The Lake Calms Down

8:13

7:43

Downed tree at Mc Clure at Lighthouse Point

It's 6:45 and I have been up listening to Morning Joe for about a half hour, reading about the storm consequences for the East Coast,  and the beginning of the return to politics, thankfully on hold for the past two or three days. Two things have surprised me the most, the fifty homes in New Jersey that burned during the storm and the cost to the country, supposedly 50 billion dollars.  Where does the money come from to pay for this.  Better cut taxes!

Yesterday was cloudy but cooler, with splashes of rain, nothing measurable.  We went off in the morning to check the Mc Clures house at Lighthouse Point and were shocked to see their huge maple tree down, across their yard and road, just touching their neighbor's front porch.  How sad to see this giant fall but no one was hurt and very little damage, other than lost of power for this neighborhood, and even the Lighthouse Grocery had to close, as their back up generator was not working.  The street was cleared by 4:00 and a line up of utility vehicles were ready to come in, replace the pole and get the power back on early evening.

Ron Mc Clure did come up from Pittsburgh, and I met him at his house, as he was arranging for things to be cleaned up.  We convinced him to stay with us, so he came over for dinner and stayed the night.  We had a dinner of chicken with artichokes hearts and mushrooms, then sat  around the fire listening to oldies but goodies until 11:00.  Ron is a real music buff, remembers all the groups, the band member names, the trivia, so it was fun to take this trip back down memory lane.  Dion and the Belmonts, The Penguins, The Del Vikings, Brenda Lee, The Skyliners, The Righteous Brothers and The Four Tops, to name just a few.  It all started with Elvis Radio on Pandora and expanded from there.  It's amazing how we could still remember the lyrics to the most inane songs, fifty five years later.  Where in our heads have those words been all these years?  And what an amazing vehicle is music, to conjure up these words but also the memories associated with them from our past.  I wish I could remember what we had for dinner two nights ago.  Just kidding...stuffed cabbage rolls and sauerkraut.

Heavy Wind and Rain, But We Still Have Power, Inshallah

7:37 this morning

7:37

A rough night, with howling, winter like winds, in the thirty mph range most likely, gusts up to 50 from what I have seen on the weather channels.  Right now it has stopped raining, though it comes and goes.  I was up at 6:00, able to get on line, was dropped for about 15 minutes but now I am back on.  Evie is still sleeping in the TV room, so I am not sure if the TV works but since I have Internet, I assume it is.  We have been lucky so far, most likely some small branches down, but as far as I can see, no major problems.  I know Beth lost power in Darien yesterday about 4:30, Jill and family hunkered down in their basement  in Bristow for the night but as far as I know, they did not lose power.  And it's strangely warm, about 51 degrees this morning, such a contrast to the snow in West Virginia and Ohio.  The storm tracker has Sandy moving up this way on Wednesday, hopefully it will have calmed down a bit

Yesterday, we got ready for any emergency, as I went off to Wegmans, fairly empty of people actually. and picked up some food stuffs, just in case we have a problem.  We are always prepared for the worst, at least for a couple of days of loss of power, with water, food, batteries, and of course, we have the lake to flush toilets if necessary.  It is not fun waiting around for the worst to happen, watching the news, as the storm teams stand in knee deep water, talking about storm surges.  And it's no fun to be without electricity, which over six million people appear to be, with more to come. It makes you appreciate how lucky we are to have consistent electricity, gas, cable and Internet in our modern lives.  Life without any of these would seem unbearable, yet little over a hundred years ago, none of these things were available to most people.  When my Internet went out this morning,  I went upstairs to get my book, ready to read it instead of the NYTimes or Washington Post on line and thought about how old fashion that seemed, no radio or TV or Internet.

I am listening, however , to CNN on our portable Sirius Radio, which Evie bought just for occasions like this, where we might not have electricity.  I am using the batteries at the moment, so as not to wake up Evie who probably had a bad night because of the howling winds.

