Category: autumn

Memories

OCTOBER’S PARTY by George Cooper

October gave a party;
The leaves by hundreds came –
The Chestnuts, Oaks, and Maples,
And leaves of every name.
The Sunshine spread a carpet,
And everything was grand,
Miss Weather led the dancing,
Professor Wind the band.”

The above verse of this poem was drummed into my head in third grade, or maybe fourth, by my teacher, and, for some reason, it has always stayed in my head.


There are many changes that occur in this time of year. Zush is no longer with me, my friend Kathy’s Mom has passed away, school has started up again and it’s the last semester for my nephew Gregory. Kasia is now almost 9 years old.

My father would always tell me how much he hated autumn. I always thought this was strange coming from a man whose birthday was smack dab in the middle of October. As 58 comes heading my way, I get it, Dad.There are no guarantees that the same trees will have leaves next year, or the same people will still be in our lives.It was Dad’s own bittersweet way of letting me know that nothing is forever, and the concept of death made him rather mellow. I am sure he is happy now with my Mom in heaven.

In the meanwhile, Kasia and I will help Jim rake our leaves down here.

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Drawing to a Close

As September draws to a close, my time at physical therapy is also ending as of tomorrow.

It’s not that I am not appreciative of the exercises learned or of the pain endured to get my shoulder right again, but I’ll be sleeping a little later when it normally would have been a physical therapy day. Getting up that early brought flashbacks back to getting ready for work when we were in the city. I am hoping that I’d don’t need physical therapy again for a long while.

Kasia and I have been walking steadily more and more as the winds pick up and cold fronts come through. We are not getting any seasonal color change in the trees yet, but we walk to a point where I can brush her coat out and make way for her winter coat to come in.

I have shut some of the windows for the night.The only thing left is to find my autumn nightshirt for bed.

Good night!

The Beat Goes On

 I had a chance to enjoy 2 “days off”, which translates into two days without physical therapy. Getting up at 5:30 a.m. is rough, although I guess I need to acclimate my body back to an early start now that school is back. The end result? No physical therapy equals sleeping in. It was especially nice this morning while it rained.

Autumn is working its’ way to our Undisclosed location. It’s quiet during the week, roads are less congested, leaves are slowly starting to change color, and open window welcome a delightful breeze.

In short? It’s my kind of season. You knew that , right?

Breezing Along with the Breeze

I guess that if it is sometime in late October, one would assume that autumn is already here.

Down here it has been more like Indian summer then actual autumn.That was, until last night when the weather front came through. Gone is my uniform of T-shirt and shorts: long pants and hoodies have actually come out. I am not complaining actually because fall is my favorite season.

The girls were hanging with me outback on the deck this afternoon. I know Zush appreciates the change in temperature,as her coat is thicker than Kasia’s. As I post this blog entry the girls are with me in the bedroom all snuggly nice and warm with all the windows closed in the house.After all, there’s fresh air and then there is 3 blanket weather. 

Here’s hoping for a nice crisp autumn for us all!

Waiting for More Indian Summer

Not that I am a fan of summer, but I am so delighted by the lower temperatures, that I am waiting for the other shoe to drop. By that, I mean the return of Indian summer.

Our temperatures have dropped to a high of 72, and last night we actually got into the 50’s,which qualifies as great sleeping weather.Even though I was up for a few hours thanks to my current medication,well,when I went to back to bed,I had no trouble falling back to sleep.

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Normally we would be out getting our mums, but with my bum leg, I am hoping that we get out this or next weekend to catch up and buy flowers and pumpkins.There is something about autumn for me that just renews the spirits, even though technically everything is busy getting ready for the sleep of winter.I seem to thrive when I get to put on longer capris and jeans and even with a sweater!

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The pups will be getting out more so they’ll be happy, too, because cooler weather is great walking weather, especially for Zush.

It can’t come quick enough.

