Trick or Treat

Halloween has always been a favorite of Syl's, even as an adult. Now she gets to experience it in a new way with the boys. Zachy did so many halloween activities today, he almost didn't want to be bothered with the trick or treating. I carried him to the first house and when he saw Nathan getting a treat, he finally decided he would get with the program.
You can probably tell that Nathan and Zach are saying CHEESE, not Trick or Treat. As a matter of fact, though they had been prompted to say Trick or Treat, at each house, they said, "Happy Halloween!!!" instead. I kind of liked that, though Nathan was corrected each time. Isn't he/Nathan the most perfect vampire EVER??
Skylar was Handy Manny (?) and had musical tools. Zachy sure thought they were COOOL!
This was the afternoon parade before they actually went trick or treating. Tillie dyed macaroni and helped them string their gorgeous Halloween necklaces. Later, Dex secretly got ahold of Zachy's and tried to eat it. Not that he will eat anything we try to feed him, mind you. Sarah, the princess, has the very same birthday as Zach. They'll both be three in a month.

Shutting Out the Heat

The only less than perfect aspect of my cottage is that it gets very hot inside during the afternoon. Solar heat comes pouring in through the two large glass doors and the living area feels like an oven. Today I did something about it, something quick, easy and inexpensive.

Redi Shades are sold at Home Depot and are essentially accordion pleated paper shades that have an adhesive top strip. They're WONDERFUL! They come in a few sizes, and are easily cut to fit your space. All you need is a sharp utility knife.

They come with two clips so you can adjust them as necessary, depending on how much shade you want. They up and down simply. I'm going to try leaving mine all the way down for awhile, though here I'm showing how one looks when clipped part way up. or down.

Redi-shades get excellent reviews from other customers as well. There were some vinyl shades at my Home Depot (San Jose, Hillsdale) that were the same idea, but corded instead of clipped. I couldn't quite decide which model to choose. The sales woman told me she had used her ORIGINALS for years and why didn't I just go with the known quantity? I agreed and left happily with my paper shades which seem to me to be vaguely reminiscent of Japan. Did I mention the cost? $4.97 each. Yip, less than $10 to cover both windows.

On the Lookout

Though usually on the lookout for heart rocks, this tree full of heart leaves zinged me today.

and so did these lizard shoes of Dexie's!

Sunday

There's always the Los Gatos Farmer's Market with mouth watering vegetables like these unusual-to-me cucumbers.
Indiscreet (the movie starring Ingrid Bergman and Cary Grant) was playing early this a.m. on t.v.- a nice break from Curious George. I mentioned to Syl that there were no straight men like the role CG was playing and Syl said even CG himself had said he wished he were Cary Grant.

Oddly enough that very morning, at the Farmer's Market there was some wonderful live jazz which Zach must have noticed. When his dearest friend Sarah arrived, he took her by the hand and lead her to the music and began dancing with her. I'M SERIOUS! Note Sarah's tiara and necklaces. She must have been ready for the move.

I thought this was an artificial Hawaiian lei when I saw it from the corner of my eye. NO, it is the grapevine at Syl's, with an interwoven Morning Glory.
And that Dex - a mere cold can't keep him from smiling 'round the clock!

In Town Walk

Dexie is sporting new Nikes that were half price because there was no BOX for them! No matter, he put them on immediately, took them off a few minutes later and chewed on them all the walk home.
Z was very taken with what we think is a Himalayan Cat, very friendly and meowy. Zs very gentle and respectful of all animals and insects.

Examinations!

Of all the vintage toys, Zach seems to be fascinated by the magnifying stool most. He goes back to it again and again. Hmmmm, who's examining whom/what?

Waning

I'm coming along on the Christmas stocking project, though I only knit on average 4 rows a day. YES, I see the mistake NOW, and missed it till photographed. NO, I am not redoing.
I have worn these walking shoes on hikes in the U.S.A., Italy, France, England, Scotland, New Zealand and Japan. I've also worn them a lot in general, whenever I want to do a fair amount of walking and the weather is questionable. In New England, that's most of the time. I've had them since 1999. Need I say they are perfectly comfortable, perfectly waterproof and durable? I just noticed this hole. Though now a pair costs $335, in my opinion there are no other candidates for workhorse shoes than these Nubuck Rush Mephistos made in France. Considering I have had them nearly ten years and worn them maybe 100 days a year, paid $295 for them, it cost me $.29 to keep my feet happy (therefore the rest of me too) every time I wore them!
There are four rosebushes at the cottage. When I pass them, I breathe deeply. They must be on their waning days, so I cut some for inside today. Already the scent fills the house.

