TGIF

TGIF. Thank goodness it's fall.

Even as a kid I never loved summer, not the way most kids did. Like it? Sure. No school, lazy days at the beach or on vacation with the family. But I never felt great with the heat, even as a youngster.  When all my friends and I took tennis lessons at the town rec center everyone else was able to sprint effortlessly after the ball.  I found it to be a huge effort to muster the energy, let alone the enthusiasm.  My tennis instructor told me I was lazy. Maybe I was.

The lack of routine was also unsettling. Now I have no trouble keeping busy from dawn 'til dusk, but back then all those free hours - how to fill them? One can only play so much.

I remember a conversation with an acquaintance one late spring day while we were waiting for our kids to be released from elementary school. Her: "are you looking forward to summer?"  Me: "yes and no. I love the lack of routine (what a reversal!) but really don't like the hot, humid weather".  Her: "What? You don't love summer? I don't think I've ever met anyone who didn't love summer!"

Clearly, her question was merely a rhetorical one and she really didn't care whether or not I was looking forward to summer, nor did she have any interest in getting to know me better. That was the first time I stopped to think about summer and maybe that I am a bit different in that I don't love it.  Fortunately, since then, I've met quite a few people who also share my sentiments so I stopped feeling odd long ago.

I do love the long days of summer and I try not to wish the months of July and August away. Each year, though, when September arrives I feel as though I can breathe a huge sigh of relief. Aaaah, another one over, and now for the gorgeous weather of fall. Warm days, clear, cooler nights. No more air-conditioner, we can sleep with the windows open and enjoy the fresh air.

 I can feel myself perking up day by day. Exercise, which had been a big challenge for me during the summer, becomes easier. I can get back into shape.  Treadmill? Check. Weights? Yep, gotta start again. Yoga? At least I can muddle through the summer with yoga. Joe and I will resume our walks on weekend mornings, definitely something to enjoy.

I feel like cooking again and my appetite picks back up. Rich, hearty soups, stews and casseroles. The smell of a chicken roasting in the oven. Mmmmmmmmm. Barbecue and salads are nice for about a month, but after that I get a little tired of the lighter fare and long for the cooler weather when food and its preparation becomes more of a pleasure for me.

Another reason to love fall: quilts! Not only is it nice to be able to put our many warm coverings to use, but I get the sewing bug again. Creative energy stirs and I have more ideas than I have time to create.  The neglected sewing machine gets brought back out and used almost daily when time allows. No matter that I have 3 quilts in line to be bound, that's what winter is for: sitting on the couch with a warm quilt on the lap, doing the hand-binding. After all, I never said I loved winter.

Before the Fall

Each year around this time I try to remember to get a photo of the Japanese Maple in front of our house, and each year the leaves have fallen before I get around to it. But not this year, this year is different; yesterday I grabbed the camera after a woman walking by with her dog commented on the great color and I was able to catch the image before the first fiery red leaf fell off.

In the spring the tree produces lovely reddish-maroon leaves, they're pretty but not stunning. During the last week of October, on cue, the leaves go from "nice" to an amazing fiery red before the leaves curl up and fall off.

We also have our outdoor lights up and functioning after 8 weeks of no lighting-- just in time for Halloween and the trick-or-treaters. I'm so happy with how the house looks and the Japanese Maple is the icing on the cake.

View from my Window

Although it's depressing to think about the short days and cold weather of winter, I love fall: the vibrant colors, the dry, cool weather, the return of routine. Autumnal hues are warm and healing-- the reds, oranges, yellows-- all fiery before the drab browns and dirty white of winter that follow the first pristine snowfall. If only we could hang on to fall a bit longer, but the brevity makes me appreciate it all the more.

Silk Quilt from a Sow's Kimono

One of the things I like best about fall, aside from the beautiful weather, is the return to doing things indoors. I spend more time in the kitchen and we once again start eating hearty meals: soups and stews that simmer on the stove for hours and make your mouth water with their tantalizing smells. Gone are the grilled meals and salads that we enjoy during summer, giving us a break so that we will enjoy them again when the weather turns warmer next year.

In addition to cooking I get to return to one of my favorite hobbies: quilting. Somehow, there is so much to do outdoors in the summer that I don't make time for it. Plus, who wants to have fabric draped over their lap on a hot and humid afternoon?

This fall I've kept to my frugality pact with myself... no more new fabric. I've been having a good time using the closet-full that I already have, and it hasn't even put a dent in my supply! It feels good to use up what is already there, I never "need" more fabric, but sometimes when I see a beautiful print I think, "oh, I just have to have that!" This year I'm resisting that impulse and using what I already have.

I have a friend whose husband is Japanese and has a huge collection of kimono that he inherited from his mother when she passed away. The fabrics are all silk and have the most gorgeous patterns. I've been helping her "recycle" these kimono by using them in quilts, something I've always wanted to try. The photo above is the completed top of the first one I made, I'm happy with how it turned out. I need to piece the batting and backing together (no new fabric, remember?) and then I'll finish it up. I think it will be cool to have an all silk quilt and I'm already planning on the one I'll make to give to C in exchange for the kimono.

The fact that I'm recycling something and putting it to good use makes me feel happy. I also like the challenge of having only so much to work with, which forces me to think outside my narrow mental box. Sometimes there isn't enough fabric to make the quilt as I had originally planned- it forces me to be creative with a solution and to be flexible- not locked in to my original idea, something that is good for me to practice.

In the pictured quilt, I had hoped to have enough of the main kimono fabric for the 4 borders, but it became apparent that was not going to be the case as I got closer to being finished. What to do, what to do.... I decided to extend the center pattern out into the top and bottom borders to make up for the lack of continuous fabric, and I think it worked out well. Here's to being flexible and creative solutions!