Archives for August 2021

I did do the Post Shop and grocery run this morning on my trusty two wheeled steed.  I needed to post my letters to my grand-daughters and also post Rafer’s birthday present.  Nothing unusual there until it came time to pay the postage for Rafer’s present.  The cost of postage far out weighed the cost of the present.  I don’t mind paying for good service, but not when sending anything across the ditch seems to take forever!  I’m going to note how many weeks it takes.  There was a time when posting across the ditch would be a matter of days – now it’s a matter of weeks!!  From my experience I can send things to Ireland quicker than to Australia.  Seems crazy.  Has anyone else had this experience?

With that job done and still getting over the shock of the cost of postage, it was then onto PAK’nSAVE – until I saw the queue!!  “Oh where is there a good café?” I thought to myself – that would make this trip so much more pleasurable.   Thank goodness Countdown was just across the round-about and with no queue.

Lovely surprise cycling home

With my panniers full it was home time.  Called in to have a quick chat with Denise – making sure we kept our distance.  Then off cycling along the river path and cycleway – which is always a pleasure.  Passed a couple of large patches of daffodils just starting to flower – always makes me smile.  Peddling up the little hill from Cobham Drive bridge my day got a whole lot better when over to the right amongst the trees, I saw two familiar figures out walking their beloved dog Doogie.  Ollie and Vicky my ex-next-door neighbours.  It was soo good catching up with them – the conversation and connection lifted my spirits, thank you Ollie and Vicky.

Paralympics Swimming

This afternoon I watched Sophie Pascoe swim 100m breaststroke – what a beautiful swimmer.  She came 2nd in her heat by 400th of a second and is racing in the medal race tonight.

After her event was the mixed  4 x 50 m freestyle relay.  What a fascinating event this was.  Each team had to have two women and two men and their impairment category couldn’t add up to any more than 20 points.  Each competitor has an impairment category, the lower the category number the greater the impairment. While it was a freestyle event, swimmers could use any stroke they liked, some swimmers had no arms so they were lying on their back and moving their legs up and down together – bit like a dolphin; others had one arm, or one leg, some dived into the pool, other swimmers started in the pool, all depending on their impairment.  It was a great watch and so interesting.

I’ve never had the opportunity to watch the Paralympics before and very thankful that I can now.  Mind you the viewing times are ideal for us here in New Zealand, only five hours difference.  Have any of you been involved with or supported a Paralympian?  They seem to be very focused and determined people not letting their impairment stop them from achieving their goals –  quite inspirational.

Family Favourite – Patricia’s Lemon Spaghetti

I can vouch for Patricia’s lemon spaghetti, it is delicious.  A simple dish with not many ingredients.  The pasta is only lightly coated in a sauce.

• 350g  dried spaghetti*
• juice of 2 large lemons
• 50g butter
• 150ml fresh cream
• 100g grated, Parmesan cheese
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 tblspns finely chopped parsley

1. Cook spaghetti in rapidly boiling, salted water.
2. As pasta cooks put lemon juice, butter and cream into a saucepan, bring to a boil, drop heat and simmer for a few minutes.
3. Stir in salt and pepper to taste.
4. Drain pasta, return to pan, mix lemon sauce through the pasta, stir in cheese and parsley and serve immediately.

Dingbats

Are these dingbats getting easier?  They are book titles.  See below for answers.

COVID Update

These are the numbers as at 9 am, 26 August, 2021.   Still increasing!

Dingbat answers

1. The Witches
2. Little Women
3. Farewell to Arms
4. Kidnapped

How was your day?

How was your day nine today?  What did you get up to today?

That is it until tomorrow night.  Take care out there – GoldCard Gal 🙂

Neighbourhood scenes

This afternoon as I was emptying my compost bin and spreading it around my gardens I snapped the odd photograph or two.

“Start Your Impossible”

That is the tag line for NZ Olympic and Paralympic teams.  When you hear some of the athletes stories it makes sense.  The Paralympics had their opening ceremony last night (not that I watched it) but I did watch some swimming and track cycling this afternoon.  The swimming this afternoon was the women’s 100 m backstroke.  I didn’t hear the impairment the s had, but the commentators did say they didn’t have use of their body below their mid-drift even though they have their legs.  They could only swim using their shoulders and arms.  At the start of their race they were on their backs and each swimmer had an attendant who held their feet against the end of the pool until the gun went off.  It was incredible to see how fast they could move their individual arms, and couple of the swimmers used both their arms at the same time which was acceptable.

