Marmaduke Duck and the marmalade jam

I can't tell you how delightful it was being surrounded by ducks, dogs , chooks, birds and a stealthy guinea pig as I was recording this video.  They immediately came around when I sat outside and started to read, giving their little quacks of comments.  

It's rather funny how far I've come in terms of getting used to the poultry division heh heh I believe in one of my blogs I wrote about the Hen Brigade and their attempts to storm me as I was trying to collect the eggs!  It always brings to mind the story my mum told me about being pecked by my grandmother's geese and ducks, she absolutely detested them and was constantly sporting bruises on her calfs, funnily enough she loved being friendly with the chooks and said when she was younger in boarding school she befriended a wounded chook (hen.. a hen..) and would spend hours petting and talking to it.... I can see the attraction, they don't talk back and sometimes they give you an egg! heh no seriously, I've gotten over the squeamishness of touching the chooks and have even carried a few out of duck ponds (yes yes  the saviour of chooks everywhere!) 

I also find it awesome how children just go straight in and talk and pet animals no matter what type, absolutely no fear just love. So brave and loving. 

Anyway, I'm off to look for my microphone, can't find it anywhere, do hope the guinea pig hasn't picked it up and used it to torture the chook that lays eggs in his little pen , she has no regard for personal space!

love

Qi x

Where does Thursday Go by Janeen Brian

I know most of us say "where has the day gone?"  or where has the "week gone?"  Time seems to fly, and then some.  My son Chris and I were having a chat and grumbling about the younguns  quoting "time is just a construct! , (he's one to talk he's a millennial!) but really we're beginning to think it is! 

 

How lovely to think you can look for a certain day, do you remember as a child 10 minutes felt like foever?!!  It's enough time for just a deep breath nowadays!

I'll keep reading these Children's books as I feel more children could use some tales with imagination with all the harshness today's reality brings.  Also it's a way for me to reach out to my grandson , something he can watch over and over whenever. 

I do hope we continue to have authors of children's books, that writing does not die out and that the pen is mightier than the sword. 

Have a great week all

Dx 

Oh Dear what can the matter be? by P Crumble (yum ,he he)

You hardly hear that sentence anymore do you?  It's more for the "older' folk"... yikes, I'm swiftly following into the ranks of the silver haired brigade!  Not that I'm complaining, hey I'm still alive and kicking and that is all that counts.

I was a tad disgruntled, as I had wanted to post a different story, but like the slow wearing down of the incumbent two brain cells pinging around in my head, I had forgotten to add the pictures from the book!  Look you all can leave the early onset dementia comments out thank yew!

As it is , with all the tragic news going on in the world , this felt like a light hearted way of lifting the moment,  I do hope you've gathered your kiddies, or grand kiddies and watch the vid with them, such precious moments no?

Anyway, I must be off, if you have any suggestions for other books, drop me a line!

have a lovely weekend! and Happy Mothers Day!

Dx

The Boy and the Toy by Sonya Hartnett read by Dx

When my children were younger (yes yes it's going back yeaaarrsss) I had very strict rules on electronic devices and robotics in the house. (though I make a lot of jokes I was very strict with the kiddos)  everyone had to leave the phones either in their rooms or at the side table for mealtimes  and at night time phones had to be docked and there was a cut off time as well for the internet.  Watching the kids, I know for a fact they loved spending time playing lego, jigsaws and monopoly with me when I was around, otherwise it was crash bandicoot or one of the other playstation games.  Many a time I caught my youngest sitting in front of the tv in the middle of the night with the volume turned down low so he wouldn't get caught! (sneaky sneaky!) .  But when it came to friends, nothing beat their buddies knocking on the door with "come and play". or "is it ok for you to come out" and the constant nagging for stayovers!, plus we always had cats and dogs and they loved their pets.  

what do you think of today's society, where they do not have the time to do all these things  or for kids who now have become so isolated due to video and online games that they would prefer to be online instead of outside, which has also become somewhat unsafe.. sigh

I think this book has a subtle prod at that and it's quite refreshing to read .  What are your thoughts on AI, will it benefit our children, grand children?  What are the guardrails for these precious young minds?

This book really made me think , and I hope it does for you.

For all the children of the world and my beloved Idris

Dx

A reading of Room on the Broom

I do hope you have been enjoying these hilarious stories I've been reading for my grandson Idris on my youtube channel.  I've found so much joy in being able to read and record them, as I know he gets to watch it over and over again.

Dedicated to children all over the world , big and small.

Dx

Tales from the Bush, the log book.

Day 1, Daph's Caf Log (full moon in virgo)

Have arrived finally at the Capital, forgot to eat or have a coffee in my haste to get public transport to my destination, so was grumpy with hunger.  The Godmother whisked me to a mall as she had some errands to do, there she fed and watered me, thankfully, or I would have bitten her arm off (in hunger and anger... whichever is preferable at the time...)  I've also managed to mess up my con call with my tribe so no one is gong to save me now.

We arrive at casa Godmother, and the pygmies come bounding down the stairs to greet me.  It is a common custom they say, for these albino pygmies to jump on you and wrap their arms around you, or  so I've been told. "Stop calling them PYGMIES Daph! They're kids", shouts The Godmother.  Right... David Attenborough  mode off.

The Gin Deck of the House... he he he

I've agreed to house sit for a week, this means apart from getting a 5 bedroom house on an acre of land to myself, I also have a few "chores" to do.  One of the chores is to take care of their gorgeous brown Labrador doggie who is so laid back and the other chore, that has my inner "city girl" nostrils flaring, are the "hens" aka killer chooks who need to be let out of the coop at the bottom of the yard, next to the lemon trees.  "Don't worry, they will go back in on their own once the sun goes down" assures father to the pygmies and husband to The Godmother.  uh huh, righto.

