Autumn Leaf Of The Day #48

 

The multicolored leaves were softly glowing against the black sky, creating an untimely nocturnal rainbow which scattered it's spectral tints everywhere and dyed the night with a harvest of hues: Peach, gold and pumpkin orange, honey yellow and winy amber, apple red and plum violet. Luminous with their leafy, the colors cast themselves across darkness and were splattered upon our streets and our fields and our faces. Everything was resplendent with the pyrotechnics of a new autumn"

~Thomas Ligotti

The Nightmare Factory

Autumn Results Yes But Zero

 

“November is usually such a disagreeable month...as if the year had suddenly found out that she was growing old and could do nothing but weep and fret over it. This year is growing old gracefully...just like a stately old lady who knows she can be charming even with gray hair and wrinkles. We've had lovely days and delicious twilights.”

~L.M. Montgomery,

Anne of Avonlea

 

Yes, I know, I have waited a few days to say it, but yes, I am a very happy girl right now, politically speaking. How could I not be? So, life is good, and I am finding the humor in things, and I have high hopes for the midterms next year. Good for America, it's waking up to the monsters, good and bad, and facing them head on, and after everything is said and done, it is Halloween every day, right? The monsters are real, and we can defeat them!

And finally, here is his current approval ratings...

I adore autumn, don't you?

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #47

 

“I fall in abundance like the leaves do for the carpet of flowers... I see much about the headstrong winds and how they dance in circles.”

 
~Reena Doss,

  The Last Leaf Of Autumn: Barefoot and falling, infinity is a number that has none to end

 

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #46

 

 

 

“Autumn wears the gown of gold. The sadness becomes the burning flames, the longing to live, one last time. Behind the wheels of life, it is God, the painter, who awakens colors in farewell moments, as if the lamp of light is burning before it dies.”

 
~Jayita Bhattacharjee 

 

 

Autumn Goodbyes

 

“Time remorselessly rambles down the corridors and streets of our lives. but it is not until autumn that most of us become aware that our tickets are stamped with a terminal destination.”

 
~Joe L. Wheeler 

 

The Peking duck on the left is Kenny, and the duck on the right is named Gini, since we didn't know their names, we decided one day, to add a little extra fun to their personalities. They were the cutest couple in the neighborhood, and they made everyone happy with their love story. I looked for them almost every day as we would rode along Smith Canal. Most of the time they could be found sitting together along the banks of the water, or under a tree, but in the warn summer months they would float along in the water, always where they could be seem. They lived in the neighborhood for years, so it made it a much bigger blow to learn the Kenny was killed... actually I call it murder... on October 30th. The driver of the car didn't even stop to see if Kenny was alive or dead, they just continued on their way.

 

I am done with where I live. Stockton doesn't give a shit about themselves or others. 

 

*Here is the list of why I am done.

 

*Shootouts with police, practically under my window.

 

*Gun fire almost daily.

 

* Red light runners can be seen daily.

 

*Folks dumping their garbage wherever they want.

 

*Mail being stolen.

 

*Speeding drivers.

 

*Unexplained loud explosions, that shake windows. 

 

*Folks dumping unwanted, unloved pets in Lewis Park... constantly. 

 

*Stockton is rated D+ for overall crime.

 

*Homeless dumpster driving in my condo lot.

 

*My car was totaled, right in front of my home, 2.5 weeks after I moved in!

 And the driver just kept going! 

 

*One time someone dumped a drum of oil in the canal, despite knowing that there is fish, assorted ducks, and wildlife right there. 

 

There is more, but you get the idea. 

 

Gini the duck will now live the rest of her life without her mate. The canal was beautiful on October 30th, but somehow it will never be as beautiful ever again. How long will she live without her mate to watch over here? Kenny was very protective of his girl. Ducks do grieve, but there is a little bit of hope, you see, there is a lady in the neighborhood who leaves a bowl of food out for them daily. She loves them very much! I think she witnessed Kenny's death, in that she covered up the "Duck Crossing" sign that she had placed, with the sign you see below...

