If we were having coffee: First frost edition

Watching Friday’s sunrise from grass level.

I think people who don’t know the woods very well sometimes imagine it as a kind of undifferentiated mass of greenery, an endless continuation of the wall of trees they see lining the road.  And I think they wonder how it could hold anyone’s interest for very long, being all so much the same.  But in truth I have a list of a hundred places in my own town I haven’t been yet.  Quaking bogs to walk on; ponds I’ve never seen in the fall (I’ve seen them in summer — but that’s a different pond).  That list gets longer every year, the more I learn, and doubtless it will grow until the day I die.  So many glades; so little time.

Bill McKibben, Wandering Home

In the beginning. Early morning walk on Friday.

If we were having coffee or some other beverage, I would be delighted to see you again.  Hugs if you’re amenable to them.  Come on in.  Let’s grab something to drink, and maybe something to nosh on, and go have a seat on the porch.  It’s lovely out there now that the sun has warmed things up.  If it’s not quite warm enough for you just yet, we can go back inside to the great room where the wood stove is keeping things nice and toasty.

Decorating the sky.

How are you?  How’s life been treating you?  Kindly, I hope.  Have you traveled anywhere or seen any new sights?  Have you spent time with family and/or friends?  Have you sampled any good food and/or drink?  Taken any good walks or hikes or simple strolls?  Read any good books or watched any good films?

On the forest floor.

If we were having coffee or some other beverage, I would apologize once again for being late.  We had company this weekend.  My sister-in-law (M’s sister), C, was here for another quick visit.  Just before she arrived for her last visit in September, I found out that the band Chicago was going to be playing in Salisbury (which is not far from us).  C had mentioned that seeing Chicago in concert was on her bucket list.  She had seen them decades ago when she and they were young, and when she heard they were on tour this year, she hoped to be able to catch them somewhere.  She was unable to go with us when we saw them in Virginia Beach with Earth, Wind & Fire.  We went ahead and bought tickets for the Salisbury show the last time C was here, and that show was last night.  I am not a big enough fan of the group to want to see them twice within two months, but I certainly didn’t mind going.  They put on a good and energetic performance, and it was fun to go with C because it was obvious that she was really enjoying the show.

Looking out towards the bay. (Janes Island State Park.)

When C arrived on Friday, she was ready for a walk or a hike after spending so much time in the car.  We took a little stroll out to the dock and around some of the trails here at the ranch.  When M arrived home from work, we all went to Janes Island State Park to hike in their woods and have a look at the Chesapeake Bay before going to dinner at the Hide Away Grill.  I think that will be our last dinner at the Hide Away this year.  They’re closing after Halloween, and the weather is getting too chilly to sit outdoors.

Going into the woods. Janes Island State Park.

The hike was nice.  As you can see above and in the next photo or two, most of the trees have not yet donned their fall colors.  Most of the colors we’re seeing, especially here at the ranch, are on the crepe myrtles, sweet gum and cherry trees.  The oaks and maples are just beginning to change, and I wonder if we’ll see much color from them since we had such a dry summer.  It looks as though a lot of the leaves are falling without bothering with a color conversion.  That is especially true of the oaks.  Our pin oak tree is almost bare already.

Some spots of color here and there.  You have to look carefully to find them.

Janes Island State Park has cabins near the water, and we had a look at some of those while we were out that way.  It would be a lovely place to say during the fall before the weather turns cold.  There are campsites there as well, and there were plenty of people already set up to camp over the weekend.

Sun lit.

On Saturday we went to Ocean City for a walk on the boards (boardwalk).  We stopped off in Salisbury on our way to visit the Habitat for Humanity Re-Store.  They had something there we thought might interest C (it did, and she purchased it).  While looking around, I found a stack of CD’s on sale for 50 cents each and bought a few including two Eva Cassidy albums.  If you’re at all familiar with the late Eva Cassidy, it’s probably through this beautiful rendition of Over the Rainbow.  But since it’s fall, perhaps you’d like to listen to Autumn Leaves.

On the beach.

