My Battle Cry: Imminent Autumn

Say THAT 14 times fast...go on, say it! You can do it....yeah yeah, I kept saying M & Ms too but then they are such delicious candies. Hm? Stay on topic Susie...okay! Gee you are tough taskmasters.... Okay now ladies and gentlemen. I have decided that I was just wrong to even discuss this bit of unease publicly. Phooey on me. I gave 3 nasty noodles some press. Bad Susie, bad Susie. So, here is my new decree...no more rotten talk. I was waylaid from the more important things in life...decorating, Autumn's imminent arrival, Brian Dennehy and chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream. Gee whizzers. So, in an effort to apologize to you all for taking a detour from these topics, I offer this:

Uh huh. Breath deeply...smell that air? So crisp, so sweet. Yup. Autumn is approaching...

The nights are getting chilly now, a light sweater feels so cozy. Each new day brings with it a challenge to find just the right words to describe it. Farm fields and the trees of each park, and those that line the boulevard, are changing before our eyes. Autumn is on our doorstep.

Howdedoo, Let's Ask Old Sue...

...lots of tough questions and she how she'll do. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

But first, I do so want to apologize to each of you for being such an awful bloggy friend of late. I have been a neglectful visitor and am now, at almost 1:00 am, almost finishing stopping in to see you all. I have also been just pitiful at posting of late and even resorted to having my poor dog do my writing for me! Sad isn't it? I just don't know where the hours and days go...if any of you find some of my lost time floating around in your area, please overnight it back to me and I will reimburse your costs. How do so many of you do it? I am constantly amazed and inspired by you, my talented and creative friends...my friends who get more done in one day than I do in a week I am sad to say! You have all been so busy and working so hard on gardens and throwing parties and decorating those gorgeous homes of yours. Like I said....you are my inspirations! But I plug along, itchy eyes and achy joints and all. Humming whatever song or commercial jingle is the first sound out of the radio to tickle my ears each morning. I had intended to write a post about several things but have scrapped all those ideas...one seemed too preachy, one too grumpy, one much too silly. I almost asked Kipper to write another but getting him to do more than one a month is almost impossible! So, on this rainy day when my imagination is less than active, I have decided that a nice interview would be the ticket! Uh huh...after all, Barbara Walters just released an autobiography and she is the Queen of Interviewers is she not? That got me thinking...hm. Now, Babs seemed too busy hawking her new tome to come and ask little old me anything. She failed to even ask me, ala Kate Hepburn, what tree I would be if I were to be a tree. A willow would have been my answer but she never asked. Nope. So, how would you all like to step in for Babs and do the honors? Ask me a question. Anything. And everything. Don't hold back. Interrogate me. Query me. Ask, challenge, quiz and interview moi. And I will answer them all. Whether you want me to or not. You know you want to. Okay, so you know you do NOT want to but I will pester you about it so you might as well get it over with. Kip begs you to do it or I will make him write another post and his little paws are so worn out from typing. Do it for him. So, who will be first? Hmmmm?

Rawther Ashamed...

