When I hear “Three cheers,” why do I so often envision three witches crossing their broomsticks or clinking goblets over a fiery cauldron? Is it the witch in me? I certainly hope so! Well then, THREE CHEERS for September First, Meteorological Fall! Release the SSJ Fall Planner 2023! This year, I have 40 tasks to tackle in short order! And with two family members in university, the theme is Big Fun on a Budget.
1-10
Cold Plunges and Steam Baths
But I begin with a splurge? I love a hot sauna and an ice-cold dip in rotation. And with our youngest moving into university this weekend, a day of rest and relaxation is in order. I’m about to book myself a solo trip to the new Spa Thermëa in Whitby. (And I’ll take the commuter train, because trains!) Though, to steam and ice as much as I’d really like to this fall, I’ve got to get creative. First, I’m planning to try out the hot tub at our local YMCA, where I’m a member by default, thanks to certain folks’ love of basketball and the family plan. Second, I’ll take advantage of the free, clear, ice cold waters of Lake Ontario, a mere 2km walk from our front door, and take a morning plunge. Third, I’ll have the at-home combo of a cold shower and hot bath, because, why not?
Fan Swag for Bar Delicious and The Test
Blaise has a collection from his series of comic books, The Test, coming out this fall. Bar Delicious will be published by Conundrum Press this month and launches a bit later in the season. (It’s already on the CBC list of comics to look out for this Fall!) So, I want to make some fan swag for both the book and the series as a whole. I’m going to try a combination of traditional block printing for tees and totes, and laser-printed, machine-cut stickers and tee-shirt transfers using the newly released Cricut Joy Xtra, which I had the chance to test out two weeks ago. I’d never used a Cricut machine before. So, I’m thankful for the gift from Cricut, and I’m bound and determined to do something incredibly edgy with it! We can’t wait to see Bar Delicious in book/digest form!
Squatting Excellence
This isn’t about heavy lifting, though I’m always looking to lift heavier come fall. Thing is, I’ve always wanted to be able to sit back on my heels (bum to achilles, I just can’t do it) and more, to do a proper squat-sit. I’m talking about the kind of squat where you have enough flexibility and strength to drop your bum close to the floor, staying flat-footed, and sit long enough to prune a shrub or drink a bowl of soup. This Atlantic article explains the posture I’m speaking of, and this youtube video presents the kind of stretches I’ll need to work on to make it happen.
Sunrise Walks
There’s nothing better than walking towards the sunrise. Thing is, I want to stop more along the way, not necessarily to photograph it, but to breathe in the light.
Bob Haircut Styling
I recently cut more than 6 inches off of my hair, which now sits above my collarbone or thereabouts. Call it a Lob or a Bob or a Hailey-Bieber-Cut, I haven’t had hair this flirty since the last century. So I’m really interested in finding fun ways to style the new do, straight, curly, clipped, slicked, what have you. Long live dollar-store claw clips and bobby pins!
Manicures at Home
Except in late summer, when I take a brief hiatus from piano and let my nails grow long, and my annual Christmas mani with the wonderful Kate, I tend to overlook my nails. But I’d really like to make more of an effort to take care of my hands. I’ve got a few nice bottles of polish somewhere in the cluttered bathroom cabinet. And I love the look of a nearly-clear pink shine. A quick file and a bit of moisturizer, and I’m golden.
University Care Packages
I’m bound and determined to get a few care packages to the undergrads this year. Long live Socktober 2021! Though, I think these will largely be of the homemade or home-baked variety. If anyone has any mailing advice for a tray of brownies or a pile of sugar cookies, bring it on!
Proper Letters
I kept up with a good deal of correspondence during the pandemic. But most of my “letter writing” was of the post-card variety. And I’ve since fallen off the wagon, so to speak. I’d like to expand my reach again, and not with words which might just as easily entertain the postal carrier as their addressee. When I see a letter, nowadays, I think, “Oh, a secret!” Why not at least imbue my correspondence with the promise of something so precious it requires enveloping?
Unfolding Jacket
As a birthday gift, B has requested a quilted jacquard Wicksten Unfolding Jacket lined in a floral block print. After making a quilt for my youngest, I’m looking forward to sewing something special just for her.
Petrichor on Petrichor: Cocktails in the Woods
There’s nothing like being in the woods after a rain storm. I’ve done “high tea in the woods” in past years with friends. This fall, I’d like to have woodsy inspired cocktails in the woods. First on my guest list will be a certain dear mixologist friend, who already has ideas…
11-20
“Solo” Piano Repertoire
With no one else to vie for practice time, and as a way of feeling all of the feelings, I’m looking forward to taking on an even more challenging piano repertoire this year.
