Just My Thoughts

Right now I am craving... mint chocolate

Do you think the Loch Ness monster exists? of course

Last night....I had pizza, watched some of the Matrix and fell asleep on the couch for a while.

Song of the week..."Baby, Now that I Found You" by Alison Krauss

Currently I want... a new hair colour, a bigger bookshelf, a Polaroid camera, a pretty dress, a french manicure and a puppy

Today I really feel like reading other peoples words more than writing my own.

chocolate croissant or blueberry muffin? definitely a chocolate croissant

Linen Cupboard

Everyone has their weakness.
Everyone has something they have always wanted.
To many, my yearning will seem strange.
Very strange.
A linen cupboard – full of vintage linen and lace all beautifully laundered.

Now why have I wanted this for longer than I can remember? It surely has to be because I would love my life to be organised, beautiful, clean, tidy and cared for. Never in my wildest dreams will I ever achieve this, so the linen cupboard is a kind of symbolism. Reminding me of my deficiencies but also hope in a strange way.

It's Begining to Look......

I thought that I would share some of my favorite Christmas decor I have around the house.

Bright and Cheery!

And let's not forget the kitchen..........

And speaking of kitchen, today and Sunday, I'll be making cookies, muffins, and scones for Christmas.  That's all I have to do this year.  Someone else will be making Christmas Dinner.

Oh, it is my favorite time of the year!

Merry

This is also the season to visit the Theatre...the Ballet...A Ball..Music...For Romance and Mistletoe..a Concert..The Opera..Together with your loved one Star gazing in the crisp night air..making a wish..and to be MERRY..tralalalala...lalalala

The color of springtime is in the flowers, the color of winter is in the imagination.

Just Because.......

Just because it's Sunday, and I really like these items (wouldn't mind having a few of them for myself):

Home and Contentment

As the kettle busied itself with getting the tea water to full boil, I took off my shoes, and raised the volume on my classical music.  Finally, with a cup of Darjeeling in hand and a good book to lose myself in, I enveloped myself in total contentment of the moment. Sitting in my favorite room, on my favorite chair with a cat curled on my lap, I sighed and smiled. The comfort of a good cup of tea combined with the familiar beautiful surroundings eased my mind and soothed my soul.


I was home..plain and simple. The word itself, HOME, moves me to no end...for it is there my soul resides fully. The outside world has its charms no doubt....but it is my world, that which shelters me, warms me, and welcomes those near and dear...that world called home is the only one to ever have a hold of my heart. *sigh*


I admit it...I am a homebody and happy to be so.


What does your home mean to you?

Random Me

some random things about myself

Its never too late to change direction or your attitude


Last night...I made awesome lamb chops, baked potato and salad.

Sometimes I wish...on the first star I see at night

Do you blush easily? yup, I have been known to do that

Sometimes I really enjoy having a good ramble (By "ramble" I mean talking wildly and happily about a bunch of totally random things without even pausing to take a breather).

I'm not a "comfort eater" - when Im a bit down or stressed I tend to lose my appetite and eat almost nothing.

Sipping champagne on a weekday afternoon is blissful

Sometimes a long car ride alone with a favourite CD is all you need to get back on track

If you don't try to run after your dreams , you will never know if you can catch them

Getting roses will always make me feel giddy

Currently I want... more music in my life, discipline to write/study more, pretty dresses

Sometimes I think that getting take out and eating it outside (aka "fast food picnic")is as nice as going to a pretty restaurant - don't you agree?

I have a rather twisted sense of humour at times - I definitely got it from my mother.

Am I happy? Yes. Sure, my life is not perfect yet, I could have a better job, I'm a work in progress....But I still have so many things to be deliriously happy about. It feels good.

At the moment I am buying far more books than I am reading. My book list of "want to read" has gotten ridiculously long. Here are a few books I am really looking forward to reading
* The Story Sisters - by Alice Hoffman
* The Lace Reader - by Brunonia Barry
* The lost book of Salem (also called "the physick book of Deliverence Dan" in USA)- by Katherine Howe
* The Girl who chased the Moon - by Sarah Addison Allen (due out in March 2010)

Currently I want... a new hair colour, The "500 days of summer" soundtrack, a bigger bookshelf, a Polaroid camera, a pretty dress, a french manicure and a puppy

chocolate croissant or blueberry muffin? definitely a chocolate croissant

Sometimes its totally ok not to have all the answers and to ask all the "wrong" questions :)

Mother Nature weaves her spell....

At twilight now, I can smell the scent of woodsmoke in the air and when darkness falls, the sky is indigo and the moon so bright I have felt that I wanted to go outside and capture extra hours in the day. Everywhere you look there seems to be hints of magic....Mother nature weaves her spells with a wave of her wand.




Mornings have been misty, days quiet. Things are winding down in preparation for colder days. There has been fruit collecting and conker stringing. The cupboard is now home to sloe gin. There are blackberries in the freezer, plum wine fermenting in the kitchen, apples, still to be dealt with.



Even if we don't think its cold yet. Nature knows when its time to come in and hibernate.

perfect "entertainment"

This is my idea of the perfect "entertainment" -- sitting in front of the fire on a chilly evening with the one I love next to me, each of us so engrossed in the other, that the world outside just slips away and time is of no importance.

