Happy Mabon, everyone! I’m embarrassed to admit that I would have let the holiday pass me by if not for festive e-mails from people. Ack. So, it’s officially autumn. It’s my favourite season, with its cool, crisp air, its promise of production. I think I’m a little “off” on the natural cycles that way. Autumn is a return to school, so for me it’s a return to productivity. But it’s also bringing in the fruits of the harvest, and I have lots of things coming to fruition right now (writing-wise, project-wise), so it all fits in the end.

I spent most of the day being…not exactly maudlin. Numb-ish, maybe. Not wanting to do anything, really. I did what I had to, like copy editing, and working on the Gate Booklet. Carol Ann came over to sew and I gave her advice/assistance, and I ironed all of the fabric I’m taking to Ceridwen’s on Thursday for her to help me pattern. I finally did dishes, and even watched some TV (an hour of the new season of “Frasier”, and “Nip/Tuck”, although the latter is starting to annoy me in that some of the characters don’t seem to emotionally remember what happened in the previous episode. For example, awhile back Christian bought a fancy sports car out of jealousy and then realised he didn’t want what it represented. Tonight, he effectively traded his bimbo girlfriend for the other guy’s Lamborghini. Hunh?). I find that I don’t watch much TV when Ken is gone. I get into this “must work” mode. It’s not necessarily a good thing. I’m still working on finding the balance.

I talked to Sarah today. She’d called me the morning after Hurricane Isabel to let me know everything was okay, so I didn’t actually clue in to the fact that they were w/o power for days until I got an e-mail from her. When power came back on, her 7-year-old Fiona first pouted because there was no Nickelodeon (their cable is still out). Then Fiona went into her bedroom, popped in her “Cyclorama” CD, and celebrated that she could listen to Styx. Sarah is raising her well, my friends.

So, ya’ll have to help me figure out a way to get Sarah here just after Xmas for the two Styx concerts. Her husband Scott works retail and it’s really busy after Xmas, but Fiona will still be out of school. Various grandparents also work. I suggested bringing Fiona along, and although Sarah isn’t against that idea, she implied that it would be Hell on Toast. Hey, we have Nickelodeon! Plus one of Ken’s nephews is about Fiona’s age, and there’s always Julian, and… Hrmph. Pre-sale tickets for the House of Blues show go on at noon tomorrow, and I still don’t know how many to buy.

I hate being maudlin. I’ll try to stop now. I have happy things to look forward to, for example. Patterning with Ceridwen on Thursday (I’ll have multiple outfits to work on afterwards—a Viking apron, a Turkish coat, and four Italians) and watching “Neverwhere” with Amy/Maren that evening. Ken coming home on Friday afternoon. Collegium this weekend—and Eilidh will be sharing the motel room with Ken and Meglet and I. And I’m looking forward to GWW as well. The first couple of days, after I help with setup, I’m going to get comfy in the RV and write and relax. Then there are some interesting A&S classes to take. And all that hanging out with nifty people…

And I have happy things in my life. A pool and a sewing studio. Fluffy adorable cats (even if they don’t get along). Wind chimes. Ken, due to call me any minute now…