Tuesday, September 1, 2015

Awakening in September.

The month of September arriving used to be a time for me to get ready and geared up to return to work.
I would buy several of the Fall Fashion issues of Elle, Bazaar and Vogue magazines and make notes of what was new and work appropriate. The lists were always longer than the funds that were available! 
These past two Septembers have come in quite quietly with very little new purchases...retirement dressing is not that demanding. I dress much more casually but am aware that if I do not make the effort to add a dash of colour or a scarf or some jewelry I am bored with myself.
I plan to edit my wardrobe and write a list of a few new things that I would like to purchase this season. 
A grey cashmere sweater is high on my list and perhaps some new ballet flats in a bright colour. 
Maybe some bright boots too for our rainy days. 

What have you got on your list so far? 


Taking note of colours that make me feel happy and cheery during the grey and gloomy weather that we have in the Pacific Northwest is very important. 
Apple season is upon us and a crisp juicy apple adds fibre and vitamins to the Ancient Grains cereal that I eat for breakfast. I add a dash of honey and skip the milk. When I do have milk it's skim. 
I am still trying hard to count my points...less walking means that I need to be more aware.
I might have to go to the pool for Aqua Fit classes if this knee is going to be an ongoing problem.


We walked to The Driftwood Centre on Pender last week and almost halfway we stopped at this rural farm stand. 


French radishes are delicious served with sea salt and soft butter....


Loved the tins and vintage touches on the rustic stand. 


Burlap, old boxes, flowers...it oozed country charm. 


I love patty pan squash and will plant some in the garden next year. 
Aren't they pretty little things? 


Green beans were served regularly when I was in France. I love steaming them until they are tender but crisp then tossing them with butter salt and pepper. What could be simpler? 


Vintage rusty old tractor and a scarecrow. 
I wonder what life on a working farm would be like?


Periwinkle blue flowers were popping out of the ditches. 
Amazing to me that they have survived a hot dry summer and still are blooming. 
These put a smile on my face. 


Mr. HB and I had natchos for dinner one night this week. 
The day's blend together and often I cannot say if it is a Sunday or a Tuesday!

Taco chips topped with melted cheese and served with "boat made" Salsa.
We had a small amount of a commercial salsa left in the jar so I cut up and seeded two small red jalapeño peppers, a small onion, half a green pepper and added about half a cup of tomato Ketchup and a few teaspoons of Franks Red Hot Sauce. I covered this and set it in the fridge for a few hours to allow the flavours to bloom. 
Boy! they did their job and WowZa that sauce was spectacular! 

What's new with you these days? 

I am blogging from my IPAD mini and have the Blogger App which works for most things but I cannot add hash tags or Facebook or Pinterest so you will just have to suffer along with these posts until I get back home from the boat. 
Take Care and be Kind. 


23 comments:

LPC said...

I love that Green Bean sign!

Linda Pakravan said...

My grandfather introduced me to radishes and soft butter when I was 5 or 6! With salt and pepper! Now that was a time warp!

Anonymous said...

Before you give up walking................
see a physiotherapist.
Make sure he /she does IMS. WOW it changed my life.
Such a difference after one session.
barb

Connie said...

I've been a patty pan squash fan since I was a little girl. Although the garden is winding down, I am still picking a few from this year's garden. Enjoy retired life. It seems I stay busier now than ever and am loving every minute of it.

Madame Là-bas said...

I thought that I did not like radishes until I had them very thinly sliced at a café in Saks Fifth Avenue. Green beans can be steamed or almost raw and are so good.I need a good dose of self control in September. New beginnings!

Lorrie said...

Radishes and butter seemed like an odd pairing until I tried it several years ago. Delicious! What a fun and relaxing time you're having over on Pender, enjoying a quiet beginning to September instead of the madhouse of school beginning (which is what I'm engaged in these days).

Poppy Q said...

Spring is arriving in NZ, so I am on the lookout for a new pair of pants and some bikes ticks and I should be good to go. I might be brave too and find a dress.

julie

Kerrie Roberts said...

I love the sound of your holiday. Fun places to visit and the peace of sleeping on the water - wow. I use haricot vert ( baby green beans) here in France and my favourite way of serving them is with a mix of gently cooked leeks or schallot onions and chopped up tomatoes over the top. I'm popping over to London in November and I'll be looking at boots to top up my winter wardrobe, and maybe a long cardigan or too in bright colours to go with my all my black. Happy shopping....

Stephen Andrew said...

Oh isn't the changing of seasons a joy?! I'll bet it's so fun to observe the changes from the water!

Anonymous said...

Blue flowers are wild chickory.

Splendid Market said...

What an wonderful farm stand, the radishes look ravishing! How much time do you spend on your boat in the summer. We cruise in Desolation, Gulf and San Juan Islands every year. We didn't get as much time in Desolation this year as I would have liked.... much cooler and raining when we were there so the troops wanted to bail! Love cruising vicariously through you.

Anonymous said...

From Margie in Toronto - I am looking at a lot of purchases this Fall as I'm down 3 sizes since last year (but still a ways to go) so I don't want to go overboard.
So far I've bought some Glen Plaid dress pants from Talbots & a grey with black polka dot sweater. And I've bought both a dark grey and a rusty red cashmere cardigan (Lord & Taylor). Also have a new dark red pair of ballet flats. I'm heading out again on the weekend for another look - looking for black and then dark grey dress pants. I am now able to get into a number of sweaters that have been too tight so I was able to do a bit of shopping from my closet - all the basic colours, black, light grey, white, black & white, navy and camel - so that will save a bit of money.
I love to see what you do with scarves - I try, and do have some lovely ones, but don't seem to have that real knack so usually end up pulling it off half way through the day. Love my pearls though.

susie @ persimmon moon cottage said...

It looks like you are having a wonderful time. I love patty pan squash. I tried to grow some from seed last year, but had no luck. I love poking around at farm stands. You never know what you may find.

I think if I had a boat and could stay on it, I would never be able to make myself come back to real life.

My knees have gotten so bad that I decided to try stem cell therapy for them. I just had it done 10 days ago. Right now they are still stiff and sore, but yesterday I noticed progress. My foot, ankle, and knee were all working together and I was walking without limping and being flat footed and dragging my foot. I thought this therapy was worth giving a try. I am afraid of knee replacement surgery.

I hope your knee will feel better soon.

Susan said...

No real change of seasons for us in Texas yet--but I enjoy hearing about the change others are experiencing. I will look forward to your list of wardrobe wants. I need to do the same thing. My whole wardrobe has been sadly ignored and needs a bit of refreshing.

No Sacrifice Bags said...

Happy Labour Day! The weather is hot,sunny and spectacular here today. It's sad to say goodbye to summer.

hostess of the humble bungalow said...

I will be open to any kind of therapy...I really want to keep walking!

hostess of the humble bungalow said...

Hope that your school year starts off well...

hostess of the humble bungalow said...

On our holidays we had sun, rain, thunder, lightning, rain and hail!

hostess of the humble bungalow said...

Thank you...very pretty too!

hostess of the humble bungalow said...

Thank you...very pretty too!

hostess of the humble bungalow said...

We might see you out there and cross paths...
maybe you can email me with your boat name?

hostess of the humble bungalow said...

Oh you are way ahead of me with your wardrobe planning....pearls and scarves are easy accessories! Keep wearing them!

hostess of the humble bungalow said...

I have never heard of this type of therapy...I hope that it works well for you.
The boat is a lovely place to be in good weather....we had some amazing days but many were wet and stormy. It was not our BEST getaway!