“In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life: It Goes On.”
Robert Frost
Showing posts with label Autumn. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Autumn. Show all posts

Saturday, October 28, 2023

Autumn Check In

 Yes I'm back. It's been a long time. Spring and Summer have gone and Autumn is in it's ultimate beauty. Below we have an image of Guy Noir relaxing in his camp chair on a warm fall day.


 

Autumn will be gone soon and Winter will be on the doorstep. Just want to let you know that if I don't post for ages it's probably just because life is getting in the way. Seems everything takes so long to accomplish now. I thought technology was supposed to make life easier and it has overall, but in some ways things are more difficult and frustrating. 

For example, I've been plagued with computer issues and internet issues for weeks going into months. Everyday brings a new challenge to overcome. Broken computers, impossible technology it goes on and on. I've use HP PC's for ages with a Windows interface and it seems that Microsoft wants us to be online and connected to them at all times. The computer manufacturers and MS have opted into having all sorts of things preloaded and enabled as soon as you turn on your PC and connect to the internet. One of the worst is something called OneDrive which is the Microsoft cloud storage. Another was BitLocker that was enabled on my PC. I finally figured out how to disable it. The terrible thing is, that if you have it enabled and get locked out of your PC without the passkey that you somehow were supposed to know to save, you are out of luck, you will never get back into that computer again. But I still fear with every update that MS will enable everything I have turned off. I am much more vigilant about backing up all my files to a separate hard drive now. 

It has taken me much anxiety and time to unravel all the things that have been done when I set up my new PC. They assume I want all of my personal information, pictures, documents... everything stored in the cloud somewhere. Well I do not want that! They didn't even ask! Worse I've read horror stories of people who deleted the information from the cloud and had no idea that it would also delete information on their own computers. Oh the Horror! 

Speaking of horror, it's almost Halloween! We have our candy ready for the little monsters. When I say we I mean my husband as he hands out the treats and I stay in the basement with Guy Noir, who is actually a big scaredy cat!


 

So anyway I'm sure all of you are tech savvy and think I'm just an old lady who complains a lot. Well you would be right. 

Take care everyone, if you don't hear from me again, I'm most likely fine. It's just my computer locked me out forever. 

Diane and Guy Noir

Sunday, September 25, 2022

The Days of September


September is coming to a close, where did the time go?  But it sounds as though our October will be a lovely month, so I'm looking forward to it.  Our summer has been so hot and dry here I'll be enjoying the cooler weather. Here in our area we are still in a Severe Drought so my flowers and plants did not do well at all. The blooms were sparse and short lived. The image above is from a few years ago when we had ample rain.

The good news is that the winter is forecast to have plenty of snow, the bad there will also be plenty of extremely cold temperatures. 

Our yard has been a haven for the wildlife. We have had visits from many birds, rabbits, chipmunks, raccoons, and deer. Many of the wild areas have withered away and unfortunately most of the neighbors have nothing but grass and a few trees, so the wildlife has nothing to eat. They have been using our garden as an oasis! We put out shallow pans of water during the hottest and driest times and water our plants just enough to keep them going. The rabbits and deer have been eating our hosta plants more than anything else. We've never seen them this badly damaged. I don't blame the poor critters they are hungry and thirsty! Here are a couple of photos of the damage. It's never been this bad in all the 20 some years we've lived here.

Usually this flower bed is full of ferns, bloodroot, hostas and other wild plants. The bare stocks used to be covered with hosta leaves.


Another area where the small leaved hostas have been a favorite of the deer and rabbits. We've been watering when we can, but it is still extremely dry.

September was nice with:

Flowers, Cool Nights, Warm Days, Fresh Crisp Mornings...

 

source

 


 

Here's a beautiful image by children's book illustrator Elsa Beskow.

image source

 

Sorry I haven't posted much lately. We had many family activities going on and my attention was there for the last couple of months. I've also noticed that I really don't care for the new Blog Post Editor. They did away with the colored font options and it seems that the bar at the top is so large that I only have half a screen to edit and work on a post. Not good for someone who is visually challenged!

I really am becoming a little old lady! LOL!

Take care out there, until the next time. ~ Diane

 

Saturday, September 5, 2020

A New Season

A New Season is almost upon us.  Autumn will be here soon and the last days of summer are being enjoyed and treasured. They'll be locked away in our memories and brought back mid-winter to revel in again. 


