Just a minute ... in June

I am joining in with Jenaveve's Just a minute meme, where we take a few moments to recall what we've been doing during the month. To the best of my recollection I have been ...

Watching ...

... a program called Masterchef, again. Without fail; six nights a week. I'm still trying to work out its true allure. I think its the focus on flavour. So many cooking shows focus on fast, easy and cheap as themes. I like the discussions about how to get the best flavours. I've been taking more care to caramelise my vegetables and adding that teensy pinch of salt to chocolate. And I think its working. Neither Argy or Bargy have complained that their food is pedestrian.

(Or could it be that the word "pedestrian" simply has too many syllables for a preschooler to wrap their mouth around?).

Growing ...

... carrots, broccoli and snow peas seedlings: squashed into their original tiny oblong baby-plant containers. Every day I've look out the window and made a mental note to plant them out in the garden. Clearly the mental notation system has failed 30 times. These plants will be goners by the end of July.

I have also started to prune my roses. I think it might be quite late in the season to be doing this, but I can't bear to hack into something that is still flowering. It feels like wanton plant destruction (... unlike the more slow and subtle annihilation of the potted seedlings).

Planning

... to finish the unfinished. I've made a list of the works-in-progress. It includes (but is not limited to): a quilt, cardigan, picnic rug, jacket, 4 pairs of children's pyjamas, 2 shower caps, a doll, 2 ladies' tops, a dress, vest, 2 scarves, a crochet granny square rug, two baby dresses and a pair of felt booties.

Do I get a prize, yet?

How about if I told you that I have also agreed to sew someone a Regency-era, empire-line dress ... with a train? By August.

(Holy Jane Austens, Batman!)

Erasing

... the less memorable parts of June. One or more family members were sick every week. Mr HB and I got a very nasty bug (oink, oink). Bargy simultaneously worked out how to scale the side of his cot, awake at 5am and drop his daytime sleep. I had to write 45 term fee invoices for our local kindergarten. The car got a flat battery.

Then there was the Great Cat Scare this morning. Our feline visitor went missing after 5 months of unfaltering dining and kipping at our place. No cat out the back. No cat out the front. No little bell tinkling out in the garden. Breakfast untouched. Unheard of. I was mentally constructing the obituary. And the difficult speech for the boys. Then Mr HB pointed out she was fast asleep in a ball upstairs.

(I think I uttered a naughty word that sounded like a piece of cutlery. Oh yes I did.)

Here's looking at you July ...


To see who else is playing along with Just a minute ... head over to Jenaveve's blog, August Street.

School holidays

So far, things were going swimmingly.

Eye spy ... something I made for a small person

I am playing along with Cindy's Eye Spy meme each Sunday. This week Mary-Jane, author of the delightful Sweet Emmelie, asked that we show something we have made for a small person.

My something is a photo board that I made a little while ago for Argy. I made it after having a bit of a ICMTFML (I could make that for much less) moment, at a children's boutique. The photoboards were fun, but elegantly simple and the better part of $100.

Now I don't know about you, but my success in the ICMTFML project department has always a bit hit and miss. There is often a very good reason for the $100 price tag. A reason which doesn't become evident until you have made a right royal mess of the project. Or spent $110 on the materials.

On this occasion, though, the construction was simple and the materials, cheap.

I purchased a large low profile canvas from a craft shop and gave it a couple of coats of blue acrylic paint. Next I stretched several stripy grosgrain ribbons across the width and secured them, using a staple gun, at the back. To decorate the board I painted some MDF letters (to spell out Argy's real name) and a car in nice vibrant glossy red and glued these on. The final touch was to add some miniature wooden pegs for holding photos and artwork.

Very easy, very economical and a hit with Argy.

Thank you to Cindy for hosting Eye Spy and to Mary-Janes for the great theme. To discover more creativity, head over here.

Tatt's just silly

Every now and then when a toy catalogue drops in our mailbox, I decide to flick past all things boy and divert to a small fix of pink. Its generally just a bit of idle browsing, without too much attention to the finer detail. Tiny tea set. Uh-huh. Fairy wings. Yeah. Plastic pony. Nice. Sparkly tiara. Yep, standard fare.

