morning glory — Page 10

September

September 1, 2014 at 9:19 am by Claudia

September.

That came up rather quickly, didn’t it?

I remember when summer seemed to last forever; a long stretch of endless days of reading, riding bikes, playing outside, camping. Ninety days turned into 1000 days. Three months were more like six months.

As we get older, not so much. A summer seems to fly by. A blink of the eye and suddenly leaves are on the ground and the bright light of summer is beginning to turn into the golden light of autumn.

How grateful I am that this spring and summer were the first in a long time where I wasn’t away from home for several weeks. Only two and a half weeks in Chautauqua. I got to see the gardens in all their stages of growth. Usually, I miss either the beginning or the last couple of months of the gardens. So, I’m grateful.

garden and fallen leaves

It may be September, but the Chicken Wire Fence Garden is thriving. Leaves on the ground. Flowers blooming.

Sort of perfect.

3 morning glories

I finished The Heist by Daniel Silva yesterday. I’m now reading The Marco Effect by Jussi Adler-Olsen (an author you really should get to know) and a wonderful book by Pat Conroy, My Reading Life. Conroy writes so beautifully that I’d even read his grocery list. He’s that good.

I also had a 2½ hour phone conversation with a wonderful friend of mine – a fellow voice/speech coach. Lovely. Don was away on a gig, so I took advantage of a chunk of quiet, undisturbed time in the house. It was so great to catch up with her.

And I mowed the whole front yard yesterday! That’s a workout, my friends, and I was exhausted afterward. It was more humid out there than I had thought. I was trying to beat out the rain that was coming (we really need it) and I managed to finish about ten minutes before the first drops fell. And then it rained quite a bit, which the gardens and trees and plants are clearly appreciating this morning.

My husband is a proud member of three unions. Unions gave actors fair pay, regular hours, protections of all kinds, and health benefits; things they didn’t have for years and years. Happy Labor Day.

Happy Monday.

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Out and About in the City

August 28, 2014 at 9:26 am by Claudia

How about some photos of NYC today? After editing them in Lightroom, I realized a lot of them are of green spaces and parks, due, I’m sure, to my need to take refuge from Tuesday’s heat.

NYC - stand of trees

This gorgeous stand of trees is located on 81st Street, just off Central Park West.

NYC - leaves on ground

Ummm….that’s a lot of leaves on the ground for August. Gulp.

NYC - 81 & CPW

Central Park West and 81st. Several years ago, I was up here every day when I was coaching Shakespeare in the Park. The best part? Walking along the streets at night, catching a glimpse of the interiors of the apartments; a bit of curtain here, some bookshelves there, a beautiful lamp, art on the wall.

NYC - brownstone1

A brownstone. Check out the gorgeous detail.

NYC - brownstone2

More brownstones. They don’t make them like this anymore. Unfortunately.

NYC - brownstone3

Be still my heart. May I please have a little pied à terre in this building? I’d be perfectly happy with a little studio apartment where we can spend the night when we have to work in the city.

That seems reasonable, doesn’t it?

NYC - empire cake2

Love this. A bakery full of cakes and cupcakes. (I managed to keep myself from entering the door, but it wasn’t easy.) Love the fonts used in their logo.

NYC - empire cake1

Perfect.

Now I want a cupcake.

NYC - Union Square

Union Square. Nearby? The Strand bookstore.

And from home:

NYC - morning glory

More morning glories. Sigh.

If you stop by Just Let Me Finish This Page, you’ll see that I’m having an extra-special giveaway.

Yep.

Happy Thursday.

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An Apple, A Movie & A Flower

August 16, 2014 at 8:13 am by Claudia

I drove to the Apple Store yesterday – the closest one is an hour away – and had a chat with a tech at the Genius Bar. We think we’ve resolved things, but I’m going to keep an eye on the laptop and if the issue arises again, it will be off to the store once more.

Fingers crossed!

It’s been coolish around here for the last two days. The high yesterday was 72 degrees. It was cloudy as well, and Don and I remarked that it felt like mid-September. I think the warmer temps will be back on Sunday.

I got the test results back the other day. I officially have Lyme. Good thing I didn’t wait for the results to start the medication!

We watched His Girl Friday again last night. There was nothing else on (PBS is doing its fundraiser which always results in programming that is, let’s face it, rather unappealing) so we checked out TCM On Demand. With some sweet talking, I managed to persuade Don to watch it again, even though we’d seen it rather recently. And he laughed and laughed.

See? I was right.

What a fabulous movie, with razor-sharp, quick-paced dialogue, people talking over each other (like real life) and so much palpable energy that you can almost feel the sparks shooting out of the television. Just over an hour and a half in length, it moves very quickly. Rosalind Russell and Cary Grant are at the top of their game, as are the great character actors in supporting roles, including Ralph Bellamy.

Did I ever tell you Don got to work with Ralph Bellamy? The did an episode of L.A. Law together. Don played his attorney and the filming lasted a week with lots of scenes in the courtroom, so Don got to sit next to Mr. Bellamy and hear stories about his pals and his years in Hollywood.

Someday, I’ll write a post about all the actors Don has worked with – you’d be amazed.

morning glory closed

The second morning glory bloomed on Thursday. By about four o’clock, it had closed.

Open or closed, the blossoms are truly lovely.

Happy Saturday.

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September

Out and About in the City

An Apple, A Movie & A Flower

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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