Urban Foraging
I love to forage, but the pandemic put me out of practice. I’m looking forward to finding crabapples and pears and sumac and acorns and pansies and all the other edible lovelies this city has to offer. I might also do a bit of guerrilla gardening. Though if I reveal my plans, it won’t be a secret anymore.
Plan Advent
I’m already dreaming of that chilly fall day when I head into the #wyrdshed with my calendar and a cup of spiked eggnog and plan our annual advent calendar. This may be the first year without the kids at home at the kickoff. But there’s still plenty of SSJ Advent within us all.
B&B
Nope, not a vacation, but B, as in “Bedroom Ceiling: Paint it already! You’ve been putting it on the list for years!” & B, as in “Bathroom Cabinets: You haven’t cleaned them, culled them, or organized them in years.” The only way I’m going to make this fun is to turn up some music and sing my lungs out.
Tarot and Tea Leaves
I had a great reading with a close friend in Montréal this summer. And I’m looking forward to our Fall Ontario meet-up for both a Tarot spread and a go round with my Tea Leaf reading cup.
Weekday Candlelit Dinners
With the kids away at uni, I’m looking forward to a ton of home-cooked budget-friendly meals for two. And candlelight, well, isn’t it romantic? Doesn’t it make the most humble Tofu scramble look like Le Cordon Bleu?
Le Smoking
I’m hoping to use the fabric in my stash and thrift a few pieces of silk in order to make both a soft cotton robe for pre-and-post hot and cold plunges, above, and a swanky smoking jacket to wear while reading books and drinking whiskey with my fella.
Wyrdshed Cinq à Sept
I’m not necessarily interested in hosting huge parties yet, but I’d love to host a monthly or bi-monthly Cinq-à-Sept out of my #wyrdshed before the weather gets too cold. Cocktails and small bites and catching up with friends!
Full Moon Antics (Burn Things!)
With the most recent Super Blue Moon, I’ve decided I need to devote the next few full moons to gallivanting and singing and dancing and burning paper effigies in small jam jars (ie a controlled micro-burn) outdoors, in a clearing, under the moon. Let’s howl!
Pietra Pants and Nikko Dress
Once again, working from the fabric already in the house, I’d like to make a few more pairs of my favourite wide-legged Closet Core Pietra Pants (the pockets!) and the long sleeve turtleneck version of the True Bias Nikko Dress.
21-30
Cookbook Club and Restaurant Dupes
I’m still hoping to host a Cookbook Club. So I’m putting it back on this year’s Fall Planner because I still believe that if I list it, I’ll eventually take it on! I’ve put out a few feelers already, so fingers crossed. Additionally, I’d like to recreate a few of my favourite local restaurant dishes at home. I’m looking at you, Milou salad, and you, Le Swan duck breast.
Puppy Training, the Off-Leash-Park Edition
Once Nimue recovers from her spay surgery, it will be time to take her to the off-leash park near our house for some long-leash and recall training before we let her frolic freely with all of her neighbour-dog friends.
Mindful Gardening
I’d like to do a thorough job of putting the garden to rights this fall, keeping the outside planters full of dried cuttings, leaving lots of seed heads in the front for winter interest and self-sowing, and doing something to replace the dirt-sea in the backyard with grass from seed, sod from a local provider, or with some sort of walkable bulk-buy perennial.
Writing Workshop Weekends
While I’d like to dedicate several weekends this fall to finishing a major fiction project and starting a new poetry collection, I’m hoping to get away with a friend at least once this September to try working in tandem at their family’s place.
Closet Core Dog Jacket
I’d like to use lots of fabric scraps and the free Closet Core Dog Coat pattern to make a jaunty fall wrapper for Nimue!
Karaoke
I swear, the next time certain people call me up for Karaoke, I am going to drop everything and get the hell out there. It’s been a long time, O.N.J., but I Honestly Love You.
Pumpkin Carving
It might be a little strange without the kids, but Blaise and I still love our pumpkin carving. My signature pumpkin will be back this year with a flourish. Maybe we’ll have the undergrads text us their sketches so we can carve them out and add them to the stoop.
Toronto Perfume Tour 2.0
A few years ago, I set out with two dear friends on a perfume tour of Toronto. At least one of the shops we visited has now closed. Perhaps it’s time to a get a new feel of our city, and a new sampling of the latest scents on offer in the stores. Samples are always free! I might bring my own shot-glass of coffee beans as a palate cleanser this go around.
