Good morning, good news

First, the early morning doctor visit,  medical bulletin: the leak has healed, so the leak healing drops can be discontinued, yay. no more eye events till August, yay again. 

And a final medical bulletin, so engrossing, after a lot of trouble with the shoulder, pain aggravated by the tables and beds in surgery and recovery, not designed fot my dodgy neck and the skin so tender to the touch even clothes hurt, I realized that, as I ran out of aloe gel, not a problem. 

Enter the trusty kitchen aloe plant

Which I use all the time for minor burns from cooking. I can trust it to be effective on sore skin. And a pain reliever. Certainly Advil and Tylenol have done nothing, heat and ice helped, aloe gel better but I was running out of supplies.

So last night and this morning I bust open a stem and smoothed the gel on. I think I'm going with this. It's helping. Fresh is better than the jar.

Meanwhile back on the patio, finally buds. Actual marigolds appearing

And Gary's butterfly bush started, weeks late, and two monarchs appeared immediately. I wonder if there's a butterfly newsletter or something.

The volunteer tomato is flowering

Aditha tells me it's from her cherry tomato plant. It's growing in a very unpromising spot, lousy soil, shade, but seems unconcerned.

And in case you wondered, after my recent Pollan reading on the effect of various substances on the brain, we're not alone

I wonder if they enjoyed the change of pace.

Yesterday's movie was a rerun of

Which I've seen a couple of times, and will again. I never fail to sob along in the iconic scene where Eleanor finds Edward is not married after all,  despite the fake news. 

Alan Rickman, of blessed memory, as Colonel Brandon, Hugh Grant as Edward, Emma Thompson as Eleanor and scriptwriter, Oscar level, Gemma Jones, oh, everyone's excellent. Hugh Laurie as Charlotte's long suffering husband, everyone's a star in their own right, and I guess they would jump at the chance of an Ang Lee production.

Anyway if you've seen it you know all this , if not, it's you have a treat to come. 

Meanwhile I'm about to embark on

It was her teview of The Buddha in the Attic, that got me to tead it so I thought I'd read her own current work. When I get into it, I'll let you know how it goes.

This is after

Comfort rereading, despite being set in the London blitz (!)

And the evening audiobook, when I'm too too tired to read

Yesterday a couple of granddogs visited next door, Chase the golden retriever and Joey the Heinz terrier mix. So the book went along with the theme. 

Happy day everyone. Find something to enjoy. Brits, your heatwave will pass, it will.

Drama and pockets

Today's Summer Film Fest, since the cold rainy weather needed some help, featured the Ang Lee, Emma Thompson, Sense and Sensibility, and it was even better than I remembered. Filled with brilliant touches, tiny gestures that meant everything, great acting.

If you've seen it you know. If you haven't, I'd recommend it.

Then, and this is related, it really is, on the endless subject of pockets and why more is better, I suddenly had this thought. 

To be exact, in the middle of watching a moving and engrossing scene in Sense and Sensibility, high drama, where Elinor is finally having her breakdown of relief, on finding maybe she does have a future, despite all.

Try as I will, to quote a Heyer heroine, I cannot be romantic.

Anyway I was wearing a favorite linen jacket once a shirt jacket, which I'd altered years ago. I'd cut off the cuffs and hemmed the sleeves to make elbow length roll ups. I love it but today I wished it had at least one pocket. 

And I was watching the movie on the little TV right next to the supply closet where the scrap crate is. I expect my brain was working on this while I thought I was getting into Austen.

Later the thought about how to have matching pockets took shape. As you see.

I remembered the cut-off cuffs. Being quality linen, I expected to find them preserved,  in the scrap crate. And did. Readymade pockets. With pleat detail, machined pocket top.

So later, while I listened to an Angela Thirkell (August Folly) I tried one. Cut it open, stitched it around, attached it, steam pressed the lot.

 

See the tiny arrowhead point below the hemline? Posh detail.

And it looks pretty sharp, as well as being deep enough to put things in without having them fly out. The tiny arrowhead sticking below the hemline? I love that detail. It's the button placket from the cuff. And there are pleats on the back, at the yoke, that echo the pleats on the pocket.

I may not put a second pocket on, one may be enough, but I'll wear it and decide. 

This linen is beautiful to stitch through, needle just glides.

You may have noticed the skirt hasn't progressed far. That's because a high thread count cotton mix, with a finish designed to withstand wear, is difficult to push a needle through for more than a few minutes. It will get there, but I can't clickety click along with the seams.

Meanwhile this linen jacket which I got for a couple of dollars at the thriftie about 15 years ago, designer brand, continues to earn its keep.