Take me for a walk pleaseeeeee

Another godmother in disguise arrives, so do more pygmies, I am being plied with champagne and quiche (caviar is so passé sweetie dahlinks).  They plot, they cackle, they speak their own coded talk, (you know, mommy speak)  I eventually flee to my cave aka the guest room which is fabulous as it's on it's own floor downstairs.   He he he, this will be a walk in the park, are my last thoughts as I fall asleep , but I wake up a little while later, heard someone snoring... oh.. it's me. zzzzzz

Shop till you drop !

Phew what a week it's been, the bags around my eyes feel more like luggage!  I'm not complaining though, it's all been really good, as my second production is being rolled out to the sponsors, the meetings begin to intensify, but between all that , life does go on and one of the other things I had to deal with is having my widdle puddy tat being spayed.  Those eyes totally slayed me, I felt like the worst type of human after I picked her up.  She's ticked off with me no doubt!, she's turned her back on me so far... hmmnn I have to try bribery with her fav wet food soon! (guilty complex much!)

Our cat Blay

I have often thought (believe me I have many many times) how do the other single mums do it? I count myself very lucky as I work from home but when I had to work on the radio station full time,   and  I had  to start my day at 4.30 am, shopping was the last thing I had on my mind at the end of my workday! But you did it anyway.   I think the biggest blessing so far is online shopping, believe you me it's a life saver, or more to the point a time saver.   Between working, picking and dropping of kids, keeping the house tidy and cooking,  getting the grocery shopping done is,  lets face it , tis a bit of a chore sometimes.   So when  the supermarkets went online, I was in like Flyn!  

A few of my friends have asked me, isn't it more expensive?  Heck no, the fact that you can buy exactly what's on your list from the comfort of your home/office/back of a car etc, makes it more efficient and because you're not meandering around the isles being bombarded by the "specials", you head to the check out relatively unscathed and trust me, the costs stay down. Of course I prefer to go to the market to get my fresh veg and seafood but nothing beats delivery of groceries to your own home, specially when you're crunching deadlines.

Taman Tun indoor market in KL

Groceries are not the only things that I find economical to buy online,  I've been an online shopper for ages, and I buy everything from groceries to reading glasses online, so much so that when I read that 11street was coming to Malaysia, I insisted we get the CEO in to the radio station to talk about their online shopping portal!  We've also had the online clothing store CEO of  ZALORA (coupon code ZBAPj5M)  on the show to give us a few pearls of wisdom.   C'mon you've done it, flicked through the pictures  on your phone or tablet while waiting, it does save time!

My children bought my christmas prezzie online too!

There are many established and dedicated sites, so far from my experience, locally I trust lelong.com, 11st street, zalora and alibaba express is a great place too, to name a few.   I'm sure if I asked you, there 'd be even more sites I have not heard of!  I believe in the future we will have huge warehouses replacing retail shops or just fronts for the retailers for visual impact and most shopping will be done online.

The world's first virtual shopping center opened in Korea . All the products are just LCD screens that allows you to order the items by touching the screen. When you get to the counter, your items are already bagged and ready to go.

The world's first virtual shopping center opened in Korea . All the products are just LCD screens that allows you to order the items by touching the screen. When you get to the counter, your items are already bagged and ready to go.

Which brings me to another point then before I have to go and check on the kitty, doesn't it make more sense to move with the digital era and have your products listed online on the many sites for retail?  Whenever we look for something, we use the search engines online, everything you want to buy is there from AMAZON to EBAY.  So when you decide you have a product you want to sell, start first with online retail , overheads are low and you can build up momentum on the quantity, just make sure you have at least 2 to 3  sites you're listed with for maximum impact until you can build your own store online.

Right I gotta jet, you have a fantastic rest of the week, keep the comments and e mails coming, and I'll catch you next week!

Slowly coming back

Woke up today pretty early in the morning, god knows why as it's the weekend and I usually want to lie in as any normal sane person would... However , something had to disturb my slumber. Mind out of the gutter please, it was noise, specifically children squabbling. They must have gotten pretty scared when I wrenched my door open and glared at them.. horrible mum that I am.. and gave them the evil eye. Through gritted teeth, I gave them a few stern words in my best and lowest growl. However a few minutes later the noise level was maxed up again. I'm obviously not as scary as I think I am!

Well I had a lovely evening the night before, I had gone to a Jacuzzi party, and before anyone starts to make salacious remarks, it was completely above board OK. I was invited over for a BBQ. The pool and jacuzzi are part and parcel of most condos. We were invited to hang out in the jacuzzi after appertisers, much to my consternation , as I most assuredly did not want anyone to see my ah.. one pack, but I was outvoted and all eight of us had to do with what we had. My dinner partner for the night had earlier texted me and said, "Now I only have 6 hours to get fit and acquire a six pax...hah!"

It was a lovely balmy night and the water was just right. Being in the water relaxed everyone and put all of us in great spirits. I thought to myself as I was floating along in the jacuzzi (it was a fairly large one) this is the most relaxed I've felt in ages, and lets face it, I've been pretty stressed out.

It's amazing what a few little words of encouragement and well wishes do to your mindset, I find that I'm in a happy mood today, even with the lack of sleep, more focused on what I need to do and can do. I've made some positive steps towards realizing my dreams and goals and that gives me the biggest buzz.