Then I watched a couple of New Zealand women competing in the 3000m individual pursuit on the cycling track.  Anna Taylor came 5th.  Some of the cyclists had only one leg and raced at incredible speeds (40 + km p/h) and power, some had an artificial leg, others brain injuries. An American cyclist Clara Brown had a gymnastic accident several years ago and suffered an major injury – now can’t feel the left side of her body.  Imagine living with that let alone riding a bike!  The Paralympics are live on Duke all day.  If you get a chance do have a look, the people are inspirational.  Imagine the hardships they have had to overcome over the years.  Sophie Pascoe is swimming tomorrow afternoon and wheelchair rugby is on, NZ vs Great Britain.

The Difference between Olympics and Paralympics

Thanks to the “Press Las Vegas” this article explains the differences between the two Olympic competitions and how they classify impairments.

At the Olympics, in most sports competitors are grouped by gender and/or weight class.

At the Paralympics, classifications are a way for organisers to group like-with-like athletes, so people of roughly equivalent levels of impairment — or roughly equal functional ability — can compete together fairly.

Classifications are eligible to be assigned to a range of physical, vision and intellectual impairments.  To read more check out this article.

Family favourite recipe – Barb’s Lemon Cake

When Barb and Pats are entertaining Barb regularly makes this delicious lemon cake.  I had hoped to make one today, but …..

Ingredients:

• 1¾ cup of sugar
• 2 lemons
• 2 eggs
• 1 cup canola oil (or something similar)
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 cup plain / Greek yoghurt
• 2 – 3 tbsp lemon juice
• 2 cups of self-raising flour

Method:

1. Process sugar and lemon zest
2. Add oil, eggs, salt and process
3. Mix in yoghurt, lemon juice and flour
4. Bake 180^c for approximately  50 min – 1 hour.
5. When cool ice with butter icing or simply dust with icing sugar and serve with either yoghurt or whipped cream.

Update to Rosie’s blade steak dish: the soup should have read ‘concentrated’ tomato soup not  ‘condensed’ tomato soup.  The recipe has been updated.

Pruning Hydrangeas tips and tricks

As promised here is a handout in PDF format for Hydrangea PRUNING.  Thank you Jan for sharing your knowledge and expertise. I gave one of my hydrangea bushes a prune this afternoon – here is the before and after.  Bring on the summer!

Daily Dingbats

Here is something to get you thinking differently.  See answers below.

COVID results for today

I don’t listen to the daily 1 pm broadcast with Dr Ashley Bloomfield and Chris Hipkins and I wonder if you are the same?.  Hence I’m putting the daily results here.  As I said yesterday it’s mainly for historical record purposes.

Answers to Dingbats

1. Bad spell of weather
2. An inside job
3. Back seat driver
4. Nothing to worry about

Thank you for your comments and feedback today, they are appreciated.  🙂  That is it, trust you are keeping fit, well and happy!  Don’t forget to share this post.  Take care out there – GoldCard Gal 🙂

Neighbourhood scenes

These are the scenes I saw this morning while out walking.

NZ Covid status

It occurred to me today that I should be recording the daily COVID totals for record purposes.  Here is NZ’s status as at 9am, 24 August, 2021.  COVID-19: Current cases | Ministry of Health NZ .

Is this something you want to know or should I put these details at the bottom of my post.  Suggestions welcomed.

It’s been a week

It has been a week since we started this lockdown, how are you coping?  If you are feeling a little bored or out-or-sorts and in need of a good laugh I recommend you watch the “COVID 19 1,000 m sprint” if you haven’t seen

My morning started with a ‘What’s App’ conversation with Rafer as he was driving up to the Gold Coast on a delivery run.  We chat every Tuesday morning, and it has become one of the many highlights of my week.  Byron Bay is still in lockdown and Rafer is deemed as an essential worker.  Tracy, Phil and the girls are also in lockdown in Drake, this is their second week.