Mill Valley Flea Market Finds

For the California grandparent vintage toy collection:

These tiny tiny blocks are actually the makings of a village. They were mixed in with the tinker toys. tinker toys = $4. basket = $.35
adult pipe cleaner dolls, very fragile, very vintage $1 each, big splurge but I had no resistance-

from the collection of 10

Ms. Monkey, don't know if she was meant to be this way, minus her stand and beads

Monsieur Poochie

Steiff rooster = $6

magnifying stool = $6 Does anyone remember these from school days in the eighties? underneath, my carmelite and ovaline
wooden puzzle = $1.00
I THINK these are Creative Playthings doll furniture in excellent shape = $.50 apiece, including bathtub and toilet!! three monkeys and/or apes currently in residence

super cool old magnet toys = $.50 for the lot

ton 'o tinker toys, two bags full, = $2.00 a bag

fisher price xylophone = $1.50

Creative Playthings rattle/roll toy = $1.00 Syl had one, and passed it to Ethan.

beads to string = $2.00

matchbox tractor, truly tiny $3.00

and for the cottage:fabulous vintage frog with patina and zingy support system $2.00 It's an objet d'art on its own.

rubbing of monks, framed = $8.00

king size 100% linen pillow cover to jazz up the drool-stained couch = $1.00

I'll spare you the clothes I got for myself...at least for now

Pumpkin Decorator

Zach and I dropped our decorated pumpkin off at contest headquarters, Sereno Group, this morning. It was a mini-pumpkin and contestants had to be under twelve years of age. No carving allowed!

I found ten interesting plastic bugs as Zachy loves bugs and I thought he'd like applying them to the pumpkin. Sure enough, he did, sort of. What he really liked was putting the little white headed pins into the pumpkin. He got quite a few in with deep concentration. Keep your fingers crossed for our entry to win!

Marin County Visit

My dear friends moved from Berkeley to Mill Valley a year ago. They are enjoying their lives at The Redwoods where B continues her photographic career and A gardens and explores. The Redwoods offers many opportunities for elders to continue to grow, expand and contribute to the greater community. Both A and B are nourished and nurture others.

A took me to the Green Gulch Zen Center after we had a meditation session at The Redwoods with Lee from Green Gulch. The garden here provides organic food for all the monks and visitors to the center as well as two local restaurants.

The rainbow chard was the most colorful I'd ever seen.

Backtracking we went to Rodeo Beach in search of ovaline and carmelite. A knows just where to look as she took her grade six classes here annually for a week to do marine studies.

Twice I crossed the Golden Gate Bridge. It's as exhilarating as crossing the Zakim Bridge, with the city gleaming in mist. The photo isn't the best as I was limited to one hand driving and one hand camera shooting. Remember what I said about mono-tasking? Ha! I paid the price with a third rate photo, but NO auto accident at least.

Multi-Tasking

On NPR I heard some talk about multi-tasking. Apparently we THINK we can multi-task, but we are actually trying to trick our brains which aren't that trickable. We can do two or more things at once, but not without a payment. Really the brain likes focusing on one thing at a time.

I had a few minutes to knit Dexter's name into his Christmas stocking (Dylan's will be in the opposite colors) and I wanted to get it right. I did NOT want to do it three times. So I decided against listening to the radio, against calling a friend on my wireless headset while knitting. I sat very quietly and worked out an intarsia problem of knitting in two colors (but only in one section) of the project on circular needles. The issue was NOT carrying the yarn all the way across the row, limiting the second color to just one section, then picking it up on the next row when the yarn was at the end of the lettering rather than at the beginning.

Yippee! I worked it out (I can't bear to explain how) and was successful the first time. I think I'll try more mono-tasking.

Where I am Now

Guest cottage is a concept that is perfect for me here and now. It's where I am when I am not on duty as grandparent. The tile flooring throughout feels soft, smooth and cool on my feet, certainly appropriate for this warm climate. Everything here is minimal, just a few basics, no excess. There's room for breathing.

I thought I would continue work on mifflettes while here. Syl's sewing machine is in the car ready to be taken for overhaul. But the three (did you notice I added one?) knitting projects I have with me are pick-up-and-go and satisfy me. I haven 't knit consistently for months, since my raging enthusiasm for soft toys. Now, I'm switching.