A foggy morning walk...

"Living without faith is like driving in a fog." (Proverb)

What a perfect morning for a walk in the cemetery!

When I got out of bed and opened the shutters several weeks ago, 

I could hardly see the neighbor's house across the street due to the thick fog...

... and I knew exactly where I wanted to go.

I hastily pulled on some clothes, grabbed my camera, and headed to the cemetery. After visiting my mom and dad's grave, I started off on my walk.

Far from being "scary," as horror movies like to depict, the fog in the cemetery was beautiful and peaceful.

The roads that I could walk blindfolded, because I know them so well, 

disappeared into the thick mist and fog.

I encountered only one other person that morning, a gentleman walking his dog.

Aside from that, I was alone with my thoughts and prayers.

I wish the conditions were like this more often.

Foggy mornings and dusk are my favorite times to walk in the cemetery.

The Canada geese seem to agree. I'll share more photos of my feathered friends in a future post.

Wishing you all a safe and Happy Halloween...

... if I don't post again before Thursday.

Donna

Embracing Halloween minimalism...

 We're embracing a minimalist attitude when it comes to Halloween decor this year.

Other than some beautiful gourds and a huge white pumpkin from a wonderful Internet friend (thank you, Kathie!), the only other decorations I've put out are my two vintage black cats (who actually sit out year-round);.but when paired with pumpkins and gourds, they definitely up the Halloween aura.

The black chalkware cat and Baby look eerily similar as they stand guard over the gourds.

Pete (my Lefton parakeet) has kindly allowed me to use his cage to display some of the gourds.

Doesn't Baby look positively heavenly in this photo, with rays of sunlight streaming in around her? 

The only problem with this display is that there's no room for Baby on top of the chest or in the window...

... so I decided to rearrange things a bit to make more room for Baby. After all, this area is one of her favorite places to lounge.

I moved the large white pumpkin, some gourds, and the cast iron black cat... 

... to the end table in the living room.

And the chalkware cat and bird cage were moved to the top of the recycling center.

Okay, Baby, the top of the chest is all cleared off and ready for you!

(Not that she is spoiled or anything :)

This week I'm joining Brenda at Cozy Little House for Tweak It Tuesday. 

Pop over and join the fun!

Donna

The bay window and the basil plant...

 The sun is sitting lower in the sky these days...

 ... as it passes by the dining room window.

 It remains to be seen if the Spicy Globe basil will adapt to being inside.

When I brought it in last week because of an overnight frost warning, it was potted in the huge plastic container that sat on the deck all summer.

That just wasn't going to work for two reasons. #1, the pot was humongous and, #2, the pot was ugly. This clay pot is much more attractive and a much better size.

So far, so good. I trimmed a lot of 'brown' off the ends of the basil. I think they had already gotten a bit too cold before being brought inside.

This is a southern exposure window, so hopefully it will be a sunny enough location.

(DR light turned on)

About 20 years ago we had this bay window installed in the dining area. Before that, it was just solid wall.

(DR light turned off)

I can't even imagine the dining room without this sunny window now.

The basil plant can't either.

Completely off topic, I've been subbing in addition to painting and transcribing lately. Being self-employed means never knowing how much work - or how little work- will come in each month, so in addition to painting and transcribing from home, I've been subbing lately. Can you guess what day it was at school yesterday? Yes, indeed - Red Sox Day!

I'm joining Cindy at My Romantic Home for Show & Tell Friday today.

I hope you all have a great week!

Donna

The lone hydrangea...

The hydrangea bush I planted back in 2009 finally produced....

... one - single - bloom.

I photographed it last week after a rainstorm, but then forgot to bring it in when it suddenly started raining again. In the spring, we'll be transplanting the bush to a different location to see if that makes a difference.

Yesterday, after tossing peanuts to my Sammy Squirrels and Chip-munks, I finally remembered to bring the hydrangea in.

It has the most beautiful shades of blues and violets.

I put it in a vase and set it in front of the window seat in the family room.

Then I had visions of Baby knocking over the vase and spilling water everywhere.
Not a good location.

One of the few places I've never seen Baby (thank goodness) is on top of the mantel.

(The lampshade is wearing its Halloween mask, as you can see)

So that is where the hydrangea vase was placed. The colors match the portrait frame beautifully...

... so that is where it will stay. (I think everyone except Beethoven approves but, then again, he's a pretty tough sell on anything).

I'm joining Brenda at Cozy Little House for Tweak It Tuesday.
and Cindy at My Romantic Home for Show & Tell Friday.

Pop over and join in on the fun!

Have a great week, everyone!

Donna

The bluebird of happiness....

 While walking at the cemetery this morning I came upon a happy sight...

... a little bluebird sitting atop the halo of John, the Beloved Disciple.

What wonderful timing. I stood there and enjoyed his song for a bit before he flew off.

(antique filter)

I hope you all have a beautiful Sunday.

Donna

Parsley, sage, rosemary, & thyme (and Baby)...

One or two nights have been cold enough that I was concerned about losing 

the herbs potted outside on the deck.

I didn't plant sage or rosemary this year...

... but I did plant lemon thyme and parsley, combined in the urn pictured above.

Baby wanted to be part of the photo shoot (as always), so she became the focus in the first photo, with the herbs taking center stage in the second photo.

Of course Baby prefers to be the only focus, with the plants put off to the side.

The Spicy Globe Basil sits on another table in the family room. I use this in my salads, so I didn't want to lose it to an overnight frost.  This plastic planter is immense, so I think I might try to replant it into something a tad smaller (and prettier). I also think that next year I'm going to go back to the large leaf basil.

Nothing to do with herbs, but I thought I'd show you this rustic old plant stand I found at a local barn sale a few weeks ago. The Wandering Jew I bought at a Woodstock yard sale (during our road trip) is now making itself at home on it.

I also brought in some perennial ground covers that we had not yet planted because I thought they'd be fun to have inside the house over the winter.

Turns out, not so much.

First of all, just look at poor Baby and how sad she looks...

As a lot of you know, the jelly cupboard is one of her favorite places to hang out...

... So much so that we eventually removed everything from the top of the cupboard so that she could sprawl out to her heart's content...

... rather than having to perch precariously on the outermost edge.

So this huge planter was just not meeting with Baby's approval at all. But in addition to Baby's nose being out of joint, they also proved to be just too hard to water.I didn't have a watertight container large enough to hold all of the groundcovers, and the pans I had inside this old wood crate just didn't do the trick.

So they were moved back outside (much to Baby's delight) and planted alongside the fence yesterday.  I will attempt to keep this small, flowering plant inside over the winter, but not atop Baby's jelly cupboard.

So that's about all that's new around here this week.

I hope you're all enjoying lovely fall weather, just as we are here in the Northeast!

This week I'm joining My Romantic Home's Show & Tell Friday.

Donna