Just Gray

Gray skies in the morning...gray skies at night...yeah, it's November. Well, anyway the seasons are interesting to say the least. I love how nature is totally beyond our control and has a perfect rhythm. People claim to dislike fall and winter, but they are excited about the holidays and the fashions and even the outdoor activities winter brings. And, let's face it...they like the snow. I know I do. I just read and article from an old Yankee magazine that described the haunting beauty of freshly fallen snow on a bitter cold night. There's is nothing more wonderful than bundling up and heading out for a walk on a night like that. I can't wait for one to come. Laura Ingalls did just that out on the Prairie. The beauty of the sparkling snow pulled her from the cozy warm cabin one night. Maybe ever since reading that, I felt the same pull. Oh well, got to think snow now that baseball is over for the season!

Starting to come full circle one more time

Looking out the window I see that familiar sight. It's a cold rain coming down taking with it the pine cones and leaves. The darkness of November is around the corner. I still enjoy the quiet and calm of those dark, late fall days. The fireplace is on, a good hearty meal is cooking on the stove and it feels instinctively correct to curl up on the couch with a new book. Watching the seasons pass is reaffirming in a way. It's out of our control and signals the passing of time. I often wonder how people who live in climates that remain virtually the same all year, mentally and emotionally feel that same passage.

Too many goodbyes this month

Some months are like that. It's one funeral after another. This was one of those. While checking out the times for a funeral for a member of our club, two columns over I see the obit for a friend's brother. I hadn't seen her in a few months and wondered why she never returned our calls for a get together. A day later another friend passed away after keeping her cancer a secret for months. Melancholy overload... now I always wonder why the death of some stars really gets to me. I don't know them only their image and work but I guess we are all influenced by them somehow. I was shaken up when I first heard the news of Elizabeth Montgomery's death. I loved her and was such a fan of her work. So although I knew this day would come for Patrick Swayze, I felt terrible none the less. Not the greatest actor, but a sincere one and somehow a person we felt was a good and kind man. I could watch Dirty Dancing every night and not be bored with it. Who else could have pulled off that role. A low budget movie with some corny lines, but he delivered them like it was an Academy Award caliber picture. I felt so bad for his sufering, but after watching tributes to his life and career, it seemed he had much happiness. What more can be said for any of us?

Coming home from Limbo

The knee replacement surgery is a month past now and it seems like things are coming along. There is quite a bit of pin still and P will meet with the doc on Monday for the post op visit. Between the hospital, the rehab, and the two weeks at home I have been getting on average 5 hours sleep a night. According to the PT he's coming along great, but he is known to be easily discouraged throughout his life. So it's not unusual that he would think he's not doing well. Everyone said that the recuperation is the hardest part. And I aggrevate him when I tell him that my knees are in good shape for 59 years old because I never slid into third base, skied down a hill full of moguls, water skied, rode a dirt bike, played soccer, and any other things his knees have done in their 58 years. So all in all I have been in Limbo for the summer when you take into account the months of pain before the surgery. We had to bail out on pretty much every social event of the summer. I'm hoping things will improve.

Ivy League Weekend

Just returned from a fabulous weekend in NYC. We we invited to a wedding at the Yale Club so of course we stayed there for two nights. It reeked old school academia. One of those places that either you have to be a member of or at least have one sponsor you. I soaked up as much as I could. The wedding was as close to perfect as any wedding could ever hope to be. From the ceremony to the last song played by the band, everything was just devine. Lavish and outright fabulous are not strong enough words. Besides the wedding, we dined on Friday night at La Grenouille, a few blocks over. Reccomended by my gourmand BIL, we settled on the Theatre Prix Fixe rather than take out a loan to go the full route. Nice meal but no match for the wedding dinner. According to my sources, he dropped close to $600 on his last outing there. A quick trip over to Brooks Brothers for some long pants for DH (dress code at the YC) and a 15 minute visit to Saks rounded out the shopping. A high point (no pun intended) was having breakfast up on the roof dining room at the Club. this is the only place I want to stay in NYC from now on!!!

Time Bandit (and not the crab boat)

Whoa, Nellie! My Mother always told me time passed faster as you get older, but this is rediculous. So I've decided to move right to Fall and Winter in terms of sewing and lining up my so called wardrobe. Brooks Brothers had a good sale this week so I bought a black cashmere turtleneck and a wine colored marino wool twin set. Pretty safe buys. I'll wear both for sure. And that's another thing...you never get to wear those nice white jeans and shorts all that much here in New England anyway and this summer..well if your have worn yours up here, congratulations. I have a piece of Lilly Pulitzer fabric that I have been meaning to make into a sundress for two years now. Forget it! I'll wait till the next time I go on a cruise. So I'm digging out the camel wool coating and starting in on that. And maybe trace out a Burda WOF blazer or two. Let's see...what to wear to that Christmas party...and of course New Year's Eve...and of course I'm here on the computer...the real Time Bandit.

The agony of flabby upper arms

So what is going on with the upper arms on women? Older women seemed to be obsessed with not showing theirs thinking the bat wings are an embarassment. If you look around, even young 20 somethings have the beginnings of a bit of jiggle above the elbow. It's a topic of discussion whenver two or more women are gathered together. Now would you say that jiggly upper arms are worse than dimpled thighs? or muffin tops? or a spare tire around the middle? or a chicken skin neck? Surprisingly, I have seen even athletic types with this condition. Case in point...the 40 something swimmer that made a run in the last Olympics. She was a guest on Jay Leno and while describing her 4 to 6 hour daily regimen in the pool, she raised her left arm to hook it around the top of the couch and guess what? There on a life long swimmer and fit as a fiddle jock, was a serious bit of jiggle. So it's a mute point. We have to deal with it. And the women who don't have this malady just have either super thin arms or some genetic predisposition for trim arms. Hit the gym or not. My mom and aunts always bared their arms no matter what the season. Hot flashes and hot temperment overshadowed any concern with how their arms looked. And upon viewing some old pics of them in the 60's, they looked just fine. So go sleeveless when the mood hits. Ask any man if he even thinks about a woman's arms. It's a girl thing and if we are all in the same boat, what difference does it make?