Girls toys make a pleasant diversion from trains, cars, diggers and multitude of bash-crash-dig-neee-naawww-honk-burp-rahhhhhhh toys that we have here.

But this week something caught my attention. There amongst the baby dolls, kitchen sets and dress-ups was Totally Stylin' Tattoo Barbie and Hannah Montana TAT 2 Art Pen. For ages 6+.

Huh?

Is this really what 6 year old girls are playing with now? When I was 6 I was playing with dolls and teddies. And a tattoo was some shindig at a Scottish castle where a bunch of blokes in skirts marched up and down. And frankly, I don't recall there being a 3rd Military District Bagpipe Barbie.

Clearly the little ones are far more sophisticated these days. I scanned the pages of the toy catalogue, expecting to see more toys of the same ilk. Alas, My Little Pony Racing Syndicate, Dora The Explorer My First Tax Return and Cabbage Patch Pregnancy Test Kit must still be sitting on the toy company drawing boards.

I do hear though that Sleepytime 56-star Face Stencil Kit is on its way, though.

My creative space

I am joining in with Thursday's My Creative Space at Kootoyoo.

From left:

• Innocent bystander


• Machine embroidery thread

What craft do we call this? Macrame? Tatting? Embroidery? How about a-little-something-I-whipped-up-when-my-mum-and-dad-were-sick-for-5-days?

Bargy is very proud of his Gutterman Sulky embellished Intel Man. And since this craft project kept him quiet (without involving matches, knives or the cat) I chose to ignore the fact that metres of my beautiful new thread were being unwound.

Thank you for all your kind well wishes. Its good to be back on deck. There may even be a little craft again soon. Just after I have untangled a bit of thread ...

Thank you very much Kirsty for hosting My Creative Space. Its great fun seeing what everyone is doing. To see who else is showing their creative space (or to join in), head over here.

Back soon

Put your face mask on.
Keep a metre from your screen.
This blog is in voluntary quarantine.

My creative space

I am joining in with Thursday's My Creative Space at Kootoyoo.

Clockwise from left:

• Soft knit fabric - shimmery chocolate


• Pattern - Vogue V1058


• Machine embroidery thread - Gutterman's Sulky

This week I am finishing a birthday gift for my sister - a tie front cardigan with three quarter length sleeves and a shaped hem.

The pattern is part of Vogue's Very Easy range and is designed for moderate stretch knits. This is the first time I've used a Vogue pattern, so I am following the instructions pretty much to the letter. My only departure will be finishing the garment with an overlocked rolled hem. The plan is to use shiny machine embroidery thread in two dark brown tones, which will hopefully produce a decorative edge.

I saw this pattern featured in a previous edition of Sewing With Australian Stitches (p.25, Vol.17, No.4). Apparently if you are sewing evening wear for Winter 2009 then shimmer, shine and lace are the way to go.

I selected the knit for its lovely deep chocolate colour and subtle coppery fleck, which will really suit my sister. I am very partial to inappropriately shiny things (read: lurex, lame, sequins), so when shopping for this fabric I had to make sure I deliberately toned-down my choice. Apparently not everyone wants a night out on the town looking like a big piece of tin foil!

Now off to sew ...

Thank you very much Kirsty for hosting My Creative Space. Its great fun seeing what everyone is doing. To see who else is showing their creative space (or to join in), head over here.

Home help

I washed. And dried. And folded.

Then, when I left the room, someone assisted with that crucial last step: throwing everything on the floor, in a heap.

It took a while to realise the culprit was right in front of my eyes ...

Parenting is a minefield

Speaking to you child about their artwork ...

Right
Ask open questions.
For example: "Tell me about your picture"

Wrong
Wild guessing.
For example: "Whoa there ... is that a skull and crossbones?"
(The answer was "No daddy, its me with my big happy smiley face". Ooops!)


For some interesting information about the stages of child drawing development see this link.

A fraud in our midst

Please choose the correct answer. The scarf wearer is smiling ...

