Monday Musings

I left you Friday with a post about a big old oak tree
in danger of being cut down --
a tree that is half on our property.  Click here for that post.

Update:  We visited the neighbors on Saturday morning and
they apologized for not letting us know their plans. It was a cordial chat.

Howard and I have hired a certified arborist who will be here Tuesday morning to take a look at this big oak,

and give an unbiased opinion on its condition.  We'll see what happens from there.

Fingers crossed for Old Man Oak.

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As always, I am trying to get used to the days closing down earlier.

 To lighting candles and Jack O'Lanterns by 7:00 in the evening.

It surprises me every year, the shortening of the days.
I never see it coming.


Do you like the short days of winter that end in long cozy evenings,
or the long light summer days and their soft warm nights?


I like the long days.
But Fall has its advantages; you can't beat the decorating possibilities!

 The colors go so well with our dog, Dion.  :-)

On Tuesday, I'm opening a box of goodies from a giveaway I won.
Join me to see what's inside.  I'll be right here, because:

Also tomorrow, the arborist comes, and there will be more work
on the French drains in our cellar.
It's July redux at That Old House as the jack-hammering starts again.  
I may never get all the boxes out of our front hall.
Can they be a decorating statement?  -- Cass

Autumn Arrives at That Old House -- Mosaics and A Metmorphosis

It is the last day of Summer.

I'd like to hang onto it, but. . . the grapes are ripe, the leaves are beginning to yellow, the tomatoes are staying green, and last night I was appalled when it was dark by 7:30.

Even I can't fight it. I'm tossing in the beach towel and welcoming Fall.


Some weeks back, I posted about not having done any decorating in the parlor; the mantel was usually bare, sometimes sporting a simple vase of garden or supermarket flowers. Or, all too often, the empty vase of flower water and a few fallen blossoms:

Pretty pathetic, huh? Yeah, you can say it.

So with the onset of the new season, I fished around in my
"Fall Decor"storage boxes to see what I could find.

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It's Metamorphosis Monday; thank you, Susan, for your hosting (hostessing?) of this terrific blog party at the equally terrific Between Naps On The Porch blog.

Click on any highlighted words or the icon to visit Susan's blog and see other entries.

I hope you stick around -- I would like your opinion on something!

For Mary at the lovely and elegant Little Red House, who hosts Mosaic Monday, I've put the parlor mantel into two collages. Mary's own mosaic today is particularly nice; I want to walk into it.

One of my mosaics is supposed to look very casual, as if you've just recklessly tossed the photos
and voila! they landed in perfect artless grace. Yeah, that's what I did. . . .

The other is more regimented.

The pictures stop clowning around and behave themselves.

Well, it ain't perfect, but it is an improvement over smelly flower water and dead petals.

Oh dear . . . another of my reality moments; the dust cloths are casually draped over the
arm of the wing chair, exhausted after their unaccustomed labor. Oops.

Closer looks:
My old hurricanes, with chunky candles perched on pewter candlesticks.
A pottery pumpkin -- can't remember where I got it.
The glass pumpkin at the other end -- a gift from my brother Lindy and his wife Carol.
A runner of old lace, from my Mom.

A swag of faux magnolia leaves (I think) and fruits and berries, to which I added some random glass-glittered fruit.
I've had this swag since 2002 and it's the first time I used it.

And now. . . this:

It's cute, but, well, kitschy -- a long string of tiny fake pumpkins and squashes; not any attempt to make it seem real. I draped it around the decorations, but ... I can't make up my mind.

Here's both ways --

With the phake pumpkin garland

Without the phake pumpkin garland

And there you have it.

I will leave you with a visit from a tiny friend,
who is inspecting our conservatory roof. . . and mooning us!
I'm not sure what he's finding up there, but he and his buddies are visiting every day.

Have a lovely last day of Summer. Sigh. Till June, then -- Cass