Oh, the Days Dwindle Down to a Precious Few...

So sang Old Blue Eyes himself (Frank Sinatra, for those of you too young to remember the Rat Pack). Autumn is half over already, and Christmas is only two months away! I love autumn, but it seems to be on fast-forward this year--maybe because it has been so busy, or maybe because I'm getting older and the days seem to fly by. Sometimes I'd like to shout, "Hey, slow down, let me catch my breath."

October is full of special days: birthdays (daughter Jen, brother David, sister-in-law Karolee, nephew Dennis, and several friends), anniversaries (daughter Sarah and son-in-law Louie's anniversary was the 12th, and several friends also celebrated anniversaries); and we'll also be saying adios (though I prefer au revoir) to our son Davy and daughter-in-law Tracy as they make a quick trip home to Vermont before leaving for Mexico. We're looking forward to having all of the family together for a couple of those "precious few" days, but are also experiencing the parental angst of having part of our family moving so far away and not knowing for how long. So, maybe we should say "vaya con Dios" (go with God) and ask Him so see them safely on their adventure and, eventually, safely home again.

So, in one sense, the days are dwindling down; but in another sense, they're adding up. For there is another anniversary coming up on October 29--the first-year anniversary of this blog. If you have been following along since last October, you will remember that I began Creative Muse Journal in conjunction with National Novel Writing Month which begins every year on November 1, and encourages people to write a 50,000 word short novel in 30 days. (The introductory post and the daily NaNoWriMo posts from 2009 are in the archives, if you want to look them up.) This will be my fourth year participating in NaNoWriMo. Usually, I feel that the timing is not ideal, what with the pressure of celebrating Thanksgiving just when I'm struggling to finish and hit that word count goal, and Christmas looming on the horizon. But this year, maybe the timing is just right because it begins on the same day that Davy and Tracy will be winging their way to Mexico. I will need something to keep my mind occupied, and NaNo certainly does that.