M is for Movie and Meme

I found this meme here and changed it just a bit.  Something for a tired Thursday post!  

Name a film that you have seen more than 10 times.
Wild Hearts Can't Be Broken (I was 12, don't judge) 

Name a film that you’ve seen multiple times in the cinema.
The last few Harry Potter movies and all of the LOTR movies

Name an actor that would make you more inclined to see a film.
Richard Armitage 

Name an actor that would make you less likely to see a film.
Nicholas Cage

Name a film that you quote from on a regular basis
Monty Python's Holy Grail, Fight Club, and the ork parts in LOTR

Name a film musical that you know all of the lyrics to all of the songs.
The Sound of Music


Name a film that you would recommend everyone see.
The Uninvited.  No, seriously.  I'm surprised by the number of people who haven't seen this film. 

Ever walked out of a film?
Sin City.  I walked out because I was upset.  The people in front of us brought their little kids and the kids were crying.  I was about to beat the parents to death.

Name a film that made you cry in the cinema.
Up

Popcorn?
Yes, please


How often do you go to the cinema (as opposed to renting them or watching them at home)?
4 times a year or so

What’s the last film you saw in the cinema?
Captain America


What’s your favourite/preferred genre of film?
book-based films (duh)

What’s the first film you remember seeing in the cinema?
The Empire Strikes Back


What film do you wish you had never seen?
The Accused (I had nightmares for weeks)

What is the scariest film you’ve seen?
The Accused (nothing is scarier than rape and close-minded, anti-feminist actions)

If you could be any character portrayed in a movie, who would it be?
Falcor

Total number of films you own on DVD and video.
a few dozen, books before movies!

Last film you bought.
a classic horror movie box set


Last film you watched.
Away we go

Five films that mean a lot to you.
LOTR: Fellowship of the Ring
LOTR: The Two Towers
LOTR: Return of the King
The Uninvited
Harry Potter 7, part 2

L is for Lots of Books!!!

I hit up the gigantic charity booksale on Thursday night and again on Saturday.  I bought loads of books for just under $25 (which was my budget).  However, I just realized that I sat down a pile of books and didn't go back and pick them up.  Sigh.  Oh well.  I guess I can say that I stayed on budget and that someone else will get to enjoy those titles I left lying in a pile.

On to the bookish spoils!!!

I won't list out all the titles as they are all pretty clear in the picture.  It is a bit difficult to read the title on that top, left-hand side book.

That's right.  A copy of Carson McCuller's A Member of the Wedding with a funky embroidered copy.  SCORE!!!

Sweet.  I am one happy booknerd with incredibly cramped shelves.  I need to start reading off my shelves more, but I realize I'm saying this with plans to visit the library in the morning.  I am a book glutton and I'm totally okay with that.

I is for Introspection

I haven't blogged in over the week.  I was all prepared to blog an "I is for Ink" post and showcase/discuss tattoos, but I just couldn't get up the inspiration.  There we go, another I word.  Inspiration is certainly something I'm lacking.

What has brought on my uninspiring attitude?  What else but a big, nasty case of random clinical depression.  It probably has something to do, in part, with my lack of sleep, but other than that I have no reason to be depressed.

It pisses me off when people tell me (because believe me I'm aware) that I have no reason to be depressed.  Work is silly at times and stressful, but not too bad.  I have an understanding and supportive husband and two marvelous, happy kids.  Friends are plentiful.  Autumn is my favorite season.  I've baked, knitted, embroidered, written in my journal, read some fantastic books and have so many good projects going on.

I've tried to explain to folks before that I've had what I like to call Reasonable Depression (aka that depression that stems from a specific cause be it a death or sad experience, ill health, tough times, etc) and Stupid Ass Depression (the depression that shows up for no reason whatsoever).  Personally, the Stupid Ass Depression is worse; after all, I end up feeling like a screwball wondering "what the hell is wrong with me" rather than having the safety of blaming my pouting on a damned good reason.


