Even though Septembers are still way too hot and sunny, I always celebrate the first of the month simply because it means July and August are over for another year. Woohoo! Let the countdown to cooler temperatures begin.
*The stream at the park
The stream was more of a torrent last Wednesday, thanks to a lot of rain in a short amount of time. It was moving so fast it sounded like a waterfall.
*Lichen
Look at those colours.
*’Sewing (The Artist’s Wife)’ (1913) by Hans Heysen
I love the depiction of light in this one. Gorgeous.
The gripping true story of a French man who compulsively stole art from museums all across Europe. A real gasp-out-loud kind of book.
Do Let’s Have Another Drink! by Gareth Russell
A biography told via entertaining anecdotes. I really liked it.
Everyone in My Family Has Killed Someone by Benjamin Stevenson
It seems wrong to call a book about multiple murders amusing, but there you go. Very well done.
Jane and Prudence by Barbara Pym
Two favourite quotations from the text:
Oh, but it was splendid the things women were doing for men all the time, thought Jane. Making them feel, perhaps sometimes by no more than a casual glance, that they were loved and admired and desired when they were worthy of none of these things…
and
“I suppose I’ll never get a man if I don’t take more trouble with myself,” Eleanor went on, but she spoke comfortably and without regret, thinking of her flat in Westminster, so convenient for the Ministry, her weekend golf, concerts and theatres with women friends, in the best seats and with a good supper afterwards.
It’s funny how I can be so drawn to colours in flowers that I wouldn’t dream of wearing or decorating with.
*Hanging out in the shade, looking across the dykes toward the Minas Basin
I could have stayed there enjoying the breeze and lack of mosquitoes all day, but haven’t yet figured out how to make lunch cook itself.
*This poor, tattered monarch
The Butterflies of Nova Scotia site says that, after a flurry of spring egg-laying, monarchs are uncommon during the summer. This pale, raggedy thing is definitely a holdout.
*A red admiral butterfly
Unlike the restless monarch, this red admiral was practically begging to have its picture taken. It landed right in front of me and delivered a variety of photogenic poses. A natural model.
*Cat-sitting Madeleine, The Plant Vandal
Maddy’s favourite things are yelling complaints in the night, running away when you try to be nice to her, and breaking off pieces of jade plant.
‘Fowey Harbour, Cornwall’ by Frank Brangwyn (1887)
I adore this painting. Everything about it.
*I also adore this guy
Another natural model.
*As many green beans as we can eat
My peas were kind of a washout this year, but the beans have taken up the slack, for sure.
*Looking back at Willowbank Farm from the shady cemetery
The Country Diary of an Edwardian Lady by Edith Holden
A record of 1906 by an incredibly talented artist and naturalist. A masterpiece.
Joe Country by Mick Herron
Slough House series, book 6.
Exciting, suspenseful, funny. This is a great series.
Keep Moving by Maggie Smith
A small book of inspirational thoughts on how to keep moving forward after loss or difficulty. A bit repetitive, but this isn’t necessarily a bad thing when it comes to learning new ways of coping.
Oliver Twist by Charles Dickens
audiobook read by Nadia May
A great story read by a great narrator. Classic for a reason.
Slough House by Mick Herron
Slough House series, book 7
Possibly my least favourite so far of the series, but still enjoyable.
Some Tame Gazelle by Barbara Pym
Two middle-aged spinster sisters live in a small English village and not-so-secretly pine for someone to love, without wanting the hassle of an actual husband. Funny, quiet, well-observed. I loved it.
