Australia Day seems surreally out of date, given the events of the past ten days or so. In fact, the majority of January was a walk in the park in comparison. Way back in my previous post, I was waxing earnestly about friends and family, their foibles and failings, attitudes and prejudices, acceptance (or not) and when one has to draw the line. Suddenly, all these thoughts became pompously unimportant.
Lindsey, Avon Builder to the Stars and Ace Barber Apprentice is a softly spoken, hard-working youngish bloke who adores his wife and three daughters. Most summer breaks, when he grinds to a halt, he has suffered from various weird ailments to keep his family on their toes. During the last week in January, he really pulled out all stops. Collapsing at home, he lost his speech and the left half of his body, scaring the sticky brown stuff out of all concerned.
Not a stroke but a condition that mimicked one. Functional Neurological Disorder was the sneaky culprit. Some of Lindsey's other symptoms over the last few years started making sense with his diagnosis. Headaches, gut issues and fatigue all fall under the umbrella of this nasty health issue.
Lindsey is back home, beavering away at his rehab, trying not to become too tired as that increases his symptoms. Resolve and frustration are both running hand in hand with him. I can't begin to imagine how much impact this has had on Lindsey, Kerryanne, his girls and his extended family. All I can do is send love and light and ask the universe to help him in his recovery.
Six days ago, a bushfire beginning nearly sixty kilometres from Perth turned into a monster. At its peak, the fire had a perimeter of over one hundred and thirty kilometres and was threatening the north-eastern suburbs of Perth. Callum, on receiving a text that he should enact his Bushfire Survival Plan, remarked in some wonder that they had never considered they needed such a document. My ex-husband Ernie was living with his volunteer firefighting wife, Helen, one street from the Emergency Evacuation Zone.
One of our artists, Andrew and his wife Lara, lived in the Tilden Park estate northeast of Gidgiganup, a lovely bush setting with big blocks, that had been a paradise for the residents who called it home. A firestorm swept through the entire estate on Monday night, destroying all but a few houses. The speed and ferocity of the front persuaded those defending their properties to flee in order to stay alive. Andrew and Lara left only a few minutes before the inferno obliterated their property. Once again, I can't comprehend this loss and all I feel we can do as their friends is support them as best we can. In the meantime, Andrew's highly original sculptures are available at the East End Gallery, beautiful gifts that may give them a bit of a financial boost in this pretty awful time. The good news is that the fire has been contained and, with unseasonably cool temperatures and even some precipitation, may even be extinguished by the opening of the heavens.
Hot of the heels of this fire emergency, Perth, the Peel and Southwest regions were subject to a snap lockdown due to a Coronavirus case. Restrictions remain in place until Valentine's Day, which means that our plans for an overnight stay in Perth on the 14th to see Cal, Bron and Immy will need to be put on hold. A visit to the orthopaedic surgeon on Tuesday has also had the kybosh and proposed appointments to the podiatrist and gastroenterologist will also need to wait. We are actually not too disappointed about an inability to travel to the Big Smoke, as we far prefer to stay home!
Last weekend saw three of our artists all arriving at once for a stocktake or adding to their pieces already in the Gallery. Jenny Cotter and I were, unfortunately, were able to ascertain that a pair of her earrings had probably been nicked. Poop. I suppose I should be grateful that shoplifting hasn't been much of a problem, but I was still disappointed and a touch ashamed.
Joy Benvenuti, the Teabag Queen, delivered two teabag lampshades with bases, some scarves, cards, broaches and a stunning textile panel. The scarves were a labour of love or possibly the result of a peculiar OCD insanity- sorting, tying and knitting them took her an eyewatering number of hours. She even added the brand of teabag on the finished products' tags...
Lastly, Jo Nelson of "Loveyourwork" textiles arrived, sorted, took away some of her baskets whilst adding new ones. Jo is thoroughly looking forward to being Beverley Artist-in-Residence in March, taking a break from her busy life in order to concentrate on her art without the usual suspects of daughter, son-in-law and grandchildren interrupting her!
Michael, seized by a sudden desire to freshen the Gallery's "look" proposed we do a major reshuffle. This involved him being up a ladder for three days, which he soon regretted. Out of the goodness of my heart, I gave him a break by pretending to have a heart attack and ending up in Beverley Hospital for most of Tuesday. Heart no; gut maybe. As a result, I underwent a CT in Northam yesterday which involved me, a weirdly round machine and contrast dye that gave me a blast of heat from head to toe when I was a tad on the chilly side. Slightly disconcerting was the sensation of wetting my knickers, which did not eventuate in reality...Results should come to us sometime next week.
Lastly, I was astounded at a most unusual sensation today - one of cold. Clad in a Gallery frock and cardy but with bare legs, I was compelled to dig out the heater and endure the smell of burning dust in order to warm up. Some intermittent rain has begun, which hopefully should dampen our hayfever symptoms.
Given the weirdness of the last week or so, I reiterate some Basic Truths. Eat the cake, hug those you love, sing at the top of your voice, turn your back on undesirable people or situations, laugh out loud, wear your best knickers, use all your sentimental items, have a nanna nap. Be who you are.
Thus endeth the lesson.
Jo and her textiles...
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