Walnut buying season was over at the end of October, so Jim took the last of my nuts to the huller Wednesday afternoon. I came in from picking up several buckets full and he'd already loaded the ones I'd picked up earlier. This time I had 441 pounds of nuts, even more than the first load I took in.
Saturday morning I stopped at the pawn shop and used some of my walnut money to buy a pretty little ring I'd seen there. Usually, I just spend my proceeds for groceries or something and they're gone, but this year I have something tangible to show for my efforts.
We've been trying to get the place slicked up for winter. Jim mowed the yard Thursday and he's hoping that will be the last cutting this year. I picked the last red pepper the next day, along with a yellow tomato and a red one that were almost fully ripe. A handful of green tomatoes will make one meal of fried green tomatoes.
That same afternoon, I got out the bottle of Windex and washed the living room windows inside and out. I'm hoping to burn my little brush pile on the first calm day and get the ceiling fans cleaned soon.
The weather man forecast our first frost Friday night so I got busy and carried several large pots of flowers into the cellar that afternoon. I brought a hanging basket onto the back porch and made room for a couple of smaller pots at the south end of the living room and one under the dining room window. The temperature dipped into the mid-20s that night, so it's a good thing I protected my tender plants. The dianthus in the front flower beds seemed unaffected Saturday morning, but our two pepper plants were pretty bedraggled.
Daylight Saving Time ended early Sunday morning and we're trying to get accustomed to a new schedule. It's nice to have a little more light as we begin our morning chores, but darkness slips up on us and nightfall comes on all too quickly in the evening. I was working at the computer Sunday afternoon and when I looked up, all of a sudden it seemed, it was dark already. I got so absorbed in processing some photos I'd taken I neglected the pot of green beans I had on the stove, the water boiled away and I scorched part of our supper.
As the weather gets colder, we begin to think of heartier dishes to prepare -- big pots of stew, goulash or beans, with plenty of leftovers for the next day or two. Nothing warms up a cool autumn day in a more satisfying way than a steaming bowl of homemade stew.
Jim made a pot of hamburger stew one day, then only a few days later prepared another version with smoked sausage, onions, rice, stewed tomatoes, a can of black beans and one of chili beans. Friday evening while I was gone to buy a few groceries, he put on a pot of potato soup. All disappeared in only a few days.
October was National Apple Month. I bought some crisp little apples at the farmers' market and I've been slicing them and dipping them in caramel dip for a snack in the evenings. Other recent purchases have included green beans, green onions, Malabar spinach, amaranth, turnips and a small head of cabbage. The farmers' market offerings have added much color and variety to our meals. I'll miss my trips to shop there when they close down at the end of the month.
Susan Holland is longtime resident of Benton County and a reporter for the Westside Eagle Observer. She may be contacted by email at [email protected]. Opinions expressed are those of the author.
Editorial on 11/05/2014