Logbook

After much shopping with alpha_angel, I have mint, thyme and rosemary plants and a cherry tomato. And leather gardening gloves, safety glasses, earplugs, cheaparse hand trowel and fork (bends a bit too much), potting mix (half of which is K's), a birthday present for Mum (Hi Mum :)), lemons, a lemon squeezer, icecube tray, plastic measuring cups, buckets, scary top and comfy trousers. And stocked up on Whitticars Dark Ghana while it was on special for 2 for $5 (Woolworths, NZ) for chocolate coating strawberries at a later date.

And after a bit of work clearing part of the back corner, I have a cleared area with a tomato plant and space to put other plants, and the mint, thyme and rosemary repotted into hanging baskets on the back porch. There is one spare hanging basket and another if I can reach it down the back of the porch (way, down).

So what other plants would be good? Edible is nice, but ground covering so I don't have to weed is really appreciated. Like smell :)

Time for a shower (starting to itch...), more laundry, dishes and a bit of lemon cordial making before dinner.

Busy day yesterday. Can't say I am a fan of 6am starts (required for Z to be into work by 8am). Especially when I can't roll over and go back to sleep. But I needed to get into town, so...

Evil traffic on the way (well, normal for that time and place :() Z has vowed to stick to trains. Much more relaxing.

I loitered (Starbucks peppermint hot choc is too much like liquid choc mint bikkies - way too milk choc and sweet), took the long hilly route instead of the less hilly one, and had a chat and a(nother) cup of hot chocolate* with a guy about a possible job. Fingers crossed when he talks to higher levels, a more formal meeting can be sorted and things go from there. Then I wandered slowly down Lambton Quay, reading Peter S Beagle in Borders til a fire alarm chucked me out in the last 2 pages of the story :(, wombling into music stores and muttering over the lack of collection before wandering out, that sort of thing. Dropped into The Body Shop and Lush cause I wasn't with Z to have a sneezing fit - still too expensive** and didn't really like the smells. Then noticed a sign, but didn't stop since I was meeting alpha_angel for lunch in 15 min. Mmmm chatting and nachos. Then, when we split after lunch, I went back to the sign.

For several years now, I have been wanting to get around to donating blood, but was too light weight or other things came up. Finally I had a venue, ID, time on my hands ... and it beat Christmas shopping. No worries, in, filled in paperwork, got finger pinpricked for iron levels (that smarts just like putting an awl in your finger oddly), and then sat in a chair while they drained away red stuff. No diziness or anything after and just an interesting looking bruise around the mail hole today.

After that, I picked up a large bottle of non-fizzy drink and tacked from bookshop to bookshop (some success for Z and M or D) before settling in with a good book and the rest of the drink in a patch of sunlight outside the library and gallery. Eventually met by Z after work and we visited bookshop again before meeting with geologists (and eventually alpha_angel) and having stone grilled*** dinner at the Southern Cross. Then we wombled off to A&S (just as everyone else was leaving) and eventually got home, had a brief conversation with anthraxia, evildrakey and the_peahen via Skype****, and crashed into sleep soon after.

*Is the chocolate fish with the hot chocolate a Wellington thing? It seems a good habit.
** $17 for a shoe polish tin of coconut oil for your hair cf ~$4 for a bottle or jar 10 times the size from the local asian grocer?!?
***Meat brought out uncooked on large black hot rock blocks and you get to cook it how you like. Need to find out the right rock (or an equivalent) and try and replicate it cause that was fun :)
**** Need to do that more often when slightly more awake :)

Today I am watering plants (evil high shelves and leaky hoses), catching up on laundry, excavating to floor in our room and maybe even (shock horror) vacuum. And maybe reading in a patch of sunlight under the window.