A Rose by any other name...(don't know the rest)

This one was for the chop, until it put out a rose, now, how could I get rid of such a beauty?

Heidi, feeding the Dog!

How would you like this one for a pet?   This is a Bronze statue of one of the dogs they had chained up across the neck dividing Port Arthur from the 'mainland' so that the convicts would think twice about excaping.   Friendly little fellow, isn't he?

First Exhibition!

Heidi and her group of Chinese Brush Painting friends are getting ready for their first Exhibition which opens tomorrow night.  Will keep you posted.

Who'se next for a Back Massage?

I could do with Daisy over here, as I am experiencing a bit of a back ache at the moment but now I am all wired up with the Tens machine so if I want to give myself a thrill I just turn it up a bit!

My Petunias are still bloomin' lovely!

 

Thanks to friend Heidi, who scrubbed the pots and chose the contents, the petunias have not stopped flowering.   The dark ones are particularly stunning, new this year, they are Twilight and Black Velvet.

Sunset last night.

 

and the reflection in our windows of our new little house!   You have to be quick with the sunset, it soon looks ordinary again, but last night it was particularly lovely over the hills.   Who says I am missing the water views?   Now we are enjoying the mountain and rural outlook which we have from here.

We're in the construction business!

 

 

Took a while, but we got there in the end!   Talk about "If all else fails, read the instructions!" we had it almost altogether then realised that the two side pieces were round the wrong way, so it all had to come to pieces again.   You wonder if they (the manufacturers) actually try their instructions out on a variety of people, to see just how clear (or unclear) they are, 'cos I'm sure they had made a mistake, and you know me, I'm always right (being a Virgo!!!)

and here it is, in position!

The 'Formal' Dining room! with the new little side table in the corner.

Wow!

Although I say it myself, I like the effect of the following photo of the hangmans noose, and it was all done without Photoshop too!!

Our Convict Past!

 

 

 

 

While Heidi was here we made a visit to the Penitentiary Chapel in Hobart, as we had missed out on Port Arthur!   The place was built with convict labour, and the bricks marked accordingly.   The Judge presiding on the day we were there was none other than Judge Raether, visiting from Germany, the sentence was death by hanging and then the body was dissected for medical science afterwards.  Orrible lot they were!

Q. What do you do with a whopper like this?

A. You make Pasta Bake!

and just in case you are interested, here is the recipe:

200 g risoni
40 g butter
4 spring onions, thinly sliced
400 g (or more) zucchini (courgettes to some) grated
4 eggs
125 ml pouring cream
100 g ricotta cheese (not in a tub, but fresh in a wedge!)
100 g grated mozzarella cheese (also fresh, not pre grated in a packet)
175 g grated parmesan cheese (not ready grated, do it yourself lazybones)

Preheat the oven to 180 degrees and meanwhile cook the risoni in a large saucepan of rapidly boiling salted water until al dente (11 minutes or thereabouts)   Drain well.
Melt the butter in a frying pan and saute the spring onion for l minute, then add the suzzhini and cook for a further 4 minutes and leave to cool slightly.
Put the risoni in a bowl and mix in the etggs, cream, ricotta, mozzarella and half the parmesan.   Stir in the zucchini mixture and season well.
Spoon into four 500 ml greased ovenproof dishes (I did it in one large one) and sprinkle the remaining parmesan over the top.
Bake for 25 - 30 minutes or until firm and golden.
Serve hot.

Guten Appetit, I will be doing this for my next Girls Day Lunch here, I think they will enjoy it.

Sunday last!

Grandson No. 1 (Oliver) with girlfriend Steff and Grandson No. 2 (William).   They called in to give the new house the seal of approval.

First formal evening meal in our formal dining room!!

 

 

 

and afterwards the Dishwasher got its first airing, never had a dishwasher before, can see a use for a new one in my new kitchen when it comes!

Stone Cactus

Years ago (must be at least 6) I did a short course on Cacti and  at the end of it we were all given the tiniest little stone cactus.   This is it - six years or so later - and flowering just briefly for Heidi and Karlo in its new home.

Sunrise over Margate

Heidi caught it too, even better from Margate, thanks Heidi for this.

Sunrise over Redwood Village.

This was sunrise this morning, so we don't miss out completely and it is lovely when the sun hits the mountain.

Retail Therapy!

Went shopping today and this unit just fitted the bill (and the 40 cm space between the sink and the bath!)

ello ello ello!

What's going on here then?   Actually it was a friends 70th birthday, not sure whether she intended to stab him, or cut the cake!

A sign of the times!

It was a lovely day, so we took ourselves off to the Bream Creek Show, an annual event and one which we had not been to before, and what was the first thing we saw as we went through the turnstile?   An ATM!  must say, it looked most out of place but I wonder how many people used it.

The Pumpkin Weigh - in - that is what the Bream Creek Show is most famous for.