Messy Endings.

What an amazing week I've had.  Fall reading week is such a lovely, lovely gift.

The last two days in Nova Scotia were so, so memorable.

Thursday morning we went to an exercise class with Amber's Grandma...who could certainly run circles around me.  This was the second class we did with her, the first, Zumba, was kind of an aerobic, latin dance work out.  Thursday's dealt more with weights and targetting specific muscles.  I couldn't lift my arms above my head until Sunday night!!! Later we went to their cottage in Walton for an afternoon fishing on the beach.  I sat on the rocks, holding my rod still and just staring at the water for hours.  Watching tiny waves roll across the water and gently flap onto the shore.  I watched the fog come in, and inched back as the tide brought the water closer and closer to me.  I didn't catch a fish, but I sure fed lots of them!  It was a warm day, and it was wonderful to feel the sun on my skin, and to wander around the beach with my jeans rolled up and my socks and shoes abandoned.  I even waded into the water, though, for the sake of trying to catch a fish, didn't go past my knees.  Oooooh I love water.

As afternoon became evening, we headed back to the cottage to have dinner.  We were discussing how full we were, when Amber's grandpa noticed what was happening outside.  The fog had completely filled the inlet where we'd been fishing.  He thought I'd like a picture, and I did grab my camera and rush outside.  But not because of the fog (which, is obviously not an unusual experience for me), but instead because the sun was going down.  Beyond some trees, I could see the sky becoming bright pink and purple, and I had to run to the beach.  I slipped on my shoes and bolted down the road trying to get to the other side of the trees so that I could experience it all.  By the time I reached the beach I couldn't breathe from suddenly running, and from the overwhelming beauty around me.  The pictures I took, though lovely, didn't capture it at all.

We left the cottage after Amber, after a reasonably large amount of hints and coaxing, managed to tear me away from the beach.  We made it back to Windsor just in time to head to a haunted house put on by a local school.  I was a little concerned about this, as I've never liked the idea of scaring myself. Luckily, I managed not to scream, potentially because Amber's Grandma did enough for all of us.  We went from the haunted house to carving pumpkins, to watching TV, to going to bed.  It was our last night in Nova Scotia, and finally, the clouds had been blown far enough away that I could see the moon and stars.  After looking at the sky until I couldn't keep my eyes open another moment, I lay back in the silent, dark room, and slept.

In the morning we had breakfast, and went into town to go to the bank and post office, before going for a short walk in the woods to a waterfall that Amber's Grandma had been telling us about.  We walked strait past a gate with a no trespassing sign, and followed the road until we found another sign nailed to a tree.  "This is where we turn," she told us.  It was beautiful.  I don't think I need to say more!

Then we headed off to find some mud.  Yes, mud.  When the tide goes out, it leaves mud.  Lots of red, squelching, gooey, smelly mud.  We painted our selves with it, fought with it, and sunk to our knees in it.  My camera is still covered in it.  And incase that wasn't ridiculous enough, when we got back to the car, and watched Amber's grandfather line it with plastic so we could get in, we headed not home, but to a carwash, where he sprayed us off as we screamed and danced around.  Now that's a memory I'll hold forever.

Memories, and full suitcases in tow, after an hour delay we got on the plane back to Ottawa, where we found something entirely unwelcome - SNOW.  Actually, it was really just enough to be beautiful as it fell, it wasn't sticking or causing any problems.

Saturday, on the other hand, I was on my way to a friend's party when it began to really snow.  And stick.  By the time my friends and I arrived at our destination, snow had covered the grass and roads.  Winter's a-comin!

(The snow is all gone now, but the morning temperatures are all below zero for the rest of this week/month/year/season.)