1. nervously - wondering if she will fall off the child step stool while attempting to take this photograph in the bathroom mirror
2. proudly - wearing her first knitted accessory
3. uneasily - wondering if anyone will pick that the knitting is a cheat

I finished this cosy scarf in the wee small hours of Sunday morning and have been wearing it since. While I'm very pleased with the end product, I can't help but have mixed feelings about its creation. You see, I used a circular knitting loom.

Loom knitting is so quick and easy. The stitches are all regular. Tension remains even. You start and finish a row with the same number of stitches. And dropped stitches are a rarity. Its brilliant.

But what do the people who use two clicketty-clack needles make of loom knitting? Is it a bit of smoke and mirrors trickery? A knitting sham? Is it the same as mixing ½ cup of oil and two eggs into a store-bought packet mix and saying that you like to bake cakes?

Well, while I ponder all this, I'm off to do a bit more counterfeit casting-on ...

Eye spy ... my perfect invention

I am playing along with Cindy's Eye Spy meme each Sunday. This week Cindy has asked us to spy our perfect invention.

Easy! As they say, necessity is the mother of invention ... or more accurately, invention is the necessity of mothering.

Meet the perfect invention. The multi-linen-layered cot: mattress protector, sheet; mattress protector, sheet; mattress protector, sheet. Bedding ready to be peeled back and whipped off at a moment's notice. Perfect when there's a barf-o-rama in progress.

Thank you to Cindy for hosting Eye Spy and for the fun theme. To discover more blogs, head over here.

Ruffles

I've been on a mission this week. You see, I decided that I would like a ruffler foot for my sewing machine. With a specific gathering project in mind - and the conviction that no work could start without said foot - a frantic search ensued. (We all know how important having the right gadget is, yes?)

Of course, this was more easily said than done.

Rounds of telephone calls to the bigger sewing machine dealers proved disappointing. No one seemed to have a ruffler in stock. Some stockists weren't particularly sure what a ruffler was. Those that did, said ordering it in would take weeks and weeks. In at least one case, my query was met with such indifference that I felt sure I must have interrupted something very important.

The further this presser foot slipped from my reach, the more I wanted it. (Though the proverbial arm-and-a-leg price range of $55 to $100, did seem just a tad off-putting.)

Then I remember the little sewing machine shop not far from home. A store like a reverse Tardis. A wide exterior frontage belying a tiny crammed interior: floor to ceiling sewing machines; old and new; every shape and size. I popped in.

Sorry no new ruffler feet said the owner but if you'd like to wait I'll see if I have a secondhand one. After rifling through cupboards and draws for some time, he produced a splendid specimen - sturdy and shiny - without so much as a speck of dust on it. It appeared to have never been used. I was very excited. Then he sat down and gave me a lesson in how to use this marvellous contraption. I was most appreciative.

Finally he handed me the foot and said here its yours; no charge. I was astonished. And delighted. And grateful. What a lovely thing to do.

And because no Hoppo Bumpo post is complete without a little buffoonery, can you tell me what I am doing in the photo above? Yes, that's right ... ruffling a few feathers.

My creative space

I am joining in with Thursday's My Creative Space at Kootoyoo.

Clockwise from left:

• Circular knitting loom


• Yarn - Moda Vera Flirt in Redmix


• Crochet hook


• Start of a narrow scarf

This is the second knitting project that I have started in a month. The other lies abandoned in a corner. There was just too much tension between us, if you know what I mean?

I had a hunch that I might do a little better with a knitting loom. Needles were exasperating and frankly, fraught with danger (not altogether dissimilar to my experience with stocks when I learnt to ski).

This time my knitting looks more regular and the tension is nice and even. I'm sold. Now all I need to do is work out how to fit a 36 peg circular loom in a handbag.



And here, in another corner of my creative space, is the contents of a special parcel that arrived today. The delightful and very generous Gina of Clutterpunk sent a beautiful handmade H1N1 Swiney (wrapped in these fabulous pieces of fabric). Swiney is destined for a close rellie - the perfect gift for the virologist who has everything!

Now you must go and say hi to Gina. She is having a wonderful giveaway over at her blog ... do take a look!

Thank you very much Kirsty for hosting My Creative Space. Its great fun seeing what everyone is doing. To see who else is showing their creative space (or to join in), head over here.

