Lovely Weekend before September's Last Week

Yes, this is the last week of September, and I am still reeling from the realization that summer is over.

This was a nice weekend for me; I stayed pleasantly busy walking, reading, talking, eating, playing Scrabble, watching a movie and some magic, as well.

Our Saturday movie was Nocturnal Animals, a thought-provoking, sad film starring Amy Adams and Jake Gyllenhaal. It's so dark and scary that I would not recommend watching it alone. I'm glad we saw it, though--it's well done.

My weekend mediation....

delighting in
a beautiful day
taking a walk
feeling good
my family
my home
having a job
having health insurance
good times
beer
future plans
good memories
books
music

Goal: stay busy, using my time, my precious life, for peaceful enjoyments

Speaking of future plans, Della is coming to An Evening with Salman Rushdie with me--and it's THIS Friday! Dates do sneak up on me so...And after I come home with The Golden House, I must make a point of reading reading reading...it's up next for discussion.

Speaking of staying busy.

May my motivation get me exercising after work, as I did not get up early enough this morning!

Need some bunnies here, no?

While I sit in the lap of luxury, I am troubled by the news of people in Texas, parts of Florida, Puerto Rico, St. Croix, and Mexico--and every place where people's lives have been upended by nature's forces--and global warming.  That is one thing most of us can agree on.

Whatchaupto?

September's Little Getaway and Some Half-Baked Notions

Home again, home again...taking the train to Atlantic City to get a peek at the ocean was relaxing, and we did have nice weather...

My pictures tend to look like Monets...good for an overall impression. Since we don't gamble at all, this was all about walking up and down the boardwalk and eating. Drinking. And since this was the off season, it wasn't at all crowded.

One thing I must say that perturbed me a little was the constant noise coming from the casinos along the ocean front. In some areas, the music videos and advertisements completely drown out the noise of the surf. That seems to violate the beauty of being at the shore. If listening to the sound of the waves is the point, it's necessary to either walk all the way down to the beach, or walk more to the end of the boardwalk. Both are quite expansive.

It's a lovely beach, such a juxtaposition with so much tackiness. But then, casinos are tacky. There's simply no way around it.

On Tuesday night, we walked quite a ways, over a mile, to reach The Tun Tavern, but unfortunately, it was closed for a private party.  Fortunately, we found another charming place--

I took a picture of the back wall, so as not to forget this place. Wingcraft Kitchen & Beer Bar has a stunning microbrew menu. The food is good, too. Yes, they have wings, but we had some very good pizza.

Two smiling people who arrived very hungry and relieved to find this place! 

On Wednesday, we visited The Havana Tower, where we had dinner at an Italian place called Il Verde. It was wonderful. I ate too much, something I find myself doing lately...

This section is referred to as The Quarter, and the fake sky overhead is reminiscent of something I remember from Vegas (at The Venetian? Not sure). Another impressionist picture, no? The Tropicana is lovely.

The next morning, I rented a bike and rode up and down the long boardwalk for an entire hour, but did not see all of it! I was surprised that there is a very long, very quiet residential section. Who knew? 

On taking the train: honestly, the only hassle is finding a parking space, and we agreed that we wouldn't be parking again--we'll get a ride. And I was thinking that someday, if we have more time, this might be an alternative to flying to Florida before cruising. I was noticing that both these train stations do have escalators or elevators for people who are schlepping more than a carry-on, but if that is a problem, Amtrak will ship stuff from one station to another. Of course, there is a fee for this. I don't expect it's prohibitive.  Just a thought, if air travel gets more expensive and/or onerous...

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Now, for the weekend...whatchaupto?

September again!

Yes, I'm late. Yes, this blog is, indeed, called September's Rabbit in Argyle. I was in such a rush that I forgot the argyle. 

What's happening? Hmm, the school buses are back in the 'hood, it's not as warm as it was (downright chilly, at times), and it's Labor Day.

This and that: This weekend, we watched a movie called Damsels in Distress, which was interesting, quirky, and had some funny moments. I picked it out on a whim, and consider it a successful one. You never know, with me...I also finished reading  The Golem and the Jinni, by Helene Wecker, and enjoyed it very much. And it makes me feel like going to New York City and walking all over the place.

Also, I've been making an effort to meditate for a little over a month now, and believe it's made a difference, that it's helping me stay calm and keep perspective. And stop fretting about issues out of my control. My life is good--and pretty easy.

It's hard to read the news these days and not feel muscles tightening...people in and around Houston: what will they do? Lives have been lost. Then, there are people who are sick or on treatment without their meds...mortgages due on houses that are now uninhabitable or gone, schools closed indefinitely...so many issues, it hurts to think....

And here I sit...distracting myself.

Mom and I checked out Bedford Street Antiques in Carlisle yesterday, and were blown away by the volume and variety of stuff--beautiful china that--no one wants anymore, vintage clothing too small for people today, records, books, all kinds of tools from a by gone era that had to be labeled for a millennial population, old sewing machines, jars, hats, jewelry, luggage, shoes, lamps, cabinets, tables, shelves, and--gossip chairs. Mom figured out what they were called. On Pinterest, I learned that they are sometimes called tête-à-tête chairs, which means the same thing, only in French, so it's more...refined.

I did not take these pictures. Obviously.

You get the idea. And here's a more modern and very practical version...

I

The lever-thing almost looks steam punk, no? I found it on a site called: Chairish. It's sold. Too expensive, anyway. 

Newsflash! Mike and I actually got into a pool before August ended, at the home of one of our book group friends. It was a very fun evening. 

Also, we are both taking off the week of September 10th, and will spend a couple nights in Atlantic City. We're taking the train down. I enjoy train rides...and we'll be lunching at Bridgewater's, a pub at the 30th Street station, on the way down. We always enjoy the place. With the balance of our time, we may go hiking somewhere...

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Today is the first Labor Day that we will not spend eating with Mike's parents in their backyard. Unfortunately, my mother-in-law is now in a nursing home, where the staff are helping her regain some strength so she can go home. She is very sick with pneumonia, and we believe that she had a mild stroke before that. Her rehabilitation is going to be quite a challenge. 

And now it's time to get up and move. I get all kind of stiff very quickly these days!

Whatchaupto?