Yesterday afternoon, we mostly read and watched or listened to the news, as the winds picked up, the rains came, quite heavy at times.  I was antsy, wanting to go outside for a walk or hike, our usual routine but the weather made it too unpleasant.  We had wine and cheese and crackers before dinner, relaxing and watching the angry lake disappear into darkness.  We had cabbage rolls and sauerkraut for dinner, along with mashed potatoes (my favorite with this dinner), salad and pumpkin rolls.  We caught up on some of the TV series we had missed over the weekend, Homeland which continues to keep our attention, and The Good Wife, which is getting a bit silly.  We watched New York and much of New Jersey continue to degrade,  on the TV and went to bed around 11:15, me upstairs, Evie down in the TV room.  I was bothered by the howling winds for a bit but was finally able to get to sleep.

Some Wind, Rain, But So Far So Good At The Lake

ev

Evie and Halle

8:15

It's pitch black outside, something I had better get used to(sunrise is at 7:47), and we are both back at the lake.  It's 41 degrees outside, rained some last night, but not much.  We did get an inch over the past four days, when we were in Bristow.  The rains and wind are supposed to come later this afternoon, though it does not sound too bad at least for now.  Outside, it's stormy, gray lake, sky, some mist off towards Bemus, not very inviting.

We left Jill and Drew yesterday about 9:00, got home around 4:00, seven hours, with a few stops along the way, at Gio's, in Woodland, PA, on RT. 322, to pick up a pound of barbecue and cole slaw for dinner, in Sugar Grove, PA at the Town and Country Food Store for a half of gallon of Pot of Gold milk, other essentials, but also some stuffed cabbage rolls, some lamb, feta and spiced sausages made at the store.  They sounded so good that I had to get them.

We were not very energetic when we arrived, as travel always tires us out.  It was windy and rainy, and most of the leaves on Leonard's maple, which had most of its leaves when we left, have fallen, covering the lawn.  Our lawn is fine since out trees lost their leaves last week.

We had a fun time in Bristow with Jill and Drew and the girls.  They sure are growing up fast.  Hayden has become a typical eleven year old teener bopper, into texting and Istagram, while Halle tries to keep up.  Evie did work with Halle on both her reading and math and she is really getting good at both.  It's fun to see them both grow as students.  I think we were also a big help to Jill and Drew with their landscaping, putting in some trees and bushes, planning their next steps, what plants to buy, getting them started.  Their house looks great, too, since they had lots of work done this summer, new wooden floors, some molding, and now they are working on the landscaping.

Today, we will see how it goes, perhaps doing some shopping, picking up some necessary items, just in case we lose power...I hope not.

Back to the Lake, Alas

The Bissells on their Back Porch

The Girls at Drews sister's house

Hayden

Heidi Bissell

Drew and Jill

It's early enough,7:00 a Sunday, and we have decided to drive back to the lake today, to avoid any problems with Tropical Storm Sandy.  I guess we are wimps, but we don't want to be caught in a storm and want to be at the lake if there is bad weather.  Right now it's just dark and windy outside, but it's supposed to start raining soon.  It's warm, about 60 degrees, everyone is asleep but Evie and I, neither of us anxious to leave but feel we must.  The bad weather starts Sunday night, which is what we hope to avoid.

We had lovely weather yesterday, despite the storm warnings.  After breakfast, Halle and I took Coco out for a walk, to look at all the Halloween decorations while Jill and Drew went out again to stock up on emergency items.  The media really has been bashing the area with warnings.  After lunch we all went off to a nursery, to start some of the landscaping of the Bissell's backyard.  They picked up a couple of pine trees and two bushes for the front yard, to go along with their rhododendron.   We got home and for the next hour and a half, Drew and I replanted two azaleas, put in the two bushes in the front yard, and put the two pines in the back yard.  The pines will eventually act as a barrier on the north side of their backyard, as the neighbors houses look down into their living room in the winter.  They pines look so good that they are going to get a few more to make a nice barrier.  It was a nice day to work outside, as Evie and Jill helped us with the placing of the trees and the girls played with neighbors.

