Tag Archives: leaves

First Day of Fall

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AvocadoAlthough the wind did its share today in rustling and whipping through the leaves in the trees, it accomplished little to nudge them into a descent. Perhaps it had more success in other parts of the Country. Blue skies and sun pervaded at least the East Bay today. Our leaves turn color late — a lazy bunch here.

A bit tired and lethargic today, I nonetheless baked some banana bread this afternoon, and was rewarded with the sweet aroma of it drifting from the oven, when I opened the door a couple of times, to check its progress. Leftover food cleanup today, I also made an avocado sardine sandwich — which was a first for me, and it’s not bad at all, if I may say so. My cat Calvin also had his first sardine of his feline life, just devouring it, without lifting his head even once. I have never seen him eat like that. So — brain food for the both of us — we both hope with positive results.

May the Lord bless you with his peace on this quiet Sunday evening, and for the coming week.

Fall musings

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Autumn LeavesAt the risk of boring the reader with more ramblings about my cat, I nonetheless need to refer to him this week. I had some business on Thursday, and had to leave the apartment in the morning. Calvin, having spent the last week mostly inside the house, appeared a bit too well nourished — to put it politely, so I grabbed him, locked the door, and put him down telling him to “go play outside”. The expression on his face was indescribable — you had to see it — from surprise, to if looks could kill — but I figured it’s good for his health.

Yesterday, after having my car checked out by my mechanic, I went for some lunch and encountered two small dogs (although that classification might be stretching things), being walked by two women in tandem. One was dressed in a pumpkin sweater, the other in a giraffe coat (the mutts that is). I venture to guess, could my cat communicate with me, he would have a few choice words to say in regards to this matter.

The sun peaked out briefly this morning, but it was a 20 degree drop in temperature from yesterday (I tend to exaggerate a bit now and then). At least it felt like it. The weather icons on my computer weather page indicated swirling leaves. This was indeed confirmed, when I took a walk this afternoon. Piles of colored leaves had collected close to the sidewalks, or were tumbling carefree across the street, enjoying their momentary flight. A few pepper trees (one of my favorite trees) further down the street were struck by a gust of wind, which sent their light airy leaves dancing, grounded by their sturdy trunks. Later on, I just had to pick up a few of the leaves that you see in the photo above, their glowing colors beckoning, as one picks up sea shells at the beach.

At the pet store

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Hummingbird

Hummingbird

Doing my feeding duty to stock up on cat food for my “Haustier” (translated from German that means house, or domestic animal), and replenishing a bag of bird seed as well, I wandered into an unknown aisle on my way to the pet supply store cashier, and came upon “Lizard Litter” — prompting a loud laugh at the sight. What will they think of next? I have been the reluctant recipient of various sections of lizard in the summertime before, proudly brought home by my cat Calvin — for which I praised him of course, as it was a present — but then disposed of right away, sometimes helping a tailless, but happy and relieved lizard regain his outdoor status. To keep them as “pets” seems against nature to me, but to actually sell lizard litter — absurd. What’s next, toilet paper and air freshener? I can’t make heads or tails of this matter.

A recent wave of warm weather, has caused the elms in my neighbors’ yard to sprout fresh green leaves, while at the same time dropping their blossoms. When a sudden wind gust comes up, it looks like it is snowing, as the little petals dance and drift through the air.

Many red flowers are blooming now, and this has attracted quite a few hummingbirds — my favorite birds. Sometimes they fight and chase each other at breathtaking speeds, all the while chirping at the top of their voice. God’s most delicate bird. One erred into my loft just last week, but got out by himself. I have had to help a few baby hummingbirds over the years, who would fly against the window, unable to find their way out. It is a miracle to hold something so soft and delicate in your hands. The hummingbird you see here, I carved and painted on a ceramic tile.

May red flowers and hummingbirds brighten your week, and don’t step in any lizard litter.

Mystery trees

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Elms

Elms

There are some trees that grow in my neighbors’ yard, that are rather peculiar. I keep forgetting their name and wrongly identifying them as beech trees. It just so happens, that from now on, I won’t forget their name anymore. The mystery was solved at Calvin’s birthday party (who by the way turned 4 and was the recipient of a much appreciated can of tuna fish). My neighbor Bill mentioned to me at Calvin’s party, that he had his gardeners over one time, and pointed out that the trees in question, were sending out lots and lots of side shoots. He thought the trees were over-“elming” and needed to be pruned back. So, without further ado, here is another observation about the now properly identified elm trees: they bloom very late in Spring, and from a distance it looks like the trees are getting leaves, when in fact they are blossoms. The leaves come in even later, once the blossoms have dropped. The blossoms are also a favorite treat of the neighborhood squirrels. This morning, while I was sitting outside, drinking a cup of coffee, I saw two of them in the trees, which I would guess are a good 40 to 50 feet tall. One squirrel, of pleasantly plump appearance, was comfortably seated near the top of the tree, stuffing himself full of blossoms to his hearts’ content. The other squirrel couldn’t make up its mind, and first kept looking in all directions, and then started tip-toeing to the outermost end of a branch, which was getting thinner and thinner as it proceeded, and then was put into motion by the weight of Ms. indecisive. A hasty retreat ensued, as a catapult type action was imminent. The squirrel then finally settled on another branch and started eating blossoms too. The scene reminded me of a kid in a candy store.

Have a blessed, but not over-“elming” week