What’s The Problem? I’m Up, Aren’t I?
My mum requested to see her grandkids, I mean, grandcats. You miss their goofy looking faces, Umi?
Here’s Olly, back from his morning wander.
“What? I’m home, aren’t I?”
Then there’s Ifa, who just moves from one warm spot to another, all dayyy loonngg. I had to nudge her to get a photo.
“What? I’m up, aren’t I?”
Not the prettiest cats I must admit. But it’s not from my side of the family. Ahem…
And then, Olly saw something he doesn’t quite approve.
“Hang on… What’s going on here?”
“Ahhh… what a comfy spot, eh Olly?” (stretcchhh)
The tension’s building as Olly strolls over almost nonchalantly.
Oh bugger! Here we go!
“I was here first!”
“No! This is my spot!”
I broke it up before someone lost an eye.
“Now say sorry to each other…”
“Sorry Olly.” (mumbles) “Sorry Ifa.” (grumbles)
Olly still isn’t too happy about it.
Doesn’t help that Ifa seems to be rubbing it in his face.
But everything settles down. Ifa curls up under the dining table in her little sunny spot, which is fading rather fast. Not really the smartest cat in the house.
Olly, on the other hand, stretches out and bathes in the warm sun, quickly forgetting the drama that broke out just minutes ago.
What’s the moral of the story, folks?
New & Improved Craft Space
Let’s start with how my old craft space (aka living room) used to look like. Hmmm… pretty embarrassing.
I would squeeze myself into a corner of the sofa and have a massive craft explosion around me. I would slouch over my work for hours and have a terribly sore back and shoulders by the end of it. No matter how much I try to prop my back straight with the cushions, I just ended up hunched over again. And just before the hubby gets home, I would go into a frantic clean up so we can actually use the living room together.
It had reached a point where I was rather unhappy with my own messiness. My work space just didn’t flow and I wasn’t having much fun. I headed to Kmart immediately and came back with several cheap organizing solutions. The foldable fabric project box and plastic containers cost me less than $20! Doh! I kicked myself for not buying these sooner.
I was crocheting with my plastic 6.5mm crochet hook the other day and snapped it! My tension was clearly too tight but that also meant buying a new hook to finish my project. I looked online for a crochet hook set and came across the Boye Crochet Master set. 24 hooks and carry case for only $27+postage. Ordered the set immediately from OzQuilts and the set arrived 2 days later. I love speedy services!
Aren’t they spiffy? Into the project box they go- neat, tidy and very accessible.
I’ve also been wanting to buy a chair specifically for crafting for years now. I’ve searched the web and gone to Ikea and other furniture shops several times to try out chairs but nothing felt right. Plus the wallet was too thin to justify a hobby chair.
Then I got into exercising again. I’ve been bushwalking every weekend and doing yoga several mornings a week. I was tempted to blow up my fitness ball again to use as a chair like I used to but I thought I’d just have a look at how much a proper fitness ball chair would cost. $80 delivered! That’s crazy! Did I buy it? Heck yeah! It was easier to justify the purchase as it’s for my exercise AND craft. Here’s to good health!
To say I’m happy with the fit chair would be a gross understatement. It’s comfortable and keeps my posture straight for hours. I can’t really slouch in it as the back support is so snug against my back. My lower back and core muscles felt like they’ve had a good workout the first few times I’ve used it. Those muscles clearly don’t get worked enough when I was slouching all the time. Richard keeps saying how much taller and leaner I look now. Yes, ladies, you can craft and exercise at the same time. 
Hehe…
Don’t I look all proper in my new chair and project box? Crocheting and knitting ergonomically without all the mess around me. Ahhh… the serenity…
P.S. 50 points if you can spot Olly, my ginger cat in one of the photos!
{ 15 comments }Healthy Banana Bread & A Warm Pussy
Do you remember the banana & cranberries bread I made a couple of months ago? Well, I tried another banana bread recipe and this one is much better! It uses more ingredients and takes a little bit more time but it’s so worth it.
I added chopped macadamia nuts and dates for texture and extra nutrition. I’ve also been using wholemeal flour for almost all my baking and the only thing I notice is that the cakes do not rise as much. But they still taste just as good and of course, wholemeal flour is a healthier choice. I used frozen overripe bananas for the first time in this recipe. I was a little nervous as I’ve never frozen bananas before but the defrosted bananas were perfectly mushy for banana bread. Less work for me!
