Some Sad News - and Dublin

My beautiful wee cat isn't pregnant. I took her to the vet's today (with much meowing and looking forlorn in her cat carrier) and he said she'd probably absorbed her kitties back into her body. He said it was unusual for a female cat to reach 3 years old and not have had a litter so there must be a problem with her. We came home and had some girl time cuddling on the couch until she felt happy again.Happier news - I'm off to Dublin tomorrow to meet my husband, who is flying in from Milan tomorrow night and then has two days off before the next gig. I'll arrive before him and settle myself into the hotel, which has a pool and sauna. The dilemma is, what do I take to do on the plane? Will I get knitting needles on? Or should I do some crochet? Or read? Or write? I haven't been anywhere for ages though so I'm looking forward to it. Meg is being looked after by Karen who likes cats so I'm sure they'll be fine.

Our friend Rik is the sound engineer for Iggy and the Stooges, so I was very excited to watch (from the comfort of my own living room) Iggy playing Glastonbury last Saturday night. It was an amazing gig; Iggy has so much energy, and I loved when he invited the front of the audience onto the stage. It reminded me of gigs my husband's band do, when the music is so energising that people from the audience climb onto the stage, and then stage-dive back in. I love when music uplifts and transcends and people are spontaneous. I wonder which shampoo Iggy uses? His hair looks so silky.

Confused? You won't be after this week's episode of SOAP

Does anyone remember that from the 80s? It used to be my absolute favourite TV programme. Until Burt was abducted by aliens. Then it all got a bit surreal. Not that I mind surreal but it was a bit odd three years into the programme.

Anyway, MY confusion is all to do with my little cat, sunbathing here on the coal bunker yesterday:I took her to the vet two weeks ago and he told me she was 3-4 weeks pregnant. So, after the initial shock I was very excited and started asking very nice people if they wanted a kitten when they arrived. The vet reckoned she had three or four kittens inside her, possibly more.

Then yesterday she started acting like she was on heat again. And tonight when I got home from work there was no sign of her, which is most unusual. I went looking for her, down the back lane, and even into next door's garden where Basil has a disused outbuilding and little secret garden round the back, where I know she likes to hang out, but she wasn't there. I was getting quite worried about her when she turned up just after 9pm, wolfed down a pouch of food and went straight out again.

So, I'm guessing she isn't pregnant, or else something's happened to her little kitties. I'll make an appointment for her at the vet tomorrow and make sure she's okay.

At least I should get a good night's sleep tonight, but I'd much rather Meg was home bothering me.

My husband came home from tour on Sunday night for a couple of days. I was so happy to see him. He very kindly gave me this!

Thunder and The Kitchen Table Microcosm

This has been our weather for the past few days. Torrential rain, thunder and lightning. I went into town yesterday morning and it was clear blue sky when I left. Then I was sitting in a cafe having lunch when the rain started hammering on the roof and bouncing off the pavement.

Today I'm planning to tidy up the house for Hagos coming home!! There isn't much to do but when I came down for breakfast this morning and looked at the kitchen table I thought it said a lot about how I've been living this last week: Material and sewing machine to make skirts; Oxygen and The Memory Keeper's Daughter; yesterday's Guardian; a present from a friend; receipts to sort; magazines and books stacked at the end of the table for reference; a manuscript of a book another friend is writing; and satsumas to have with porridge for breakfast.

It sums up how I spend my time. The table would have had a ginger cat on it too if she hadn't been out hunting.

Skirt # 3

I finished Joyce's skirt and she's really happy with it. I thought the moss green waist band really lifted the colours in the material, which is Amy Butler Coriander Olive.

Meg has taken to sleeping beside me on my bed, which I really like. I woke up this morning to find her already beside me, after she'd been out hunting.

My Friend Meg

I love Meg.

