All Is Gray: Sky And Lake

6:54

6:59

6:59

It’s 8:47, and I’ve been up since 6:46. Evie’s still sleeping, so the house is quiet. I was on the water by 7:30 and paddled for close to an hour on a calm lake. Only a few mallards and a bevy of Canada geese were out. No fishing boats, no migrating birds yet, and no herons or osprey, both having headed south.

Kayak Morning

South

North

Kicking Back

Yesterday started off badly. Neither of us got our usual sleep, and we woke up crabby and tired. I forgot I had a breakfast date at 8:00 and had started out for a paddle when I got a text asking if I was coming. So I turned around, came back to the house, hurriedly wrote the blog, and drove to breakfast in Bemus. I had to be back by 9:00 because Austin was stopping by to help with some outdoor work. When I got back, he was just driving in. We had a list of things we hoped to get done, and Evie left for school at 9:30, tired but ready for the kids.

For the next three hours, Austin and I trimmed the privets and rhododendrons- anything that tended to grow over the fence between us and Pine Hill. Austin even took down a tree that had grown near our compost pile.  We then hung the curtain on our back porch. Finally, Austin mounted a ladder, cleaned our gutters, and ended his day by trimming the suckers on the maple in our front yard. He seemed fine by the end of the morning, but I was exhausted and couldn’t wait to get in the house and relax.

Around 12:45, I made lunch: egg salad sandwiches, and I finished up the black bean soup. And, of course, I watched an episode of The Mayor of Kingstown, starting Season Two. Since I’d had a bad night, I hoped for a good nap, but no luck. After reading some and wondering if I would fall asleep, I got up and went downstairs to read and wait for Evie to come home. She returned later than usual, and though she was tired, she’d had a good day.

We waited until wine time for her to regale me with stories about her kids, some hilarious, some touching. On her way home,  one of the little boys yelled out, " I love you, Grandma Evie." It sounds like a typical day in an elementary school.

Dinner was the leftover pork roast with mashed potatoes and a salad. Neither of us finished the pork because it was too salty, but we devoured the salad. We watched a couple of really emotional episodes of ER, then a few minutes of football, before returning to The Mayor of Kingstown. Because I was so tired, I went to bed earlier than usual and slept through the night.

This Could Only Happen In The United States: It Restored My Faith In The American Voter

Light Rain And Dark Skies

6:26

6:41

7:35

It’s 7:34 and we’ve been up since 7:00. I kayaked for only a few minutes before realizing I had breakfast in Bemus at 8:00, and our friend Austin will be here at 9:00 to help with some yard work.

Kayak Morning

Yesterday was maybe the last day of Indian summer, or whatever you want to call the past ten days to two weeks. I had a good paddle, of course, for close to an hour, then finished up the blog and had breakfast. I didn’t have much mojo, so I decided on an easy ride. I drove to the Chautauqua Institution and rode its perimeter for 50 minutes. It was a beautiful morning to ride, quite often through the leaves waiting on the street to be sucked up by a vacuum truck. I was home around 11:30 and did some raking of the leaves from our tulip trees in the side yard. They are so large and crisp that it’s difficult to mulch them.

Thunder Bridge

University Beach Park

Bestor Plaza

Evie left to get her hair cut around 12:30, and I heated up the last of the brats and sauerkraut and some black bean soup for lunch and watched my show. I then finished my book, which had a ridiculous ending. It’s the last time I take a recommendation from TikTok. I tried to nap, then started a new book, The Kind Worth Killing by Peter Swanson. Evie returned around 3:00, having made a couple of stops after her trim. I read until 4:00, then went out and mulched my neighbors’ yard, thick with leaves. I made some progress, but it could certainly use another swipe with the mower.

A Relaxing Afternoon

We had a great wine time, of course, as everyone was talking about the Blue Tsunami. It’s still shocking to see how thoroughly the Trump agenda and Trump himself were discarded by voters. It restored my faith in Americans. For dinner, Evie had put a pork roast in the slow cooker at 1:00, and we ate around 6:30 with mashed potatoes and Brussels sprouts, a typical autumn dinner. We loved it. We watched TV until 8:00, then some basketball, but I also finished Mayor of Kingstown, one of the most violent endings to a series, with a prison riot put down and hundreds killed. Wow. I was ready to sleep after that.

UNBELIVEWABLE: TRUMP AND HIS CRONIES REPUDIATED

 ENJOY THE FOLLOWING MEMES ON THIS UNPRECEDENTED DAY FOR DEMOCRACY

A Gray Sky With Some Color

6:56

7:06

8:34

I woke at 6:00 to an overcast sky, but now the sun has broken through some of the gray, giving the southeast sky some striking color. We received a touch of rain overnight, and it looks like an overcast morning with a sunny afternoon, perfect for voting. It’s 8:50, and I paddled on a mostly cloudy morning for close to an hour. I haven’t seen a heron in a week, so I assume they have migrated south along with the ospreys. Only the eagles remain, and the migrating buffleheads, swans, and mergansers have yet to arrive. 

North

Kayak Morning

Yesterday I decided to take it easy, with no biking or hiking, just a nice hour-long paddle down to the Powerboat Club and home. Evie was home as well, nursing a lingering cold. By 9:30, I had kayaked, written the blog, had breakfast, and walked around the neighborhood. We also got something done that has been bothering me: we took the air conditioners out of the TV room and back bedroom. It took all of ten minutes, and I feel better having it done. I left for Wegmans at 10:00 because I wanted to get a flu and COVID vaccination. I was second in line and was out shopping within ten minutes. I picked up a few things but didn’t need much. I skipped Ryder’s Cup and came straight home because I wanted to get the side yard mulched before lunch.

