Autumn Cooking

"Merry everything and happy always."

~Unknown

As a kid, I watched Monte Hall, of the Let's Make A Deal, feature Bruce's canned yams in various pricing games, but didn't put much thought into them because, one I was a kid, and two our family always bought Princella sweet potatoes. As a grown-up My yam of choice was the fresh ones that you bake yourself, and add the sweet seasonings right at the table! One day, I thought I would give Princella a chance, to see what the fuss had been about for my family. Unfortunately, when I opened the can, the first few at the top were moldy. Blech! So, it was non-negotiable, it was fresh yams or sweet potatoes there after! Well, this past Thanksgiving, I decided to give Bruce's yams a chance. Let me tell you, they are fantastic! If you visit their website, there are a few terrific cookbooks you can download and they even make them in zero sugar! I haven't tried those yet, but I was really happy with the original!

Give them a try!

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #82

"Nothing in the universe is able to complete its travel on the road of infinity! Because the road is very, very long, travelers eventually get tired and turn into autumn leaves." 

~Mehmet Murat ildan

Ellipsis Christmas Movie Countdown #12

 

"I never thought it was a bad little tree. It's not at all, really. Maybe it just just needs a little love."

~Linus

A Charlie Brown Christmas

A Charlie Brown Christmas, premiered on television on December 9th, 1965, so that means this masterpiece is 60 years old, and I watched it the night it debuted, and every year since then. It's timeless! It's not actually movie length, it's only 25 minutes long, but it holds you as well as any feature length movie could! No CGI, just an old fashioned Christmas moment. It's about what Christmas is all about, and lessons learned!

Watch it. Remember 1965. Love it all over again.

Christmastime In Autumn

 

"Christmas, children, is not a date. It's a state of mind."

~Mary Ellen Chase

Castro Valley Boulevard, Castro Valley

December 9th, 2025

Please consider donating to the following charities if you can.

One Warm Coat

Toys For Tots

Feeding America

Ellipsis Movie Countdown #11

 

"Can I refill your eggnog for you?

 Get you something to eat?

 Drive you out in the middle of nowhere and leave you for dead?

~Clark W. Griswold (Chevy Chase)

National Lampoons Christmas Vacation

The Griswold's do Christmas... but this time... it's a staycation. On Christmas. What can go wrong? I loved the vacation movies, and this one was brilliant and heartwarming, and very relatable! Who hasn't either hosted or attended a crazy Christmas get together? I know I have attended my share. After my sister got married, she insisted on hosting the holidays. She was right that she had more room, and she tried really hard, but no matter what, you can't wave a wand and change the personalities of those who come for the festivities! Well, that's what the Griswold's learn about their holiday. But in the end, love wins out over anything. That's what Christmas is all about!

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #81

 
"Then the leaves, after their long silence, began to talk again, in yellow and red.

 And the days began to shrink under one's very eyes."

~Mirrlees

Hope

This little leaf is from my Sugar Maple that stands proudly in the yard! I was wanting to post more photos of the leaves this year, but the leaves on it didn't turn as early as it has in recent years. So, I might fit a couple more in, and they will be precious to me. As you know, just because the calendar says Autumn is over, that's not necessarily true to me! Say it with me, AS LONG AS THERE ARE TREES WILL AUTUMN LEAVES, I WILL BE THERE WITH MY CAMERA!

The Autumn Friend... Skeleclaus

 

"Some people are born for Halloween,

 and some are just counting the days until Christmas."

~Stephen Graham Jones

How cool is that guy? You never know when you will find a friend,

 who thinks exactly like you do!

Yesterday, I took at trip to the East Bay to drop off a coat, at a business collecting for the One Warm Coat program. I had purchased the coat a few years ago, it was beautiful and deeply discounted, but I just never used it. It was a gorgeous deep blue and green plaid, but not like the usual plaid shirt, it was beautifully elegant. It had a love ruffly down the front when buttoned up. It was heavy, and warm, so it makes me happy to think some lady who needs to be warm, will be now with that coat. 

Next, I dropped off two Barbie dolls into a Toys For Tots bin. I purchased them earlier this year, after Donald Trump's rant about how many toys should be under this year's Christmas tree. Fuck him! Bah Humbug! I couldn't stand the thought of a little girl waking up on Christmas morning, and finding that she had no gift. Giving back, made me feel good, so I got a lot of Christmas joy doing it! Two little girls gave me a terrific gift this year!

