Of Lumps and Wishes.

Dear Lovelies, and here we are at day one hundred and eleventy of lockdown in South Africa!

 How are you all doing? I've been reading through all your comments and very happy to hear that so many of you are simply appreciating all the lovely little things: clouds, sunlight through overhead branches and leaves, weeding the garden, growing veggies, watching flowers bloom, baking, ironing ( stop that at once! 😆 ), the children and furbabies, birds in hedgerows or at their feeders, a quiet predawn coffee... regardless of where in the world you are experiencing the restrictions placed upon you and your loved ones during these surreal times. The human spirit is a beautiful thing that appears to show itself fully under duress.

 We all seem to be going back to basics. Strangely, I feel that we have all had a massive collective wish granted! It's that wish we generally keep in the back of our minds as we beaver away through our incredibly busy "normal" lives, that if we could complete this, or finish that, then eventually we could grant ourselves some downtime to enjoy all the things we are doing now under our enforced quarantine! I'm not suggesting our collective consciousness created a pandemic but sometimes if you can't stop the treadmill then something comes along to put, as they say, a spanner in the works. On the big plus side, I'm sure our natural world is heaving an earthy sigh of relief that we are, albeit enforced, giving ourselves and our beloved home Earth, a long-overdue break.
Food for thought ( seeing as we're all baking again! )?

 Here at number 6, you'd think that living in what is effectively sanitised hibernation nothing much would be going on in our daily lives that anyone could call dramatic. After all, the drama is "out there" not in our fairly predictable and controlled personal environments. But no. It found us nevertheless!

1. Exactly 16 days ago I woke up feeling off and by the end of the day had a mild temperature and upset tum. Later in the day, the lymph nodes under my right ear swell to golf ball size...painful much! Every time I chew on that side it sends a shock of pain through my cheek and jaw ( hurriedly googles *that which we shall not name* symptoms ). Slight headache. I put it down to a blocked salivary gland and drink litres of water.

2. Then, 2 days later Mr HooksnTales begins with exactly the same symptoms but slightly worse. He has chills and both lymph nodes swell. We panic and call our lovely GP who examines us both telephonically ( she compliments me on doing such a sterling examination 😀 ). She reassures us that it's highly unlikely we have contracted * that which we shall not name * but cannot pinpoint what it is seeing as our symptoms do not match mumps, lupus, mono or any other viral infection she can think of. Although later I read that Influenza viruses including Para-Influenzas can infect the salivary glands too!

3. After exactly 14 days we both fully recover.

4. The very next day, my youngest son, who lives next door, develops a very high fever ( 41c ). We all panic. He's perfectly fine 2 days later. MY NERVES by this stage, are shot to pieces!

 I would like to know how any virus could make its way through all the sanitising protocols and barriers we created! In "normal" times we avoid seasonal flu and colds without taking any special precautions. Life is full of mystery... which is very annoying!

 Through the worst of Lumparella, as we now call our mysterious viral infection, I happened upon this lovely young duo who call themselves Emerger. They are local, as in Capetonians, and their latest composition Urban Wilderness has been playing itself in my head all day long ( and literally in my first waking thoughts too). As always, in tough times, we turn to the arts for solace and strength. I hope you enjoy them as much as I do.

 However, besides all the uncalled-for drama of Lumparella, we did have some fun even though it was vicariously through Roxy! We sent her on an outing with Super Woof to a farm in picture-postcard pretty, Franschhoek.  This super-affordable service was impressive, especially considering they collected and dropped off as well ( Franschoek is at least an hours drive away ). An added bonus was sending us pics and videos throughout the day! To say the least, Roxy had a ball and came home bright-eyed and bushy-tailed then flaked out completely and slept for 6 hours straight!

 I'm sure you're wondering if I am ever going to talk crochet? Yes, I am, but it's not good news so I'm prattling on about other things. First, Part 4 of the Green Tea Extension is slightly delayed seeing as I simply could not concentrate while I panicked over Lumparella. I'm all over it now but I did lose a few days. Keep those hooks warm. Secondly, I did a poll a few months back on our Group. and asked about which methods you preferred I use when making the extensions. I think the least favourite was making lots of squares and then having to attach them. Guess what? SORRRYYYY, but I can't help what my mind is forcing me to do! It will be worth all the work, and besides, we're all in lockdown to one degree or the other. I'm just making sure you keep those hands and hooks busy. It's a public service, you can thank me later. 😆

 By now, those of you randomly picked to receive last weeks free pattern giveaway will find your gift in your Ravelry library! Tadaaa! Enjoy! Today's Freebie Pattern is the SAFE AT HOME BLANKET by Margaret Holzmann. This is the crochet version of her knitted design. I think it's brilliant and such a fun stash-busting project. If you don't already know, our HooksnTales Workshop Group is running a fab competition. We're making crochet houses ( any format! ) and there are CASH prizes to be won so head on over....you still have four weeks to make your crochet house! We've had the most fabulously creative entries so far! Here's a little peek at some of them. If you'd like to win a free pattern leave a comment below about your favourite spot at home. Is it your bathtub, your bed, a favourite chair or couch, or spot in the garden? Don't forget to include your Ravelry name!

Made by Iman Van Der Kraan

Made by Sonya Holland and the House Mandala below.

Steam Punk Housie made by Dona Lock.

Interactive Chicken Coop made by Sam Austin.

Adorable Snail House by Catherine Pousserot

Hansel and Gretel Masterpiece made by Katerina Russo Efthimiadu.

🌼

 In conclusion: It's a Public Holiday here today. HAPPY WORKERS DAY to all our incredible frontline Hero's and Heroines. Words fail me how to express my gratitude for their ongoing service. The pennies I am earning during lockdown via pattern sales have been channelled to food banks and supporting small businesses through vouchers and donations. Every time you support me, please rest assured that I am paying it forward. We are all in this together! THANK YOU SO MUCH! 💗

Dear Friends, I hope you are all staying safe as houses, staying well, staying calm and shining on!

Happy weekend!

💗 Jen