Around 4:30, we went off to Drews sister Carrie's to celebrate her daughter's second birthday.  His sister in law was their as well as another couple, friends of Drew's sister.  We had appetizers, the famous Bissell chips and sweet pickle dip, and Carrie had made a beef stew for dinner.  We sat around and talked, watched football, ate, and had a good time, as they are great hosts.  The last time we were in town, in early June, they also had us over for a party, so we feel like part of the family.

We got home around 8:30, played some games with the girls, and Jill and Drew went off to a neighbor hood party and as you can see, Jill dressed up a Heidi, a Barvarian bar maid, type cast no doubt.  We were all tired, ended up in bed around 10:30 and Jill and Drew didn't get home till late.  It was a good day.

Partly Cloudy and Warm in Bristow, VA

Evie and the Girls

Hayden and Grace

Halle and Granny, Getting ready

Ready to Walk to School

I was the first one up as Drew had poker last night, so he slept in a bit, perhaps thirty minutes.  It's slowly beginning to turn light outside and we should have a decent day, perhaps some rain late in the day.  We are trying to figure out when Storm Sandy will hit the coast, the effect it might have on our drive home.  We are either leaving tomorrow, Sunday, if the storm hits earlier than expected.  Right now, it looks like we will leave on Monday, since the storm will not be felt till Tuesday but things can change.

Both girls went to school yesterday, as Hayden felt better and Halle was tired but went to school anyways.  Jill and I did some storm shopping in the morning.  I filled up my car to avoid the rush today, as everyone will be out planning for the storm.  They predict power outages, so water and canned goods are going quickly.  Evie went in to Halle' school to have lunch with her, a treat for Halle.  Hayden had become to old for that sort of thing.  In fact, we are not supposed to walk with her to the bus, like we do with the other kids.

In the afternoon, we went to Trader Joe's to pick up some vino but also appetizers as we decided to have a dinner of various pupus like shrimp, cheese, bread, things like that. After Trader Joe's, we came home and walked with the gang to pick up Halle at 3:45, six adults and four dogs.  When the girls got home,  Evie brought out the cookies and together with a neighbor, they decorated cookies until dinner time.  Meanwhile, Drew and I went on the BW3 for a beer (just one) and came home around 5:30 for appetizers and cocktails and Jill had her friend Tracy over.  After filling up on appetizers, we watched a teen movie Summer Eleven Evie and I really liked with the girls (we had seen it three weeks ago with Marisa Albarran) and the girls enjoyed it.  It's about four girls the summer before they enter middle school.  Quite well done, avoids most of the cliches, no sex or vulgar language, and authentic acting by the four girls.

Today we may drive to a nursery, pick up a few pines and bushes and try to get them in the ground today before the rains.  And tonight, we are going over to Drews sister's house, to celebrate their daughter's second birthday,  They live about a mile away, in another community just like Jill and Drew's,  And we will have to come to a decision as to when we drive back to Chautauqua, either Sunday or Monday.  I hope we can stay till Monday as we are supposed to go for dinner to my sister Ellen's house in Herndon.

And The Storm Warnings Begin

Ready for School

The Girls of Bristow Run Hood

Halle Back Packing It

It's just starting to lighten up here as Hayden gets ready for the 7:30 bus.  Jill and I are up, but Halle doesn't leave for school till 8:35 so she is still sleeping.  It 56 degrees, high will be in the 70's so it will be quite a warm day.  But the big story is the storm, coming our way on Sunday or Monday.  The weathermen are in their glory this morning, in slickers on beaches, waves breaking in the background, wind blowing, as they try to spin the coming storm, emphasizing the worst scenario.

Yesterday, Hayden stayed home with a sore throat and slept much of the day though it was not strep as Jill feared.  The three of them went off early morning to the doctor, to get flu shots and check out Hayden's throat.  We walked Halle to school  but Jill stopped by to pick her up and take her to get her flu shot.

