The Week in a Nutshell

Most of this past week was dark, dreary and wet. I was thankful for the beautiful walk on Saturday and my time with my friend Gail on Sunday. I'm coming to realize I might need a better plan to get me through the coming long winter as I am prone to feeling depressed on dark, cold, lonely evenings. Last year I had the pottery studio, and although I still have my shelf at the moment, I am seriously considering turning in my key and saving the $75 each month. At the very least I could save it toward taking a future class. I haven't spent any real time there since March.

On Tuesday evening I spent a few hours making pies with my daughter Bethany. Today is her 35th birthday. Tomorrow she is throwing a "Halfway to 70" birthday party with apple pie for dessert. We have encouraged her in this endeavor. She needs a good stress reliever and nothing relieves stress better than the love of friends and family. (Please pray for baby Henry as he is scheduled for surgery on December 1. We'd all appreciate your prayers for a successful operation and speedy healing for this sweet child.)

This afternoon after work Hannah, Idris and I went for a walk around the block. Twice. Tonight my people and I went down to the lake for an evening picnic. Hannah and Sergio bought subs and I met them down at the lake. It was an absolutely gorgeous day! Just like summer, aside from the autumn colors. No jackets needed. We opted to take advantage of this rare opportunity as tomorrow is forecast to be about 35 degrees colder. It was a beautiful evening.

Tomorrow and Sunday both come with birthday parties. I wish I could say I am already prepared, but the truth is I am not. I have some work to do tomorrow if I am to arrive at Number Seven's Sixth birthday party with a present. Pretty sure I can be successful. At least I hope so...
 

Shooting in the Woods

I took myself back to the woods at Webster Park yesterday because, as I told my friend Dan, "It may not be good for the allergies, but it is good for the soul." It was a slow walk, soaking in the sights and sounds. I took two camera lenses this time, one for bigger scenes and one to catch what would otherwise be invisible. 

I did not walk to the campground this time, but circled the back edge of the park and a few trails just outside the perimeter, the West Trail and the Midnight Trail and a few unnamed and off the beaten path. I was blessed to capture tiny birds, a little red squirrel, and three deer. (For those concerned, although there is no hunting allowed within the park and it isn't yet shotgun season.)

I stopped twice down by the lake, once before and once after my walk. I was sitting on the stone beach collecting lake glass when I heard a voice behind me and turned to see my friend Gail. "I wondered if you'd be here," she said. Sometimes I am surprised by how well she knows me. Once my pocket was full of glass and my stomach was rumbling at being empty, I finally headed home for the evening. 

It was another simply beautiful day.

A Little Blog Post and Some Pictures

 I've started new posts twice in the past week, but they remain unpublished. (I went to a local corn maze with a friend last Saturday, as well as another outing with my sister on Sunday... It was a beautiful weekend.) Maybe it's because I've been getting up so early for work the past week, but mostly my concentration has been off. It's so much easier to post photographs and scroll through Facebook...

If I am honest, total transparency here has become more difficult. It's become easier in person, but harder on a social media platform, especially because I don't know who my audience includes. I remain keenly aware of my own ability to inadvertently wound those I love, as well as mislead those who are unaware of our true story. I'm learning a little more about myself each day, like how I think and why I respond in certain ways, but I don't always have words to explain those things.

I'm also learning how to spend time alone and although it's not always easy, it's not miserable either. I am beginning to enjoy my moments of solitude as much as I enjoy spending time with my friends and family. This afternoon I went for a walk in the woods at a local park. (I learned from a fellow hiker that it might not be the safest place to walk during bow hunting season, but previous to that tidbit of information I'd felt quite safe and peaceful.) The lake and the woods. Much more peaceful than Barnes and Noble or Hobby Lobby, although they will likely have to do in the winter.

