{Thanksgiving: for college campuses with their sense of possibility . . . freelance work to round out the lean months . . . reading poetry over morning coffee instead of the newspaper}

{Thanksgiving: for lighthouses and people who personify them . . . the Hundred Acre Wood, home to Winnie the Pooh and friends . . . nephews to make cupcakes for}

there's an art to it

You have to keep practicing to get good at life, though, which can be a life's work in and of itself. Carve out time and paint in broad strokes. Be sure to add lots of color, find beauty in the details and joy in the process. Know that things will get messy! Don't focus on the finished product or what's come before. It's all here for you right now, on the canvas of today.

{Thanksgiving: for math teachers who inspire . . . The Mysterious Benedict Society series of novels for children . . . election day excitement}

{Thanksgiving: for an old Schwinn bike that rides like a charm . . . charm bracelets passed down from mother to daughter . . . Cuban food: shredded pork, black beans and rice, fried plantains}

I love a parade

Thanksgiving stamps from the United States Postal Service, something new this year. Brings back all of the third Thursday mornings in all of the Novembers, spent watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Parade on television while making preparations for the big day. After all of the floats and bands and gigantic helium balloons came the grand finale on a sleigh: Santa Claus.  

{Thanksgiving:  for all of the saints, both living and dead, who bless our lives . . . the season of gratitude cycling around again . . . a centerpiece of artichokes and pomegranates in a big brass bowl}

orange you glad it's Halloween again?

A day to be anything or anyone you want to be: a knight, a princess, a scary monster. I remember boxed costumes, now vintage collector's items:  Casper the Friendly Ghost and Felix the Cat. Then there were the pillowcase clowns, winning first prize in a neighborhood parade and taking home a candle in the shape of a witch. One year my best friend was a nurse in a uniform borrowed from her mother. And, always, hot dogs for supper. 

Dusk falls, costumes are donned, candy is collected house to house to house until the whole neighborhood's been canvassed. Then the 'after-party,' sorting it all out on a big tray, trading some (I'll take your miniature Heath Bars and Butterfingers!), giving the Mary Janes away to grown-ups with a taste for nostalgia. Little wonder that children of all ages love Halloween. 

Wishing you an idyllic October weekend: a long leaf walk, wins for your favorite teams, all treats (no tricks), a pillowcase full of miniature candy bars, a book you can't put down and - poof! - a magical extra autumn hour.  

food is love

Is it written somewhere that people who love to cook are also kind and generous and full of life? Lucky for us, some of them are seasoned writers as well. I'm thinking Julia, of course, and now also of Molly Wizenberg. Every sweet and tender word of kitchen table conversation in A Homemade Life is as nourishing as the accompanying recipes. As the Butternut soup with pears, cider and vanilla bean; the carmelized cauliflower with salsa verde; the banana bread with chocolate and chrystallized ginger. Right down to the Italy-inspired eggs she makes for her father near the end of his life. The main ingredient on every page is love.