First Day of Autumn

Hard as it is to believe it is indeed a fact that 

today we bid a fond and wistful farewell to 

summer and welcome Fall into our midst.

In honour of that fact I spent yesterday

cleaning the living and dining rooms, packing

away the every day nick knacks and putting

out the Fall decorations.   We had an end of

summer gathering here on Saturday so the

living room was in desperate need of vacuuming

and dusting etc.    Putting out the decorations

didn't take long and since then I've been

tweaking and fussing to get everything just

right.

I love the Fall!   Do you?    The colours, the

scents in the air,  the comfort food and just

about everything else that identifies with the

season makes me so happy.    And since I really

do not care for hot, hot weather I much prefer 

the cooler temperatures that happen now.  So 

much nicer for walking and other outdoor

activities.

More long afternoons spent with pen and ink.

Adult colouring books are all the rage these 

days and ... me being me .... I long to buy

and collect every single one that I find.   But

many of those things are expensive.   (Which

I don't begrudge since the artwork is often 

stunning!!)  So I draw my own patterns and

colour those in instead.

I'm a very harsh critic of my own creative

endeavours which has, in the past, often 

caused me to give up and walk away from

anything that I make or create in disgust.

But then I lose out on the joy I get from

initially doing these things.   So I'm trying

to ignore and work through those feelings

and just embrace the pleasure and let go

of the negativity.   

I've picked up this piece and put it down again

countless times in the past year or so but this

week I picked it up again and this time I am 

going to finish it!!!

My stitching has been almost non-existent in

the past few years and that is mainly because

I'm finding it harder to see what I'm doing even

on 28 count fabric.   I have bifocales which only 

helps a bit and my prescription is up to date so 

that's not the issue.  

 I use a  Ott-lite magnifier but often end up having to

 hold the fabric close to my face (roughly near the end 

of my nose) and peer over the top of my glasses to 

get a close up, clear view of my stitches.   This is an 

awkward position to say the least,  and it's a 

wonder to me that I haven't sewn the tip of my 

nose to a piece of fabric yet!

Perhaps I need to find a magnifier with a 

stronger magnification?    

Which reminds me of another issue that I have.

You know that little circle of extreme magnification

that you find inset into the larger, weaker lens surface?

Do you ever use that???   It's magnification is perfect

for what I want but it's so tiny I can never manage to 

maneuver my fabric and needle in just the right spot to 

use it and keep it there.   It's so darn frustrating.

Thank goodness I don't have any issues visually

when it comes to reading.   Here are a couple of

books that I read this year and loved.

The above is a book about Vanessa Bell and her sister Virginia 

Woolf and their relationship circa 1905 and onwards.   It's 

historical fiction, well researched and a fascinating read.    I 

have to admit that I've never read any of Virginia Woolf's 

books and know of her only by reputation in history and I knew 

even less about her sister who was a very talented painter.    

This book gives great insight into the characters of the two sisters 

as well as of those famous members of the Bloomsbury Group 

that were a part of their social circle. 

Then we have The Fortune Hunter which is 

more or less historical fiction as well since

one of it's main characters is Sisi, the 

Empress of Austria.   This woman has been

the central character in quite a few books

that I've encountered lately, some biographical

and some fictional.   She was a fascinating

person I have to say though admittedly a

spoiled and self centred character.   But that is

the way royalty was back in 1875 when this

story begins.  

I recommend both of these books.  These are

the second novels published for both authors.

I have not yet read their publishing debuts .... 

but I plan to.

My husband and I celebrated our 25th wedding

anniversary in May with a party, reuniting as

many of our original wedding party as were able

to attend as well as being attended by friends and 

family.

We also renewed our vows during that day in

our back yard, under the big maple tree.   Our

friend Sue is a minister and she wrote a wonderful

mini service and presided over the vow renewal

with love, humour and joy.

It was an memorable day that celebrated an

incredible milestone (25 years???  When did

that happen???) in our lives.   We're so 

incredibly blessed to have found each other

and to be together for this often tumultuous 

and stressful but ultimately wonderful life.

Hope you have a wonderful Fall week!!!

Cheers!