Around 11:00, my sister Ellen came over for lunch, as she lives in Herndon, about a thirty minute drive from Bristow.  She came also to give Jill advice on landscaping her backyard as my sister's yard is amazing and she knows what kinds of flowers, shrubs and trees grow well in this area.  We got take out from a local Thai restaurant for lunch and just sat around talking about gardens, our kids, and the weather, what else. Ellen also has a blog, like mine, devoted mostly to her garden, with great pictures. So we traded blog tips! We are going over to her house Sunday for dinner as well.  She left around 3:00, just in time for us to walk up and pick up Halle.  The rest of the afternoon, we relaxed, played with the girls and their friends who, when they find that Evie's in town,  come over in flocks.  Drew got home around 5:30, just in time for cocktails.  Jill made chicken Parmesan for dinner.  After dinner, Halle did some reading, Hayden caught up on their homework, and they were in bed by 9:30.  We were not far behind.

Today, we go to Trader Joe's, to pick up some vino, and Jill wants to stock up on staples just in case the storm is severe, so we may hit Costco.  Drew may be home early, perhaps we will do some planting, weather permitting.

Early Morning In Bristow, Virginia

With Coco and Halle

The Girls

Halle Bissell  2nd Grader

A different morning here in Bristow, the same darkness, a different routine.  Drew left for work around 5:00 and Hayden and Halle have to be gotten up and readied for school.  Unfortunately, Hayden has a sore throat so she is staying home today.  At 8:30, I get to walk Halle to school, with Coco, about a mile walk  It's going to be a nice day, but warm here in Virginia, the high around 77 degrees.

We had an easy seven hour drive from the lake, foggy much of the way, some rain, but by the time we got to Virginia, it cleared up.  We stopped at Gio's barbecue, near State College, for a mid morning pulled pork sandwich with cole slaw, my routine on this trip.  We got to Jill's around 2:15, to an empty house as Jill was working.  Around 3:00 Hayden returned home, looking very grown up and chic,  and I was to take her to an eye appointment while Evie and Jill were going to take Halle to her dance class.  Things got screwed up as Evie thought Jill was picking her up at home, but Jill thought Evie would be at the eye doctor's office.  So plans changed, and I shopped with Halle, her dance class cancelled, went home where Evie sat waiting to see her granddaughter, and Jill stayed with Hayden at the eye doctors.  Got that?

Drew got home early, an a friend from high school, a landscaper, came over to give them some idea as to how to landscape their backyard, something they have been wanting to do.  He spent about a half hour with them, had some good suggestions, so they may go with him.  For dinner, we had rotisserie chicken, Italian sausages on the grill, and Evie brought stuffed shells.  We didn't eat till later, around 7:15, so we were all hungry.  The girls did not get to bed till around 9:00, as Halle read a book to me and Evie quizzed Hayden on her science terms.

The four of us watched Modern Family, taped, till about 10:00 then went to bed.  Evie and I were quite tired, perhaps because of our drive but bed sounded really good.

Today, my sister Ellen comes over for lunch, to help with landscaping ideas and to see us since it has been quite awhile since we have seen each other.

On The Road To Hayden and Halle's House

Garnet Japanese Maple

Flourishing Petunias

Up early, 5:30,  as we are driving to Bristow, VA, hoping to get their around 2:30, in time for the girls return home from school.

Yesterday was overcast most of the day but warm, highs in the low 60's, so if you were outside working, you could work up a sweat.  I went off early to Home Depot and picked up six pieris japoninca, eight bucks a piece, and four grasses, three bucks each, a good deal.  We planted them on the hill behind our house, which will make it more attractive for us.  It took about an hour and by the time we were done, we were both soaked with sweat as it was terrible humid.  We relaxed the rest of the day, enjoy some TV, reading, doing some packing and having a pizza and salad for dinner.

