Sweet November

Patience may be rewarded

We are coming to the end of November and the weather is gorgeous. The coming week will be cooler but mostly clear, so I can't complain. I will just pile on the hand knits and move mittens and mitts for myself higher on the list of things I need to make more of.

We did not eat these

Thanksgiving was fun - fabulous food and good company. With a crowd in attendance we had ample excuse to go all out and serve both turkey and ham, plus a big assortment of sides in including two kinds of dressing, two kinds of gravy, and oysters. No oysters survived the afternoon, but Shana and I went home with plenty of leftovers including pie. Nothing says Holiday Leftovers to me like pie for breakfast! My pictures of the day are almost uniformly terrible, I am sorry to say. It's seldom I have such a complete failure, but I'll have another chance at Christmas to do better.

Fungus Amongus

There was some kerfuffle on Thanksgiving among the dogs. With all of them jockeying for position to get to the most likely place where meat might fall Mitzi and Louie were at odds, which made Roxy look like the angel she assuredly is not. She just slipped around getting as many treats as possible. The day was so exciting for her that she was exhausted when it was over.



I'm deep into holiday knitting and shopping, with most of my list under control. As usual the knitting is backing up! I've done nearly all of my shopping online this year. There are not a lot of retail outlets on Cape to choose from and no power on earth cold get me into a store on Black Friday to shop, although I did work that day. Despite the lack of door busters, The Major Retailer where I work was quite solidly slammed nearly all day. I was on the floor all day and had a very few minutes when there was no one waiting to be rung up. I am happy to say that I did not have to witness any of the ghastly mayhem that is surfacing on You Tube this week. It's shocking to see the behavior that people think is appropriate and sobering to think that the commodities that inspire this behavior are so far from being essential to sustain life. How will these people behave after the Zombie Apocalypse?

And instead of the ravening hordes of Black Friday - here is a hummingbird snoring:

Thirty Days of Thanksgiving - All at Once

Lots of people I know are participating in naming the things for which they are thankful every day. Being the disorganized and procrastinating person that I am, I  want to just blurt them all out at once, in no particular order.

I am thankful for my excellent health, which makes so many other things possible.

I am grateful not to have any physical handicaps.

I am grateful to have three children, and all still living.

I am thankful that all three of my children are in reasonable health.

I am also thankful that all of my children are gainfully employed.

I am lucky to have two beautiful grandchildren.

I am fortunate to have my mother still living and in good health.

It was my good fortune to have two parents at home, which allowed my mother to be an home with us.

`I am grateful that my mother taught me not only to crochet, embroider, knit and sew, but even more valuable: to think that I might be able to make anything I fancied.

I am thankful that I learned early the value of reading for entertainment and knowledge.

I was given the great gift of having all four grandparents nearby through all of my growing up.

I was blessed with a good education.

I have been lucky to have lived both in the country and the city and in several states.

I am lucky to have kept my love of cycling for my whole life.

I am thankful that knitting has brought me to meet so many wonderful women.

I am thankful that from childhood I was exposed to people who taught me the value of democracy and participation in public life.

I am thankful that I was brought up in a union famliy and understand to this day the value of labor unions.

I am blessed to be living in the United States.

I am fortunate to have been able to move to Massachusetts at this time in my life.

I am lucky to able to enjoy the outdoors.

I am so happy to have a paid for and decent car.

I'm glad I learned what good Mexican food tastes like before I moved to Massachusetts (!)

I am thankful to have a wife who loves me after all these years.

I am thankful to have cordial and respectful relationships with my ex husbands and their families.

I am luck enough to have a home of my own and one that I love.

I am among the very lucky who always has enough to eat every single day.

I am so thankful that I am assured of an income (however small!) for life.

I am thankful that my wife is also employed when so many are not.

I have been the lucky owner of a number of very interesting dogs, who have added so much to my life.

I am lucky enough to be able to take a part time job doing something that is fun and pays a little too.

I am grateful for the Internet, through which I am able to keep in daily contact with friends and family members who are not physically nearby.




