TICK-TOCK . . .

I can’t believe it, here we are, at the end of August already and all I can say is, tick-tock, how did we get here so soon, and OH GOODIE!MUSICA! I have been suffering from this hot and sticky August that seemingly will not end . . . I’m ready to move on! Love the quote, “There are only two seasons, Autumn, and waiting for Autumn!” Fits me to a T, especially right this moment. And then, a couple of days ago, at the top of my suffering, I accidentally did a happy thing . . . I opened up my Autumn Book, just to take a look. As I turned the pages a thrill went through my heart, and I realized, it’s almost here! My favorite time of year!

So I went and got some sunflowers . . . and cut marigolds from the garden for little vases . . . because 

It perked me right up! Changed everything! Sweaters are coming! Leaves! Crisp air! Corn Pudding! Makes me almost want to go on a diet. That’s how perky I feel! (“Almost” being the operative word, I am not done with toast and peanut butter yet!)
I know, not everyone looks forward to cold weather, but I love having a reason to heat up the oven and bake something! And in my glee, I planned the rest of the year: first a long breezy, colorful autumn (and can we have a normal Halloween? Why not? Everyone wears masks anyway!👺 That will cheer everyone up! The kids will be thrilled!), leaves blowing through the woods on our walk, crisp salt air off the water, quilts airing in the breeze, more cozy covers on the bed, church bells ringing and boat whistles blowing, and then a short, cozy, snow-white winter around the fireplace, with a new Christmas book and a new puzzle to do during the winter, which will be SO short I’ll have to hurry! And then, an early burst of the most flowery spring ever ~ in a brand new world filled with fresh beginnings! Covid gone, children going to school, everyone back to work, Easter egg hunts! Kitchen table Tea with girlfriends, with new remembrance, respect, and deep gratitude …

While all these nice thoughts were brewing in my head … My cups arrived on the kitchen porch!!! I’ve been waiting! I hope you got yours too … if not, you should soon. We had a little slow-down at the PO, so if you ordered one, and don’t have it yet, it’s definitely on the way!❤️

And then there’s this happy thing. Joe is outside building us a 12′ picnic table, in two pieces, one 8′ and one 4′ … so we can have a party of six for dinner, a couple at each end, and one in the middle for starry September evenings! Just planned our first one for this Friday Night!👏 I’m cooking! Joe’s grilling! Keeping our sunny-sides up.💖

Now what’s this you may be asking. It’s a surprise! Another unexpected book! It will be called Distilled Genius, Wisdom of the World, Words to Live By, (or something like that) and contain my forty-year collection of brilliant quotes from the ages, gathered into categories as I have them here in my Studio, such as Courage, Tea, Gratitude, Gardens, Happiness, all onto pages like these . . .. . . whole genius sections about Love, Dreams, Time, Girlfriends, Cooking, Creativity, Earth, Fairy Tales, Beauty . . . so on and so on… Look how cute it’s going to be! I have about 40 pages done so far. I’ve been asked to do this for years, and I do think it needs to be here for the future! Everything that has ever mattered has been beautifully said by someone whose attestment has teeth,from Marcus Aurelius, to Mark Twain, Black Elk, Rumi, Langston Hughes, C.S. Eliot, Churchill, and the Bible, to Louisa May Alcott, Toni Morrison, Shakespeare, Dickens, Anne Frank, Lincoln, and so many more … plus, plenty from that prolific genius, Anon… and lots from people with less familiar names, whose smart, funny, wise, and touching words inspire curiosity, and open whole new worlds that lie beyond them. I’ve always read quote books like novels! I hope this book will be finished for that wonderful spring I’ve been thinking about. More hope in a time of need. May have to be two books, might even be three, still waiting to see! I know, I have next year’s calendars to do, and my wonderful book, Enchanted to work on, and lots of blog posts and Zoom events and dinners to cook, and Joe and Jack, and the House of Creativity, and all those other ideas, but here I am, Girls, 73, and there is still so very much I want to do!Some of you will remember that I did my very first Zoom Webinar last week. First I had to learn how to do a Power Point slide show. That about killed me. But at the last moment, it sunk in, and I found out just how easy it is to do. All about pushing the right buttons. Then I had to write about the photos, ⬆️ that’s me reading over old diaries to make sure I had the details right ~ it was a Calgon Zoom Party, took us far, far away, back to the English Countryside!And THEN, there was a week of daily Zoom practice with the encouragement of Andrea, the wonderful person who had extended the invitation for me to speak. We got to know each other pretty well! She was very patient!

We ended up doing the same program two days in a row, because the Zoom Room had gotten so full. I knew lots of you were there, because I got pictures! This one above is from our Girlfriend Mary Brehm! She has sweet peas!

This one came from Karen England and her Kitty . . . so fun to be in everyone’s houses!