I have three books I am reading and one of the them, the autobiography of Christopher Hitchens is going slow.  I am on page 300 but am ready to move to something more interesting.  I have two books on my Kindle from the library, one Wild (From Lost To Found), the story of a troubled woman who finds herself by walking the Pacific Coast Trail, from southern California to Washington, Alone.  It's interesting when she talks about her hike, less so when she talks about her troubles, the death of her mother, the end of her marriage, various dead end jobs, things like that.  I am not sure why I am so reluctant to give up on a book, an old school attitude I guess.  Maybe I just want to be entertained and not informed, as Hitchens book is filled with lots of politics, less about the man.  We will have to see.

Docks In, Bring on Winter But Not Yet!

8:18

Kayak Morning

The Final Day of the Dock

Evie and I are both up at 6:00, pure darkness outside, the spin on last night's debate on the radio, as we sit hear on the couch, Evie playing Word With Friends most likely with her sisters, me surfing the Net for something interesting to read and starting my blog.  It looks like a warm but wet day, a good day to stay inside, pack, get organized, for our trip east, to visit our daughter Jill and her family.

By the way, Good Morning Barb and Jim Fox.  Thanks again for a great clambake and I hope you both have a good day.

Yesterday may have been the last day of late summer, as we were able to sit out on the dock, read, and even get a suntan if we wanted.  There was a light breeze, the water blue and inviting, and we could have sat out there all day.  But we couldn't because we had things to do.  Evie made cookies, for the granddaughter's to decorate when we go to VA on Wednesday, and I went off to Lakewood, to return bottles and cans, to drop detritus off at Salvation Army, and stop at Wegman's to pick up a few groceries.  Around 4:00, we powered up Leonards and our lawn mowers, and the two of us cut both yards, chopping the leaves, creating briefly, a green, leaf less lawn.  I have not looked yet this morning but I am sure it will be gone.

Billy and Chris, both in their late twenties,  arrived around 5:00 and in their usual three stooges sort of way (no method), they brought in our dock, with minimum destruction.  They don't seem to have a method of bringing in the horse and then dock piece as inevitably, a few float down the lake.  And stacking the dock pieces seems confusing, no order, making it difficult next year when they peal them off  put the pieces back in.  But they manage to do it, are nice kids (guys I suppose) and are fun to talk with.  Chris seems to be pulling his life together, working in the Marina and a Car shop, saving money,  but also hoping to qualify for Unemployment if the Marina no longer needs him.  I am uncomfortable with this, of how easy it seems to be to get unemployment even if you lose a part time job.  Somehow I think it should be different for families, for a wage earner with a wife and kids, from that of a single person.  But I cannot explain to my self why.  Billy, of  course, works three or four different jobs, always has and just got back from a motorcycle ride to Charlotte, something he did last year as well.  They are both nice guys.

We watched the debate last night casually, spending time on our computers, as much as watching the debate.  I got tired of hearing the same old lines, the complaints and if you followed the elections at all, nothing new was said.  Obama had two good lines, one about Romeny's complaints that the Navy lacked ships, the other Romney's taking of donors to Israel.  But he made no mistakes 'appeared presidential' and it's all about image, not substance.  Romney was best when he did not talk about foreign affairs and veered off topic to talk about the economy, Obama's Achilles heel.  Right now I am listening to Fox and it's amazing how differently they see the debate from Morning Joe, the same debate, two diametrically opposed opinions.  We see through our mental models, coloring our opinions.      They are like glasses we see the world through, but we don't realize we have them on.

Monday Morning Sun and the Docks Come In

7:44

Paddling in the Fall

An Amazing Autumn Sky

Kinney's Arroyo

Hayden and Jill at the Finish

Mary, the Moll, Tom, in his Wife Beater

It's 7:40, a cloudless sky, orange glow off to the east as the sun rises, steam rising off of the warm lake. We may have had a freeze last night as it's 33 degrees right now, colder than I expected.  It's  supposed to start warming up some over the next few days.  It looks like our last beach day on the dock as Billy and Cris will be by late afternoon to haul the dock in.  Sad but we are the last house on Woodlawn to have our dock brought in.  I have included two great pictures, one of my daughter Jill and her daughter, Hayden, as they just finished the Paint Ball Run in Washington, D.C., great fun.  The other of my son Tom, and his wife Mary, at a Halloween Dress party, I hope.

