Mockingbird Hill Cottage

Fall color and fallen leaves. Just to give you an idea where this is: the bush in the foreground is the lilac.

It’s been rather cold the last two mornings. We’ve had to don layers of clothing to stay warm. We refuse to turn up the heat this early in October. No way! It will warm up on Sunday and Monday. Then back to daytime highs in the 60s and low temps at night. As I said to Don yesterday, we said we wanted cooler temperatures, but not quite this cool!

This morning, after I post this, I will finish my 897 page book. It’s excellent, by the way, but it was due on Tuesday and I feel guilty that I still haven’t returned it. After all, someone else is waiting for it. I’ve already read a big chunk this morning. I’ll post this, make the second cup of coffee and get back to it. Don has a gig this evening and he’ll be leaving in the late afternoon, so I want to return it while I still have access to the car. That’s my goal for the day.

Heavens, I love fall wildflowers! These beautiful New England Asters are growing on either side of the driveway. That color combination is spectacular. I’m going to take some more pictures later today of the various wildflowers popping up all over the property. The golden sunlight of autumn, the color of the leaves, and the wildflowers make for a pretty heady combination.

Okay, my friends. It’s back to my book.

Stay safe.

Happy Friday.

Yes, I know…it’s the Landoudou dolls again. But, truly, all I have been doing for the past two days is reading and tweaking Gilly’s face up. On Monday, I hauled out my supplies once more because I decided to even out the blush on her cheeks. Then, I donned my protective gear and took her outside in order to spray another coat of Mr. Super Clear. It’s very toxic, so you have to wear a thing that goes over the head, covers the nose and has filters that keep out the spray and fumes. This charming ensemble also consists of a pair of goggles. The spray sets and protects the face up.

The girls are perched on the packaging for the dolls. I filmed a video yesterday for YouTube and the only way I could secure them while filming was to place them on the round containers.

I have to say that I’m really proud of myself. I dared to try to paint a doll face, something I never thought I’d do. And, though they’re not perfect, they’re pretty darn good. My need for creative expression is satisfied and I save money, in the bargain.

Now that I can no longer work in the gardens, my escape from the daily sh*tshow is working on the dolls, reading, reading, and more reading, and the occasional stab at mowing. Otherwise, I would lose my mind. Fantasy is a lot better than reality and I desperately want my ‘senior’ years to be as peaceful as possible. Sometimes, Don will declare a “no news day,” and I will do my best to not tell him what’s going on. We all do what we can to take care of ourselves.

My book was due yesterday and my guess is that it will end up being 2 or 3 days late. We don’t get fines anymore but I know someone is waiting for the book, just as I was waiting, so I will do my best to finish as soon as possible. And it’s October, which means that Louise Penny’s newest is coming out at the end of the month! A reason to celebrate, and boy, do we need things to celebrate.

We’re rewatching the series Alias. It holds up surprisingly well. The cast is excellent and I’m struck again by what a fine actress Jennifer Garner is. I know and have worked with Victor Garber. In fact, just a few years before he was cast in Alias, I was coaching him in Macbeth. And Ron Rifkin – such a fine actor – is perfectly evil as Sloane.

Okay. Back to my book.

Stay safe.

Happy Wednesday.

 

I mowed a lot on Saturday when I should have been reading this 897 page book which is due tomorrow.

It clearly isn’t going back to the library on time.

But I read a lot yesterday and I read quite a bit this morning before starting this post. I’ll keep plugging away. I did lose a big chunk of time on Sunday afternoon to the awful Mets game, in which they blew their chance for the post season.

Enough said about that.

It’s been quite warm outside; too warm for the scenery around me which is full of leaves floating to the ground, leaves on the ground, and fall colors everywhere. I’d like to be wearing a sweater right now instead of a t-shirt. Ah well, soon enough it will be quite cold.

The play has only one more week before it closes. I swear, runs are getting shorter and shorter, but this particular theater has the shortest runs I’ve ever seen. They had 5 preview performances and a 2 week run. In the ‘old days’ at the Globe, we had a week of previews and a 4 week run. But in the intervening years, regional theaters have decreased rehearsals by about a week and performances as well. It all comes down to money, of course. Part of the challenge, and the fun, of a longer run is finding your rhythm, learning more and more about your character and the cast and the audience as you get a chance to really explore the play. It’s sad that it’s changing. Don and I talk about this frequently. We miss the way it was. Professional theater is very different than it was 20 years ago.

I posted this on IG yesterday and captioned it “Watching the world go by.”

I have no desire to work on this dollhouse, it seems, but it does work well as a backdrop, especially for the smaller girls.

Obviously, more reading on the docket for today!

Stay safe.

Happy Monday.