This one is from Trahlyta! I got so many wonderful photos from you guys! Thank you! The program lasted about an hour and 15 minutes. I know some of you wanted to join in, but could not ~ so, as promised, here’s a link so you can see it yourself on Youtube. In the beginning, it’s just me staring at the screen, watching the names of attendees scrolling by really fast … such a fun thing to see, so many I recognized. I wish that part showed so you could read them too … but instead you just have to watch me staring at them and saying them out loud. Might want to skip that part!IN THE MEANTIME. Guess what? There are going to be more Zoom parties. In the column on the right of this Blog
you’ll see EVENTS. Here is the Link for it, but you can get there yourself when you need to check back for new event dates. I’m about to add more, so watch for them so you can register and receive an invitation to join. 

The next one will be a Sunday Afternoon Christmas Tea Party presented by the wonderful people at Titcombs Bookshop, just over the water on the Cape, from 3:30 to 4:30 pm EST on September 20 ~ BYO Tea because you’re all invited to my first virtual book event for my new Home for Christmas book! Here’s where you can sign up! If you don’t know how to do Zoom, you can Google “Youtube how to use Zoom” and they will show you. It’s just a matter of which buttons to push ~ it’s easy. When you sign up, they will send you an invitation to our zoom party … which will have a link for you to click on the day of the event. Put it on your calendar!One flower stands out on Martha’s Vineyard, it’s the hydrangea… they are everywhere! Drive up and down the streets and that’s what you see. We moved these from another part of the garden last year, and I’m so glad we did. Aren’t they romantic? They’re just starting to turn pale pink, something they do in the fall . . . and now we can see them from the kitchen windows from this dear old house I have loved for so long.💞

We’re still going on our walk everyday … joy of life. 

It’s been very warm . . . sometimes we have to cut our way through the air, it’s so thick . . . but it’s nothing like what our California Girlfriends are suffering. We pray for them every day. You too, Girlfriends in Iowa, we know about that crazy storm that shot through your state. And now, 11′ storm surges in Louisiana.😢 🙏 2020 is some kind of year!⚡️ We were spared the other night, we were told to hunker down and expect one-inch hail ~ it got very dark out there, but it never came! Thank God. Deep breath, ahhhhhh. Remembering how much we have to be grateful for. 

The woods are still green as Sherwood Forest, but every so often there are tell-tale signs that change is on the way with bright spots like this one!

And now, look, I had to show you this sweet letter I got from someone writing about our DamPanic, Go. Be. Love. postcards! Made my day!

Dear Susan, Several weeks ago I purchased a package of your “Go. Be. Love” postcards and sent them to a number of friends. Oh, my gosh! I send lots of cards and notes and have never received so many oohs and ahhs over a card I sent. My dear friends loved the postcard and just showered me with compliments and thanks. You deserve all of the credit. You created the perfect greeting to send during this pandemic and I am so grateful to be a longtime fan and follower and saw them in your online shop. Stay safe and well. Sincerely, Marge

 Just in cases YOU might need to be “showered with compliments and thanks” I thought I would share this!And the New Pumpkin Go. Be. Love. postcards came in too …

 

I had this pumpkin postcard printed in honor of what our Great Grandmothers did for us only a hundred years ago this August 18th!💖 Joe carved that Halloween pumpkin a few years back for our front window  ~ I thought it would be a good way to celebrate those brave and determined women, mothers, sisters, grandmothers, and best friends (and men too), who put themselves out there in a very big way for US! We should never take it for granted … they went through some very difficult and dangerous years, to make it happen!👏 Yes, Jack . . . And one more thing . . .In case YOU too need something sweet and homey to inspire you with my wind-in-the-trees formula for cozy, Kellee just put my Autumn book up at 25% off until midnight on Labor Day! You probably already have it, but maybe not, and maybe you need a gift for a friend!🍂 

And for you?

Time for a good Giveaway, don’t you agree? I think this is the perfect place to thank all of you for sticking with us through thick and thin and dampanic too, for me and for Kellee and Sheri, your kindness has meant the world to us over the years, going to work is a gift because of you, but especially these last months, you have no idea what a positive force you are. All you have to do is read the comments to know what lovely kindred spirits visit here. No matter where in the world you are, we have so much in common, I’m very proud of us.💖 Thank you.

So we’ll start here . . . 3 cups, 3 winners! As you know, these cups are mostly sold out now, but we saved these to surprise someone(s) ~ I hope one of them is YOU! Just leave a comment right at the bottom of this post, click on the teeny grey letters that say “comments,” leave a few words, and you will be automatically entered for the drawing . . . I’ll let you know who won in the next post, then I’ll send an email to the winners, who can write back with their mailing address, and voila, your cups will be on the way, either for you to keep, or perhaps to give away as a Christmas gift! And more . . .