 

 I couldn't say it better. 

 

So that's it. I'm done! I am planning to leave this place, sometime this next winter or spring. We need to do some small repairs, painting, and then will come the packing. At that point, UGH, it's time to contact a realtor, or two. We are hoping to move out of San Joaquin county completely, so that may require two of them. I hate realtors. Every one I have had has been miserable to deal with. I hate them! But the last one I worked with, to purchase this condo, was less of a pain in the ass as the others, so hopefully I will find another one like that.

 

On most autumn and winter mornings I can hear the Canada geese fly over, sometimes in large flocks. A year ago, on the first day of autumn, Sandhill crane circled the house. The sky was gorgeous day. A bluer than blue sky, and the autumn sun bathing everything in it's golden color, and that sound of crane making life just about perfect. Things will never be perfect again, without Kenny. Ever right now, as I type this, I can hear someone racing their car down the street. One day a child is going to be hit, and the driver more than likely stop. 

 

I don't want to be here to see that happen.

 

Rest in Peace dear Kenny, I will never forget you. You were a really great duck!

 

 

Autumn Maple

 

“When everything looks like a magical oil painting,

 you know you are in Autumn!” 

~Mehmet Murat ildan 

 

Everything is beginning to show more color. I am not usually a fan of gold, but this tree in Cull Canyon park simply took my breath away! My family had a Big Leaf Maple in our yard when I was a child, unfortunately it became diseased and it had to be cut down when I was about 4 yrs old. Oh boy, was I angry! I never forgot that tree. I think of it in autumn, and all the times I spent having autumn tea parties with my friends under that tree. The naps I took with various pets, and leaves I collected. It was my best friend. After it was gone, my parents planted an apple tree, and it was great. We had a pear tree in our backyard too, so the fruits were wonderful, but my memories always go back to that lovely, golden, Big Leaf Maple. This one, in the park, isn't my friend from childhood, but it's a good tree, and it makes me feel good inside whenever I see it, but especially in autumn.

 

 

 

  

 

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #45

 

 

 

“I love autumn despite the drench weather. I think it symbolizes the end of misery and the beginning of glee. It gives hopes that sooner or later, flowers will bloom again, green buds will sprout from trees, and that which is dead will come back alive.”

 

 ~ Aishah Madadiy,

  Bits of Heaven

 

I shot this just before twilight. I love the autumn light. 

 

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #44

 

“Witty people came out in autumn; beauties in July.”

 
~Andrew Holleran,

  Dancer from the Dance

 

 

Nasty Smoke On A Pretty Autumn Day

 

“There was a young lady named Mae
Who smoked without stopping all day;
As pack followed pack,
Her lungs first turned black,
And eventually rotted away.”

 
~Edward Gorey,

  Floating Worlds: The Letters of Edward Gorey & Peter F. Neumeyer

 

First I want to say, if you are a regular visitor to my blog, I mean no disrespect, however, I can't for the life of me understand the act of selfishness you see in the photo. I was, having a wonderful autumn day, thoroughly enjoying the autumn air, it was crisp and cool and just about perfect! I had just ordered myself a lovely Chai Latte from Starbucks, waiting patiently, when the nasty smell of someone's cancer stick wafted into my Mini Cooper.  It was coming from the car in front of mine, and the smell was particularly bad. Look, I just don't get it. You are in line, nowhere near the pickup window, and you're smoking with the car window down. You're obviously not into enjoying fresh air, which is fine, but why are you fucking it up for me?

Is it so hard to keep your window up? Really? You have a nice car, more than likely you have air conditioning, why do you force your stinky cancer sticks on me? Can't you just keep it to yourself? 