Last year many things were left undone as both myself and my husband had health issues. It was very difficult getting the normal summer projects finished so this year we are playing catch up. We've had time at home to work at our own pace. I won't dwell on our health problems but if you weren't aware my husband had two eye surgeries to help with his Grave's disease.  I had a hole in my retina and had laser surgery on one eye.  Needless to say these were set backs for both of us.  We were looking forward to a nicer year that we could get out and enjoy things we'd missed out on last year.  Covid had other plans. So far we have avoided it by being extremely careful when we go out, (which we do rarely).


 One thing I've noticed is the many birds we've had this year. Just last week these little guys were flying all over the place. Not sure what type of bird this is but it's sure cute!  The flowers were let go last year and this year they have co-mingled in a wild and crazy way. The Phlox, wild Boneset (Eupatorium),and the Chelone (Turtlehead), Virginia Creeper and Hosta have all mixed in with the Zigzag Goldenrod. 





I love the gardens though. They are not manicured and maybe a bit wild but I appreciate how nature sometimes just takes control and goes on. Nature finds a path forward no matter what.  It's a good lesson for us to understand during these wild and unpredictable times. 

Autumn, a new season, I'm looking forward to it. 

How about you?


 






Saturday, October 5, 2019

Keep Calm ...



This sounds like sound advice for the times we are living in right now.  Things are all Topsy-turvy, upside-down and out of kilter.  I was reminded of the message above while watching a PBS special about trains in the UK.  One of the train stations now houses a used book store.  While the owners were going through a box of books they purchased at auction, they found the original poster from WWII.  The original had never been released to the general public. You can read and view a video about it at the Barter Books website.

