The Lockdown GangSTARS still going

Morning All

I'm just popping in briefly to say that I may not be around for a bit. Feeling rather shell shocked and not good. We did vanish off in the Camperbubble for a few days out of reach of Wi-fi to take our minds off the waiting for results, but now we've had it confirmed that DH has bone marrow cancer. A rather aggressive one apparently. Chemo starts next week. So, I'm not feeling very chatty at present. Hopefully the chemo will slow things down and two years is a possibility - although unlikely. Christmas would be good. So, if you don't hear from me, you'll know why. XX

Oh no! Poor dear BJ . Serious worries. But you have been sent home? What will happen now ? Were you medicated?

Kaimoana what a wonderful time you have had. I am so happy for you.
Spring is Springing.

Unfortunately here we are in need of happy news and I need to switch off the radio.

Just in from hospital down the line...ambulance in with heart rate of 37. Nurse (good Kiwi sheila says (warning-avert your eyes from kiwi colloquialism) "Your pulse is slow as buggery."

I hadn't realised Ronaldsay sheep were exclusively on seaweed.

~*~ Cherry ! Grand to see you posting, soft cwtchs to you and to Nortsat who sounds as if she needs them.

Jan your poor DH, I feel so sorry for him and you, it must be a worry but at least you are getting the care now.

BJ How are you two fairing?

Doodle I'm convinced if you manage to get the goldfish bowl shape, a few stitches here and there will pull it into a cat's head and the ears will do the rest. You can do it! don't lose heart.

Whanau Day was great. My transport didn't turn up at 8:30 as promised but whoopee I got a taxi at 11:30 and the driver was lovely and prepared to take me and dgs anywhere we need in the school hols.

Actually, I was quite glad to miss the very big crowds who got there early for the free food.

There were the usual food stalls and caravans you see at any festival and we could have as much kai as we wanted. I was given a massive steak sandwich but as I don't eat bread or red meat, passed it on.

Did have a free ice cream though and some hot chocolate. Brought my fresh fruit home.

Ruth arrived at Whanau Day only minutes before it closed. Everyone knew I'd been taken home and by whom, so she just followed and we had a very productive couple of hours over tea and home-made shortbread, sorting out this new tenancy with SA Wellington. Papers should arrive next week.

The dog lady also emailed, she's coming on Thursday.

There were all sort of jollities today: games for all ages and towards the end when thing were quieter, even the Nannies (affectionate name for us older ladies) had a go at hula hooping www.facebook.com/waiwhanau/videos/83938
4450556830

Many freebies for children, toys and board games and…. face painting . This big kid had a wonderful day.

Oh dear yes Hans is still testing positive. He keeps to his room and works on his dissertation. I met him in the kitchen making himself breakfast at about 12 noon and he came through for supper this evening and ate plenty!!!!

I can't believe poor Mark the cat has the head of a goldfish bowl Doodle How big is it!

Lovely to hear from Cherry and all of us thinking about the Lobstars we don't see very often. I hope Nortsat is OK.

Kaimoana I like the sound of family day. Hope Ruth enjoys the outing. Hope the tenancy gets sorted soon.
Grammaretto hmm Hans doesn’t seem to have been much help at all. I hope he’s not stringing you along. Yes I imagine Gerda will sort him out. Let’s just hope she doesn’t come down with Covid too.
Ooh Cherry how lovely to hear from you. Of course you are thought of and with much affection too. You will always be part of our gang. Sorry things are still difficult for you.
We miss you being with us too. Take care and a big cwtch x
Jan been a bit nippy down south too. Heating may well be going on soon. Sorry your DH has so many areas to deal with. Can’t be pleasant for him. That’s a long round trip especially in winter. Hope things are ok.
The rate I’m going the crochet cat will be version 10 at least. TEmporary setback in that I’ve run out of wool and I’m not even half way through. As the pattern just requires one ball of each colour I am now even more convinced that the wool I’ve got isn’t the right one although the name is the same. I will order some more and see how it goes. Cat head has now moved on from being like a lace doily to a goldfish bowl shape. I cannot imagine how it will end up but I will plod on.
I have just looked at your photo. ?. That’s amazing! Can’t believe it’s knitting. What a talented lady and 92 as well…….. I wonder if she’d do my cat for me ?
Nortsat sorry to hear you are not too well. Hope you are ok.
Boadicea hope things are ok for you too.
Early night for me Church tomorrow and at last the window cleaner is coming. I may be able to see outside again ?
Sleep well all. X

Hasn't she just! It is amazing.
My plain square- oh well.

There was some great knitting at Dunfermline Abbey Church when I visited. It was done by a team of people women showing the daily life of the Monks in the 13th century.
And then there is a knitted teapot...

