Barns, Oaks & Journals

When I returned home from swimming on Wednesday I was struck with the way the evening sun was lighting up the barn, the red pin oak and the orange chestnut tree - so when I entered the driveway I veered off into the pasture in my Explorer and snapped this shot before it was gone.  Our farmhouse is nestled off in the trees to the left of the barn.  I do so love having some ground around me.  I showed this photo to Dayle and said maybe we should plant some shrubs along this end of the barn.  I also suggested he add some windows on this end of the barn.. we have a stack of them in the barn for just that use.  Oh, and he needs (or someone) to paint the trim on the big window there - it really illuminates the hay loft.

Wednesday was sunny so when I walked out to the car I thought this would be a good time to take a photo of the red leaves against the blue sky.  And sure enough, yesterday was rainy, stormy and windy, and a lot of these leaves are now on the ground.  

Blue sky.. how I love thee.. let me count the ways.  Yesterday it was awful weather but my sister Denise and I volunteered at Multnomah Falls and we still had a good amount of visitors from all over the world.  We trained a new volunteer - a retired police captain - and he's going to be great!  I didn't get any photos as it was just gloomy.

I have a story to tell about this leather bound journal.  My 2 sisters and our mother and I went out for lunch right before my 50th birthday and were window shopping around this cool place called John's Landing and we were in this cool stationery shop and I saw this journal and just flipped over it.  My sister Roberta said - "Would you like us to go together and get this for you for your birthday?"  I was overjoyed!  It's made by this neat company called "Oberon" and it's luscious leather heavily embossed with a pewter knob on it for winding a leather thong around to keep it closed and safe.  Of course this design I love because of the sailboat and lighthouse.  They make the pewter items too.

Anyway.. last Spring Dayle was outside and came in carrying my beloved journal and it was sopping wet and the book inside was drenched and had been for some time.  Apparently I'd taken the journal on one of our trips in our trailer and when bringing things back into the house it had been dropped.  It had laid there in the rain and maybe even snow for who knows how long.  I tried to read some of the journal entries, the ink had bled and washed away.  I'd inscribed in the book with who gave it to me and when and had some nice memories of my mom in there.  There were also many notes left for me as on my 50th birthday on my houseboat, I'd asked all the guests to write something.  I tore out the pages with writing and saved it.. somewhere.. and I just got around to ordering a new book to put in the journal and bought a small bottle of Bickmore leather conditioner.  It arrived yesterday and I cleaned and conditioned the poor dried out leather and put the fresh new book inside and I'm ready to go.

Isn't the button knob cool.. a wave.  Do you have a special journal?  

I'm off to swim today.  I must say, it's so much harder to leave the fireside of my cozy home when it's storming outside.. especially to jump in a pool of cool water.  But I will.  I hope you have a super good weekend.  ((hugs)), Teresa :-)