Not my favorite month anymore...

October was always my favorite month because I love fall so much. I even got married in October. Fall never made me feel sad or wistful; it made me feel warm and full. So many good, warm and flavorful treats against a crisp air with the musty smell of leaves and some acrid wood smoke. Well, that was when I lived on the East Coast.

Now in California, October means incessant Santa Anas. Sounds nice: warm, dry, winds. Not exactly. It's so dry my skin feels like lizard-paper and I get nosebleeds and dry skin bumps. Warm to dry out my garden if I don't water it. And those breezes die down at night so you can swelter when you sleep but it's an awkward heat. At 7% humidity you actually chill with the heat and can literally feel the sweat on your palms and feet because it evaporates instantly. These past weeks have been mainly hotter than hot Santa Anas and my plants look a little worse for the wear. My seedlings are enjoying it because Iwater them daily. I would love to do warm meals at night, but with this weather, grilled burgers and chicken is about all we can handle.

The worst part is the constant fires with these Santa Anas---man made fires and fires due to power lines blown down etc. We lived through 2 major ones in the past 5 years and they were devastating, exasperating and depressing.

My daughter's friend summed it up best today: "it's so dry even the boys are using ChapStick.

Yes, I hate October in California but not back East. I love it back there. Next year, I will go back for a long weekend in October. Even if it rains the whole time, I will have the crisp air and the lovely smells of fall to make me feel warm again.

Winter garden

Dug up everything except some herbs and tilled and planted a bunch of seeds: carrots (sweet treat), snap peas, broccoli, sweet peas, romaine, spinach, onions. All from seeds. I put a bunch of bird netting over it for now so gato-gordo doesn't view it like he always does: a beautiful new litterbox.
Always exciting to think about winter vegetables. Even though I am missing my summer tomatoes already!

Sarah

What is the big deal about Sarah Palin? Why is she so evil?

I do not agree with a lot of her stances on things but she is not intolerant or evil. Not from anything I've heard or seen.

And what is intolerant or so evil about keeping her Down Syndrome child? I work with these patients and yes, most do terminate. But how is keeping, caring and loving your Tri 21 kid evil? Heroic is more how I'd call it.



Isn't she the ultimate feminist? She has family, kids, career and deals with crap at home and work but it doesn't throw her. Since when did abortion and liberalism equal feminism? I believe in both of those, but I don't believe it is exclusionary of feminism. Unless of course, we are wanting feminism to just die a natural death here.



Wake up. She's ok. She may not be you or me, but she sure has gone after and achieved what most of us have not (by choice or life circumstances). Dude, she hunts and cooks caribou too. I can only cook it. (Hunting is not my thing)

beginnings

just starting out and I chose the theme from this lovely poem:

THIS IS JUST TO SAY
I have eaten
the plums
that were in
the icebox

and which
you were probably
saving
for breakfast.

Forgive me
they were delicious
so sweet
and so cold.
-- William Carlos Williams