Velcro

The directions stated "... apply liberally as often as needed"

Early this morning I awoke to the sound of hail on our tin roof. It was a loud, but not altogether unpleasant sound: the signal that Winter is well and truly here. It is generally a season I am fond of. I love the crisp air; the elegant silhouettes of leafless trees; the rain that greens the lawn; the watercolour skies at dusk.

But this year there is a downside.

You see, I am ailing with a winter affliction - my hands have dried out. Not just a little dry, mind. Ten days into the season and they are almost completely beyond redemption: parched, rough and hideously cracked. So bad, that I have become reclusive and the neighbourhood children have started calling me Hoppo Velcro Hands. And as I patiently to be saved by a kindly Avon lady called Peg Boggs, I have been considering the irony of my situation.

Just when I have time to sit at home and reclusively sew and crochet, I have discovered that Velcro Hands are in fact incompatible with most yarns and fabrics. Stick, rip. Stick, rip. Stick, r-i-i-i-i-p. Velcro is deceptively strong – a two inch square is enough to support a 170 pound person. So what chance does a scrap of quilting cotton stand?

I cannot put down the knit fabric that I am sewing with at the moment. It sticks even when I am not gripping. My crochet is catching and becoming fluffy. And worst of all? I can no longer fondle fabric. Even the shinest, satiny smooth number is met with sand paper-like resistance. All the joy has gone out of life.

I can only hope that Peg Boggs is coming soon. Preferably with a little something that promises to boost the moisture in my hands by 147%.

Hoppo Bumpo birthday giveaway winner

Thank you very much ...

m1k1, méri, A Spoonful Of Sugar, Brooke, Erin, AmBurg, Heather, Purple Paisley Patch, Wood Violet, The Woolly Mammoth, trashalou, Christine M., Juniper, Alison, Stephanie, Glaucia, Kelley, Paula L., Katy, amity ville boronia, Adrienne, thornberry, Lauren, Christina Lowry, MandMStudio, Vireya, Lisa, Bek, Frau Traumberg, Tinniegirl, Jodie, CurlyPops, Shirls, Kat, Naomi, mandapanda, Rie, Jennifer Rose, Sarah, Lulu, zofia, Bianca, Michelle, Gina, beccasauras, Claire (ethel loves fred), Tanya, Little Munchkins, sophie, Karin, Tasha, Polka Dot Daze, Miss Muggins, feinesstoeffchen, Cute as Buttons, Dotty Jane Designs, Serena, Denise, Terry, Karen, MissyP, Jazmin, Claudia, Claire Winlo, Aunt LoLo, Melinda, jan, My Black Cardigan, Car, barb's creations, JustJess, Mama Mogantosh, karen, Sarah, Michelle, pen, Allyoo, Julie, ikkinlala, Ellieboo, Jennifer, michelb5, handmaiden, michelb5, A, Linda, Donnell, Moby, Louise, Beth, Christie, Muslim Hippie and Kaitlin

... for dropping by and entering the Hoppo Bumpo 1st birthday giveaway.

I really enjoyed reading all your comments and as cheesey as it sounds, I wished I could give everyone a prize. Of course with 92 entries, you can be sure that the colour would be rapidly draining from Mr HB's face should he ever chance upon this post.

Well Mr HB if you are reading, you can rest assured that I have drawn just the one winner this morning. With the assistance of random.org I pulled #43 out of a virtual hat - the lovely Michelle of Button Tree Lane. Congratulations - I will be in touch!

Hem-along week 4 - blind hemming

Previously on hem-along:
Introduction
Week 1 - double fold hem (wovens)
Week 2 - single fold hem (wovens)
Week 3 - hemming stretch fabric

This week I tried out blind hemming. This lovely finish creates stitching which is virtually invisible on the right side of the fabric. It is used to hem garments, curtains and a wide range of other sewn projects. Read on to see how I used both hand and machine sewing to create blind hems.

Hand stitching

To begin I turned up the hem and pressed it and pinned it in place. I used a single fold, but you may choose a double fold. If you are using a single fold and the fabric is prone to ravelling it would be a good idea to overedge or overlock the hem edge first (in my example I use a selvedge edge).



