to publicize the research that is going on to see whether singing in a choir is beneficial for people with Parkinson's and people who have had a stroke.  In the case of Parkinson's people's voices may get a little indistinct and quieter, and their faces may lack expression as the condition progresses.  The main benefit in my case is the enjoyment of being part of a choir and the pleasure to be gained from singing with others and sometimes for others.  Yesterday we went to the Elizabeth Knox Home, where two of our choir members live,  to sing for the people there .
Interview in the Harbour News on the joys of singing with the CeleBRation Choir.

Crown Lynn

I found these two Kelston Nirvana plates for a dollar each in an op shop recently.   Can't remember ever having seen the delicate pohutukawa flower pattern in its heyday but it suits my desire for a change away from my usual china and former penchant for blue and white.  

The vase which belonged to my Christchurch aunt  has one of the fractionated marks,  used to indicate the type of glaze and firing method.   Our front garden is a riot of dahlia and hibiscus flower and foliage and this vase suits both.

The cat ornament belonged to Aunt Dorothy too .  Our cat Malkovich would not tolerate a red bow around his neck. 

Flowers and Fruit

Hydrangeas from my mother's garden in Orewa and bottled peaches from our Waiheke garden, not as nice as the Golden Queen peaches I have been bottling at home in Ponsonby.  I decided this year to get rid of my various collections of preserving jars  firstly as there seemed to be a market for them on Trademe and secondly those big jars of fruit  are too big for two people.   However have kept about a dozen of various sizes and colour - a couple of brown Agee Specials, the Agee Utility pint and quart size and even a couple of 2 quart ones.  Decided to use them as storage jars  for baking ingredients so their contents are more visible in my pantry.  People bought my jars but not to preserve fruit in but to use them as table decorations and vases for their vintage weddings!    

Orewa Outing

Had a social weekend with good friends Frances and Carolyn E. up at Orewa, enjoying the sun, beach and surf for a change. It has a liberating relaxing effect,I find, just hearing the sounds of nature - the waves, the crunch of shells underfoot, the screech of seagulls, not to mention the stunning visual beauty of the Eaves Bush area at the northern end of Orewa where Dieter, Carolyn and I went for a walk among spendid kauri, kahikatea and puriri trees. The main reason for the trip up north was to join other members of the Silverdale Historical Society to the small village of Mauku which I had not even heard of before. It is in the lush market garden area of Patumahoe and Pukekohe, an area I am not all that familiar with. The church is a small Selwyn Church in beautiful condition, dating back to 1862 and is situated on a small knoll, overlooking the area and has a small churchyard cemetery. It is called St Bride's and is a sister church to another St Bride's in Fleet St London whose flock of parishioners some of the original settlers in the area came from. We had an interesting talk on the church from the sexton and his wife. Nowadays the church has a congregation of 25 and is also used as a wedding venue. I was telling my neighbour in Orewa, who came from Pukekohe originally, all about the trip and the visit to the church, and she remembered her husband taking wedding photos on many occasions for bridal parties. Aftr lunch at a garden cafe we motored on to the Botanic Gardens in Manurewa to look at the sculpture exhibition, which was rather spread out over the whole gardens. Although there was a little train taking people around I had the misfortune to be sitting above a flat tyre and had to vacate my seat, so walked around in the heat and saw what I could without getting too hot and bothered. Back in Orewa in the early evening I indulged in the first of several long swims over the next 3 days to revive my drooping spirit. Later on we enjoyed a takeaway roast dinner at a picnic table overlooking the beach. Bliss.

Scrapbooks

I went to an interesting exhibition of scrapbooks, mainly old but some new, at the Central Library recently and was prompted to get out some in my own little collection. The first one is a recipe scrapbook I compiled in the 1960s using recipes in the Herald and Star and the Woman's weekly by such foodies of the day as Mary Anne and Tui Flower. I remember making the hot potato salad with frankfurters for a party with university friends, I took the same dish to a work do in the 1990s and made it again recently for a birthday buffet. In the 70s I added some new recipes and stuck in recipes I had enjoyed at friends' houses in the days when entertaining meant a dinner party. There is beetroot and apple salad, Syrian fruit salad and glazed ham (serves 10-12!!). I never made that I must admit, not feeling up to catering for the multitudes. The next little book down is mainly handwritten recipes in 2 different handwriting. The book belonged to my aunt Dorothy but I think my grandmother wrote in most of the recipes for staples such as shortbread, orange tea cake, ginger crunch and blackcurrant jam which includes raspberries as well. Sounds delicious and I am sorry that my blackcurrant jam always comes out of a jar from the supermarket. Although the little book has sections for fish, vegetables, entrees etc only recipes for cakes and biscuits were written in. That's what women used recipes for - for the other things they would have used their imagination to a large extent. I know my mother did. Here again I have appropriated the unused pages for my own recipes and stuck in a few from magazines. I was delighted to find a recipe for apricot and bran loaf which I made in 1974 when I was living in Hamilton. I will make it again soon with some plump bright orange dried apricots from Central Otago, I have in the cupboard. The next scrapbook is one I made in the 1980s or 1990s after a bookmaking course at Art Station. At this time I had saved all Eli's initial artwork from the time she was a toddler. At the same time motherhood had sparked my own creative juices and I was making things which complemented hers. So I interleaved pages of her art with blank pages for photos, woven or dyed samples, strands of coloured handspun yarn and the like. The page I have open shows some of the yarn and part of a painting by E. The last scrapbook is a travel one from the early 1970s. The trip was by car to Scandinavia right up to Finland. I bought some of this lovely cutlery which I still use, in Copenhagen. I loved the natural scenery in Scandinavia, especialy the trees and lakes but also the decorative arts, the architecture, folk music and food, frightfully expensive I remember. The book is handmade and bound in red cloth by Karin, a librarian in Wolfsburg with whom I worked. She was a very creative person and made beautiful things over the years some of which I ws lucky to receive as presents - a batik angel which goes up on the wall at Christmas time and cane coasters, a polished wood paperknife are some that spring to mind. But I digress. I will stop here as the paragraphing is not working on this post so I apologize for the mass of text .

Holiday Mode

January has come and gone and with it a most memorable trip to the Bay of Islands with old friends Marlene and Eileen, visitor from Western Australia! We motored up with Marle at the wheel, stopping for refreshments at Orewa at the Gabb abode. After a short walk along the beach for old time's sake in the case of the other two we carried on to Whangarei stopping there at the

harbour area for a picnic lunch and look at the art work in the gallery close by, housed in a lovely old villa. Browsed the craft shops without succumbing this time, as far as I remember. Our destination was the stunning holiday house of the Brown's , high above Opua Harbour with a tranquil view below, ferry plying its way to the Russell side of the harbour every half hour or so, yachts and boats sailing in and out or moored there, creating a wonderful mesmerizing scene to relish and remember. Collapsed in a heap with a cup of tea then helped with (or not) with the meal preparation, before enjoying the evening in luxury accomodation.