Mouse, Missing in Action

Meg brought a mouse in at ten to six in the morning a couple of days ago. I always know she has a 'friend' as she brings them up to the landing outside my bedroom, where we have a little office area and my bookshelves, and it's also where I hang my CLEAN washing. For some reason Meg likes playing with her little friends in amongst this clean washing: underneath the clothes horses and in the shelves where clean bedding and towels are kept. Anyway, I get up, only the mouse's tail can be seen dangling from Meg's mouth. I usher them both downstairs, Meg goes under the kitchen table and drops the mouse. The mouse looks completely DEAD. Limp. Lifeless. Broken. So I go to the bathroom to get tissue to pick up the mouse and when I come back through Meg is eating her breakfast and the mouse is GONE. It was obviously only pretending to be dead hoping to escape. An old ruse. I couldn't find it anywhere. I even picked Meg up and walked round the living room and kitchen with her, holding her close to the ground, hoping she would pick up the scent, but she just seemed a bit puzzled.

So, two days later, the mouse is still MISSING IN ACTION. I expect a smell will reveal its hideaway eventually.

Apart from that I've been ordering and receiving more lovely material:The Kaffe Fassett 'Paperweight Algae' is to make skirts for me and Mo. It reminds me of the bracelets I had as a kid. The Amy Butler 'Eyelashes' on top is for a skirt for me. It's actually a bit more yellow than I was expecting. I thought it was more olive-coloured.

I've already finished Mo's skirt: It's really lovely, and has turned out better than the original skirt I made. I'm getting the hang of the zips now, still not perfect though but CLOSE. I know at some point I'll have to learn to make a different type of skirt or garment but for now I'm having fun with this one-and-only shape.

I also received the material to make Joyce's skirt today: I do love this coriander line. And I have to give credit to Cottonpatch. There was a slight mistake with my order and they sorted it out immediately. So I will definitely be ordering from them again.

Hagos is in Norway today. Good news is that he's flying home a week on Sunday for a couple of days, unexpectedly. They're playing in Holland early that day, so he's flying direct from Amsterdam to Norwich. Yippee!

Gingercat Biscuits

I bought this cookie cutter when I went to V's cafe for lunch yesterday: I'm planning to make gingercat biscuits, probably to take into work as I don't want to eat a whole trayful myself!

Of course, guess who had to get in on the action when I was photographing:

Bee Time and The Sewing Empire

It's bee time at our cottage. Every year the bees turn up for three to four weeks and the bush outside our kitchen window buzzes all day long and their furry little bums groove up and down and their legs are covered in pollen. I love the bees.

I finished my skirt and I'm really pleased with it:

I took it into work and everyone I showed it to immediately asked if I would make them one! So far I've agreed to make one for Joyce and Mo at cost (they are acting as guinea pigs after all) but in different material. Joyce is having the same material as mine but in different colours (kind of olive and muted yellow) and Mo is having Kaffe Fassett material, I think it's called Paperweight

Algae. It's greens and blues.

I've also made a bag:

I've ordered myself some Kaffe Fassett Paperweight Algae as well, and some more Amy Butler Eyelashes material. I'm fortunate enough to work near the fabric shop in Norwich so I go there for bits and pieces and I've also seen material I like but I'll wait until the online stuff turns up.

I've also agreed to make my sister a skirt for her birthday in July. I sent her a sample of the fabrics she can choose from. I know she'll find some of them funny.I'm taking Meg to the vet on Monday. It's seven miles away and I'm not looking forward to getting her into the cat carrier and taking her in the car. Luckily she was already registered with that vet under her previous owners so they've moved her medical records into our name now. I thought it was funny when the vet's receptionist asked me if Meg's previous owners knew she was living with us now. Like we'd stolen her. (Which we kind of did - well, gentle persuasion anyway, she didn't need much encouragement to be pampered and given loads of attention.)

I'm having another easy day. I'll finish making the bag (it's designed to carry a paperback book; so often I want to take my paperback to a cafe and don't have a suitable bag to carry it in). And I'll watch a little bit of The Darling Buds of May and read Pride and Prejudice.

Hagos is in Lithuania today. Estonia tomorrow, then they move into Scandinavia and central Europe. There's a chance I'll join him on tour in Dublin for three days. We'll see.