Next I threaded a needle with a single thread and knotted it at the end. Using a single thread helps reduce the visibility of the stitching on the right side of the fabric.



Next I gently rolled back the hem edge, anchored the the thread in the hem and then began stitching from right to left. Small stitches are taken in one layer of the fabric then the other.



First a small horizontal stitch ...



... then a tiny horizontal stitch, catching just a thread or two ... repeating this stitching pattern to the end of the hem. If this was a garment such as a skirt, I would overstitch every now and then to make sure that if a bit of the hem comes undone the whole thing doesn't come down!



When I finished stitching I pressed the hem in place. Can you see the stitching?



Its hard to see on the right side too!




Machine stitching

I really should preface the next part of my experiment with the words: it didn't work like this the first time. Or the second or third!

I hadn't used my blind hem stitch foot before and really had to experiment to find the right settings. If you are new to blind hemming, I can highly recommend testing your blind hem foot on some scraps before tackling your project.

To begin, I turned up the hem and pressed it. I used a double fold, but you may choose just a single fold. If the fabric is prone to ravelling it would be a good idea to overedge or overlock the hem edge first.



Now for a little trick: the edge of the hem needed to be rolled outward, exposing about a quarter of an inch. Like this ... (click on the pictures if you would like a close up)



To blind hem stitch I needed to fit a special presser foot on my sewing machine.

Each brand of sewing machine has its own special foot. In the demonstration here, I have a Janome foot. (It has a white plastic guide which can be adjusted - wound in and out - using the silver screw). If you have a blind hem foot and it looks quite different, don't panic. There is plenty of variation in the appearance between makes and models - consult your sewing manual for the finer detail of how your foot works.

If you have an adjustable guide on your presser foot, you may need to experiment with its position.



I also needed to select a special blind hem stitch. On my machine this is a repeating stitch pattern that has two short zigzags followed by one long zigzag. (In the picture below this is shown as stitch 11 on my sewing machine).

You might find that your sewing machines has a different style of repeating stitch - one that takes two straight stitches and then a zigzag.

Some sewing machines have both stitches. If you have this luxury, use the straight stitch for wovens and the zigzag for stretch fabric.

You may need to experiment with the stitch width to perfect your blind hem stitching.



Then I positioned the exposed hem under the presser foot. On my foot the white plastic guide aligns with the fold. Check your sewing machine manual for instructions for your presser foot.



As I sewed I took care to just catch the left side of the hem with the long zigzag stitch. This part of the stitch shows on the outside of the hem, so it needs to be as small as possible.



This is how the finished stitching looked. The long zigzag caught the left side by only a couple of millimetres.



The next step was to roll the hem edge back inward. Like this ... (click on the pictures if you would like a close up)



After a quick press with the iron ....



... the hem looked like this from the outside. You can see that if I used a matching thread, that it would be very difficult to see the stitching at all.



Conclusion

I really liked trying out both the hand and machine blind hemming and will use both again. In fact, I have already used the hand stitching technique again to finish a velvet skirt and a wool jacket. I'm looking forward to using the machine stitching on the next skirt I make.

Next time: A diversion to a garment-specific hem - the Euro or tricky hem for jeans. This magic technique shortens jeans, while preserving the original hem. After this I will be returning to general hemming techniques with rolled hems: by hand, machine sewing and overlocker.

Eye spy ...

I am playing along with Cindy's Eye Spy meme each Sunday. This week the very talented Jennifer Rose of Fuzzy Dragons, gave us the choice of alternate themes.

Now I did momentarily consider her Eye spy ... a scar theme.

You have to agree that not one, but two Caesarean scars intersecting an appendix scar sound remarkable. However, I felt the accompanying photograph may breach some kind of blog rules ... not to mention send you searching for the Flag-blog-as-objectionable button.

So instead, I shall leave you with my Eye spy ... something that is blooming. A little blue daisy from our rather bare winter garden. Not as impressive as my scars, but somewhat prettier.


Thank you to Cindy for hosting Eye Spy and to Jennifer Rose for the fun theme. To discover more blogs, head over here.

Trouble is looming

Honestly, it had never occurred to me that a circular knitting loom could be used as a weapon.

