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Altaira
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Mar 6, 5:13pm
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It's beginning to look a lot like... Fiesta! Come on in!
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Greetings, everyone!
Actually, it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas here. Forgive me east-coasters, but it's *finally* snowing here! Yahoo! I mean, snowing really hard with big, beautiful, fluffy flakes. We're supposed to get 2-4 inches. Our poor, parched plants will finally get a good, long drink. It will help our state's snowpack too, which is currently about 65% of normal. That's 35% below what we usually need to keep our reservoirs full and get us through the dry summer, so fingers crossed for even more snow.
And, drumroll, here are a few pics of our new deck!
The 'before' (not close enough to see the peeling paint and chipping wood)
The 'after'
The 'after' lit up at dusk.
We're loving it! The only issue is that now I want to redo everything. I mean inside and out everything. Luckily, the bank account will temper my enthusiasm (at least enough to not do anything drastic).
So, how has life been treating you? Any exciting happenings this past week? Exciting plans for the weekend? Let us know after you order up a drink and head over to the buffet with an over-sized plate.
*kicks juke box* Let it Snow with Deano and Shirley Jones starts to play.
Have a wonderful weekend!!   
(This post was edited by Altaira on Mar 6, 5:18pm)
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dernwyn
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Mar 6, 5:36pm
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Updated woodwork, safe and sturdy railings (and you can see more through them), and it's raised so you get more light through the basement windows! We all know where you will be spending summer evenings now! Congratulations, and kudos to the construction crew! Keep them in mind when you start planning the interior fun stuff...
Yes, you have needed that snow, especially for the mountain snowpack. That's a version of "Let It Snow" that I've never before seen! I do like Shirley Jones (and Dino's not a bad looker ).
Could I have a mug of mocha java, please, Altaira? We've had rain here, so it's getting slushy and mucky in places. I've gotten the taxes filed online, and now we're prepping for hubby's cataract surgery this coming week, we've got the full eye-drop schedule ready for checking off - what a lot to take!
March Madness begins, and the UConn women play tomorrow noon. Go Huskies! What teams are you following right now?
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"I desired dragons with a profound desire"
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Altaira
Superuser
Mar 6, 5:55pm
Post #3 of 24
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Sounds yummy right about now.
Congrats on getting those pesky taxes filed, and good luck to mr. dernwyn on the eye surgery. I've never really been a basketball person, so March Madness really only has meaning to me related to TORn's competition which is being worked on now and will start on the 17th.
The big sporting event for B.G. and I is coming up Sunday a.m. when NZ faces India in the T-20 cricket world cup final. Based on their early play we weren't very hopeful they'd make it this far, but they thrashed England the other day, so fingers crossed they'll make a good showing.
Stay dry and have a wonderful weekend! 
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Ataahua
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Mar 6, 11:38pm
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It's Taranaki Anniversary Day on Monday so we've got three days for laaaaaazing (or getting my feral garden in order, as it happens). There was a drizzling rain this morning but now that the sun's trying to break through, the humidity is sitting at a rather moist 93%. I'll snarf down my chicken sandwich (lunchtime here) then head out to get the compost bin emptied around the garden before the temps reach their highest.
I love your deck, Altaira - that's such a spruce-up from what was there before. It's remarkable how different materials give a completely different 'feel' to a place. Enjoy the snowfall!
Down here, there's a big concert on at the Bowl tonight; it's right next to my place so I've been hearing the sound checks last night and today. It's call Full Metal Orchestra and last night I was hearing the hits - Staircase to Heaven, Thunderstruck, All Night Long. The concert-goers are going to have a HUGE evening!
One of my neighbours has a full-grown golden labrador who is just gorgeous, which is why I give him leeway for being a numpty. A few nights ago he wouldn't. shut. up. with the barking, so I finally got out of bed, got dressed, and popped down to his place to give him a bit of attention through the gate and ask him to please, for the love of god, shut up. It did work, but I wish his owner would do more to keep his dog occupied when he's not there - then Baxter (dog's name) wouldn't feel the need to jump the fence and go wandering during the day.
Anyway, have a great weekend, everyone!
Celebrimbor: "Pretty rings..."
Dwarves: "Pretty rings..."
Men: "Pretty rings..."
Sauron: "Mine's better."
"Ah, how ironic, the addictive qualities of Sauron’s master weapon led to its own destruction. Which just goes to show, kids - if you want two small and noble souls to succeed on a mission of dire importance... send an evil-minded beggar with them too." - Gandalf's Diaries, final par, by Ufthak.
Fantasy novel - The Arcanist's Tattoo
My LOTR fan-fiction
(This post was edited by Ataahua on Mar 7, 12:38am)
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Mar 6, 11:59pm
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Oh wow! The change is beautiful! You can really tell there's some great workmanship (and pride) in what they've accomplished :D If you had to go through the turmoil of demo and construction, there's no doubt it was well worth it!