Most simple day to day activities have a way of helping me to keep calm and carry on. Cooking, cleaning, gardening and volunteer work all provide that sense of purpose in my day.  The changing seasons signal something new is ahead.  Or maybe it's just that magical time of year, when the leaves change from green to gold and in the night sky the stars shine even brighter.
~~~~ Diane



Friday, September 22, 2017

Autumn Breeze

Well I'm trying to turn over a new leaf by posting more than once in a blue moon! I thought that fall would be a good time to try and get back into a rhythm again. Leaves are on my mind of course, because I'm already starting to see them fall from our trees. The other day it was raining and windy and the leaves were falling like crazy. And then things change. 

Zig-Zag Goldenrod and Phlox

The first day of Autumn and our temperatures are scorching! Almost 90 degrees and humid to boot! We've had an unusually warm September and and unusually cool August! It's like the months are switched around, it seems it's been like that all year. Nothing is dependable anymore, just a sign of our times I guess.

There have been terrible storms and other natural disasters across the nations. What have we done to deserve this? Well nothing, it just happens. If you're reading this on a tablet or your phone, you may not see the little message at the top of my blog, it reads....

“In three words I can sum up everything I've learned about life:
It goes on.” 


I've kept this quote up for several months as it seems to fit and it's a good reminder for me whenever I happen to show up on my own blog!



Wild plums


Other things of note:  plums, husbands and cats. 

The wild plums above were picked from our very own plum shrubs in our wild area of the yard next to the lake. Many had been harvested by the deer. They left us enough for a batch of wild plum jam. After it was cooked down, I ended up with about 2 pints of jam. It's pretty tart even with lots of sugar, but I thought of another way to use it that was delicious. Upside down Plum Cake. 

 Upside-down Plum Cake
It's basically the same recipe as you'd use for Pineapple Upside-down cake. What I did was spread about 1/2 cup of my wild plum jam onto the bottom of the pan. I then used about four store bought plums and arranged (dumped) them onto the top of the jam. I then sprinkled on about 1/2 cup of brown sugar and then dotted with a couple of tablespoons of butter. Then I spooned the batter over that. After it came out of the oven all you need is a bit of whipped cream or ice cream if you prefer!


Husband.... too much yard work and hauling trees branches and just doing too much gardening over the weekend brought on a bout of sciatica. He's already better but has a new understanding of what I've been through several times over the years. The pain can really be unbearable. I was there to help him through it and he's almost back to normal, well his normal, which is non-stop doing things!



Guy actually loves his cat carrier...

Cats... well poor Guy has not been feeling well. After 3 times to the vet, I finally think we have this under control. He has Feline Idiopathic Cystitis, also known as Pandora Syndrome. In short he is prone to urinary tract irritations. Not always bladder infection, but similar in feel and effect. So he has been an unhappy boy for awhile. Seems that diets high in dry food cause it to be worse. Mainly because cats don't drink enough water. I've always fed my cats both dry and wet cat food, so this was a shock to me.

Guy just happens to be more sensitive than our other cats were and therefore more prone to this condition. After a few tests, pain medication and new upgraded wet cat food he seems to be getting a bit better.

Guy trying to take a nap...


So it's been a busy couple of weeks. Let's hope the rest of Autumn is normal and easy breezy!

Thanks for taking a moment to read and comment on my blog. 
I'll try and visit yours soon. 
~~Diane~~

 

Sunday, September 18, 2016

My Neck of the Woods

Hello! Anyone still out there?
I know, I've been gone for a whole month without any notice... Sometimes things happen to distract us from the blog world and draw us into the real world, sometimes the real world is hard.


While I was away some good things happened and a few bad things too.  That's the way it is, the bitter and the sweet all mixed together.

Let me catch you up to date on what's been going on ....


Some friends, my husband and I, went to the Apostle Islands, Wisconsin and sailed on Lake Superior for several days, and I lived through it ... (a blog post to come).



 After 9 hours of sailing, I felt like the mushroom on the right...


I've spent lots of time on my Etsy shop, working on inventory and social media, like Instagram....


https://www.etsy.com/listing/475390057/daily-dime-bank-buckaroo-cowboy-coin?ref=shop_home_active_17
  
Daily Dime Bank, Buckaroo Cowboy




My sales have been good this summer, keeping me 
busy shipping and restocking my inventory...

 




Vintage Chef Cats Salt Pepper Shakers

Vintage Chef Cats Salt and Pepper Shakers


The garden still requires some work and of course I have to spend time with my two adorable cats. Family visits and little excursions about town seems to have taken up the rest of my time this summer.


Politics this year seems to be even more hateful than most years, but I did think it funny that I found these blue elephants.  I thought they would be a great gift for the conflicted voter, but alas, one has a broken and re-glued trunk, so they will be staying at my house for the time being!



mother goose rhymes
 Mother Goose Rhymes

This 1953 edition of Mother Goose has the most adorable illustrations by Eulalie M. Banks. It's one of those books that I almost don't want to sell because I just love the sweet images!  But it is for sale now in my shop.. Click on the first image of the items to see the full listing and information.



 The image above and below are more from the Mother Goose book...



Locally some major things have happened since I was last here.

As I wrote in a previous post, Prince Rogers Nelson passed away last April.  His home and studio, Paisley Park, is opening for tours this month and next month there will be a tribute concert in St. Paul.

On a very sad note, the 27 year mystery of what happened to the young boy Jacob Wetterling has finally been solved and his family is having a memorial service for him at the end of September. After all these years he will finally be put to rest. If you haven't heard of this, just google his name and you will find the stories, I haven't the heart to go into any more details here.







So that's about it folks. Summer is fast coming to a close and the days are already getting shorter. My garden is winding down for the summer and will soon be covered with falling leaves. I'm hoping I have more time to spend here on the blog as I do enjoy visiting with all of you. If you are on Instagram, follow if you wish, I do tend to get over there more often just because it's so quick and easy.


I must dash away now... see you soon!
~~Diane~~


Wednesday, September 16, 2015

Once More Round the Lake

