Hello Everyone. It’s hard to believe we’re already halfway through October. It definitely feels like time is speeding up on me here. I have been enjoying the cooler weather, although it’s almost too cold some mornings when I get up for my walk. The extra hour of daylight will help with that in a couple of weeks though. A couple of months ago I told y’all that one of my photos was going to be featured on a wooden jigsaw puzzle, and my sample copy came in the mail last week. It is really beautiful and very exciting and I will definitely let you know when it’s available for purchase, but that was a nice boost since last week. I also got an email from someone who wants to use a photo in an upcoming book he is working on – it sounds like a small printing on a fairly niche subject, but I’m always excited to see my photos in print. I also got a message this week from someone interested in discussing some other photos, but unfortunately the email address they left was incomplete. I’ve tried to sleuth it out, but haven’t been able to figure it out – if you’re reading this, I’m not ignoring you, please give me another holler. It’s been a pretty good week from that perspective and it’s nice to feel like my work is reaching a wider audience again as it’s been a really quiet summer in that regard.
I got my flu shot today, and I would definitely encourage you all to do the same. I try and get mine every year, but I’m definitely not messing around with it this year. I voted this week too, and I really hope that all of my American readers have a plan to make sure their votes are in and counted. I’ve always been cynical about voting since I know that, as a registered D.C. voter, my vote for president won’t change the outcome and we have no representation in congress so there’s no help there either. Beyond our city council and school board elections, which I probably should pay more attention to, there isn’t much need to vote here. But this year I want to contribute my voice to the popular vote count and hope that one day all our votes will count equally. I’ve always wondered and often commented as to why so many people in this country think their vote should be more important than mine. Personally I would like to see everyone be able to vote, and everyone’s vote to count. The whole thing should be about finding people who represent us well, not about gaming the system. Our entire election process in this country is broken from top to bottom and needs a reboot. That being said, I’m happy to have had the opportunity to vote in this election because this year it seems more important than ever before.
I’ve been keeping busy with 2 year-old Mason this week as well. We continued our adventures in the woods, expanding our territory as always and enjoying the changing of the leaves and the emergence of some new kinds of fall berries. We also got some rain this week, so there were some cool new mushrooms around as well. Mason continues to work on his letters and, as seems normal, associates new letters he learns with words he already knows. I think it’s pretty incredible to watch, and he’s quick to point out the letters he knows on my T-shirt and any signs we may encounter. While obviously I encourage this, it amuses me as well and I can’t help but think he’s calling out battle coordinates in code – “Uncle Mike – Lion, Elephant, Ohio, Apple”. It’s been great to see so many Halloween decorations go up around his neighborhood as well, and these provide us with a great deal of conversation fodder as we wander the streets every day. He tries to feed berries and acorns to the skeletons because apparently they look hungry (can’t argue with that), and carries on endless conversations with the witches, wolfmen, demons, ghosts, vampires and ghouls we encounter. He got his own pumpkins this week as well and is very proud of them and loves showing them to me and admiring the long stems they have. We’ve also started to name some of the places we visit on our walks for easy reference. From the Calvert Cliffs (a series of walls on Calvert Street he likes to walk on) to the Rock Water Bridge where we usually pause to throw acorns and rocks into the creek, we enjoy the variety of scenery the neighborhood and park provides. I think our favorite is the Counting Tree – a log where we sit every day and count rocks and sticks and leave them in cool patterns to see if they’ll still be there when we return. He seems to really look forward to it every day and we always find time for a rest there. We sure do have great adventures together.
As I mentioned last week, I’m back to tutoring as well. Even though it’s just for one evening a week, I also need to spend at least an hour or two to prep for it which takes a lot of concentration as well. I’m really glad to be doing it and I enjoy it, but between the two and trying to keep my folks busy and entertained I’m not finding a lot of time or energy to keep up with much else. I did start to work my way through my photos from my trip to New Hampshire and got some of them posted which is good. All of these projects were one thing when I was traveling every day, and a different thing entirely now that I’m stationary.
Last Friday we headed back to the basement for a Kid’s Halloween themed evening. We had French bread pizza and chicken nuggets and apple cider, listened to some Halloween hits like Thriller and The Monster Mash, and played a few hands of Rook, a great card game we haven’t played in a long time (it’s really better with 4 players, but we made do). It was pretty fun. Saturday I took it easy, trying to take a day off and not feel guilty about it. We did bottle the Oktoberfest beer which we brewed a few weeks ago so we can drink it before the end of the month. I also started a new book – A Confederacy of Dunces – which I’m really enjoying. And then Sunday I ran some errands and we had a wonderful Sunday Dinner featuring a pork roast and roasted vegetables which my mother expertly whipped up.
Tuesday my mom and I headed north to see what the leaves are doing up there. They’re still a week or two away from peak foliage in Northern Maryland, but there was some good color and it was a nice ride. We stopped to see two of the six covered bridges left in the state, and both were really wonderful. Then we headed into Cunningham Falls State Park to check out the namesake waterfall and enjoy a nice walk in the woods.
And that’s about what I’ve been up to this week. Tonight when I’m done with this, I’m going to roast up some sausage and veggies for our weekly Dinner and a Movie, and then we’ll watch Halloweentown on the projection screen. The rest of the week is supposed to be nice, and I’m hoping I can get outside more than I have been (by myself which will be great). I continue to try and get caught up on so many things, but there just aren’t enough hours in the day. But I’m continuing to enjoy what I’m doing and I will continue to try and make the best of the situation. It’s all any of us can do really. Well, I wish I had something more exciting to report on, but all in all it was a pretty good week all things considered. I hope you’ve had a decent week as well, wherever you are. Stay healthy, be sure you’re carving out some time for yourself, and try and get outside and enjoy the fall colors when they come your way (or spring bloom for my Southern Hemisphere readers). Take care and I’ll see you right back here next week.
-Mike