Twilight at the Homestead

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As you can see by the sun coming through the window behind Nurse Zush, I took this picture in the beginning of the afternoon.I did everything a little later today, due to the fact that my medication screws up my sleep.I did the wash today in early afternoon, not really comprehending at an 85 degree day,that it is now autumn,and although I know the days are getting shorter, I didn’t realize how badly I misjudged the sun on my clothes line.

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Nurse Kasia is, as usual, guarding her window to keep anyone away from the house. I laugh because our last home had a knocker on the front door, and we didn’t need a doorbell because of Kasia. Now we are in a home with a doorbell, which people don’t have to use because Kasia still does her job.

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So as the sun sets over the bay,we are still homebound and chomping at the bit. We catch the sunset from the front porch for now, with hope that we three will soon be sprung and can get down to the beach. It’ll still be there for us, and I am sure we’ll be happy to walk it again!

Still Summer

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I had just posted this above shot on Facebook and entitled it” Colors of September”.

I can hardly wait to get better so I can go and get my mums and get the outside of the house ready for the fall.It still is supposed to be warm this week and probably I won’t get the mums for a few weeks, but it’s that time of year.I have been following friends who post on Facebook and it is great to see people like me who love autumn, or as I call it “sweater weather.”I haven’t had much coffee since I haven’t been well, but I am looking forward to that first cup of pumpkin coffee.Yes, I admit it; I am one of those pumpkin people.I already made my first loaf of pumpkin bread.

Can’t wait.
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Aloof, er, A Leaf

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Leaves are, pretty much, a big thing around here.

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This picture of the barest of trees equal one thing: a pile of leaves on the ground.Unlike the big city, here, you are told to bring your unbaked leaves to the edge of your property and, on an assigned date, the township comes up and collects them. Don’t dare to add any branches, twigs or the like, or pull out your dead summer plants to add to the mix, as they will not take them. They are quite adamant about leaves alone.

The trick is that the leaves start falling late September or early October, and our leave collection isn’t normally until the second week of December.Until that time, usually, the trick is to keep other people’s leaves from blowing back on your lawn that you just raked. It is a never-ending vicious cycle.I have learned since I have been down here, that the oak are the last to lose their leaves, so the dead leaves still remaining on the tree seem to tease you as you look up and see them.

No worries,though.Snow will be here soon enough.

Who’s on First?

I know friends of mine who go and say they have seen Halloween decorations up right with back to school stuff. I know people who can’t wait until Halloween is over to put up Christmas stuff.

Where I am at now, people decorate, except for me.I really had to shake my head this morning because a part-time neighbor a few blocks away has Christmas stuff up. Everyone else who decorates has fall/Thanksgiving stuff up.

Seriously?

The story goes is that she decorates early because she brings her friends down mid-December and they celebrate Christmas then.

Me?

I’ll be the one in bed with the blanket up to my nose, wondering is it’s February 1st yet.

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Color

It’s incredible what some overnight rain can do to autumnal color.
Sure, the girls and I were out walking in the rain…
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After all, pups ALWAYS have to go, and thanks to the Internet, I am learning things about the dog’s nose and the coat on it that brings them to smell their trail and their friends trail..I mean who am I to begrudge them that, right?

The weather is overcast, varying from drizzle to rain, and as we walked, a lot of the color was down beneath our feet.Don’t get me wrong: anytime we are together is the best, and walking on black macadam with yellow and orange leaves on slick streets almost makes the area look like art deco.

I did manage to find one more splash of color to make our day. The picture is below.

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A salute to all Veterans out there: thanks for your service and we think you are the best.

Fall

  
I could never live in Florida, or any place where leaf color changes never occur.

I was the type of kid who, in grammar school, always went for the forest scenes on folders. Be it leafy, verdant green forests, or trees ablaze in their autumnal coats, you could have made book on the choice I’d make.

Being older now, raking becomes part of the season and my admiration for the colors never fades.

After all, there is always the promise of spring to wait for!

