EXCHANGE INTERFACE

I know 'the year' is back because hockey has started up again. Tuesday night training, it was crazy hot yesterday and still ridiculously warm.

We have a bunch of new players this year, not just my friend who was interested in playing. It's a little sad - apparently a lot of our regular players have been injured or are taking a year off. We've lost one to university and another couple to motherhood (although they'll likely be back once their kids are older), but we should at least have enough to field two teams. It was fun, and my fitness training has helped with the running around.

And so nice not to be involved in the organisation of it all for once.

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The house across the road is finally finished after...a year and a half? I admit, I kind of want to sneak in and take a look at the empty house - I love going through empty houses and studying them - looking at all the bits and pieces, how it fits together, what it's like, etc.

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Got my Candy Hearts Exchange fic rewrite in with a scant few minutes to spare. And then had to go back and edit a few errors. My recip is a name I recognise but don't know; I have no idea if they'll like it or not, but now I have an entire backstory/headcanon for the fandom in question, so that's good.

Going to try for a couple of treats - I have a few that I was watching and thought might be interesting but somehow didn't have the wherewithal to do before today.

Will read my CH gift tonight.

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Work is feeling a little bleh right now.

Forgot to feed the neighbours' cats last night. Remembered at 4am.

I fed them a little more at 7am instead. They're big healthy young bois (3 years old at most), they'll be fine. But next time I won't ignore the reminder alarms!

This morning, the chooks were Very Offended that I'd sealed up their food bins against the rats getting in. There were some noisy protests (somewhat dimmed by the windows) until I went out and opened things up for them. I've been using them to clear the 'asparagus patch' - just enclosing them up and leaving them there for a couple of hours to scratch everything up, eat all the green things, debug the place, and manure the ground. It'll probably need a bit more manure once they've finished with it.

This morning, the cats are following me around everywhere. Probably hoping to be let into the study where I have the space heater on during the day.

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I bought a lounge (or am in negotatiations to buy a lounge; my paypal doesn't connect with the app so I had to ask for their paypal email address - I hope she doesn't think it's a scam) and am now negotiating to find someone to move the lounge next week.

Anyway, the lounge (if I can get it) is good because it's a 5 piece sectional in light colours, and what I can do is put four pieces in an L-shape in the lounge, then one piece in the study for a general 'couch'. Put bookshelves either side, and cube storage above that, and there's a nook for reading/sitting/space and plenty of storage for 'stuff'.

The hope is to get it in and settled, then unpack things from boxes, then invite people around BEFORE B1 gets back from her holiday in the UK...

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B1 seems to be having a good time at least. It helps that Australia are leading in the Ashes, but also they've been good games to watch. She's been up and down and around and around, and is presently in London, heading up to Gainesborough next week. She's planning to go back to Wales for a day or two and honestly, it's the most SCATTERED trip I've ever seen, back and forth all over the place. (Okay, so it's not how I'd do it, anyway.)

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The quilt I submitted ("Surplus to Requirement"> got accepted into the Sydney Quilt Show.

( quilt: surplus to requirement )

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Speaking of the asparagus bed, I have four asparagus crowns that have been sitting elsewhere that I need to put into the lower bed. It's two beds next to a couple of steps: upper contains asparagus, lower has tended to grow weeds no matter what I planted there. Useful ones, of course, like nasturtium and nettles, but still weeds. So I'm going to plant the lower out with more asparagus and plant companion plants around them. This site has a bunch of suggestions for companion plants; I'm already growing comfrey and parsley and strawberries, so maybe thyme, basil and coriander (cilantro). All that once I run the chooks through it again to give it a thorough aerating.

Also need to get my root vegies sorted out for sowing, and start thinking about sowing for summer. (Garden never stops growing.)

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A friend from church (possibly more correctly: the husband of a friend from church with whom I'm 'friendly' but probably would not consider a friend) has rerouted his walk to the bus stop to go past my house every morning and evening. It's interesting, because most people I know tend to avoid the possibility of interaction with someone they kinda-sorta-a-bit-maybe know on a regular route, and I would have expected him to be at the top of the list of introverts seeking to avoid the possibility of casual contact.

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I called in unwell yesterday afternoon and napped most of the afternoon away, felt a bit better by evening. Slept the usual hours (about 5-ish? From 11 until 4am, drowsed a little for the next two hours. So I'm still feeling a little bit hazy after the other night's complete lack of sleep. Basically I'm here, but not very anchored.

Personal training today.