In the mood

Well, I can tell winter is definitely coming. It rained most of the night and into the morning. I love the rain and will never complain about that. But it was so dark driving to work this morning. It seems like it happened overnight. I was in Tuscaloosa, AL for work last week so maybe it was more gradual than I realize but it seems like yesterday it was light and today it wasn’t.

I really do love this time of year, though. I carved a pumpkin on Sunday and tonight will roast the seeds. The grocery stores are getting their pomegranates in stock and hot chocolate is going on sale. I feel like I need to get everything ready to hibernate through the winter.

Maybe it’s because Halloween is in a couple days, but I’m in the mood for dark music and gothic books. I’m reading Touch Not the Cat by Mary Stewart and loving it. I want to re-read some of my other gothic favorites when I’m finished. I’m listening to The Village soundtrack. It was composed by James Newton Howard and is one of my all-time favorite soundtracks. I thought it was perfect for the movie, but really, it’s just perfect. It’s absolutely haunting and breathtaking.  Another soundtrack I’ve been listening to and that I think is great for this time of year is the soundtrack to Snow White and the Huntsman. I did not like the movie, but do really like the music. And I just looked it up and am not surprised to find it was also composed by James Newton Howard.

Walnuts

It’s that time of year when my dad cracks buckets of walnuts and I take them home and shell them.  It’s a pretty good process because he can crack them when he wants and I can shell them when I want. I usually just sit down with a movie and do a bucket at a time. This year I’ve been shelling the walnuts while I watch season 2 of Call the Midwife. That show got me hooked from the first episode. I’m not a huge TV watcher, and I usually watch shows hit and miss but every once in a while, I find one that really pulls me in. Anyway, I’ve really been loving Call the Midwife but that stupid show makes me cry every episode, I swear.  So I’ve been doing the walnuts with a tissue close at hand. I did read the first book the show is based on:  The Midwife: A Memoir of Birth, Joy, and Hard Times by Jennifer Worth. It was a good book, but not as emotionally involving as the TV show.  I’ve got one more buckets of nuts left to do and that should let me finish up the rest of the episodes. It’s just a matter of finding the time to sit down and do it.

Committing

So I mentioned a few weeks ago my sister and I bought airplane tickets to Cuzco, Peru. We are really going to go to Machu Picchu. Now that the excitement has worn off, I’ve started thinking.  My sister wants to hike the Inca trail. I do not like to hike all that much. I can handle day hikes but I’m not an overnight hiker. The once or twice I’ve done it wasn’t what I would call a good time.  And the real truth is that I wouldn’t be able to hike the Inca trail right now anyway. So we compromised that I am going to spend the next couple of months getting back in shape and really committing to the hike. And then when it comes time to get the hiking arrangements made, we’re going to decide if both of us really can hike it. And if not, we’ll take the bus. But if so, I may actually have to hike the thing.  

I can already tell this trip is going to be one of those excitement/dread types of things. I keep kind of laughing to myself that it will be a great experience and I will be able to say I did it. But I am also not really looking forward to it at all. I’m going to look at the positive side though, and think about all the clothes and things I will be able to shop for before I go on this trip. Because I do like to shop.

Happy days

Well, it looks like my next foreign trip is going to be to Peru. Since I went and bought the plane ticket and all. I’m still kind of in shock. The good kind of shock though. My sister has been keeping an eye on the prices for a little bit now and found a good one so last night we took the plunge and purchased them.  This trip is mostly my sister’s doing. Machu Picchu is at the top of her list right now.  And even if it’s not the top of mine, I definitely won’t pass up the opportunity.  We’ve got lots of time to plan before we actually go, but the initial excitement hasn’t worn off yet.

We’ve been having some nice cool fall weather and I love it. The leaves are starting to change and we got a rain storm that left snow on the tops of some of the mountains.  I am really in the mood to bake and eat a lot of soup.  In fact, the menu tonight is going to be a quick and easy corn chowder and then probably banana bread since I have a couple ripe bananas. Yum!

September

I can’t believe it’s already September. Where has this year gone? I’ve read a lot of books but not much else, it seems. I do have a new nephew (although it has nothing to do with me) and I’ve spent a lot of time doing family things. We had Owen’s baby blessing this past Sunday and since yesterday was Labor Day, we labored. Kind of. We were supposed to paint my parent’s old garage in their backyard, but it was raining pretty steadily so we ended up canning peaches and pears instead.

We are coming to my favorite time of the year. I love the fall. I’m going to enjoy the last days of summer as they go by and get a few projects done. Then I’m going to blissfully relish the autumn and get ready to hibernate through the winter. My kind of hibernation pretty much means I will be enjoying the outdoors from inside as much as I can once it gets cold and snowy. That’s what windows are for.

What are you reading?

Sometimes I really hate it when people ask me what I'm reading. If it's somebody who really knows me and knows what I like to read, I don't mind. But when random people on airplanes or co-workers, etc. ask, I sometimes hate to answer. Inevitably, I get a blank look because they've never heard of what I'm reading. It happened to me again last week at work.

Me: I'm tired because I stayed up reading last night.
Coworker: It must have been good. What are you reading?
Me: Um...it's called Magic Rises.
Coworker: blank look and a nod
Me: It's a series from one of my favorite authors.
Coworker: Nice, what's it about?
Me: Hmmm.. magic and shape shifters... there are a few vampires too, but not the sparkly kind.
Coworker: another blank look
Coworker: Nice, well gotta get back to work.

It's just funny to me that the thing I spend most of my free time doing is something I don't really talk about with people I know. There are a few friends or family whose reading interests overlap with mine or who really understand why I love reading, but nobody who really likes to read the same books as I do. I'm not complaining about it. I get on Goodreads or go to my favorite book blogs if I want to discuss books.

Anyway, that's why I don't like it when people ask me what I'm reading. Of course, knowing my luck, I could be reading Shakespeare and be sitting next to the one person who hasn't heard of him. :)

Camping

I spent the last four days camping with my family in Logan canyon. I do like camping, but I don't love it. I'm not a die-hard outdoor enthusiast and don't like to get dirty but I can handle camping in small doses. I grew up camping with my family and have really great memories of playing in the Loagn River. We don't camp as often any more, but it's always fun when we do go.

My nieces and nephews were fun to play with. They were in the river for hours and covered in mud at times. I even got the one year old in the river and she was fearless. It was her first camping trip and she had a blast. That little kid was so dirty.

And then there is all of the sitting around playing cards or sitting by the fire. I don't know why a campfire is so relaxing and enjoyable, but I do love it... until I get home and smell like one. :)