First Signs of Autumn

 This week was the week the weather turned ccccold, no really quite nippy and in the Harberton Mead lane you could kick your way through mounds of leaves, like we used to do as kids in the autumn.
AND it was ''raining conkers'', I kid you not, it being windy the conkers were dropping down all around me.

 From up there, to down here and I was thankful that none of them hit me on the head on the way down.
I much prefer this way of getting to Marston, not taking the Brookes bus with the students who stood in my sore foot last week, but via the newly extended Thornhill park&ride - 500 new parking spaces!!! so there's a space left in the afternoon. Then a leisurely walk down Pullen's Lane and Harberton Mead to Marston with Scottish dance music playing on my new i-phone 5. No headphones as I hardly ever meet anyone.

 I was early for my seminar on the first floor at the Marston Campus, so I took a quick pic of those famous ''dreaming spires'', the classic view of Oxford.

 The latter is the realm view, un-zoomed.

My most recent crochet was inspired by this on Ravelry:
http://www.ravelry.com/projects/GaranciAlitaA/d-flower-motif-shawl--2

I had some Drops Delight so I got stuck in! Made up the stitches as I went along. 3.5 mm hook and Drops Delight in shade 3,4 and 7 , still available from Woolwarehouse.

 My way was: chain 6 , close with ss. Then ch 4 being a Tr and 1ch, THEN 1Tr 1 ch into the circle until you have 8 including the 4ch which counts as a Tr and 1ch, close with ss.

 Then ch 5( counts as 1Tr and 2 ch) but move the stitch to the chsp by ss along first, then continue Tr and 2ch in each ch sp and close with ss.

 Then ch3, counts as Tr, and 3 Tr into 2 ch sp, then work 4Tr in all remaining ch sps and close with ss.

 Now you set up the foundation for the petals: ch1, dc in first Tr,* ch5, miss 2 Tr, 1 dc in each of next 2 Tr, repeat from * to end with a single dc. You have 8 loops.

 CH 3 then work 7 more Tr in the first 5chsp ( or loop),  dc in the centre of the 2 dc between loops, then repeat by working 8Tr in all remaining loops and a dc between loops.
ss to finish! VOILA nice flower.

 And in view of the chilly evenings, the fact that the next batch of sloes is in the freezer and the need for a wee nightcap ( JJ's emotional freezing) I have been enjoying the occasional wee dram of last year's SLOE GIN! Yumsers! It's really REALLY good 'n FRUITY now it's just over a year old!

 Cherry coloured NECTAR.

GOOD NIGHT, sleep tight. Sweet Dreams.