I'm back...feeling quite a bit happier now.

Thank you to all my friends in the blog community who have left kind messages here and at Patra's Other Place, relating to the death of my friend Claire. I still have the funeral to get through later this week, but I would rather be there to offer love and support to Claire's family, instead of giving in to my feelings and making it worse for others.
Anyway, this weekend has provided some unexpected nice surprises, which has taken the edge off my grief. Ken and I were to have friends staying with us overnight on Friday, but one of them was taken ill, so that didn't eventuate, which was probably just as well. On Saturday I was chatting to a friend online (she lives around the corner!) and when she mentioned they were at home that night, I invited them around for dinner. So we had the company of old friends for the evening, which cheered us up. And as a bonus, Sharon phoned that night to see how I was. Thanks Shaz - sorry I couldn't talk longer, but will catch up VERY soon.
Today was full of nice bonuses. Ken and I decided to get out of the house, and go for a drive into the country. We stopped for coffee at a place called Yea - next door to an antique shop where we have been many times previously. The lady who owns the shop is a Wildlife Rescue volunteer, and she often has baby orphaned animals with her in the shop. Today she had a one year old wombat with her, curled up fast asleep inside a rug on an antique chair! So cute!! But not only that - I found a stunning suppercloth displayed on a table - with gorgeous budgies embroidered around it - for $25! So out came the credit card...;-)
The day didn't end there. I had been watching an auction on eBay for four days, for a cloth embroidered with crinoline ladies. It had a starting price of about $12, but the seller had several close up photos of the embroidery, and it is absolutely exquisite. (I know I use that word with great abandon sometimes, but this truly is the most beautiful example I have seen. I have dealt with the seller before, and she only has top quality linens, so I know I won't be disappointed.) As I had expected, the bids came rolling in, pushing the price over $50. I waited until this morning, about 4 hours before the auction finished, and put a maximum bid of $100 on. Crossed my fingers and went out for the day! Came home tonight to find I had won the cloth - for just over $50!! Obviously the other bidders weren't prepared to fight it out with me! And still another bonus; the seller has thrown in another cloth for free - an unworked one to add to my stash of SINS.
So, dear friends, over my sadness, the sun still shines brightly.