Feliz Domingo a todos:
“The simplest questions are the hardest to answer” ……………………………………………………………………………………………………. Northrop Frye
“I’m so glad I live in a world where there are Octobers” …………………………………………………………………………………………………Anne of Green Gables
“I’m a big environmentalist.”……………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………The Donald
The leaves are coming down in earnest in the mountains…. stick season approaches……the culmination of a beautiful autumn season……things are s-l-o-w-i-n-g at the mount…. what is next?
My FIVE metaphysical questions for this week:
- Is this our LAST 17 days of absolute chaos?
- Does any sane person really believe that wearing a mask and social distancing is a political issue?
- Is there something in life more beautiful than fall foliage?
- What could be better than watching postseason baseball on a chilly fall night with the fire going?
- What is the effect of an exploded use of dining take out containers on the environment? (The Queen requires me to ask this)
Cider Daze Lost– this past (Columbus Day) weekend is traditionally the apex of the year in our neck of the woods. Here it culminates in our local Belmont festival, Cider Daze, a gathering of 2000 of the Jersey-type Tribe on our tiny town green……which was a no show this year. It turned out to be picture perfect weekend, and sadly…… nobody came. The 200-year-old Cider Press will sit empty and rusting for another year…. the detritus of The Plague. Where have all the flowers gone?
Dentistry in the mountains- after nine months of being debilitated by the thought of having dental types breathing down on me, I put on my big boy pants and found a dentist here. No small order…I had to spend a week getting referrals from the locals and then called nine before finding someone who would take a new patient. But, last Monday, I bit the bullet and took my very dirty mouth to the receptive practice in the equally dirty town of Springfield. Horrified, that it was actually in a shopping center (the dental equivalent of eating at a buffet) …I slipped into my HazMat suit and braved the entrance. They had some massive air filtration system from Willy Wonka going and it all seemed to be pretty ok (though Vermont does not allow dentists to pass out toothpaste samples, which was a bitter disappointment). Got home feeling satisfied with my adventure and pleased that I could now put this back in my imaginary closet for at least six more months…and promptly cracked a tooth the very next day……I’m going to need a bigger HazMat suit……
Winds of Change- The flowers are almost all gone, THE POND is drifting towards obsolescence, that ground is littered with leaves……days in the 40s, nights in the 20s…. every time the rains come and the wind blows……it takes a piece of my heart….
Vermont Does Have Islands……..Really!……….Well, it’s not the Caribbean, but we made our annual trek this week up past Burlington to the Champlain Islands for three days…….stayed at the Cozy Cottages (real name) for our 14th straight year…….three days (two nights, four beds) on the mystic of Lake Chaplain (largest body of water in the US outside of the Great Lakes)……a little behind from the Lake effect than we are here, so leaves still sparkling……two 60 degree plus days and NO Tourists this time of year…..drove in circles around the usual haunts, walked the usual trails, sat on the deck with the usual sunsets …..made our dinners in our cottage….a trip to the exotic local market and one to the you-can never-find –it- twice smokehouse for their infamous chicken pot pies (feeds two for two day) and smoked ribs……and basically hunkered down to listen to the gentle lapping of the lake outside our abode…..second of our traditional three weeks of “Fall outings”…this coming week is a planned jaunt over to the Maine coast…..but it is looking kind of RED there on the COVID map, so waiting to see ….we are like vacation refugees……
Lucy Meets the Goat- our fearsome canine is a master chipmunk/squirrel/deer/wild turkey chaser….who perseveres though she has never yet caught anything…….but this Saturday, while vising The Dumpmaster, she met he match …and revealed her true self……as I was busy dumping, I heard a barking frenzy, and looked over to see her snarling and drooling at our local wandering goat (big ass horns and all), who was thoroughly unperturbed by her outrage and seemed to want to do a little smooching…..The goat pursued her in endless circles around the car until Lucy made for safety, and jumped in the backseat and then the Goat followed her in……where they proceeded to have a forced peace summit….not quite the badass she thinks she is………………………….
And our little Bebe…. was Two on Friday……and that is a WOW…….
Staying or Going-grappling with when and if we return to the heartland………while the majority of the country is going haywire with cases, we had a robust seven statewide last week, which virtually caused a panic…. Here: safety, social responsibility and beauty abound……………………………. There: kids, grandkids and Chinese delivery……………………….
And, so it goes……off this afternoon for what could be the last dinner-on-the-ground of the season……. windy and barely 50, but will wrap on our blankets and go break bread with the Erstwhile Russian Spy and the The Worlds Most Beloved School Marm…. what next?
Be well, stay safe, wear your HazMat……and VOTE……sent in my absentee this week-which was an enormous sex-like satisfaction to fill in the little hole on the ballot…….
Papi
