Me On A Monday - October 31st

  

Good Morning.  I trust everyone is well.  Hard to believe that another month is finishing.  Today is Halloween & I am not a big, if at all, celebrator of Halloween. IMO it has become far too gory.  I have for the first time in 2 years, bought candy to hand out.  I will fill a bowl & leave a note for the little darlings to help themselves, but only to take one - I am hopeful that the kids are not greedy.  If Mr Man had his way, the lights would be out. Once again I give out candy I do not like, so I'm not tempted to keep & eat myself.

Currently Reading: just about finished the third Max Tudor mystery, Pagan Spring.  I must say, there's really not much of a mystery (so far) in these books.  I have waiting for me at the library The Measure (again) I really don't recall requesting a 2nd time, but I think The Universe wants to message me, so I'll read again so soon after the initial reading.

Currently Wrapping Up: with my 31 Days of Grateful. I did not create a mini scrapbook album, but just a single page insert for my day to day album.  There were lots of grateful moments.

Currently Harvest: the farmer brought in the corn crop this past week. The cobs were small & the yield much less than he had hoped for.   

Current Use Of Our Freedoms: last Monday it was municipal elections in Ontario.  This year in our region our mayor & ward councilor were both acclaimed as no one ran against them.  The only person choice we had was for school trustee.

Currently Watching: House of the Dragon has ended for season one. Rumour is that it will be 2024 before season two is ready to roll out. Still liking Magpie Murders. Mr Man is finding Annika tough going - he says it is the thick Scottish brogue that defeats him.  We are also watching the 3rd season of Stanley Tucci's Searching Italy.  I may be a little saturated, but this season isn't as good as the first season, IMO.

Currently Sitting Through: several church meetings about what do we do well, what can we improve upon & what's next.  Most of the time was spent back patting.  IMO, that is a big problem, the elders of my church are too busy celebrating themselves to look to see what is happening.  The membership has dropped significantly & there's only about 6-7 live bodies in the church; count the minister, organist & 3 person choir, it totals maybe a dozen people any given Sunday.  We haven't had a need for a Sunday School or nursery in years. 

We, the church, were "gifted" a mobile sign from a business that was behind the church, when they moved out of the region.  It was in rough shape, but several of the handy repair folks at church, cleaned it up, straighten it up & now we have a really excellent source of engaging with the community. Right now it is just being used to indicated service times.  I suggested we use the sign as a way of engaging with the community, with some tasteful banter on the signs; things like "avoid the Christmas rush, join us this Sunday" or " God's gifts are like butter ... spread them" or "exercise daily, walk with God".  I think I may have volunteered for something!!

Currently Health Matters: we got our annual Flu jab last Friday. Thankfully we were able to schedule the time for later in the day, which meant we could grab a nap should the need arise & it did. 😃  

And my thought for the day is "the best way to have the last word in an argument, is to apologize".

Wisdom

 The Wisdom Of Grateful

“A fallen leaf is nothing more than a summer’s wave goodbye."

                                   ... Unknown

Me On A Monday - October 24th

 Good Morning.  In reviewing some projects around the house & posting on my blog, I can see I've missed sharing the big outdoors project for this year (although really I was sure I had ...)

On the west side of the house we have tried for years to get the grass to thrive. A lot of time, effort & money went into re-seeding, fertilizing, new dirt, overseeding, watering, etc.  It just would not grow.  Partly because of the large red maple tree (a type of Norway Maple) it takes a lot of the water & nutrients from the soil.  SO this year, Mr Man designed a project & we had a landscape company install his vision.  I'm not 100% sold on the results, but if Mr Man is happy, then this wife is happy too.  A good part of the theory is that having the mid-size river rock is that come leaf clean up, it will be easy to blow the leaves off the stones ... that's the theory.  So far as the leaves accumulate, I cannot find the flat flagstone path.  I'll say no more.

Before Photo:

The Start Of The Project:

 

The Finish Of The Project:

 

Lost in the leaves.

The weekend was glorious in weather, which allowed us to get out into the garden to continue with putting the garden to bed for the winter.  Five full bags of yard waste for Monday's pick up.

While we were out in the garden one of our favourite little friends was awake & came for a visit.  Of course I offered some contributions to their winter food stash.

And now off we go into another week.

