^, <, V

[Red Cat Jenny]

^ Under or over? Buying a new Winter coat this year..something fun! and boots I need boots for fall. Hmm and maybe a pashmina!

<OOhhh shopping!!!!

V pass the question.

[Maeve O'Treasaigh]

^ Do new maternity clothes count as an exciting Fall wardrobe?

< It's a good thing maternity clothes are getting more stylish, but highway robbery for what they charge if you don't want to look like a tent.

v We're going up to Bear Lake for the weekend with family to a nice couple of lakeside condos one of our family members got. Anyone else got anything fun planned for the weekend?

[Red-Handed Jill]

^ Going to a black powder rendezvous, where I'll be shooting my black powder pistol and rifle and throwing sharp objects.

< Hey - I didn't know you were expecting. Congratulations!

v Pass the question.

[Ransom]

^ Well, for me it's fun. I'm putting the garden to bed for the winter. Pulling up the veggies that are past it, weeding, oiling my garden tools. It becomes very ritualistic, since I do it every year.

< As for winter clothes, I did a raid on the Gap a few weeks ago and got a nice pair of brushed denim jeans and a sweater to match in a lovely chocolate color. Then hit Macy's and picked up some stuff on sale - the biggest prize was a silk and cotton light sweater with little snaps covered with beads up the front, and beadwork around the neckline. It looks like a vintage sweater and only cost $20. I love that S word! (Sale, not the other S word)

V Do you decorate you house for the different seasons, or leave it the same all year?

[Red Cat Jenny]

^ I love to decorate. I love to make my house a home. Holidays and seasonal both. From fun party lanterns outside in the summer to my gardening *which I just don't get to do at my current place to just nice home decor. Christmas is my favorite and I have many cherished decorations.

< Perpetual holiday light stringer upper since a was little

V What do you dislike about the holiday chores? How do you deal with it?

[Lily Alexander]

^ It used to be the countless hours cooking in the kitchen by myself while everyone else was enjoying the holiday. Now I make as much as I can in advance and I let people help when they ask "Is there anything I can do to help?".

< Congratulations Maeve.

V pass the question.

[Red-Handed Jill]

^ Not so much the chores but the obligations. Seems to me that the holidays should be about celebration, not about being made to feel guilty by family members just so you'll do what they want. Pretty much everyone has at least ONE of those kind of family members, right?...

< Got back from a black powder rendezvous last night. Lots of shooting and throwing sharp objects.

V pass the question

[Red Cat Jenny]

_________

^ New Question

< Once the tide went eerily far out at least an extra 100 yards.

Walking around amidst the treasures in ankle deep water I found a beautiful Nautilus shell..and a whole clam it weighed like 3 lbs!

Cool? Well the kiddies loved it! Then it shot out water and they all laughed like mad (yes me included) we sent Mr. Clam on his way...

V What have you found in the ocean?

[Cheeky Actress]

^ When visitin my twin sister in Maine, I found a blue glass bottle - It looked pretty old. I've kept it along with the shells I found that day

< No...nothing was in the blue bottle...no note, no jin, and no gin

V Passing long the question

[Ransom]

^ Well, shells, naturally, but also, sea glass, bottles, bits of rope, driftwood, bird bones, and, unfortunately, garbage and on shore, transient camps. Tide-pooling is one of my favorite things to do on the coast. You never know what you'll find under the stones or along the tide line, especialy after a storm.

< Ah, the holidays. Guilt central. I long ago quit trying to please everyone, and figure as long as Chain Shot and I are happy, life is good.

V Are you a fair or foul weather beachcomber, or does it matter?

[Red-Handed Jill]

^ Sun, rain - doesn't matter. I love beachcombing.

< Haven't figured out what to do this holiday season. Jack and I have been creating our own traditions but we don't want to get into a rut.

V Anything in particular you look for on the beach?

[Jacky Tar]

^ Aye, but me first mate won't let me look!

< A beach, an umbrella an a bucket o' Coronas wit' lime... Where did the summer go?

V Are ye missin' summer or relishin' fall?

[Red Cat Jenny]

^ I miss th warm carefree feel o Summer an the lack of clothing..

the green and the scent

Fall is kind of a wake up and you get to begin to look forward to the holidays..but I'd trade back to Summer in a heartbeat..

< Needs Palm trees

V Pass the q

[Perkeo]

^ It's the middle of October and it's 78 degrees in Indiana...it's not natural.

< Needs colder weather.....Winter is my favorite time of year.

V Do you do anything special for Halloween?

[Cheeky Actress]

^ The special thing I do for halloween has become a tradition for the last five years. A group of friends and I pick a different historical city to spend Halloween in each year. We've done Salem, MA several times, New Port, RI, and now Williamsburg, VA. This give an excuse to dress up in our period correct outfits, visit local haunts, and spends some well needed together time with great friends!

< Nothing like a spending a cool but sunny late afternoon in the Rebecca Nurse Homestead graveyard. It tucked away from the main site, just in a tree line lot. Very eeire.

V Passing long the question..

[Cheeky Actress]

^ Another special thing I do for halloween is doing a day trip to the local orchard. Lots of fun just to watch the kids enjoy hayrides, bobbing for apples, picking out pumpkins and chasing the petting zoon animals about. I love the lambs!

< Back yard looks like a Seurat painting! BEAUTIFUL

V When was the last time you jumped in a pile of leaves?

[Red Cat Jenny]

^ This afternoon..ok well the neighbors kid did it first....

< and it was a big pile screamin "jump in me!"

V Ever flop backwards into a snow drift on purpose?

[Cheeky Actress]

^ Yes, but it's been years since I've flopped backwards into a 6 foot high drift. Back in Upstate NY we had them all the time...here, not so much!

< Gosh, Thanksgiving isn't even here and you're talking about SNOW

V What is your first Winter ritual?

[Red Cat Jenny]

^ Hmmmm planning where to put the tree..and looking for a fun new hat. I like those silly tasselly fleece things with the two tassels like ears. Fun!

< Just watched Shenandoah * sniff * I need a hug.

V How do you beat mid winter cabin fever?

[Cheeky Actress]

^ A day trip to a spa is always nice! I get the whole treatment...Well worth it with the holiday stress.

< Sending you a hug, Red Cat.

V Cross country skiing or down hill?

[Perkeo]

^ cross country skiing. You don't have to worry about breaking anything when you fall.

< Loves the winter, has been known to walk around barefoot in the snow in nothing but a pair of shorts.

v What's your favorite movie to watch when you need a good cry?

[Red-Handed Jill]

^ This is going to sound really girly, but "Terms of Endearment."

< Here in the San Francisco area, winter means rain and lots of wind. And oftentimes, good sailing!

v Pass the question.

[Ransom]

^ I tend to like ones that make you laugh and cry. One of my favorites is Shakespear in Love.

< Snow angels! My Grandmother taught me how to do them when I was a kid. If I can find snow deep enough, I still make them — fall over backwards, wave you arms and legs, then get up and see the new "angel." Fun!

V I'm not a winter person, so fall for me is pretty, but a harbinger of five months of crappy weather. So, do you like fall/winter, or wish you could head for the sun somewhere? (Raises hand)

[Red Cat Jenny]

^ Seconds Ransom's vote "Aye!" The commute is awful!

< If I coud stay home?? Like the song says "Long as we've no place to go..Let it snow, let it snow......gracious! * giggle *

V Pass the question

[Capt. Sterling]

^ love each season as each has its own little pluses.

< a skier so winter does have its good side...but fall is my most favorite

V pass the question along