Thursday

From time to time I get emails advising me where you can go to get a Sunday roast in and around Melbourne. A little while ago a "British style" pub in St Kilda, called The Lion and Wombat came to my attention - largely because of its name. I tried to book for a Sunday in June but they were all booked up online. This seemed odd, so I rang them. Ah. They do a Christmas in July menu on Sundays in July, which were all booked up. People had booked up June to get in before July. The first couple of Sundays in August were also booked up.

This suggests that their food is good. I put them on my list of places to go and eat. 

Lindsey wasn't working on Thursday and suggested we go out for lunch rather than dinner. Lunch is my preferred meal out but Lindsey has been busy on the past few Thursdays and we have been out for an early dinner instead. She suggested we go to "that pub in St Kilda". I pondered this and then remembered the Lion and Wombat. So we hopped on a tram and out we went.

It's very cute. Also it was quite empty when we got there at 12:15 but it doesn't open until 12 and more people came in after us

I enjoyed my cheeseburger and chips - the chips were especially good. Lindsey very much enjoyed her lamb pie and mash. It was easy to get to. The staff were friendly and helpful. I will consult the others and organise to book a Sunday lunch there.

We came back via the Bunnings in Collingwood, which is an easy stroll to Lindsey's flat and an easy tram or train ride to mine. I had intended to get some new handles for my long abandoned Kitchen Cupboard Handle project but then I thought that perhaps it would work if I bought some differently sized screws, which would be considerably cheaper. I had screws which were slightly too long or slightly too short. I took one of each with me and found some which seemed to be in between. Then Lindsey went to collect a package and I went to the nearby station to catch a train home.

The train arrived. I got on. The train went on to the next station. And stopped. For ages. Then a rather tetchy driver came on the intercom to tell us that the train could not proceed because "There are VANDALS holding a door open towards the back of the train and spraying graffiti. We cannot move until that door is closed!"  Not what I was expecting on my way home! Shortly after someone obviously sorted them out, or they got bored, or whatever, the doors closed and the train moved on.

The new screws were a perfect size and so finally, finally, finally - I have completed the Kitchen Cupboard Handle project. It took close to no time, once I had the right sized screws to work with

Much better than the manky, slightly rusty, very sorry for themselves silver ones that I replaced.

Now I might do the handles in the bathroom as well. There are only two of them  but I don't have any more here. I'll have to go back to Bunnings!

I had a quiet evening and went to bed fairly early. And that was Thursday. It was a fun day

What I Have Done Lately

I've been quite busy lately. I have done my usual Japanese classes, online on Tuesday and Saturday mornings, and in person on Wednesday evening. 

I went into work on Thursday to cover a gap in the reception roster. I needed to be there quite early. It was still dark when I left home 😩

I had dinner with Lindsey in The Quarterhouse on Thursday evening.

The mattress people came on Friday morning and I did useful things in the afternoon.

Sunset on Friday evening:

Wendy came by on Saturday and we went to the Docklands Pantry for lunch, enjoying the winter sunshine

Sunday was the Melbourne half marathon, part of which was run along Harbour Esplanade. I did not participate! But I did watch from my window. I forgot to go to the market, remembering only when it was too late. I did clean and tidy the flat, which doesn't take long, and wandered over to the outlet centre in the afternoon.

I was carefully watched by the Docklands Giraffes while I was busy at home

Brandy was also carefully watching something on Sunday afternoon. Something he was not happy about. He was yelling at it in the way he would do if there was some sort of monster, or other cat, or possum outside the window, which seemed unlikely given that we are on the 6th floor.

And this is what it was:

It's caught in a web and blows around in the wind. I can't get to it to move it. I am hoping it will blow away when next it rains properly. But it does look as though it's alive when it flutters about. I can see why Brandy was displeased by its presence.

Chris came to visit on Monday. We went over to the food hall in the outlet centre so she could indulge her wish to eat dumplings. I had intended to go to the dumpling cafe round the corner but it has closed (somewhat abruptly). It's a pity because it made exceedingly good dumplings. The Dumpling Chef in the outlet centre does ok dumplings.  We had coffee (Chris) and hot chocolate (me) after the dumplings and then went for a look around the shops before Chris caught her train back to Macedon.

The rest of this week is looking fairly quiet. Just the regular stuff, which isn't very demanding

Mattresses

If you look closely at the "before" photos of my bedroom, you will notice that there is a mattress propped up alongside the bed, next to the wall. There was also, of course, a mattress on the bed. Once I dismantled the bed, there were two single mattresses that were surplus to requirements.

