I LOVE the month of October! Yes, ok I was born in this month, but I generally love the cool, crisp Fall weather and this is my favorite time of the year.  I’ve been keeping my eyes open for October-themed or autumnal 1880’s Victorian trade cards…found a few to share today. I also scooped up an alphabet card,  V for Veronica of course, although the maker of the card series seemed to feel the letter is best represented by volcanoes and vipers and vino.

We had a poem we had to memorize in elementary school, “October’s Bright Blue Weather” by Helen Hunt Jackson, published in 1893. Here’s the first stanza:

O SUNS and skies and clouds of June,
        And flowers of June together,
    Ye cannot rival for one hour
        October’s bright blue weather;

The poem goes on for six more stanzas along these lines, SO much bounteous praise for my favorite month, and then the poetess concludes:

O suns and skies and flowers of June,
        Count all your boasts together,
    Love loveth best of all the year
        October’s bright blue weather.

Totally works for me!

So the 8th is my birthday…here’s me hard at work tomorrow on the current WIP, because birthday or no, we authors must get the words out….I did actually learn to type on a typewriter nearly that old, a Royal that my Dad picked up for cheap at a thrift store when I was a kid. That’s why I still literally pound the keys,  even on my nice laptop, because you had to use force to get those metal strikers to fly up and leave a letter imprinted on the paper.

And here’s me, trying on new earrings for the family dinner party we’re having to celebrate the event…She was actually advertising Magnolia Balm on this card. And then here’s The Author celebrating in the last card below:

The bottle contains “Compound Oxygen” created by Drs. Starkey & Palen of Philadelphia. The back of the trade card admonished sternly that this was “not a drug” and  listed numerous Editors, Ministers, Foreign Consuls and Members of Congress who swore by the stuff. All I can say is she looks pretty darn relaxed and cheerful for someone who’s just “restored the Fountainhead of all mental and physical activity to a state of integrity, thereby causing her muscles, nervous system and organs to all act more kindly and efficiently.” GIVE me some of THAT!