Yesterday was a very good day!

Ellipsis Christmas Movie Countdown #10

 

"When Love Feels Like Magic, It's Called Destiny.

 When Destiny Has A Sense Of Humor, It's Called Serendipity."

Serendipity

Movie Tagline

It's time for a little romance, right? Well, this movie definitely fits the bill! John Cusack and Kate Beckinsale are mesmerizing! Curl up with your favorite person, or pet, and just enjoy the love and chemistry between these two actors. This movie will make you believe in magic, and destiny!

 Oh, yeah also serendipity!

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #80

 

"Come O' winter knock on my door,

Make me fall in love once more,

Look what autumn did to me,

Made my soul like wilted flower."

~Neymat Kahn

Christmas Movie Countdown #9

"Christmas magic is silent,

 you don't hear it... you feel it... you know it... you believe it."

~Kevin Alan Milne
The Paper Bag Christmas

It Happened One Christmas

Here I go again, referencing an ABC Movie of The Week movie, but what can I say, ABC had wonderful movies, and I looked forward to every one of them. This was, as you might expect, one of my favorites, despite that it's pretty much simply a retelling of, It's A Wonderful Life. Or is it? It Happened One Christmas, is a woman's perspective of the tale, which really does make for a different story. Mary Baily yearns to experience life beyond the small time she grew up in, but when tragedy strikes she finds she must sacrifice her own needs, for the needs of her family, and her town. Thank goodness love endures throughout Mary's life, especially during the darkest of times. Finally, by fighting through the things we all take for granted, she receives redemption as a gift from all who love her. As always, it seems that we really learn how much we are loved until we are at our lowest, and offer to lift us up, without agenda or judgement. If you haven't seen it, watch it. Trust me on this, it demonstrates what is really right about Christmas, and teaches the lesson of not giving up, on ourselves and each other! As of the composing of this post, you can find it, for free, on YouTube. I hope it's still there when you click through the link!

The Elves On The Autumn Shelves

"We do not need to merely see beauty... we want something else which can be hardly be put into words... to be untied with the beauty we see, to pass into it, to receive it into ourselves, to bathe in it, to become part of it. That is why we have peopled air and earth and water with gods and goddesses and nymphs and elves."

~C.S. Lewis

Okay, I get it, some folks find the Elf on the Shelf a bit odd... maybe even off putting, but look at those adorable little faces, and they are distinctly mid-century, which makes them wonderful in my Christmassy mind. I miss all the decorations and ornaments I grew up with, and yes, even the big bulky lights our parents used to put on our Christmas trees. You know, the ones who occasionally set the trees ablaze? Happily these little elves have been very well behaved, watching over our trees, since 1990, when my mother-in-law gifted them to me, from the set she bought in 1962, for each her three sons and one day, daughter-in-laws. I melted when I saw them. My mother-in-law passed away earlier this year from Alzheimer's disease, just like my own mother did in 2005, so I feel even more sentimental then ever about them. The new Elf on the Shelf looks completely different now, much more updated, less like an elf and more like a child in an elf costume. Sigh. I guess folks find the new ones less off putting, but give me old school! These guys are 63 years old, and I love them, so there! Elf on the Shelf dates back to the 1940's, but this version came along in the early 60's, just like hubby and I did.

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #79

 

"There is a subtle magic in the falling of old leaves."

~Avijeet Das

Ellipsis Christmas Movie Countdown #8

 

"If you look for it, I've a sneaky feeling that you'll find that love actually is all around."

~Hugh Grant as the Prime Minister

Love Actually

What a cast!

Love is the star of this movie. The kind of love that is universal. The dagger to the heart love, first love, the love you have to let go of. Heartbreak love, selfish love, and love that is eternal. The absence of love, love of enduring friendship and. of course, the love of one another. If you aren't in the mood for a syrupy Christmas tale, at least watch the first five minutes for the Christmas son sung by Bill Nighy. It almost steals the whole movie, but frankly, love always be the star!

The Autumn Christmas Soldier

 

"Don't let the past steal your present. This is the message of Christmas: We are never alone."