If we had had the time on the Sunday when Freyja and Simon came to assemble the new bed, we would have taken them down to the hard rubbish cage but you can only do that while the concierge is there to give you the key.  There wouldn't have been time to get the key, go down twice to the basement with the mattresses and hand the key back before the concierge left on the Sunday. So we propped them up against the dresser in the living area until someone came round at an appropriate time to help carry them down.

I was a bit sad about the Koala mattress. They are quite expensive and I had only had it a few months and it was in good condition. It seemed a pity to send it to landfill but I definitely don't have space to be storing extra mattresses, especially when I really don't need them.

Then Facebook brought to my attention the Mattress Recycling Company. I looked into them, did a bit of investigating and booked for them to come on Friday, between 8 and 12 to take the Koala mattress away. If they can refresh and recondition the mattresses they send them to people in need. Otherwise they strip them down and send the component parts for recycling.

They turned up on Friday at 10:00, exactly half way in the time slot. They asked if they were taking both the mattresses. No, I've only paid for one. Was the second mattress being thrown out? Eventually, yes. Then they were happy to take two for the p[rice of one because they were short of single mattresses and would take any they could get hold of.  And so, my living space was unexpectedly free of mattresses. Excellent!

I have moved some more of the furniture around. Freyja and Simon had put the bedroom chest of drawers by the front door while we thought about things. I quite liked having something in that spot but the drawers were slightly too deep and it was difficult to get in and out of the front door. So I swapped the drawers with the bookcase that had been in the lounge area

I am very pleased with the result.

Bedroom

On Thursday morning, my bedroom looked like this:

 Then on Thursday afternoon, these arrived:

On Friday, I opened the box labeled "armchair" and assembled this:

It did not take long for the cats to find it!

On Sunday morning, my bedroom looked like this:

I can't say that I really used any of my new DIY skills, such as they are, assembling the chair. It was relatively simple. I did use some of the confidence I acquired to dismantle the bed. I also found the little tool set I bought when I started the kitchen cupboard handle project (which I really must go back to!) It  came into play when Freyja and Simon came round later on Sunday afternoon to build my new bed. 

(Let it be clearly understood that the tools I inherited from Jim are stronger, more robust and much better quality than the ones in my little tool kit. They are also much easier to use. But I do now have the smaller tap hammer that I have wanted for some time.)

On Sunday evening my bed looked like this:

And today my room has transformed into a proper, grown up bedroom:

The view from my new reading chair:

Now, if anyone would care to come around and help me restore order to my living/dining room, I would be very much obliged 😄

A (not entirely) Busy Week

As you know, I went to the IMAX on Monday, had lunch with Freyja and came home so the vet could come and visit Whiskey.

On Tuesday I went to my afternoon Japanese class. I have swapped back to the Wednesday evening from this week. Not so much because I had done the class material several times before. I do not mind doing things over again. It's good for reinforcement and understanding. Many of my online classes are repeat performances. The difference is that in the online classes the other students are also mostly doing things again and are more or less at my language level. In the face to face classes the students are doing it for the first time and are not quite at my language level. I felt as though I shouldn't say anything in class so as not to intimidate them. There is no point going to a language class if you don't feel as though you can say anything! The Wednesday evening students are not intimidated by me! I still am not going to enjoy leaving my flat in order to be in town for 5:30, but I do enjoy the classes so am just going to have to get on with it.

Wednesday was reasonably quiet. I did a bit of shopping, a bit of tidying, a bit of useful stuff.

Thursday Lindsey came round in the afternoon for a cup of tea and a natter. I made a pumpkin, miso and ginger gyoza filling and prepared the vegetables for Friday. 

On Friday, Robert, Susan, Rod and Freyja came round for lunch. Simon was working so couldn't come. We had the aforementioned gyoza, followed by chicken katsu curry (tofu for Freyja) with the vegetables and rice, followed by chocolate mud cake. It was a good afternoon but it definitely threw my day-awareness out of kilter. It had the feeling of a Sunday but nothing Sunday like was happening apart from at my dining table.

The Docklands Firelight mid-winter festival kicked off at around 5pm. I watched it from my windows.

Saturday I went to Collingwood for the planter box workshop. I had thought I might go down to the food trucks to grab some dinner but they were very busy and my back, hips, knees and feet were protesting loudly at having been made to stand up from when I left the train at 2pm until I got back on a train at 6:40. I stayed at home, wearing my nightshirt, dressing gown and slippers and had rice and leftover curry sauce and chicken instead.

