Fall La La La La

I shared some fall spirit photos several weeks ago, but I forgot a few...

I'm obsessed with the Mrs. Meyer's cleaning products because they smell so dang good and look cute around the house.  Mrs. M is killing it this Fall.  The Apple Cider scent is bright, spicy, apple-y, just divine.  And the Mum scent?  My mother-in-law suggested I could actually wear it as a perfume.  That's how good it smells.  Don't ask questions if you see me with my multi-surface Mum spray before a night out.  I have seen these limited edition scents at Target and online from Grove Collaborative (formerly EPantry).  Perfect hostess gifts.  Holiday scents are probably out or arriving soon, but I've been staying out of Target like a good girl so I wouldn't know.

My middle guy was whining about how everyone else goes to a pumpkin patch and why don't we.  We had a five-day weekend around Columbus Day, and though I didn't have it in me to visit a pumpkin patch, we managed an outing to a lovely local garden center.  Who needs a corn maze or apple cider donut when your mom is all, "You can each pick a couple of strange-looking gourds or mini pumpkins.  Go wild."  See, I'm fun.  Gourds are displayed on my square Nora Fleming with acorn mini attached.  Not familiar with Nora Fleming?  Great gift idea for a friend who loves hosting and decorating!

Here's a little Fall vignette I put together near our garage.  The first year we lived in this house, I went wild with mums on the front porch.  When the cold weather came, I was going to toss them, but my mom encouraged me to re-plant.  I replanted the red ones, and they come back every Fall now and look so great.  Mind you, they look like boring-bordering-on-weedlike for 80% of the year, but for two months, they do shine!  Maybe I'll replant this year's mums near the back of the house where I don't have much going on.  Please note the cute green pumpkin which was my middle guy's chosen treasure at the garden center (fake pumpkin patch).  If I were to update this photo, you'd see the orange pumpkin decimated by squirrels (or worse?) and covered with flies.  I'm thinking you've seen similar in your own yard though so I'll spare you.

I'll close with a special announcement for my tens (?) of readers.  I'll be making my yearly November effort to post daily as part of National Blog Post Month (NaBloPoMo).  The quality of these daily posts is uneven, but I like the challenge of writing every day and actually find it fun and liberating.  Visit again soon!

Audible Monthly Credit(s) Report -- October

Better late than never.  Here's how I spent my October audible.com credits ...

I've been hearing good buzz regarding The Gilded Years.  It's set in a period of interest to me (1890s) and covers topics with which I am familiar from my good ole days in academia, particularly female friendship and passing.  I'm enjoying the audiobook so far, though the dialogue sounds stilted when narrated.  I'm more than halfway through and feeling anxious as I await the inevitable.  Poised for heartbreak and worse.  Definitely interested in the Vassar setting and the glimpses of 1890s Boston and Cambridge that the novel offers.

I usually spend my credits on new releases, but this month I treated myself to Sarah Morris Remembers by D.E. Stevenson.  Stevenson's books are quiet, lovely, sometimes funny, and sometimes just a wee lil bit edgy.  They're set in England and/or Scotland (thus, great narration!!!!), and these old-fashioned stories are just what I need some weeks.  Sarah Morris Remembers was a bit of a slow starter, but otherwise delightful.  If you haven't read or listened to a D.E. Stevenson novel, I'd start with Miss Buncle's Book.  If you like it, there are several Buncle sequels to keep you occupied.  Source Books has recently come out with some lovely new paperback editions of many D.E. Stevenson novels -- great news because the books had become a little hard to find for U.S. readers.  Fortunately, Audible offers audio versions of many of her works.   

Speaking of D.E. Stevenson novels being hard to come by ... I found Sarah's Cottage (the sequel to Sarah Morris Remembers that I had forgotten I even owned until I saw it on my bookshelf yesterday) in my library book sale room last year.  Has a bit of a mildew smell, but I'll fight through.

Just one more Audible purchase to report.  I think I mentioned last month that I had a few extra Audible credits rolling around.  I spent the last one on The Nix by Nathan Hill after seeing both Judy Blume and Stephen King tweet praise.  Fingers crossed for almost 22 hours of good listening.

I'm not going to buy the Audible extra credits anymore.  I really like making a ritual of spending my two credits each month and then filling in the listening gaps with deals of the day and bargain listens from the various Audible sales.  I'm trying to push myself to expand my listening options with library audiobooks and LibriVox.

