Reasons to be Cheerful #2

Wow. Is it Wednesday already? That's a reason in itself to be cheerful. But not one of today's official reasons. Linking up again with Planet Penny's excellent cheerfulness party, I give you this week's dose of Micawber merriness.

1. Winter curtains. Several years ago I realized that our everyday muslin curtains, while letting in a lot of light, and providing an admirably neutral background for the riot of quilts on the walls, did not help to warm the frosty nights, nor did they add any cosiness to our drafty apartment when once the mercury dropped.

Summer curtains

So I made a set of red curtains for winter, and every November I put them up. The winter curtains are warm and bright and extremely cosy-looking by lamplight. Plus they make a great backdrop for Christmas decorations. They make me feel cheerful!

It's curtains for you, winter!

2. A woodworking husband. Looking at my living room photos makes me realize how much of his handiwork surrounds us. Mr. M designed and built all our bookshelves. He made the little wooden footstool (which, alas! is covered with magazines and yarn, leaving no room for feet), and the table top for the treadle machine (also covered with yarn, I'm afraid). He framed most of our pictures. He built the little bistro table we keep in the porch, and which provides the backdrop to many of my photos. He made this stunning cutting board 25 years ago:

As you can see, it still gets regular use. Look at those joints! (They're holding up better than mine.)

I'm so grateful for his talented craftiness.

3. The scent of those organic Gala apples sitting on the cutting board above. I opened a bag of them yesterday, and the golden-tinged, apple-cheeked, freckle-faced beauties smelled just like roses. Mmmmm.

Here's wishing you an upbeat end-of-week. To find more Reasons to be Cheerful, head on over to Planet Penny. And while you're there, if the blithe spirit so moves you, share some cheerfulness of your own.

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