This & That

 

Autumn equinox this week, and in nature, autumn colours are also taking over more and more here now. (The photo above + the next four following below are from today.)

 

Fly Agaric

At home, I took in one of my two pelargoniums (geraniums) from the balcony yesterday - and will probably soon be taking in the other one too. (In the photo below you see them both!) Just now the weather is still rather mild and cloudy/rainy - but next time we get a clear sky, frosty nights may also be just round the corner...

 

On Monday I walked into town with my mind set on looking for an autumn/winter skirt. Found it in the first shop I stepped into! It looks/feels like suede, but is actually made from synthetic recycled fabric - so is also lighter than it looks. And the plum colour matches well with several other items in my wardrobe. 

 

To continue the discussion from my Monday post about The Little House on the Prairie, today (getting back in from my walk in the afternoon) I decided to start over with episode 3 of the new Netflix series (which I left unfinished back in July, to dive into the books instead...)  Alas, I have to say I still just don't take to it! It's not just the "story"... the characters/actors just don't feel "right" to me either... 

It struck me that this was a lot like how I also felt last winter after having watched the new TV version of the Forsytes - and then ended up not only re-reading that series of books, but also seeking out the old b&w TV series on YouTube, and watching that in full!

... So now I went looking for the old Little House series on YouTube as well...  I watched the first half hour of the very first long pilot episode - and immediately felt "at home" (lol)... Remains to be seen whether that will lead me to continue to re-watch more of the old series on YouTube rather than continue on the Netflix version!!

UPDATE (24 Sept): I have now watched the whole pilot episode on YouTube; that one is available full length (about 1½ hour) with a few commercials inserted. The rest of the Little House videos on YouTube seem to be just shorter "snippets" though, and not full length episodes. So I'm not going to try to lay that puzzle! ;)

Little House on the Prairie (TV vs Books)

 

Some time back in July I started watching the new Little House on the Prairie series on Netflix. I watched a couple of episodes but felt confused about the differences compared to the old series from 1974 with/by Michael Landon, which I must have watched several times over in the past, on various TV channels. This disturbed me, so I only got through maybe three episodes.

It struck me that I've never actually read the original books that both series are based on, though (by Laura Ingalls Wilder). So I went looking for those on my "talking books" library app, where I also managed to find them - the first four in English, the rest in Swedish translation. So that whole series was what I spent most of my "reading by listening" time on throughout the month of August, and into September. 

Little House in the Big Woods
Little House on the Prairie
On the Banks of Plum Creek
By the Shores of Silver Lake
The Long Winter
Little Town on the Prairie
These Happy Golden Years
The First Four Years 

It did not take me very long to realise that actually the 1974 TV series (with/by Michael Landon) took a lot of liberties with the original story too ...

 

... like having the family settling at one place and remaining there through most of the series; rather than starting over in new places several times (and each time building a new house!) - as I now learned from the books that they actually did... 

I have not yet started over with the Netflix version - but I think I may be ready to try it now, with less preconceptions in my head of the 1974 TV series representing "the truth"... ;)

Curious to know if anyone else among my blogging friends have seen it, and if so, what you thought?

 

The Big Cats Dance Party - (Book Review)

 

The Big Cats Dance Party 
by Alexander McCall Smith
No. 27 in the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency Series
Audio book narrated by Chipo Chung

 In this latest installment in the No. 1 Ladies' Detective Agency series, Mma Ramotswe and Mma Makutsi both take on a case involving an elephant sanctuary quite a long way from Gabarone; and Mma Ramotswe's husband J.L.B. Matekoni decides to accompany them on the journey. This leaves Charlie, junior mechanic at J.L.B. Matekoni's garage + part time "trainee detective", in sole charge of the Detective Agency for a while. While Mma Makutsi is (of course) sceptical of his ability to cope with that responsibility, Mma Ramotswe decides that it's time Charlie gets the chance to prove himself.

The result, not surprisingly, is a bit "so-so"... While Charlie does manage to be helpful in one case,  he also finds himself in trouble when he gets involved in the planning of a concert together with two musicians (going by the names of Lion and Leopard)...

All in all, Alexander McCall has once again managed to concoct an enjoyable story, also well suited to listen to as audio book; narrated by Chipo Chung - who I think is new as narrator of these books. I looked her up, and she's a Zimbabwean acrtress based in London. 

One Thing Leads to Another...

 

At least two readers asked about the background picture behind my Barbie dolls in yesterday's post. (Currently the top right in the collage above.) The short answer is that it's a print on a cork trivet - i.e. if you like, you can put a hot pan or pot on it.

The somewhat longer answer is that the artist behind the image is an old friend of mine, Lena, nowadays living on the west coast of Sweden (where she also grew up). Since her "retirement" (as teacher of young children), she's nowadays busier than ever as a full time artist. Besides painting new originals, she has also had many of her images turned into prints, trays, coasters, trivets, postcards etc to sell to tourists during her summer exhibitions in various towns and villages along the coast. Back in August 2023, my brother and I visited her exhibition at Smögen. Then I also purchased an original by her which now hangs in my hall, by the entrance to my living room. If you click on the Smögen link you'll see photos both from the kind of environment that typically inspires her, the exhibition we visited, the painting which I bought on that occasion, and a photo of Lena and me together. 

A year later she also published a picture book with some of her paintings (which I bought from her), and which I now from time to time have on display (on a small easel) in my home as well. Over the years I've also bought various trays, coasters, trivets, postcards etc from her - some to keep, others to give away. And I often use her images as background on the shelf where my Barbie dolls sit. (Not outdoors weather just now, I imagine them having a "picture window"...!)

Lena also has a website, but I'm afraid it's all in Swedish. 

 

 

On Request...

In a comment to my post Early Autumn Colours, Meike (Librarian) wondered whether Barbie and Skipper have also already changed into "autumn clothes"? The answer is yes! :)

Having sorted through my own wardrobes this week - taking some summer clothes down to the basement for winter storage, and bringing some winter items up instead - I did also find it a good time to dress the dolls for somewhat chillier days. So just now they're in the outfits above (and have been given a battery tealight to brighten up the darker evenings).

For readers who may not know/remember them from earlier posts, the story is that for five decades or more, all my old Barbie(&co) dolls were packed away in a box; first in my parent's attic, and then in my own storage. In 2023 I finally decided to donate them to a charity shop - but in the process of organising that, I arrived at the compromise to keep two (with a selection of clothes for each, most of them made by my mum in the 1960s). 

And since then, these two have been on display on a shelf in my living room instead - and changing outfits now and then, according to season. I suspect I've probably shown their entire wardrobes by now - but I did choose items that can be combined in various ways. In the photo above, all clothes were sewn by my mum, except Barbie's pink top (which I actually made myself a year or two ago, from the cuff of a sock).