It’s the last day of October --- with changes on the clock, in the air, on the
ground, and in memories. Our clocks get changed overnight. And it’s 28 years
today since I took possession of the Toronto home. And Nov. 1 would have been
my dad’s 104th birthday…Thanks, Dad!!
Autumn is in
the air with a mixed bag of fiery sunrises, heavy rain, and sometimes
slashing hail. Cold nights coat the ground with frost, like powdered sugar on a green salad. Great Lakes freighters arrive with tonnes of road salt, then leave
loaded with this year’s local grain harvest.
A change in
the garden is Pat’s first attempt at propagating milkweed plants. The pods are
exquisitely packed seed heads that separate into a thousand parachutes looking
for a cold moist landing to flourish. On the other hand, no change in raking
and dragging leaves! They’ll cover the
fragile raised beds over winter. Anyone for a nice maple leaf blankie??
A change in
the apple trees this year --- bushels of good size, scab-free fruit. And around
the feeder birds are appearing out-of-season (robins), out-of-character (flocks
of nuthatches instead of singles), late in migrating (goldfinches), and just
plain late (young cardinal still in mottled feathers of summer). The most
unusual was a sighting of a lark bunting --- normally found in the Rockies out
west. The least unusual is the daily sighting of 20 or 25 turkeys vacuuming
seeds like thieves grabbing gold coins.
For a
change, we’re in the U.S. for Hallowe’en tonight! The whole gang from Star Wars --- Darth, Leia, Hans, Luke and a troop of Storm Poopers ---roaming
their ‘hood for treats. Look up at this week's full moon; maybe those wookies and werewolves at
your door were real??
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