 

Fall in

Out this morning and it definitely had a feel of autumn in the air. 

 
I was in a hoodie and was just comfortable.The clouds in my coffee matched the clouds in my sky, and the furgirls and I took it all in.

Looking forward to weather, the flannel sheets are on the bed, even though I have one or two windows open to sneak some fresh air in.

We are getting ready for a big weekend. Our Property Owners Association had their pancake breakfast tomorrow morning and we have a Moose picnic tomorrow afternoon. Most social activity we have had in a long time….whoo-hoo!

Easy Sunday 

For all of my kvetching over the summer, it is my favorite time of year. 

I am sitting on our front porch, with an occasional car going by, my neighbor talking to his pup in the yard, and the breeze stirring occasionally through the oaks.

Jim and I had breakfast out and that was a treat. I got back and had the girls out for a mile walk. Now we are all kicking back, and there’s hope that a few things might get done today, albeit at a leisurely pace.

Enjoy your Sunday.

  

Christopher Columbus 

In the old days, I had a three day weekend for this holiday.

Hah…today I am working to put folks on their ferries for their vacation.

I am surprised but not shocked by the sell outs here, as there seems to be a lot of folks headed south. It would seem that folks are grasping at the last bloom of summer. Even the seagulls seem to be keeping their distance, to let their human targets get to where they are going.

Happy Saturday wherever you are!

  

Fall…and I don’t mean Autumn.

I really had been doing well. I have been working on dropping weight, walking,eating healthier,and yet despite this, I fell twice this past week.

Granted, I am smaller than what I had been, but I have been wearing my sketchers which hug my feet.Either I am walking distracted, or just catching my toes in high cement cracks between grass, but no matter what, I am hurting.

I made my 10,000 steps yesterday, and thanks to a copper fit back brace, I might be doing a little better today. Falling at 55 is rough, and you can bet I am going to try to beat this!

  

Fall in and Wait…

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We were treated to a first blast of fall red this morning when we were walking,but didn’t need the color to announce the season. I was a little chilly, so that is enough of a fall announcement for me. We had our 1 and 3/4 mile walk and it was quite pleasant post storm. Dare I even suggest it that the sun was brazen enough to try to poke it’s head out…

Today we are anticipating a call from our vet for Zush, to see what the results will dictate for her care as we help her into her senior years, which I pray will be for a long while. I have to work from 10 to 6, so, it was nice having the ability to walk in the light, post nor’easter, and take in the beauty around us.

Please hold good thoughts for my Zusher: she is my BFF.

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We have finished our first nine months of living full time here, away from the big city.

I would lie if I said I don’t miss the big city, because there are occasions that I do miss certain aspects of my prior life.We used to love close to Fairmount Park, and I miss having the ability to take the girls back there on occasion. When we lived on Rochelle, we were back there all the time.Now that it is October, I know the colors in the park will be spectacular, and although there are trees here, well, it’s not the same as where we first lived.

It is a dreary day here, as Hurricane/Tropical Storm Jauquin is working its’ way up the coast.It matches my mood here, as I am having Zush go for her second blood work today at the vet and worry is an understatement. I am just hoping to keep my girl going as long as I possibly can. There is something about being down here in stormy weather that just really brings out.After seeing, and reading, “The Perfect Storm”, weather is magnified when walking down by the bay. I would never have this atmosphere back in the city.

The first bunch of months here are in the books. I am hoping that we get through the next bunch well, and we stay happy and relatively healthy. I can’t pray and ask for more.

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By the Dawn’s Early Light

Had to get up early today,as work was early.

It is a dark walk these days,the curse of daylight savings time.I know seasons change, but it is rough getting out of bed.I love my girls, but the fact that work follows, well…not my favorite. I have to give them credit though-my gals love their walks. Granted, we don’t run, but Zush seems to have gotten a second wind now that it’s cooler, so we average two miles a morning.

