Friday 23 October 2015

Days as Crisp and Golden as Apples

These are the measure of my days.

I work outside - preparing the garden for winter.  Taking down the bean canes and tomato supports; bringing the tender plants into the greenhouse.
I work inside - putting the living room to rights now the decorating in finished.
I take walks - in all weathers; talk to horses who come up to the fence.
I visit a friend - and admire her two newly adopted black cats.
I sort out  wardrobes - swapping summer for winter clothes.
I shop - one day for food supplies; another for pleasure.  I buy a pre-loved navy tweed jacket.
I read - Us by David Nicholls.
I watch drama on television - The Last Kingdom a tale of Vikings.
I write in my journal - capturing the moments of each day.
I comment on my favourite blogs -  inspired by well-written pieces and the many different topics.
I watch - leaves swirling, tossed by the wind.
I listen - to owls hooting outside the open window at night and geese honking on the lake.
I see - the trees changing colour day by day.
I take photographs - one for each day of the week.








The nights are drawing in and log fires are lit earlier against the chill of  evening, curtains are closed to keep the darkness at bay. I wake up in the half light of morning  and find it hard to get out of bed.  The clocks will be turned back at the weekend - goodbye to British Summer Time.

Soon we will hunker down and accept the shorter days and longer nights.  Soups and heart-warming stews will be made, more time spent in the kitchen and reading beside the fire.  Last winters’ projects will be hunted out and resumed, picking up from where they were left when spring arrived.

Hats, scarves and gloves are at the ready.

'Til next time
Elaine


56 comments:

  1. What a lovely post Elaine - pictures and words - I am hanging on to autumn for as long as I can and am loving the fact that the leaves are taking their time before the abandon the trees for this season.

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    1. Thank you Rosemary. Some trees seem to shed their leaves sooner than others - most of the ash trees round here are still green. From my bedroom window I look over the fields and there is one tree in the distance that stands out - the leaves are a beautiful copper - I think I may take a walk tomorrow and see if I can identify what type of tree it is.

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  2. Thank you for sharing this, a gentle and beautiful observation of all that is Autumn.

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  3. Elaine, you have almost got me looking forward to winter!
    And lovely shot of the woodpecker. I've heard ours around somewhere but he hasn't returned to the bird table yet. As the days get colder he'll be a welcome visitor.

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    1. I can't say I'm looking forward to winter but somehow I don't dread it like I used to. We often hear the woodpecker's yaffle in the valley and he often comes to the bird table in winter and yes like you say - he is a welcome visitor.

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  4. What a beautiful post Elaine.......I loved reading snippets of your days.
    It conjured all sorts of images in my mind, and that is what writing should do:)

    I bought vegetables from the farm shop this morning to make soup.....there is a chill in the air and a mist hangs over the garden.

    Have a lovely weekend.

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    1. Thank you Cheryl - most are just ordinary days but there is always something to find a little magic in. I found a Book of Soups by the Covent Garden Soup Company in a second hand bookshop which has some lovely recipes - so I think I will increase my repertoire this winter.

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  5. Beautiful photos Elaine and love the way you explain your days.
    The bird in the tree is so lovely.
    Here too , the nights are shorter and soups are being made.
    We will have rain tomorrow.
    an enjoyable post.
    Happy weekend
    val x

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    1. Dear Val
      Thanks for your kind comment. We are expecting rain too this weekend but we have had some lovely autumnal weather so I can't complain.

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  6. Such beautiful, mindful ways to spend each day :) Gorgeous photographs! I especially love the last one. We live near the fens and the country is quite flat. I grew up near the south downs and miss the rolling hills especially this time of year :)

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    1. I do try and find pleasure in the little things each day, even if they seem boring at the time - life is made up of small moments isn't it. We are surrounded by rolling hills here with beautiful views all around - it is not hard to take beautiful photographs :)

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  7. A nice post and lovely pictures. I like your list, which clearly keeps you busy and I'm sure happy. Flighty xx

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    1. Thanks Flighty. There aren't enough hours in the day - which is no bad thing I suppose. Although finding a little more time to keep up with blogging would be nice.

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  8. Another lovely post, demonstrating all that is good about the turning of the season. We too just lit our first fire of autumn, last Saturday during a wonderful dinner party to celebrate the oncoming season. Don't you just love it all?

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    1. Thank you CD. Yes I do love it all I try to make the most of it every day.

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    1. He's a sweetie and always comes over for a chat when I lean on the gate.

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  10. I love that last photo especially! Lovely life, lovely post.

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    1. Thanks Freda - the sun caught the hills just right setting the hedgerows on fire with colour.

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  11. You sound very well organised Elaine. I like the photos, all for different reasons. It is not easy to point a camera at a landscape and make it look anything but you can do it. The trees in the valley look more like an painting than a photograph.

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    1. Not at all Rachel - it just sounds like that when it is condensed into one blog post. The photographs don't always turn out well - I can take loads and reject most of them - but sometimes I get lucky.

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  12. What a lovely post. I could look forward to a winter the way you describe it. Have started enjoying warming soups for lunch and yesterday a skein of geese flew overhead honking as they passed by - such a wonderful sound and sight:)

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    1. Thanks Rosie. Soup is my favourite meal for lunch when the days get colder. I found a Book of Soups in a second hand bookshop recently so I shall be trying out some different recipes this winter. I love to see geese flying over and they way they never stop calling whilst they are flying.

