Melancholy November

I have always found November to be a very melancholy month.  This morning it rained - a damp. disconsolate mist that left the leaves that remain on the trees hanging heavily; somber and soggy  with large tears falling mournfully unto the wet grass below them. 

 

Where had all the sunshine gone, and the crisp leaves that were so pleasant to shuffle through as one raked them into piles,

 

Poor November, - falling between the wild beauty of October and the happy anticipation of December.  Surely it must have a purpose......

I cannot help being pensive and sometimes sad, but I have decided to change November's character - give it a reason for being!  And so I have sent away for some new treadle cords to put on my loom, to add a little bit of life to the lift of the shafts, so I can whiz the shuttle through a nice clean shed.

 

And I am going to finish spinning that lovely cheerful pink roving into yarn, and then I shall learn Navajo plying  and knit somebody a warm hat and a pair of "texting" mittens.......

 

Perhaps I will finish scanning the few remaining pictures that sit here in a basket beside the printer, and tuck them into appropriate places in the DVD I am doing to tell the tale of Charles' life.

 

I have been haunting the library and have a dozen books that have been calling to me in vain as I take home a DVD or some special music to distract me through the evenings.

 

And some baking - I could start the Christmas baking!

 

 - oh, I don't suppose I will get all of these things done, but November CAN be happy and productive,  and I think that this is the year to brighten it up and rid it of its despondent reputation!!

ABC Wednesday
October 30th, 2013

The letter is P, for Peaks

Here are the peaks of the Rocky Mountains as I flew Westjet across them, late this morning*

Come Fairies, take me out of this dull world

for I would ride with you upon the wind

and dance upon the mountains

like a flame!

 

William Butler Yeats

*home from a lovely wedding - when we flew out it was all cloud and fog
 

For more interesting takes on the letter P, go here to see what Mrs. Nesbitt and Roger Green

and all their perpetual helpers have to offer.

 



Another year gone.....

 

 

 

Another year gone, leaving everywhere

its rich spiced residues; vines, leaves,

 

the uneaten fruits crumbling damply

in the shadows, unmattering back

 

from the particular island

of this summer, this NOW, that is nowhere

 

except underfoot, moldering

in that black subterranean castle

 

of unobservable mysteries - roots and sealed seeds

and the wanderings of water.  This

 

I try to remember when time's measure

painfully chafes, for instance when autumn

 

flares out at the last, boisterous and like us longing

to stay - how everything lives, shifting

 

from one bright vision to another, forever

in these momentary pastures.

 

Mary Oliver   Fall

 

Oscar

ABC Wednesday
October 23rd, 2013

The letter is O, for Oscar de la Renta

What I knew about Oscar de la Renta before I started a little research was his Eau de Parfum,  which I loved in younger days, before I made Crepe de Chine my 'signature' scent, - in the days when a faint perfume was pleasing to people as they brushed past you, before so many people began to throw up their hands in horror and complain about their 'allergies'!

And doctors and dentists and optometrists and even chiropodists put up signs saying 'No Perfume, No Perfume - we are pure in this office and will not be seduced by your Eau de Parfum'.

I know of a lady who changed churches because she was so outraged by the faint perfume a fellow  lady
pew sharer refused to give up when she got dressed for church.....good for her, (the lady) say I....  I'm not sure what the outraged parishioner's thoughts were on after shave lotion....

This particular Perfume, pictured above, is L'Esprit de Eau de Parfum Oscar de la Renta.    Its 'Base' is Heliotrope, Muskt, Tonka Bean, Vetiver and Amber.  The 'Heart' is Egyptian Jasmine, Orange Flower, Tuberose, Parma Violet and Iris, and it is 'Topped' with Sicilian Lemon and Cedrat. 

Who could object to such a lovely potpourri  - in moderation,  of course.

Oscar de la Renta left his native Dominican Republic when he was 18 to study painting in Madrid, and while living in Spain he became interest in the world of design and became apprenticed to Balenciago, Spain's most renowned couturier.  In 1963 he came to New York to work with Elizabeth Arden, and in 1965 began his highly successful signature ready-to-wear label.

