Reasons to be Cheerful

I'm normally a big fan of Autumn. This year though, I'm feeling a bit 'Blah' about it all. I blame the Coronavirus. I feel as though we have been cheated of our Summer: Seeing less of family; only 3 days of holiday (nice though they were) and the general feeling of doom and anxiety hanging, like the Sword of Damocles, over our heads. So, this week, I've made a concerted effort to look for the good bits that I usually enjoy and I've surprised myself with how many I've found. They've all been there, in the background, just waiting to be noticed. I've just been too busy grumbling and feeling generally sorry for myself to realise. Here then, are this month's happies:

Harvesting my pumpkins from the veggie patch. I usually carve one for Hallowe'en but R has told me that I'm not to encourage any Trick or Treaters this year; dirty, Coronavirus infested beasts that they are! :O)

Enjoying the October edition of Gardeners' World. I bought a year's subscription using my Tesco vouchers and enjoy a monthly 'Titchmarsh Moment' with a cup of tea:

Lighting the first stove of the season:

Enjoying a cheerful splash of yellow on my dining table, courtesy of the neighbours as a thank you for cat-sitting:

Making a picnic and doing the circular walk at Leckhamstead and Peasmore. This is my favourite cottage. I love the shepherd's hut in the garden. There was even the smell of a garden bonfire to add to the autumnal vibes:

Our first trip to the theatre since lockdown. They had it all organised - temperature taken on arrival, table allocated, paper menus on the table to order drinks which magically arrived during the interval. It was at about 25% capacity and it all felt very safe. The play was a 1 man affair, the actor playing multiple characters, swapping between them with impressive speed, and also the banjo and saxophone. It was a good night out with a hint of normality:

Attending a Quentin Blake exhibition. I love his artwork as I always associate it with Roald Dahl's books, a big part of my girls' childhood.

Digging out my Hallowe'en project bag and winding up some spooky yarn - 'Zombie Land' by Fab Funky Fibres:

Casting on a pair of Hallowe'en socks. Well, if I'm not allowed to encourage Trick or Treating, I've got to get my spooky vibes somehow!

Enjoying the changing colours from my kitchen window:

Hot bowls of soup - we've changed from courgette and tarragon to leek and potato and Borscht:

I'm sticking to my 'I will read mainly Classics this year' resolution, apart from my monthly Audible purchase, where I'm getting my crime genre fix! This is Book 4 of the Simon Serrailler series:

Enjoying the Autumn sunshine in between the showers:

Our theme for this term's pottery is 'Colours of Autumn', so I'm making another 'Green' Man for my garden. He still needs firing before I can paint him:

Lastly, E being home before going back to Bristol to finish her MPhil and start job hunting. To be honest, I'm more than a little concerned about the state of the job market at the moment but she's certain that she doesn't want to do a further 2 years and upgrade to a PhD. Hamish made the most of the cuddles while he could:

Well, that's all my happies for the month so far - not a bad haul considering. Throw in some mists to go with the mellow fruitfulness and I'll be a very happy bunny indeed.

Sending all the Autumnal happy vibes your way.

Toodle pip for now. xx