Anyone have any audiobook news or credit reports?  Please share in comments.

String Theory

In fifth grade, we had to do famous people reports.  The kind where you research a person, dress up as that person, and then tell the class all about yourself.  I chose Tracy Austin.  I don't remember why I chose her.  I don't remember what I wore (I can't imagine that it was anything cool or cute like a tennis skirt because I don't think I had yet started playing tennis in 1986 and didn't own a tennis skirt until high school anyway).  I remember making multiple posters with some new markers and those stencils that were popular for posters back in the days before at-home printing and multiple font options were commonplace.  I don't remember what the posters highlighted.  I don't remember a single fact about Austin's life or tennis career except that she was, you know, really good and won a lot.  I do remember being embarrassed when a classmate (a girl who was very quiet and hesitant) gave her presentation on Mother Teresa.  She was talking beautifully about being a little pencil in God's hands and I was talking about ... what?  I don't even remember.  Something to do with Tracy Austin.

This memory (or lack thereof) helped me to appreciate David Foster Wallace's essay:  "How Tracy Austin Broke My Heart."  No spoilers about this perfectly-crafted essay, except to say that this gem made me feel better about all I don't remember from my stint as Tracy Austin.  The Tracy Austin essay, along with four of his other pieces about tennis, have been collected in a beautiful, cloth-bound book entitled String Theory:  David Foster Wallace on Tennis.  My favorite essay of the collection is "Derivative Sport in Tornado Alley" in which Foster Wallace recounts his years as a pretty good junior player on the Midwestern junior scene, especially in Central Illinois.  My other favorite is "Michael Joyce's Professional Artistry."  They're all excellent essays, and I'm inclined to believe The New York Times Book Review that Foster Wallace is "THE GREATEST TENNIS WRITER EVER." 

He's thoughtful, observant, funny without unnecessary snark, and smart.  His knowledge of and affection for the game is obvious throughout.  I've never read Infinite Jest or his other fiction (and likely never will), but these tennis essays reinforce the pervading sense of loss associated with David Foster Wallace.

Here's a description of Michael Chang from the Michael Joyce essay that gave me a chuckle:

"Michael Chang, twenty-three and #5 in the world, sort of looks like two different people stitched crudely together:  a normal upper body perched atop hugely muscular and totally hairless legs.  He has a mushroom-shaped head, ink-black hair, and an expression of deep and intractable unhappiness, as unhappy a face as I've ever seen outside a Graduate Writing Program" (82).

If you love tennis and good writing, I think you'd love String Theory.  If someone you love loves tennis and good writing, I think it would make an unexpected but welcome gift. 

I'm no Tracy Austin, but I do love tennis.  I snapped this shoe selfie this summer during the USTA state tourney for Illinois in Urbana-Champaign.  We came close to advancing but fell short.  I'd like to blame it on the Central Illinois wind, but that wouldn't be fair.*  I started String Theory a week or so later and liked knowing that I had just played tennis in the part of Illinois where Foster Wallace honed his junior game. 


*"Move your damn feet, Megan" (tip from me to me)

Finally Fall

I sweated through my shirt as recently as Sunday afternoon whilst watching a fifth/sixth grade morning football game, but am happy to report that I've since been able to wear my new hoodie/cardi combo every day this week.  Fall seems to be here ... finally.

Here are some autumnal snapshots...

These fall-colored flowers were a hopeful gesture back in early September.  Whadya think of my fancy new vase from a clearance end cap at Target?

Yes, I love my grocery store flowers in fall colors.  And my oilcloth tablecloth, which is especially great in Fall (even though I use it throughout the year).

You can't have Fall without some Friday Night Lights or, in this case, Friday KNIGHT Lights.  My son plays on this field on Sunday afternoons, but I snapped this pic at a Friday night high school game.

I'm no gardener, but I usually manage to fill two pots for my porch.  This summer, I never got around to it.  I redeemed myself, I think, by putting together this little pot of autumnal delight (plus, its twin on other side of porch).  The kale, mums, and pink things were all purchased from a boutique nursery called Jewel-Osco.

When it comes to pumpkin spicery, I'm neither obsessed nor intolerant.  I am always up for testing a new KIND bar though so took a chance on this "limited batch."  I quite enjoyed the Caramel Almond Pumpkin Spice bar.  However, as with many KIND products, I'd love it if they included some more salt on the nuts as I really love the salty-sweet flavor sensation.

