This and That...

Today Hubs and I needed to make a trip to town to pick up a few sundry items before we fly away on our trip to Sunny Arizona.  We leave Monday and will be gone for a week to visit friends and to check out a college that Youngest Child is planning to attend.  We are all looking forward to a week of mild, possibly even warm temperatures for a change. This was the view from our car as we drove to our small town and then we went beyond it over near those mountains to the big city in the Black Hills.  Isn't this picture a lovely combination of blues?  God is so good to give us delights for the eyes, if we will just take the time to notice. 

As we were in our small town, we met up with the Only Daughter and she and I took a little drive to our favorite store, The Bakery, where we browsed the fabrics and then sauntered to the other side of the store to Bluestem Studio.  This lady has lots of handcrafted items that she and other locals create as well as a few antiques and vintage items.  I found this vintage table lamp that I couldn't resist for just $15.  You can't really see it, but it has a crystal piece just underneath the switch.  I think I'll paint the bottom part, but for now, I need it on my side of the bed for reading.  The lamp shade was not pretty at all but I liked the shape, so I used some adhesive spray and put a white piece of muslin around it and then tucked this piece of lace over it.   I may change the shade again, but for now, it suits me.  This old teacher's chair, salvaged from a country school from days gone by,  serves as my night stand.  It's really not much good for sitting in.  I tried it.  I don't know how teachers did it.  Surely there was a cushion or some padding in this rigid chair?  It's terribly uncomfy.

I have been enjoying a very good book most nights before I turn out the lights.  It's called Pilgrim's Inn by Elizabeth Goudge.  I read another of her books a long while ago called The Scent of Water which I just loved so I figured I couldn't go wrong reading another of her novels.  I was right!  The story is presented against a background of fragrant English countryside, magic woods, and the healing grace of the old house itself, whose history as an inn for pilgrims provides one exciting adventure.  All the elements which Elizabeth Goudge's vast following expect in her books are here:  humor, compassion and understanding; the vivid descriptive passages and the sharp characterization; and above all, the rich satisfying story, beautifully told. (as quoted from the dust cover)  The family in the story continuously refers to the book The Wind in the Willows which I own, but have never read.  I am now certain that I will make it the next book on my reading list.  Or maybe I'll just begin now and read it alongside Pilgrim's Inn.  If you are interested, Fraise Lachrymose has invited a few guest bloggers to share their thoughts and ideas about The Wind in the Willows.  Pom Pom also has a nice blog post about annotating The Wind in the Willows here.

Not only have I been reading a good book, but I've been playing with Sharpies and color crayons every evening too.  Pom Pom piqued my interest in another book called Creative is a Verb If You're Alive You're Creative by Patti Digh.  It is so refreshing to someone like me who enjoys being creative even though I don't think I'm very good at it.  There are many exercises that require the reader to draw and write on index cards which are very non-intimidating.  It's doable, isn't it, to scribble a small bit on an index card?  I've decided that I will kill two birds with one stone:  I will sketch on the cards and send some of them as postcards to friends.  The idea of sending postcards was another inspiration from Frances at Left-Handed Housewife.   Thanks, ladies, for your encouragement and inspiration!

A quote I copied down from Pilgrim's Inn:
"Struggle is divine in itself, but to ask to see it crowned with success is to ask for that sign which is forbidden to those who must travel by faith alone.  Each fresh leap of the flame from the charred wood lights your footprints a little further through the dark."