An analogy:
On my good, normal days I feel like one of those relaxing fountains everyone has in their office.  I bubble up and give give give give give and it all cycles back.  For everything I let go of and freely give: love, time, energy, work, hugs, words, baked goods, friendship... it all comes back to me.

My depression wipes that out and leaves me feeling like a sieve: I give give give give give and .... nothing.  I'm drained, disconnected, tapped-out.  I've nothing left to give and what others try to give me:  love, time, energy, work, hugs, words, baked goods, friendship.... it slips away from my grasp.

Now we dust off those old "coping skills."  The Old Me would quit bathing, working, sleeping, communicating, and functioning and engage in the bad I word:  ISOLATION.  Isolation is when I completely shut-down and give-up on life and any chance at happiness.  The New Me engages in a completely different I word:  INTROSPECTION.

i·so·late:  to set or place apart; detach or separate so as to be alone.

in·tro·spect:  to practice introspection;  consider one's own internal state or feelings. 

To me, these two words may easily be viewed as twins; but I consider isolation as being alone and introspection as something that can be done around others, but works best (at least for this introvert) when one has solitude.

Introspection means that I am constantly striving to think about ME.  Not in a selfish Lifestyles of the Rich and Famous sort of fashion, but rather I'm very attuned to what I'm feeling physically, emotionally, intellectually, etc....  Essentially, I want to fill fill fill fill fill that sieve up so much that even though things are draining away I have something to fill me back up.

Several ways I engage in my Introspection:

• Walking:  I went for a walk -- alone -- to the coffee shop.  On my way I noticed everything; the smell of earth, crisp leaves falling, fabric softener wafting out of a dormitory.  The leaves crunched under my feet, I found a pretty bird feather, I noticed that sometimes pavement looks a bit like the cracked, crusty top of bread.  I didn't hurry, or glance at my phone, or think of my to-do list.  I just observed, noted, squirreled away all of those bits of tangible life I tend to take for granted. 
• Writing:  I'm back to journaling nearly every evening.  It is a nice end to the day, to look back on everything I accomplished, to reflect on the importance of my family, to plan my future -- even it is only one day at a time -- gives me a sense of purpose.
• Hobbying:  To sit by myself and do something I love is magical.  Sometimes all this girl needs is to sit in my room alone with an owl mug filled with warm milk listening to Wait Wait Don't Tell Me and organizing embroidery floss. 
• Sleep:  Not the dead to the world terrible sleep of depression where I just sleep on and on and on and am never rested, rather it is constructive napping.  If I'm tired and Sam and the babies are amusing themselves then I dive into cool sheets and sleep a solid hour and a half.  No more, no less.  One solid REM cycle seems to set the world right.
• Thinking of others:  I almost always think of others, but it is thinking of what I can give (what to cook for dinner, contemplating Atticus's birthday party, signing band forms for Hope, working out my schedule so Sam can tattoo).  Instead I think of what everyone gives me:  Atticus freely cuddles, Hope tells me her aspirations, Sam arranges time for me to be alone and helps around the house.....

Looking back on this post, before I hit the publish button, I find myself dissatisfied.  I don't think I can adequately explain my need for meaningful, thinking, solitude and how much it pulls me out of a depression (slowly, but effectively).  I'm resisting the urge to prattle on, or edit down, or delete all together, because, frankly, it has really helped me to write this all out in a place other than my journal.  I believe it is time to grab that cup of warm milk, cozy-up in bed, and think on that. 

H is for Husband

Our Wedding Day, 01/16/2010

You'd think with nearly 2 years of marriage under our belts I'd be used to the phrase, "my husband."  I'm not at all used to it and I suppose that is because I always think of Sam as, well, Sam.  I'm still thrilled every time I introduce him or I'm talking about him and I get to say "my husband, Sam."  Although we have our times of frustration and annoyance, being married to Sam is great because he truly is my best friend.  I thought I'd share several tangible reasons why I love him:

• Every time he goes to the coffee shop without me he always brings me back a coffee or tea 

• On Sundays he helps with house work and plays with the kids so I can have "mom time."  When I'm stressed and feel like I need to stay home and do something like scrub the basement floor he kicks me out of the house with strict orders to read a "giant Victorian novel."

