Friday Favourites: Days of Calm

 

Some of the days in November carry the whole memory of summer...

Gladys Taber

November is here. After blogging daily in October it's been good to not have to think about what to post everyday. Yet my mind keeps thinking - this might work, or you could write this. Instead, I've saved it for today's post. 

Outside my window

The first of the month was bright and sunny. We went for a walk downtown along the water and revelled in the bright sky, the coloured leaves, and the deep blue water. Any rain we've had this week has been during the night. Today, however, the clouds are moving in and it's rather dark outside mid-afternoon. Storms coming in from the Pacific are predicted and we've been warned to expect rain. 

I'm happy to hunker down at home, reading books, sipping something warm, and puttering about the house. 

It was November - the month of crimson sunsets, parting birds, deep sad hymns of the sea, passionate wind songs in the pines.

L. M. Montgomery

I am thinking about...

An upcoming birthday party on Saturday, not mine this time. I was well celebrated and the house is full of bouquets of white and pale pink roses that make me smile every time I see them. Instead, we'll be celebrating a daughter and a daughter-in-law. We call the last four months "Birthday Season," for much of the family was born then. 

I am also thinking about Christmas. How I love this season of preparation and anticipation. I'm looking at my Christmas-themed books and wondering which ones I'll read this year. Perhaps I'll begin sooner rather than later so as not to miss any. 

Gifts are on my mind - what will the people I love appreciate most this year? We tend not to be extravagant gift givers, but a little something under the tree is pleasant. Often it's something handmade. I've been adding a few treats and necessities to my shopping cart - a box of Christmas in Paris herbal tea, two new mugs, and a puzzle. Doing things earlier rather than later lets me enjoy each day without feeling stressed. 

There is the November sky, clean of summer dust.

Hal Borland

I am wearing...

blue jeans, a soft red pullover sweater, cozy socks, and silver earrings. I am glad for my jacket when I go walking and have pulled on my down jacket once or twice, especially in the evenings. 

People I've spent time with lately...

I collect my two youngest granddaughters from the school bus stop on Thursdays. It's always a highlight to hear their chatter. They settle in quite comfortably at the table and seem to want to colour every day. For a snack I toasted English muffins and spread them with peanut butter, sprinkled a few chocolate chips on top, and gave them a glass of milk each. Then I sat down to colour with them. 

Does it count when the people I spent time with are on Zoom? I enjoy my weekly writing group get together with people across several provinces. And then there's the telephone. I chat with my mom and my sister at least once a week. 

Of course the person I spend the most time with is my husband. We eat breakfast together but then mostly go our separate ways through the day. He works in his shop and I do whatever it is I do. There is a bit of chatting as we pass each other in our various activities. Dinners are always together. 

I am thankful for

Books! Reading plays a big part in my life and I read every day. Do you have Little Free Libraries in your area? I pass several of them on my walks through the neighbourhood and often take a moment to see what's available. When I do take a book, I try to replace it the next time I walk there. 

I am reading

Miss Wolcott's Ghost by Louise Penny has just been finished. Another Gamache mystery plot full of twists and turns. 

Mapp and Lucia by E. F. Benson is a mid-20th century comedy set in a small English village. This is what I'm currently engrossed in.

The top two books in the stack, one by Elly Griffiths and the other by Julia Bryan Thomas, are what I brought home from the Little Free Library I passed while walking yesterday. 

Other Activities of the Week

Sewing wise men costumes for the church's Nativity play performed by the children. This year it's wise people costumes, for at least one girl is a wise person.

Baking brownies, making a hearty black bean vegetable soup.

Planting 370 garlic cloves with my daughter. We planted about 200 last year and she was able to sell them quickly. They are an easy crop to grow and harvest. The ground was soft, making planting quick and simple. We were done in less than two hours. 

And to close

A few lines from a poem by Paul Laurence Dunbar discovered by me in Miranda Mills' Cozy Commonplace Book,

Just whistle a bit, if the day be dark

And the sky be overcast:

If mute be the voice of the piping lark,

Why, pipe your own small blast.

Pipe away, dear friends. Thank you always, for reading and commenting. Wishing you a wonderful weekend. 

Blogtober 31: A Month Summarized

 

A lot of living happens in just 31 days. We began the month in our neighbouring province of Alberta, where we spent a fun day in Jasper, enjoying the mountains, waterfalls, and some wildlife. 

There were walks in the woods, beside the ocean, around duck ponds, and in our neighbourhood. Warm sunny days slowly cooled and darkness fell a wee bit earlier each evening. 

Late summer blooms of zinnias, roses, and dahlias continued to provide colour in the garden and for bouquets in the house until almost the very end of the month. I think October the most beautiful month of the year. 