A couple weeks ago I neglected to attend an outdoor gathering. It was especially hard to tell my son and daughter in law that I wouldn't be there. We all want so much to pretend everything is okay when it isn't, and my mind wants to rationalize the irrational as well. This is my most difficult battle and I am coming to understand the battle is universal. I'm not the only one struggling to come to terms with situations I can't understand. It's part of the reason I was asked to step out of the Step Study a year and a half ago. At least that part is beginning to make a little bit of sense in my mind.

In other news, I locked myself out of my car again on Saturday afternoon. My car keys were once again smiling at me from their position on the driver's seat while I was on the other side of the window. Ironically, I had just paid my AAA membership online the night previous. I've learning not to let this silly game get me too ruffled. It feels so much better to laugh at it instead.

A Little Fall

What I really meant was "A Little Autumn."

It was too nice to stay home this weekend. I had an appointment early Saturday morning. From there I went to the camera store for a new battery charger. I came home with a battery charger, a lens cap, a storage box for my camera cards, and... a new, used 70-200 lens. (I spent a little money...)

The weekend was gorgeous.

Can't Beat That!

It was crisp, cold, and sunny! A perfect autumn day. My friend Laura met me for church this morning and we went out to breakfast afterward. I had my favorite stuffed French toast at The Golden Boys diner and she had Eggs Benedict with home fries. It was a long, leisurely meal. Neither one of us was in a hurry and so we each just enjoyed the other's company and conversation.

After breakfast we donned our sneakers (tennis shoes) and warm jackets, and met Rachel for an autumn walk. I won't bother telling you how she said she'd meet us at Abraham Lincoln Park and then called to ask where we were when she was down the road at Lucien Morin Park... We decided to drive down the hill to the end of the bay and meet her there.

We climbed hills, walked the edge of small cliffs, and tripped over roots, taking in the beauty of late autumn with both eye and lens. I was surprised at how much energy I felt along the way. We'd walked quite a distance before deciding to turn around and go back the way we'd come, as the trail was not the looping kind.

The walk back was decidedly more strenuous, with more uphill climbs, and both Laura and I found ourselves talking less and breathing more. It was a wonderful afternoon. By the time I got home and sat on the couch for a bit, my eyes were heavy and all I wanted to do was tip over and close them for a bit. So I did.

The weekend is over already. Half of it was dark, dreary, and wet, but both days were full and satisfying. Tomorrow I will return to my job of loving little ones and doing my utmost to make their days a little brighter and a little yummier. And what do you know? It should be a tad lighter when I step out the door in the morning.

Just a Little More Rain

Still raining, at least most of the day. The fall colors are suddenly brilliant, albeit wet. Tomorrow is expected to be drier, but overcast. Overcast is good for pictures. Today was good too, as long as I stayed in the car.

For the second time in the past few months, I got up, showered, got ready, and headed off to the counselor only to realize, before going in the building, that my appointment wasn't until the following week. Silly me. Ah well, I was not embarrassed by actually going inside and waiting only to be told I wasn't in the computer.

I ran errands with Hannah this morning and paid off a chunk of my loan for the new roof. That feels good. I have a long way to go, but I know I'll get there. In the mean time I'm still enjoying the peace of mind I have every time it starts pouring. I can't imagine the mess we'd have in the living room if it hadn't been done. I thank God every time it rains.

I vacillated between taking a nap or going to the pottery studio this afternoon. The studio won and I went in for about an hour. Finished up a music box I've been working on. Maybe next time I'll get it into the kiln room. I'm hoping everything stays in place and the figure on the lid doesn't break. So far, so good.

While glancing at the work on the finished glaze shelf, I spotted a familiar looking piece. I knew it was missing but had begun to wonder if I'd taken it home before we tore the roof apart and perhaps it was lost in the attic. Nope. There it was sporting a different color than I'd remembered glazing it. That could account quite well for why I'd missed it every other time. Or maybe those pottery fairies really do exist and they just returned it to the shelf last night...
:0)

Autumn Sister Outing

Before it gets too far in the past...