• Sore back, scoliosis, and a bum knee... and he still gets on the floor with the kids to play. 

• He tolerates the profusion of owl knick-knacks and books spilling out of everywhere at home 

• Even when I fuck up a recipe he eats every bite and tells me it is wonderful.

• He is the absolute best person to give the "Mystery Science Theater" treatment to movies, television, and coffee shop clientele. 

• He is super-cuddly, he doesn't mind the fact that I need gobs of non-sexual physical attention.  In fact, most of the time HE asks to cuddle.  

• I'll say that he'd kill me for writing the above statement, but he won't.  He'll just roll his eyes, shake his head, and tolerate Ye Olde Blog.

• He draws stuff for me, embroidery patterns, tattoos, logos for the knitting group.  He takes his art time to do stuff for me (because he knows I'm hopeless at drawing).  He is endlessly talented.

• OMG he is handsome.  Super-tall, broad shoulders, golden brown eyes, and he has a turkey dinner and a maniacal monkey tattoo... hotness .... he is most certainly my Mr. Darcy (a.k.a Inky Darcy)

Alright folks, enough sappiness for now.  I'm off to go smooch my husband.

G is for Good Friends

One of my closest friends, Catherine the Cakewife!

For the past few days I've been mulling over friendship.  What makes a true friend.  The difference between an acquaintance, a facebook "friend", a frenemy, a friend, and a good friend.  This introspection has led to several conclusions; one is that there are varying degrees of friendship.  It isn't that I like people any less, but friend A may be someone I can talk to and lunch with or merely facebook chat and for whatever reason it doesn't bridge to Good Friend status. And then friend B is a Kindred Spirit. The other thing I learned is that friendship -- even close friendship -- can fade and die. 

So what makes a good friend or a strong friendship?  In thinking of my closest friendships, those that are strong and those that have ended for whatever reason I came to several conclusions on what makes a strong friendship:

Common Interests:  This may seem like a "duh" type statement, but I really think this is what makes one want to be friends with another person.  I work and interact with a number of Nice People, but I don't have anything in common with them.  I may have a quick chat or a conversation over a cup of coffee, but it never goes anywhere.  We eventually run out of things to say.  I need for someone to have an interest in the things I love (not everything, but maybe a thing or two).  For example if you hate Charles Dickens and would rather watch Fox News I may still be able to have a great friendship with you if we both love thrifting and Arcade Fire.  We Have Common Interests.  I won't babble about Bleak House and you won't babble about Sean Hannity and we can both score kitschy vintage owl swag at the Goodwill and listen to Funeral on repeat. 

Communication:  Some people I don't understand.  Maybe I don't "get" their sense of humor or maybe every conversation leaves me confused and wondering "I wonder what she meant...."  Communication means that we understand one another and we can talk things out from which movie to watch to settling differences to letting the other person know when we are hurt, angry, joyous, or lonely.  It also means that we TALK.  I have many friends that I don't even talk to on face book.  They are all lumped into the category of People I Admire, but we never really converse. 

Courtesy:  I try to be careful to not take advantage of my friends. It is easy to relax around people we love, but I firmly believe that basic courtesy should always be in place.  This means returning borrowed items, maybe putting off that 3am phone call when you know the other person works the next day, showing up to planned activities on time or at the very least not habitually showing up very late, not talking over the other person or attempting to "top" stories.  Basic basic basic courtesy goes a long way.  I would say that a lack of courtesy is the first sign that a friendship may go sour.

