Musings

Without doubt, the most beautiful part of today was the extended morning fog, caused by the sun after our overnight frost. A friend says this, our first frost, is perhaps six weeks later than average. That’s a huge discrepancy. Anyway, we’ve been enjoying the relative warmth.

Usually the sun hits and doesn’t climb very long before most of the fog dissipates, leaving a few lingering wisps that then disappear. Not today; the fog was uneven on our property and hung around for quite a while.

We did two big(?) chores today. This morning we did laundry, which had been delayed because the “dro” was closed on Friday when we intended to do it, and the sign indicated it’d be closed all weekend. And the other dro has no change machine, so we had to wait until Monday, that is today, to return to the first choice dro. Got the wet clothes hung out for the sun to dry, and then trimmed barberries, two wheelbarrow loads worth of errant branches removed. As the sun started dropping most of the clothing was still damp, so I distributed it around the sun porch with its abundant solar gain (and a ceiling fan). It looks like the aftermath of a clothing explosion. And now it’s mostly dry. One triple load’s worth.

Posted at 7:18 PM | Comments Off on Quotidian tales

We had another gorgeous morning here in the North Woods, or maybe the North Woods and Fields and Lakes.

I set my goal with prepping a new bed for two rhubarb crowns that are being smothered and otherwise slowly snuffed out in their current location. I hope this will work, otherwise I’ll be transplanting them again.

In my recollection, I spent the most time and energy on moving soil and combing through it to remove roots and rootlets, so as to reduce competition by quack grass and other floral familiars.

Tomorrow, weather permitting, I’ll attempt an actual transplant.

To finish up the narrative of the day, the afternoon weather became dicier, with overcast and some raindrops, so I made a large pot’o’chili, which we greatly appreciated as we watched the sun fail to warm the sunporch sufficiently to allow opening the doors to let warm air enter our main living space. If that makes any sense.

Posted at 8:26 PM | Comments Off on Onward, phased

All the rain we’ve had means (of course), the creek is rising. I use is as more precip is expected overnight. We did have a wan sun for a few minutes when we were out moving brush. The pickup did the hard part transporting it from where we didn’t want it to the dump pile, which is as close to where we want it as any place. If I am terribly daring, we may fire the pile (with abundant buckets of lake-water standing by) in the spring and reduce it, I admit, in a not-green way. Speedy, however.

Posted at 6:44 PM | Comments Off on Rising waters

Most everywhere I looked today outdoors I saw the mark of autumn. Leaves on the picnic table we feasted around on warmer, sunnier, summer days..

Tomatoes with that late season look from anthracnose and I don’t know what else.

And wind bringing down the leaves from the Uncle Dave Maple, and the brown, withering fern leaves by the back door. I haven’t cut them because I’m still trying to figure out where I’m going to put them…I think I’ll transplant a rhubarb crown and put the leaves atop it for winter protection. We plan to return early enough in the spring to remove them before they inhibit growth.

So, it’s not enough to see signs of autumn, I find I’m looking toward winter and spring…already.

Posted at 6:45 PM | Comments Off on Seasonal timelines

A quiet sunrise, with fog and horizon color graduation.

Quiet mid-morning on the lake; just wake-riffles from now-absent boat traffic.

And a quiet afternoon, with a senescent maple sculpture soaking in the sun.

Posted at 6:45 PM | Comments Off on Quiet day

I’ve been keeping an eye on this project. At first, I just saw guys and heard sawing. Then, poof, walls and siding, but no roof. I thought it was a camp cabin, but now I think it’s a garage. There’s already a structure in the woods behind it, but it doesn’t look cabin-y either. Outside the frame to the right is another garage, pretty large. So: all garages, no domiciles? I await developments….

Posted at 8:32 PM | Comments Off on Building complex mysteries

There’s no mincing words, today was all overcast and mostly rainy. I thought there was a break in the precip and headed out on foot just before mid-day, enjoying the yellows and oranges in the maple leaves along the road.

By my return, however, the rain closed in, soft and relatively warm, and without lightning, so fine for a return to shelter, and the opportunity for dry clothing.

Can you tell it’s raining? View from back door. Playhouse and I swear the clothes line poles are actually more upright than that.

Posted at 8:46 PM | Comments Off on All overcast, all day

The fog lasted and lasted this morning, although it just looks odd in this photo of the ghost elm.

Speaking of odd, a rough-skinned heirloom squash.

Another local sign. A now truncated parking area…gravel, so unorganized.

Posted at 9:02 PM | Comments Off on October is here

Among the many necessary chores and activities around here is going to the laundromat (aka dro). That was today’s big chore. This was the welcoming sign on both doors of the dro. Small-town humor.

Since The Guru reinstalled the clothesline (posthole digger work to get a replacement post erected), we used MaNachur for the drying cycle. Aided by strategic removal of items still damp in late afternoon to the toasty sun porch…toasty until the temps drop, and headed down to reflect an overnight low of approximately 52°F. Still, they’ll be dry dry dry by morn.

We got our late afternoon sandhill crane flyover, for something like the fifth day in a row, that I’ve noticed. Magnificent. And a bit raucous in a pleasant way.

Posted at 8:33 PM | Comments Off on Dry is open

It was sunny late morning to late afternoon, then the rain came in, just as we were assembling our potluck at the neighbors’. Lucky us, we got to see and hug and congratulate the newlyweds, up from below the bridge. By the time we left, clearing sky, I suspect portending temps dropping into the 40s. Weather rather sets the tone for our lives in this fall chore season.

Posted at 9:32 PM | Comments Off on A railing and its reflection