Hoppo Bumpo's birthday giveaway

Hop-hop-hooray!

Hoppo Bumpo is one year old today and this post is just one shy of 400. (Never has one woman been able to say so much about so little! )

To mark the occasion and to thank you very much for visiting my blog, I am having a giveaway. One lucky person will win these three treasures:

1. 2 metres of gorgeous Mameyakko print by Kokka
   A 100% cotton in green and purple
   
   


2. A beautiful bag sewing pattern
   The "Day Bag" by Nicole Mallalieu Design
   
   
   


3. 3 balls of super luxurious red 8-ply yarn (50g)
   Blended cashmere, wool and soy
   
   

Anyone, anywhere - new reader or old - is welcome to enter. Simply leave a comment before 9am this coming Tuesday 9 June (AEST Melbourne time). I will be drawing a winner at random. Do make sure you leave a traceable link (for example, e-mail address or link to a blog), in case I need to contact you.

Thanks for dropping by .... and good luck!

My creative space

I am joining in with Thursday's My Creative Space at Kootoyoo.

Clockwise from top left (including a tiny heart - can you see it?):

• Instructions
• Arms and legs
• Assistant's hands (Would anyone like to borrow him? Please?)
• Body
• Hair

Poor Dolly. She has only just been rescued from the Hoppo Bumpo Bermuda Triangle of Craft. (Some more productive crafters have seen her before and would know exactly how long it is since the last stitch was completed.)

Based on one of the beautiful Wee Wonderfuls patterns, Dolly is made from felt and has an embroidered face. As you can see she would rather benefit from arms, legs, hair and some clothes! I really like this pattern - the instructions are very detailed and the construction methods straighforward. (Aside from the the full-time care of two marauding preschoolers, there is really no excuse for not having finished her quite quickly.)

When Dolly is finished I am hoping to send her off to the Uthando Project. This wonderful organisation collects handmade dolls to send to children living in KwaZulu Natal in South Africa. In this region 1 in every 3 children live in poverty and 1 in 5 has lost one or both parents to AIDS. The dolls are used to encourage play and help with the expression grief and loss. If you are interested in more information, do take a look at the project website.

Thank you very much Kirsty for hosting My Creative Space. Its great fun seeing what everyone is doing. To see who else is showing their creative space (or to join in), head over here.

Stand-back-and-throw: scones

For the love of baked goods: I just can't stop thinking about scones. Big fluffy numbers with jam and cream. Whether they are scones, skoans or biscuits to you, they are just plain delicious to me.

They are my first choice, my stand-by and my last resort, all rolled into one. The multifunction cake. Visitors for morning tea? Make scones. Playing in the park? Throw a scone. Birthday party? Stick a candle in a scone. No meal prepared for the children? Assure them that many other families eat scones for dinner.

I'm a scone lover; devotee; fancier. But not a purist. I am not particularly fond of that rubbing-in malarkey. I know all the great chefs tell you to stick your mitts in whatever you're preparing, but frankly for now I think the blue and green Playdough under my fingernails will suffice.

Anyway, without further ado here's my tried-and-true, stand-back-and-throw version of a teatime treat.

Easy-peasey scones

3 cups self-raising (self-rising) flour
1 heaped teaspoon baking powder
85g (3oz) butter, cold and roughly chopped
2 rounded tablespoons caster (superfine) sugar
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 tablespoon lemon juice
About 1 cup milk + little extra for brushing

1. Preheat the oven to 230°C
2. Grease and flour a tray or cover with baking paper or a silicon mat
3. Place flour and baking powder in the food processor and blitz
4. Add the butter and process until the mixture looks crumbly
5. Add the sugar and blitz
6. Combine the milk, lemon and vanilla (the milk will curdle slightly from the acid)
7. With the motor running add the milk mixture slowly; stop the motor the dough starts to come together
8. Lightly flour a board and your hands
9. Remove the bits of sticky mess from the bowl
10. Pat the dough very gently until its of an even thickness all over - about 5cm (or 2") thick
11. Cut out scones with a floured round cutter (around 6cm or 2½" diameter - I use a wine glass)
12. Place the scones on the tray - its OK to put them relatively close together so they can support each other as they rise
13. Brush tops with little milk
14. Bake for about 12 minutes
15. Cool in a fresh linen tea towel on a wire rack (cooled scones can be frozen)

Hide the food processor and stick a bit of butter under your finger nails, before serving the scones to your friends. They will be none the wiser about the shortcut.

