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HAPPY NEW YEAR

Well it is all a mystery to me!  I am a crazy quilter.  I enjoy it because it gives me quiet  but structured time and it makes me think.  Today I have decided to take part in a Mystery Quilt.  There is a lady in New York who has designed a quilt for us to make and she is giving us clues every hour, by email, as to how we are to construct this mystery!

7 Clues over seven hours sent by email. The quilt top which has yet to have a border was completed at 11.55pm NYE

Australia has already celebrated their New Year as I have had an email from one of the Mystery Quilt participants to let me know.  So the fireworks have gone off on Sydney Harbour Bridge!  Won’t be long now and I will have my Mystery Quilt finished and we will be celebrating New Year in the Western Hemisphere.

Mystery Quilting is a bit like politics really isn’t it!  You gets snippets of information (Flyers, canvassing notes at election time), you piece together the patchwork of  theories and ideologies  and then wait, and trust – wait and trust – that the quality of the fabric (people you have collectively elected)  are up to standard and will work in harmony.

It does not always happen, as in mystery and any other kind of  quilting the combinations you decide to put together can be disastrous, even make you feel ill.  The network (threads) may be weak!

I think what I am trying to say is – be it in life or in politics – choose well and take time choosing because you are stuck with the results for a very long time.  At least a mystery quilt can be given away and even if it is a disastrous colour it is still useful to keep warm.  I don’t think the same applies to a failed government.

Have a Happy Time celebrating the New Year ‘IN’ and above all keep safe!

“Discrimination lies at the root of many of the world’s most pressing
human rights problems. No country is immune from this
scourge. Eliminating discrimination is a duty of the
highest order.”

Navi Pillay
United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights

Please forgive me if I get a little serious today.   Traditionally,  during the period between Christmas and New Year, it is quite expected that we reflect upon the past year.  I have a lot of reflections – but one in particular is very important to me and that is  my newly found political awareness!

I have had the pleasure of making friendships and  aquaintances within this new political world of mine and I am still finding my feet and wondering which side of the fence I belong to politically.  I hope I don’t get too many splinters whilst sitting on the fence as I ascertain the position I like best.  What I do know is that I have very strong views about Human Rights and the Protocols of the Council of Europe and the Articles of the United Nations Declaration of Human Rights .

The quote I use above is from The United Nations Human Rights website.   Discrimination of all kinds is abhorant but it is common in every country.  Of course the Human Rights issues are different depending upon the region of the world  in which we live but every issue is dear the to the person who is fighting for Human Rights.   The needs of a young lady in  Dafur in the Sudan are not the same as the needs of  someone who may be old and infirm and living in Britain.

The two areas I have cause for concern within our island currently are Children’s Rights and Disabled Rights. I hope to spend some time researching these matters and finding out which Protocols and Articles our local Government have agreed to and duly ratified.

For a subject that I consider to be so vital for a New World Order, the whole concept is taking a very long time coming to fruition.  I wonder why Governments are dragging their feet, particularly in the western world,  over some of the issues!  I also believe that education should be the primary aim of everyone who is interested in basic human rights and it is only by educating people that we can ever see things moving more quickly.  Hence my serious ramblings today.  :).  I think Human Rights should be taught in schools.  I am also aware that there are some unscrupulous people and organisations who may use and hijacked Human Rights issues and try to use them in a way they were never meant to be used.  We should always be vigilant and protect the Human Rights issues from being misused.

(My grateful thanks  to the sources I used for this article which can be found in the respective hyperlinks inserted from crisisgroup.org, the Council of Europe and the United Nations)

Well Christmas day was fun, especially with all the excitement of having a 2 1/2 year old in the family now.  Since my children have grown up we seemed to have more of a sedate time.  Thankfully that is all over and we, once again, have Christmas wrapping paper strewn across the floor with enthusiasm to see what that lovely man,  Father Christmas, has brought to the house for this little boy who has been bribed to be ever so good, just in case.  The carrot was left for Rudolph and the mince pie and a drink of milk (we had to do the right thing – there was no way we could allow him to get caught drunk in charge of a turbo-sleigh now could we) was left to thank Father Christmas.  So the scene is set for next year with a plan to send Santa a letter of thanks and a reminder that he will get another letter next year requesting some other goodies,  with a promise that we will all be good.

Santa did himself proud.  There was a selection of small toys all wrapped up in a Winnie the Pooh stocking.  This stocking seemed to have an endless leg and we eventually reached the toe!  It contained some neat little fridge magnets (Grandson is keeper of the fridge magnets – alphabet ones, number ones, sweet pussy cat ones, all sorts) but these magnets are a little different because they have clasps on them and when you push the clasp to hang a memo note or rubber gloves or whatever you wish to hang in them they give out a noise.