All this while Daddy gets to sleep.

  
  

Optimism 

It is incredible what the flip of a calendar page brings.

September is here and my heart is wide open to all new experiences coming down the pike. Change is in the wind, be it good, bad or indifferent…the key element here is change. Change is movement-at least you aren’t wallowing and stagnant!

It is a blessing to get up in the morning and get my two feet on the ground. It’s a blessing to see Jim ok and the furgirls ok. When I take them out in the morning, I say my prayers and talk to family in heaven. I get to walk in a natural area surrounded by beauty. When times are rough, all I have to do is remember that.

If only all were as fortunate as I am. 

 

And here comes August…

Bad enough that my “weekend” is over, but here comes August.

If you have read this blog for any period of time, you could recall that August is quite the bittersweet month for me. I lost my Dad in 1998,and I got married in 2002.When I was a kid, my Dad always took us to the shore during the last week of August.

The best part of August, though, is the promise of fall. You can muck through the hazy, hot and humids of August and know that sometime soon the fronts will be coming and cool things off.I know my Mom always would warn me against wishing my life away, but this is one summer that I can hardly wait until the first 70 degree day comes.

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A chill in the air

A nor’easter blew through the area, giving us a taste of the weather to come.We had to work our way through some damp, dreary rain.

I am home tonight.My workweek is done.Jim is out of the house.I am sitting down with a nice cup of hot chocolate.

Yes I know I have written a lot about coffee, but there is something about hot cocoa or chocolate when you are home, relaxing, or at least trying to relax, and have your flannels or sweats on. I have the Food Network on, and most of this early evening is mine.You find yourself channeling your mom, as you blow on the mug so you don’t burn your tongue.A little sip goes down your throat and it is delightful.

Now I am going to curl up with the Zusher and Kasia and it’ll be girls night,in front of the television.

As Martha Stewart would say…”It’s a good thing.”

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Powers of Pot Roast

We had gone through pot roast withdrawal for a bit.You know, when it is warmer out, pot roast is not necessarily food on top of your ” must have it now” list.

As it is now mid-October, we here in the Mid-Atlantic states have reached, at least for now, a genuine dip into October weather.When that happens, it was like an automatic reflex:I reach for the crock pot.Having a mom home for most of my life, I grew up with someone who was home and poured love into her meals. As times have changed,I discovered that the I can get the love in a meal via the crock pot.

I put carrots,peeled potatoes, celery and onion in the crock pot and then put the cut up pieces of chuck roast in.I normally cut it up when I know I am having company for dinner.Then, for trying something new, I purchased Campbell’s tavern pot roast sauce. All you had to is open the pocket and put it in the pot.

Cooking the pot roast was easy,as low and slow me a very tender pot roast.It smelled so good, the Zush the invalid come around to be a little bit. It was a hit across the board.

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Ah-choo…

We went and got flu shots this morning at our local hospital.

As usual, we turned it into a daily affair:, me, Jim, my brother and my nephew Greg.Pretty sad that is the guaranteed way we have of seeing each other in October.We have been doing this for a long while back. Jim never wanted to go for a flu shot, but for the first two years we were married, he ended up in the emergency room for the fu, so he resolves to give me a hard time every year but ends up going begrudgingly.

It is funny that I have already researched flu shots here in Undisclosed. Down here there is a drive thru flu clinic for the community. I am already anticipating giggling while I ask them if I can have fries with my shot.

If you are eligible for a flu shot, get it.It might make your fall and winter a heck of a lot nicer.

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Autumn Saturday

It was a good day here in Undisclosed.

We spent a good deal of the time working on things around the house. I got a chance to catch up on some laundry and actually clean the house.Imagine that.Cleaning MY house.It’s been fifteen months since I’ve been able to say that-clean MY house.

Feels good.

The girls got out a lot for fresh air and sunshine and we all got out for a good family walk. We are in tonight vegging out for rest. We are actually getting a chance to charge ourselves up for the week.

