Fall skies

Another post about the weather? Well, only to show a photo. It's been rainy, sunny, cloudy, chilly, and almost warm, all in the past week. The skies change all the time. We had a couple of mornings when the clouds were so thick it was hard to tell that the sun had come up. We had a couple of afternoons of bright sun that felt very seasonal. So, it's a mixed bag. We wouldn't want to get bored, would we?

Partly cloudy skies at sunrise.

I dreamed last night that it snowed. It's a little too early for that to happen here. I think it's quite likely that we won't see snow at all this winter. Except, maybe, in our dreams.

Berries in the hedge

From what I can tell, the plant that makes up the hedge around three sides of our property is called laurier cerise (cherry laurel), not related to the edible laurier sauce (bay laurel), but named similarly because its leaves resemble the culinary plant. The hedge is not all one plant variety, though. Many others live in and among the laurels, including some laurier sauce, holly, blackberry brambles, honeysuckle, and other viney things.

Bright red berries in the green hedge.

At first I thought these berries belonged to the chèvrefeuille (honeysuckle) that grows in a section of the hedge out by the back gate. But, on closer inspection, the vine with these berries is different, and not in the same exact location in the hedge. So I'm not certain what they are. Except pretty.

Again with the leaves

The leaf change has just started and the vineyards are still mostly green. However, the signs of change are popping up all around. The leaves on this vine cane have all gone deep red, while most of the leaves around it remain green or are turning yellow. I don't really know why certain leaves change to red and others to yellow. I assume it has something to do with the different varietals planted in different parcels. But sometimes there is a splash of vibrant red among the yellows. 

Deep red grape leaves.

 

The yellow leaves will eventually become golden before turning brown and falling to the ground. The red ones will also go brown before they fall. Once the vines are bare, the pruning process will begin.

Sunday was (gasp) a day of rain. I've stopped keeping track with the rain gauge, but we probably got a normal amount for a rainy day. Our central heat is coming on in the morning now. The thermostat is set at 18.5ºC (about 65ºF), so the house is definitely cooling down. It's still too early to build a fire in the wood stove.

A voté

I sent in my election ballot on Saturday. American citizens who live abroad are eligible to vote in the last place they lived in the US. Since my last address was in San Francisco, that's where I can vote. I started the registration process back in January (it has to be done each calendar year) and then Covid hit and the process slowed way down. The elections office was closed for a while. But I stuck with it and got registered. The person I corresponded with via e-mail was very responsive and helpful.

I voted. The phrase literally means "has voted." Image from the internet.

My ballot arrived about a week ago and I took a few days to read and re-read the instructions, making sure to mark the ballot correctly. I took it to the post office yesterday, so it's on its way. My politics are pretty well aligned with the district I vote in, so my vote won't really make much of a difference. But it's one more voice, and that's got to count for something.

The apples don't fall far from the tree

I haven't had to cut the grass since the last time, which was August 24. More than a month ago. Since then, the apples continue to fall from our two trees. Now they carpet the ground. Picking them up will be a chore, when I get around to it. I could just let them rot on the ground, but I'm not sure I could stand to do that. I'm thinking that I will cut the grass at least one more time before winter. So, up they must come.

The old saying is right: the apples don't fall far from the tree. Although a few of them do roll around a little.

I'm going to the produce store this morning for a few things. Among them, pecans. I want to make some pumpkin bread this weekend and I have a hankerin' for pecans. If they have any, they'll likely be a little pricey. But it's not like I need a truckload. Just enough for a loaf or two of pumpkin bread.

More fall foliage

We're having a cold snap. This morning's temperature is just under 10ºC (50ºF) and there's a stiff wind blowing. That's a marked contrast from just a week ago when our highs were in the mid 80sF. Fall has declared itself. The house is still relatively warm inside.

The green is going out of the grape leaves, making pretty patterns throughout the vineyard.

I've been saying that I hope we have a few hard freezes this winter. That would be normal and good for the environment. Still, the last few winters have been much warmer than normal, so we'll see what we get.

La cabane de vigne

Before the clouds moved in, I got a shot of the vineyard cabin out back at sunrise. It's not really a cabin but is more like a shed to hold tools and equipment. It may also have served as a shelter or a place to take a lunch break back in the days when cars and tractors didn't make it quick and easy to go home for lunch.

One of the old vines on the side of the cabin died last winter.

These days, it's rare when someone opens one of these. That is, if it's locked at all. This one is closed and locked, but there's another in a nearby parcel that stands open, empty, with a collection of empty plastic water bottles in a pile inside.