~Taylor Caldwell

Things have been really difficult lately, I am exhausted, and my mood is sadness. So, I think it would be good for me to concentrate on positive things, like this blog, but without sharing the "news".  I think it would be fun to celebrate both the waning days of autumn, and the best of the Christmas spirit! Personally, I love ornaments and Decorations, so for now until Christmas I am focusing on that! This handsome fella stands guard over the Lincoln Center shopping center, just off Pacific avenue, Stockton. He and a few other soldiers watch over things, during season, bring smiles, and posing with folks for photos. He is a jolly fella to be sure!

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #78

 

"God has designed the world in a way that illustrates 'yet'; the green leaves lose their colour, but reveal one true color that's been there all along."

~Rachael Newham, 

And Yet: Finding Joy In Lament

 

"Sometimes a very strong wind blows; the leaves attached to their homes resist to stay on a branch! But sometimes a very gentle wind blows and leaves who want to embark on adventure leave themselves in the void! When the time comes, if you do not leave your favorite places and your loved ones, you will never discover the richness of life."

~Mehmet Murat ildan

Ellipsis Christmas Movie Countdown #7

 

"If I hear you let your stripper girlfriend, put my children on her motorcycle one more time,

  I will gone girl you so hard!"

~Jennifer Aniston

(Carol)

Office Christmas Party

If you've ever felt a rivalry with a sibling. if you have ever had to work so hard at Christmas, that Christmas didn't even seem to exist. If you've ever been faced with making some really bad decisions, ones that will change other peoples lives, in a negative way, forever. If you've ever had to maintain a hardnosed persona, just to keep from being hurt. If you've ever thought of your office Christmas party as a frenemy, then this movie is for you! I think you probably know where I'm going with this... I love the movie for so many reasons, I mean not only is it is just funny, but the chemistry between Jason Bateman and Jennifer Aniston is amazing. They remind me of William Powell and Myrna Loy! It's a lot of twists and turns, but the last 15 minutes, or so, will have you laughing until you cry!

Autumn's Migrating Bufflehead

 

"Fall comes with many colors, to challenge a green summer."

~Neamat Alishiryan

The prettiest of the migrating ducks, the pretty little Bufflehead! They are fast little diving ducks, and they are the smallest of that class, weighing only about a pound. They are great fun to watch, and quite a challenge to photograph, as they dive down really fast, and bob back up only when they feel like it. They are gorgeous birds, the males with the colors of the rainbow around the head, and the females have a beautiful white streak on both sides of their head. Their migrating flight brings them from Alaska and Canada, flying at night to reach the Pacific coast and sometimes spots inland, like Cosumnes River Preserve. It's nature like this, that makes me thankful that I moved out to the San Joaquin valley, because I never saw them when I lived in the Bay Area. They are all over the place here, but now that I know I can find them in Bodega Bay, I will visit more often. That will be especially convenient if we move somewhere near the upper coast, of Sonoma, or Marin Counties, or even somewhere on the western Delta.

Ellipsis Christmas Movie Countdown #6

 

"Wiggle my ears and tickle my toes, methinks I see a baby's nose."

~Dingle Elf

Santa Claus Is Coming To Town

Santa Claus Is Coming To Town, debuted on ABC, on December 13th, 1970, when I was 8 years old. I remember watching it with my mother. I loved it. It was such a gentle movie, as most children's programs do, but this it the one that that put the Christmas spirit in me for the first time. I am crazy about it to this day. No matter how crazy the rest of the holiday season gets, I aways feel just a little better revisiting the love story of Kris and Jessica Claus, and their example of how to love others. It just wouldn't be Christmas without this holiday Classic, from Rankin/Bass!

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #76

"When the leaves start to fall, our heart beat starts to rise."

~B.K. Sweeten

The Autumn's Loon

 

"Be the autumn stalwart, and colorful, amenable to change, 

the grateful breath that greets each day."

~Unknown

We took a day off from all the drama, and went to Bodega Bay! You know how much I love making the long trip to find the birdies that have arrived along the Pacific Flyway. Yesterday gave us four new birds. The Common Loon wasn't one of them, as I photographed one last October, but they are visitors in the bay each year, then they migrate back to the north, in the Aleutian Islands. Their call is absolutely haunting, I will never forget hearing it for the first time! Sometime, I'd like to stay in Bodega Bay for a few days, just to hear their call!

"The loon's call is haunting and wild, an ancient trill that's part honor song, and part warning. I've never met anyone who didn't fall quiet upon hearing it. We are all susceptible to that common magic."

~Richard Wagamese