Enjoy what’s left of your weekend!

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First day of Autumn

Remember yesterday’s post about humidity?

The cold front came through and I am one happy girl. I get to sleep tonight, relax tonight, or even just hang out tonight without sweat dripping down my face. What a pleasure!

I am sorry some of my buddies are truly sad that summer is going. I agree to a point: I have a pair of sketchers sandals I adore and will be sorry to see them in the closet.They’re going to go to the closet at Undisclosed, and wait the grand rebirth in my retirement!

Whoo-hoo! Something to look forward to!

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Last Day of Summer with a Thousand Percent Humidity

As I am down here in Undisclosed with windows open and fans on, summer decided to kick my butt.The humidity here has got to be 80%.

It really is nice, autumn. Complete with pumpkins and mums. Nowhere in the fine print is there anything about sweat.I have the fall wardrobe out, putting the sandals away a little at a time, and yet, I am pouring sweat.

I am waiting patiently for that consistent sixty degree day. You know, the day when you can where a blazer to the office.It’ll be nice to go to bed under a blanket with the windows open.This is what is getting me through this last stretch!

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Mum time

Usually, the weekend of our anniversary, I usually by our mums for the fall.This year I am late.

This weekend, we went to our friends at Cape Island Home and Garden and our mums for fall. The colors, as usual, were radiant, but my usually method of choice is getting tight close buds, so they last through October. This year, a rich purple were my color of choice, along with a few burgundy smaller mums and a small yellow mum.

Mums always have happy memories for me, as I remember my Dad raising them in our back yard in the house I grew up in.Even when Dad was gone, I made sure I had mums in my wedding bouquet in his memory.

I thinks it’s safe to say that it’s a large reason of why fall is my favorite time of year!

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Beautiful Morning

It is that time of the year.

You know, sweating like there is no tomorrow and going to bed with the air-conditioning on.When you wake up in the morning well, to quote Jim,”I needed a coat this morning.”It goes without saying that Jim tends to exaggerate, but it is nice and cool this morning.

It’s my time of year.

Sure spring and summer are nice, although heat has never been my friend,

I have, for the bulk of my life,loved sweatshirts, pullover sweaters, cardigans…they are,to me, comforting clothes. chrysanthemums? Bring it on.I admit though, my dad used to raise mums, so I always am drawn to them. Despite their recent history, Dad and I always watched Penn State football.It’s another benchmark of the season for me.

I always thank God for two feet on the ground every morning, but never more so than this beautiful time of year.

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Full Moon

I walked the girls tonight, as we have had a long day. I figured I would give Jim a break and take the girls out for their last walk of the day.

It was the kind of walk that as you walked, even with keeping eyes on the dogs, your mind kept reviewing the events of the day. I thought of my Mom, momentarily, and thanked God I can still remember the events of the day.

The weather has gotten September like, cool and crisp. I looked up and saw this wonderful picture in my eye. I knew the Designer’s masterpiece when I see it.

 

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A little better……..

The weather is back to October.
Yay!
Sleeping with windows open and blankets.
Yay!

“October gave a party, the leaves by hundreds came,
The chestnuts oaks and maples, and leaves of every name…”

When George Cooper wrote that poem, he wrote it for me.
It was always one of my favorites.

Time, in the Mid-Atlantic states, to enjoy the coolness,
the apples, the colors…I wouldn’t trade it for the world!

Enjoy your day.

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Uh-huh…

November will mark my 20th year since my diagnosis of my first cancer.

The flu shot I got on Friday is probably the 19th of my post cancer
life.

The cold I have had since yesterday?

My first post flu-shot ever.**sigh**

I have run the gamut of allergies and unfortunately, what I have
now is a plain old, run-of-the-mill, head cold.

Timing with the flu shot? I hope coincidence. The fact it is autumn
now? Summer colds suck, but guess what? Autumn ones aren’t much better.