Thankfully nothing dramatic has happened here in the last few days. My daughter's here with me over the weekend (since Thurs pm) for several dr appts and going to the home show on Saturday! . We've had quite a bit of rain, so all the snow is gone. But I'm alarmed that your neck of the woods is so starved for snow/rain to fill your reservoirs. That's scary for the coming summer.
I hope you have a great weekend... and thanks for taking such great care of us :D
We have been there and back again.
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Mar 7, 12:02am
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But big positive thoughts to hubby for his cataract surgery. I know it's pretty common now; but still... :o
I hope you have a relaxing weekend as you prep for the coming week :) Hang in there!
We have been there and back again.
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Altaira
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Mar 7, 12:07am
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Here's to long weekends! Oh, wait. Every weekend is a long weekend for me. 
Having googled Taranaki Anniversary Day, I see it's to celebrate the region's settlement. Are you going to go to any of the festivities on Monday? Are you enjoying the concert yet (or did you, depending on when you read this)?
I can't believe you actually got out of bed and got dressed to go pet and calm down the dog. Although, I guess it was that, or get no sleep. I wonder if his owner knows he's a loudmouth when left alone. If he's not used to being indoors, I guess there's not a lot they can do except ask for the patience and good will of the neighbors.
Happy extra day off!
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Altaira
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Mar 7, 12:17am
Post #8 of 24
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The Home Show is finally here! How fun that you and your daughter will get to go together. Any particular improvements or products you're interested in learning what's new, or more just taking in all the eye-candy?
February and March are usually our snowiest months, so we still have time to make up some of it. If not, we may have lawn-watering restrictions but nothing worse than that. I feel like taking part of the credit for bringing on the snow, as we pretty much put the cushions on the deck chairs just in time for them to get snowed on, lol. Normally, we wouldn't put the cushions out so early, but we couldn't resist making the deck look even prettier.
Enjoy the fun weekend ahead!!
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Ataahua
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Mar 7, 12:35am
Post #9 of 24
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The sound checks are still going on.
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There's a good song on now actually, which I can hear clear as a bell - that'll be the low cloud reflecting the sound back down. The concert doesn't start for another four hours!
We don't celebrate the founding of New Plymouth by English settlers - it's purely just a day off for the region. We do have the Multi-ethnic Festival on today though; I've been before, and it's a great way to eat foods from around the world . One year there was a USA stand and they were selling pancakes.
About the dog owner, yes, he does know that his dog is prone barking incessantly at night when he isn't home. Thankfully, it happens only every couple of months or so - but boy, he's loud.
Celebrimbor: "Pretty rings..."
Dwarves: "Pretty rings..."
Men: "Pretty rings..."
Sauron: "Mine's better."
"Ah, how ironic, the addictive qualities of Sauron’s master weapon led to its own destruction. Which just goes to show, kids - if you want two small and noble souls to succeed on a mission of dire importance... send an evil-minded beggar with them too." - Gandalf's Diaries, final par, by Ufthak.
Fantasy novel - The Arcanist's Tattoo
My LOTR fan-fiction
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dernwyn
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Mar 7, 1:22am
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without having to be among the crowd! And they're a great band, I can't recall how many years they've been around now.
The poor pup, labs do require lots of attention. Good for you to give him some affection when he was craving it!
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"I desired dragons with a profound desire"
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dernwyn
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Mar 7, 1:25am
Post #11 of 24
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Are you thinking of getting a few ideas for your daughter's home - or maybe, purchases?
But - no snow! It's still at least 6" deep around here, may I mail some to you?
Have a wonderful weekend together!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I desired dragons with a profound desire"
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Mar 7, 2:27pm
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Actually, it sounds like Baxter is easier to deal with than the dude living in the house. Wow!
Now then... the noise of the concert is something I'd LO VE LOVE LOVE to suffer! Oh wow on the lineup! Even hearing the sound checks had to be such a thrill!!!!! D: Let me know how it goes
We have been there and back again.
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Ataahua
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Mar 7, 9:15pm
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Turns out, the sound checks were louder than the concert.
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That's happened before - it all depends on what the atmosphere is doing. Sometimes I've wondered if an event is being held at all, only to later hear from a colleague who lives across the city that they heard it clear as a bell. 
Celebrimbor: "Pretty rings..."
Dwarves: "Pretty rings..."
Men: "Pretty rings..."
Sauron: "Mine's better."
"Ah, how ironic, the addictive qualities of Sauron’s master weapon led to its own destruction. Which just goes to show, kids - if you want two small and noble souls to succeed on a mission of dire importance... send an evil-minded beggar with them too." - Gandalf's Diaries, final par, by Ufthak.
Fantasy novel - The Arcanist's Tattoo
My LOTR fan-fiction
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dernwyn
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Mar 7, 10:41pm
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During my early years of doing school library/media support. I had to clean the mouse balls! I always kept a bottle of rubbing alcohol, cotton swabs, and pointy little tweezers handy.
And tried in vain to prevent the kids from knowing how easy they were to remove...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I desired dragons with a profound desire"
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Kimi
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Mar 8, 1:01am
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I can see why you're so happy with the result. The lights really set it off, too.
