The week seems to have flown by and it is now about 9 weeks to Christmas if you can believe it. I have, I confess, bought one thing already, a little box of chocolate sardines to add to a friend’s present. I now must not forget where I have put it (there is still an item that was supposed to go in Karl’s stocking last year that has never turned up).
Anyway, the weather has been one day rain, one day sun type of thing, so every day is a bit of a gamble as to what to wear. Saturday started dull, but moved to sun, and the afternoon turned into one of tea, an Afghan biscuit from our local deli, and a detective novel. You may notice the books on the table, and Saturday’s dinner was from the Ottolenghi (a spicy sausage and chickpea dish with leftovers for today’s lunch) and Sunday’s from Julius Roberts (lamb and barley with leftovers for dinner today).
More bees!
I thought there would be no more bees to show this week as the weather was not the best for walking around on Wednesday, but at least I can bring you the six small ones in the main library in the city. These are all made by local schools. Starting at the top left, this cheerful bee comes from Silverstream School and celebrates diversity. In the top middle we have the bee from Lyall Bay School, inspired by the local neighbourhood with sea, sand and local landmarks. The bottom middle bee is from Maidstone Intermediate School and represents the flora that sustains the bees. At the top right is the bee from Maungaraki School. Here the face is linked to New Zealand artist Dick Frizzell’s work, and the abdomen connects with Wellington artist Gordon Walters. The bee also wears a Korowai.
The bee with the penguin on one of the wings comes from Muritai School and reflects our guardianship of the environment. Nestled between bush and sea, the design celebrates nature, the ocean, and our syndicate birds—kororā, tūī, kererū, and kahu. Finally, we have the Spelling Bee from Bellevue Primary School. Belle, as the bee is called, uses her letters to create words taught to her by Bellevue pupils.
And even more bees!
On Sunday, I spotted this bee enjoying our lavender. I’m not sure if it was the same bee that had breakfast at the flowers in the morning, but here, enjoying afternoon tea, is a real bee.
Lunches
I ended up going twice to Tipple on the Nook for lunch this week for their sandwich and coffee deal, the salami/cheese on on Tuesday and the chicken on Friday. There was a similar old favourite on Wednesday with the fabulous tuna salad bagel at Bond Street Deli. Promise to make more of an effort to try something different next week!
In the basket
The Wonky Box delivered up…yes folks, more broccoli, more avocados, carrots, courgettes (for a nice change), potatoes, mushrooms, asparagus, a bag of baby spinach and a cucumber. I have lots still to use up, so will cancel next week and take a break from broccoli too 🙂
While I haven’t seen any white asparagus in the shops here, we do see the purple variety, so I picked up some of that. A fennel bulb, a green capsicum and the first of the season’s strawberries were added along with a bag of Aleppo chilli and some of this cream cheese with truffle (there is now a lot of cheese in the fridge too).
Time for art
It has been so good for Wellington to see the City Art Gallery open up again after being closed for two years due to construction work in Te Ngākau Civic Square, as well as building repairs. The first exhibition is of works by British artist Cornelia Parker is absolutely fantastic.
Below are a couple of her photography works and a deconstructed house. One of the exhibits consisted of objects placed in an old hut than blown up with explosives (she did work with the British army on that project) and another of 30 disks made of found silver items, some bashed flat. It was such an ethereal piece, that was worth taking time to look at. I also loved this room of flattened brass instruments, that seemed to form shapes like lilies, suspended from the ceiling. The shadows formed their own shapes. I will definitely go back for a second view.
Simple things
- Laughing and chatting at book club on Wednesday evening.
- Hearing about the big adventure my friend is having in the US – Chicago marathon done, then a train to Washington DC. More to come!
- Listening to the dawn chorus.
- Watching a dachsund snore….so funny and relaxing after a day at work.
- Having pizza on Friday.
- Finding this nice little dish in one of our local charity shops for NZ$6.
What were your small pleasures this week? Here are some other blog posts from a few fellow bloggers looking at the good things in life.
- Laurie is back for a bit.
- Fred shares six things from his garden in Normandy.
- And Jude at Cornwall in Colours also shares her beautiful garden.
- Jo has some doubts…..
- Meanwhile Travels Through My Lens shows us some stunning autumn colours.
- The Travel Sketcher shares his week in The Pearl with pumpkins, painting and good food.
- Mr Tootlepedal goes over the hill.
- Have a coffee and delicious cinnammon buns with Maria in Sweden.
- And Neal is silent on Sunday.
- Ilze buys some apple trees.
- While Natalie takes us on a walk to High Park.
- Deb shares her recent reading.
- Finally….there is a wordless Wednesday from Mr Platypus.
- ..…and all the other lovely bloggers out there. Sorry if I have missed anyone…..
Thistles and Kiwis is a Wellington, New Zealand based blog written by Barbara, who likes cats, summer and good food. Thistles and Kiwis can be found on Facebook and Instagram @thistlesandkiwis