Constructive Criticism:  Now to some meaty stuff.  I've constructively criticized when asked ("no, I wouldn't wear the yellow Charlotte Russe jumpsuit and booties") and I've given unsolicited criticism ("cheating is wrong" or "I'm worried about your binge drinking").  Friends should be the ones to challenge you and let you know when you're doing wrong.  Tough love all the way.  And then there is petty criticism.  I've had "friends" comment negatively on my thrift store wardrobe, my desire to use tote bags for everything, my parenting choices, my hair, my music and my life. There is a big difference between not liking something and expressing that opinion and belittling someone because of a choice they've made. 

Caring:  A certain amount of selflessness goes into being a friend.  I will bring you chicken soup and lend you $20 bucks.  I'll be happy for you when you're happy and supportive when you're down.  Time, energy, love.... all of those things go into being a great friend. If there isn't love there isn't a friendship.

Core Ethics:  I disagree with many of my friends on politics and religion and I'm fine with having a difference of opinion. However, I CANNOT be friends with people who are homophobic, racist, misogynists, or people who are ridiculously shallow.  Try as I might, I cannot get along with someone who believes a $600 Burberry handbag is an investment worth making.

Compromise:  Okay, I'll watch your silly anime and I'll endure the Lady Gaga CD (maybe).  But then you might have to sit through a BBC drama or listen to my litany of "that's what she said jokes."  That's the true test of a friendship, liking some one enough to endure annoyance, boredom, or being outside of one's comfort zone now and again.  

I love my friends and I cherish each memory we have together.  Cheers!

F is for Food

Who doesn't love food?  This post could easily be a list of top restaurants or favorite eats, but I decided to focus it a bit more and discuss my favorite dairy-free foods.

Atticus has issues with processing dairy and since I'm nursing him this means that I've had to eliminate dairy in my diet.  I love cream in my coffee, cheese, butter, and other delectable dairy items and I was depressed and stressed when I had to cut it out of my diet.  What really sucks is I had stocked the fridge with things like yogurt and cheese sticks just before Atticus was born.  Healthy, packed with protein, and easy to eat while mothering a newborn, I thought I was ready to go.  Then I learned I couldn't eat those things and that many of my pantry items (cereal, crackers, granola bars, etc...), frozen foods (quick dinners, pre-made frozen casseroles I made while pregnant, frozen veggie combos), and refrigerator items (my lunch meat had dairy) had dairy.  What the hell was I going to eat?  I consume a steady supply of fruit and veggies, but  geez-louise, no dairy?!?! And of course the entire time I was nursing around the clock which left me exhausted and STARVING.

With a bit of research and help from a vegan friend I discovered a bevy of delicious items to eat.  Some of the food choices I already knew and loved and it was exciting to know I could continue eating those things.

Here we go, my top non-dairy eats:

Asian Food
My favorite food before ditching dairy was Thai food, so going dairy-free was the perfect excuse to indulge in basil rolls, curries, Pad Thai, coconut soup and other delicious Thai dishes.  Also, I can have non-Americanized sushi (no cream cheese, please) and big delicious bowls of Vietnamese Pho.   

Almond Milk
I'm pretty sure that even when I go back to dairy I'll still embrace almond milk.  Smooth and nutty and low calorie (often 60 calories a serving) this milk works in baking and on breakfast cereal.  However, I like it best with hot drinks: creamer in my coffee, mixed with chai, or warmed with a little bit of nutmeg and vanilla.

Chocolate Almond Dream Ice Cream
I adore ice cream and this has been the most difficult item to give up.  I've tried different "non-dairy frozen treats" but most of them are meh.  I like this one, though, it is chocolatey, but not too rich.


Sweet Potato Tater Tots
This is the most brilliant food ever created.  I love sweet potato fries, but this is a step up.  I bake them in the oven and then salt/pepper them.  I think they'd also be good sprinkled with cinnamon before baking.  Now that Atticus is eating some solid food I can give him sweet tater tots to eat and I feel better than giving him straight-up potatoes.  At least sweet taters are an actual veggie!


Vegan White Pizza
The recipe is here and I promise you it is DELICIOUS!  In fact, I think I want a slice right now.