Yesterday was a busy morning in the kitchen for Evie, getting dinner ready for our neighbors, David and Pat Jones.  She put together a cabbage, onion, tomato,and sauerkraut saute, smothered the ribs with it, then slow cooked them in the oven for three or four hours.  And our favorite pumpkin rolls, from the Chillingsworth Restaurant on Cape Cod were left to rise as we kayaked  late morning down to Whitney Bay, as it alternated between a sunny and cloudy day.  We started out with it sunny, but as we kayaked it clouded up, and when we returned it cleared again.  An omen, perhaps but that kind of day, often with white, puffy clouds off to the north and south.  Our neighbors, the Fox's, then dropped off a quart of clam broth, so Evie froze most of it, leaving out enough for lunch today.  Bacon, eggs, and toast for breakfast, as we watched our favorite CBS Sunday Morning, a perfect end to the morning.  I also got a short walk in, the Woodlawn/Victoria loop, a nice easy way to enjoy the morning.  We were able to relax much of the afternoon, watching some football, and enjoying the outdoors.

Pat and Dave Jones came over around 6:00 and we had a good time with them.  They raved over Evie's ribs and pumpkin rolls and the salad, of course.  David had just arrived on Friday, in time to basically close up their cottage till New Year's.  They drive to Houston, their home, leaving on Tuesday, so we may  likely not see them again till next June.  David is on a Board at RIT and it was fun listening to him talk about how they are trying to anticipate the new world of education with so any courses being offered free on line.  In fact, the web and computers have changed our youth culture to such an extent that RIT has a required freshmen course on socialization skills because so many kids come in as loners having spent much of their young lives inside, I suppose, on their computers and playing games, rather than socializing with other people.  Interesting.  They went home around 9:45, so we stayed up and watched The Good Wife, a bit silly we thought.  I did notice Ted Humphrey's name, as Executive Producer, a former student of mine at Reserve.

The leaves on our trees have mostly fallen, though Leonards are always late, so it's still in full leaf.  I am going to chop up their leaves today and Evie will chop ours, getting the lawn ready for the docks, for our trip to Bristow, VA, on Wednesday.  

How Does Autumn Color Happen

I have been very curious about this autumn, why the leaves are so spectacular, more so than other years.  Here are some of the answers if interested.  From the US Forest Service

How does autumn color happen?

For years, scientists have worked to understand the changes that happen to trees and shrubs in the autumn. Although we don't know all the details, we do know enough to explain the basics and help you to enjoy more fully Nature's multicolored autumn farewell. Three factors influence autumn leaf color-leaf pigments, length of night, and weather, but not quite in the way we think. The timing of color change and leaf fall are primarily regulated by the calendar, that is, the increasing length of night. None of the other environmental influences-temperature, rainfall, food supply, and so on-are as unvarying as the steadily increasing length of night during autumn. As days grow shorter, and nights grow longer and cooler, biochemical processes in the leaf begin to paint the landscape with Nature's autumn palette.

Where do autumn colors come from?

A color palette needs pigments, and there are three types that are involved in autumn color.

Chlorophyll, which gives leaves their basic green color. It is necessary for photosynthesis, the chemical reaction that enables plants to use sunlight to manufacture sugars for their food. Trees in the temperate zones store these sugars for their winter dormant period. Carotenoids, which produce yellow, orange, and brown colors in such things as corn, carrots, and daffodils, as well as rutabagas, buttercups, and bananas. Anthocyanins, which give color to such familiar things as cranberries, red apples, concord grapes, blueberries, cherries, strawberries, and plums. They are water soluble and appear in the watery liquid of leaf cells.

