Harvest Is Here. Ready or Not!

Our son-in-law Brian started harvest today. Gerald happened to be working on clearing a drainage ditch near this field, and he even got in on a bit of the excitement. In the weeks and months ahead, the thick tall brown corn in area fields will gradually be replaced by stubble.
Mary Ellen, who has been much too busy lately, dropped by this morning for a visit before taking a client an offer for her home and then helping her husband with harvest. She bragged on my timely seasonal decorating, and I did not know what she was talking about since I looked around and saw nothing new. Oh, yes, a couple days ago I had found in storage the little hanging harvest doll and put her up by our front door, a door that I rarely use. I’d forgotten about it, but Mary Ellen had enjoyed it as she came in. I had meant to check to see if it was still up because it blows off easily, so I was glad to hear the doll was still in place. (As she left, sure enough the doll had blown onto the porch floor, so Mary Ellen put it back up for me-- probably a little better than I hung it since I am a couple inches shorter and do not like standing on stools as I did when I was more steady on my feet.)

Our family members in Texas were at various football games today. Even Geri Ann had arrived back in Texas after her last short summer course finished Thursday in Oregon, which uses terms rather than the semester system. She has a week’s vacation at home before their fall term starts. Sam was playing trombone with the band for his first game at Baylor today. The other night, Katherine enjoyed sharing with me Sam’s telephone report to her on his new life away from home down at Waco. I loved all of that report except that he had sometimes studied until 3 a.m.

Gerald and I tried last night to use up some of our Christmas gift cards. We went to another movie on the movie gift card from Jeannie and Rick, but we still have some left on their restaurant card. We had gone to the late afternoon showing of War Room. The timing was perfect for a late dinner at the nearby steak house to use the card from Gerry and Vickie. We had to be impressed with the exceptional service there. (There was an apology for the kitchen being behind, and they kept trying to make it up for us. But we did not think it was that slow,) Our young waitress not only kept the coffee cups and basket of rolls filled, but then brought us a container of rolls and yummy butter to take home with us! Mary Ellen got enjoy one of those with us today at lunch to go with sliced tomatoes and a sausage/veggie casserole I’d fixed in a skillet on top of the stove instead of the oven.

The post Labor Day political commentary is constant, but we’ve had a summer full of it already. I was delighted today that finally I heard more than a sound bite or the size of the crowd for Bernie Sanders. It was a relief to hear someone talk the issues and not waste our time insulting someone’s looks or calling someone stupid.

We’ve had plenty of hot summer weather this week, but the most telling thing to let us know that autumn is almost here was today’s cool weather. Gerald relished it and came in tired this evening from cutting fragmite from that ditch. He said he bet he would sleep good tonight. I had not been in the garden all summer except to stop there and admire his spring-planted strawberry and asparagus plants. But when Gerald said at supper he was going out to pick the okra and tomatoes, I grabbed a plastic bag and followed him out and started at the other end of the row. I was chilly when I came back in the house!