Classic Style

  T he end is nigh!  The autumn semester/term approaches.  And while we still have almost two months of summer left according to the calendar, "Summer is over and gone," as the crickets sang in Charlotte's Web .  At least for those of us who head back to the classroom in less than a month.   In advance of a meeting with my program director late Monday morning, I spent about 40 minutes total during the weekend to jot down several ideas about planned workshops and related activities for the coming 2024-2025 academic year.  At an opportune moment, I mentioned "I have a few ideas," and opened my leather portfolio.   My director was highly receptive to almost everything I suggested, and we had a very productive planning session for just over 90 minutes.  Just about everything I sketched out on Sunday aligns with his own ideas.  It's nice when meetings go that well, and two related things occur to me in hindsight. One, it pays to exercise...

I t's getting to be that time in the summer!  Yep, the garden fresh vegetables are starting to come in.  Picked up the first half-share of the Grand Duchess' Summer 2024 community supported agriculture allotment late yesterday (Thursday) afternoon.  Some delicious looking items that will make a nice salad for dinner this evening.  Meanwhile, the Grand Duchess and Young Master are across Lake Michigan in Wisconsin visiting cousins for the next several days and attending a large annual airshow. while yours truly holds down the fort. More of the usual summertime fare in the attire photos featured.  This particular shirt, while it has not appeared here in quite some time, is one of my favorites.  An item that has been in the seasonal rotation for a dozen years or more.  It ironed up nicely before I put it on and tucked it in.  The chino shorts (with a 6" inseam. . .  I know, I know.) are one of many such khaki pairs currently occupying the bottom...

  A quiet, calm summer so far here at Totleigh-in-the-Wold!  But time and weeds wait for no man!  So, the late morning has been spent weeding flower beds around the house, and I'll tackle the beds in the front and backyards after lunch.  Not a huge task, mind you, but by this point in the summer there are always things that have taken hold in the mulch that need to come out. As usual, pretty typical summer attire for this blissfully comfortable July day.  Nothing new with everything shown at least a few years old although the khaki shorts have been around for a decade or more.  As I suggest so often, even when at home all by oneself, there is no need to resemble a walking, talking hamper of soiled laundry.  It's actually not as hard to look presentable as many apparently think. -- Heinz-Ulrich