This weekend they hosted the 29th Annual Corvette Weekend in Ocean City so there were lots of Corvettes being driven around town and on the highway.  There were also more than plenty of them at the inlet parking area where you could walk around and have a look.  I didn’t take any photos.  Sorry.  Cars just don’t interest me very much.

Near 4th St. on the boardwalk.  Ocean City, Maryland.

They also had the Howl-O-Ween Pet Parade, a benefit for the Humane Society.  You can’t tell from the above picture, but it was quite crowded on the boardwalk when you got closer to where the amusement rides are located.  That’s because of the parade.  There were a lot of folks out and about with their dogs.  People and dogs were decked out in costumes.

Little sailor pooch. (Sorry about that bright spot of sunlight that looks like it is trying to burn a hole in the little dog’s head.  I was using my old Kodak which overexposes light lately.)

I didn’t get many photos of the dogs, and we missed the parade because we were having lunch at the time.  It was jam-packed with people and dogs at the beginning point for the parade just before start time, making it difficult to get pictures.  Plus I was busy admiring all the cute dogs and originally attired people.

Thing 1 and Thing 2.

There was one cat.  A sphinx cat.  The poor thing didn’t seem comfortable with the situation.  He or she did win an honorable mention prize because it was the first cat they’ve had at the pet parade.  It was also the only cat to show up yesterday.

The Prisoner. (Sphinx cat.)

It was a lovely day at the beach and on the boardwalk.  Not the kind of day for swimming although there were a few people sitting on the beach.  I heard one gentleman say that the boardwalk was almost as crowded as a summer day.  I think he was right.

Getting busier as the day wore on.

Saturday evening, of course, was taken up with the Chicago concert.  I was a little surprised at how solemn the audience was for the first half of the concert.  No one dancing, not even chair dancing or nodding their heads, and few clapping.  They came alive for the second half.  One theory was that it was due to the fact that the Salisbury venue does not sell alcohol of any kind.  People had to warm up to the music without the inhibition-releasing help of beer or wine.

When we arrived home late last night, we saw three beautiful deer walking across the driveway and through the front yard.  Just a little past where we saw them, we discovered a dead bird.  At first we thought it might be a large duck or a Canada goose, but a flashlight revealed it to be a Great Blue Heron.  I’m not sure what happened.  I’ve read that Great Blue Herons have few natural predators, but occasionally a Great Horned Owl or Bald Eagle will take one.  Given that this happened at night, and given that M recently heard a Great Horned Owl who must have just taken up residence nearby, my bet is on the owl.  We must have interrupted whatever killed it as it didn’t appear to have been there long.  Except for a pile of feathers, it was gone this morning.

No profanity please.

This morning started out slow and quiet with Eva Cassidy’s voice singing softly over the stereo speakers in the background as C made coffee, M built up the fire in the wood stove, and I chopped onions and diced potatoes for a breakfast scramble.  The early morning sunlight poured over the lobolly pines and in through the kitchen windows, warming us up as the light bounced off the quartz counter tops creating a fairy light effect on the ceiling and walls.  C had to leave right after breakfast, and is on her way home as I type.

Meanwhile, back on the dock at the ranch…

If we were having coffee or some other beverage, I would tell you that I have rambled enough about the weekend, and I really should get outside and do some mowing.  I’ve been waiting for it to warm up a little.  We had our first frost this morning, but it has been warming up quickly.  Not too warm, though, as our high today is expected to be in the mid-50’s.  The scattered clouds might make for an interesting sunset so maybe I’ll head down to the Point to watch.  Hang around for a while and join me if you like.  Sunset is a 6:21 PM.

Thank you so much for stopping by.  I always enjoy our coffee chats.  This post is in response to Part Time Monster’s #WeekendCoffeeShare.  Put the kettle on, start the coffee maker, open a bottle of wine, or whatever your preference is, and join us.  I’d love to hear all about what you were up to this week.

Memory: Three years ago tomorrow. (Around the pond at Breezy Acres in Ohio.)

Be good, be kind, be loving.  Just Be.  🙂