Why Get All Het Up?

In the grand scheme of things, a crowd at the local garage/service station is no big deal.

Especially when one window looks like this in afternoon sun.

Sometimes What December Brings Is

darkness

and

light

and 

at

times

more

of 

one

than

the

other

Always My Favorite Shop Window Display

Halloween, thanks to Billy Phillips.

The Challenge of Walking Home

A visit to the garage, where I left my car in the capable hands of my mechanic and his youngest daughter, whom he is training. (He's a feminist! Who knew!)

Then a walk up the trail, ten minutes at most, but extended to 45. Not by intention, but because I was distracted by

• the Shenanigans window's carnival mirror reflection of Woody's Bicycles
• a male Diana butterfly, still considered rare but certainly present here in wooded areas, nectaring
• a large sulphur butterfly darting down the creekbed
• acrobatics of a Tiger Swallowtail balanced on the tip of a long weedy branch
• the Red-spotted Purple puddling in gravel at my feet
• prismatic argiope webs, one after another, catching a little light in heavy shade
• two hawking Black Saddlebagsin front of the Chapel of the Apostles, darting from lamp to steeple, high above my head and low below my knees
• glow of the newly restored dorm, all golden against azure sky

Good thing the car won't be ready till tomorrow. My eyes are sore.

What Startles

Settled comfortably in the study, we chose a Netflix children's film, turned off the lights, and started watching our British movie. A time-travel narrative during World War II on a beautiful estate with mysterious atmosphere.

One of them, on seeing the slow appearance of a ghost child in a movie, let out the longest-loudest-mostpiercing scream I had ever witnessed and the other covered her face leaving only the widest-open eyes I've ever seen visible.

Why was that scary? I asked when I could collect myself.

Ghost girls always frighten me, the 11-year-old answered.

Do you believe in ghosts?

I believe in reincarnation, he replied.

I don't, the 9-year-old said, and I wasn't scared.

Then why did you cover your face and unpeel your eyes so they looked like saucers? I asked.

Because his scream scared me, she said.

It gave me a headache, I said.

However, 15 minutes later, I started laughing so hard that my diaphragm constricted, and it really hurt, and I couldn't stop, and they started laughing too, and then we all laughed. Finally, we talked about Munch's scream, and all of us imitated it, and we kept laughing and laughing and laughing.

A little later, he and I walked into the kitchen.

When I saw this in the window above the sink, I started. He exclaimed, Wow! What is that? I didn't know, till I turned around and saw that I had left the light on in the little washing machine pantry. The window reflected the light leak. You should blog about that! he added.

And so I have.

Before My Eyes Were Dilated

I saw this.

Sometimes I am really really lucky.

Yup

Especially at my friend F's house, where a few of her deceased husband's tulips still bloom

and where conversations about things that matter happen in a room whose windows reflect their garden. 

Just Call Me Curmudgeon

Some students arrived mid-week and others dribbled in since.

The rest will storm the campus within ten days.

Meantime, I treasured this last tranquil Friday evening after my movie date with Boo.

Time to Open the Windows

so the cats can sit in the sun
sniff the air
and welcome me home