We had family visiting from another state over the Labor Day holiday and we had to get them out to the premier lake in the Twin-Cities area. Luckily the rain and high humidity departed and we were blessed with a fantastic Labor Day tour of beautiful Lake Minnetonka.




Lake Minnetonka is the 10th largest lake in Minnesota; it has over 14,000 acres of water (approximately 22 square miles) with more than 100 miles of shoreline.  The maximum depth of the lake is 113 feet. Lake Minnetonka is also the most heavily-used lake in Minnesota. (source)





Since my relatives are land-lubbers, we decided on the safe and smooth ride aboard the lovely and very vintage Steamboat Minnehaha. In the early 1900's the Steamboat Minnehaha was created as an extension of the Twin Cities' streetcar system.


 The Steamboat Minnehaha on Lake Minnetonka, MN.:
 source

It all came to an end with the rise in popularity of automobiles and the steamboat was scuttled in 1926.  For five decades, the Minnehaha lay at the bottom of lake Minnetonka.

That changed, however, in 1980, when a salvage team discovered her and raised her back to the surface.  Finally, after a complete restoration, the Minnehaha returned to passenger service in 1996 and has operated on Lake Minnetonka every season since.


Watching the Minnehaha come into dock from a previous tour. 







 Waiting to board....




 I have the window seat and can't wait to get going!






 We are just leaving the dock and heading out of the bay into the main lake.



The lake was not nearly as crowded as in the warmer days of summer, but there were still many people out enjoying the beautiful day.  We saw several groups of sailboats and kayaks like the ones in the photos above.



This dad had his daughter out on the paddleboard and was keeping
 a close eye on us!






 An actual steam engine still runs in the belly of the Steamboat Minnehaha.









Here are just a few of the more modest homes on Lake Minnetonka. These are the ones I would choose to live in if I had a full-time housekeeper, gardener and maintenance crew!

Some historic mansions remain on the lake, but are more secluded and mostly hidden from the prying eyes of tourists.  A few include prominent estates once owned by the first families of Minnesota, such as the Pillsburys (as in the Pillsbury Doughboy), the Daytons (Daytons Department Stores and founder of Target stores) and the Bells (General Mills). Most of the larger homes now are owned by professional athletes and insurance company CEO's.

The former Pillsbury house may still be for sale, I found this info on a real-estate site. It's been reduced to $24 million. Here's a photo from the site.....

Former Pillsbury House – $24,000,000 | Pricey Pads:


 source




I much prefer these "smaller" homes!









Our tour took us around the "Big Island" and then back into the bay.  It was a pleasurable hour-long cruise around the lake.









The Steamboat Minnehaha is a floating museum and a real treasure to the city of Excelsior on the bay of Lake Minnetonka. 

I hope you enjoyed this little trip with me. We still have a few more weeks of this glorious weather so maybe we'll make it back out to the lake before winter sets in.  I hope you're enjoying this 
beautiful time of year too!

See you soon!
~~ Diane ~~



Wednesday, September 9, 2015

Summer Days Dwindling Down

You're thinking.... "Wow, she finally posted something!". Yes, I know, I've been neglecting my blog and all of you far too long! It's been over a month since my last post and I do apologize for disappearing from blog-land without even a mention.  It seems that life gets in the way sometimes.... house guests, mini-vacations, etc...

I left in the heat of summer and now am returning to almost fall like temperatures outside today. Before I turn the page on summer I have a few things I want to share with you today.

First of all I have some Happy Mail that I received over the summer.

This first image is of a wonderfl collection of crystals that my dear blog friend Stacy sent me... she has a lovely blog called Magic Love Crow. Thank you Stacy, I really love these!


The large crystal in back is "Clear" quartz, it is used to clear the air. Next is an upturned white heart which is Selenite, it is said it holds no negativity.  In front is a Heart shaped Rose quartz crystal which is for love and peace.  More rose quartz and then the ones that almost look like purple jelly beans are Amethyst, they are for all over good healing.

I know all of those things to be true, for when I hold them in my hands, I love how they feel. Rolling them through my fingers and looking at them really do give me a sense of calm, perhaps similar to holding prayer beads... but maybe more.... below are some fascinating things that quartz is used for....

Here are some other amazing things quartz is used for...

Quartz (silica) source

As a crystal, quartz is used as a semiprecious gem stone. Crystalline varieties include amethyst, citrine, rose quartz, smoky quartz, etc. Cryptocrystalline forms include agate, jasper, onyx, etc. Because of its piezoelectric properties quartz is used for pressure gauges, oscillators, resonators and wave stabilizes; because of its ability to rotate the plane of polarization of light and its transparency in ultraviolet rays, it is used in heat-ray lamps, prism and spectrographic lenses. Also used in manufacturing glass, paints, abrasives, refractory materials and precision instruments. Silica is also used in manufacture of computer chips, glass and refractory materials.


Next I want to share a few photos of my late summer garden, taken a couple of weeks ago.  If you look closely, you will see a pretty Black Swallow-tail Butterfly in the phlox.  This butterfly was almost constantly fluttering its wings and I must have taken about 20 bad images before I even got this just OK one!


 Below are just a couple of photos of the phlox and day lilies.









And then there was more Happy Mail....

Another blog friend over in the UK recently closed down her brick and mortar store and is now selling only online.  I ordered a few books and cards from her and this is one that I simply adore! The book is titled Hand in Hand to Fairyland and the image is by Rene Cloke. Thank you Barbara, I loved every thing so much! You must visit her shop and blog March of Time Books.






And even More Happy Mail...

And now summer is dwindling down to just a few more days but another blog friend has jump started my Fall decorating by informing me that I had won her blog contest and she sent me these fantastic new and vintage decor and crafting items! Wow! I was thrilled! Thank you Pam!  Make sure to visit her at Virginia Retro blog. And yes Pam, I saw your post and I do know I am one of those lazy bloggers! Hahaha!

But look at this, Pam made that adorable card for me and look how it perfectly matches my old tablecloth! Darling!




Here are all the goodies I won from Pam's blog contest! 
Cute, Cute, Cute!






To finish off my post today, I want to share a little page from the 1960's book, Music Through the Year, art by Robert J. Lee, poem by Rose Flyeman.






Happy Fall to All!
I promise I will visit every one of your blogs and I WILL be back soon!
~~ Diane ~~