He has received many awards in the industry and from his native country he has been honoured as one of its most distinguished citizens with the order al Merito de Juan Paqblo Duarte and the order of Cristbal Colon.  In 1996 he received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Hispanic Heritage Society and in 2000 he marched down Fifth Avenue as Grand Marshall of New York City's Hispanic Day Parade.

He is the recipient of the Gold Medal of Bellas Artes from the King of Spain, and even more importantly he has helped build a much needed school and day-care centre in the Dominican Republic for 1200 children.   As a tireless patron of the arts he serves on many boards of important cultural institutions, and I would say his life has been one of excellent citizenship,  besides his contribution to a sweet scented world.

You will find more interesting O's here at ABC Wednesday, with thanks to Roger, Denise and all their visiting helpers.

Another photo run...

 

 

A glorious day, again!

 

 

After a morning spent in the Berlin Philharmonic Digital Concert Hall, watching and listening to a most beautiful presentation of Bach's St. Matthew's Passion I had a quick bowl of chicken soup for lunch and was then drawn outside by the sunshine and the geraniums that I have been meaning to bring indoors before we have a frost that decimates the blossoms.

 

Yesterday I raked up all the leaves that had fallen on the front lawn and filled one large bag. 

Then I cut the lawn and everything looked so tidy.  Of course, overnight the tree released another bagful, but that's alright - I take everything in moderation these days so I will work in tandem with the tree and fill my bags in accordance with its whims. 

 

The leaves fall patiently

Nothing remembers or grieves

The river takes to the sea

The yellow drift of leaves

Sara Teasdale

 

If only the river swept away all these leaves that gather on my lawns!!!!!

 

However today was not the day for raking leaves, - I could hear the river calling, - 'everything's golden here, come and see, come and see' - so off I went!

 

And so it was, golden, and very beautiful. 

In places richly bronzed......

and upstream the leaves were light and transparent, and they gleamed against the water below.

The water was quiet and the golden branches bent down to converse with it.

 

John Burrough says 'how beautiful leaves grow old.  How full of light and colour are their last days.

 

I followed the road around the bend,

through the ranches, and along beside the meadows, ringed with the brilliant colours of small shrubs and evergreens at the foot of the mountains - vivid where the sun strikes them, somber where they lie in shade.

 

 

 

I thought how lovely it would be to continue on through to the Ashnola, and see the beautiful waters of the creek as it crashes its way down the mountain, foaming white and green and the

darkest and richest blue.

 

However, I remembered I was alone (although I didn't feel alone) and the road

is winding and twisty, and perhaps

it would be wiser if I turned at the first wide spot in the road.

 

Autumn, the year's last loveliest smile.......William Cullen Bryant

And then there is that gorgeous October moon, at night!

 

The brilliant moon, and all the milky sky......Yeats.

You drive!!!!

Autumn in the Similkameen, and this afternoon I said to myself, "A good day for a photo trip - you drive"!!!!

Well I missed my driver terribly, - no taking pictures out of the side window while he zipped along, - nobody to point out terrific possibilities or special captures, but I had a feeling he might be along and enjoying the drive.

Because I had to stop to take pictures I had to watch for safe places and unfortunately missed some lovely shots as I haven't yet (or likely ever will) mastered the art of snapping photos while I drive....

It was sunny, and the valley was shimmering!

 

Not just the orchards, but the trees in the river bottom

glowed in the sunlight

 

 

Off in the distance the Chapaka hills were that misty blue

fading a little with each passing mile

 

 

At the upper end of Ginty's pond the brilliant blue water was edged with grasses,

naples yellow, creams and oranges and cool greens

 

 

 

A few ducks

but the majority of them were in the lower pond, plying their way through the silvery scum

that covers the water

I didn't venture along the river bank, as Charles would have done,

but I found some lovely golden coins clinging to the trees

along the roadway

 

 

Closer to home the rich gold of the tree along the front fence

 

 

The last of the roses

 

 

 

and a lovely potpourri of colour in the back garden.

