I love when the vast array of little pumpkins start to appear in the supermarket. Not that I buy them you understand, as not only is Himself not a fan of squashes, they take a fair bit more prep that the bigger ones. It’s just they look so darn attractive all piled up, that seeing them gives me a little boost and makes me smile; this really is my happy season 🙂
Reading
Tana French’s The Keeper – third in the series of Cal Hooper stories about an ex-Chicago cop who’s retired to small town Ireland. Our hero is now finally embedded with the locals and gets drawn into tussle between a local developer and local farmers which ends up costing the lives of two locals and nearly costing him his relationship. Tana French is always good, and I’ll admit to not seeing the twist coming.
Sebastian Barry The Newer World returns to the US south to the time period just before and after the civil war. The story of a young black boy who becomes a freed man, named Tennyson Bouguereau. In selecting Tennyson as the narrator of his book, Barry has been brave and risked accusations of cultural appropriation. But, as ever, he displays the same level of emotion and empathy as when he wrote in earlier books of this loosely linked series, first about an Irish refugee, then a Native American woman, and finally a black freed man who’s still dealing with life in the south in post civil war USA where “All their intent was to shove us back into the hog pen and put the hasp on tight as they could, against any further straying”. I found the story at its strongest where Barry depicts Tennyson’s (platonic) friendship with George and, as ever, the prose is simply gorgeous. From the ending, I expect there will be more to come in this tale.
I’ve started Maggie O’Farrell’s Land. As you’d expect from O’Farrell, the writing is lovely, magical even, yet I feel moved to set it aside for a time when I can read it uninterrupted. My enjoyment of the previous book was definitely marred by having to snatch periods here and there to consume it, and I don’t want this to be too. As a result, I’m considering starting the latest Louise Penny – Miss Wolcott’s Ghost – to pick up the tale of Inspector Gamache and his team in and around the world of Three Pines in Canada.
As you can tell from the paucity of books listed, my daily schedule continues to be a problem.
Viewing
Season 6 of Slow Horses remains top of the pile, and I’m delighted to hear they’ve confirmed there’ll be a season 8. Lots of online noise about the recent Slow Horse death – and here was me thinking I was the only one with a soft spot for that particular character!
Season 4 of Blue Lights, a drama set in Belfast, Northern Ireland featuring the local police force. Dual themes being local reaction to the influx of refugees, how social media and support by activist groups can escalate the scenario, especially in areas already struggling for resources such as housing and childcare; plus the long-overdue demise of a local crime family who’d been collaborating with the British throughout the fight for Irish unity.
We watched an old film called Inception which turned out to have a pretty impressive cast. Also written and directed by Christopher Nolan, it’s about dream sharing technology and how a previous experiment in the deepest layers of the technology had a negative outcome for the central character (played by Leonardo Di Caprio). With a supporting cast of Ken Watanabe, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, Tom Hardy, Cillian Murphy, Tom Berenger and Michael Caine, this was an interesting concept and it was enjoyable watching some good actors demonstrating their skills.
Other than these, Himself has over-indulged on cars, trucks and tanks being renovated, as he’s having a rough time with a combination of work being rubbish, back trouble and poor sleep. I’ve managed to watch a bit of rugby on catch-up, although it’s not been much of a draw, as my team has had an appalling start to the season.
Christmas
Yes, I know, it’s too early to be talking about this yet! Although I’ve yet to buy my usual festive magazines, the internet has been providing a whole load of inspiration even before I actively looked. Of course, as soon as I clicked on one… many, many more have been sent my way, and I have allowed myself to fall down the rabbit hole🤭as, while I’m adjusting to changes in my daily life, I know I need something to buoy my mood. The old black dog is always just waiting for an opportunity to slip in before I shut the door in its face, so I am leaning into this activity despite its time wasting potential.
Health
Improving… if slowly. Returning to my previous dose of drugs seems to be turning (at a speed akin to the QE2) the corner with my gastritis, and I only go “ouch” a few times a week now. The back is also making progress, although that task which I really need want to do without is still present and causing issues.
Review
The month has finally become cooler. I’m wearing layers, and have even turned the heating on. Thanks goodness, as I was struggling to dry clothes because the dryer portion of our combo washer-dryer has stopped working (again) so the extra help is needed. I’m not enjoying having scratchy towels though. Sadly the drought has caused the trees to suffer and leaves are going from green to brown to hitting the dirt in the blink of an eye. There’s odd glimpses of red and other tones, but I don’t think we’ll be blessed with much of a display this autumn. Must I regard that as a bonus to not having the time to get out and about with a camera do you think?🤨
Although the promised El Niño event has yet to arrive, we are now on the cusp of our third named storm in less than a week. High winds, driving rain, flooding and power outages have all caused the government to release advice on stockpiling building a 3-day backup plan. Up to now, I’ve been ignoring all the chatter, but significant sections of our town were without power during the storms (if not us) so probably not the worst of ideas. I’ll have to scrabble around and find where I’ve tucked away my little power banks so I can get them up to speed, and am even pondering a wind-up radio. I feel odd not having candles to light, but causing Himself to struggle breathing is not a good idea, especially as we have a drawer full of batteries and multiple torches between us. On the food front we’re always well-stocked, other than water, so perhaps it’s time to address that lack. I can’t deny the whole thing feels a bit odd and slightly discombobulating.
Time poverty is still a significant problem for me. I’m coming to realise that my usual method of tweaking things isn’t enough, but neither am I ready to accept this as my new normal. It is going to take a more significant change, but I’ll have to wait for certain things to fall into place before I can start that process.
Onward to November, if only because you are allowed to talk about the C(hristmas) word then without people tsking!
© Debs Carey, 2026
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