Travel Bug is Travelling!

I don't know if you all remember, but sometime ago Holly from AndSewItIs and I each launched a Quilting Travel Bug. They are travelling items that move from geocache to geocache. Mine is 'South' as I live in the southern hemisphere, and Holly's is North as she lives in Oregon.

Mine was sitting in the geocache near the Brisbane Airport hoping to be immediately picked up by an International traveller, and be in the States in a flash. Alas it was picked up by a cacher here on holidays, who took the bug to Canberra where it wandered around the bush and lay in fairly isolated caches for some time.

But this week it was grabbed by a female Canadian cacher who has flown it with her in her luggage to Canada! Too exciting! I know you must think I'm mad, but you launch it out there, and it turns into your little baby, then you worry about it all alone in a damp cache in the wilds of the Australian Bush, that could be ravaged by a bushfire or found by some kids who toss it away!

Anyway, don't mind us, but Holly and I are quite excited to know it has travelled half way around the world in the suitcase of someone we don't even know, and now it's so much closer to its goal. If you look here, you can see how far it has travelled, and that it is now in British Columbia.

As for real quilting content, I've been busy watching the cricket. What's that got to do with quilting you may ask? Hand sewing. Yes the never ending hexagons have made a comeback, and I'm slowly working away at them. I will post an old photo to remind you (I almost needed to look at a photo myself, it was so long since I'd worked on it).

Oh and we lost the cricket to India. If the Aussies had won today they would have won 17 test matches in a row, which is a record. Tracey and I don't want to talk about it. In fact, I think Tracey must be in denial, as she hasn't even mentioned it.

PS thanks for the support re the large spider. The vaccuum cleaner idea is fantastic, thanks. I know someone who thinks that her house is on top of a Portal to the Underworld she gets so many spiders - she has my complete sympathy. Oh and the towel is still outside on the deck!

The Spider Incident

On Thursday night I went into the bathroom to have a shower before bed. When I looked in the mirror, I could see a HUGE Huntsman spider on the ceiling above the door. I spun around to see this

The photo is a bit blurry as I took it with my arm outstretched, and it wasn't too steady.

What to do? I thought of closing the bathroom door and sealing off the gap under the door and going to bed, but in the morning I would have to face up to my denial, and who knows where the spider would be then? Hiding under my towel? So bravely (not) I sprayed it with half a can of flyspray, which did nothing but make it mad. Then it slowly dropped, ninja-style, from the ceiling with its legs outstretched. I watched in horror as it slowly made its way to the floor. When you look at the photo, see the piece of timber that the spider is straddling? It is about 2 inches wide, and note that the spider has only one leg properly extended in the shot? Imagine it with all of them out, and you have 6 inches plus.

I cornered it in the shower recess and tried to toss my towel over it to trap it within the towel, which I then planned to toss out the sliding door in the sewing room, which I had opened in readiness. It took me about 30 mins to get the spider wrapped up, shrieking all the way, as it kept climbing out from under the towel to sit on top. The shrieking was loud enough to wake the dog 70m down the road. Simon (typical male) stayed on the bed, but Chloe got out of her bed and retreated to half way down the stairs, where she sat with a concerned look on her face.

Finally it went out the door, wrapped in the towel, where it will remain for a few weeks I expect. Very dramatic, I tell you. If it had been a snake, I wouldv'e slept in the car, and employed someone to remove it, I tell you! The perils of living alone.

No sewing to report. Just haven't been in the mood, and it just seems too hot and humid to do anything much.

Needle Case

Mum made this needle case for me for Christmas, but when I opened the present, I had to give it straight back to her, as it wasn't quite finished! Perhaps I could say my inability to finish anything is inherited?

But today Mum came over for the day for a visit and brought the finished needle case. Isn't it fantastic? It was shown on the cover of an Inspirations magazine ages ago, and I admired it. Mum remembered, and has been making it on and off for months. There were a few dry comments from Dad on Christmas Day about the frenzied last minute sewing trying to finish it in time, but Mum was inundated with Grandkids the few days before the 25th, who obviously sabotaged the last minute panic sewing!

I almost don't want to use it it's so lovely - I wish I could do embroidery like that, it's so fine. I don't think I have the patience. We had a good day looking at the computer at fabric sites and a few blogs, had lunch, sat out an afternoon storm, and drank coffee with the cricket on in the background. Plus there is always the added benefit of having a clean house, as the impending visit makes me rush around tidying up and washing the floor!

Talking about the cricket, Australia just beat India in a five day Test Match in the last 8 minutes of the game. How's that for close? Michael Clarke came on and bowled 3 of them out for something like 5 runs - incredible.

Simon and Chloe have been to the Vet recently, emptying the bank account. Chloe had started doing an occasional wee in the house, which was making me very annoyed. I'm thinking that she was trying to get me back for taking her to dog training, but someone suggested she may have a urinary tract infection. Simon was obviously feeling off colour too, as he whimpered one night when he was getting up, and he seemed to have a sore tummy. I thought "it's a sign", so on the 31st we headed for the Vet with a jar of urine, caught from Chloe with great difficulty, and tried to explain that I was really only there on the offchance that something might be wrong with one or the other. It turns out Chloe does have a UTI, and Simon has his usual mystery symptoms which can't be diagnosed after a battery of expensive tests. They both had a shot of an anti-inflammatory, Chloe also had some antibiotics, and I walked out with a special diet for Chloe, antibiotic tablets and minus over $300. Sigh...

Chloe is already obviously feeling better, despite the occasional accident (I think because she doesn't want to go out in the rain), and Simon is 'much' better, so he was obviously in pain. I've given him the same anti-inflammatory in a tablet form since the Vet visit, and he is much more active. So we will have to go back for a blood test, then expensive radiological investigations no doubt. Great.

In quilting news, I have the backing fabric and batting for the couch quilt, but I'm procrastinating about pinning it and quilting it, as it's my least favourite bit. I have 8 metres of a brown fabric I bought off ebay a few years ago, which will do for the back. Soon I promise, Girl Guide's Honour.