Joys of Autumn (even in 2020)

W

e've been given an Autumn Season this year. It came on time! Days began to become crisp in September with a few hot days sprinkled in. October has been a beautiful Fall; with days alternating from crisp and blue sky to cozy and rainy. 

Danielle & Lucy

Danielle asked me to visit and be part of Lucy's first Halloween. Who can resist this proposition?  It was a lovely mother-daughter-baby day. Lucy slept as we drove to the farm, which was a couple of counties over. The roads quickly became two lanes and were flanked by houses with lots of land between one and the other. A really peaceful drive was the backdrop of our hushed talking tones (so as not to wake the baby). We talked about little things as well as big. We talked about making a plan to vote. Danielle had already executed her plan and voted earlier that week. I love that about her. She is a good planner and once she has made a plan, it is always executed. I too planned to vote early and made sure I completed my plan within the week. 

Arriving at the farm just as Lucy woke up was perfect. She always wakes up happy. This baby girl is fearless. She can't quite walk yet, but she so wants to. And when we were visiting the cow, she did not want to be in her mother's arms. She wanted to get to the cow! There was a corn maze that the farm is fairly well known for. We went to see it and I will tell you the size was remarkable. Danielle and I hovered around the outside of the maze for a few photo ops.  We knew the maze was not for us as we heard people inside the maze saying things like, "We are going around in circles!"

I've begun to experience a few happy autumn activities myself. Earlier in the month I spent a weekend in the NC mountains, in a town called Burnsville. There was a B&B that was home-base. The town has a small "square" with a restaurant that served the best filet mignon and a decadent chocolate cake, both of which made the four-hour drive worth it. 

Photo by Dmitry Zvolskiy from Pexels

Mornings (after breakfast) were spent at a lovely coffee shop. The two-story building with wood floors felt every bit like a quaint small-town coffee shop. The shopkeeper even knew many of the customers' names. Upstairs were a few tables with two amazing windows to look out onto the square. Each day was spent near the window, drinking a vanilla latte, and listening to conversations that I wasn't meant to hear. A little bit of writing took place as well. --The old-fashioned kind of writing, with pen and paper. These types of weekend mornings are my version of heaven on earth. 

My COVID "Vacation" ...so far

I've been quiet here. I've been in sort of a funk. Not actually depressed, but sort of stuck. I'm sort of blaming my all-around doing nothingness on COVID. So, this is a "what have I been doing during COVID" post. 

When sheltering in place first came about I took several online courses. I found them on Creativelive (in case you are interested). Some of the classes are pricey...but sometimes they go on sale. A lot of classes are very reasonable ($29) and a few that are free. I've spent several evenings watching some of the free classes. The courses got me excited about a few creative projects. At some point, I burned out on classes. 

Yoga studios also had to close. There are streaming classes, but that is not the same. So, the thing that I planned on getting back to is put on hold. I'm not pouting (exactly). Before COVID I was working out very regularly, with either treadmill or yoga. Now the workout rooms are also closed. (I know I'm whiny...but it gets better.) So I changed out my treadmill for an actual trail. I tried to do that as regularly as I did the treadmill or yoga thing. 

Fast-forward to today. I haven't walked the trail in over a month. 

I did have a nice week in Wilmington. I stayed at two B&Bs and then stayed the weekend with my daughter and her darling baby. That baby is pure joy. 

Here's a pic of Alister and Jacob, my two warm buddies. They are getting bored too. 

One of my friends is so creative with socializing with Social Distancing. She had a really fun 4th cookout. The set up is inherently socially distanced. It's such a treat to actually "hang out" with other people.

I've also enjoyed my fair share of television. My favorite show that is on a regular channel is Mom. The characters are snarky enough that I feel they are my people. 

I binged both seasons of "Dead to Me" and "The Politician". I highly recommend both.

I finally watched season two of "Ozark". That was a great big "meh". I've heard season three is better, so I'll probably watch that one soon. 

I also loved the movie "Lovebirds"... I loved it enough I watched it twice (but not on the same day).

That's "What I Did On My COVID Vacation",

Mid-Town

It is six months since I've been in my new place. And I still really like it. My bedroom needs a "redo". I need to get rid of the credenza/filing cabinet. It's a beautiful piece of furniture. It feels like it has been with me forever. It has a pretty versatile look. I've realized my place doesn't really have room for the piece. There are a few pieces that I will be moving out. 

I've found a crew that will hang my pictures in the second week in July. I need to clear out the bedroom so that we can get things hung and everything starts to really feel like home. 

My new apartment (the one I'm in now) is in "Mid-Town". Here is my view when I'm walking the dog. I love the little bit of urbanness in my view. It's nice that it is so different from my previous places. 

Not much going on in my neck of the woods. Just thought I'd share what my Mid-Town looks like in my complex.