Both chlorophyll and carotenoids are present in the chloroplasts of leaf cells throughout the growing season. Most anthocyanins are produced in the autumn, in response to bright light and excess plant sugars within leaf cells.

During the growing season, chlorophyll is continually being produced and broken down and leaves appear green. As night length increases in the autumn, chlorophyll production slows down and then stops and eventually all the chlorophyll is destroyed. The carotenoids and anthocyanins that are present in the leaf are then unmasked and show their colors.

Certain colors are characteristic of particular species. Oaks turn red, brown, or russet; hickories, golden bronze; aspen and yellow-poplar, golden yellow; dogwood, purplish red; beech, light tan; and sourwood and black tupelo, crimson. Maples differ species by species-red maple turns brilliant scarlet; sugar maple, orange-red; and black maple, glowing yellow. Striped maple becomes almost colorless. Leaves of some species such as the elms simply shrivel up and fall, exhibiting little color other than drab brown.

The timing of the color change also varies by species. Sourwood in southern forests can become vividly colorful in late summer while all other species are still vigorously green. Oaks put on their colors long after other species have already shed their leaves. These differences in timing among species seem to be genetically inherited, for a particular species at the same latitude will show the same coloration in the cool temperatures of high mountain elevations at about the same time as it does in warmer lowlands.

How does weather affect autumn color?

The amount and brilliance of the colors that develop in any particular autumn season are related to weather conditions that occur before and during the time the chlorophyll in the leaves is dwindling. Temperature and moisture are the main influences.

A succession of warm, sunny days and cool, crisp but not freezing nights seems to bring about the most spectacular color displays. During these days, lots of sugars are produced in the leaf but the cool nights and the gradual closing of veins going into the leaf prevent these sugars from moving out. These conditions-lots of sugar and lots of light-spur production of the brilliant anthocyanin pigments, which tint reds, purples, and crimson. Because carotenoids are always present in leaves, the yellow and gold colors remain fairly constant from year to year.

The amount of moisture in the soil also affects autumn colors. Like the weather, soil moisture varies greatly from year to year. The countless combinations of these two highly variable factors assure that no two autumns can be exactly alike. A late spring, or a severe summer drought, can delay the onset of fall color by a few weeks. A warm period during fall will also lower the intensity of autumn colors. A warm wet spring, favorable summer weather, and warm sunny fall days with cool nights should produce the most brilliant autumn colors.

What triggers leaf fall?

In early autumn, in response to the shortening days and declining intensity of sunlight, leaves begin the processes leading up to their fall. The veins that carry fluids into and out of the leaf gradually close off as a layer of cells forms at the base of each leaf. These clogged veins trap sugars in the leaf and promote production of anthocyanins. Once this separation layer is complete and the connecting tissues are sealed off, the leaf is ready to fall.

What does all this do for the tree?

Winter is a certainty that all vegetation in the temperate zones must face each year. Perennial plants, including trees, must have some sort of protection to survive freezing temperatures and other harsh wintertime influences. Stems, twigs, and buds are equipped to survive extreme cold so that they can reawaken when spring heralds the start of another growing season. Tender leaf tissues, however, would freeze in winter, so plants must either toughen up and protect their leaves or dispose of them.

The evergreens-pines, spruces, cedars, firs, and so on-are able to survive winter because they have toughened up. Their needle-like or scale-like foliage is covered with a heavy wax coating and the fluid inside their cells contains substances that resist freezing. Thus the foliage of evergreens can safely withstand all but the severest winter conditions, such as those in the Arctic. Evergreen needles survive for some years but eventually fall because of old age.

The leaves of broadleaved plants, on the other hand, are tender and vulnerable to damage. These leaves are typically broad and thin and are not protected by any thick coverings. The fluid in cells of these leaves is usually a thin, watery sap that freezes readily. This means that the cells could not survive winter where temperatures fall below freezing. Tissues unable to overwinter must be sealed off and shed to ensure the plant's continued survival. Thus leaf fall precedes each winter in the temperate zones.

