Yesterday was an October day for the books. It had just about every one of my favorite October things rolled into one nearly perfect day. I say nearly perfect because 1 the air was smoked filled from a local fire and I have been coughing like I'm trying to wear my lungs on the outside, and 2 I like to leave the door open for an even more wonderful October day to sneak in. They are tricksy and like to do that ya know.
But what made this day in particular so great? It involved adventure, wonder, beautiful scenery, good company, pumpkins, books, more pumpkins, new friendships and so much October goodness that as I write my heart is still full to bursting with joy.
The day started out with pumpkin cake deliveries. A special few had the benefit of trying out the fruits of my new pumpkin recipe labors, and if I do say so myself the results were rather tasty. From there I ventured into the wilds of the big bad city to meet a friend whom I had previously only known through the miracle of the internet. See how October brings people together! In order to meet said friend I had to take some roads that I had never gone on before and it was so much fun. I found a couple thousand more Starbucks, saw some truly awesome street names, heard almost all my favorite songs on the radio and I found a diner that had a Viking theme. You had better believe I will be going back!
I safely made it to my friends house no thanks to MapQuest who insisted that I would know the street I was looking for because there would be an Asian restaurant on the corner. Unless the restaurant had a cloaking device it wasn't there. My friends house was something straight out of a fairytale. It was on a tree lined street and she had the best October décor in her front yard. The inside had all sorts of treasures to behold and a handsome doggie greeted me at the door. He looked a little like the beast from Beauty and the Beast and I got a few kisses, so my fairy tale was complete.
The first stop on our adventure was a diner that just happened to be serving pumpkin pancakes. Well of course I had to order one. According to the menu I could have ordered them in a stack and added chocolate chips, but I opted for plain pumpkin and only one cake. It was as big as the plate though, so don't feel too bad for me. It smelled wonderful but only mildly tasted like pumpkin if you thought about it real hard. But it was still worth the trip.
From there we ventured all around the city. My wonderful chauffer took me down beautiful side streets where I saw amazing architecture and some Halloween décor that I was truly jealous of. We stopped in a used bookstore and I had to promise my first born in order to walk out the doors with my haul. I think they must have been alerted to my arrival beforehand because they had a Halloween section right as I came in the door. I say had because I bought a large chunk of it. I actually left with a box of books. The proprietor had to go out to her car to get it. Ahhh books....and Halloween books at that. Did you know that there is such a thing as a book of Halloween poems? Now you do and I promise to share some with you as this most glorious month nears its end.
Since I was mostly broke by this point, we took a refreshing walk down by the water and I behaved myself and only dipped a toe or two into its freezing depths. It sure felt good though. We found a perfect reading tree and a few secluded shady spots that one could pull a small boat into and while the hours away reading or napping.
Then I got to have my first Trader Joe's experience. People, did you know that they have pumpkin EVERYTHING?! Well they did, I bought most of it. However, I did exercise just a soupcon of restraint. Ok, I spent too much at the bookstore and couldn't buy it all, but I did leave some things there. I only bought one actual pumpkin and the rest of the goodies I fully intend to share. I was really excited to see a cereal called Pumpkin O's but when I read the back label most of the ingredients were sugar and if I wanted that much I would just drink some pumpkin flavored syrup and call it good. So, the Pumpkin O's stayed on the shelf, but not before I took a picture of them much to the delight of the stock boy who was shelving near us. Yeah, yeah, I'm a total pumpkin tourist, get over it. I may or may not have done my weird little happy shuffle dance when I came across new pumpkiny things. I also may or may not have squealed at some of them. Sadly, my quest for soy pumpkin nog continues. It is my holy grail. Grocers in general carried it for two years just to get me hooked and now they have cruelly taken it from me. I can't even find it on Amazon. Did I just imagine that such a wondrous beverage existed? Cuz I think if anyone was going to hallucinate pumpkin flavored stuff it would be me.
So after I looted Trader Joe's we finished our outing with a stop at Jamba Juice where I gleefully ordered a pumpkin smash. It was SO good. Liquid pumpkin goodness just danced its way down my throat. I want another one post haste. Like now. Do drones take Jamba Juice orders? We visited one more bookstore and I found the cutest zombie book and card. When my funds magically replenish themselves I will be going back to liberate them and make them a part of my October collection.
I got stuck in a traffic jam on the way home, but since I had pumpkin everything in my vehicle I wasn't too worried. I sang pumpkin songs and Thriller came on the radio and I serenaded those closest to me in the traffic snarl. I don't think they were as appreciative as they could have been, but I honestly don't care.
Now I am home sipping pumpkin tea and surveying all my Octoberiffic loot. I managed to procure far less pumpkin stuff than anticipated. I even passed a farm stand full of pumpkins without stopping...several times. Ok, some of those several times I wasn't the driver and I had my anti pumpkin sponsor coaching me, but I passed it once all on my own and that has to count for something.
All in all, it was a truly marvelous day. It wasn't about the buying of stuff. It was about the company, the creativity, the silliness and the October of it all. Days like this, when you can just be and enjoy and discover new things, are what make life special. I wish you all an October day like mine.
No comments:
Post a Comment