August in Edinburgh was a whirlwind of activity: long days filled with festivals, tourists, and fireworks. And then September comes, and the sunsets are suddenly much earlier than they have been, and there’s a tiny, delicate whiff of fall in the air. But that’s not all that is different.
At the end of August we finally moved into the flat we bought. This new adventure of home ownership opens up a whole world of ways to spend one’s time. It’s thrilling to suddenly have so much control over our immediate environment, even at the tiniest level. Want more towel racks in the bathroom? You can install them! Hate the stove? Get a new one! Feel like drawing on the walls? Knock yourself out.
I’m sure this childlike joy will fade when we start to deal with the really big projects ahead of us (the building is almost 200 years old; the number of projects is infinite), but for now we are content. The views from our new flat still make me smile many times a day, especially at sunset. I’m curious whether home improvement projects will supplant travel as our favorite way to spend our free time.
We loved our first full (hospital-free) Edinburgh Festival Fringe. I saw over 70 shows during the month – mostly plays and stand-up comedians. In the process of reviewing shows, I started having all sorts of deep thoughts about the whole process of putting on a show, what drives us to entertain others, what makes us seek out entertainment. I’ll spare you further discourse on these thoughts until (if and when) I can lay them out in an entertaining way, but let me just say that I love living in a city so passionate about nurturing this creative exchange.
Speaking of creativity, my first painting exhibition in Edinburgh (in July) went really well (it’s always fun to have people enjoy my art so much that they want to hang it on their walls!). After taking August off from painting to play at being a theater reviewer, I’m excited to get back to the easel again this week (in my brand new studio, even). The rhythm of my daily life has completely changed from August to September, even though both months are playing out in the same city.
Next on the blog expect a big wave of posts about travel in the Western Highlands, trips that I should have written about ages ago. Whenever I start to get less than enthusiastic about writing up our travels, all I have to do is take a look through the archives to appreciate the memories that have been preserved here for the past (almost 8!) years. It’s so nice to be able to look back at these adventures, and it comes in more than a little handy when people ask us for travel tips and advice. Personal travel blogs are great things.
I’ve been thinking about storytelling (especially in performance, but linking it to written) as an essential human need this year–hope you will share your thoughts about it when they become more fully-formed.
Thanks for your comment, Lara. It is all about storytelling, isn’t it? Will see if I can come up with any thoughts worth sharing.