Meet some of the rats.  Don’t they look innocent and squeaky clean?  The rat condo is actually cleaner than the rest of the room.  Don’t tell Rat Daddy (Y) I was in there (retrieving dirty tableware).

Flowers continue to bloom.  The veggies are looking good.  It’s so perfect outside, it’s hard to stay in.  The fat hawk seems to live here, and there’s plenty of critter action going on around me.  I’m hoping by next year wildlife will take over!

Hopefully for the last time this year, I mowed the lawn, before all the leaves have fallen.  This way I can let nature take over and do its thing all winter.  Sadly, the sukkah will come down soon.  But you know me, nothing will go to waste in the landscape.  Including all the festive sparkly stuff.

I made dinner, which was Bombay potatoes, curried mushrooms and vegetables, and basmati rice.  I stayed till dark, so I could see my latest garden glow addition–the blue-and-white sukkah lights and other glitter relocated to the garden.  It was spectacular.

And behold, there was summer and fall, overnight!  Like it thunderstormed for a day and night, and the next day was a whole different season!  It is officially hoodie time.

Saturday was No Kings, and an incredible millions of people turned out across the country.  Here it was tens of thousands!  Even in the pouring rain, St. Louis and many smaller towns came out to protest the fascist takeover.  Avdi and Jess went to a local No Kings, though I stayed home.  I’m so proud to witness millions of fellow Americans peacefully rallying against trump.

So back to the miraculous spectacular scene I woke up to, having spent my own peaceful night at Avdi’s.  Everything was sparkly and shimmering in the cool wind.  Words don’t even…so photos will have to speak for me.  I got out there early and got a lot done woodchipping various beds.  The leaves will do the rest.  So much light and air!

Later, A and Y and I went pumpkining at a local market, and came away with quite a haul.  It’s looking very harvesty and festive around here.  I’m starting to get why this is Avdi’s favorite time of year in MO.

With the kids home, I waited my turn for the kitchen, but it was all good.  K gave me the idea to make the challah sweet again, so this time I filled the dough with pumpkin-spiced brown sugar and twisted it instead of braiding.  It came out like a sweet cinnamon roll and was gobbled up in one sitting.  I also tried kabobs with middle eastern-spiced chicken and veggies including eggplant and assorted peppers from the garden, served with basmati rice.  There was something for everyone’s tastes, even Y.

Our neighbor Angela dropped by to give me some of her homemade elderberry syrup, which was excellent.  She and I sat in the sukkah, her first time, and talked for a while, mostly about gardening.  We also had in common a case of exhaustion!  Sitting in a sukkah turns out to be a good remedy, or at least a momentary respite.

It’s supposed to [gasp] rain today (Saturday), a lot, with heavy storms possible.  This severe drought did in fact set records, so this will be a relief.  A cold front may accompany it, but I loved the extended bonus summer while it lasted, and made the most of it.  There won’t be much fall color, due to the drought.

The ferny-looking photo is the asparagus!  What started as a few spindly seedlings a year or so ago has turned massive.  I hope to see spears next year.

I had more dental work done yesterday; my mouth makes local road construction sites look trivial by comparison.  But hey, my insurance continues to randomly pay for parts of it.  Back in temporary debt again.

Back at the funny farm I mean the Avdi’s, the kids had two days off from school, and I did usual chores.  The big news is, I was able to harvest a whole pile of new assorted greens from the successive planting already!  I lightly steamed them with a vinaigrette marinade.  Drinks were bloody marys with garden celery.  I stayed late so Avdi and Jess could go to a trivia night.

This “summer” is lasting a long time, and this severe drought must be setting records.  It’s still perfect gardening weather, like a whole bonus season.  Yesterday I planted some random tree saplings in more appropriate places.  I’m trying to plant and nurture more native trees, like redbud, dogwood, catalpa, sassafras, and anything else I can find.

Today I did a lot.  I managed to drag the two bins full of wood chips out of the way, and neatened up the hosta shade garden.  I hoed and mulched E’s secret garden flower beds with leaves and wood chips.  I woodchipped where the tropicals used to be.  I weeded and top-dressed Y’s rock garden with garden soil.  I woodchipped part of the former melon raised bed, except where I’ve planted passionflower seeds.  I watered in everything well.

