November thoughts

This morning, we woke to a brief burst of snowflakes. Nothing memorable. You would have to use a spyglass to locate traces of it, but still,  it signals winter.




 A leisurely morning. A lovely meal with Ed and Isis…





Immediately after, I go to another yoga class. Again with my friend, who is rapidly becoming my yoga buddy, which is so good, because whenever she asks  -- want to go? -- unless I'm working, I am happy to fly down and meet her there.


But, I'm not really flying. I'm driving more and more now. The old donkey car is back in almost daily circulation. It is as it has to be. I will not ride Rosie on (soon to be) icy roads.


Returning from yoga, I veer a little into the dirt road that leads down to the fields where Farmer Lee and her various sisters and cousins work. There are still some reluctant but lovely plants standing…





…and I notice that here, too, they've been tilling and preparing for spring…





…but no one is out working today. I would not be surprised if I do not see anyone here again until next spring.





At home, the sun pokes through for a fleeting second and I seize the opportunity to do a beard trim for Ed. We'd fallen behind our monthly schedule. Neither of us notices the beard as much in winter. As if it's to be expected that a face should be covered against the cold.

We have the bucket of carrots to contend with. Last night I hosed down a few and then scrubbed them some more with a potato brush. I have to smile at this added farm work. On any day, we eat a lot of carrots. Mostly the kind that are pretend baby carrots. All nicely scrubbed and locked into a plastic bag. (For cooking, I reach for the bundles). Lee, by giving us this loaded pail of mud-caked oddly shaped roots reminded me that it's both a pleasure and a burden to get them ready for the table. And since Ed doesn't want to load the pipes with clay soil, we do the work outside.

Outside, too, is where the carrots will stay for the winter. Right in the space above our well. Ed climbs down to investigate the possibilities.





Inside, I flick the thermostat up another degree. End of daylight savings time. Let's keep things warm inside. Until sometime in March, when we can have our lovely long evenings back again.