Sunday at the Shore

I woke up mid-allergy attack at 4:00am this morning. Sneezing, coughing, itchy throat, running nose; the whole nine yards. It was then that I decided that I would go to the beach in the morning. I actually contemplated going to the beach right then, but instead turned on the light and read my book for a bit. When I did wake up for reals, I waited for the coffee to brew and then decided to go to Dunkin' Donuts on my way. I realized yesterday that I am struggling to follow-thru on most anything these days. I blame it on being back to work.

It's cold out today. Cold might be an exaggeration, maybe cool is a better word. Regardless, I threw on a hoodie, a scarf, and some socks. This is my weekend uniform each fall, needless to say, I was a little excited. Fall is amazing up here. It's what northern New Englanders live for nine months of the year. The sky seems closer, the air feels cleaner, and the colors are beginning to show. I took my usual route to the coast and enjoyed a little Maine NPR. (As much as I love NH, Maine always seems to do things just a bit better.) So, today I keep my words to a minimum and share with you my morning through pictures.

(See those yellow flowers? I'm not sure what they are, but I am fairly certain that they are the cause of my daily allergy attacks. I curse them.)

(I confess, I actually took this photo post-"hurricane" last weekend, but it was too pretty not to share with you.)

Serenity

is looking out my backdoor.

Mason Dixon Comes North

I made an impromptu trip down to Newburyport this morning to visit one of my favorite LYS, A Loom With A View. The lovely Kay Gardiner from Mason Dixon Fame was going to be there talking, knitting and signing. It felt like the perfect way to spend my Saturday morning. I've been reading Kay and Ann's blog for a couple of years now and although I will never be the knitters that they are, I enjoy keeping up with all of the projects they work on. Kay brought with her an amazing shawl that she recently completed. Really shawl is not the right word for this piece of art. It is actually called a Volt, and it is something that I will never have the brain power to achieve. Regardless, it was amazing to look at, feel, and understand it's complicated nature.

Kay was lovely. Despite being surrounded by envious knitters, she was completely normal. A fellow New Yorker, she talked about why she chose to stick with the black and gray color scheme of the Volt, busily worked on her Courthouse Steps pattern, and explained that she wore the same blazer for her appearance on Martha Stewart. Delightful, really.

After chatting with an employee who I'd met the last time I was there and would really like to make my new friend, I drove home. As I always do when I leave Newburyport, I got turned around. I blame my father for this frequent occurrence, but that is a story for another day. It might be because I get a bit distracted in new surroundings. For instance, there was this! How beautiful, almost magical, right??