Hey - why is there a gap in your blog postings?

I'm heading to Hawaii for a long-awaited vacation, and rather than embed my adventures into my day-to-day ramblings blog, I set up a separate place for my trip. If you're interested in following along, please visit my Hawaii 2004 blog.

My next entry in this blog will probably be early in the week of November 1st.

Fading colors, cool days, sandals!

It's really amazing how fast the colors seem to fade. It's still clearly autumn here, with a very cool and rainy day yesterday. This morning I noticed the change in the colors as I drove down route 125 on my way to work. The road is heavily wooded with a mixture of broad-leaf and evergreen trees. Two days ago there were more popping yellow, orange, and red leaves. This morning I noticed more browns. There are still trees that are wearing bright colors, and there are still trees that are wearing green - but it's clear that autumn is moving forward and creeping past the season of leaves.

And I'm still not ready for the change in seasons, which is probably evident by the fact that I'm still happily wearing my Chaco sandals during the day. I suppose when I come home from my "back to summer" vacation that I'll need to switch to closed toe shoes.

Wrap-around skirts and windy days...

Today was a day when my attire definitely didn't match the weather. I wore a long wrap skirt, which is very comfortable and long enough to provide some warmth to my still bare legs. I headed out for a walk after lunch and very quickly discovered that I had to hold on to the edge of my skirt. The wind was so strong that it probably would have flown up around my waist if I hadn't been holding it! Windy days and wrap skirts are really not a good combination for those of us who don't want to flash the world. Of course I could have just turned around and headed back in to the building, but that's not my style. I wanted a walk, and I took that walk...

Chilly, but a good biking day

The temperature hovered in the low 50s today, so I'd have to say it was a transitional clothing day for cycling. I headed out wearing my normal cycling shorts with the addition of knee warmers, a long-sleeved jersey (!) and a wind vest. It was pretty chilly starting out, but I was warm by the time I returned home. I'll be off my bike for the next couple of weeks since I leave Friday for my first trip to Hawaii in years where I'm not going to be traveling around by bicycle. I have a feeling that when I return home and return to my bike that I'll need to be wearing even more layers.

Another thing that will likely change when I return home is my daily footwear. It's mid-October, and I'm having a hard time believing that I've continued to live in my Chaco sandals. I switched to running shoes for my early morning and early evening walks, but I've continued to wear sandals during the day. I think it's turned into a game to see if I can not switch to day-time shoes until I get back from Hawaii!

Funny, as I rode today I noticed a change in squirrel behavior. Squirrels usually run out in front of me - or between the wheels of my bike - but today they seemed to adopt chipmunk behavior. They'd sit on the side of the road, look at me, then go bounding off into the woods or over the grass. I was happy that they weren't playing suicide games.

A cool day, good for walking

I meant to ride my bike today, really I did! But somehow I knew that it wasn't a high energy day, and I headed out on foot to soak in an absolutely beautiful fall day. A 90 minute walk to and through the old town center of North Andover presented trees of all colors, some still very green, some totally converted to fall colors, some mixed, some with no leaves. It was cool and windy, with sun and clouds sharing the sky. A good walk...

A solo red leaf on the ground...

A bit of contrast, a swatch of yellow & orange, but the tree still has some green to share

And there are still flowers visible - both people-planted like this one and wildflowers too

An early evening magic sky

Wandering with a digital camera in my hand is a lot of fun. I've gotten into the habit of taking a camera with me as I head out for walks or bike rides - maybe as practice for my upcoming Hawaii trip, and maybe just as a way to absorb all of the beautiful things around me. I have to say that I'm really glad I made the switch to digital photography before my cross-country bike trip just a little over two years ago. It's definitely satisfying to take the pictures and be able to view them full size almost immediately. I wonder if I'll ever switch back to a film camera...

A little shade of pink hiding behind the clouds

And a backlit wisp...

Carrying a camera is always a good idea

As I headed out for a walk yesterday in the early evening, I thought about taking my camera - but I almost left it behind. It was just after 6, and while the sky was gray, the sun wasn't down yet. I really thought that the clouds were going to obstruct my view of the sunset. I grabbed the camera anyway, and I was really glad I did as just about 20 minutes into my walk I was presented with a beautiful pink-streaked sky.

A reward for walking in the evening - a beautiful sunset.

A daily view of the birds

As I come back from my morning walk each day, I've noticed a flock of birds - sea gulls - hanging out on the roof of one of the buildings in my condo complex. I don't have a clue why they are usually on the same roof and they are not on every roof. One morning this week they flew away while I was watching - and for a moment I thought they were going to fly right into me!

Here are just a few of the birds - honestly, there are usually more!

Shoes? No, still sandals!

Knowing that the overnight temperature was supposed to drop into the low 30s, I convinced myself last night that today would probably be the right day to switch from my summer (sandal) footwear back to shoes with a bit more coverage. That worked for my morning walk; running shoes with socks got me out the door this morning. But when it came time to leave for work, it was back to sandals for this gal! Since the day very nicely warmed into the mid-50s, Chaco sandals were definitely the right choice for me. I wonder how long this will last...

I'm not ready for the change of seasons, but these seed pods are beautiful!

The mornings are getting colder

It's been in the low 40s in the morning so far this week, but I'm stubborn - I've still been wearing my Chaco sandals. I know, I know, it's October and it's probably time to switch to running shoes for walking and to my Merrell slides for normal footwear. But I'm stretching sandal-wearing season this year. I wonder how much longer I can get away with it... the weather forecast calls for a frost advisory tonight with forecast temperatures in the mid-30s, but the daytime temperatures still warrant sandals. Of course it's possible that tomorrow will be the day of the official shoe switch!

And a birthday wish...

...for my car! When I picked up the mail tonight I found a birthday wish for my bright blue car. Leave it to Saturn - I know it's a marketing gimmick, but it still made me smile.

I'm not ready to let go of late summer, but...

...I don't seem to have much choice in the matter! I suppose I could move, but somehow the time doesn't feel right for that yet. I have to admit I've been thinking about moving to either Colorado (east of the Rockies, but close to the mountains) or to the Pacific Northwest. One day...

It's turning into fall, and I'm afraid one day in the not too distant future it will feel more like a prelude to winter. First I'll be heading to Hawaii for a week of real summer, but then I'll be back to whatever (weather) New England decides to present to all of us. I'm really looking forward to Hawaii, and I'm really not looking forward to winter. No surprises there, right?

Today was a beautiful but cool day. Sunshine, blue sky, and more red, yellow, and orange spots among the trees. It was a good day for riding, but with a little more clothing than last week. It was a knee warmer and wind vest kind of day since it was in the mid-50s when I headed out. If I'd waited another until late afternoon to head out I probably could have worn summer biking clothes, but of course I didn't want to wait!

A few leaves still on a tree in a beautiful shade of red

And some amazing color in the still green grass