Harvest Fruits

Autumn

The cheerful sundial;

it falls in the shadow

of they leaves.

There where your branches

brace themselves

against the gate of Heaven. 

~Kristian Goldmund Aurmann

While driving around Carson City last month, I saw a lot of amazing trees, and beautiful autumn leaves, some still on the trees, and some in big piles of harvest colors on the ground, but one of my favorite sights, was this apple, the very last one, still clinging to the tree. I'm pretty sure that if you touched it, even very gently, it would fall to the ground. Last year, I came across a deer in the same yard, eating the apples that had fallen, so I am pretty sure at some point after I left, that's exactly what happened again.

It's a nice thought that the beautiful, yummy apple, was enjoyed by a deer! They are such beautiful animals! It was the last apple of autumn for that tree, and every last bite would be enjoyed, not left to simply rot. I think next year, when I head to Nevada, to photograph the autumn leaves again, I hope I will get to see more deer, looking for apples to eat, from what's becoming one of my favorite trees of autumn to photograph!

I came across this persimmon tree, while leaf peeping in Knight's Ferry, California, in late October. It stopped me in my tracks! It was amazingly beautiful, and full of beautiful, ripe fruit! I have never eaten a persimmon, so I can't say if I like their taste or not, but when I was a little girl, my best friend and I used to sit under a neighbor's persimmon tree, and enjoy their scent. It was a great place to read books together, and play with puzzles, and our do our favorite thing of all, listen to all the fathers on the street, yell at their TVs, cheering on their favorite football teams, collage, and pro!

We laughed so hard at our dad's enthusiasm for football! Oh my, the fun we had all those autumns. We did this for about 5 years, and then he passed away, suddenly, in an accident the next February. He was hit by a car. It wasn't the drivers fault, he darted out into the street without looking. Our entire street changed, the other kids and rarely played together again. A part of us grew up very fast after he died, and I never sat under that tree again. I released the pain of losing my friend years ago, time heals, but now, when I smell ripe persimmons, I only have the best memories of my friend, and all the fun we had in those 5 autumns, under the beautiful tree, with the spicy, sweet scent.

#1 Leaf Of The Day

December 1st, 2017

Stockton, California

 Mood: Happy

~Me :)

Harvest Yumminess!

"Somewhere along the way, I realized that the new year doesn't begin in January. The new and fresh has always come for me in the Fall. Ironically, as leaves are falling like rain, crunching beneath my feet with finality, I am vibrating with the excitement

 of birth and new beginnings... My year begins in Autumn."

~Betsy Canas

I love cooking in Fall. I have a full kitchen pantry,
 and I am working on new recipes.
 Stay Tuned!

Yum!

MMMmmmmmmmmm Yummy!

Leaf Of The Day

Mood: Happy

~Me :)

Stress Busters

"Health food may be good for the conscience, but Oreos taste a hell of a lot better."

-Robert Redford

Yum, Persimmons. I hadn't eaten a persimmon in years, until today. I had gone to the hospital to have the blood work done, that I had put off last week, and as I was driving into the parking lot I remembered that there is a Farmer's Market there every Thursday. Wonderful locally grown fruits and vegetables, in all their yummy gloriousness, just sitting in the warm autumn sun, waiting to be snatched up by a woman like me. I was STARVING! LOL. My blood work was for my A1C test, and a fasting potassium and glucose check, so by the time I got to the hospital, I hadn't eaten in about 15 hours. That's a little bit long for me, and actually it is for all diabetics, as one of the first things they teach you in the health education courses I took was to never skip meals. Unfortunately, once ever 4 months, it is necessary to do just that, so that the doctor can get an accurate gauge of how I am doing with my diabetes.

Anyway, the lab technician had a difficult time with my veins, it seems they like to collapse when a needle is inserted... ouch... so needless to say, I was a bit on edge when I finally walked out of the appointment. Thank goodness, that little Farmer's Market was right by the entrance. I appreciate it that my HMO makes it available, right there on the hospital campus. They also had a nice listing of all organic farms and suppliers in the Bay Area counties.

I had a look around at the fabulous fresh tomatoes, grapes and the berries, and finally decided on a nice juicy persimmon. :) Persimmons are delicious, and like I said, it had been forever since I had one. It was a nice treat after a bit of stress. :) Is there anything better then a nice bit of fresh fruits and vegetables on a cool autumn day?

-OndineMonet
"Yum"
Union City, California
November 13th, 2007