Fall Ponderings and Your Monday Fortune Cookie, 9/30/13

YOUR ABILITY FOR ACCOMPLISHMENT WILL BE FOLLOWED BY SUCCESS.

SNARKY RESPONSE: Of course. It'd be ridiculous to say that one's ability for success will be followed by accomplishment. No, wait! That makes sense too? Today's fortune is a kind of palindrome. Who knew?

Your ability for accomplishment will be followed by success.

I was going to write about something else, hopefully something inspiring and worthy of a fortune about "accomplishment" and "success," but as I sit here at my desk, with my window open, I'm thinking about fall.

Sure, I can still hear frogs inviting someone, anyone, over for a drink and a roll on their lily pad, but soon the temps will drive every self-respecting amphibian into hibernation. Alone. Solitary confinement until spring when they'll emerge and begin their chorus all over again. Unless they don't survive the plummeting temps, in which case it's the next generation who will take up the tune.

Anyway, potential death in the marsh notwithstanding, fall is definitely beginning that downward spiral to winter.

Temps are falling,
Sap is receding,
Leaves are falling,
Daylight hours are dwindling. Everything is headed down.
Despite the holiday heyday,
Life is heading toward
Winter's full stop.

Despite the fatalistic vibe, I still find this my favorite season. The crisp Fall air, such a relief after the smothering humidity of Summer. The shifting of the greens of Summer to the glorious reds, golds, and yellows of Fall.

Summer's indolence rolls over and applies itself to harvesting and nesting. Meals cooked outside over an open flame, billowing smoke into a summer's day, shift to crock pots and stew pots and spice-laden air wafting through the house.

I'm pulling out sweaters, polishing boots, anticipating sleeves in all their lengths and weights. Summer whites, tropical brights, and cool pastels are packed away or pushed to the back of the closet to make room for fall and winter tones, earthy, jeweled, and spiced.

How do you anticipate Fall? Do you spend it mourning Summer's passing? Do you count it only as the approach of Winter?

Labor Day, Seasonal Shift, and Your Monday Fortune Cookie, 9/2/13

WE LIVE AT THE EDGE OF THE MIRACULOUS.

SNARKY RESPONSE: Yeah, and the admission requirements are ridiculous.

We Live At The Edge Of The Miraculous

First - Happy Labor Day!

And this Monday Fortune Cookie seems to tie right in. Labor Day is the proverbial "last day of summer" when the freedom of summer ends and the reality of life returns. The long, luxurious days of summer start winding down, days get shorter (actually have been since the Summer Equinox), and activity shifts from lazing to crazing. The slide from here to the end of the year is one of increasing speed with responsibilities picking up, holidays popping up, and stress levels shooting up.

So why not, take today, this moment, as we teeter on the edge of the seasonal shift and not only think back longingly to the summer's festivities, but look ahead in anticipation of the roller coaster ride to come.

Fall is my absolutely favorite time of the year. The temperature drops into the bearable levels, windows stay open, moving around outside becomes more than a sweat-slicked dash from air-conditioned car to air-conditioned house/office/store. The color palette begins to open from shades of green to golds and reds as the trees begin their autumnal costume party.

Yeah, the stores and the advertising machine have already begun their siren's shriek about the Yule gift-giving season, but you don't have to buy into it yet. I personally develop blinders to anything not related to the true calendar and it helps. You might try to adopt a pair yourself if the pressure gets too much.

Try to slow down the plummet toward the end of the year and, just like we do during the summer, laze your way through the holidays. Adopt a beach-like attitude where it'll all get done in time, but for now, just enjoy. Put yourself back on a natural rhythm. Don't let the stores dictate when you put up your holiday decorations (if you decorate). Don't feel guilty if decorating is not your thing. Let yourself slow down a bit sooner in the evening as the nights grow longer. It's okay. It's natural.

Let's see if we can't make this step over the edge of the miraculous less of a doozy and more of a yahooy!

MONDAY FORTUNE COOKIE, 9/24/12

There is no security in life, only opportunity.

SNARKY RESPONSE: Well, that'll shake up all the control freaks out there.

There is no security in life, only opportunity.

I love fall. It's my favorite season. Sleeping with the windows open, waking to a nip in the air, bright yellow days and cool purple evenings. This season is also filled with opportunities to enjoy yourself. Outdoor Festivals abound and, because the weather is so much more comfortable, everyone's out and about enjoying them all. So, this weekend we chucked the chores and took the opportunity to hit the road for an deliciously German-themed weekend.

First, St. Benedict's Oktoberfest -

The weinerschnitzel and wurst platters were yummy good!

 

Our sampler glasses and ^ The Stein Holding Contest
My friend and fellow author, Tina Glasneck, won the Friday night contest, Ladies Division!

A Sunday drive out Patterson Avenue revealed the Byrd Cellars Winery where we met the delightful owners and sampled their wines. Sadly, I didn't take any photos, but click on their name above to visit their website. Definitely going to be visiting them again soon! We brought back several lovely wines and gifts.

Then we continued on to Hill Top Berry Farm & Winery.

After sampling their fruit wines and meads, we headed west and discovered the Wild Wolf Brewing Company

 

Our two sample flights definitely took off!

  

A drive down the Blue Ridge Parkway is always a visual delight. We just missed seeing a hang-glider launch, but sat and watched a lazy circling drifting flight to the valley floor way below. The trees are still green though a few sad trees seem to be launching themselves from green to brown in rapid order.

 

 The hang glider is the little dot in the middle of the left photo.

And finally dinner at our favorite German restaurant outside Staunton, Edelweiss Restaurant, off I-81.

Home now with wonderful memories. How was your weekend?

MONDAY FORTUNE COOKIE 9/3/12

Find release from your cares; have a good time.

SNARKY RESPONSE: Yeah, eat, drink and be merry for tomorrow you may die.

Find release from your cares; have a good time.

Seemed like good advice for a Labor Day Weekend and the beginning of Fall! Even though, in my neck of the woods, it doesn't feel like Fall, Labor Day Weekend is when most of us bid adieu to the carefree days of summer. At the very least, I've already noticed the days are getting shorter.

I love Fall! The temperature will start on that gradual downward slide and we'll revel in open windows, nights cool enough to require sweaters, and the scent of smoke from burning leaves or fireplaces.

Between now and New Year's Eve, my social calendar becomes filled chock-a-block with activities of all kinds. The James River Writers Conference, The Richmond Folk Festival, The Garlic Festival, various cultural festivals, and Oktoberfest are just a few of the delights on my crowded agenda. Of course, there are the Big Four—Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year's Eve, though I admit the last two are actually within the realm of Winter.

Then there is the annual strip-tease performed by the region's deciduous trees that will hopefully entertain us for weeks. The coy things will bedazzle us with their annual transformation from their current dusty green to vibrant golds, reds, and oranges. Despite the fact that walks outside will often be accompanied by the gentle shushing of fallen leaves, we'll hardly notice the emergence of bare limbs until they're suddenly standing against a cloudless sky, limbs thrust outwards as if to say "ta da," their rainbow garb having been flung to the wind to settle down around their roots.

And the light! The sunlight shifts from the brilliant white yellow of summer to the golden glow of autumn. The disappearance of humidity will brighten the days and at night, the stars will take on a sharper twinkle.

Yes, there may be a built-in sense of freedom in the lazy, hazy days of summer with vacations, abbreviated clothing and footwear, but I'm ready to begin the cooler, cozy days of fall. What about you? Are you ready for Fall or are you in mourning for Summer?