There was a young fellow named Hall
Who fell in the spring in the fall.
‘Twould have been a sad thing
Had he died in the spring,
But he didn’t — he died in the fall.

I wish I could claim credit for that gem, but the author’s identity has been lost in the mists of time. But it is one of my favorite Limericks, and one I think of fondly in the fall. Morbid puns in rhyme form are perfect for the change of seasons and the approach of Halloween.

I suspect it will shock exactly none of you to know that things have been busy and full of singing, but not so busy that I haven’t been able to take the dogs to the beach!

The Magnificent Hildegard at Ocean Beach Dog Beach (shade courtesy yours truly)

I have loads of fun singing coming up this month!

• October 11-12: Midsummer Night’s Dream with San Diego Master Chorale and the San Diego Symphony
• October 13: cross-border singing with Choir! Choir! Choir!
• October 18:  Looking Back: American Mavericks with SACRA/PROFANA
• October 19: Truth and Reconciliation with San Diego Master Chorale
• October 20: Choral Evensong at All Souls’ Episcopal Church Point Loma, with the choir of St. Bartholomew’s Poway

After those rather intense weeks, I have a few relatively quiet ones, during which I hope to finish up a few writing projects, and then we begin rehearsals for SACRA/PROFANA’s holiday concerts. And best of all, we had a successful Kickstarter campaign, so we will be recording the music from that concert on a holiday album! The plan is to release said album in plenty of time for Christmas 2020, so watch this space for details. Master Chorale will also be having a Messiah Sing-Along, which I always enjoy. Plus, there will be caroling at O’Brien’s Pub to look forward to, plus all the Advent and Christmas concerts I can squeeze in! For all that my sun-loving self somewhat dreads the approach of short days and cold nights, I’m grateful for the reminder that so many wonderful musical things happen during the darker days of the year.

Still, it is a sad reality that being busy with wonderful music results in less time to write, at least until I win the lottery or obtain an exceptionally wealthy sonnet-loving patron. But I am clinging to the mantra “incremental progress is still progress” as I make tiny steps forward on various writing projects. I am looking forward to being finished with the smaller ones so I can move on to the various projects incubating in different parts of my brain. Also my poor, neglected sci-fi novel. ~pets it sympathetically~

Last and probably least, I am very much looking forward to revealing this year’s punny Halloween costume! I don’t know that it’ll be my best costume, but I’m looking forward to wearing it to work and explaining my costume to the confused masses.

Heh. “Explaining myself to the confused masses” might be a good name for my next memoir, verse or otherwise. Or possibly, “I could use a nap.”

Smooches to All!

Libby