Of course there are many things that are not on the list. I am lucky indeed to have been born in the place and time and to the family I was. I've had a lot of opportunities in my life and although I have not taken advantage of all of them I am still very well off indeed. Of course I "did not build that" alone, so today I am pleased to be able to feature the people I love most.

While the Fall Weather Holds

Fall continues to be beautiful here on Cape Cod. We made it through Hurricane Sandy and the  nor'easter that arrived conveniently the following week with only minor damage done by each. My apologies to those who had large limbs across the road or their cars, of course. My neighbor's tree had a big branch twisted  off with each storm; one fell over my side of the fence and one on his. They are just hanging there waiting to be removed. Everyone here on the Cape thinks the nor'easter was much worse than Sandy - two days of strong wind and heavy rain were not much fun, plus it was much colder. The wind speeds from the nor'easter were about the same as Sandy here, and I think there was as much beach erosion with it.  From inside my house I felt like I was living on the highway because the wind sounded like trucks going down the road. Poor Roxy almost blew over one morning trying to do her "business". The Cape did not get any snow at all, and I am not at all disappointed. Because I had to secure my deck furniture in advance of the hurricane some of my fall cleanup is done already. I have not had my faucets & irrigation turned off yet. Must do  SOON.

Today we are enjoying a warm day, maybe the last warm one this week. After I finished my errands Roxy and I went for a walk at the Lowell Holly Reservation to make the most of the day. We walked about half a mile in and came back. In that time we saw easily half a dozen other groups on the trail, most with dogs. No one wants to miss out on a chance to get out for a walk because no one knows how long the weather will hold. I gave up on Furnace Wars just before the nor'easter came in - I thought we would lose power and with colder temperatures coming in with the storm I wanted to be sure the house was at a reasonable temperature. Also I was going around the house with the hood of my sweatshirt pulled up. I have the thermostat set at 60 degrees, so it's hardly tropical in here.

Looks like Thanksgiving will be a large and well attended meal. I'm looking forward to it, and to enjoying the traditional foods. We'll be frying a turkey again, plus baking a ham. As I look over the menu Shana and Lisa put together I think I can safely forecast a lot of people laying around helplessly after the meal.

Holiday knitting continues apace, with a lot of progress happening. Of course as soon as I finish one project I think of something else I'd like to add to the queue. One of the yarn stores here is going out of business, so I was able to replenish some of my basic stash for a reduced price. I've been knitting mostly from stash for a year, so it was almost an "emergency".

Fall in New England

The Elizabeth Montgomery statue in Salem

Pilgrims on the street in Salem

It's true what they say. Fall in New England is the most beautiful season possible, with cool crisp days and diamond clear skies (sometimes!). The fall color I grew up loving in Ohio is everywhere. Shana and I have made it our business to get out & about to enjoy the season. Because my work schedule usually includes some portion of Saturday and Shana is staying with her stepfather on alternate weekends we have limited time to explore together, but we are trying to make the most of it. For our most recent free weekend together we planned a day of college football and a trip to Salem Massachusetts. I love Salem. It's a beautiful little town where there is a lot to do and see. During October it's crazy busy, but we went anyway because there was an exhibit of Ansel Adams photos we did not want to miss. It was the last weekend of the exhibit so we could not wait until November. It must be noted that parking in a city garage cost $16.00 (!) If you can visit at another time of year it will not be as painful or necessary to pay for parking. We had lunch at The Lobster Shanty, as featured on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives, and were not disappointed. The Peabody Essex Museum was great. I hear that the gift shop there is wonderful, but I did not go in for a look. I really must minimize temptation! The PEM was also hosting a hat exhibit which was a delightful surprise, with vintage hats from many periods displayed next to modern creations of similar materials and a recreation of a millinery work room.