After a light breakfast it was off for a bike ride to check out the neighbourhood, admire and appreciate the country side, and enjoy that wonderful sense of freedom.  Today’s ride was a rarity: virtually no wind or motorists – a cyclist’s dream.

Thank you for your comments, very much appreciated.  I do enjoy reading about what you are up to?  So don’t be shy!

Family favourite recipe – Rosie’s Blade Steak Dish

Thank you Carly for this recipe.  Rosie, Carly’s mum used to make this popular family dish back in the 70’s and it is a still awell-liked family dish today.

Rosie’s Blade Steak Dish from the 1970s for 4

1. 4 pieces of blade steak tossed in flour and pepper and salt
2. Lay these pieces on the bottom of a baking dish
3. Cover with sliced onions and carrots
4. Pour over one tin of concentrated tomato soup, rinse out the tin and add half a tin of water
5. Top with pineapples rings, reserve the juice for later.
6. Bake in a moderate oven for 2 hours, the meat should be tender, if you think the sauce needs thickening add 1 tbsp of cornflour to the remaining pineapple juice and stir through dish, bake for a further 5 mins.

Dingbats

Thank you for your feedback regarding the dingbats.  Glad you are enjoying them and finding them challenging.  Hint: tonight’s ones are book titles.

Please share

One of the topics Rafer and I discussed this morning was how to increase the readership of my blog. Rafer suggested I ask you to share the posts if you have enjoyed reading them.  All you need to do is click on one of the social media buttons and follow the instructions.  Thank you 🙂

Hydrangea lovers

When you are reasonably sure the danger of heavy frosts have past, it is the time to start pruning your hydrangeas. Tomorrow night I have a treat for you.  Jan, a regular contributor to my blog and hydrangea expert has very generously provided me with some tips and tricks for pruning them.

Answers to dingbats

1. The Time Traveller’s Wife
2. Under Milkwood
3. Passage to India
4. The Great Gatsby

That is it for tonight, trust you’ve had a great day!  Take care out there – GoldCard Gal 🙂

Neighbourhood scenes

Carly and I both decided independently today was the day to be out and about on our bikes, and these are some of the scenes we saw.

It seems a couple of weeks ago my bedroom was in total darkness when my radio alarm turned-on.  Now I hear the tui singing its morning chorus and see the morning light filtering through the drapes.  The daylight hours are getting longer – isn’t it energising to know spring is on its way?  What is your favourite season?

I love this quote from Robin Williams about spring;

Spring is natures way of saying “let’s party!”

Monday is my day off – meaning no walking or cycling activity is undertaken.  It’s been a day of catching up on small jobs that I’ve neglected over the past week or so.  Finally written to my grand-daughters – now just need to post their letters.  I’ve been amazed at how much I’ve achieved today and feeling very pleased with myself.  I’m even starting to write this post several hours earlier than I normally do.  What have you been up to today?

Yesterday I neglected to mention that my brother Les and his wife Carol arrived home safely in Cromwell.  The only issue being the locked-up public toilets, but no more police road checks.  They were pleased to be finally home safe and well.  Quite an adventure for them both.

Foot-body connection

Recently I have had orthotics made and currently in the process of ‘breaking my feet in’ so to speak.  Which in itself is nothing unusual but to get an email newsletter from a magazine I subscribe to about foot-body connection was not only a coincidence but very relevant.  While most of us know but perhaps we don’t often think about it, that foot-body connection is vitally important as it affects our balance and alignment.  The article went on to say according to ACC Statistics NZ in 2018 injuries from falling represent a whopping 39% of all ACC claims and cost New Zealanders $1.1 billion – huge eh?  Body mechanics are of interest to me and I found this article informative.  To read it and get an over-view of the foot-body connection click on the article Get It Straight.  Let me know your thoughts about the article and if you have and use orthotics, what impact have they had on your feet and body alignment.

Don’t loose your garden trowel again

In The Waikato Times in the Homed section, there was an article titled “Tips from old hands to newbies”.  It mentioned about the spraying of neon spray paint onto the handles of trowels and spades as it helps locating them during garden clean-ups.  I’ve lost several little ‘wonder weeders’, only to turn up some months later in the compost heap or lost forever probably in the green waste bag.  Perhaps if I’d sprayed them I would not have lost them?