Cake
I've had many delicious vegan baked goods, but these two cakes are my favorite and I couldn't choose just one.  The Chocolate Vegan Death Cake at The Grit is divine; it is so rich and smooth I'm sure women through themselves at this cake.  I'm happily married and I still thought about running off with a big slice.  The second cake is one my friend Heath made for my birthday, Ginger Macadamia Coconut Carrot Cake. The recipe is from Isa Chandra Moskowitz's Vegan with a Vengeance cookbook.

Earth Balance
This vegan fake butter spread is pretty good.  It doesn't taste gross.  In fact, I've been using it on pasta, toast, and veggies for Sam and Hope and they aren't complaining.  It also works okay in baking.  I've only had one recipe not turn out so hot from using this spread (it was blueberry pecan oatmeal cookies, the cookies fell apart and didn't hold together)

Muffins
Once again, I'll have to pimp Isa Chandra Moskowitz's Vegan with a Vengeance.  I made the pumpkin muffins over the weekend (but I cut the sugar in half and used applesauce rather than oil) and Atticus eats them for breakfast.  Really any muffin recipe can be turned dairy-free (at least in my experience).  Simply replace butter with Earth Balance and replace milk with Almond Milk.  There you are, breakfast that isn't cereal with labels you must scrutinize!




It has been a struggle switching to a dairy-free lifestyle, but once I found some delicious things to eat things were smoother.  One day (after I wean Atticus) I'll go back to dairy, but I'll probably still use Almond milk, make healthy muffins, and eat vegan pizza and Thai food with some regularity.

Yay food!

E is for Embroidery

I think I may love embroidery more than my yarn-crafts.  Although I will admit I'm smitten with knitting patterned dish cloths at the moment, my first love is floss, needle, and hoop.

There are many things to love about embroidery, but what I like most is the versatility.  Simple stitches... complex stitches... minimal colors and/or lines... tons of colors and/or designs... an exercise in one stitch or a palette of many stitches... plain fabric or print clothes.... Well, you get the picture.



I can remember vividly two stitching projects from my childhoods.  One was a blue, burlap cloth that I embroidered with Native American symbols for a school project (I can remember working rows of satin-stitched upside-down hearts) and a blue cloth sampler with my name and a few doodads (I remember loving stitched daisies at the time).  I have no idea why I put embroidery down sometime after the age of eleven, but I have a feeling it had to do with listening to Riot Grrrl Music, writing bad poems, and reading Sassy magazine and feeling like stitching (and baking too) were things that the Patriarchy used to Oppress me.  It didn't matter that I loved it, by golly I had a righteous anger to maintain!



I picked embroidery back up after college when I found myself battling an awful episode of depression.  I was reading, but I had ceased writing for the time being; it just zapped the energy out of me.  Reading was great, but that's an awful lot of intake.  I need to be producing something.  And there we have it... embroidery and to a lesser extent crocheting.  I stitched and stitched and stitched.  The first thing I made was a tea towel riddled with embroidered teapots and teacups for my mom.

I'm a slow stitcher, so I don't produce a lot.  For me it is more about the tranquility of the experience (well, most of the time it is tranquil, I do end up swearing a good bit) than the number of items made.



Right now I'm working on an August stitch-along.  That's right.  Here it is September and I'm still working on an August stitch-along and I'm nowhere near finished.  Oh well....



Basically I'm just learning/practicing different stitches using a vintage pillow case.  I think this might become a pillow or it will be placed in a hoop and hung on the wall.  We'll see how things shake out.

Now I think I have an urge to play in some floss.... g'night!

D is for Darkshadows

Today is a short-post kinda of a day.  It is so AUTUMN out today.  I've been to JoAnne's so I have new yarn and needles to play with and a stack of books and it is grey and rainy and cool.  In other words, I'm not feeling all bloggy today. In fact it is the perfect day to watch an episode or two of...



Let me start by saying that I'm not a "die hard" fan.  I love the show, but I'm certainly no expert.  What I must like about this vintage, dramatic, Gothic, campy soap is.... watching it with Hope.