Wisdom

 The Wisdom of Being Grateful

"I loved autumn, the season of the year that God seemed to have put there just for the beauty of it."

                        ... Lee Maynard

Me On A Monday - October 17th

 

Taken In The Conservation Park

Good Morning. I trust all is well in your part of the world.  Ms Autumn is quickly running through her box of colouring pencils - it is one of the most colourful Autumns I can remember.  Thank you Ms Autumn. Please stick round for a few more months!

Taken In The Conservation Park

 Currently Reading:  Just finished another of the Dr Ruth Galloway crime books, now I'm caught up in this series & await the release of the latest.  I also just finished the 2nd book in The Thursday Murder Club series.  I also read Tom Bower's book Revenge. WOW.  I was surprised at how well it flowed & it read almost like a novel. I've just begun the 2nd book in The Max Tudor murder mystery series- A Fatal Winter.  I just cannot believe how treacherous it is living in a small English village.

Currently Watching: this side of the pond the latest Masterpiece mystery was started on Sunday; The Magpie Murders. Also Annika began last night, with the fabulous Nicola Walker.  House of The Dragon is getting far too complicated for Mr Man; thankfully we record, so I can pause to explain who it was that was just killed or who it was doing the killing or in some cases who was not killed but escaped!

Taken in The Conservation Park

Currently Scheduled:  in Ontario, now anyone over 18 years of age, can receive the new Omicron targeted vaccine.  Mr Man & I scheduled in early December. Flu jabs will not be available until November, which baffles me since all the health experts are saying (1) flu season starts in September (2) it's going to be a really bad flu season.  So why isn't the vaccine available until November in Ontario?!!!?

Currently Discovering: that a big block of marble, low fat cheese, on sale at Costco,  can be divided into chunks & frozen for later use & it is absolutely fine when thawed.  This has been my most successful domestic discovery of 2022!

Taken In The Conservation Park

 

And I will leave you with this thought ... as I find random loose screws about the house, I just assume it is another sign of my life falling apart.

Wisdom

 The Wisdom of Being Grateful

Autumn carries more gold in its pocket than any other season

                        ... Jim Bishop

Me On Monday - October 10th

 It is Thanksgiving Monday. Much to give thanks for, along with a festive dinner & decorating for the season.  The weather is chilly & Ms Autumn threatens with rain.

Forever on Thanksgiving the heart will find the pathway home.

Wisdom

 The Wisdom Of Being Grateful

 

Autumn is the mellower season & what we lose in flowers, we more than gain in fruit.

                      ...  Samuel Butler

Me On A Monday - October 3rd

 

Taken In The Conservation Park

Good Morning!  I hope every one is doing well. The colours of Autumn are showing up quickly.  Many of the trees have completely turned & some are beginning to loose their leaves - shedding.  I think by the time we get to Thanksgiving (October 10th) many trees will be bare!

Currently Watching: the weekly installation of House of the Dragon. We record on Sunday night & we watch on Monday. I'm not as invested as I had hoped I would be, Mr Man is ready to give up on it.  Very glad that the new season of The Repair Shop has started this side of the pond. Each repair brings with it a nice story & there are some tears shed in the telling & repair of the special item.

Currently Reading: Just waiting for a few books at the library to be my turn; Horse, recommended by Karen. I gave in & requested Revenge by Tom Bower.

Currently Sorting: as I move all my clothes back into the closet that is attached to the ensuite bathroom that we just finished renovating, I am doing another sort & clear out.  There are a number of items being shed because keeping them, keeps me in shame about not being thinner.  

Currently Working On: I have been slowly plugging along with the making of Christmas cards.  As the weather has a definite cooler vibe, I'm prepared, but not rushing, to thinking of Christmas cards. I have been back & forth on choosing just one or two designs, a simpler style with 2-3 variations. But there's no rush, there's still lots of time.

Currently Enjoying: catching up in person with friends. I met each friend in a park; one park was a new to me adventure & another meet up was in a favourite park.  With both friends, we put all caution aside & greeted each other with a hug.  I also had a phone catch up call with one of my best friends, who lives too far away for a park meet up. It's amazing how meeting friends & especially those that you meet up with in person, can chase away the blues & put a spark back into your day.  So far, I'm still tasting & smelling well, & no cough. 

Autumn, the year's last loveliest smile. ... W.C. Bryan