Art Gallery Sketches and Sips
Since we already have a membership to the AGO, I’m hoping to spend as much time as I can there doing work, or sketching, or occasionally visiting the restaurant for a member discount on their fabulous cocktails and frites. I’d also like to go on a self-guided public sculpture tour of the city with my love.
Chess, Plural
I’ve always been a bit shy learning about chess in a family full of enthusiasts, but I’m going to sneak into the basement and read about openings and strategies this fall and even attempt a game or two with the far more experienced player at home. If I wear my planned Smoking Jacket, perhaps the loss will sting less? I’m also planning a chess pie, because Lemon Chess pie is a thing of beauty. And it’s prime pie season, thank goodness.
31-40
Dance, Dance, Dance
I’ve already pre-booked a whack of Contemporary classes at my local Pink studio and I’m bound and determined to finish learning the second half of the “Thriller” dance from various youtube tutorials. Let’s just say, the dancing thing is covered.
Canning Catch-Up
Number of canned goods I made this summer: 0. Given this sad state of affairs, I better play catch-up! (But not ketchup, no, never again!) I’m planning on a few late batches of my own Bread and Butter Pickles, perhaps some first-timer Giardiniera peppers for my main squeeze, cocktail onions from the Ball Blue Book, a fall chutney to improve on last year’s meh first try, and a fall fruit jam. If I accomplish even one of these, I’ll be thrilled enough to do the thriller dance.
Read a Thick Book
It’s about damn time I re-read Moby Dick again. I’d thought about doing the A Public Space read-along with Yiyun Li a while back. But, unlike the War & Peace read-along, which was a voyage of discovery for me, I didn’t think I’d want to share my thoughts about a most beloved book. Perhaps that feeling has changed. But I’ll likely tackle this one on my own this fall, using the APS schedule. Then there’s Clarissa, which I’m also drying to start again (and in tandem with Mrs. Dalloway, for sport). Or, should I take on something new? Ducks Newburyport?
Ladies Getaway
The annual. The most necessary weekend of all weekends. The everything. The ladies.
Handkerchiefs and Calendar Tea Towels
I’ve got some spare cotton poplin I’d like to make into a few handkerchiefs with my serger or on the regular machine with a handkerchief hemming foot. And, while fall is the time to place one’s orders for all the best calendar tea towels (Bookhou, Addie Best), I’m wondering if I might also try making one of my own for 2024?
The Whole Duck
Thanksgiving Peking Duck has become the traditional fare at our home. I’m still a huge fan of Jacques Pepin’s recipes for crisping the skin whole, minced duck and veg, and homemade pancakes from the classic, Cooking with Claudine. And the L.A. Times Duck Broth with Napa Cabbage is the best way to use “The whole duck” in the most delicious way.
Podcast Refresh
I’m getting a little tired of the 5 podcasts I have on repeat. Sorry, loves, I’m not deleting you. I just need a bit of fresh air. So I’ll be on the lookout for new podcasts to add to my “following” list. I’m open to any and all suggestions!
Cider Donuts
The single year we lived in Madison, Wisconsin, Blaise and I walked up the weekend Farmer’s Market in the square to grab the most amazing cider donuts, still warm from the frying, from the local apple vendors. (Radio personality Sean Bull recently did a Cider Donut tour of Dane County, Wisconsin. And I am here for it!) I am bound and determined to find a good recipe for a cinnamon-cake sugar-and-cinnamon-coated apple-cider donut. I need to taste those donuts again!
Impromptu Rain Parties
Any time it rains this fall, I’m going to get myself onto a porch or covered patio or over to the nearest window and throw an impromptu rain party. There may be cocktails. There may be chips. There may be dancing. Or, there may be a cup of tea and a novel. But there will be a party when it rains, every time.
Witchy Quilt, Natural Dyes, and Hand Quilting
I’ve started collecting inspiration photos for my next quilt, which I’d like to have a sort of witchy theme. I don’t mean a Halloween quilt. I mean a quilt full of Beltane and Solstice, Lammas and Equinox, Hamsas, Star-Signs, Tarot Cards, and Roses. This fall, I’d like to do a bit more design and layout of the quilt, and perhaps even attempt the few first blocks. I’d also like to experiment with dying cotton or linen with natural dyes (using books from the public library) for this project. I’m even opening myself up to the idea of practicing Sashiko or Hand Quilting, perhaps on a little sampler Hamsa square, to see if I can do so without stressing my own hands.
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