I’m kicking off the weekend with an Earl Grey Hot Toddy and a few good books.  Old books are my weakness.  I can’t resist. Sorry e-readers, nothing beats holding a real, hardbound book in your hands.  The weight.  The texture of each page between your fingers.  The smell of a time long forgotten, pressed between the pages and preserved in the spine.

It’s been my dream, ever since I was a little girl, to have my own library, overflowing with antique books.  All of the classics – Hemingway, Twain, Longfellow, Capote, Hugo, Verne, Mitchell – really, I could go on forever!

Knowing my obsession, and possibly in an attempt to save my husband from the fate of being buried alive in books, as a wedding gift, my parents gave us a gorgeous set of three massive, antique, floor-to-ceiling book cases to house our ever-growing collection.  These days the shelves are filled with children’s books, cookbooks and all the old college textbooks that we just can’t seem to part with. Why are those things so hard to get rid of?! (I am lucky that my degree is in English so many of my text books are actually tomes of classic literature.)  One case, however, is dedicated to the old, curious, tattered and decrepit books that I love, and it’s my favourite.

On the reading list for this weekend I’m revisiting some of my favourites: Mary Shelley, Washington Irving, Poe and maybe a few of Andersen’s Fairy Tales.  I think it’s an apropos literary introduction to October.  What are you reading this month?

As for the toddy, I can’t think of a better companion to a good, gothic novel.  Simply brew a strong cup of Earl Grey tea.  Add a shot (1.5 oz.) of your favourite whiskey – I use  Leoplod Bros, a small batch whiskey, distilled in Denver.  Squeeze in the juice of half a lemon and sweeten with honey.   It’s the perfect way to close out the month of September.