Marvelous Monday: Week 41

Oh, my. I can't believe marathon weekend is in the books. This morning started out gray and gloomy, and the road barriers still stacked next to every intersection exacerbated a little feeling of post-marathon letdown. (And I wasn't even running! Jeepers!) It was a full, hectic, wonderful and fulfilling few days - the first marathon weekend I've experienced in a more intensive volunteer role than past years - and I'm thinking I'll elaborate a little bit more when my thoughts are more coherent.

For now, it's Marvelous Monday. Here are five sweet pieces about the start of the week:

1) Reading report: I finished Gone Girl, which I found both totally crazy and, as advertised, a great vacation/summer read (even though I obviously wasn't on vacation). I don't usually tread too deeply into the Mystery/Thriller/Crazy Storyline genre, but this book was a quick read and wholly captivating because of the wild storyline. I finished it a full week ago and the end still gives me shivers. And I was also giving Josh, who hadn't read the book, periodic updates with every twist and turn, which I'm sure he really appreciated. Now I'm on to Swamplandia! I also stocked up on Kindle books from the library, because...

2) ...I'm traveling this week! I'm flying to Montreal for a work conference. I am so excited both about the conference material and the chance to explore a city that has been on my To Visit list for ages. I need to cram a little bit of French vocabulary this week! Have any of you been there? Any recommendations for me?

3. Food report: I love candy corn and enthusiastically basked in the vast quantities that were all around me this weekend. But I also love soup and am trying to redirect that energy toward cooking a batch of the pumpkin-black bean stew tonight instead.

4. The past couple of weeks leading up to marathon weekend have been so full for both of us that our home had slowly been going to shambles. (Reader, I don't hold anything back in Miles and Laurel.) When I came home from the marathon yesterday, I opened the door and found that Josh had aggressively deep-cleaned the entire place (including the chores that I hate) to surprise me. It was the best thing ever, because starting the week with a scrubbed, shiny home was exactly what the doctor ordered (or would order, had I visited a doctor to seek advice).

5. Wish has found a new love in his life, and it is leaf piles. They are all over the neighborhood now - not even officially human-generated leaf piles, just piles of leaves next to fences and hedges. Today he tromped through a pile so deep it covered his legs, and seeing his stocky torso scoot through the leaves was so cute, I laughed out loud.

Of course, being at the marathon finish line yesterday also got me totally pumped up for my own race a week from Sunday. Even though one big fall event is over now, there's a lot of marvelous stuff still coming up.

What are you looking forward to this month, Reader? Do you love or hate candy corn, and do you think it's possible to feel ambivalent about candy corn? Did you run a race this weekend? And tell me what you're reading, because there's still time to add to my book list for my trip later in the week!