HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

LOVE this holiday -- eat too much candy, watch Sleepy Hallow and remember all the fun you had as a kid!!
Nothing evil... just simply enjoy!
It's a great holiday...

vermont was great

A week's vacation in Vermont truly is heaven... and it was great to see some snow on the the top of Mount Mansfield. For a few days, the road over Smuggler's Notch even was closed... it then reopened, but will close for the winter, as it does every year. If you've never been over the notch, you MUST go... and you'll see why it can't stay open once the snow flies.
Trekking around cemeteries, visiting the Bread and Puppet Museum, strolling through Burlington, sipping the wine, relaxing at Pie in the Sky and being served a drink at the local movie theater -- yes, that's true -- is all part of the fun of Vermont.
The peace and beauty are the real reasons to go, however.
But, now it's back to work. Memories and dreams sustain, however.

pause, view, think...

I hope you will check out Post Secret, support this important project and be kind to others...

Let's not rush...

There are plenty of movies that I could watch over and over again.
“French Kiss” with Kevin Kline and Meg Ryan is one of them.
And one of my favorite lines from that flick comes when Ryan’s ranting to Kline’s character about her ex-fiancé’s new girlfriend.
The interloping woman is French, and her winning ways include saying “yes when she means no and no when she means yes.”
Ryan flips out and says that she can’t do that; that she has to be straightforward.
“Use the corresponding face for the corresponding emotion!” the frustrated, jilted Ryan seethes.
I feel her pain.
No, it has nothing to do with getting dumped by someone who has traveled to France and is swept off his feet by a pouty beauty.
It’s the whole “corresponding” issue that drives me over the edge.
It happens a lot, thanks to retailers and the way they look at the world.
Now that it’s October, and Halloween is approaching, followed by Thanksgiving in November, it’s happening again.
And this is always the most irritating occurrence.
Just when you finally get to enjoy the cooler days of autumn, feel the crunch of fallen leaves under foot, pick out the perfect pumpkin and await visits from candy-hungry ghosts and ghouls on Oct. 31, the stores must disrupt your reverie.
“Hey, it’s almost Christmas!” their displays scream.
Buy your decorations now! Look at this lifelike artificial Christmas tree! Don’t put off buying those presents; do it today!
It’s the same every year and I should just accept the inevitable.
But I love autumn.
The leaves are beautiful; the clouds take on a new persona; there’s a totally different aroma in the air; the heat and humidity are gone (well, for the most part).
Lawn-mowing is coming to an end and there’s something comforting about snuggling those delicate plants back into the house and spreading straw around those that can weather the winter.
Watching the deer and squirrels compete for the countless acorns that have fallen in our yard is an enjoyable pastime.
And autumn always spurs pleasant memories of high school football games and college activities.
So why can’t we just enjoy, say, even a month of this season without singing and wiggling Santas greeting us as we enter stores?
Why can’t we return to those halcyon days when the holiday shopping season kicked off the day after Thanksgiving, and not a moment sooner?
Why can’t we be allowed to savor the “corresponding activities for the corresponding season,” to paraphrase Meg Ryan?
Maybe we all should just pout.

STOP, STOP, STOP

ANYONE RECOGNIZE THIS SIGN?
I didn't think so -- at least not the two people who blew through these signs coming onto Susquehanna Avenue in Lansdale around 7 this morning.
Special thanks go to the jerk who almost rammed the driver's side of my car... nothing like near death to get that heart beating!
Come on, people. It's not that hard. S-T-O-P ON A BRIGHT RED SIGN ... come on, what does it mean? Yes, you must put your foot on the brake and bring your car to a full ... STOP!
Police shouldn't have to waste their time monitoring intersections, but it seems more and more like drivers are too stupid to figure out for themselves what they're supposed to be doing.
So perhaps stepped-up enforcement is the only answer.

PROUD MUM

OK, time for a little self-indulgence.
I'm very proud to say that my daughter has her own show at the Indian Valley Public Library in Telford during October.
The two photos you see above are "Harbinger" and "Frost," and are among the show offerings.
I'll provide some information for you, but first want to say that she has worked hard to produce these photographs -- a real labor of love. Working in black and white -- with film, not digital -- out in the "field" and in the darkroom is her passion.
And I hope some of you will take a few minutes this month to check out this show.
Yes, I'm biased. Mothers are allowed that.
But her photographs also are beautiful and thought-provoking.
And yes, I'm proud of her!

Now, here's the info:
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“Here,” a collection of black-and-white photographs by Danielle Breaux of Upper Salford, is on display at the Indian Valley Public Library, 100 E. Church Ave., Telford, through Oct. 31.
Much of the work focuses on the interplay of empty spaces and light and shadow. Breaux has shot extensively in cemeteries in Pennsylvania and Vermont, as well as local environs.
Her current work is centered in the coal region of Pennsylvania. Subjects range from headstones and cemetery statuary to reverse images and quiet nooks of forgotten places.
Library hours are 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. Monday through Thursday; 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. Friday; 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Saturday; and 1 to 5 p.m. Sunday. Call (215) 723-9109.