Dingbats

I haven’t had much response to the dingbats, do you enjoy them? Here are another four for you to solve, remember they are common sayings.  See answers below.

A bit of humour

Thank you Floss for providing me with a good laugh this morning.  Check it out here – for “Covid 19 1,000 m sprint”.

Dingbat answers

1. The invisible man
2. A man 4 all seasons
3. Dr Doolittle
4. Cat in the hat

Oh well, we’re in lockdown until at least Friday mid-night – perhaps we may get some reprieve for the weekend??  That is it for day six, take care out there – GoldCard Gal 🙂

Neighourhood scenes

Today’s scenes are from Jan’s picturesque garden – thank you Jan.

Do you remember the weather we had during the last lockdown?  It was autumn and we experienced many sunny warm days.  Today reminded of that time.  While out on my training walk this morning I continued listening to Burt Bacharach’s life story.  I especially enjoyed hearing about the stories behind the songs: Rain drops keep fallin’ on my head; What the world needs now is love; I say a little prayer; A house is not a home; to name a few.  How Burt and Hal David came to work and record with Dionne Warwick.  It has been a trip down memory lane, I really loved that music and have so many happy memories.  In actual fact I have got the music playing in the background.  Herb Alpert was another favourite of mine and I didn’t realise he also played and sung a couple of Burt and Hal’s song “This guy’s in love with you”.  Oh I’ve got distracted tonight, busy watching and listening to Burt and Dionne’s videos.

What I was going to say about this morning while out walking was seeing so many people out on their bikes enjoying the warm sunshine and having fun.  And people walking their dogs.  The thought crossed my mind why don’t we see this more often?  Guess it could be – people just get busy!  What are your thoughts?

Thank you for your comments and feedback.  Carly sent me a photo of her two little fish and chips tops – they’re beautiful Carly and to think a new born will benefit from your generosity.

Brain teasers also known as dingbats

How did you get on last night with the brain teasers, did you manage to work them out?  Here is another four for tonight – they are sayings.  Answers at the bottom of this post.

Family favourite – Peter’s chocolate self-saucing pudding

Thank you for Susan for one of your family favourites.  Peter is Susan’s brother and when they were growing up on their farm on the Kaimai’s Peter used to eat 13 Weetbix for breakfast!  He did grow up to be quite tall – 6′ 4″!

Sift together:

• 1 cup flour
• 2 tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt

Add

• ¾ cup sugar
• 1 tblsp cocoa

Mix with ½ cup milk, 1 tsp vanilla and 2 tbsp melted butter then pour into a buttered dish.

Mix together ¾ cup sugar and 1 tblsp cocoa.  Sprinkle over above mixture and pour over top 2 cups of boiling water.

Bake 40 mins in moderate oven.  Serve with ice cream.

If you have a got a large family gathering  (40 – 50 people) perhaps you could try this version of the above chocolate self-saucing pudding. Susan used this recipe for 13 years when she took her students out to stay at a Marae near Kawhia.

Sift together:

• 10 cups flour
• 20 tsp baking powder
• 5 tsp salt

Add

• 7½ cups sugar
• 10 tblsp cocoa

Mix with 5 cups milk, 10 tsp vanilla and 20 tblsp melted butter and pour into large buttered dish.

Mix together 7½ cups sugar, 10 tblsp cocoa. Sprinkle over above mixture and pour over top 20 cups of boiling water.

Depending on the size of the dish will depend on how long to cook it.  It will take longer than the smaller version – an hour plus. Serve with ice cream.

Quote for today:

 “You don’t stop having fun when you get old. You get old when you stop having fun.”
Anonymous

Dingbat answers

1. Silence is golden
2. Scrambled eggs
3. A drop in the ocean
4. 3 wise men

I will sign off tonight listening to Dionne singing “That’s what friends are for”, quite relevant I think.  Take care – GoldCard Gal 🙂

Neighbourhood scenes

If you have any pictures you would like to share, even if it is from your garden, I would appreciate receiving them.  Don’t be shy!