Late October

 

http://www.newbostonhistoricalsociety.com/cemetery.html

Message from another gravestone:

    Death is a debt

    To Nature due

    That we have paid

    And so must you

happy halloween

Souporama

In case fall has taken hold of you and you need some soup ideas, right now!  Twitter thread of people recommending their favorite soup recipes.

Looking over my notes I see that I certainly do love a butternut squash soup.  

Easy one from @dansaltzstein: Butternut squash-ginger. Roast a halved butternut squash at 350 degrees until soft throughout. Let it cool., remove skin/seeds and roughly chop. Sauté some chopped leeks, garlic and a lot of ginger in butter and olive oil until garlic is just barely golden. Add squash and cover with veggie stock. Add salt and pepper and any spices you like (suggested: Chinese 5-spice and a little cayenne). Let simmer for 15 min. Turn off heat. Using an immersion blender, blend til smooth. Check for seasonings, adjust if necessary.

Another person recommended Butternut Squash Soup with Fresh Sage that sounded so good I made it a week ago. It calls for fresh sage and rosemary, neither of which I usually cook with. I bought a spendy packet of sage leaves but for the rosemary I used the dried that I already had. Soup turned out great! Now I'm drying the rest of the sage to try and use it in the future.  

Later, I remembered this recipe that Kat and I love from Catherine Newman: Thai-style Butternut Squash Soup. So tangy and good!

I wish my spouse was able to appreciate soups but he has texture issues that only welcome stew. 

More from the twitter thread  This from Giada sounds easy and good: Turkey Kale Brown Rice Soup. I need a lentil soup now and then: Turkish Red Lentil Soup. And for your dumpling needs: Vegan veg stew with dumplings. It also reminded me of the existence of simplyrecipes.com. I argue with some of their recipes but have found some good ones as well.

======

I've been getting through some fiction lately. None of my online book groups have a firm date set up: one group is busy emailing about finding a day/time next week (looks doubtful), one's been pushed to November (that one actually may be the most settled) and one is in hiatus. I haven't read anything that has satisfied all my requirements but I am happy with the variety. Of recent reads, my recommendation is for Unnatural Magic by Waggoner. Surprisingly good! 

---------
Group 1 agreed on a date next week! Yay!! 

Whoosh

 Is the sound of fall coming in. Since we came back from Albuquerque on 9/26 it's been cool and sunny and lovely fallish weather in Lawrence. Too dry since the whole region is in a drought but the sky is blue and the temps are delightful for this mammal. I went along with Nod to a car show last weekend to keep him company while he enjoyed the visual excitement that brightly colored vintage cars bring him. It was such a laid back day with bright sun and slightly cool air. I don't care much about cars but enjoyed being out with the strolling public. There were rockabilly bands and dogs and kids and college football fans (game later that day) and everyone seemed to share the happy, mellow mood.      

Today we have a cold front from the north and it'll be in the high 50s which is startling. But it gets warmer over the next couple of days and is back to high 70s in a few. 

My electric mower's battery has stopped charging. I noticed the charge was getting shorter but didn't pay much attention. Then after cutting just the hellstrip in front, it stopped. I plugged it in and red-green blinking means Defective. I've loved this big toy mower. But the battery ceased to function pretty much right after the 3 year warranty so they know exactly how this works (or doesn't). I am still considering whether a replacement battery (almost half the original price of the entire mower) is gonna happen. I grumpily suppose so since I don't want to hire a service and I don't want to buy another mower. 

Cut my hair and I'm layered with bangs once again. I decided I'd tried the one length long enough and it was never going to be out of my face without clips. I like how much the curl does and that I still have some length.

 I've done some applying and am looking for the next good posting. I feel unsettled and a little resentful at this type of choring. Picture still needed for linkydinkedin. I want to sulk and read books and watch tv. But I'll feel guilty if I only do that. I'm trying to appease both wolves by doing a certain number of applications per week and then having time off after that. 

Nod got a new to him used work truck and we picked it up yesterday. I'm relieved that the old one is on its way out. He'd broken down a few too many times for my comfort over the last year. It didn't seem to bother him much.