winter, wait...what?

"it's like, hey, you were always there just on the tip of my tongue."

last night as our little family set out on another road adventure, d looked up at the sky and announced that the deep heavy grey clouds were in fact full of snow. i furrowed my brow in disbelief, as the sun was still out to a certain extent, and although it was cold and windy, it certainly didn't look like snow to a mn girl.

i was wrong.

as the little flakes started to fall and melt on our windshield, we stopped by family dollar to pick up two giant bags of wonka halloween candy (nerds of course), to prepare for the children down the block swarming around our house on friday. alfred, if you had not already guessed by the picture below, is going as a skeleton. hopefully he will scare the kids more with his glow-in-the-dark costume as opposed to his barking. i am still working on my costume.

it is darn cold outside. winter seems to have come upon us swiftly as i can't deem this kind of weather fall-like. once it starts freezing, it is the beginning of the end. i do have to say, however, that it is quite enjoyable to ride in the car, once warm, drink hot coffee, eat poundcake, and watch the sun come over the mountains, while listening to some of the music that i've come across lately. in this way, some light can be shed on the dark and perhaps dismal days that lie ahead of us.

recent recommendations include:

Of Montreal-Nonpareil of Favor

Ray LaMontagne-You Are the Best Thing

Blitzen Trapper-Furr

The Rumble Strips-Boys and Girls In Love

Broken West-Auctioneer

Well put.

“I look at these people and can't quite believe that they exist. Are they professional actors? I wonder. Or are they simply laymen who want a lot of attention? To put them in perspective, I think of being on an airplane. The flight attendant comes down the aisle with her food cart and, eventually, parks it beside my seat. "Can I interest you in the chicken?" she asks. "Or would you prefer the platter of shit with bits of broken glass in it? To be undecided in this election is to pause for a moment and then ask how the chicken is cooked."

- Author David Sedaris, on undecided voters

Whooo's ready for Halloween?

autumn.

fall is a contemplative season.

once again i find myself apologizing to you, dear readers, that i have been gone so long. i've been busy putting my energy elsewhere, but finally, now, i've gotten back to my writing, something i've missed very much. the thing about expectations is that they can't be unrealistic. it takes time to readjust to new situations and new settings and as much as we'd like things to bounce back to normal immediately, they never do. so i must make peace with myself that things don't always run on the same time as my brain does.

after the energy and the burn of the summer months, i find myself wrapping into myself, preparing for hibernation, or at least nesting in attempt to create an inviting home. the heat has transfered from the outdoors in. similarly, the hearth of my heart has been stoked to a steady burn, something which i am more than thankful for, being that i had been waiting for the ashes to be cleared away for some time now. fall has brought soft scarves and hot coffee, fred observing the changing of the leaves on the parkway with his nose stuck out the window (and the heat in the front turned way up to counterbalance the open windows in the back), quiet nights huddled under the covers, and various pots and pans on the oven giving the aroma of something comforting (read: mac and cheese, lentil soup, apple pie, and homemade pizzas). this is the time of year i end up the most domestic. as i draw into the home, i think of family, old and new, and how much love i have in my life.