Shipping from the printer is still on schedule for August 26th, which means we will probably have to wait until the day after Labor Day, September 8 to get HOME FOR CHRISTMAS delivered to the Studio! So, 3 more winners in this next drawing ~ and for each, a signed copy of my new book, hot off the press! If you’ve already ordered it, then Boom! You’ll have another one to giveaway! A little bit of “pay it forward.”💞
Leave a comment as suggested above … and now we will have six winners! Makes my day!
Okay dear ones, that’s all she wrote for today! I hope you’re giving yourself those hugs I talked about at the Zoom Party. They do help, and you do deserve them.❤️ Petty-pet hugs are good too! XOXOXO

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Hey World, Take the Year Off!

Hello everyone! How are you doing? Lots of good news here in the House of Creativity, which it better be with all this stay at home stuff. But as you’re about to see, we went out for lunch! For the first time since March! MUSICA

I AM smiling under there! Love the way masks make my ears more elf-like than normal. Took our books and the newspaper and went to Edgartown for lunch! Was this a good thing to do? We won’t know for sure for 14 days.😷 So far, so good. Most people were wearing masks, but we also saw a few whole families NOT doing it. So that was a bit scary. But really, most were showing their children that we’re all in this together! 

It was excellent people watching! The passing parade. And everyone seemed to have brought their dogs. It’s disconcerting to see how much the world has changed, people in masks doesn’t feel real. I was so happy the dogs didn’t have to wear them. And they were all smiling!

  We had a lovely lunch, but I admit, after that guy on the street sneezed without a mask which sparkled in the sunlight as it whizzed by us way too close at 20mph ~ and then, realizing there was no way to buy an ice cream cone in Edgartown while distancing 😲, we gave up, and felt much happier driving around in the car. Our little island did so well for a while, we went a whole month with no new cases. . . but now, things relaxed, and there have been eleven new cases this last week!

So we had fun driving around town and looking at the sweet old houses and gardens . . .

In Vineyard Haven, where we live, it was a very hot, humid, sunny day … but 20 minutes away in Edgartown, it was fogged in, cool, and delightful!

Joe thought you’d like to see the Edgartown jail! 

We drove home via Beach Road. On the right of this long line of parked cars is the ocean. Not too many open parking places!

If you had planned to come to the island this year and then didn’t, here is a little island-fix for you. A trip to the beach, completely sunburn and covid-free.

Beach paths . . .

Families . . .

 

Umbrellas, sand and surf . . .Playing in the park . . .

And tons of boats! All the things of summer on an island.

This is more my speed . . . 5 mph, but only 3 on foot.

Going slow . . .

Our walk is heaven as always . . . 

. . . only thing that ever changes out here are the seasons. Soon we’ll be picking wild blueberries that grow along the road.

Once in a while we stumble upon evidence of other humans.

We have to go really early these days, it gets too hot and buggy later on, but look at the reward!

We hardly see anyone on our walk, which is good because Joe and I are especially lovely to look at out there. We each carry a dishtowel, which we swat back and forth, over our shoulders, behind our backs, across our legs . . . the trick to keeping the mosquitoes away. I’m not crazy about wearing bug spray on a daily basis!

And to all of you dreaming about turning in the summer heat for a windy, crisp, fall day, I have good news: The trees are “rethinking” their leaves! Every so often we spot a red leaf among the green ~ this one came drifting down in front of us. I had to bring it home.👏

First thing we do when we get home is wash our hands in hot water… and we have the BEST kitchen soap. It’s so silky and soft and makes such a good lather . . . I’ve used it at my kitchen sink for years (never wild about the look of plastic bottles on my counter). Love it so much, I thought you would too, so I got it for our web store.

It smells wonderful . . . provides aroma therapy too, lavender fragrance promotes calmness and wellness, reduces stress and anxiety.💞 Things we need more of these days!

I also found the same wooden soap holder I have, so it’s a set! It is the little things in life! I’m happy every time I use it! I sent it to my Virgo sister and she loves it too. Like Good Housekeeping approved!

Gazpacho seems to be my go-to dinner recipe these days. So bright and clean tasting, healthy, crunchy, and icy cold! I’ve made it three times so far! Starting to want to DO something about these dampanic pounds I’ve gained.

If you haven’t made it this summer, don’t forget to do it. While the tomatoes are juicy and fresh!🍅

I know I’m not the only person who takes pictures like this. Because it’s beautiful. Little vases, soap suds, old sink. Soul satisfying.That’s not rain! It’s humidity! I know. Feel sorry for us. But Joe put in window air-conditioners downstairs so we are very happy and comfy. And our clothes on the line look like a watercolor painting through the windows!I was excited to see a big box land on the kitchen porch yesterday ~ look what was inside! 2021 Calendars! They turned out great. Color is perfect!I keep being asked if I did an “England photo calendar” again this year. The answer is, I did do a photography calendar, but it’s not “England” . . .