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  13. Lovely post Elaine. You always capture the mood of the season so elegantly. Your pictures are terrific too.

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  14. Your blog is so comfortable! All the beauty of the outdoors just shining through every picture.

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    1. No one has called my blog comfortable before - I will take it as a compliment. Thank you.

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  15. Lovely post Elaine - I do love soup but have just moved from soup lunches to scrambled egg and asparagus or avocado and tomatoe on toast. Asparagus has such a short season I always make the most of it when it is available.

    It is raining here today - much needed as my lawn is cracking up with the dry. It is nice steady rain which is only forecast for a few hours although it should be back again on Thursday.

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    1. Thanks Susan. Sounds like your garden needed a bit of rain. It is grey and beginning to rain here today but I can't complain as we have had some lovely autumnal weather.

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  16. Just as you are preparing for winter we are doing the reverse and soups and hot meals are being put aside in favour of salads and lighter meals. Is the horse in the photograph one of the regulars which comes to greet you on your walks?

    Ms Soup

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    1. Hello Ms Soup. Yes the horse in the picture is very friendly and always comes over for a chat.

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  17. Beautiful images both in words and pictures. I have my scarves and hats at the ready also...in fact I've already worn them once on a walk along the beach to my favorite coffee shop.

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    1. Thanks Kara. I should have added umbrella to that list - autumn has taken a turn for the worse - hopefully just a hiccup.

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  18. A lovely post, Elaine, in every way. I love this time of year with its promise of cosy evenings with a good book, bracing walks wearing warm scarves & gloves and photo opportunities galore. And now that our weather patterns have changed, the honking of the geese as they fly overhead no longer foretells a harsh winter to come, because they no longer head away from the UK for warmer climes; they find plenty to eat, then settle back on the nearby reservoir. I used to look up at them sadly, wishing them a safe journey and feeling bereft that they wouldn't be back until the Spring. Now I just enjoy seeing and hearing them. (I bet the farmers don't though, as their fields get stripped of corn . . . )

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    1. Thanks Rosie. This time of year has a lot going for it I enjoy it more as I get older. There have been a lot of geese flying over just lately I love to hear them and see them in formation heading for the lake.

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  19. Dear Elaine, thank you for such a beautiful attunement into autumn! 'Crisp' is the very word now for the air, and your mentioning of the cozy things like fire or candles will make the transition a little easier. I dread the change from Summer time . my biological clock just got adjusted to it, now they change it again (and even now I am waking up very early in the morning...)

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    1. Dear Britta
      Nice to hear from you again. Oh I don't like it when the clocks change either especially the short days. As long as I can get out and about every day then it is not too bad.

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  20. What a beautiful picture of autumn you paint, swirling leaves, distant owls, fresh soups. books and fires....how I love the measure of your days!
    I loved your pictures too, how lucky to have spotted the woodpecker, such beautiful birds! I especially loved that horse, I almost reached to the screen to stroke it!
    We are having our first proper burn tonight, I shall think of this lovely post and toast you with a large glass of white!xxx

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    1. Thanks Dina - you are too kind. Good luck with the new fire - I think you will find that your logs will last a lot longer than on an open fire - have a cozy evening - cheers!

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  21. Great times and beautiful photos! Enjoy the extra hour! xx

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    1. Thanks Amy - I definitely look forward to the extra hour - enjoy it yourself.

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  22. Dear Elaine your post reads like a wonderful poem. I love the rituals and the measure of your days. The photos are awesome too. I love a warm crackling fire and it is moving towards that here as well. Have a great evening. Hugs!

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    1. Thank you dear Debbie - very kind the thought of winter on its way isn't too bad although it really doesn't seem five minutes since last winter - how time really does fly. Enjoy your week and all that it holds.

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  23. Elaine my dear, I'd say your days sound blessed.

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    1. They truly are Donna appreciated all the more by the kind comments from my blogging friends.

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  24. The Autumn colours are fabulous at the moment aren't they, I love driving around the east Anglian roads right now as round every bend is a new feast of delight.

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    1. Thank you - I never thought of it like that.

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  26. Oh the rhythm of life. We have the time change, too. I was wo spidering if the rest of the world change the clocks. Or if it was just us, the crazy yanks. I do prefer standard time. Good news that your decorating is done. I hope you share the results.

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    1. The time change does throw you out a bit - I don't like the evening drawing in so fast but not a lot we can do about it is there. Yes, I am relieved that we are finished at last - waiting for the new curtains to be finished then I will maybe post some pictures.

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  27. Your days are reading like a poem, love the simple daily things to enjoy. No fire or soup days at the moment, the weather is sunny and 'warm', 17 degr. C. , I hope we get some more of these days, great to be busy in the garden but also nice to read a book on the verandah.
    Regards, Janneke

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    1. We have had some lovely weather too, although it rained pretty hard this morning and the evenings are definitely a lot colder.

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  28. I rambled over from Chronica Domus' charming abode, and I'm SO intrigued by all your own ramblings. The reading and the walks (horses to commune with every day!) and all your simple and complex daily doings flow like poetry through time.

    What a treat to have discovered such a lively, contemplative place with such beautiful photos---the blazes across the sculpted landscape are simply stunning.

    rachel

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    1. Hello Racheld - thanks for visiting, and for your kind comment - glad you enjoyed the post.

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