Contradictions

I love the contradictions of fall. Chilly evenings, sunny days. Apples side-by-side with watermelons and late strawberries at roadside stands. Even here in our yard I can find a few contradictions. I thought I'd share a couple with you this morning.

The wall of wood is stacked, ready for the fires that will chase away Old Man Winter's shivers.

These weird little gourds are all picked and while Piglet hasn't figured precisely what they are yet she's still thinking.

Obviously the rose bush near the greenhouse hasn't gotten the memo that summer is over. It's still blooming beautifully.

I found a huge clump of cosmos blooming beneath a maple tree whose leaves are completely turned gold and red. Still...the flower retains its snow-white magic.

I hope you're enjoying the season as much as we are! Happy Friday!!

Reflections

Yesterday we experienced a glorious warm sunny day, reminiscent of summer, more than autumn. Fortunately, I was out on one of my walks to Cartmel. This is a glorious old village on the edge of the Lake District. We set off from Grange over Sands and climbed and experienced wonderful views for our trouble. Below the silver sands of Morecambe Bay stretched as far as the eye could see - out on the rich green marshes were the lambs. These are said to be the tastiest lamb you can eat because they eat on the salt marshes. They are considered a delicacy. Sorry you vegetarians!

The sands shift and the tides are treacherous, the lambs must know when to move off - they probably know more than we humans. The Queen has a Morecambe Bay guide, his name is Cyril and he lives in a glorious cottage that we walked by. He will take groups of people across these treacherous sands and he knows the way, just as the sheep do, and knows how to avoid the quicksands and the deep gulleys where sea water will lodge.

I have done this walk before and often have met with Cyril in his garden. Wonderfully we were able to help him. He asked where we were from and when we told him the Blackpool area he asked us to hang on while he brought out his diary. He had a speaking engagement in the town and wanted to know exactly where it was, and how could he avoid the actual town of Blackpool. In Blackpool at the moment they have the illuminations, a brilliant show of electric lights and it is popular, so lots of traffic. One of our crew had actually lived in the area Cyril wanted to go to and was able to tell him exactly how to get there avoiding the "light traffic"

It got me thinking how it is you can help people who usually do not need help at all. That even experts are glad of information and a true expert is never afraid to ask for help either.

I ask my writer friends what they think of some things I have written and they ask me. Not that I am expert in any way, but asking for help quite often is a hard thing to do. So my little plea this week is, if you are in trouble or in doubt, ask, you might be surprised at who can give you the answer you need.


Cheers, Margaret - who wishes she had not forgotten to take her camera!

The Quiet Ones

I belong to The Lady Bug Book Club. It's a night out to drink coffee, eat cake and talk about books. Last night we discussed Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert. This is a book I would never have preserved through if it hadn't been required. And I'm glad I read it because in the middle of the book I started liking it.

There is a funny scene around page 200 where the narrator a garrulous, charismatic type wishes she could have been 'a quiet girl.' I just hooted because no one wants to be the quiet one. It is never esteemed -- believe me I've been there. I was voted the quietest girl in my high school class and it didn't feel like a compliment.

But funny what a difference some maturity gives you. This book made me realize quiet can be a good thing and give a person an air of mystery. She says that as a talker she always assumed her ideas were more important than others and she regrets all the times she's interrupted other people. Quiet people she feels are respectful and spiritual. I don't know about it but we are good listeners. That can be a termendous service.

So today I say Hooray for the quiet ones and thank you Elizabeth.

Thought it was about time I showed off my new book cover for "WICKED DESIRE". Release date October 15th with Whiskey Creek Press Torrid.

Maggie Myers returns home to rebuild her life and to escape her stalking ex-husband. To local small town sheriff Matt Dillon she’s more trouble than he needs. But the lady has enough sass and curves to tempt a saint. Well, he never claimed to be a saint, and Maggie is about to find out she’s been teasing the wrong man.


Have a great Monday everyone!

That time again!

We haven't had optimum weather for foliage watching but I snapped a few photos yesterday to share with you. It was overcast and foggy but our backyard is beginning to sparkle. I love this time of year, when the earth pops before it settles in for a long, chilly slumber.

Hope you have a lovely weekend!

The hill is starting to color up.

I especially like the shades of pink and red.

Even fairly ordinary things, like these olive leaves,

take on a whole new color.

There's still a whole lot of green in the hills!

The Substitute Bride

I hope you do not think I am being lazy by putting the back cover blurb here instead of typing it
but I thought the colours so wonderful that I wanted to share them.

Margaret

Fall Shopping

Had some very minor surgery last week that turned out to be a bigger deal than I expected. Isn't that always the way? But I wasn't so sick that I couldn't toddle over to Whiskey Creek Press (www.whiskeycreekpress.com) and pick up a couple of great books -- they were on sale too.

I bought Margaret Blake's The Substitute Bride and Sarita Leone's Legal Tender. Now I'm going to load them on my Alpha Smart and head back to bed. It's going to be a fun day of delicious reading.