Provincetown Street Scene

Race Point Beach

U. S. Lifesaving Station

Yesterday Shana and I spent the afternoon in Provincetown, at the tip of Cape Cod. Provincetown is both charming and odd in about equal measure. You can visit the very nicest and most exclusive of galleries and the junkiest of T shirt shops in the same block. Restaurants vary from hot dogs at walk up windows to the very best of fine dining. We had an excellent burger and an equally excellent eponymous beer at the Local 186 (note the painfully hip website) then strolled along Commercial Street before driving down to Race Point to visit the beach and the Life Saving Station. Race Point features some of the most beautiful dunes on the Cape, and the beach is pristine and wonderful. Although it is on the Atlantic side the access does not include a steep climb down to the beach as is part of most of the Cape Cod National Seashore.  There is one access point where there is a hard surface access path which is much appreciated by anyone of limited strength or mobility. There are also conveniences including flush toilets and a bath house. In October the services are limited to a porta-potty, but the beach is virtually deserted and not less beautiful than in high season. Since I do not attempt to swim in the Atlantic at any location and Race Point is named for strong rip currents I find the beach equally attractive at all times of the year. We took Roxy with us so she could enjoy a beach walk as well. The U. S. Lifesaving Station was open this time and we got a good look at how those brave men lived.


Our day trips around the state have given me the excuse to avoid my fall yard chores, but I can't put it off much longer. Leaves are falling and my perennials are going to sleep.  It is clear that winter is coming. The Farmers' Almanac suggests we may have a cold one, and the old wives' tales insist that the huge crop of acorns we have this year means a cold winter. The huge crop of acorns is at the very least attracting the local turkeys to the yard. They were visiting Friday and knocked over my birdbath while they were here.

Too Short, Too Long

I copied this idea over from The Billfold because it is worth another look and thought! These are just my own personal choices of luxuries that are worth it or not; you'll certainly choose different ones from me.

Life is too short for:
Single ply toilet paper
Boring bread
Cheap shoes
Cheap bike shorts
Winter tomatoes
Pink hot dogs

Life is too long for:
Expensive cars
Expensive mascara - Maybelline FTW
Wasteful utility bills - put on/take off clothes instead
Mani/Pedis- YMMV, but I can do my own well & don't like to be touched by strangers
Trading in my phone every time a new model comes along
Fancy luggage
Musical Comedy

Paulson for President!

How I wish he was running this year! It would be so nice to have something satirical and amusing to watch for a change.

Repurpose!

When I moved from Oklahoma to Cape Cod one of the biggest changes in my weekly routine is trash disposal. In Oklahoma I had two gigantic roller bins that I could fill to the brim and have removed every single week with no additional charge and the monthly fee was billed with our water. Every few months there would be a large trash pickup when all kinds of bulky trash would be picked up. Oklahoma has lots of land available for landfills.

Here on Cape Cod trash is not such an easy process. Our town has no municipal trash hauling. You can arrange for a private trash service to pick it up for you, but almost everyone chooses the least expensive option takes their own trash to the "transfer station". We call it the dump. All of our trash is trucked off Cape, so towns are very interested in encouraging recycling to reduce this charge. Our transfer station is set up so that you pass the recycle area on your way to the trash building. We have single stream recycling - plastic, glass and paper go in the same bin, with separate bins provided for cardboard and hard plastic. There are barrels where you can put your plastic bags. You can purchaser recycling bins for a nominal fee and lots of people do, but since you are dropping it off yourself you can put in in anything you like. The Department of Public Works sells compost bins for about half of the usual retail price, which encourages composting instead of bringing compostables to the transfer station. Reasonable amounts of yard waste go in a separate area, where you can take as much compost and mulch as you want for free. The amount of compost and mulch I take from the dump pays for my yearly fee! I used to have a bin of yard waste and one of trash every week in Oklahoma. Here I have one 30 gallon trash can every other week.

Recycling alone does not help much if we do not make an effort to use less, to repurpose what we already have and select recycled products where appropriate. Years ago we would do this without question. Used clothing was passed down, cut down, and finally used for small projects and rags until it was used up. Now we send it by the bale to Africa, where is has just about killed local clothing manufacture.  Reuse and repurpose does not have to mean dreary - Look at what this metal artist is making from used bicycle parts:




The pictures have nothing to do with the text unless you consider that using less means less land has to be put under production and more can be saved for beauty and refreshment. These pictures were taken at the Ryder Conservation Area in Mashpee MA.