Thanksgiving is always celebrated the second Monday of October and we gathered as a family for a festive meal, ending with pie. 

On one last camping trip to the west coast before Tim winterized the camping trailer we had sunny weather, with a bit of chill in the air. Watching the waves roll in from the Pacific Ocean was mesmerizing.

There was a walk in Butchart Gardens where the gardeners' artistry is stunning in layers of colour.

And the month ends with a birthday followed by Halloween. Last night, after coming home from the restaurant, 70 roses awaited me on the piano. After Tim and I left the house, our son and DIL dropped them off. What abundance! These roses are locally grown in greenhouses. I've put them throughout the house to enjoy wherever I am. 

And so ends another month of daily blogging. It will be good to take a bit of a break. On to November!

Blogtober 30: Celebrations Here and There

 

It's been a very celebratory couple of days. This afternoon I walked with my eldest daughter under threatening skies that held off until we were almost home. We enjoyed a lovely visit together, something that happens not often enough because of her teaching schedule. 

The trees are losing their leaves quickly and drifts of them lie along the path. The creek is running again after a dry summer. 

Some of the many maples have brilliant red leaves that are clinging on for now, but will soon fall on the ground. 

Last night we enjoyed dinner with four friends at one of their homes. How lovely it was to sit around the table, chatting and laughing for several hours. The meal was spectacular. The cake was a surprise - bought from the same bakery and the same cake that Tim had bought for me last year. It's a light cake, not too sweet, with lemon and white chocolate flavours. Very elegant. 

This evening our children treated us to dinner at a local restaurant. It was relaxed and lovely - the grandchildren entertain themselves and conversation flows freely.

A few thoughts on turning 70:

1. It's a big number.

2. I'm grateful for every one of my years.

3. I don't like being the centre of attention, but I like being celebrated.

4. Cake is delicious.

5. A day spent doing very little makes a very nice change. (I read, chatted on the phone, and did no cooking today.)

6. The world is a beautiful place despite rain and clouds.

7. I am blessed to be surrounded by the love of family and friends.

Now home for a few hours of what's left of the day. The fire glows and I feel its warmth. The house is quiet. Pools of light create shadowy corners that are filled with the friendliest of feelings. 

Until tomorrow...

Blogtober 29: Houses and Homes

 

Jozef Czajkowski - Country Manor in Winter

This morning while tidying the house and cleaning the bathrooms, I thought about how much my home means to me. I am grateful for its shelter, but beyond that, homes are often a reflection of personality, and certainly a place to practice creativity in many genres. 

I always enjoy seeing others' homes, from the outside and the inside. Houses feature in many paintings, too, and here are few I like. 

The above painting is set in a Polish winter. The long shadows of trees create a dappled walkway and one hopes the fires are lit inside the house for it does look cold. 

Monet - The Artist's House at Giverny

I was thrilled to visit Giverny on a summer morning, on a special tour before the usual opening hours. The garden almost overpowers the pink house, and the interior rooms are lovely, particularly the bright yellow dining room, and the blue tiles in the kitchen. I would love to visit Giverny another time. 

Vincent Van Gogh - Houses at Auvers sur Oise

For many years I thought Van Gogh's palette was all yellows and oranges, warm colours. Then I discovered some of his other paintings and loved the blues and greens he used. There are several paintings of houses in Auvers sur Oise, and in his letters, Van Gogh talks about the way modernity was arriving and the diminishing use of thatch for the roofs. 

Monet - The Blue House at Zaandam

Another of Monet's paintings, a pretty blue house. I'm rather partial to blue. This looks like a house near the sea. 

Pieter Bruegel the Elder - Children's Games

There are houses in Children's Games, but the focus is on the many many children - over 200 of them, playing various games. When I enlarged the picture and really studied all the different games, I see many similarities to modern children's play as well as play that isn't fun for all participants. 

Which is your favourite among these paintings? 

Blogtober 28: A Bit of Late Gardening

 

I awoke very early this morning and heard the soft Whoo-hoo of an owl outside my window. We had heard it earlier in the evening when we stepped outside for a breath of fresh air before bed. Such a treat! 

The garden called. Our recent rain has softened the soil, although it's still quite dry deep down. I raked and tidied a bed, added bonemeal and alfalfa, then planted 54 fat garlic cloves to be harvested next July. While I worked I listened to more birds - the chip-chip of Dark-eyed Juncos, and the cheerful trill of a Song Sparrow, seen above with his beak open as he sang to the morning. I heard the whirring of hummingbirds and caught a glimpse or two of them, as well. 