 

 

 

A perfect way to spend the afternoon

and treasure memories.......

 

ABC Wednesday
October 16th, 2013

The letter is N for Ogden Nash

 

I think that I have been here before with Ogden Nash, but he writes such delightful nonsense that

I thought another go-around might be appropriate and fun.

Well, not so much fun for Jack-do-good-for-nothing

 

but words of wisdom and warning, nevertheless

 

in this day and age!

And here is a little bonus......poor Samuel Shy!

 

 

For more interesting and informative Ns nod on over to ABC Wednesday, here,

with thanks to Denise and Roger and all kind blog readers.

Nature from a distance

Skype is calling, and I hurry to answer...

I went for a walk in the woods today.
With my youngest son, and his Ipod
by way of Skype.....
Up in the Chilcotin where the meadowfolk live.

With his camera he showed me a squirrel
his tail curled up over his back,
sitting silent and unmoving,
(not even an eyelash)
on the branch of an evergreen tree.

Below him, in a pile on the ground
was a great mound of acorns,
not scraped up by human hands
but put there one by one
by this far-seeing fellow,
(or is it two by two, - one in each side
of the squirrel's pouchy cheeks)

sensing approaching winter
and the snow that will protect his stash
and keep his little tummy full.



Yesterday we inspected the beaver's
preparation and how she provides,
and my son told me of a chance encounter he had
with a muskrat and a Mallard duck,
holding conversation in the middle
of the creek.

and of the symbiotic relationship
the muskrat has with the beaver,
she providing him with winter shelter in return
for food and building materials.
And I thought it would be nice to know
this sociable muskrat,
and how he would inspire Beatrix Potter
to include him in her tales, and the stories
she could tell about him, Count Middlemarch Muskrat.

It is a grand and splendid world!!!!

Falling leaves

 

 

 

 

 

 

October 10th

Now constantly there is the sound,

quieter than rain,
of the leaves falling.

Under their loosening bright
gold, the sycamore limbs
bleach whiter.

Now the only flowers
are beeweed and aster, spray
of their white and lavender
over the brown leaves.

The calling of a crow sounds
loud—a landmark—now
that the life of summer falls
silent, and the nights grow.

Wendell Berry

 

 

The valley grows wild with riotous colour - a last fling before

 

somber November comes to haunt us with its memories

 

 

 

 

M is for Mandolin

ABC Wednesday
October 9th, 2013

The letter is M for MANDOLIN

Etienne Bonneau

 

The Mandolin

 

A musical instrument in the lute family (plucked or strummed) usually with
four courses of strings tuned in perfect fifths and plucked with a plectrum.

 

It is the soprano member of a family that includes the mandola,
octave mandolin,  mandocello and mandobass.

 

There are three common types of Mandolins.  The Neapolitan mandolins

featured prominently in classical and traditional music,
the carved top mandolin common in folk music and blue grass,
and the flat top instruments, less specific to a music genre. (Wikipedia)
 

Here is the First Movement of Vivaldi's Concerto for Mandolin
 

 

three minutes of pure enjoyment

For more M's move on over to ABC Wednesday, here, with thanks to Mrs. Nesbitt,
Roger Green and all the helpers who visit around on behalf of this meme.

 

A little bit of This and a very little bit of That

Sunday with no Church


In lieu of I wrote  a letter to my sister, put the summer bulbs to bed in a cosy box of vermiculite, went to the store to replenish Callie's special cat food treat (of which she gets one teaspoon a day) and settled down this afternoon to do a bit of spinning.

It is a while since I have done any serious spinning, especially from roving.  I am used to using hand carders and making little piles of rolags (like airy sausages of wool in case the word is not familiar to you) that make the spinning super easy.


So I detached some of the roving from that lovely pink braid I bought at the newly discovered wool shop and teased it out into an airy cloud, - then into yard long bits with all the yarn going one way, lengthwise, and then I started to spin.  Not perfectly, - far from it.  The technique was slow in coming back to me and when I tried a long draw, which I used to love, I found the thread getting skinnier and skinnier.  Back to a short draw, and a few lumps and bumps, but here is what I did on the bobbin.