Briefly. Jan I hope you don't mid but because I couldn't see that knitted palace you posted but really wanted to, I looked it up. Margaret Seaman has created something spectacular.

www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-norfolk-57334420

https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202209/medium-467986-5104b120-ab8e-4868-9ecd-ac73dcab1fde.jpeg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202209/medium-898931-2e4b1004-496b-41c8-9076-00175259173f.jpeg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202209/medium-599497-cfa22dcf-811e-4500-be4d-74a4bed27dd3.jpeg

Doodle your next project! The lady who knits these is 92!

Hello. Lovely to hear from CherryCezzy Of course we miss you and fingers crossed that those deviilish demons soon pack their bags. Really hope you too are finding some fun and laughter.
Funny time of year really. Think summer has gone now. It’s turned quite cold here in Norfolk and we have had to turn the heating on a few times - shock horror! It’s actually turned out to be a lovely afternoon now - really sunny but with a cold wind.
DH had a hospital trip today. He gets loads of precancerous sun damage on his face and back. Dermatologist dug part of one out this morning and he’s now waiting for another appt to have 2 more sorted one of which may require radiotherapy. That will mean a 90 mile round trip each day to Norwich as our hospital doesn’t have a radiotherapy dept. As you can imagine that’s a bit of a drag especially now winter is on its way.
Kaimoana Hope you have a great time at your family get together - sounds great fun. Funny isn’t it how in photos taken a long while ago everyone always looks so stern! Not a smile between them! Almost as if they are waiting for more than a birdie to pop out of the camera!
Grammaretto. Think your Hans is enjoying your comfy bed too much! Has he got rid of your stash of Lemsips?! Is he eating? In my experience if a man is eating he’s ok!!
Hope Nfk and her DH are ok. Seems a long time since she posted but expect she’s busy.
Doodle Can’t wait to see Mark 5 or maybe 6 or 7! Think I would have given up by now! No patience that’s me! There’s a lady in our village who makes the most amazing pillar box toppers. The last one was a very clever Jubilee one but sadly that’s been taken down now. Expect there will soon be a Halloween one. There is also another lady -who doesn’t live here but not far away - who knits Royal Palaces complete with people. Will try and find a photo to send.
BJ really hope you and Mr BJ are soon feeling better and you get your appt with your Cardiologist. So scary to be kept waiting.
Hope all missing friends are just busy or maybe gone to sunnier warmer climes. Take care All

Hello all
I'm still lurking about, just haven't been feeling that I can post. Too many daemons lurking with me.
It's so lovely to know that I'm still thought of with affection by some of you who've been part of the Lockdown Gang since Doodle's first thread. ? to you Doodle ??.
I do miss chatting with you.
Sending love & cwtches (alphabetically) especially to you Doodle, Grammaretto and Kaimoana ???
I hope that the other LobStars, Jan, Missedout, Muse, Nfk are muddling on are as well as can be and fitting in some fun and laughter along the way, ?, that you Boadicea is soldiering on as best you can at the moment ?, I hope too that others who were with us along the way (and occasionally pop by like ixion) like*dragonfly*, Marydoll, Nortsat (who last I heard wasn't too good, ?x for you) and Panache are ticking along well in their own lives xxx
I hope I haven't missed any Lovely LobStars out x

North Ronaldsay sheep can't survive on grass.
I would need a constant supply of seaweed. We did have a sheep with her twin lambs on our lawn one Summer. Freddy and Freda were the lambs. We had a goat once too. I'm off down memory lane.....
Hans hasn't come for breakfast and says he's not better. may well be extending his stay
Gerda will sort him out. Thanks Kaimoana

Well done on Mark 5 Doodle I can't wait to meet him

I've had 2 letters from the council about my council tax.
I can't understand them. I think I m being charged for the lodgers, backdated to last March. Hey ho. I wish I had a brain for accounting. can you crochet one for me Doodle I'm sure they will extract the cash from my account whatever I do.
Off to finish my square.

You are SO funny Doodle I sit here giggling away. If the neighbours didn't already think I was a bit doo-lally they would by now.

I love the idea of Grammaretto having a sheep in the garden; they look beautiful.

I hoper Girda can take care of Hans. I'm sure he's faking so he can stay longer.

I am going to a Family Day tomorrow. Another of those big get-togethers with all sorts of things for all ages and lots of delicious free food.

I've invited the Chaplain and she's going to meet me there and we can have a chat. Perhaps she can hurry-up this tenancy thing.