Evie made me a couple of toasted cheese-and-turkey sandwiches, and I watched another episode of American Primitive. By 1:30, I was upstairs reading and hoping to nap. I was back downstairs by 2:00, however, and read for a bit before raking some, then mulching the front yard. It sure looked good that afternoon, but this morning the leaves are back. I think I will wait until the weekend to mow again.

Evie had her Zoom call with her sisters at 5:00. While she talked, I made my favorite black bean soup from the Moosewood cookbook. It takes about 25 minutes and is easy: sauté onions, cumin, and garlic; add tomatoes and black beans; simmer; add sun-dried tomatoes; simmer again; then use an immersion blender and voilà, it’s done. For dinner, Evie cooked brats with our homemade sauerkraut, another simple but tasty meal. I guess I cannot get enough of football, because at 8:15 I turned on the Seattle/Chicago game and watched it until 10:00, when I went up to bed.

Overcast For Much Of The Day

Autumn Zinnias

6:48

7:04

7:33

8:50

It’s 7:30, and I’ve been up for an hour. There was some color as the sun rose, but now it’s behind the clouds. It looks like a good morning for kayaking: little wind and 46º. And the sun just popped out from hiding behind the clouds. It’s almost 9:00, and I paddled for close to an hour on a mostly cloudy morning, with an occasional burst of sun.

Kayak Morning

Sunday was another good day to be on the lake. I was up early, a result of the time change, and out on the lake early, paddling down to the Powerboat Club, out to Tom’s Point, and home, avoiding the duck blind. After breakfast and the blog, I drove to Bemus, parked near the bridge, and rode my bike down Lakeside Drive, through Long Point State Park’s woods, to the tip of Long Point, and home, about an hour ride. It was perfect weather, and I was the only one in the park, at least that I could see.

Paddling South

Sandy Bottom

Sunday was another good day to be on the lake. I was up early, a result of the time change, and out on the lake early, paddling down to the Powerboat Club, out to Tom’s Point, and home, avoiding the duck blind. After breakfast and the blog, I drove to Bemus, parked near the bridge, and rode my bike down Lakeside Drive, through Long Point State Park’s woods, to the tip of Long Point, and home, about an hour ride. It was perfect weather, and I was the only one in the park, at least that I could see.

Long Point Trail

Biking Out To Long Point

Woodlawn Colors

Lenhart Yellow

When I got home, Evie was busy cleaning the kitchen, so I volunteered to vacuum the living room and TV room. Around 12:45, Evie made me a couple of fried eggs and a bagel, and I settled in for a few hours of football. Buffalo ended up defeating the Ravens, but I wasn’t enjoying it much and may be getting tired of watching football. I did watch the first half of the Chiefs’ loss to Denver before getting dressed and ready to drive to Linda and Ron’s for dinner.

Dinner With Linda And Ron

We got there at 6:00, and it was already dark out. Linda had a great cheese appetizer for us to enjoy as we sat around their kitchen table with wine, catching up on their busy lives and our kids. Dinner was our favorite: a couple of racks of lamb with orzo and salad, followed by cake. Yum. We left around 8:45, happily full, and were home by 9:00. Evie was tired and went to bed, and I watched more football until I, too, went up to bed. A good day, great dinner, and a night with friends.

Way Too Early

Our 13-Month-Old Great-Grandson, Tommy, Off To Preschool

6:16

6:27

6:45

It’s 7:00, and I’ve been up since 6:00 because of the time change. The virtue of the earlier light is that I can kayak by 7:00 if I want. The downside is that driving to and from dinner out will often be in the dark. Right now there’s a light wind, and it’s 41º, with some sun early, then a cloudy afternoon with a high around 64º, perfect weather for football. It's just 9:00 as I finish this after a 70-minute paddle, past a duck blind near the Powerboat Club and out to Tom's Point and back, a long but refreshing paddle. 

Kayak Morning

Duck Blind

Bridge

Northern Sky

Saturday was typical: a nice paddle starting around 8:00, then writing the blog and a walk around Woodlawn as I enjoyed my breakfast in a bowl. We had no plans for the day, just the leisure of a Saturday. I, of course, wanted to “do something,” so around 10:30 I drove to Mayville, parked at the park, and biked one of my four usual trails. I began with two sections of Webb’s Trail along an abandoned railroad track, then took Mayville’s asphalt walkway to #430 and Mayville Cemetery, back to Sea Lion Drive for a bit, and then back to the car. It took close to an hour. Whenever I take this route, I pass the same guy out for a walk, and this time I stopped and talked with him. His name is Steve, and he lives in Mayville. He’s a former runner, now a daily walker, and he often drives to Presque Isle to bike. It was fun talking with him. On my way home, I stopped at Tops and picked up some goodies for our dinners this week.

Gathering Of Sea Gulls At Mayville Park

Webb's Trail

Leaves And Trees

Mayville Cemetery

Looking South From North End Of Lake

When I got home, Evie was enjoying her leisure after a busy week. For lunch, I had the last of the eggplant pasta and watched some TV, not sure what. I started a new book at my friend Ron’s suggestion, Damascus Station by David McCloskey, the first in a series of spy novels. So far, I’m enjoying it. I napped briefly but mostly read, then came downstairs feeling antsy and went outside to rake the leaves that had fallen around our red maple, even trimming some branches so I can walk under the tree when I mow. It felt good to be outside doing something rather than sitting inside watching football.

Evie had forgotten that I had the leftover eggplant for lunch and she fried up bacon for BLTs. Instead of a big Saturday night dinner, then, we had BLTs for dinner, loved them, and vowed to have them once a week. We watched the usual until Evie went up to bed. I then switched back and forth between the Ohio State loss to USC and the WNBA finals, won by Golden State. I timed it right and caught the last four minutes of the exciting Golden State victory. I ended the night with The Mayor of Kingston before going to bed.