1. Well, my darling readers, it’s been an incredibly busy summer with house guests, travel, TIFF, and a fancy-schmancy wedding. Fall is my favourite season and it’s time to get back into my routines. My Istanbul blogging stopped as TIFF began, and I hope to get a couple more posts up about that trip (that seems so long ago at this point.) I have been out of email and phone touch with many of you, but that will change. Promise.

   

2. I’ve started two programs at my local community centre. On Monday afternoons I’m taking a Feldenkrais class. It promises to help me work out some of the body kinks I’ve been feeling as I age. I can remember seeing posters about it back when I lived in Ottawa and have wanted to try it for years. The first session was excellent and I’m looking forward to more. I also went to my first yoga class (ever) yesterday. The instructor has been teaching for 40 years and it’s the Sivananda style of hatha yoga (quite classical, if I understand correctly.) While most of the class are experienced (and many have been coming to the same teacher for years), the newbies like me are being brought on board slowly. I’m looking forward to learning to breathe more intentionally and to strengthen my core. The centre is walking/biking distance from home so that’s a bonus.
3. I’m working my way through the Man Booker-winning Wolf Hall by Hilary Mantel for book club next weekend. It’s a big book, chosen by the group to read over the summer when we only had one meeting. I’m about two-thirds of the way through. While I’m planning to keep my comments (and review) to myself until after we meet, let’s just say that if there was a trivia game based on Thomas Cromwell, I’d stand a good chance of winning.
4. I have so many small projects around the house to get to. This week, I’ve been mainly focussed on getting through stacks of laundry and ironing. I need to reorganize my books now that they’ve been (randomly) moved to our new study (in our old dining room) and get my new crafting area set up in a recently vacated bedroom. I have a couple of sewing projects ready to go once I get a table. I also need to finish my travel diary/scrapbook from Istanbul. We’re looking for a round table for the study, and we want to replace our built-in oven that buzzes randomly (and continuously) due to a wonky clock and very poor temperature control. It’s 20+ years old so I don’t feel bad about not repairing it.
5. How’s Michael doing at McGill, you ask? I have no idea. I haven’t spoken to him at any length since he started classes so I need to have a good chat with him this weekend. I’m going with the no-news-is-good-news scenario. I know that he had a couple of lessons with his teacher in August but am anxious to hear what ensembles he’s in and how the classes are going.
6. Alex is settling into life in our basement, working on his Master of Management Analytics, and tutoring math part-time. Yesterday, he had road-trip to London Ontario to tour a brewery as part of his program (for his supply-chain management course, or so he says.) He saw some vintage delivery vehicles there.

   

7. This weekend Zouheir and I will be attending a meeting of the Bootmakers of Toronto (Sherlock Holmes Society of Canada) as a guest of a member. Author Terry Fallis is speaking and I hope to get one of his books signed (if I can find it in my currently non-alphabetised home library.) I loved his first two novels (The High Road and The Best Laid Plans, now getting made into a TV Miniseries), and I read Up and Down in early summer. The Sherlock Holmes connection in the latter brings him to the Bootmaker’s meeting. Oh, and Sunday is Word on the Street so I’ll be checking out this years offerings down at Queen’s Park.

And that’s all folks! Hope to be more regular with the posts going forward.

Related articles

• The Wolf of Wolf Hall (mraybould.wordpress.com)
• Nathaniel Parker To Play Henry Viii In Hilary Mantel Stage Adaptations (contactmusic.com)
• Booker Prize to be open to all novels written in English (abc.net.au)