Oh, I know – Winter isn’t officially here until December. Nevertheless, it looks more and more like winter around here. There are still some leaves on the ground, but as I sat in our den this morning talking with my husband, I noticed that every tree that I could see was leafless. There is a certain beauty in their silhouettes against the gray sky. I have been very slow this year in putting things away that were on the porch all spring and summer. Every day I say, “Today I will pack up the cushions, take down the last of the plants, stack everything up and put it in the shed.” But I don’t. I’m not sure why, but I think it has to do with my reluctance to acknowledge the end of the porch season. Truly, it would only take me about half an hour to clean up. I could have done it today. I didn’t. I am usually very impatient with any lingering mess, in the house or out of the house. So I am enjoying watching myself from afar and learning to be patient with myself.
My little gazing globe, for example, pictured above, is usually packed away in the shed by now. But if I had packed it away, how would I have taken this photo with my new camera? You see, there’s a reason for my slow pace.
My wandering camera and I encountered these beautiful rose hips on the edge of our woods. They are on the wild rose bushes that surround our property and grow so freely everywhere. They look so lovely against the bare branches of the surrounding trees and bushes.
On another note, I feel increasingly high-tech. You’ll remember that I got a laptop in September, then I got my new camera for my birthday, and today we got new cell phones so that we can text message when necessary. What’s next??? I do remember a time when I went to a pay phone, put a dime in (or quarter) and made a call, when I went to the library to look up information that I routinely google now, and took photos with any number of low-tech cameras. It seems so distant now. It wasn’t that many years ago that I was on the faculty at Boston University and none of us had a computer in our offices. Very few of us (I certainly didn’t) had one at home. Those that did were considered wealthy and very high-tech. It is amazing how far we’ve come and how affordable these items have become. I’m grateful for all my toys but have to guard against being overly dependent on them. They are wonderful, but are no substitute for conversation, reading a book, knitting, quilting or any number of things.
That’s all for now. More later.
I’ve always loved those rose hips. I used to have a beautiful wreath made from them, but it eventually had to be thrown out. It lasted for years though, and everyone used to comment on how pretty it was.
I too feel a bit off kilter this autumn. Ours here, seemed milder than usual, and we really only had a couple of those wonderful “crisp” days. The leaves were pretty, but they changed color a bit late,and they were less colorful than usual. We had a lot more russet color. It’s been interesting, and I wonder what winter will bring.
I thing technology is pretty amazing these days. Especially the way that we can send photos over the phone lines and other such things. I was slow at first to warm up to it, but oh boy have I ever had fun with it. Mostly, I use it for creative things though. I try hard not to spend as much time as I used to in front of the computer, but it does have a way of sneaking up on me sometimes.
Claudia, I absolutely love the gazing ball photograph – the colors are just gorgeous! Oh I am just like you – very reluctant to say goodbye to relaxing on the deck. It’s been way too cold to do that for quite some time now. I know I’m going to enjoy all the photos you take with your new camera – and happy belated birthday!… Donna