It is hard to believe that it is already almost September and therefore almost my birthday! I am turning 65 on the 3rd of September, so I will officially be a pensioner. I made several suggestions of things I desire and Norm says it sounds more like a Scavenger hunt than a birthday list.

A black sheepskin,
A toy Pangolin,
A metal rhino that I spotted on the side of the motorway.

I thought he would appreciate my input.

Norm and I are going to see Rocky Horror Picture Show at the local theatre on the actual day. I asked if we could go for lunch on the following weekend and he shouted at me to stop meddling. If he throws a surprise party I will actually kill him. That sounds like hell. None of my kids are going to be in Cape Town that week so it is just he and I so who can surprise me with? It is not like I have hordes of friends!?

My besties are my children, my husband and my dogs I guess. I wake up to their faces.

And they stick with me wherever I go.

This week there has been a lot of activity in the fairy garden. Of course I have the usual assortment of skinks darting about. I was watching one intensely and Norm could not see it. That often happens and as I am the one with the poor eyesight, we find it funny. When that happens I tell him it is because they are not allowing him to see them. Like I am that kid from the Sixth Sense and the only one who can see the lizards.

I had gone out to the back garden for a coffee and to take a concentration break and I was looking at my phone while walking out. When I sat down I looked up and there was the baby Black Sparrowhawk in the garden!

When I finished work I went out again and he was back in the same spot on the wall, right by the Robin’s nest. I think he could hear the baby robins cheeping. I thought about those babies all night.

The next morning when I woke up I went to the back bedroom to look out at the wall for him and I saw a baby Robin fly right at the window to join another baby robin who was already on the windowsill. I ran back to the bedroom to get Norman but when I got back they had flown back to their nest. There must be 2 babies.

I hear the message Mother Nature, the babies are safe so far! Based on the schedule of baby robin chicks they should leave the nest and hang out with mom and dad for a while sometime around my birthday. That will be a lovely present Universe, to see all 4 robins happily hopping safely about!

The pink Indian Hawthorne bush on the border at the back garden is covered in gorgeous blooms which means we have lots of bees. I watched one of the Cape Robins jump up and catch one of the bees in their beak. I then pondered whether a bee can sting a bird in the mouth. Apparently, birds who eat bees will bash them to remove the toxins and the stinger or at least kill them first.

Then when I was watching the swee waxbills at the bird feeder they started doing a little performance for me.

Then a different swee waxbill landed on one of my new fairy houses!

Last Sunday I pottered about as it was a nice day. I planted some clippings into my new bunny pot. I put some clay beads in the bottom, mixed the earth and filled it to the top. I then just clipped and snipped whatever plants I fancied to go in the soil. They are looking well so far.

I put my new fairy houses, fairies and other items into the Fairy Garden that afternoon.

Norm had to help me get my new rope ladder to adhere to the tree strongly enough to hold a fairy or it just looks like a straggly rope hanging on a tree. Norm gently hammered the little stakes in and I selected a gnome who was in the perfect position to climb up it.

Later Norm repaired my new fairy’s broken wings and I rearranged the fairies all again for the millionth time. Some call it rearranging some call it playing………. potato potatoh. It makes me happy and that is what matters.

I checked on the wild orchids (Satyrium odorum) growing at the front in the Peace Garden. Three have now grown stalks, I cannot wait for them to bloom!

My inside orchid that I recently repotted is thriving. It has 4 stalks and several blooms coming through. One has opened but it is hard to get a nice image without faffing with her and I do not like to upset her.

This week I learned a new term that applies to me. I am an External Processor. Here is a way to determine whether you are Internal or External, then please come back and let me know in the comments, I find it fascinating. If I say ‘I am an External Processor’ it makes me sound like a transformer or a computer part. But an external processor is someone who makes sense of their thoughts and feelings by speaking or writing them down rather than keeping them inside and just ruminating silently. They do not talk about the issue only when they have a final answer or make a decision. Instead, they use conversation as a tool to figure out what they actually think. I use writing to do this. I write exactly as it comes into my head. My writing is the same as when I am speaking, very few filters apply.

This week’s first special treat is a gorgeous little ditty by the stunning Aiyana-Lee from the UK. She is also an actress and was discovered by Spike Lee. I love several of her songs but this one is on my rebounding list because the lyrics are great to shout out loud while jumping.

My beloved Orville Peck has also released new music. He has buffed up and is looking all he-manly. He has been very open about his addictions, almost overdosing and recovery. I had never seen him dance properly and I am even more in love with him now that I see him grindin’ those hips! Let me clarify, it is a non-sexual love – I just like to look at him and listen to him. Noah Cyrus has a cameo in the video below, in the Prologue and in Too Little, Too Late. In the latter video Orville dances with his friend, the stunning Symone. I was so convinced that I spotted Sebastian Molina, (who is one of RuPaul’s Pit Crew) dancing in the garage scene but after fighting with Mr Google he admitted that Sebastian is not in the video.

The lyrics make me sad and reflect something I heard Hayden Panettiere had also said, that they are responsible for supporting everyone around them or as the song says, ‘payin everybody’s bills’. I am sure so many people who make money are expected to look after every cousin and half cousin and his dog. It must be a lot of pressure.

One dollar from every North American tour ticket sold will be donated to The Trevor Project, supporting crisis intervention and suicide prevention services for LGBTQ+ young people.

The food shop ingredients and my will both ran dry by last weekend so we had take-outs. We had Portuguese steaks from Casarecchio one night (yes, with chips).

I have cooked since Tuesday when we had some shopping delivered. We are not doing low carb, just trying to eat sensible portions at sensible times. Tuesday night was chicken sausage, mash, fresh peas and baby cabbage.

On Wednesday I put some beef stew meat and a variety of things into a crock pot and let it cook all day in beef stock for an easy dinner on Thursday as I had to work late.

For our dinner on Wednesday night I put chicken breasts and chickpeas into a casserole dish and added some creamy chicken soup as I had nothing else. The mistake I made was that I did not brown the chicken first as it looked a bit anemic but it had a tasty flavour. I roasted butternut in olive oil and cinnamon and I tried to make zucchini parmesan slivers. It took ages to slice the wee buggers, then I tossed them in olive oil and parmesan and lay them onto a baking tray and burnt them to a crisp. What a waste of time. I had some halloumi I wanted to cook but forgot about it.

On Friday we had the leftover stew over some mash with baby broccoli on the side.

On Thursday I met a friend for a coffee at Deli Social.

I wore a new linen outfit I had bought in the Desray end of season sale and shoes from Leluya.

This afternoon I am off to the Japanese restaurant Izakaya Kúkai for lunch with some girl friends and I am very excited about both scenarios!

I am now 4kgs down (8.8lbs) and feeling great. My relationship with food has shifted. My nervous system has settled and I am feeling taller and more stable on my feet. My daughter asked if I had a goal weight and I said I do not – it is not about being thin it is about being fitter, building bone, muscle and strength. I just keep my eye on that prize!

I hope you all have a great weekend and week ahead. Until next time, Kisses from the Kitten xoxox