...now don't I sound terribly, awfully like children's literature & film heroine Eloise? And although I do not live in a room on the "tippy top floor" of The Plaza (I am rawther miffed at that myself!) and do not have a Nanny of my very own (Hmm...I DO need one I should think!) I have behaved rawther like the spoiled and mischievous lass of book fame. Eloise would never allow herself to get bored, bored, bored and I must apologize for being a bit of a bore, bore, bore myself! First let me apologize to our dear Penny! I should have deleted the name of the blog from which my Anonymous friend entered Rabbit Run Cottage. I rawther doubt that she left any sort of comment for the lovely Penny as she only enjoys leaving unsettling ones. Penny's blog can only evoke comments of the highest praise! Lavender Hill is a true joy and Penny is one of the sweetest ladies ever. Talented and of so creative, her mosaics are sure to please your eye! I will be asking Nanny for one soon...I am rawther sure she will have Mother dear get one for me. I am rawther tired of furs and jewels. For now I will ask your forgiveness for being so self absorbed! It is rawther silly I think. It looked like I was asking for reassurance and I should never have allowed myself to be so self pre occupied! Still, you are all so very wonderful and I can not thank you enough. I suppose I wanted to speak to all those who leave rawther unpleasant comments on anyone's blog. Especially those who do so anonymously. I am reminded of the comments often left on HGTV"s Rate My Space. Now, constructive criticism is always welcome. It is helpful and desired. That is what the decorating forum is all about. Leaving most unpleasant messages for those who post photos is a bit odd, creepy and downright nasty. It is unpleasant to be reminded just how bitter and angry some people are! I have seen some of the prettiest spaces be flamed by wanna be decorators....and how do they do it? Ah...anonymously of course! So I want to thank each of you for being so sweet and for helping me to see what a rawther doltish person I was being! Please do leave a comment for me if I ever write something with which you do not agree! Please do correct me if I post something inaccurate! I have big shoulders...I can take that! But reminding me that I am less than pure and perfect? Well, I DID take a bawth with Ivory Soap today. I splawshed, splawshed, splawshed and became so pure I floated! But I did so rawther imperfectly. I need no reminders that I am less than perfect. I am able to see that on a daily basis! In fact, allowing myself to get so befuddled over a silly comment is rawther imperfect don'tcha think? My apologies to you all...and especially to you Penny! I love you all. Now go out there and have a rawther lovely Thursday but do so imperfectly! Perfection is oh so boring, boring, boring!

Love and Hugs, Susie Q

Oops...I Blame Menopause, Global Warming And Fire Ants

May I please have your kind attention? Oh my. Is my face red. Dear, dear Andi...I tagged you after YOU tagged me and I should have tagged someone else because you had already tagged me then I took too long to do the tag and my mind wandered and then I forgot and tagged you when I meant to tag someone else but I tagged you instead with a tag. *Deep Breath* Okay, so my mind ALWAYS wanders (Especially when writing run on sentences that use the word *tag* a lot) but it is not my fault really. I blame menopause, global warming and fire ants. And not necessarily in that order. You may now go about your business. That is all.

Apologies, Thank Yous And Salutations!

Okay, I DO apologize for posting such a lengthy list. I got carried away... I just am having serious computer withdrawal pains. I was using another computer and threw this list on just for fun. Seriously, it IS too long! Just ignore this little bit of self indulgence! But hey, the part about me NOT being elegant is so true. SO, SO true. If there are 10 women in a room, I will be the one that spills her drink, trips on the wrinkle in the carpet, laughs too loud, breaks the heel off her shoe and drops her hot appetizer down her blouse. I will be easy to spot! Gosh, I can not visit most of you and can not post photos. I had such a lovely weekend attending a house tour and our city's "World A'Fair" and so want to share those photos with you all. Hopefully this problem will be rectified soon. I am in dire straights. *gulp* Dire...and I do not mean the band. Nope. I also have a photo of the ever so special art piece that Lisa (Oceandreamer) sent to my Grace. I want to share that wth you. I saved it for a very special day. Lisa? You can not imagine how thrilled Grace was to find her "Fairy" card! She had 5 primary teeth extracted by a pediatric oral surgeon last Friday. It was difficult as they just did not wish to leave her mouth! She had a hard time throwing off the meds too. But all is well now and gosh. When she found that card and the gold dollars, well, she actually said it was "all worth it!" Thank you dear Lisa....thank you with all my heart. I do miss you all and hope to be back visiting all of your sweet blog homes soon. Take care of yourselves! Be good...stay well. Sending hugs to you all...

Susie Q

Now Hear This...

Hello All, Sue's internet connectivity is NMC (Non Mission Capable) due to someone apparently slicing the cable upstream of our house. The cable company supposedly has a crack team of tehnicians exploring the situation today. Hopefully, by day's end, she's back up. In the interim, Leona's package is on the way. More, and better written, stuff is soon to be gracing the pages of the blog. Best to all of you from all of us. ...That is all. Bill