End of summer rituals

[CostaDelOrchard]

It’s been a bit nippy today so got me thinking I should probably wash the summer bedding before the weather changes, also been eating in the garden most evenings (same reason), I should probably pencil in the seaside trip we’ve postponed the whole summer.

Does anyone have any other suggestions or rituals to wind down to autumn (like the opposite of spring cleaning? I suppose wiping down the garden furniture and putting it away should be on the list)?

I read that book. It's really good. Although it is more about the metaphorical winter rather than the literal. It's still best to read it at this time of year though.

You see for me the summer has been rubbish and I just want it to end. I'm so sick of the odd day or week of nice hot weather above 25c, I'd rather have a month of constant 25c+ than what we've been having.

Apparently it's 23c here today but it's cloudy and breezy so definitely not sitting in the garden weather

This thread has reminded me that my pretty ancient sheepskin house boots* could definitely do with a machine wash. I live in them indoors in winter, but they do take ages to dry, so 🤞 I won’t be needing them for the next week or so.

*renovated last year with a new pair of sheepskin insoles, £15.

The comment about sitting bolt upright all summer made me laugh.

This is a public service announcement to order your pre-loved copy of Nigel Slater's Christmas Chronicles before seasonal demand pushes the price up.

Now I'm off to the beach.

I get all the blankets out, washed and lined dried. I think that may be today's job!

This has wound me up in an otherwise lovely thread. So wasteful to chuck out products like that sorry!

Yes

Don't understand why someone would do this

Fair enough if you put the stuff away

Big jumpers, coats and boots mainly. Cosy PJ's. Fleecy leggings. Hats, Scarves and gloves. Thick, wool socks.

I don't have a lot of wardrobe space so summer and winter have to take turns with the rest being packed away.

I’m not at the “no toenail varnish” stage yet. That’s the declaration that while not full autumnal /winter clothing, I’m wearing socks and trainers or closed toe shoes for work now, no more sandals/flipflops. I think this week still needs nail varnish on toes. It’s usually mid September that I clean off polish one evening and don’t bother replacing until I have a trip to the swimming pool planned.

Not yet, September is often nicer than august!

I will change my duvet over in a month or so

I definitely don't do this sort of thing as much as I used to with a school aged child.

For the last couple of years I've tried to extend summer by holidaying abroad at the end of September and then at some time in the winter (just to southern Europe), and even more so now that I've retired .

I used to love Autumn but now tend to see it as the beginning of a few months of cold and darkness where I am lucky I can escape for a while .

Clothes wise, I have a drawer for tee shirts/ vests , one for long sleeve tees and sweaters and another for hoodies/fleeces and a double wardrobe where my 'currently worn clothing' is on one side and my packed away is a bit more squashed on the other side. I move things back and forth gradually but my sun dresses are still on the squashed side and will come out for one week when we go to Croatia .

My shoes are in a heap at the bottom with sandals currently on top of my boots.

Buying any school uniform that's needed
Playing our "Autumn Playlist", on Alexa, in the mornings.
Going to Softplay on one of the last days of the Summer holidays.

I always LOL at the 'cosy Autumn/Winter days' type comments! 😆 'Oooh, skipping through Autumn leaves, chilly dark nights, frosty mornings, 'crisp' walks (WTF is a CRISP WALK?!) cocoa, hot chocolate, snuggles on the sofa, big fluffy socks, big warm slankets, pumpkin spice latte - cosy cosy cosy!'

I actually really like cold, bright winter days (scraping ice off the car not so much). It feels like we didn't get many last winter, though(it was something like the wettest on record), I think I only scraped the ice off my car twice.

A proper clear winter night when you can see the stars and moon and see the moon reflecting on the frozen ground or on say a lake is one of the natural world's beauties.

I love summer as well though.

Each season brings different things that are a joy to see.

Oooooh I think I've encountered that LOL poster before on a similar thread! Or else it was someone with the same strong views on cold weather and similar "LOL at you... I HATE... it is GRIM... slug people....hot choccy 😂 🤣 😆 etc" writing style

Honestly, I feel really sorry for people who live in the UK and cannot summon any enjoyment from colder months. It must absolutely suck.

I don't have heating in my office (secondary school 😑), so believe me when I say I don't "love" freezing weather. I have to work all day in full thermals and a coat 😂. But there are nice things about autumn/winter for me 🤷‍♀️. Some people do absolutely hate that opinion though. I find that incredibly weird.

And I've never used the term hot choccy in my entire life (except just now to illustrate a point)

Change from white wine to red wine.

Job done 😀

Chimney swept, logs bought, boiler serviced, oil tank filled. All of which costs a bloody fortune.

Then fingers in ears in anticipation of the first mention of the fucking C word

@frozendaisy ha- yep that's me post my holiday on 21st September

My log shed is full, and the chimney sweep has been booked. I have a stack of kindling ready to go.
The children's school uniforms are bought and ready to wear.
I still have to do my clothes swap. I work a lot from home, and our house gets very cold. I have an array of thermals to wear in the winter months, and warm slippers.
The tomatoes and chillies will be composted soon after harvesting the last of the fruit.
I have a second duvet that goes over the top of the summer one, so that will be coming out soon, and I'll be bringing some blankets downstairs for the sofas.
The outdoor cushions will be bagged up and stored, and the pool will be dismantled.
The ponds will get tennis balls put in them in case they freeze.
The bags of emergency blankets and coats will go back into the car in case of breakdowns.
The temporary insulation will go back onto the windows in the lesser-used rooms. Curtains will be put back up over draughty doors, like the one into the garage.
Most importantly, I shall be ordering my new diary for next year.

Playing our "Autumn Playlist", on Alexa, in the mornings.

What would be an autumn song?

Oooh windmills of my mind.

And slipping through my fingers so the mums can cry when the children go back to school.

Smashing pumpkins album?

And slipping through my fingers so the mums can cry when the children go back to school.

I play Kool & the Gang - Celebration or Leonard Cohen.

@Glitterglitch much more sensible.

For those who remember, Terry Wogan played slipping through my fingers every September for the parents taking children to school for their first day or off to university. I remember howling in the kitchen holding my 1yr old daughter. And now I'm nearly at the uni stage. 😭

Forever Autumn by Justin Hayward

Lovely song