Tis the Season for Fall Decor -- and Apple Bread!

It hardly seems possible that we are in the last week of October. What on earth happened to summer? It seemed winter went on and on and now we're looking toward it again. 

 

Life has been rather routine these days. I had a wonderful time with blogger Anno who came up to Lansing for lunch, enjoyed dinner with friends, went to a farewell dinner for a friend and had our WKAR retiree lunch. That, and an appointment with the Secretary of State's office to get my handicap permit and a long delayed skin check with the dermatologist (all is well), got me out of the house! Inside? I put up a few decorations (really cutting back this year) and have been prepping inventory for my upcoming sale.

Finding Old Photos: Netherlands Edition

Given that life is rather dull these days, let me take you on another "Finding Old Photos" journey, this time to the Netherlands. Alas, no dazzling fall colors, as in the last post. We visited in the spring. But color? Oh yes -- there was color!

Our trip to the Netherlands in 2018 was a first for both me and Rick and it was a memorable time in a lovely country. We were only there for about four days but crammed a good deal into that time -- a concert at Concertgebouw; a stop at the wonderful Rijksmuseum where we were lucky enough to see "The Night Watch" before it went out for restoration; Anne Frank's house; a visit to the UNESCO heritage sight Kinderdijk (on a gloomy day, alas); Delft; several small towns, and we were lucky to be there in Amsterdam during "Queen's Day."

Postcards From the Lake: That's All Folks!

Well, lake time is over for this kid. It was especially hard to leave this time. Rick and I had a wonderful ten days there, excellent weather, and even though I couldn't do much of what I'd hoped because of my foot, I still reveled in being at the lake and seeing fall emerge.

 

Above is the cottage from the road and below, looking from the back door toward the road and garage. The color soared in the past few days. 

Postcards from the Lake: Winding Down

It's been both lovely and challenging, these final days at the lake. And for the most part, it has been simply beautiful.

 

Our color is very late this year. You see a great tree here, then another there, but no big swaths of color that are typical for this time of year. I'm suspecting it is late and when Rick returns in another week or so to close up, he'll have a much more colorful season. But when you see something lovely, you go for it!

Postcards From the Lake -- Sigh

October has arrived in all her glory! It may not be peak yet but it's still lovely!

 

After we dropped Rick's mom off at the airport, we continued to the lake for what will be my last visit of the season. (Rick will return for a final close in another week or so.) It was a terrific ride up, though for the most part the skies were more gray than blue.

A New Week

Last week was a mixed bag. I've felt very frustrated, very at sea. And then when I start to think globally, even nationally, I remind myself that life is full of "stuff," good and bad, and compared to war, insurance plans being eliminated (as has happened to friends with the recent changes in Medicare), American cities being invaded by National Guard troops they don't want, and compared to the current personal situations of many friends, my issues are nothing. '

September Books

Well, you can't say my reading has been anything less than diverse this month! Yes, there were mysteries (one a short story collection), novels, memoirs, and travel. Quite the combination!

There were some hits and misses here for me, but who knows? They might be your cuppa tea!