Happy Thanksgiving!

I just got back from visiting the family in New York State. It was cold there. It's much warmer here.

It was great to see everyone. My mom had her knee replaced, and now she is the Bionic Woman. She is healing well. My sister is over swine flu, which is good, because the oinking was driving my parents crazy (ha ha ha). My brother did lots of cooking. Yum. Thanks Bro. I washed a turkey. Washing a turkey feels like I am invading its privacy. It feels too intimate to wash a turkey's armpit. After all, it was a full-grown turkey, not a baby. I remember hearing stories of my great-grandma washing out the turkey with Borax. I don't know if I believe it. Or maybe I'm remembering wrong. Anyway, we ate lots and lots, and it was good.

The picture here is me with Henry. Henry was given to me when I was born by my father's students. Sadly, Henry has reached the end of his mortal life, and was laid to rest this weekend. This is a final farewell picture. He was well-loved, and led a good life.

It's Beginning to Look a Lot LIke Christmas....

I put up my Christmas tree on Veteran's Day. I know it's early, but why should I let the box sit in the middle of the living room floor for 3 more weeks when I could be enjoying the tidings of the season early? Here is a picture. I like my tree. It is relaxing. It doesn't speak back to me or put demands on me or ask me to fix its problems. Once it is up, it just stands there, radiating light and good cheer for all to see.

In Which it's ..... Christmas?

It is 67 degrees today, sunny, blue skies, and I bought a Christmas tree. It's very very weird to be wearing shorts and t-shirt and buying a Christmas tree. They were on sale cheap this weekend, so I bought a little one to put up in December. It's still weird to be thinking about Christmas when I'm wearing summer clothes.

I went to hear Temple Grandin speak at a conference yesterday. She is an advocate for people with autism, and is a very interesting woman. She's about 60 now, or maybe older, and is one of the leading experts on animal handling in the world. She also wrote several books about growing up with autism before it was really understood. She was very interesting, and was a good speaker. Her website (http://www.grandin.com) is unique. It is mostly about handling cattle, but bits of it are also about the books she has written about her life experiences.

I went for a walk in the park today. Me and about 500 other people. There was a man on the trail walking and playing soprano sax. It echoed through the woods like the soundtrack to a drama. A bit surreal, really, walking through autumn trees, nearly bare of their leaves, while improvised saxophone music echoes from afar. I kept expecting to stumble upon a couple having a heart-felt confrontation complete with tears. But I didn't. Just lots of families, joggers, and dog-walkers. And one man playing soprano sax.