The housework orgy was successful. My husband and #1 son helped me when they got home. The house doesn’t really look different, since so much of what I did was of the deep-cleaning type of thing — scrubbing the pantry floor, washing the inside door of the broom cupboard — but there is still a sense of satisfaction.

In the evening, I got some inches done on this nice mysterious object.

I also got my review (as distinct from my fact-checking) for the history encyclopedia mailed off.

Pokey and Distant Eyes and Scarf Boy are arriving today, so there will be grocery shopping and baking this morning, and I hope there will also be some yard work. With any luck, #2 son will get home early enough to assist me with the selection of some pumpkins. I foresee carving at some point this weekend.

The craft fairs are on in our area this weekend — school in the county to the north of us closed Thursday and Friday because of them. Not so much because the teachers all wanted to go to the craft fairs as that the buses cannot get through with the extra traffic.

Pokey is thinking of going to the biggest fair — 170,000 people last year, making it one of the biggest craft fairs in the world — with her guests. This fair is at the War Eagle mill — a water-powered mill where they grind grains now as they did a hundred years ago. I have never gone to their fair, because they crowds and traffic are not my idea of fun, but we do go to the mill pretty regularly for our cereals and flours. It is a beautiful drive, and they make very good pies there, too.

The weather is cooperating with us. It should be a perfectly gorgeous weekend. I hope your is wonderful.