Just Because......

it's Sunday and they are totally fabulous,

Child of the Night

I love the morning..my first glimpse of the day's sun. A new beginning.


Yet..it's dusk I truly embrace....especially at this time of year. I love when it gets dark early and cooler, colder in the evening. When nighttime comes...I am enveloped in its darkness with comfort and a sense of serenity. Could it be that I feel protected by the stars that peep at this time? Or is it perhaps the moon watching over me...providing the glow of the eve?

No matter. I am a child of the night.

Daytime may offer promises of new beginnings, but nighttime brings many possibilities. Wishes made upon a star are ever more granted. Blessings under the light of the moon ever more powerful. Dreams under the blanket of deep purple...ever more beautiful.

The rustling leaves are making my music for this eve. The wind is still howling lightly. The nighttime clouds are looking ever so fluffy this evening...like pulled cotton balls, softly caressing the sky. I hear the crickets, still holding on to the vestiges of summer. Poor little ones...pretty soon their song shall be silenced till next year.

I am one with the night at this very moment. I smile for the possibilities it offers and for its comforting embrace when I close my eyes and head out to the land of nod. I shall now blow out the candle....tis time for night's embrace.

Feeling quite blissful...and just a tad bit wistful.

Books

I have always imagined paradise to be a kind of library.

Jorge Luis Borges

(1899-1986)

I'm with Borges on this.


I think it's fair to say that I couldn't (or don't want to) imagine my life without books. Reading is like air to me. Or friends and family. Or, at the very least, like clothing. I suppose if we want to be literal, clothes might be something I could manage without - 'specially if I lived on a warm, desert island or in a house with underfloor heating... but really, how practical or pleasant or indeed, possible, would it be to try to lead the life I love, without clothes? Not very. Same with books. I feel I need them like I need shelter and clothing and chocolate.

I know I'm not alone in this and I love that there are people out there (and lots and lots of them apparently inhabit this lovely blogosphere) who get it. Truly get it.

I read every day, no matter how briefly, and luxury equates to hours and hours of uninterrupted reading time. I can never have too much time for reading. I know that for many Summer's when they especially indulge their love of reading but for me, it's when the days draw in and the chill increasingly invites me to snuggle up under a blanket with a warm spicy chai and a selection of snacks, that I start to get excited about spending more time with a book in hand.

Something I know some people find weird about my reading habits (and even infuriating if they have to share a space with me and my multiple piles of bookmarked books) is that I find it impossible to read only one book at a time (yes, yes, trouble narrowing things down... it's a recurring theme. Deeply ingrained, this need for variety, even here). In general, I'll have at least one novel, a non-fiction read, several dip-in-and-out-ables (creative books usually fall into this category for me) and a few magazines... all on the go at the same time.


The thing about reading like this is that I'm constantly looking for new things to add to the pile. New inspiration. And much as I love them, I do sometimes find bookshops a little overwhelming - so many books, never enough time to read (or even browse) them all. So I like reading what others have recommended. Whether they be reviewers I've come to trust, friends, family, or kindred spirits briefly encountered, I love to hear what other people are reading and enjoying. This way I'm often introduced to new authors or individual gems that I might not have discovered otherwise.

Magic Is In The Air...

Me thinks perhaps tis the Autumn underway...right around the corner.


The air is crackling with energy...sweet yet mysterious vibes. I feel it all around me. What exactly is surrounding me with such force that makes me smile in anticipation??

I bite my lip playfully as I look around me and wonder. What enchantment has nature put me under? For I know that the slightest hint of coolness in the air...the merest whisper of change in season casts a spell of splendor...

wistfulness...and contentment in all that surrounds me.

I light the scented candles. My kitchen smells of freshly baked oatmeal cookies (though I did bake brownies last night)...the rest of the house is scented in an aroma of crisp Autumn. It's tough to explain the essence. Let's just say that a whiff of it has you seeing colorful leaves in abundance, pumpkins on the steps, a stew on the stove, herbs harvested and hung to dry, and an apple pie freshly baked...piping hot.

This is the magical spirit permeating the house at this moment. This is my witch's brew for the season...this is the spell I'm casting for all who enter my abode. Enchantment is everywhere. Come visit...I'll have my cauldron on the fire. It'll be brewing a smile, warmth, a nice cup of tea, an afghan made by my own hands to keep you warm on chilly evenings, a book to take you away to other lands, laughter, soft music, a cat on the lap, and most of all...comfort to lull you to the land of nod when the lights go out.

My favorite things of summer

My favorite things of summer


Brightly polished toenails

Cool drinks

Daisies

Drives in the country with the windows down

Farmer's markets

Feeling the warm earth in my hands

Fireflies

Fresh basil

Fresh veggies from the garden

Gazing at the sky at night

Good books

Hearing a bullfrog at a pond

Hearing birds chirping

June bugs

Lavender

Lillies

Long walks

Magnolia blossoms

Open doors and windows

Petunias

Picking the first red tomato

Picnics

Roses

Sandals

Seeing children play outside

Shooting stars

Sitting on the porch

Smell of bed linens after drying outside

Strawberries

Summer concerts in the park

Sunshine

Sweet corn

Swinging in the porch swing

The return of hummingbirds

Visiting State Parks

Warm weather

Wearing capris and sleeveless blouses