Hitting the Fall ToDo List

I woke up at 7:00 AM on Saturday after a restless night. I put on the coffee and posted to the Blog.

I noticed that my son Jeremy commented on my Blog late at night, so I waited until 10:00 AM to call and wish him a Happy Birthday (I thought maybe he had to work late again). Turns out he has a bad cold and was up off and on all night. He said no big plans; just play some board games with the family and watch a movie or two. Sounds like a good birthday!

I took a shower and got dressed. I have some errands to run this morning, but I will grocery shop either tomorrow or during the week. There is nothing I need this weekend, food-wise.

So, I went to Walmart and picked up a few things I needed. On the way home, I passed another one of those seat belt traps on Plymouth Road. They have been doing this all week, BTW. Two cop cars sit about 1/2 mile apart in the middle lane, facing the oncoming traffic, watching to see if you have your seat belt on. Another police car (the "chase" car, I assume) is tucked discretely in a nearby parking lot. This pisses me off! I think anyone who doesn't wear a seat belt deserves whatever happens if they crash. But, couldn't three cops be better deployed elsewhere, like finding bad guys? Hey, maybe you could investigate any recent local hammock thefts?

I got home and unpacked. Here's another thing that pisses me off: I bought a new toilet bowl brush and stand for $3.98 US. When I emptied the trunk, I realized I left it in that damn carousel Walmart (and Meijer's) uses instead of paying for baggers. Damn!

I put the rest of the stuff away and then went back out to get some gas for the tractor (I don't like carrying gas and other stuff in the same trip). Before I left, I added 1/8 of a cup of Stabil to the gas can. I must admit, gas prices have been going steadily down (along with my 401K) during this recession. I got mid-grade for $2.29 a gallon!

Back home, I took some "before" photos of the front yard and got the wheel barrow out front. Then, I got to work!

I pulled out all the annuals from the front garden, the urn, the tree box and mailbox tub. I made the first of many trips from the front all the way to the back and the compost heap. Then I got the line trimmer and cut down all the perennials in the front garden, tree garden and along the garage side. I raked out all the debris and trucked it out back. I dumped the four asparagus ferns from their containers and hung the containers in the garage for next spring.

The frog in the tree garden and the three gnomes climbing the rope went in the garage. I added fertilizer to the front garden and worked it into the soil. Then I gassed up the mower. After checking the oil (which reminded me I should change it this fall for the next year's grass cutting) I fired it up and cut the front lawn, concentrating blowing the leaves and garden debris to the south.

I was doing the side lawn when I went into the back to turn around. I didn't turn the blade off (why would I?) and the next pass I made, I noticed my neighbor, waving his hands, frantically. So, I shut off the mower blade and drove over to see what his problem was.

He said he had just finished vacuuming his pool and was draining it for the winter. He said he had about three inches of water to go and would I PLEASE not cut in the back yard (with any resultant dust) for about an hour or so, so he could get his cover on.

Now, two years ago, I would have thought he was nuts. But, after hearing and seeing what Jake and Carla go through to maintain their pool, I completely understood. I told him (the truth) I had no intention of cutting the back yard tonight (it was already after 5:00 PM) so he was very relieved.

So, I finished up and then put away the mower (after blowing it off) and took my "after" photographs for the Blog. Back inside, I published everything and then thought about dinner.

I'm not sure why, but I have been thinking about that pasta dish I invented using my fresh tomatoes on September 10. So, I checked the green tomatoes I put in a paper bag to ripen. Uh... NOT! So, I pitched them and tried to recreate it with canned diced tomatoes.

I drained the tomatoes while I fried up some garlic, but there wasn't nearly as much liquid as when I juiced the fresh tomatoes. So, I added a can of tomato paste and some water. This time instead of tortelloni I used fettuccine (straying even farther from my first inspiration). I did add the kalamata olives and tomatoes at the end, but instead of staying nice and tasty, the tomatoes turned into sauce. So, instead of my light pasta dish, I ended up with spaghetti and olives. Not bad tasting, but not even close to what I wanted.

I adjusted all the clocks in the house to account for daylight savings time before I started watching TV. I dozed off around 10:00 and woke up at 11:30. I shut everything off and went to bed, content with today's efforts.