Good Mabon and Project Runway Recap - No Spoilers

Good Mabon to all of you. At 3:02 pm (Central Standard Time) the Autumnal Equinox will occur, officially ushering us into Fall. It's the High Holy Days for my Jewish friends, with Rosh Hashana on Thursday and Friday, and Yom Kippur coming on September 30th. One week later the harvest festival of Sukkot will be celebrated. It's a busy few weeks in the Jewish calendar. We are now entering the days for reflection - time to look forward to the harvest season and subsequent deep cold, in the Northern Hemisphere and to think back on the year that is ending, resolving to improve in the upcoming cycle.

Good Mabon to all. Celebrate the Autumnal Equinox
by thanking Spirit for life, love, friends and all
things good. Goddess Bless! 

Now, on to the synopsis of last night's episode of Project Runway. No spoilers until my Saturday post, so it's COMPLETELY safe to read.

The models chose their own designers. Here, Margarita, Michael,
Kentaro and Samantha hear what the challenge will be from
Tim Gonn. Liris chose Michael again and Kentaro was chosen by
Meisha - both of them repeating their designer experiences from
the previous challenge. 

In an interesting flip, the models were the clients and the eleven designers suddenly had to listen and design to the specifications and input of their models instead of just listening and then turning around and doing what they had originally wanted despite the model's commentaries. Well, they didn't get away with it this time.

The designs needed to be street style and something appropriate that each model could wear on their "day off" and use on social media websites and in posts for self-promotion. Each model chose her own designer and the Twins were among the final three chosen. After a half-hour designing session and a trip to Mood with a $200 budget, everyone reconvened in the workroom for a one-day challenge.

The other thing that was finally addressed in this episode (although still not to my satisfaction) was the symbiotic relationship between the Terrible Twins - Shawn and Claire. Heidi addressed their constant interactions a bit in her sleep wear challenge, and Tim had remarked about them being on opposite sides in the Good vs Evil challenge, but their constant relying on the other to sew, pin, and brainstorm was starting to get on the nerves of the other designers.

Tim Gunn pointed out that Claire had helped Shawn to the detriment of her own completed design. Apparently Claire had wanted different pants, but had run out of time because she had been helping Shawn. The judges all agreed that Claire was allowed to help Shawn, but they also agreed that she should have had her own design complete before doing so. The final decision from the judges was that the ability to say "No," rested with Claire, not Shawn, and that she needed to grow a backbone and learn to force her sister to do her own work. Interesting. I look forward to seeing what happens from here. 

Everyone managed to get their looks completed and onto the Runway, and most of the models were very happy with the end results that followed their dictates. One point that was brought out in this episode was that each designer had a tightrope to walk - they had to design something that would meet the requirements and desires of their clients, but they also had to design something that worked within their own design aesthetic. 

Along with the standard judges, Zac Posen and Nina Garcia, they were joined by Georgina Chapman and a recording artist I had never heard of before (but unless it was someone involved in Heavy Metal, it is unlikely that I would know them anyway, I'm so out of the loop of modern cultural "stars"). Oh well - LOL. 

So, tomorrow I'll review the top and bottom looks for you, but today you're safe with the minimal review. This episode had DRAMA in capital letters. Such fun! Have a great Friday and I'll be back on Saturday. Now, off to the pool because everything goes better with a brisk swim to start the day. 

Equinox Rain

If anyone in our area had been planning to welcome Fall in an outdoor ceremony, they wouldn't have been able to outdo the fireworks Mother Nature brought for us last night. With flash flood warnings in place, a constant rumble of thunder, and the sky showing lightning that would rival the red carpet at the Academy Awards, it was a busy, busy night. At 12:30 am it was still raining hard, although the thunder and lightning had finally calmed down. When I finally awakened at 3:15 am the rain had stopped, but the warnings continue until 11 pm tonight. Ah, Fall in the Frozen Northlands - nothing quite like it.

Happy Equinox to all of you. We're ushering in one of my favorite seasons
here in Minnesota. It's a time of colorful leaves, crisp days, and amazing
beauty and bounty. We'll be following it by winter - my least favorite
season - but what a way to go! 

I'm posting photos of rainstorms, clouds and fall leaves to celebrate Mabon and our past and upcoming rainstorms. I also want to mention that today is Free Short Stack day at your local Perkins/Marie Callender's restaurants. If you make a donation to "Give Kids the World", the charity they've supported for many years, they'll give you a free short stack of pancakes. Yummy! I usually eat there several times a week anyway (one egg, two pieces of bacon and two pieces of toast with a POT of coffee), so giving a bit more for kids? No problem!

We were getting hundreds of lightning strikes per hour for a while last
night. I was nervous enough that I turned my computer off for the night -
something I rarely do since I schedule all of the system backups, etc. for
my overnight hours. It's much quieter now and I'm much happier. 

Shelf clouds like this spectacular example, presage thunderstorms. They are
formed by a mix of cold air coming down from above hitting a different
air level coming from below. The Weather Channel has some excellent
examples and explanations if you want details (and more accuracy
than my sparse explanation above). 

Have a wonderful Thursday. If I could, I'd send our rainstorms to those of you who truly need the moisture - California and other hot spots come to mind. However, I don't seem to have those superpowers. I have Project Runway to watch tonight and I'll be back tomorrow with some Kitty photos. The furry demons are doing very well, and my allergies suck! Oh well ...

Happy Ostara

Even though Spring doesn't truly arrive in my area until after 5:00 pm today, I think we've all had enough Winter. So I'm welcoming Spring to my horizon and looking at this as a chance to leave the depression of the winter behind and relish the return of color and warmth to my world.

Happy Ostara to my friends in the Northern Hemisphere, and
Blessed Mabon to my friends in the Southern Hemisphere. Let's all join in
celebrating the turning of the seasons once more. 

There are a few things in the air today that should be resolved by day's end. When that happens, I'll be able to relax a bit more and really enjoy the seasonal change just starting. Today's post is short and sweet, but heartfelt. Have a wonderful Friday and a fun weekend ahead of you.

Good Mabon to All

Fall arrives today. In the northern hemisphere, which happens to be where I live, it is the culmination of the year, the harvest time, the time to celebrate bounty with friends and family and thank the Powers for their blessings. It is my favorite time of the year - cool nights and warmer days, the colors of the foliage, and the variety of fruits and vegetables. And some of the best holidays take place in the autumn - Halloween and Thanksgiving.

I am very lucky with where I live. Although I don't like the snows and cold of winter, I get the incredible beauty and colors of autumn. Many years we have hillsides of mingled gold and russet tones, it's nature's time to paint with a vivid palette and I love the colors. Where I was growing up in Colorado we would get fields of golden Aspen trees carpeting the mountainsides and valleys. Not as colorful as the reds that I get from the maples and sycamores of Minnesota, but equally stunning.

The crisp air of fall mornings are both a promise and a warning. They promise and warn that winter is on its way. Winter traditionally is the season to sit back and relax a bit. But late winter and spring are the season of need when food supplies run short and hunger stalks everyone's footsteps.

So celebrate the bounty of the fall. Lay the tables full with the harvest - the honey from the hives, the gourds from the garden. Pluck the last of the tomatoes, gather the last of the roses and other flowers. Cook the goose brought down from the sky with thanks, and later in the year, roast the turkey and join in prayers with your family. It's autumn, it's your opportunity to celebrate the events - good and bad - that happened over the past year. Good Mabon to All.