Sallie of A Full Time Life was asking about instructions for a Moebius Scarf, and here is one below.

About the instructions, I must confess that I don't follow those terribly complicated ones that use a circular needle, - or even two circular needles.  When I first read about a Moebius Scarf in 'Knitting Around' by Elizabeth Zimmerman she explained the basics by describing a "rather long skinny piece of paper, given one twist and stuck together to form the Moebius Ring; a ring with one surface and one edge.

Of course, - I saw it right away - how simple.  And that is how I knitted it then and how I knit it still.

I am not a purist who must make it seamless,  - I am very prosaic and just knit that long skinny rectangle, give it a twist and then sew the ends together, - carefully.

Here is the one I am making now, knitting that lovely ball of wool in garter stitch for as many inches as I need to go around the neck once, loosely and comfortably, - or twice for extra warmth if the 195 m in the ball will stretch that far.  A piece of cake - perfect for mindless knitting if your hands demand to be busy.......

If you don't knit but you are still interested in the Moebius, and especially if you are interested in Topology, which "concerns itself with vast spaces in contrast to specific sizes and shapes of the Euclidean configurations, and uses more than the three dimensions of Euclid.  To study these multidimensional spaces they have to be classified, and this requires an object to compare them to.  This object has to have the unique property of having only ONE surface, and this need was filled by the invention of the great Mathematician/Topologist, August Ferdinand Moebius (1790-1868".  pge 53, Knitting Around by Elizabeth Zimmerman.

And that is quite possibly more than you wanted to know, Sallie, but who knows how many Dimensions the future holds for us....

In Memory.....

 

 

Loving Memory

 

Dorothy Emily Grace

 

By love they are remembered

 

and in memory they live

A bright day despite the rain and clouds

One would wonder at my great elation and enthusiasm on finding a new Wool Shoppe in Penticton - The Knotty Knitter.  Not only is it a NEW wool shop, it is the ONLY wool shop in Penticton, the town having been bereft of any place to buy yarn for the last seven years since an arsonist destroyed the one and only wool shop and so discouraged the owner

that she packed up and went back to Nova Scotia.

The reason one would be inclined to wonder why I should be so elated can be found in the garage, where each of the shelves that line the west wall are piled high with cones and balls and skeins and hanks and pre-wound warps - linen, silk, fine wool, worsted, handspun, 10/2 cotton, 8/2 cotton, 16/2 cotton in all shades and varying amounts - but no self-striping yarn that makes those marvelous colourful socks so much in demand by kids of all ages.!!!

It is only a long narrow strip of a store, but what treasures it contains!  Even roving for spinning, and I came home with a lovely pink braid - polwarth with a touch of silk, anxious to crowd off the brown llama thread that has almost filled the bobbin on the spinning wheel for ages, since one leg got loose and kept falling off.

But our youngest son, who kindly took me to Penticton the long way round, so I could take pictures,

 

 

also fixed the leg on the spinning wheel.  

So what should I do first?????

 

Cast on for a pair of fingerless texting gloves to accommodate one of the grandkids for Christmas, or a moebus scarf for which one ball of striped wool should be sufficient? Or should I put on a good DVD and spend the evening spinning????

 

 

Tomorrow the Berlin Philharmonic Digital Concert Hall features Reinhard Goebel conducting among other presentations, some Mozart and some Bach.  Eight p.m. Berlin time, but just over the noon hour here in B.C.  A lovely way to spend the time,

treadling the pedal.....

Our children, - all of them - are so very kind and caring and fun to be with, and Vincent also came with me to THE FLOWER SHOP - exotically dangerous and full of temptations,

only to be entered with blinders that hide the side view as you go

directly to the object you are there to buy.

 

It is not only dangerous but the owners are crafty, and right beside the check-out counter they have a wonderful array of bouquets at cut prices.  One of which we came home with!!!!

 

Gosh, a bright day despite the rain and clouds.....