If you're old enough to remember the Goodies classic "Bunfight At The OK Tea Rooms" - which featured some genuine scone ... er, skoan ... humour - you might like this.

Kiddy craft: pass or fail?

They asked if they could do some sticking. I'll admit it ... a better mother probably would have provided scissors, paste and paper.

But just quietly, that sticky tape was the best $3.45 I have spent all week.

Just a minute ... in May

Goodbye autumn ... hello winter

I am joining in with Jenaveve's Just a minute meme, where we take a few moments to recall what we've been doing during the month. So to the best of my recollection, May went something like this ...

Growing ...

... carrots, broccoli and snow peas. Tell me: will keeping nursery-purchased seedlings in the close confines of their original containers produce teeny-tiny bonsai vegetables? I guess it will all become clear at harvest time in about 12 weeks.


Reading ...

... mostly online articles about formatting blogs. In my previous life, I used to be able to do a bit of technical stuff for work. These days ... technical ability ... pffftt, gone. Not much call for it these days at Chez Hoppo Bumpo. So I've made rather heavy weather of reading up on the template changes I wanted to make.

And of course I thought I'd made some kind of monumental error, after actually making said changes. My blog started proclaiming Operation Aborted in a none too friendly manner and then disappearing. Seen this error? Apparently its wasn't my fault; its been happening to other blogs too.

There's a bug in the Google Followers widget, which makes the whole show go to custard if you are browsing using Internet Explorer. The solution? If you are the blog author, you can temporarily remove the widget or move it much further down in the order in your sidebar (more information here).

If you are a blog reader and experiencing this problem, switching to a different browser should eliminate the problem. I could go all conspiracy theory and suggest that Google's own proprietary browser Chrome probably works just fine!

Creating

... a stockpile of household staples just in case we all get the flu. There's tissues, bags of pasta, tinned soups, boxed stock, powdered milk and all manner of other goodies (including jelly beans and chocolate ... you can't be too careful, you know). This website is excellent for suggestions as to how to stock your pantry for an medical emergency or natural disaster (no mention of chocolate, though!).

I had the flu when I was about 16 and remember to this day how ill I felt. Grocery shopping would definitely be low on the list of things you would be able to do if you were ill (and/or being home quarantined, as 3000 of my fellow Victorians have been). Hang on; what am I talking about? Grocery shopping is always low on that list!

Watching ...

... a program called Masterchef. Its part made-for-TV-competition; part cookery class; part soap opera. I can truthfully say that I enjoy watching the technical cooking demonstrations and amazing creations. But if I am being completely honest, I'm becoming hooked on watching the machinations between the contestants. Rivalries have been tame 'til now, but hotting up: will someone find a fish head in their bed soon?

Cooking ...

... a proper breakfast. You know, I'm really not particularly fond of breakfast cereals. I've spent years dodging them with all sort of inappropriate substitutes (breakfast cheesecake, anyone?). In particular, I have loathed that slimey, gluggy, tasteless gloop that masquerades as porridge.

Recently, however, I've reconsidered. Perhaps its my age. Those oaty promises of lower cholersterol and increased fibre and beta-glucan intake suddenly sound attractive. And afterall, I do like fruit cobbler with its crumbly oat topping. So may I present ...

Hoppo Bumpo's porridge hack for people who detest porridge
1/4 cup rolled oats
A scant 1/2 cup low fat milk
1 teaspoon of brown sugar
1 tiny shake of cinnamon
1 grated cooking apple
1/2 teaspoon butter

Combine oats, milk, sugar and grated apple in a covered microwave-safe container. Cook on high for about 2 minutes. Stir through butter and serve. Just like fruit cobbler, only breakfast (icecream, optional) .


To see who else is playing along with Just a minute ... head over to Jenaveve's blog, August Street.