I made this when Changeling came over for our knitting date and she loved it! She couldn’t believe it was fat-free and had wholemeal flour in it. Richard gave the banana bread a huge two thumbs up and so did I.
Healthy Banana Bread Recipe from Group Recipes:
http://www.grouprecipes.com/59579/healthy-banana-bread.html
By the way, if you haven’t heard of Changeling’s Knit & Stitch Podcast before, pop over to her site and have a listen. She talks about the crafty adventures (and misadventures!) she gets up to and she’s sure to make you smile. Yes, Changeling, you have a sense of humour!
So if you’re wondering about the “warm pussy” in the post title, well, let’s just say that I’m not the only one around here who enjoy having a hot pot of tea sitting around on the coffee table.
Yip, that’s Ifa, my female cat, cuddling up to her new crochet teapot friend. I didn’t have the heart to tell her to get off the table. Just look at that face!
Can you see Olly, my male ginger cat, in the photos? You get 10 points if you do! 
Related Posts:
Cozy Tea Anyone?
Banana & Cranberries Bread
My First Graffiti Knitting
If you haven’t heard already, graffiti knitting is the most inoffensive graffiti. But instead of tagging in the urban setting, I chose to tag somewhere deep in a national park. I quickly knitted a little something the morning we left and I was finishing it up in the car on the way to Bobbin Head. This it the track we walked. It’s called the Bobbin Head Loop.
I was deciding where to leave my knitted tag and 4 hours of walking (and sometimes climbing) through slippery and rocky terrain, crossing creeks and down into the depths of mangroves and rainforests, had left me feeling beaten. I wanted desperately to see the side track that would take me back up into civilization. The sun was quickly disappearing over the ridge and thoughts of being lost loomed in my mind.
And then it appeared. It was clearly marked and not just a white dot on the tree as described in Wild Walks. Thank god! This is the where I will leave my mark as my spirit felt uplifted again.
Can you see my fluorescent orange knitted tag on the tree?
Ironic that I embroidered a smile on it cos that’s how we felt at that very moment. Absolutely elated! We were giggling and looking around as if someone was going to come by this way soon, despite not having seen anyone for more than an hour!
The happiness was short lived as we started our climb out of the valley. It was steep. God, it was so steep. We climbed up for a good 30mins and it took us another half hour to get back to the car. You can see the elevation profile of our walk here on Trail Guru.
But here I am, extremely proud of what I’ve achieved that day. I conquered a hard 5 hour, 15km bushwalk and I left a knitted graffiti on a tree, which I hope will bring a smile to other bushwalkers doing that track. I’m planning my next one for this weekend already. *giggles*
For those who play geocaching, the coordinates are latitude 33.683313327 and longtitude 151.138348561. Leave a comment if you find it!
**Edit: The knitted tag is not made of cotton. I’ve used acrylic and wool yarn. But the back of the knitted tag is “open” with a piece of yarn criss-crossing the back to hold it in place loosely. Only half of the trunk is actually covered. I’ve sewn it this way so that the rangers can easily snip it off if they feel it’s damaging the tree in some way.**
Easy Peasy Berry Cobbler
I have no idea what a fruit cobbler is but it didn’t stop me from wanting to make it as soon as I saw Balkan Style’s simple recipe. 5 basic ingredients in a bowl, then top with fruit of choice. Too easy! I happen to have frozen mixed berries that I’ve been wanting to get rid off for a while. In the oven it goes in a matter of minutes, giving me time to head to the shop to buy some vanilla custard.
Recipe from Balkan Style
The cobbler comes out of the oven fifty minutes later and it’s just killing me! It looks so appetizing BUT it’s meant for dessert tonight. I’m crazy I know. So I waited and waited and gobbled up my dinner as quickly as possible. I vaguely remember what it was. All I can think off is this cobbler.
I sprinkled it with cinnamon sugar and smothered it with custard. Richard’s eyes lit up. He LOVES custard. If there is a level higher than love, he’ll be a few rungs above that. The cobbler soaked up the custard and I took a small mouthful. I don’t like the tartness of berries. BUT with the custard, it wasn’t too sour for my Asian palette and let me assure you, the next few mouthfuls weren’t small. I finished a quarter of the berry cobbler in one sitting! LOL
Alright, I’ve held you back long enough. Shooo! Go make yourself a cobbler. Tell me if you like it. By the way, thanks N for the recipe!
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