 

No really... can't you? Is it that you don't want the smell in your car? Is it that you don't someone in your car to breathe it in? Is it that your left handed, and can't hold the damn thing with any confidence in your right hand? Is it that you just can't wait until you get home? Or any other appropriate place? Can you not think of anyone other than yourself? Well, let me share the following... My mother was a serious smoker. She was a 3 pack a day smoker, and as you might expect, she ended up having a heart attack when I was 17. Bleeding ulcers followed. She had a stroke when I was 22, and a second when I was 23. She had open heart surgery when I was 25, and was diagnosed with emphysema a few years later. How she didn't get lung cancer, from her selfishness, is beyond me. How I wasn't born with birth defects is beyond me. I was born at 4lbs/9oz and 17 inches long. I only managed to reach the very tall 4'11, so maybe I didn't get away from the defects.

 

Let's revisit my questions...

 

Can't you keep it to yourself? 

Well, apparently not! 

 

Is it that you don't want that smell in your car?

No shit. Neither do I! And by the way, if it bothers you, please realize that fully!

 

Is it that you don't want someone in your car to breathe it in?

See my previous answer! 

 

You just couldn't wait until you get home?

BULLSHIT! 

 

Folks, please think about others around you! 

 

Care enough about yourself to not give yourself cancer. You will leave someone missing you. And believe me, they will carry it the rest of their lives. 

 

Believe me. 

 

One day, a well dressed lady took her cigarette out of her mouth, and set it down in front of Starbucks on a dirty edge of a window. A couple minutes later she came out, with her handcrafted drink, put the cancer stick back in her mouth, and walk away, like what she did was okay on any level.

 

 

It is not okay!

 

Please stop doing that. 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #43

 “Every season has its own art

 and the art of autumn is to bewitch the people!”

 
~Mehmet Murat ildan 

 

Just a leaf today, I am a little tired and fibromyalgia can really drain your energy. Two posts tomorrow. My usual rant about something, and the next leaf in the autumn leaf project. I have a great one the post on Tuesday!

 

 

 

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #42

 

“Nothing dies as beautifully as autumn.”

 
~Ashlee Willis,

  A Wish Made of Glass

 

Autumn's Delight... Candy And Pumpkins

 

"Listen to them, the children of the night. What music they make!"

 

~Bram Stoker's Dracula 

 

 

Halloween night was great. We had triple cheese ravioli, shaped like bats and pumpkins, in a sweet basil sauce. We watched a ton of movies, and while we didn't have a single kid at the door, we get to keep all the candy to ourselves! But you know I would have rather given it all away. We just don't live in the kind of neighborhood where kids go trick-or-treating. The kids mostly go to churches in the area, or they go only to their friends houses. Maybe one day will be able to move into a new place where the neighborhood is a less dangerous. Things have changed considerably from when I was a kid. Things are so much more dangerous. If it's not coming at you by street violence,, a young man was shot by police right in front of our house a couple months ago, then it's coming from your own government refusing to fund SNAP benefits. Lack of food and a stable community, is what leads to higher crime, but have you ever tried to tell that to a republican?

 

Anyway, our punky turned out really good. It's a kitten, or terrifying kitty, or if you've ever owned a kitten you know it could be both! Hubby carved it, as he's the pumpkin artist in our house, and he surprised me with the kitty theme this year, in honor of the two new kitty additions to our house. We picked it out at Trader Joe's, on Family Day, as we usually do since moving out to the valley. Half Moon Bay was our favorite place to go for our Halloween pumpkins, but getting over to the peninsula now is just too hard. I miss it so much, but we have this tradition now, and it's still fun finding the perfect pumpkin! That's the key, finding the perfect pumpkin, and letting it tell you who and what it is. It's the same with people. Listen to the things they don't say. It's not the words or even the silence, it's the intuition you carry inside you, that tells the story. You only have to listen to it, and do not dismiss it. 

 

It was another great Halloween, and I am already thinking about next year and how to plan for my favorite day. Maybe I will make dinner next year and give dear hubby a break. I need to get one of those deluxe pumpkin carving sets, so I can surprise him too! I have no idea why we never invested in one. I guess with hubby being the artist, there was never a real need for one, but if I want to do one next year, I know it will be necessary. I am getting older now, and I have arthritis, and my hands shake mildly, so it's time to face it... I am not a kid anymore. Well, except for my love of all things Halloween!

 

Next Halloween is only 363 days away! Are you ready?