Beauty of a day

…and we have tons to figure out.

Why is it when the weather sucks in February, we’ll have a finished house
and say…now what?

We went to buy some Mums this morning and it is a beautiful autumn day,
and the girls and I have been out for a few walks and they went with
us out for the mums. I kind of feel like going down to the bay, but we
are being mellow, so we are kicking back just a bit.

Tomorrow?( We agreed tomorrow…lol)

We have to go to Home Depot and Lowes,check out more vitals for
Undisclosed Deux, and eventually head back up.

Yay Autumn!

How did this ever happen?

Ok, I’ll admit it.
I bitched and moaned about waiting in the heat for the bus.
Once you got on, it wasn’t bad when the air-conditioning was
working. But this morning, I had a shocker….

SCHOOL KIDS

I know, advocate for fall and cooler weather that I am, I
was willing to embrace the new season..I just forget the
extra volume of school kids on a bus. I leave early in the
morning and they are STILL on the bus.Before you say it,
yes, I was a kid on a bus once a century ago, but…

I MISS MY TRAIN!

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Macho men

This morning, I am sitting outside watching the workmen move lumber around.

I’ve been watching the HGTV shows and it’s incredible that actual workmen
working on YOUR project have no correlation to the tv shows.I am laughing
to myself as I type this, because,if a television camera were focused on
these guys now…lol.

The house is taking shape,the rafters are in place and we are waiting for
Dad to come down to be with us so he can see what’s going on too.The one
guy lifting boards stops and rearranges them, then counts them, then…you
get my drift.

I intend to savor the last three days of my vacation, especially since it
has gotten a little cooler, and just breathe!

Have a wonderful weekend.

Autumn -hopefully around the corner

Today is the type of day that has the promise of fall written all over it.

The windows are open, air conditioning is off,blanket is back on the bed, and it is a pleasure not to be mopping sweat all of the time. When the girls and I were out walking, the flowers that we saw back in June when we first relocated are showing their wear.The only thing that would make it awesome is to see the first leaves turn , but I know that is yet to be.

A buddy of mine has her almost seven-year old son as a barometer of passing time. When you have only your family as a barometer, well, we just watch the seasons change and are grateful that we are all still here together to see it and take it in.

Enjoy your Friday!

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Today’s the day..

Hopefully ,by this time tomorrow,I’ll have an idea of what is going on with my back. The pain has gotten down considerably with Aleve and icing at night and morning. When you have enough medical history as I do, well,it still gives you a few nervous moments.

We went on a family walk last night and all enjoyed the nice breezy weather.It’s incredible to see how much more energy Zush has, as do I, when the weather breaks for a bit. It made me stop and realize that half of August is gone.

Enjoy your Thursday!

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A Decent day

What is it about sixty degree weather that makes you want to take care of yourself, or, at least that’s what I have experienced.

I have suffered through the summer with no will to do anything, and now that the taste of sixty degrees has shown its face, I want to get my stuff back together and feel better, period, end of story.I am due to be encompassing on a new life’s journey and I’ll be damned if I want to feel like this all the time.

I have picked out some healthy recipes that I have made this week for us for dinner,and I am keeping my fingers crossed that the ball will keep rolling.Oatmeal and a peach this morning also seemed like a good start.

Maybe it’s the fact that I am listening to the soundtrack from Black Swan and maybe I want to feel as light and airy as the ballet suite…hahaha….anyway we want to feel better for packing it all in.

Let the games begin!

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Ah, August….

For all its heat spikes and the like, I love August, as it gives promise to the fall.

In prior postings you know I had many life changing events in August..a couple of good Phillies seasons…started a job 28, almost 29 years ago which I still have…went on childhood vacations every year with my family during the end of August..God sent my Dad on his final vacation August 24,sixteen years ago,which was fitting as our vacation week he always took was the last week in August…and Jim and I were married on August 31st, almost 11 years ago.

