Wednesday

Ed is on a roll. He has chipped a mountain of logs and branches (and he continues to chip away, even as one machine after the next breaks down, refusing the amount of work he piles onto it). He has mended the siding of the house. He has kept the new trees weeded and mowed. He's talking about putting in a whole in the kitchen wall so that we can vent the oven.

And it seems that when he speeds up, I slow down. My work in the flower fields is laughably slow. My Fitbit is not sending me very many messages of approval. I find excuses to do more work inside the house rather than outside. I mean, I guess it's seasonal, but more likely I'm getting my dose of the great outdoors by watching my buddy here exert himself to the max. Oh, and in case you're wondering, at the moment he is biking his strenuous two hour segment. Me? Maybe I'll take a walk. After I finish my coffee.

The fact is, I'm pretty excited about my trip next week and I am doing a lot of planning for it. Not of the kind where you sit with books and map out your trajectory, but imagining what could go wrong and working out strategies to minimize that possibility. (Today I chased down some rapid result COVID tests at the CVS for when I return. Just to be sure that I reenter cleanly.) Ed has always said that I over-plan my travels (for his tastes anyway). Well maybe, but this, of course, is the joy of a trip. The flights may be cancelled or late or turbulent, the hotel may give you their worst room, your favorite restaurant may be closed for good -- in other words, the reality may suck. But you do not know that heading into the game. You plan for a spectacular trip! You have backup options for when things unravel! You are prepared.

We start the day with clouds...

But still, it's warm out there. Warm enough for breakfast outside.

And by afternoon, the sun is out. Honestly, it does not feel like October. We had heavy snow this month just two years ago! I remember it well: Halloween was snow covered and slippery! Today feels short-sleeved and wonderful. So much so that toward evening, while Ed bikes, I finally, finally head out to the county park for an autumnal stroll. I'll leave you with a photo from the walk, not so much for the fall colors, but for the glow of a warm late October afternoon.