I am most definitely a PNW girl.  I love the cloudy rainy days.  They both comfort and invigorate me.  When I lived on the east side of the state, by the time summer was over and months without a drop of rain, I was craving the cool comfort of a rainy day.  This love of cool rainy weather is one of the many reasons I loved Ireland.  While there, people kept apologizing for the weather and I kept repeating….this is my type of weather!   This morning I awoke to the sounds of rain beating on the roof and running down the gutters to splash loudly on the gratings.  It was such music to my ears and I hoped out of bed to throw open the doors and windows so I could revel in the sound.  My silly boxer babies don’t like it so much and act like they may very well melt if they get too wet.  Silly babies.

It has been a glorious week of being home and just relaxing.  This week I tackled the Autumn, Halloween, Thanksgiving decor.  Oh dear me I had 14 boxes full!  Christina had left her decor when she moved off to Ireland, and add that to my own holiday obsession, and well….14 storage boxes is the result!

It took a few days, but I sorted through it and got it down to 7 boxes, which I think is pretty amazing.  Now to just get the Autumn decor put out before it is time to switch to Halloween decor!

Once I got those boxes sorted, I was ready to begin the Herculean task of tackling the storage area above the garage.  It has become a catch all for everything and there was nary an empty spot what with all the flotsam and jetsam that had landed there.  Down came box after box of junk, enough for two trips to the thrift shop for drop off!  I still have the task of going through all the cardboard boxes of items and getting them into storage boxes, but the majority of just unnecessary junk is gone.  That also meant I could finally get the boxes out of my guest room and start making it back into a guest room where guests are not just sleeping amongst boxes.  I do love organizing, it is in my blood. An organized environment means a peaceful environment and is necessary for an organized mind in my world.  I don’t do chaos in my home life.  Many people can manage in a storm of clutter, some even thrive in that environment.  Me, I just remain unsettled until I have organized clutter.  If one must have clutter, then it must be organized clutter.

I also spent some time in my studies.  I just love the placement of my desk and the view out my window.  One nice lovely glorious hydrangea blossom is pushed up against the window.  So beautiful in its perfection!  Notice my little pencil cup that states “Time and Tide wait for no man.”  My dad used to say this all the time.  The cup has a little house and tree on the other side.  It is Devon Ware Motto Ware from England and just the sweetest thing.

My knitting bug has finally returned and I picked up the shawl I have been working on for my bestie Mia.  You can just see the lace pattern beginning to take shape.  I love this pattern, it has been one of the most user-friendly patterns I have ever knit.  It knits up fast and yet offers enough of a challenge to hold your interest.  I am ready to add on the applied border, a new to me technique.  If you love knitting, you must catch the podcast that the designer of this pattern, Kristin, records weekly.  Kristin is the genius behind Voolenvine yarns.  I adore her hand dyed yarns and her podcast!!  For those who do not knit, this may look like a mess now, but it will block out to look like the picture.

While in Ireland, I found some lovely wool at a charity shop and knew it was just the thing for a tea cozy.  This is a little pattern I designed my self, simple yet lovely to keep your tea warm.

In the evenings when I knit I watch Brit TV.  I just cannot tolerate violence in programing and it seems 99.9% of US programs have never ending graphic violence. Not my cuppa.  Yet, I love a good mystery and detective story.  I love how Brit TV tells a great story but does not feel the need to provide unnecessary violence and graphic detailed shots.  I have been hooked on foreign shows for over 20 years.  I also love how their actors look like real people, not surgically enhanced replicas  of each other.  It is a rare occasion when I watch anything from the US.  Currently I am rewatching Midsummer Murders. I adore that program and coming back to it after 3 years is like watching it anew.  There are just too many wonderful shows on Acorn and BritBox!  And I cannot wait to see the Downton Abby movie!!  Nothing more cozy than knitting, a cuppa, and viewing the gorgeous British country side as your favorite detective solves yet another mystery.

With the rains upon us and the cooler weather, I lit up the little turf burner I brought home from Ireland. The house was filled with the smell of a turf fire and it brought up all the cozy memories of sitting in front of the turf fire knitting and visiting.  Oh how I do miss lovely lovely Ireland!

And now I must off to my task for today.  With this time off, I am busy tackling all those things left undone.  Today is the sewing room…it has become a catch all for this and that. Time to clear it out.

Happy Autumn!

Patricia