The First of March -
Canterbury's weather, this week, took a turn for the wet and windy, cold and dewy. I cant believe it - it was like clockwork. This week has been very different from the last. I knew darker mornings were to be expected but we havent even reached Daylight Saving and the mornings are already darker, the evenings a little shorter. The dew is heavy and the foggy drippy windows let me know its colder out there...
The North had their first Winter Weather Bomb, a  violent storm that left its mark on gardens and property throughout NZ. We were lucky, we got just the glancing blow. Not so fortunate were our Northern neighbours!

Big Son (18) has had a couple of days off and has been working on my car, and spent his hard earned cash on some neccessities. Bless him. He loves getting in and doing it, reading up on what to do and away he goes...

Hes changed my oil and my oil filter, done a few other things and replaced the rocker gasket, which didnt sound like much fun, but it looks  & sounds so much better and runs nicely! Hes cleaned the whole thing and Im so thrilled and so,so grateful!
Still have to replace a Speedometer cable. Its in such a fiddly place... sigh.
Cars! Cant afford em, cant live without em!?
Thank You Son! Mummy Loves You!

Clutter, Clutter!Im feeling shut in and cluttered already.
It doesnt take much, I dont like being inside when there are things I feel I need to do outside. I can hear my intuition telling me to make a List of things (Im a list kinda gal!) to do when *those* days close in... And I mustnt ignore it this year, as I do tend to get the Winter Blues easily if I cant get out and about in the garden.

Ive started de-cluttering inside... AGAIN.  Its funny how every year, we bunk-in. We change the house around so we can live in the warmer parts of the building during Winter and close off the other parts. This year, with chimney removal and such, cracks in walls, missing putty in windows, holes in stained glass, drips here and there... its going to be interesting to say the least. Theres a ... massive... gap in the front door between the door jam, and where the door closes - in fact, the door barely locks and a good shoulder to the door handle would open it easily. It was a vital part of the emergency repairs that got *overlooked* ... EQC and Landlord *forgot* about that part I guess?
However, its the CLUTTER that does my head in. Why, oh why... do we have so much crrra...rubbish.
Im dealing to it. I simply cant do it fast enough. I hate tripping over stuff, or looking for something you cant find... and it happens here regularly. Old clothes - out. Old plastics - Recycled. Cardboard Boxes - Recycled...
Oh and then theres the school fundraiser - a box of CHOCOLATE to sell... groan. They know my weak spot...Perfect for those cold Winter days and nights...

Good News... and yes, there IS some, Im not just here to whine endlessly throughout this post *grin*, though it might seem that way...
We are getting BROADBAND tomorrow. An extremely inexpensive, good deal + Troublesome and Useless dialup = BROADBAND... As my 18yo said in a text when he heard... Welcome to the 21st Century Ma!... Cheeky brat.

So Im makin' a Youtube list of Things to Watch - Any suggestions?
I need to catch up on a couple of my favourite programmes Ive missed along the way, but Im really keen to view some of the stuff Ive missed for years as people have sent me links to videos, and Ive had to delete cos of my s-l-o-w connection... NOT ANY MORE :-) Can you see me grinning from here?
I resisted signing up for broadband for so long... but anything! for no more dialup hassles. I like learning from Gardening sites, like OOOBY and similar...

So things I can do this Winter if I cant be out and about include... Knitting some winter woollies - Id like to knit some socks, have never tried... Revamping the lounge - making a cushion or something to brighten things... Selling off some of the kids toys/books/baby clothes online... Jam! Preserving,... Making seed envelopes... Some more Prepping... Making some copies of my online Recipes... Im sure I will find more to do, besides Housework :-)

So thats me...
Still here, tidying and passing time til tomorrow at 9.30am or thereabouts...
Love to You and Yours,
E Butterfly
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