It's been a busy weekend, but pleasantly so. Over the last 1.5 days, between us we've:
- made meringues for a delicious Blackberry Mess (Mr Kimi gathered just enough berries from our small blackberry patch)
- made sourdough starter crackers
- bottled a batch of cider
- prepped a mountain of feijoas for feijoa wine and set it on the go
- made feijoa and ginger icecream (sensing a theme?)
- pickled a batch of cucumbers (our *one* cucumber plant has been producing as if there's no tomorrow. I look away briefly, and when I check it again a new behemoth has formed)
It's so satisfying to be able to make use of our garden bounty. Yesterday we had a ploughman's lunch with bread, elderberry relish, tomatoes, pickled cucumber and cheese, and all bar the cheese was homegrown/homemade.
We've had some lovely autumn weather this week, very welcome after our less-than-wonderful summer. On Friday we packed up the kayak and headed off to lovely Kai Iwi Lakes https://kaiiwicamp.nz/ for a day of swimming, kayaking and picnicking. While the campground area was fairly busy, we kayaked over to a small beach and had it to ourselves. Just one small boat was on the lake, and they kept6 their distance. Just a lovely day.
The Passing of Mistress Rose
My historical novels
Do we find happiness so often that we should turn it off the box when it happens to sit there?
- A Room With a View
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Mar 8, 2:22pm
Post #17 of 24
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I can see how the atmosphere would impact the quality of the sound and how far it would carry. Denser humidity comes to mind. Hopefully the number of concerts isn't too much... not to mention that you LIKE the kind of music/bands filling the air :D
We have been there and back again.
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Mar 8, 3:02pm
Post #19 of 24
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Another wonderful adventure :)
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Fresh home foodstuffs with lovely weather on the water and a peaceful beach for your picnic :) A day for your heart/mind memory files! :D
We have been there and back again.
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Altaira
Superuser
Mar 8, 9:40pm
Post #20 of 24
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That all sounds delicious. What an impressive haul you've been getting from your garden. Well done!
The lakes look beautiful. A very satisfying Friday, I'm sure.
Have a wonderful week!
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Greenwood Hobbit
Doriath
Mar 9, 10:00pm
Post #21 of 24
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I've been missing a lot lately...
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apologies for that! The decking looks gorgeous. I wish houses in this country would be built with basements; where space is short, it would be a brilliant idea. You only tend to find them in old houses here. I was missing from fiesta last Friday because my daughter took me to see a Scottish band called Blazin' Fiddles. they've been around a while but I hadn't heard their music before. Good toe-tapping stuff! Here's the link. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NrJOodZyG4Q . There are five of them now, the man in the waistcoat isn't with them any more. They played up a storm and it was a lively evening.
Speaking of eyes (hope the cataract op went well!) I've just finished a course of three eye injections after a retinal bleed. I was terrified before the first one, the idea of it squicked me out completely, but there was actually nothing to worry about!
We've hardly had any proper winter here; a few morning frosts and a sprinkle of snow that didn't stay. Fortunately our water supply doesn't depend on snowmelt! We generally have way too much rain for that to be an issue. Spring flowers are putting on a good show; I have various daffodils,. primulas, crocuses, chionodoxa, ex-potted hyacinths naturalising and a big pink hellebore flowering at present; the grape hyacinths are poking their noses up. they'll be next! Hope you all have some brightness in your days - springtime or harvest! Cheers, folks!
(This post was edited by dernwyn on Mar 11, 5:41pm)
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grammaboodawg
Elvenhome
Mar 11, 12:30pm
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Spring is waking up the flowers, eh?
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It's so much fun to see colour outside after a long winter of white! We've had a couple of warmer days this past week, even several tornadoes (non-sibbie) struck the lower west part of the state, but the cold and snow are coming around again for a little longer. Around here in Michigan, March usually comes in like a lion and leaves like a lamb. Not always true! We'll see :)
Oh OW on the retinal bleed! I'm glad it wasn't as bad as you thought... and I hope you're all healed up... BUT STILL!!
Love that your daughter took you to see some LIVELY music!!! A very great outing to celebrate together ;)
HUGS and stay safe! Enjoy the waking flowers :D
We have been there and back again.
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dernwyn
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Mar 12, 3:17pm
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And the guitarist is speedy. also. How great to hear them in person!
Things like "eye injections" sound an awful lot worse than they really are. How is the eye feeling?
How colorful your yard is now! My plants have yet to show any green, except for two potted ones, a lamb's ear and a blue lobelia that I'd been nursing back to health last fall and seems very happy now.
What are your quilting/knitting plans?
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I desired dragons with a profound desire"
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dernwyn
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Mar 12, 3:34pm
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One might think you've got an over-abundance of feijoas!
It looks like the Kai Iwi Lakes tend to be shallow? That would make kayaking the best way to paddle on them. Lovely area, but then, that's New Zealand!
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"I desired dragons with a profound desire"
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