. . . for 2021 it’s “This Old House, A Year on Martha’s Vineyard.” Here’s a sample page for March. Jack (ham-cat) makes an appearance in every month! 

They should all arrive at the Studio next week!

So guess what? There’s an event! And everyone’s invited no matter where in the world you live! It’s on August 19th at 1pm EST! I’ll be doing something new, dampanic-inspired, and fun! It’s a Zoom Party, originating from Duxbury, MA, but I’ll be at home! I’ll be talking about my favorite subject and telling a slide-show story of going to the English Countryside! And I’d love to take you along!
It’s free, you can read more about it and sign up to receive a zoom invitation by going to www.duxburyseniorcenter.org. Signed copies of books will be available, I’ll also get to introduce my new book Home for Christmas… we’ll have a door prize . . . guests can ask questions … and I’m not sure what else! My first time! Come!

And if you’d like me to do one of these Webinars for your local bookstore, call them and tell them! This worked so well last time and I’d love to! I think I almost
have Joe talked into making personal appearances! Bookstores can contact me at [email protected]. We’d planned to drive across country this year and meet everyone in person, but we finally had to give up on that idea . . . would love to do some fun Zoom talks and see you there! ❤️  We could have virtual tea parties! I have one planned with the wonderful family-owned
Titcombs Bookstore on the Cape, and there are others . . . I’ll put up a calendar with dates and times soon.
  And another surprise . . . for all of you who’ve preordered Home for Christmas, I made a special bookmark that we’re going to tuck into each book. Because we can! I can’t wait to see the finished thing . . . we should have them the end of August! For those first days of fall.I thought you’d like to see a page from the new book … We’ll have to save it, light candles, make tea, and read it at Christmas. Gives me chills!I have an update on the cups. First, the bad news: The first cups they made didn’t look right to the manufacturer. So they sent me a photo, and they were right, they were waaaay too light. Which means they have to make new lithographs. Which means a delay. We won’t get them now until end of August, first of September. I’m so sorry but I knew you wouldn’t like them the way they were! Please let [email protected] know if this will be a problem for you. We know what a great job this wonderful British manufacturer does and they want it to be right. BUT! The GOOD NEWS is that this delay allowed me to add more of them to the order. So anyone who didn’t get one before they sold out has another chance!👏 Kind of a little miracle if you think about it. We thought it was a done deal!What else? Oh yes, something I wanted to share with you. Staying at home DOES get hard ~ not everyone has to do it, thank goodness, but many of us do, and luckily we have the Internet! There are so MANY special things going on. So much creativity! British Time Out Magazine has created an issue called Time In! So go HERE and be totally inspired! And as our girlfriend Nancy T. so sweetly suggested, “Be a lighthouse in this rocky island of craziness!” This too shall pass.❤️And you know what else? Some of you DO know I’ve been designing my first puzzle. This is it. It’s done. And being manufactured by the same people who make my calendars! And yes, Kellee is putting it up for presale later this afternoon ~ it’s something new, so we’re trying to figure out how many we should order. I laid it out in the living room . . . it’s 1000 pieces, 27″ across, 20″ down. Called “For the Love of Books.” What do you think?  We hope everyone likes it, then I’ll get to do more!

We’ve had fun FaceTime visits with Paul and Rachel and even had a walk through their English (and I mean that literally) garden! But the thing I miss the most when I see my friends these days are the hugs! Joe is doing double duty these days!💞

We’ve also been taking night-time walks through our neighborhood ~ the fireflies are everywhere, more than I’ve ever seen, I guess because of the humidity, and they’re lighting up the night with their magic!

We have some great shadows. . .

Love the moon, open windows and music and bookcases and cats on sills . . .

And home sweet home we go . . . to book and bed. Hope you enjoyed your island visit, but I can’t go without sending love to all our girlfriends and their families everywhere, especially in parts of the world being hit hard by the virus. In the midst of sorrow and catastrophe, we’ve seen stunning feats of selflessness and compassion. Our frontline workers are so brave. I think if I were them I might threaten to go on strike if everyone doesn’t wear a mask. Why do they risk their lives and the lives of their families for us, I’ll never know. But I’m filled with gratitude for these amazing heroes. If I was in charge, they would all get a raise! Right now! Some of them are reading this,  💖  some of you have sons and daughters on front lines. Thank you 🙏, and please thank them. Special prayers for everyone in Florida, Arizona, California, Georgia, Texas ~ I heard something on TV the other day, “This virus is strong, but Texas is stronger.” And that is the truth for all of us, we are stronger than this, and in the end, if we never give up, if we join together 💞, we will win. I just wish we’d get it over with! Aren’t you done? I’m so done! But too bad for us, the virus has the last word!

Love you all . . . this post is too long! Next time I’ll do better. XOXOXO    

 

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