Yup... my eleven-year-old daughter ADORES Dark Shadows.  We started at the beginning and we're working our way through all the episodes (thanks, Netflix).  We haven't even gotten to Barnabas yet.  Hope likes the creepiness and the melodramatic glances and -- dear god -- the lines.  It is also especially hilarious to watch her crack up over Caroline Stoddard's dancing one minute and then curl up next to me on the couch the next minute in fear.

I'm looking forward to the forthcoming movie, but I must say I don't picture Johnny Depp as Barnabas.

Alright.  That's it for today.  Dark Shadows... love 'em.

C is for Coffee (and Coffee Shops, Too!)

Coffee is so central to my life.  This may seem like a hyperbolic statement, but it truly isn't.

As a child, my mother had an old-fashioned coffee percolator.  I remember helping my mom make coffee each morning and listening to the rhythmic-whoosh-suck-grind of the pot.  When we had guests I was in charge of brewing the coffee and offering a cup to each guest.  My coffee consumption consisted of Folgers with milk and sugar up until high school.

I lived in a rural, backasswards town, so I was never really involved in the coffee shop culture until college.  In high school I made maybe a half-dozen trips to the nearest coffee shop, which happened to be about 20 minutes away.



In college I dashed in and out of the local coffee shop (well, the three local shops) for the occasional cup of joe.  I came in for a medium cup of coffee or for a quick stop for scones with college friends and then it was back to campus.  I did consume massive amounts of not very good, hastily choked down coffee in college, but I wouldn't have termed myself a coffee freak.

Graduating from college in 2004 was a pivotal moment in my coffee life.  I graduated and stayed in Gainesville to work and all my friends pretty much left or they were consumed with senior year.  I was so lonely.  I no longer had a place to discuss movies or books or politics. Then I found myself wandering to The Coffee Shop of Horrors.



I was (still am) an introvert so I never spoke to anyone at the Coffee Shop of Horrors.  Listening to the conversations around was great fun, but I mostly hunkered down in a seat and read my eyeballs out while consuming cup after cup of delicious brew.  During my time there (before they closed down around 2006ish) I noticed a very tall, handsome guy with a mohawk with an addiction to coffee, but I'll reveal who he is later in the post.



When that coffee shop closed, I began going to Starbucks.  The other coffee shop in town had turned elitist and would kick readers out after 30 minutes.  At Starbucks, I began broadening my horizons.  Instead of a cup of coffee I had cappuccinos and lattes and espresso shots and cafe au laits.  I tried syrup shots and french pressed brews.  I began to develop my coffee palette. I tend to love light to medium roast coffees with a wee bit of sugar or milk, lattes with warmer notes (pumpkin, cinnamon, nutmeg, french vanilla, hazelnut), and I figured out the best way to drink French Pressed coffee (very hot, very dark, and turned into a cafe au lait by adding a fair amount of hot, steamed milk).  Oh, and the tall, mohawked guy was there; I noticed him and he noticed me.



The tall mohawk-wearing guy is Sam.  And it is impossible to talk about my love of coffee and the significance of coffee shops in my life and not mention Sam.  Coffee (and then tattooing) brought us together.  I think we got to the point where we were both at the coffee shop so much we began to say hello and we didn't even know each others' name.  Then we started chatting over cup after cup of coffee.  In the space of a year we moved from running into each other at the coffee shop, to dear friends catching up at the coffee shop, to Sam Taking Me to the Coffee Shop in a date-like way.



A new coffee shop in walking distance to my home opened up the same month Sam and I began officially dating.  Hello, Inman Perk.  Now we had a locally-owned shop to go to.  Inman Perk further progressed my coffee nerdom.  I went from a customer to a Regular.  I've learned how to pull a good shot, a bit about roasting and blends, and I might smell like espresso most of the week.  I even worked the odd shift or two in the summer.

