It's been a while, I know. Without any further ado, let's catch up.
1. The Visit: A couple of weeks ago, the lakehouse was a Vacation Destination for some of my blogfriends! First up was J, who I hadn't seen for over a decade. She arrived via Birchie and Doggo, who were kind enough to bring her and hang out for a while. I'm here to report that Doggo was both beautiful and beautifully behaved. Birchie stayed for dinner and almost ended up staying overnight, but the weather cleared, and she and Doggo were able to get on their way safely after dinner. The next day, Maya arrived. Neither J nor I had ever met her in person, and we were so happy that she made the trip. She brought a trove of thoughtful gifts, including something for each of my grandsons. The weather didn't cooperate for a boat ride, but we more than made up for it with great conversation, some flatbreads made with my pesto, and some very good wine. It was so wonderful to see her; we all wished she could have stayed longer, but she had some pressing matters that took her back home.
J did end up getting a boat ride, albeit a chilly one. And she did get to see some of our gorgeous sunrises at the lake, like this one.
We decided to scoot on back to our primary home so that we could take J to our favourite restaurant for dinner and so that she could see where I live full time (including my cow kitchen). Happily, she was able to meet Jared and his family as well as Sam. Her visit seemed to fly by, and we both agreed that we shouldn't wait another 13 years to hang out together again. Also, she brought me some orgasmic chocolate truffles and a special bottle of Cabernet Franc made by (and signed by!) my Canadian husband, Andrzej. Why do all my friends live so far away?
2. The Books: Rick and I went to our local library's Book Sale, held in their warehouse. They were loosely organized by genre and a mix of paperback, hardback, and audiobooks on tape and CD. I picked up just two, Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel and The Dutch House by Ann Patchett, both in hardback and a dollar each. I finished up The Dutch House and found it to be pretty good, but then Maya said, "Isn't it basically Jane Eyre?" and I had to take an inordinate amount of time thinking about that. Did I get tricked into reading a retelling of a classic? You all know how I hate that. Anyway, while I was thinking more about that, I got a new book and read that one pretty quickly--May We Feed the King by Rebecca Perry. This book is on the short list for the 2026 Booker Prize. It's her first novel (and won the Waterstones Debut Fiction prize, too); she is already a prizewinning poet. Anyway, this novel made me feel very much the same way that Orbital by Samantha Harvey did. I was so impressed with the poetic writing and the themes in this story-within-a-story. Here is a short plot summary. And here is a chapter I found particularly lovely (and yes, some chapters are this short). The "he" in this chapter is the very reluctant and much-burdened king.
I had to stop reading after this chapter for several minutes. The last sentence speaks so strongly to me; it describes perfectly the way I have felt so many times. It also brings to mind an assignment I used to give my poets in Creative Writing II, in which they had to write a poem about a colour--how it sounds, how it feels, how it smells, and how it tastes. I was inspired by a book of poetry given to me when I was in the hospital as a child. It's Hailstones and Halibut Bones by Mary O'Neill, and that assignment brought forth some of the most astonishing and evocative poems my students ever wrote.
3. The Colours: This October's fall foliage display has been one of the most beautiful in my memory. I'm grateful that I've been able to take some neighbourhood walks, and the trees make each stroll almost a religious experience. We're a bit past peak now, but I snapped a few photos earlier this month. The streets in my neighbourhood are tree-lined, and each individual maple, oak, and hickory make me both happy and grateful. Here's a sample:
