Some Christmas Cheer of a popslashy nature, and other stuff

[pensnest]

First and foremost, I have put up a master post on crack_sparkle_pop for a Christmas fic challenge for popslash. Please go here and see if you can find a little spark of popslash left in you for the festive season. (Also, let me know if there's something crucial that I have left out of the master post, yes?)

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I had meant to put up the post on 1st Dec, but on 30th Nov, Beast and I were much involved for most of the day with a concert hosted by our mixed barbershop chorus. Men's chorus and women's chorus were also involved, albeit briefly, and we had a number of invited musical guests with some kind of connection to us.

It went pretty well—a house so full we did have to turn a few people away, which was gratifying, although the seats had been set out for us with very ungenerous leg room, which was not good. And we raised a good deal for the Priscilla Bacon Hospice fund.

Afterwards, Beast and I went out for dinner with some of the other committee members, and had a very nice time. And it wasn't raining for our walk home!

Quite a lot of Sunday was spent on making Sunday lunch (poor Grandpa had been alone from mid-morning until bedtime on Saturday), and the rest on leaf-raking. The sycamore has now dumped its entire load of leaves onto the drive, but with rake, leaf grabbers and (when he got it working properly) the leaf blower, things have been cleared, at least from the front of the house. There is still an ankle-deep layer of orange all round the beech tree at the back.

Oddly, there doesn't seem to have been any red in the trees this year. The sycamore leaves were a bright golden yellow (until they hit the ground, at which point they were mushy and brown); the beech is glorious in copper, and the horse and sweet chestnuts are orange-brown, while the oaks are a softer brown. But nothing seems to be red, this year, except for berries. It's... odd.

Comments

[sylvaine]

Now that you mention it, I haven't seen any red in the trees this year either! Very strange. I wonder what's the cause?

[pensnest]

I know there have been years when we were told that there would be a particularly spectacular autumn, so I suppose this year's weather conditions have been the opposite of whatever caused that!

[frausorge]

Your concert sounds like a great success!

[pensnest]

It went well, and I hope we will also have learned from it how to do a better one next time. We wanted to raise at least £1,000 in order to get a commemorative plaque in the name of one of our founders, who died in that hospice, and I'm pretty sure we reached that target.

[vae]

The concert was fab, I'm sorry we couldn't stay to tell you so but it ran longer than we expected and buses are buses :)

[pensnest]

It was, I think, a bit too long - will be interested in your thoughts on the programme (if you remember it by then) next time I see you. :-) Glad you enjoyed it.

[vae]

I have quite strong thoughts about the balance of it! It did feel a little long to be sitting on those chairs, but the choirs were all fabulous.

[chalcopyrite]

::rubs hands with popslashy glee:: I'll have to see what I can come up with for prompts! And fulfillments too. :D

Ugh, mushy leaves. I'm so glad most of mine get blown away, but the ones that don't are such a pain.

I think the lack of red leaves is related to not having a sharp frost early in the dying-off process. If I remember right. Which is why we never have red leaves here.

[pensnest]

Ah, yes, I suppose your weather is too mild and soft and damp, generally. We are into frosty nights now, but too late for the leaves.

[brandywine28]

Same here! The trees were green, then sort of an acid-y yellowish color, then naked. Disappointing!

(Also: I'm not ignoring the prompts post, just taking a minute to weigh my options! And trying to think up a few ideas that won't have everyone rolling their eyes at me. I can do it! I know I can!)

[turps]

Your concert sounds fantastic.

I've the popslash fic challenge tabbed,and will hopefully be along soon to prompt and ponder the prompts already given.

[sperrywink]

Glad the concert went well!

You know, I hadn't noticed a particularly vibrant Autumn color change either...