In the three years Sam and I have been together we've had birthday parties, baby showers, gatherings, wedding planning sessions, an adoption celebration, and nearly every date-day at Inman Perk.  After our wedding we went to Inman Perk for coffee.  I think that part of the reason why Sam and I work so well together is that we like the same elements of coffee shop life:  great conversation or solace with company.  We can sit around with our lattes and chat with friends for hours or we sit next to each other with our solitary pursuits (me - reading, Sam -- drawing) and we are perfectly content.



Now I know why an alcoholic shouldn't marry another alcoholic; Sam and I increase coffee consumption in each other.  Every trip we take features time spent in a coffee shop.  We compare the atmosphere and the coffee to coffee shops we've known in the past.  In fact, we drank so much coffee on our honeymoon I thought I'd be sick.

Coffee shops are unique places, I can't compare the atmosphere to any other social gathering place.  I have a little espresso machine and a coffee maker and I can buy Inman Perk coffee, so why do I go to the coffee shop?  It isn't just for the coffee, but for the companionship, the great places to read, and generally atmosphere that feels home like to quirky folks like myself.  But if you take the coffee away, I probably wouldn't go.  It has to be that perfect marriage of coffee-deliciousness and coffee shop loafing.

By the way, I had intended on posting this earlier in the afternoon, but I didn't get around to it.... because I was at the coffee shop.

A is for Autumn

Back in April I saw somewhere on the blogosphere an "alphabet" challenge.  Basically folks blogged a topic for each letter of the alphabet, Monday-Saturday, through the month of April.  I thought it sounded interesting.

I've recently felt a bit lackluster about blogging and so I thought I'd try this alphabet challenge through the month of September.  So as long as the babies aren't sick and the computer stays alive I should be blogging most of the week.  I also decided that I would make this a very positive blog experience; the each letter of the alphabet will reflect something I like.  This means no P is for Palin or F is for flooded library or J is for Justin Beiber.

Let's get started.

A is for Autumn



Autumn is my favorite time of year with Winter as a close second.  Autumn is a strange bird in Georgia; it may come early, or late, and -- sometimes -- not at all.  Today is September first which in my brain signals the start of Fall.  The temperature may be up in the 80's, but things feel more autumnal.  This morning I woke up and looked out my window.  A grey day, drizzle, strewn leaves, and a quick crisp breeze jingling wind chimes.  Yup... Autumn is certainly on her way to Georgia.

But why do I love Autumn so?  Well, I present to you my top reasons for loving Autumn:

Weather:  I hate hate hate summer.  It is so blasted hot and humid.  I love the cooler temperatures that allows me to...
...Wear cardigans:  it may be because I'm a library girl, but I adore a cardigan especially when paired with textured tights, a skirt, and something I've made with...
...Yarn:  Yes, I knit and crochet year round.  But being indoors on an early evening with a cat curled up beside me and a pile of yarn to work with is delightful.  It is one of my favorite quiet evening pursuits along with...
...Reading:  Of course I read everyday, but Autumn reading is something different.  Out come the thick classics, ghoulish short story collections, and frightening books.  On the weekends I find myself with a large stack of books and an equally large mug of ...
...Something hot to drink.  Pumpkin spice lattes, pots of Earl Grey, warm milk, or a peppery chai accompany me on my reading binges.  The cooler weather begs for the warmth of cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and cloves.  The spices also show up in my ...
...Baking:  maple scones, pumpkin bread, ginger infused cakes, or just plain loaves of home made bread turned to cinnamon toast scent my kitchen with the essence of autumn.  Of course all of this baking means more...
...Walking: Walking for exercise and pleasure.  This summer it has been too hot to take Atticus on long walks.  Now I envision donning him in tiny nerd cardigans and taking him on long walks to look at Autumn leaves.  Autumn leaves have the most amazing...
...Colors:  orange, brown, rust, yellow, and deep purples scattered with hints of green make up my autumn palette.  Gone are the garish, bright colors of summer and in with the warm, comforting colors of Autumn.

Helloooooo, Autumn!