Welcome to November


November has arrived, the second to last month of the 2015. I am going to say what I always say at this time of the year . . . where has the year gone. 

I haven't done half of what I planned to do, I haven't saved as much money as my spreadsheet said I would, I haven't lost as much weight as I expected, I haven't been as organised as I wanted to be but I but I have probably read far more books than plans (!!) — o'dear, not a lot I can do about it.   Next year perhaps!

So what are my plans for November
(I can not guarantee I will get any thing on my list done, but I always try my best):


1. Start Christmas shopping. It would be great to have most of it done before December and as I have some ideas of what I want to buy it shouldn't difficult. I do have to make some orders from overseas, so they should be done as soon as possible to make sure they arrive on time. 

2. Start a quilt that I am making for a birthday next year. I need plenty of time as quilts take me ages to make (I get side-tracked to often).

3. Organise birthday cards for November —already sent my brothers, which is good as today is his birthday!!

4. Start reading Alice in Wonderland for bookclub - looking forward to this as I haven't read Alice since I was a teen. 

5. Keep loosing weight and exercising daily — I have been doing this all October and been a little disappointed in not seeing results fast enough!!

6. Tidy up my jumpers from winter and wash any that need washing before storing them away for another season. 


What are your plans for November?



As you know, I love interesting facts about stuff — so here is some things that you might not have known about November!! Enjoy. 


The birthstone for November is the topaz.

The birth flower for November is the chrysanthemum.

The Anglo-Saxons called November ‘Blotmonath’ after the blood of slaughtered cattle. In Finland they call November 'marraskuu' which translates as month of the dead.In Welsh it is "Tachwedd" also meaning slaughter of the animals.

In the original Roman calendar, November was the ninth month of the year. It got its name from the Latin word "novem" which means nine. However, it became the eleventh month when the Romans added in January and February to the start of the year. 

November is the only month used to represent a letter in the phonetic alphabet.

In any given year, November starts on the same day of the week as March and ends on the same day of the week as August.

November is a month of spring in the Southern Hemisphere and autumn in the Northern Hemisphere. Therefore November in the Southern Hemisphere is the seasonal equivalent of May in the Northern Hemisphere and vice versa.

November is the most disagreeable month in the whole year,” according to Louisa M Alcott in Little Women, which is  interesting as Lousia was born in November (1832). 

There is no mention of the month of November in any of Shakespeare’s plays or sonnets.

November is Peanut Butter Lovers Month and National Pomegranate month in the USA.

Guy Fawkes day in Britain. The day was declared a holiday by decree of Parliament after Parliament was saved from being blown up by Guy Fawkes in the Gunpowder Plot of 1605. 

Thanksgiving Day - fourth Thursday of November for those in the USA

John F. Kennedy was assassinated on November 22 1963.

Mark Twain, American author, was born November 30, 1835.


Comments

  1. Sounds like a reasonable list to me and three of those said 'start', so there is no pressure to finish.
    I didn't know there was a peanut butter lovers month, but I know how to celebrate it!

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    Replies
    1. Starts can take me a while!!! and the quilt certainly will take more than a month to make.

      I do like peanut butter, especially in biscuits (cookies) - I should make some this week.

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  2. Here's one for your November fact list: L.M. Montgomery, author of Anne of Green Gables, was born Nov 30, 1874.

    I too wonder where the year has gone. List of projects -- so many still undone. But we have made small steps forward, so we'll take grateful gulps for that.

    Wishing you a great month ahead. Hope you get your Christmas shopping done early. That is always a nice feeling.

    Brenda

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    Replies
    1. My sons have both given me lists of what they would like for Christmas - they are all grown up and I prefer to get them what they want rather than something that will collect dust.

      Have a wonderful November :)

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  3. How amazing it is to think that for you November means Spring while here it's Autumn, how fascinating Nature is !
    Thanks for your always beautiful and interesting posts, my darling friend,
    have a lovely remainder of your week,
    sending dear love
    Dany

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thankyou Dany - It is funny that whilst I am bringing out my summer frocks you are looking for jumpers.

      :)))

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  4. October seemed to disappear for me this month. Maybe something about raking so many leaves and thinking about fires instead of life in general. Then we were away about 5 days. I am amazed that it is already November.
    I'm also trying to lose some weight and get back on the exercise program!
    The most disagreeable month of the whole year would be January, I think. :-) February would be worse in a more northern climate, but in Texas it's turning to spring already in at least some ways.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. October is quite a busy month for me with a number of birthdays and it seems to wiz past very quickly. This October was much the same as any other year for me!!

      Whilst I love summer, January and February can be so hot and without air-conditioning in our home I am finding it much harder to cope with (I think it is an age thing!). Some time soon (in the next few years) I think I will persuade my husband to add air-conditioning as it will make summer much more enjoyable.

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  5. I found the facts about November so interesting!! I have always liked November. Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday. :-)

    I am so glad I stopped by today! :-)

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Do you like November because it is Fall - our Fall (Autumn) is March, April and May and they are my favourite months as Autumn is my favourite season.

      We don't have Thanksgiving here in Australia - but I do hope you have a wonderful celebration.

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  6. Interesting facts about November - I love trivia!! :)
    I agree, last year went past altogether too fast - it seems like every year whizzes by quicker than the one before, if that's even possible!!
    How did you go with your plans for November? In November I was making all kinds of plans for my summer holidays, but most of them went out the door and hectic ran in!!!!!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Still trying to read Alice in Wonderland - need to focus a little more on that!!! The quilt is cut out, just needs to be sewn back together.

      it is hard to believe that it is almost the end of January 2016 - already!!! I think this will be another very swift year, perhaps that is what happens when one gets older.

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