The body is failing!

               I'm  a wreck! 

 I went to consult the doctor again last week after having a dodgy knee for about 2 months.  
 An X ray the week before had shown 'mild arthritis'.

We all know X rays do not show up soft tissue very well and I don't know why she went that way.  Maybe to keep the guy in business.         So,  the diagnosis is " Runner's Knee" !!!!   I must have got this from many years ago when I actually ran.   I knew it was tendon related because I'm  like that.
  I can self diagnose pretty damn good!      I have a few sensible exercises to do twice a day.  [sometimes].     There is improvement.

I was optimistic about being pain free so started to look through some travel brochures,  planning a trip over seas.  Dreaming is good for your spirit.   I was drooling over a 21 days coach trip to the UK and wondering if this is the way to go and easier than hiring a car and doing the B & B thing.
B & B's are NOT cheap any more!!!   A tent might be a better idea.

Nek minnit!!!   I wake up with a very sore big toe joint that then progressively worsens.   I consult Dr. Google with my suspicions and sure enough......   Feckin  GOUT!!!       I thought only people that drank alcohol got that....  wrong.    After a lovely hot soak in various herbs and spices, it felt better.
3 painkillers  helped  get a good sleep.  This morning it's improved but is swollen with the tell tale red mark.       The toe pain totally puts the knee pain in the 'minor' category.     This too shall pass.

It's Sunday here and I plan on making  a batch of soap.  The sun is out with a vengeance, drying up the puddles and it's too bloody hot to be doing too much work.    Soap making is ideal.  See how I'll go with the standing needed to do this.     The humidity  has made my unwrapped soaps sweat.   They may all have to go in the oven to gently dry off.  I'm hoping that this will happen naturally when  the weather changes. 
We've just received an invitation to go to a friend's for lunch so I'm going to take a bowl of lightly stewed mango and look around the pantry for something else to go with it. 
Take care. xo 

Apologies....

I've been putting off posting because I did say that I would put up pictures of the house renovations and I have had a shitload of trouble, for some reason getting the printer to scan the photos. 
I wriggled this and that, tried a different programme and then swore a lot.  I think that's what worked!!!
I tried my old scanner but it's driver is somewhere in ether space.

Later today I'll get on to it and scan as many as possible before I get sick of it.   I promised to email old photos to a young friend  from years ago  of her family as her Dad chose to leave this world 9 years ago so these will be of the good old days. I have only recently been able to find this family through Facebook... gotta love it. Also want send some photos of a tour through Europe for a Brazilian hunk I met on that trip  too.  He lost all of his.

THEN....... it is a plan to steadily work on scanning ALL my non-digital photos.  Years of work there!  My lovely youngest son wanted to buy me a digital camera years ago BUT ...no... I thought they were too expensive...  Oh, how I wished I hadn't been so stupid!!!!   The fun I have missed out on.  I take my camera with me every where I go.  Even around the house yard!


It's a beautiful day here in mid north Queensland. Just how I like it.   Cool and very cloudy and it's these kind of days that bring out the creativeness in me.  

I'm into lists and a top priority is sewing some every day clothes for myself.  Reckon I'll be in the sewing room for most of the day!     I don't like sewing for myself.   Probably because of the fatness of the body due to the frikken menopause thing happening.
Isn't if stupid how we used to think we were fat and  when you look at older  photos,  you were so not! 

A few years ago I was telling my mother that I had met a friend I hadn't seen for years and that she had said that she remembered me as tall and thin with lovely clothes. [ when I was talking to her I was heaps thinner than I am now!]
My mother replied, " Well, you were tall".    DUH!!!!  What?  Not thin too? Not tall now???    I know, I know,  I'm thin skinned.    ( that means ' can't take personal criticisms) I sewed most of my clothes then or bought at sales.

I've been making us fresh juice most mornings.  It is so tasty and a good way to use up  small fresh veg scraps.  I juice beetroot, celery, parsley, ginger, tumeric, carrots, comfrey, plantain, apple as the main ones and then sip it to mix each mouthful with saliva as recommended.    YUMMY!  I have an old National juicer that we bought second hand years ago but it doesn't miss a beat and the pulp left is pretty dry.

   Herbal tea has always been a favourite of mine. With  many flavours to choose from I am in heaven.    Chamomile with honey and cider vinegar  at night to help me sleep.
  I am a real  coffee lover and  specially love the aroma of the  freshly ground beans! 

After looking at the choices available for medicinal dried herbs,   I have decided to go that way so I ordered a kilo!! of dried Small Leafed Willow.   Wow,  that is a lot of herb!  Yesterday I  put it in small amounts into vacuum seal bags to keep it fresh.  Hell... it will last me a year.  I could have gone crazy ordering lots of goodies from this man but I was soooo good and restrained myself. Next time.  It only took 2 days to get here too.

OK.. I'm off to sew.  Be back soon, I promise.