This Perfectly Imperfect Life

We are okay, though emotionally/physically a little worse for ware. No structural damage or flooding this time. We, our town for the most part, are very lucky. Our waterfront & harbor were anything but. The coast of NJ has been devastated beyond imagination. Thank you all so much for your caring concern shared with me on my previous post. I can't begin to tell you how much it helped me through. My love and prayers to all affected and devastated by Sandy!!! Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Dear Friends, It is with Vanessa's blessing that I am extending my apologies to all of you for not having my A Fanciful Twist Halloween Blog Party post ready for you. Hurricane Sandy is looming and we've cut our Autumn/October vacation short to prepare both of our homes, one in the mountains of Northwest NJ, the other 85 miles away & our full time home, a mile in-land from the coast in East Central NJ. So much to do! And while we are pretty much done here in the mountains, there's much more to do down on the coast. I am utterly disappointed over not joining all of you tomorrow! I have joined in for the last 4 Vanessa has hosted and look forward to it as October draws near as I not only have a deep affection for all things Autumn, but for Halloween as well! Also with Vanessa's blessing, I will have a belated post up and visit yours just as soon as I can! For those in Hurricane Sandy's path: prepare asap, be safe & join me in praying/wishing (

Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

This afternoon, we took a "Let's see where this road goes!" ride which lead us about 10 miles south of our place. We had lunch at a cozy, albeit chilly, lakeside tavern where we had corn chowder & fried pierogies with sautéd onions & sour cream. Then we explored a State Park we'd never been to before, which was all but deserted except for one occupied camp site and a few park workers dismantling lake's beach docks for Winter prep. Despite being in the upper 60s to low 70s, the air was raw and we were both cold enough lakeside to put our sweatshirts back on. The peace & quiet was serene, but overall the State Park seemed a lonely place. I imagine 'in season' it's anything but! Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Yesterday we headed over to Millford, PA to visit Grey Towers, the summer home estate of the Pinchot family. Their son Gifford was the first Chief of the US Forrest Service and two time Governor of PA. What an incredible setting! What we saw of the grounds through our tour and just by walking around, along with the outside of the home itself, were spectacular, as were the views which looked out over Milford strait into Northwestern NJ. A little disappointing the tour only takes you into three rooms in the seemingly massive house, before going back outside; even more disappointing (to me because of my well known love of gardening) was coming to find out that the area of original garden for the house (roses, vegetables, etc) lies on a portion of the property that is still within the family (and therefore private) and is no longer in existence. There were pictures of it in one of the albums you could flip through during the tour. Aside from the spectacular Autumn foliage

These are just a few of the Many photos I've taken today! Autumn is stunning up here at our northern home and I'm nearly besides myself. We're here for a little over a week, arrived yesterday. A nephew has been staying with us so he's at home on the coast kitty sitting and Hubby was able to schedule off from both jobs. There are chores to be done here with Winter coming, but overall we're here to relax, especially Hubby, who truly deserves it. Our little camper on the lake in the mountains is such a comfort, I can't begin to tell you. As the moon sets, we're sitting by the fire, warming our hands with mugs of hot spiced cider. I hope you're enjoying your Saturday evening, wherever you are, whatever you're doing! Be sure to stay tuned to New Jersey Through My Eyes as well for more Autumn photos (some of which I posted today). Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Our annual October week at our 2nd home has begun and these are just a sampling of the photos I've taken today! Imagine how many I'll have by the 28th?! For more Autumnal shares be sure to stay tuned to Diggin' Around as well. Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Taken this morning & pictured above: Rosa 'Pope John Paul II' (white rose), Knock Out Rosa 'Radrazz' (with Halloween decoration), Knock Out Rosa 'Radcon' (pink rose bud). Roses in Autumn, is there anything much more delightful than that?! Roses in Autumn are my favorite blooms, each one a cherished present before the garden sleeps for Winter. What are your favorite Autumn blooms? Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Sent on the Sprint® Now Network from my BlackBerry®

Taken October 6th, a quiet, cold, Sunday morning before the rain started. Forgive my long absence here.  To find out what I've been up to, click here .

Taken Sat. on our front porch while enjoying the warmth of the sun on a chilly Autumn day! At least I hope it does! Hello dear friends! Apologies for my absence here. I caught Hubby's awful cold & bronchitis and while I've had it since 9/30 when I awoke with the dreaded scratchy throat, it's been especially rough since 10/4. (That night I went to the doctor as I'd gotten progressively worse throughout the day). I've been here at home for the most part, (talk about 'cabin fever' - ugh) trying to get some purging & organizing done when I'm able, resting when I'm not. My writing, what I have from my high school & college days, to the present is now condensed, past writings & journals in my closet, present projects in a bin which now sits on our pc desk. Speaking of my closet! The world must be coming to an end as it too is now neat & organized after purging! The entire shower is also clean enough to lick. Not that anyone w