I forgot to mention the gigantic hawk the other day that was perching on the swimming pool and diving in every so often!  It was beautiful.  Avdi and Jess and I were fascinated.  It was one more dramatic sign that turning even just one yard into a self-contained balanced native ecosystem creates an essential source of food, shelter, and habitat for a whole network of wildlife, in an otherwise barren manicured desert.  I’ve seen so many more beneficial native critters and pollinators just since I’ve been here gardening.  It makes it all worthwhile.  I have a good feeling about next year.

All I can say is, life at the Avdi’s is never dull!  Never mind international tabloids.  Always a new trauma episode to keep you on your toes.  That’s all, folks!  And now, have some photos of “typical” daily life, whither I get to escape.  Not everyone does.

Of course there were poor old hags in the middle ages (not to mention people of color), and let us not forget plagues and poverty.

But somehow renfaires always seem to be predominated by sexy young white women with boobs/men in tights, in fabulous costly custom-made costumes, flaunting their stuff.  Jesters, pirates, white knights, nobles, and royals parade around for some archaic white christian ideal.   Shiny crafts and “authentic” food and drink, unaffordable to the average serf slob with brats, tempt you at every turn.  And permeating the atmosphere is that certain magickal mystery something that mostly just exists in your mind or beer-fueled imagination.

I’m not cynical!  I used to live for the renfaires of old.  That is, when I was younger and had some pocket change, and still retained magical thinking.  It was a great escape.  Or it could be a very long, hot, exhausting day.  But the intrigue!  The music!  The Stuff!!  The pubs!  [The portopotties?!]  The fantasy of a fictional life like that.  A day far away from grueling reality.  I don’t begrudge it to those who still long for an alternate universe, and can make the effort it takes to get there.

Anyway, that’s where a loaded carful of fanciful young minds, herded by Avdi, journeyed today.  At this point in my life, I’m sincerely happy for them having this experience, and equally happy to sleep in, enjoy a semi-day off, not have to worry about my appearance, and talk to my new circle of plant friends!  Which is really all this was leading up to, in a meandering through medieval forests sort of way.

I’ve gone and done it!  A Sukkot mini-garden glow!  Shimmering white and blue lights in the sukkah and gardens.  Sukkot is like a grand finale of the harvest before darkness sets in, so might as well celebrate it with a full fae light show.  Call me eccentric, but I can’t get enough of this stuff.  I think even Avdi was impressed.

Not to be outdone by myself, I set up plant lights and plants on top of shelves in the office and dining room, so there’s some green ambience here and there, lighting up dark corners.  I think A, and even Y, liked the improvement.  Y and I and the rat family were hanging out while A was out at one of E’s drama productions at the HS.  Y was sewing on his new sewing machine in the office, probably creating a renfaire outfit for tomorrow, while the rats had taken over their giant theme park/Y’s room.

Shabbat dinner was very harvesty, with sweet corn and a salad featuring assorted sweet peppers from the garden.  There’s still no lack of flowers putting on their final bursts of color and nectar before dormancy sets in.  I even managed a whole new succession planting of assorted lettuces, greens, and root veggies to carry us through fall.  Not surprisingly, new volunteer tomatoes are coming up everywhere.

Last but not least, Avdi drove me and my tropical plants home to join the others.  It’s now very jungly at my apartment.  I may need a machete soon!  Pics later, when the sun comes up.

When I realized it’s starting to get down into the forties at night, I knew what I had to do today: get ready to move tropicals inside or into more protected locations.  So Avdi’s plants are now indoors, and mine are awaiting transport.

I also loaded the spare poles into the cleaned out shed, along with all the tinder and kindling.  I carried the cleared silphium stems to the open compost.   I made paths in the veg garden and behind the trampoline.  I hoed out some compost from the compost bin and applied it to the raised bed with the passionflower seeds.  I raked out E’s “secret garden”.  I watered everything out back and front.

I did my usual indoor chores and prepared dinner, then walked home.  Just as I was one block away from Watson, I witnessed an older man fall down flat on his face in a side street and just lie there.  I ran over and slowly helped him up and applied tissues to the profusely bleeding bridge of his nose.  Mostly his injuries were superficial, and he didn’t seem to be lightheaded.  Three other people came running to help just as I got there–two older ladies and a young guy who pulled over.  The man  didn’t need us to call anyone, and eventually walked to the next street where he was headed.  Still, it was disconcerting, and I could empathize.  That could have been me.

As I got to Watson, I saw flashing lights, and a fire truck was just pulling out of the apartments.  What was it now?!  The full moon is ebbing, so not that.  Anyway, I couldn’t detect anything off when I got inside.  Still, it seemed like an evening of bad omens.