A is for....

I've decided to join in on wordplay which is where one free associates with one letter of the alphabet at a time.
so...

Amethyst... one of my favourite gemstones. unfortunately [ for me ] it's not MY birthstone, it's Nadie's, so she's the one with the vast majority of the family pieces inherited from my mum. I'm finding myself increasingly drawn to silver and amethyst-crystal jewellery but I don't buy it for myself and Nadie already has enough

Avocado... yum...nuff said

Alpaca... don't tell my goats but they're really alpaca substitutes. My block is really not suitable for alpacas otherwise I'd have some. Alpaca is my favourite yarn too... so soft.

Alec... my father's name, also David's middle name
Antoinette... Nadie's middle name
Anthony... Marc's middle name... yes ... I know ... don't say it. What can I tell you except that my late hubby's parents are from peasant italian stock with no appreciation of their country's history or of the immortal Bard

Abruzzi... the part of Italy that said peasants came from

Anjii Solomon ... my dear friend

Anjii's Angles ... the eponymous quilting technique devised by the above Anjii Solomon and also the name of her book to which I contributed three quilts. I constantly see new possibilities for this block. Thanks Anj for coming up with it. [ there's a link to Anj in the sidebar ]

Acacia ... wattles... why did I buy land in an area with about a gazillion wattle species and specimens? Which leads us to:

Antihistamines... on which Nadie lives when she's up here. Refer to previous entry!


Art... maybe the passage of enough time will make it clear whether what I create is art or not

Amadeus ... Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart ... my favourite composer. Favourite piece?
Operatic: Cosi Fan Tutti and specifically Soave S'ia Il Vento from Act 1.
Chamber? Clarinet Quintet
I find it quite hard to watch the movie Amadeus all the way through. A lot of it really makes me squirm.

Australia ... best country in the world even WITH little Johnie, our Prime Miserable

Autism ... living with a person with autism is a challenge. Some days that's a blessing, some days not... but about the only difference between a stepping stone and a stumbling block is what you do with them... n'est-ce pas?

Anger and arrogance ... not good, not good at all

Age - turning 50 was fabulous. I am finally becoming comfortable with who I am, and less dependant on others for validation... trying not to be emotionally needy, succeeding better some days than others. Mind you if I was truly suceeding, I wouldn't get excited when there's a new comment on the Blog, would I?

Ailurophile... big word meaning I love cats. Any cats. All cats... so long as they're neutered and inside.

Animals ... life is pretty impoverished without animal companions. Mine currently number 2 cats and two goats plus innumerable native birds and the occasional echidna, or shingle back lizard. No unwelcome animals have been sighted apart from the odd hare... so far no snakes , doesn't mean they're not out there... and we DO get teeeeeny tiny scorpions.

which leads us onto the next 'a' word:

arachnid ... and I know scorpions aren't arachnids, but they just naturally lead to those other creepy crawlies that were the nemeses of my late hubby. He was arachnaphobic so after 25 years of stomping or spraying the bejesus out of them, I now try to co-exist .... but I'd rather they stayed outside if at all possible. if they startle me they are still gonna get squoooshed with whatever's handy.

Addictions... mine are to caffein, fabric, books and wool... not necessarily in that order