In late September I threw some leftover seeds into a patch - carrots, lettuce, and radishes, all mixed together. Today I picked radishes and the other plants are coming along nicely. People here talk about year-round gardening, but frankly, by the time October/November arrives, I'm ready to be done with it until next spring. There is Kale and Swiss Chard to pick all winter, and the leeks are coming along nicely for late winter harvesting. I do need to mound more dirt over them. 

The Lace-Cap Hydrangea that blooms bright blue in summer has altered to this gorgeous purple colour. All of the hydrangea bushes have intense shades this year - deep red and burgundy, along with the purple. 

My original goal in gardening today was a fall pruning of the roses so that the pieces could go into the green bin pick up tomorrow morning. I keep thinking (and saying) that the last bouquet has been snipped, but here's another. This will be the last because I've cut the rose bushes down one-third, and cut off most of the dahlia growth. There are some very fat rose hips on one bush and I added a few of them to the vase. 

I baked granola and made soup this afternoon, read a little, and had another enjoyable day mostly at home. I did go to the library, but didn't find anything to bring home. The above photo is the same bouquet with the stage light setting. Very dramatic. 

Until tomorrow.

Blogtober 27: An Ordinary Day

 

All types of Halloween decorations adorn houses in the neighbourhood. Ghosts fly from trees, tombstones lie in the front garden, and ghoulish pumpkins sit on porches. I can take or leave this particular day, but I do enjoy seeing the little ones trick or treating at my door. I bought a box of candy treats and one of potato chips to hand out to them on Saturday.

While walking and seeing the signs of Halloween, I got a bit fanciful and thought that these Garry Oak branches, growing downwards, looked a little bit like scary arms reaching for anyone on the trail. Fortunately, I passed by without incident.

"After all," Anne had said to Marilla once, "I believe the nicest and sweetest days are not those on which anything very splendid or wonderful or exciting happens, but just those that bring simple little pleasures, like pearls slipping off a string."

L. M. Montgomery, Anne of Avonlea

When I walk by a young Gingko Biloba tree, I always admire the fan-shaped leaves. They are elegant and will soon be completely golden yellow. 

I had my hair trimmed today, bought a few groceries, and a new bath mat. This is the exciting life I lead. A load of laundry at home, and some cooking. Thank you for the ideas for the quince. I do have some quince jelly in the freezer from last year, and think I'm going to make a pastry of some sort with these ones.

I was thinking about the books I read when I was a child. The school library was where I found most of my reading material. We didn't have a lot of books at home, but we did have some. My parents gave me The Wizard of Oz along with a similar edition of Little Women when I was about 8 or 9. Little Women was discarded a few years ago as it was falling apart. Nurses Who Led the Way was a birthday present from a school friend about the same time. Pippi Longstocking and Heidi were my favourites. 

I recall that there were more Heidi books, by another author, but continuing her story until she married and had children of her own. 

This afternoon I baked a Lemon Loaf and a Date Loaf. Keeping it real here, the date loaf did not come cleanly out of the baking dish, but Tim says it tastes good. He ate the patched pieces already. 

Our friends who gave us the quince also gave us a bag of yellow apples. They bought a property with many mature fruit trees, but the names have been lost. These yellow apples are crisp and good to eat, not too sweet. They are not Golden Delicious. 

Autumn is full of abundance - ripening fruit and squash galore. Locally grown cauliflower and broccoli are now available in our stores. I love to cook autumnal foods like soups and stews and casseroles. They warm from the inside out. 

Enjoy these autumn days, or spring ones. Each season has its beauty.

Blogtober 26: Autumn Delights the Senses

 

In the morning darkness I walk down the stairs, cross the living room and turn on the light. All the shadowy furniture suddenly appears familiar and cozy. The fire lights and warmth radiates into the room. How quiet the world is before the light. 

When I awake early, I like to read and write. I savour my uninterrupted time and the stillness of the house. 

Last night's Hunter Moon was not visible because of cloud cover, so I was glad to see it shining bright as dawn arrived. I stepped out the back door in my bare feet and snapped a photo. It was a wee bit chilly out there. 

Later, I noticed the sun slanting its light on the mantel, highlighting the dried hydrangeas and casting a sharp candle shadow on the wall. Another fleeting moment of beauty caught.

I've spent much of the day at my computer, working on various writing projects and emails. After lunch I went for a walk in the bright sunshine, with fluffy clouds on the horizon. Is there any month so beautiful as October? 

The friends who came for brunch yesterday brought a bag of quince for us. I asked for two; they brought five. How fragrant they are. I'm not certain what I'll do with them yet - what would you suggest? 

A shorter post today after two days of lengthy ones. Thank you for sticking around through the month of Blogtober. Just a few days to go. I always wonder what I can say in a daily post, but something always comes up. Until tomorrow...