Don't hold your breath for apple picking or pumpkin patch photos. 

For now, that's all for Fall. 

Oh, Baby -- Bridget Jones's Baby

I went into the first Bridget Jones movie with almost unbearable enthusiasm.  Luckily, I liked the first film v. much and have watched it many times since with true and undiminished pleasure.
 
I went into Bridget Jones's Baby film with low expectations.  I knew the film was not based upon the latest book, Mad About the Boy*, and the trailer made me nervous.  But it was Bridget and we're old friends so of course I was going to see it.  

Here's the thing though:  I freaking loved it.  My reaction goes beyond "pleasantly surprised" or "way better than I expected."  I laughed out loud, really laughed and possibly cackled, which I don't do enough in my day-to-day life.  And I cried, on and off throughout the film, basically almost every time Mark Darcy and Bridget Jones were together in a scene.  The film is not a tearjerker, but I think I was just overwhelmed by love for these characters and by almost twenty years of investment in their fictional love story on the page and screen.  Also overwhelmed to consider the changes in my own life between the turn-of-the-century (when I first met Bridget Jones) and today. 

Thank you, Helen Fielding.  Thank you, Renee Zellweger.  Thank you, Colin Firth.

I'll leave you with a screen shot of a tweet from @WendiAarons that I wholeheartedly endorse.

Unless your heart is made of ice, go see the movie.


*A film based upon Mad About the Boy would be heartbreaking to watch. 

LFL Spotting in La Grange

I made my first trip to the scout store for the new school year.  I'm destined to be there at least six more times over the course of the year, and I won't begin to bore or bum you out by describing my scouting responsibilities.  Luckily, the scout store is a short, relaxing drive away in the adorable town of La Grange.  I usually treat myself to a visit to nearby Trader Joe's afterward.  Today I discovered another bright spot near the scout store:  a Little Free Library.  

 

Books Are A Garden of Knowledge.   This LFL is simple, attractive, and conveniently located steps from the train station in La Grange.  I didn't photograph the back, but the LFL is securely bracketed to a lamp post.  Contrasting the LFL I spotted on Hilton Head, there was no "Take a Book, Return a Book" signage on this LFL. 

As I was about to get back into my van with 35 Pinewood Derby car kits and not about to catch a train where I might sit and read, I didn't borrow from this La Grange LFL.  I did pause to consider what book I'd choose if I were in need.  My recent (and late to the party) obsession with the Hamilton musical made me pause and think about Igniting the American Revolution, a title I usually would have skimmed right over.  I noted that the books with Secrets in the titles looked a bit racy ... not really my thing.  Were I in need of a read, I would have chosen Bonjour Kale, a memoir/food writing title about an American in Paris, which I read about somewhere.  Worth noting that Bonjour Kale and Igniting the American Revolution are both Advance Reader Copies. I've heard book people talking about how those copies really shouldn't be sold so maybe LFLs are a good spot for them?   

Finally, speaking of Little Free Libraries, check out what happened next to one of the tiny libraries that my cousin built in her Brooklyn neighborhood ...

Audible Monthly Credit(s) Report: September

My Audible account refreshes on the 12th each month.  I waited exactly one day to spend this month's audiobook credits.

I chose two audiobooks by authors whose books I had loved as listens in the past.  Rules of Civility by Amor Towles was an excellent listen, and I'm sure A Gentleman in Moscow will be as well -- very high star rating on Audible already.

The cover of Ann Patchett's Commonwealth is gorgeous, and I covet the hardcover for my library.  However, I wanted to listen to Commonwealth because two of Patchett's books are all-time favorite listens of mine.  I can remember walking through Lincoln Park with tears running down my face as I listened to Bel Canto.  Post-partum with my daughter, I remember cleaning my Chicago kitchen counters while listening to The Patron Saint of Liars.  Not sure why the cleaning with a newborn memory is a happy one, but it is.  Maybe I'll walk the Illinois Prairie Path for part of my Commonwealth listening.  

Spill Simmer Falter Wither by Sara Blaume is included in my Audible library screenshot, though I didn't spend a credit on it.  It was a Deal of the Day.  I'm not one for books about dogs or one for actual dogs, but I am slowly trying to open my heart.  I see the writing on the wall and it says:  Your husband and sons desperately want a dog, lady, and eventually you'll give in.