No word from the Dog Lady but fine by me. I feel a bit more confident since I did the city walk.
At least it's not timed

P.s. Mark has nearly half a head now. Increasing all done. Now all I have to do is master the decreasing and we’ll be well on the way. I an having problems visualising how this round doily thing is going to turn into a head but we will wait and see. ?
Sleep well all

grammaretto perhaps you should have got your new helper to bring a sheep with her. You could have kept it in the garden and had your own supply of wool on hand. Just think how many squares you could knit then.
Hans could end up prolonging his illness with you and Brunhilde both waiting on him ?. I might send Jeeves over to get Hans cleaning the silver.

images.app.goo.gl/hfy6SQNvPUbBd1Yd7
If I have the right link, these are the sheep

Hello lovelies,

Another fab photo of strong women ancestors Kaimoana

Poor Mark Doodle he gets unravelled so often, he will have an inferiority complex.

I have done half my square! It's pink. I could only find pink wool and very plain though I could sew flowers on it if I could be bovvered

Hans got up for dinner but he has been in bed all day. What will we call the next helper? She's also German . She's been before and says she's unlikely to catch covid because people with her blood group don't get it and she'll help me look after Hans!
I had hoped she'd bring me some wool from North Ronaldsay, where she has been. But alas she has now left there. The sheep live on seaweed and are similar to prehistoric sheep.

The performance sounded wonderful Kaimoana but a shame you had a long walk
When is dog inspection happening?
Night night all.
We can see Jupiter tonight if we are lucky.

Grammaretto crochet cat has been unravelled again. At this rate I’m thinking of giving my DGD a ball of wool and telling her to do it herself?. I have come to the conclusion that the cotton yarn suggested in the pattern isn’t the one I’m using although it has the right name. According to the label on the yarn the tension square is twice the size of that indicated in the pattern. I haven’t given up but if the cats head isn’t right then the rest of it won’t matter. Mark number 5 coming up?
Busy day today. Taking down curtain rails, not we’ve got the blinds I’m doing away with the curtains. Been to the charity shop with 2 pairs of now unused curtains. They won’t take the rails so we went to the recycling place with those and some other bits. Finally managed to get the usb cable in the blinds to charge them up again.
Glad Hans is feeling better. Not sure he’s being much of a help though. Well at least it’s Lemsip he’s addicted to and not your best whisky ?. You will probably have knitted enough squares for a big blanket by the time crochet cat is completed.
Kaimoana formidable I think is the word I’d use for great grandma. Wouldn’t want to cross her. ? What a lovely photo to have though.
So pleased you enjoyed your show. Food too, that’s nice.
Hurrah for the walking lady. Well done for your long walk.
Yes lots of missing stars including the lovely Cherry ?. Hope everyone is ok.

Poor Grammaretto right in the middle of a maelstrom. Hold on, kia kaha, even they pass.

Loved your Bullocky photo BJ; how hard farmers worked in those days.

My great-grandma ploughed behind two gigantic shire horses and as you can see, she was a pretty strong lady herself.

Here she is outside the farm, surrounded by her daughters and spouses.
My Mum, who grew up on that farm is the baby on her Mum's knee, far right, with Papa (ex-King's Own Scottish Borderers) behind.

I have to smile when I look at this - some of them look so gormless but photography in rural Yorkshire was very unusual in those days. To get a chap up to the farm and set all this up for the whole family, must have taken some doing.

Expensive too as they also had A3 sized framed copies made - it must have cost a lot of hard-earned pounds to 'squander' on a photo in 1918.

The show yesterday was fabulous, Doodle
Rutene Spooner has a fabulous voice and the story of Maui was beautifully modernised and in a relevant way.
He got a standing ovation at the end.
Sadly, the 15 ticket (5 added to the original 10) were not all taken up by our group. They missed a great, free performance and lots of lovely food.

Incidentally, because our driver was new to the city, she dropped us off in the municipal car park instead
of the Accessibility Point at the theatre.
We had a long, long walk to the Civic - far longer than my 'dog walk' will be - but I made it and back.

Love to all our missing Stars and our joint-Founder, Cherry.
Can you please find me some new joints?

You make me chuckle Doodle you must have been using that remote for the blinds like a game for the battery to wear out so soon!
One woman's excuse for missing the party was her electric bike ran out of battery so she had to go home and charge it
Aren't people funny
Hans has discovered Lemsip in my medicine chest aka top shelf in kitchen cupboard and thinks it's great. He's feeling a bit better ☺️.
I may have to put off the next helper who is due at the end of the week. I have told her German girl about Hans also my son may not want to come back to this house of sickness. It's all turned out a bit tricky unlike your crochei cat who is growing daily. I shall have to knit my square soon.
Sorry I'm rabbiting on.
Jeeves!! A nice ginger tea for me and an early night

