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It's been a quiet, lovely day. I carved my pumpkins. I made a fire out back and thought about everything I want to release and what I want to welcome in. I thought about those, family and friends, who have passed, feeling their presence in me.
Very few trick or treaters come to my area. That being said, I have a couple small bags of candy just in case (what I'll do with any leftovers I have no idea!).
I washed my living room curtains yesterday. They're sheer, so don't really darken the room. Mostly they're to obscure the view from outside in at night. The front yard is deep and there are lots of plantings...and the inside of my house doesn't have anything expensive in it. I feel safe enough. And I like the light, the sense of connection there is between my inside and outside worlds, that these translucent window treatments offer.
But yes, I washed them. It had been forever. As I've been having a shelving unit built in that room, I noticed how grungy these curtains appeared. I'm not a great housekeeper...or perhaps house cleaner is more accurate. I keep things hygienic...for the most part. I try to keep order. How hard can it be for one person, right (Avery fur notwithstanding)? But I'm not fastidious and have a convenient belief that exposing my body to multiple kinds of organic organisms strengthens my immune system. Yeah...that's right.
I seem to forget just how pretty sassafras can get in the autumn. It can be yellow to slightly orange...with a as many different colors as there are shapes to the leaves. This is a tenacious plant. I'm trying to keep the area to just one specimen, but since it replicates from the root system it requires continual attention. But that's okay, because whenever I remove any I can dry the leaves or save the rootlets which can both be used culinarily (and medicinally too, I suppose). The scent of sassafras is definitely unique...there's a bit of wintergreen, maybe some cinnamon, certainly sweet plus herbaceous. I was not familiar with this plant until I moved out east. It's been good to make its acquaintence.
Wow, it's the last day of Polaroid Week for autumn. That flew by...well, that's time in general for me. I do wonder why Polaroid Week is not an actual week in length...odd. But I don't make the rules, so...
It's a rainy out today. So far, nothing too intense with the precip, though. The winds were forecasted to be quite something...gusting up to 40mph or so here in Richmond. Maybe that will happen later on. For now, there's just a moderate breeze. Although the temps are warmer than feels truly fall-ish, the ambiance with the light (or lack thereof) and the sound of the rain sets a mood.
Gardening is probably off the table for today. Also, I don't think I'll be making a road trip out past Charlottesville for apples (which had been my original intention). I don't need the stress of driving in wet weather. There's a list of tasks to be accomplished indoors, so I'll stick to that. My downstairs creative space could use a bit of tidying and organization. Currently it's not set up for success where art making is concerned. This has been the case for some time. Apparently it's a slow climb back to...something different than the status quo.
Oh! But I just remembered...there's the Ansel Adams exhibit at the VMFA that I haven't seen yet (Man Ray opening tomorrow). Or are those thoughts simply a way to procrastinate on the mundane work?
Happy Friday, folks!
I was up early this morning, to go get labs drawn for my physical next week. This is coming up on the last of about a couple month's worth of health diagnostics and screening. I'm glad to be approaching to the end of this. So far, things look fine.
I will be curious to see these labs, though. Last year there were a couple items that were just marginally high or low...the doctor never even mentioned them to me (my guess is that they may have been dependent on circumstance, such as when I last ate etc.). This year I decided to go in early after fasting to have my blood drawn. For about a month I've abstained from all added sugar (including honey, maple syrup etc), alcohol and any kind of fruit juice. Also, not that I regularly eat processed food, but I've been cooking pretty much all my food from scratch, and have had very little flour and no white flour. After reading Robert Lustig's "Metabolical" I've become more aware of how insidious sugar was in my diet. I mean, I didn't eat a lot of the stuff, but a big glob of honey every morning in my tea (on an empty stomach, I might add) and a few cookies or dessert after dinner on most days, well, I think it adds up. My intention is to keep my liver protected and feed my gut. I'm not necessarily thinking this abstention will be universal from now on, but retraining my palate and habits allows me to make better choices. I don't feel so compelled to have sugar as I did for a while (no, I have not touched any Halloween candy and don't intend to...a few candy corn before I set this new course and the rest went into the trash). Now, if my labs come back unchanged from last year, then I might rethink things!
It was a lovely morning to out and about early. More and more autumn color is coming into the trees. The sun was shining bright, the air was cool and I felt enlivened. I'm looking forward to the weekend and Halloween too. There's nothing special on my schedule, but I do like carving pumpkins!
Love those rainbows on the wall.
Somebody is wondering why we're fiddling with a camera when it's time for breakfast.
Every day it looks and feels more like autumn. When I take walks, seeing the colors in the trees and feeling cooler, dryer air on my skin, it's enlivening. There's an energy of potential that arises. If I think about it, it's slightly odd to experience this at a time of year that's more about pulling in. It's a time for introspection and rest. Maybe that rush of energy is to get all the nesting done in preparation for longer, darker, colder nights. Whatever is the cause, I'm grateful.
It stormed for a while last night. Heavy rain, lightening, and thunder. The wind wasn't terrible, although the forecast is for it to pick up later today. A cold front has been moving through, with gusts on the tail end.
It does feel more like autumn this morning. Cooler and drier than the previous few days. The angled light streaming in the windows at this time of year is my favorite. When I walk around the yard and see multi colored leaves backlit by the sun, it reminds me of stained glass. Delicious!
Still life with messy dining table. The shelves in my living room are still in process, so disarray continues in the house. It's really okay...Avery doesn't mind and there are no parties scheduled any time soon. I look forward to the finished project, though...all my books will have a home as well as cubbies for artwork. This Capricorn does enjoy order, even if there are other variables that sometimes contribute a thwarting energy in that regard!
It's that time of year during which I look outside and think, "Oh, I need to tidy up the yard (or driveway...or walkways)" only to remember there is lots more to come. What does that mean? I'm learning how to relax into the sometimes chaotic nature of changing seasons. The whole neighborhood has leaves, so I'm fairly confident no judgment will be incurred by having a seasonally influenced yard. Besides, who doesn't love crunchy leaves underfoot?
Why am I moving so slow? Sleep was annoyingly delayed last night, so probably not enough of that. Although I did have some amusing rambles through my thoughts.
Back into the garden and the tomato plants are out. I'm trying to pace my intentions so the overwhelm stays at bay! But it was a gorgeous day to be in the yard. It stayed fairly cool and will be dipping a bit tonight. The changing colors of the leaves are becoming more apparent...that's a delight.
Here's an old pinhole from several months ago (pinhole day I think). Tomorrow starts Polaroid Week on Flickr, so there will be lots (more) of those coming up.
A few weeks ago I cleared out an area of the garden, that I knew had had crocus bulbs. The space was so overgrown with cosmos, comfrey and jewel weed that I figured the crocuses were no more. But as I worked I saw their little sprouts!
I've been watching the slender green shoots, wondering if the plants would bloom. If I recall correctly, they haven't done so every year. So when I went out this morning, I was so delighted to see these lovely blossoms! I harvested about 15 of the red stigmas and will let them dry. There may be enough for one batch of Christmas poppyseed cake dough (or, alternately, paczki). While the harvest is slim, it's so cool to know I've grown my own saffron!