A fridge magnet that Baaaas!

A fridge magnet that ‘Baaas’,  the cow ‘Moos’ and the pig ‘Oinks’, now what better idea could we have to encourage a little lad to hang things up out of the way and be tidy.  Now will this ploy work.  We can only wait and see.

Snowman, Santa and Rudolph finger puppets

The Finger Puppets caused a little sensation but were soon put away upon unwrapping a completely new set of wax crayons, and the two little magnetic pigs that always seemed to kiss.  There are far too many little items to list completely and they were soon put aside when the really big parcels arrived.  Oh boy!  A Bob the Builder scooter which he could not wait to get a ride on.  No matter what the weather was like we all had to troop out into the cold so Corey could try that one out.  Corey always likes to play outside and he has to be convinced on a rainy day that it might be better to wait until it is a little less wet and to stay indoors..  The next parcel was just the thing for a rainy day -

The Red Knights Fort

The Red Knights Fort, complete with a set of Red and Blue Knights.   Alas no dragon yet – but he did make an appearance as an imaginary dragon.

The Fort sits in the centre of  a large mat which has pictures of a moat around it, a river passing by it,  a site for jousting tents and a few grassy knolls to sit or fight upon.  The first first imaginary game was an unexpected one though:  Corey decided that after their first ride around the Fort the Knights had developed a tummy ache so he duly went to the Hospital Tent to get some medicine for his Knights, whom had deposited under blankets in the turrets of the fort to recover.  Now I don’t know what these Knights had been up to but they may have enjoyed too much revelry on Christmas day – Who knows!  :).  Thankfully the Knights recovered fairly quickly and  went back to their normal knightly duties.

Maybe that is one lesson learned – too much knightly revelry may cause tummy aches!

I didn’t post on Boxing Day I had a well-earned rest – well our Government did not recognise yesterday as Boxing Day because it fell on a Saturday so they moved the goal posts so that the official Boxing Day falls on Monday.  I celebrated it yesterday like I always have done.  I suppose the decision to change it was because some workers would not be getting a day off because they are administrators in the Finance Industry here but that meant that retail workers had to turn out to work on what would normally have been a bank holiday for them.  You can’t please everyone all the time can you.  The shops too would probably do more business and make more money because of this change of Bank Holiday.  So the materialistic views of our Government are just too plain to see.  I wish we had an all full-filling accredited media because then we could look forward to truthful appraisals  on how business was doing, rather than a load of spin.  According to our Press everything seems to be rosy in the garden – no nasty bugs or greenfly here!  So hence the two Boxing Days.  I wonder how many people have decided to celebrate yesterday like I did?

Christmas Flowers from Mal & Odie

The weather was dull this morning and it was raining.  Not a good day for all the shoppers to catch up on last minute Christmas shopping.  I was glad I had shopped early and only had the perishable goods to purchase – that would only take about an hour to complete.

The cats hurried back indoors from their ablutions and were duly fed and watered and they took up their favoured places  on  their personal cat quilts on the comfortable conservatory chairs.  Not a bad life eh!

I am sure there are things that I should have got ready and haven’t but, no doubt, I will  be be aware of what they may be  when the time comes.  I can’t think of any presents that I may have forgotten but I do have a few extra gifts spirited away in case.  I resisted the temptation to knit scarves and hats this year.  I think my family have enough quillows and quilts to last them another year or two.

I had  an hour or so playing with the knights and the little play Fort I purchased for my grandson.  Really magnificent knights – one set is in blue and the other is in red.  I really must search for a dragon.  I did find a dragon but it was a Shliess and not manufactured by the same people as the knights were.  The dragon was in the showcase anyway and the sales assistant said that it was for display only and was not for sale.  I will be getting the dragon in the new year and can’t wait to see what adventures I will have with my grandson and his knights and the dragon.  Hmm reminds me I shall have to get a suitable book about dragons and knights and the myths that surround them.

Our little pine tree in the front garden looks pretty with the fairy lights decorating it and the Christmas Tree  and electric candles look great in the window – I think it looks welcoming and cosy.

I decided that I should at least do a post a day if I can manage it – but only if it is worth reading and I can find something interesting to relay.  I guess you would be the best judge of that!

My blog comes to an end this Christmas Eve with my wishes for you:

A Very Happy Christmas and a Healthy and ProsperousNew

And it is especially nice if you are spending it with family and friends!

Our Christmas Tree

Candles in the Window