Swimming Not

Can be distracting with the robot cleaner buzzing away just in the back ground.  I have had to free it from a stuck position but it sends an SOS if needed. Bad Robot. Did another quick sweep of the beach just to get outside but also went in for a bit of wading not swimming.  The wind has sprung up heavily during the evenings of late, so a lot of grass has been stirred up making the water murky.  I picked the clearest spot although the black stuff was mostly dirt rather than grass.  I was squishing a few sponges and identified from the trusty taxonomy toolkit that the below sponge is a Globosus Carter identified in 1886.

underwater attached

the washed up version

5km ride

 No wind and a bit of Sun so I tried the 5km ride this morning and my elbow passed the test. However there were no real hills in it but its a start.  Hardly seems worth getting into the gear and trundling around my extended block a few times.  Not the same at the Paris-Roubaix at the weekend. Six hours of rain, cobblestones and mud, now that is a ride.  At one stage there was a guy who went head first into a ditch and I am sure he submerged but the camera sped on leaving him to wallow.

Colbrelli

Foundation

 I mentioned previously about Asimov and his original SciFi book series Foundation. This is the only entire series to receive the Hugo award for each of the five volumes.  He has come up again on Apple TV.  I have seen some hints about this Epic on Google TV. We bought the Google gismo a year ago, as it updates all the streaming channels,  particularly the Disney + we were after but it also allows us to see Apple TV without an Apple device.   I have read a write up of the first episode of Foundation last week and I quote 'This will do for Apple what Game of Thrones did for HBO'.  That is a big statement.  The subscription is $50 per year. After Netflix, Foxtel, GCN+ and Disney+ why not add another one?   There are times lately when we have forgotten where a particular show we were following, is located.

PS We did have a look a Amazon TV for a one month trial.

new adaption

original books

Garden Update No 923

We have scored a bit of Sun here while all around seems to have had a drenching.  Today the wind has sprung up and a few showers are scudding thru. the outside action has been limited to a clean up of dropped leaves and flowers. The Japanese Maple, which has probably had the most attention here in the last two years, has finally shown some signs of life. Buds or shoots that is, just three of them on one branch only.  The lemon trade is still vigorous and no signs of stopping. At least 12 lemons are put out every few days. One woman was seen with a shopping bag who packed away 6 choice big ones, making sure they were the right ones and putting anything a bit inferior back onto the tray.

Budding Japanese

Overhead view with lemon tray

self seeding flower scape

Lemon Aid

Evie on her knees

 I am taking a low profile til this cold wears off.  In the meantime Evie is experimenting with her knees, that is she has found them today.  At least we have video phones so we can see some of these happenings even if we can't visit.  It almost looks like she is getting ready to launch. Mostly it is a rocking motion. We should start a sweep nominating the day she starts a proper crawl. Will it be another weeks time?

$10000 question

 Everyone out there can try this for themselves. I found a stamp today that requires one crucial fact to be answered, Is this stamp used or unused?  It is the very first stamp issued by Korea, before there was a North and a South, in 1894.  There is no cancellation on the front of the stamp and the sheen of the gum can be seen on the back, so it is definitely unused (mint).  A lot of the time having the mint copy is the more valuable one but not this time, to get the $10000 price tag it needs to be used. So I will have to settle for $200.

There is a bit of Yin and Yang balancing here, the white canceling out the black.

Have Coffee

 The delivery man came today with a load of coffee pods. So now with coffee, fruitcake and a new shirt anything can happen.   I also had an outing to the physio.  It seems this elbow problem is progressing nicely so I can increase the weight on the exercises and as well, try a flatish 5km bike ride, as a way of giving it a real tester.  The elbow is a bit tender after todays pummeling but that was to be expected.  So now I have to find a flat 5km, which does not really exist around here.