Kaimoana I followed your link and I agree beautiful ceilings.
Sorry you missed the performance through technical issues.
Hope your trip yesterday was more successful.
I know it’s not what you went to see but your post reminded me of Thoroughly Modern Millie. I remember seeing that years ago.
Baodicea no need to shuffle in here or be shamefaced. You have a lot to cope with recently. So nice to have you with us.
Glad MrBJ is making you rest. You need to take care of yourself until this heart issue is resolved. You can sit and do your ancestry without a guilty conscience over the housework ?
What an amazing photo. You come from a long line of strong women.
Grammaretto no I think you said you thought Hans might have Covid. Oh no. That’s the last thing you need. He’s only just arrived. Glad it didn’t stop you going on your trip. Hope you enjoyed it. Love the quote. ?
Hope Hans isn’t going to be a problem.
Crochet cat is coming along. I find it’s a bit like my sewing. With the sewing I unpick a lot and with the crochet I unravel a lot. ? Hope everyone has a good night’s sleep.
DH has just informed me out electric blind in the bathroom has now stopped working. The battery must need recharging……..now where did I put the instructions? ?

I love the photo of the cowgirl/ bullock driver Boadicea You do indeed have remarkable forebears.

I hope all Lobstars are present and correct and not suffering from ailments.
I did say that Hans has covid, didn't I.
He has been resting and is apologetic. He can't help being ill
but when I suggested he may want to leave early and return home to be looked after by mutter
this did not go down well.

I was tired after my long bus journey and from having little sleep. The party was wonderful but went on way past midnight.
The party girl had a funny message in a card.
When you are young you sneak out of bed to go to a party
When old you sneak out of the party to go to bed

(Shuffling in shamefacedly) Hello everyone. I'm so impressed by the energy and hard work of you all. So sorry to hear about your various health issues and hope you are all taking care of yourselves.
Contrary to how it looked, no, I did not consume the entire bottle of The McAllan - heaven forfend! MrJ and I had a tot -just one-to send the good lady to her rest. I've been having lots of heart problems and so have been taking it very easy - I have no choice when MrJ puts on his Chiefy voice. Doc still hasn't heard from cardiologist, and I foolishly forgot to tell her that I'd had covid while in Australia, so it isn't on my records - I suspect a link, maybe. In the meantime, it's chair time, and doing lots of family history. Another 3rd cousin, again in Devon, popped up on Ancestry and he has lots of interesting papers and things to help fill in gaps.
Here's a picture of my Scots/Welsh grandmother with her bullock team. About 1929. She loved those patient, long-suffering beasts - no wonder, as they were as hard-working and tolerant as she, with 7 kids and a husband gassed on the Somme. Lady bullockies were very rare, as you can imagine.

https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202209/medium-726913-mauii-sun.jpg https://www.gransnet.com/uploads/talk/202209/medium-198372-maui-te-po.jpg

I hope you have a good weekend away Grammaretto Don't worry about your helper, I'm sure he's capable of looking after him self. Just enjoy your break.

I went to another digital performance last night, of the NZ film 'Fever'.
We gathered for chat in the foyer beforehand and that was lovely - several people I knew turned up. Then 2 minutes before the film, there was a technical glitch and we were logged off.
Several of us missed the movie completely. We are to be refunded.

Today I'm going to the same place in the city but live this time, not digitally.

I LOVE this place and if you take the Accessible Tour you will see why.

Pause every time you click and look up (by mouse or swipe) at the ceilings and around you at all the wonderfully ornate architecture.

No worries about transport being provided this time - I hope.
Ten of us were given free tickets to the show, Thoroughly Modern Maui.

Maui is the Trickster God of Maori and Polynesian legend who provided humans with fire, fished up the North Island, slowed the sun and much more.
He would have made us immortal had it not been for the cheeky Piwaiwaka (fantail) laughing at him.

This musical comedy is an up-to-date imagining.

Winter Garden Tour:
s3-ap-southeast-2.amazonaws.com/aucklandlive/Accessibility_Civic/Civic_AccessabilityTour.html?utm_source=launch&utm_medium=website&utm_campaign=AVT-Civic

Ooh Kaimona that’s a pair of legs if ever I saw one (or should that be two ?) . Love those striped socks.
What a shame the transport let you down. Yet another disappointment. I am sorry you are still hanging on wondering about your home. Not very nice of them.
Sorry to hear Anna is having problems. Hope things are ok for her in the new role. Hope you had a lovely time together.
Hmmm Grammaretto you didn’t sign up for this. I sincerely hope Hans doesn’t have Covid. You must certainly go and enjoy your weekend. Sorry I’ve missed it somewhere about where you are going. Is it family or friends. No presents is always a tricky one. Bottle of wine, box of chocs?
Hope you have a good time whatever.
Mark 3 is progressing well. He now has one stripe. Many more to go. ?