What to do on a very wet weekend

Over 75mls in the rain gauge since Friday morning makes this a very wet weekend. June left us with only one quarter of our normal rainfall, for what is traditionally the wettest month of the year, so this rain is most welcome. I have not emptied the gauge yet -after so many days of dry weather I am really enjoying seeing the column of water.

It hasn't made much of an improvement to the temperature however. Perhaps it is slightly warmer overnight, so we have not had the ice on the cars, but the days are quite chilly.

Our DS has been learning about living in his rental accommodation. It seems quite a chilly house, even with the wood stove. It is a great pity that the idea that the Federal government had, to subsidise the placement of ceiling insulation in rental accommodation, turned out to be spoiled by tricksters and conmen, who did such a bad job that there were lots of house fires and the whole scheme was abandoned. It is also a pity that the programme of legislating for each house rented or sold from July 1 2010 to have an energy efficiency rating, has now been put on hold for two years. It is the renters who struggle trying to keep warm in houses without ceiling insulation.

My lovely DH has painted the ceiling, and started on the first coat of the sewing room. As you can see, we are going to be much lighter and brighter than before. My DS chose this lovely honey colour because it was close to the colour of his lovely old violin, but I want a neutral canvas so that my quilting colour choices can be seen without competition, on my design board. I will also need good bright light to work in here.
Our lovely ancient Lady (next month she will be 20) has spent the weekend seeking out the warmest places in the house. Without the winter sun streaming in, this turned out to be the best option for her old bones.

I have been reading Penguin classics. They had a three for the price of two sale recently, so I have enjoyed George Bernard Shaw's "Pygmalion" and am now into Isabelle Allende's "Eva Luna".
I have made a bottle of preserved cumquats in a very heavy syrup, which I am told will be nice on a cheese board, or served with icecream. We have been on the look out for more uses for cumquats as the yummy marmalade that DH makes is rather fiddly and you can only eat so much marmalade in a year.

The other jar is fresh ginger, which I have pickled in a brine/vinegar/sugar solution. I also have some grated and frozen -will compare the two methods to see how I like the result. Both methods were recommended by my friends on the Aussies Living Simply website -if you click on the button on the right you will be taken to a wonderful repository of wisdom.

Tonight's dinner for DH and I is a mushroom braise -winter fare! I got these from the Midland grower's market this morning, along with the ginger.

I guess this weekend has been just one of those quiet, productive, happy kind of winter weekends. Hoping you, dear readers, have had a lovely quiet weekend too.