What happens to all those fallen leaves?Needles and leaves that fall are not wasted. They decompose and restock the soil with nutrients and make up part of the spongy humus layer of the forest floor that absorbs and holds rainfall. Fallen leaves also become food for numerous soil organisms vital to the forest ecosystem. It is quite easy to see the benefit to the tree of its annual leaf fall, but the advantage to the entire forest is more subtle. It could well be that the forest could no more survive without its annual replenishment from leaves than the individual tree could survive without shedding these leaves. The many beautiful interrelationships in the forest community leave us with myriad fascinating puzzles still to solve.

Cool and Changing Morning Sky After The Clambake

My Dad, Bake Master, 1985

7:20

7:55

One of the Bake Essentials, Cases of Beer

Getting Ready for Thirty

A nice morning, a mostly sunny Sunday to look forward to.  It's 42 degrees outside, smooth lake, clouds but also some pink and orange, as the sun peaks in and out of the gray.  I walked outside to get the paper, to take some photos and the cool air felt refreshing, made me want to hike or walk or kayak.

Yesterday, the rains held off, allowing us to get some things done outside,. Evie cut the lawn, and I started putting things up in my garage, clearing the dock, the usual fall sort of things.  But, about 4:00, just as the Fox/Kinney clambake was to begin, it started to rain.  And around 3:00, Evie started frying potato chips for the party, so that took her over an hour but I have to say, it was worth it.  I was the tester, as she fried.

Ah, Evie's homemade chips

Watching the Bake Boil

I had forgotten how much work a clambake involves, as the guys and gals started in the morning, clearing out the garage, getting the tables and chairs for thirty ready, icing the beer, getting the bake ready chickens and sweet potatoes, all those sorts of things.  It's much easier to attend then put on, no doubt.  It did bring make good memories, of clambakes at my house in Euclid when I was young, at my sister Linda's house when we lived in Hudson.  And the best thing, rain does not seem to matter.  Everyone just enjoyed the afternoon and evening, drinking beer or sipping wine, occasionally stepping out side to talk with Jim Fox, the bake master who, fortunately, had a canopy over the bake, making is easy enough for four or five people to stand and wait for the bake to come to a boil.  Both Barb and Jim Fox grew up in the Cleveland area and their families always had clambakes, from Euclid Fish, where else.  So they brought the bake and boiler from Cleveland on Friday, on ice.  And the bake included the usual, sweet potatoes, chicken halves and, of course the broth, so hot that if you are not careful, you will burn your tongue.  I did my best to help Jim out with the bake, and Bud Kinney with barbecuing the chicken but they pretty much had things in hand.  I know I always like having some around to talk to if I am  outside barbecuing.

Enjoying the Bake in Kinney's Garage

Chris, Susan, Ted and Jackie Riek

The group was made up of mostly neighbors, Barb and Jim Fox, his sisters Diane and Sue and their husbands, John and Chris, Bud and Debi Kinney and their three sons with girl friends, Joe and Betsy Bergen, and her cousin, Michael, and the Lauer/Riek/ Dempsey house, Jackie, Lynn. Ted, and Flip. A few other friends of the group were also invited, like Julie Lescynskii, our late neighbor, Doc Landon's daughter.  We had a great time catching up. Jim's sister Diane and her husband, John, get the award for driving the farthest, from near Berkeley Springs,  West Virginia.  John also made these amazing sculptures out of gourds, various shapes, even a duck, with lights inside to create neat table decorations.  I am sorry I don't have a good picture of one.

Michael, John and Betsy

What a Great Clam Bake (Possible screen saver Barb?)

We had desserts compliments of Joe Bergen and Betsy's cousin, Michael,  to top off the evening.  We sat around till about 9:30, just enjoying the night, the conversation, as it's always fun to gather with our neighbors. We feel very lucky to be included in this group.  It was also fun to have all ages included,  the Kinney's kids as well as us older folks.