I am thankful for all I have experienced in August, for they have matured me in a way that nothing else would. I have come out of it realistic, albeit slightly hopeful.I have a light heart when windows are actually opened and I hear the crickets outside, and when I am at Undisclosed I and II, I look up at a beautiful summer sky filled with stars like promises,just waiting to come to me.

Enjoy the month, faithful reader, and may it be kind to us all.

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If only..

The heat is continuing here, allegedly through tomorrow night, with the promise of a possible thundershower tonight. Hah! I should be so lucky!

The fur girls and I go out for walks but the three of us come back in a puddle of drool mixed with my sweat.There isn’t enough fluid to keep me moving, and although I know you have to eat, well maybe we should have heat more, as it is a pretty decent appetite suppressant.

As I write this, I am looking out the window and for mid-July, the bushes and plants have lost their true richness of green: they are looking somewhat peaked.

Come on, October!

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stormy weather

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The calling card of summer in the Mid-Atlantic states is that calling card of the three H’s- hazy, hot and humid.

So far,5 days in, it hasn’t ceased to fail my expectations.

The thought of walking to public transportation in the heat, coming home in the heat, hah..what’s cooking unless it’s cool?Back in the old days I’d go to the local recreation center to swim, but that’s a leisure I don’t have time for any more.

Today the girls are on their second dose of their medicine, which, hopefully, will have them feel better.
They are at home sleeping in front of the air-conditioner.If they are indeed my fur girls, we all will have gentle summer breezes on our mind, not those thunderstorms that my Zusher hates.

I’m patiently waiting on October!

On the bright side, I went past my neighbors roses this morning. It made me smile.

It’s a good thing!

She sells sea shells….

We took the cove beach walk this morning with the girls and Shingleman. It was the same walk we took last week before the storm.

As we walked along the beach by Cape May lighthouse, all you had at your feet were seashells,or, rather, pieces of shells at your feet. I always loved looking for shells. It’s something my parents always did with me since I was a kid. I managed to find a few nice ones to remember Hurricane Sandy with.

In all, here’s hoping your morning was just as good!

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Trick or?

Everything about Halloween has me feeling my age, and then some.

We had a good amount of trick or treaters for a Wednesday after a hurricane.All the candy and chocolate were blown out by 7:30 pm.

It was weird, though: I saw the passing of time via costume. Sure, there were new youngsters starting out but the children who I have watched grow up, well, boy, have the costumes changed with their ages.

Maybe it was the 60’s and 70’s in me saw a more simplistic costume. Some of the stuff I saw tonite? Gee, if it’s not MTV, it was vampires and goths. My faith was restored when I saw one Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz and a cowardly lion.

It made it feel like Halloween- old school!

Sandy’s knocking

It’s quiet…with the exception of the blustery winds…and autumn leaves are off the trees…

There is a mandatory evacuation from the barrier islands, but we are on the mainland. Still, the proximity of the storm to Delaware bay and Undisclosed makes me wish we get on the road soon. Shingleman is out checking out waves, and helping a neighborhood buddy board up.

The storm is knocking though: winds are blustery, and the chill is in the air. I am with the girls and all is good!

Be safe!

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No shoe like an old shoe

Last night I said goodbye to an old friend…

A 15 year old pair or clogs with heels.
**sigh**

They were the first leather clogs I bought, and I was in Lancaster. I remember they were a steal at $15.00!
I wore them to death until my knees gave out, and I put them back on post-op.

They passed away, part from wear, part from rot, yesterday. A better, more comfortable clog I’ll never know!

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Betty strikes again

Took advantage of the day off to reawaken the Betty Crackpot, I mean Crocker in me.

Next weekend we are having company at Undisclosed. So all my ducks are in order, I baked today….pumpkin….pumpkin spice cookies…yum!

Will parchment paper and freeze the pumpkin bread, and tin up the cookies.
Here’s hoping they make the trip in one piece!

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