We thought it might be fun to visit Bristol Mountain Ski Resort, ride the lift, and see the fall colors. There was a fall festival planned there to add to the fun. We didn't count on the miles long line of traffic (both directions) waiting to get in. A drive that might have taken ten or fifteen minutes (the one down the road to the ski center) took nearly two hours! Yes, we were that patient, and we had prepaid tickets for the lift, like everyone else in line.

 

Rachel and I had planned to meet up with our sister Priscilla and nice Audra. (She is "nice" but what I meant to write was niece.) They arrived before us, ate a bowl of chili while they waited, and were in the lift line when we pulled into the parking lot. By the time we got in line for the lift, they were either on the way up or already at the summit. The fall colors haven't peaked yet and there was still a lot of green on the hills, with a few patches of brilliant orange or fiery red here and there.

On our way up we saw a bunch of people walking down the slope and a few climbing up. "Run, run!" Rachel called to three little boys going up. I've never been on a ski lift so it was a new experience for me.

Once we reached the top and looked around, I called Priscilla again only to find they'd gotten bored, opted not to wait in the line to ride the lift down, and started the descent on foot. Rachel and I spotted the Macarollin food truck and decided to have a bit of macaroni and cheese with bacon. We listened to some music, looked at some wool products, and decided to get in line for the lift ride to the bottom. It was an hour and a half wait. Ha ha! We made some friends in line and let the guy behind us, whose family had gone down on foot, ride the lift chair with us. It was about ten minutes to six and getting rather chilly when we finally made it to the front of the line.

They say patience is a virtue. It was a day of waiting, but I think we enjoyed almost every minute of it. We never got agitated or bored, but we never caught up with Priscilla and Audra either. By the time we got back to our car they'd likely been home for hours.

When Winter Kisses Autum

"When winter kisses autumn..." That's what Bethany called it.

We woke up to snow yesterday morning. And bitter cold. The temperature dropped 30 degrees overnight and left us scrambling for mittens and snow scrapers. I wanted my own photo memory but the back of my camera flashed "change battery pack" and I couldn't find the backup pack at the time, so I am stealing a picture from that sweet daughter of mine.

Today is Veteran's Day and also the 24th anniversary of my sweet, chubby cheeked baby's birth. He is all as sweet today as he was when he made his arrival, but not quite so chubby in the cheeks.  His apple pie is in the oven and the house smells yummy. Later today we will meet at a spaghetti dinner fundraiser and I will buy him a dinner and deliver his pie. I pray he has a super, wonderful, fantastic kind of day.

Happy Birthday to my favorite Benjamin!

Falling

No grand adventures to share this weekend. I stayed close to home and checked a few items off my to-do list while fighting what feels like a possible case of sinusitis. Rachel helped me make two pies, one for my son whose birthday is today, and another for a sweet life-long friend who also happens to be the Cabinetmaker's cousin.

While the pies baked, Rachel and I took a short drive down to the lake. One the way back I stopped to take a couple of fallish photos. Love this fence! It catches my eye every time I drive past it but I'm usually alone and headed the opposite direction.

Apparently there was a Fall Festival at the Whiting Road Nature Preserve yesterday. Who knew? This guy was pointing the way into the parking area. We stopped just long enough to take a picture of his backside and headed back to Rachel's house before the pies burned up. I keep forgetting that I want to build a scarecrow. Maybe I can put it on the list for next weekend.

Today

Pumpkin pie. Every Thanksgiving celebration must have pumpkin pie. Because leftover pumpkin pie is breakfast the morning after. (My pies are in the oven.)

I'm no longer watching The Trio on Thursday's so I am picking up a few extra hours at work. I'll be there every other weekend and 3 hours every other Monday evening, as well as my normal Tuesday and Wednesday. It's something extra. Not much, but something. On my way in to work today, I took a detour down Empire Boulevard and stopped at the south end of Irondequoit Bay to snap a few photos. This weathered old post caught my eye.




I've not seen anything snowy that I wanted a photo of, aside from the chicken coop, but the bay was pretty. There are just a few trees on the cliffs still sporting bronze foliage. And then there is the naked sycamore still hanging onto a few sparse leaves.