Merry Christmas To All And To All A Goodnight

 "Of course you realise there will be no stocking this year BA," I cautiously raised the subject as she lay prostrate and miserable on the couch with a low grade fever, swollen neck glands the size of golf balls and eyes which looked as though someone had used her for punching practice!

Her face fell. As far as it could considering the swelling.

Never mind that three weeks ago she snapped waspishly at me,"Reee-ally, Mum, you are the only parent who won't just give cash at Christmas! What is the matter with you?"

Never mind that the things of childhood hold little interest for her nowadays.

Never mind that she recently told me she thinks we'll be better friends when she moves out of home!

When push comes to shove, my Baby Angel is loathe to let go of the traditions of her childhood, and so tomorrow morning, there will be a little stocking and a letter from Father Christmas!!

Not quite the plethora of presents she has become used to, but enough to remind her that she isn't quite that big, yet.

Merry Christmas to everyone, from all of us here at The Flaming Sword!

A Pocket Full Of Posies*

Is it just me or is everyone either unwell, in trouble or grieving at the moment? Everywhere I turn there are friends and family suffering or great swathes of the country enveloped in the mud of receding floodwaters as residents attempt to salvage what they can of their lives. It is almost too much to bear.

My mother has been very ill since her arrival in the country and, although she gets a little better each day, the vile virus is eating into her precious weeks of holiday here in Australia. Many of her friends are elderly so she is quarantined lest she infect them, which means she can't see many of the people she has travelled all this way to be with. My sisters in the UK have also been struck down by the thing to varying degrees and as I write I note that my throat is sore :-(

My Bestie is another disaster area. She has been suffering from a back injury, incurred at work some two years ago, which has been steadily getting worse. A scan before Christmas revealed a bulging disc and she was ordered to 'take it easy', a difficult thing for an energetic, competent woman like my Bestie. Before she could even put this advice into practice, she was involved in a 'rear ender' on her way from a work function which rendered her 'moderately' compressed spinal cord...'severe'. She is now housebound and in agony most of the time, taking a regimen of pain killers and unable to work, drive or even walk. Her beloved mother, who has been suffering from a bad knee for sometime, has experienced a rapid decline in her other knee and so she in unable to get around to help my Bestie out, a source of enormous frustration and anxiety for her.

Meanwhile, another friend lost her sister to suicide, my own friend in the UK lost her battle for life and watching the TV is just heartbreaking.

Which is why I was relieved to tears to hear that after a 'crisis' and a hospital visit, My Bestie is now, for some miraculous reason, pain free. It has been two days and she can walk normally and is sleeping in bed again. Her mother and I exchange knowing glances and offer silent prayers of praise.

Meanwhile, donate to the flood appeal
here and spread the relief.

* Despite Snopes' protestations otherwise, I have always believed that this old rhyme is plague related!

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Oh The Wind Is Blowing Gustily

After the record heat of the previous two weeks, the last few days have descended once more into a wintry bluster. Today has been amazing. The wind has not let up all day, in fact it's doing my head in. It's a bit like the Chinese Water Torture. From time to time rain lashes almost horizontally against the front windows and we can see white caps on the sea. Given that it's about 8km away Himself assures me that these would be waves higher than our house!

I am wedged firmly in the jaws of report writing. Ugh. How many ways can you say, 'This child could not care less about mathematics and makes no effort whatsoever to engage with the curriculum. He would not know homework if he fell over it and the concept of revising for a test is as familiar as Russian metaphysical poetry of the 14th century '?

Occasionally I can slide in a quick, 'works well in class' or 'contributes actively to class discussion' although the latter is not always a good thing; especially when class discussion involves either 'why we shouldn't have to learn maths' or 'what I did on the weekend'.


There has been no sailing for the past two weeks. Last week Small Boy had a birthday party to go to so Himself stomped about like a bear with a sore head who has been deprived of his salmon. This week of course the wind strength meant everything was canceled. The last recorded result was Jester 7th and Gunshot first! I think No 2 Son had a second last week too. At least one member of the family is having a good season.

Oh and The BA's team won their netball last night beating another team from their club who were in the division above but have been dropped down. She put in a scintillating second half after a slow start and was pleased to have found the measure of her opponent whom she has practised against in the past but never beaten.

Small Boy has been playing non stop with his two mates from up the street, of late. The three of them are seemingly inseparable and undeniably boys! This is the kind of spontaneous pose you get when you ask them to smile for the camera. At least Small Boy is well trained!! It's hard to believe he's the oldest of the three of them given his size isn't it?

Other bits and pieces: I've got a cold which came out of nowhere. I feel ok but can't stop sneezing! Very irritating! Also the Small Boy introduced us to a website called 'Grooveshark' where you can find 'any song in the world' he claims and stream it for free! Himself is currently on a quest to find a song that isn't on there. I am being treated to a soundtrack of Yes, Pink Floyd, Nils Lofgren, Rory Gallagher and Lou Reed. Bit of a time warp.

Ah well. I must stop procrastinating. Back to the grindstone. Let's hope this wind lets up soon.



Sunset on the Eucalypts: Nov 09