Yesterday I went to the Alphington market with Lindsey, Freyja and Simon. In the afternoon Lindsey came round to check out the Firelight Festival. You could  see some of it from my windows, but not all of it. It ran along Harbour Esplanade from Collins Street to La Trobe Street and there were loads of things happening, for children, teens and adults.  Lindsey and I really enjoyed it

The weather was kind on all three evenings and the event was packed. Absolutely no chance of getting anything from the food trucks unless you were prepared for a long wait, so we went round to the Newquay Promenade, where the restaurants were also doing a roaring trade but where you could get a table. We went to the Docklands Pantry which only opened a few months ago. I've been in once before, just after it opened. Last night I had a linguine carbonara with supplementary chicken. It was very tasty.

This was the view from my bedroom window at 8:30 yesterday evening

The event ran until 10:30 on Friday and Saturday and until 10:00 last night. At EXACTLY 10:00 the music, lights and activities stopped. I know this because I happened to be sitting on my bed watching. by around 10:15 almost all the people had gone. By 11:00 the food trucks had gone and many of the light installations had been taken down. They are dismantling the rest of it this morning.

It is a glorious morning, although a touch on the cold side. At 8:00 my watch said it was 2℃ outside. My clock said it was 12℃ in the bedroom. And peace has returned to Docklands

It crossed my mind late last week that the Firelight Festival started last year on the day that I very first came in to inspect my flat. A year ago. A whole year. This is a somewhat surprising thought!

This week is not looking quite as exciting as last week. So far there is nothing noteworthy on the calendar - although I must remember to go to the Japanese class on Wednesday AND that it has moved to Level one in their building and isn't on Level two any more

Channeling Jim

Before Jim got sick he was a carpenter. He could build book shelves and cupboards and cabinets. He could build houses. He could certainly turn his hand to most DIY projects. He had all the builder's tools he could ever possibly need, including scary electrical saws and multiple drills and hammers. He had huge sets of screwdrivers, spanners, and drill bits and all sorts of things.

I can wield a hammer and a (manual) screwdriver. I can use pliers and spanners. But you could not say that I am proficient in matters DIY and I have never used anything other than a small manual saw and definitely nothing powered, apart from a whippersnipper in the garden. I can operate garden tools relatively competently but that's about it.

I decided that I really needed to learn how to use a small drill when I tried to replace the kitchen cupboard handles (a project which remains abandoned). But how? I don't have an electric drill. Jim's all went to live with my brother Matthew and in any case were too big and cumbersome for me to feel confident using them. I have a small box with basic tools in it and nothing else.

Then I saw an advertisement for a Handywoman's beginners' class in Collingwood. Come and learn how to make a small planter box.

So I did.

These things were all familiar to me. I can use a square and clamps, although I don't have Jim's any more. I also don't have his carpentry pencils. I do have two of his proper measuring tapes. He had several and gave me one well before he got sick. After he died I kept mine and one of his, one in the garage and one in the kitchen with my secateurs and a small garden trowel. It was easier to have them in the kitchen if I wanted to nip out into the garden. They had doubles with the rest of the garden tools in the garage.  The trowel, secateurs and one measuring tape are in my "tool box". The other measuring tape lives in the kitchen drawer.

But I digress. The tools on my bench at the workshop were familiar. I was a bit more disconcerted by the arrival of a jig saw. Electrical saws are scary. But we were shown how to use them safely and how we should stand and hold them in order to avoid sawing off our fingers. I cannot say that I am now competent in the use of a jig saw and my sawn pieces of wood would not pass muster if I were an apprentice carpenter. But I did have six pieces, more or less the same size and very nearly with square edges. Nearly.

We were shown how to use the electric drill to make holes for both screws and nails. We were shown how to use the drill as a screwdriver.  And then we were shown how to take all the various bits of wood and assemble them into a planter.

In the spirit of full disclosure, most of the pieces of wood had been pre-cut. We just made six of the twelve boards for the planter sides. The class was already 4 ½ hours long. If we had had to do everything ourselves we would still have been there at midnight.

Jim would have made a much better fist of making a planter box. Mine has jagged edges and is a bit, erm - rustic. But it is square and it is level and it hasn't fallen apart. It will function as a planter box when I put together my (tiny) indoor garden in the spring. But I don't think I am ready to embark on sheds or cabinets or houses just yet. I think they would definitely blow apart in Docklands windy moods.

Not bad for a first attempt
although it is tempting to
even up the edges a bit.
If only I had some sort of saw 😂

The description of the workshop invited us to discard heteronormativity and to pick up a hammer to smash the patriarchy. I don't think I am quite ready for such an ambitious insurrection -  but I might now be able to use a small drill to help with my kitchen cupboard handle project