Wednesday and Thursday evenings: Joy in the weather.

1. Yep, the leaves have definitely gone past their peak up here. Another frost this morning and white fog shrouded the hills and dales on the way to work. There is a pumpkin patch near town, and the pumpkins are brilliant in their orange.

That was Wednesday. Today was bright and sunny and in the mid to high 60s. Same tomorrow. It's just gorgeous, and alethea_eastrid has gone out to pick raspberries and get milk -- in glass bottles -- at the nearby dairy. Oh, and cider donuts!

2. Speaking of the lovely Alethea. I love her/ It is old-fashioned married-people love. Over the last six months or so, I have let the cardboard pile escape from the refrigerator corner and spread across the floor. Today I came home to find it almost all cleaned up. Yay!

3. Can anyone hook me up with Mistress Brynn aka Bricia de Neubold? I need to talk to her. Edit: The gorgeous woman at the desk to my left had it. Thanks. I have passed it to where it needs to go.

4. The only problem with leaving the office at 4 p.m., is that I get to hear the dulcet tones of the NPR announcer telling me how many more points the Dow has gone down and what floor (9,000 today), it has dropped through. I am old enough to remember when the Dow hit 1,000. I put a newspaper page up[ in my bedroom. I was in high school, I think. Maybe junior high.

5. Greatest Far Side Evah!



It's tough, though. "Sick, Bessy, Sick." is right up there along with "Luposlipophobia," and "Midvale School For the Gifted."

6. Speaking of evil cats . . . .

Kakuru is not satisfied with butting her head against my mouse hand or slithering in front of the computer screen to get me to notice her. Tonight, she knocked the wireless receiver fo rthe mouse onto the floor. Deliberately, says I.

7. Someone was posting about Laurell K. Hamilton and the point at which "Too Much Sex, Too Often With Too Many Critters" tipped the scales and jumped the shark.

First off, I cannot believe there are 16 novels in the series at this point.

Second, for me, she jumped the shark in No. 9, Obsidian Butterfly.

What's really odd is that my first book of hers was No. 8, Blue Moon, which I picked up to read on the way to a National Honor Society national convention in St. Louis.

Merry Gentry No. 7 will be out in November. I never even started that series.

Thursday evening: I do enjoy constructing posts . . .

1. Coronation photos, by alethea_eastrid's dad are here.

2. Can you identify this quote?

"Let me strive every moment of my life to make myself better and better, to the best of my ability, that all may profit by it. Let me think of the right and lend all my assistance to those who need it, with no regard for anything but justice. Let me take what comes with a smile, without loss of courage. Let me be considerate of my country, of my fellow citizens and my associates in everything I say and do. Let me do right to all, and wrong no man."

3. Alethea is playing the new Loreena McKennitt CD, which is Christmas songs in her own style. Too early for Christmas songs!

4. Dinner was reheated from last night (made a day early on purpose). Onions, Cubanelle (I think) peppers, garlic, chorizo and potatoes, all cooked in good olive oil.

5. Can you identify the author:

He/she is the only person to author a number-one bestselling novel of the year for seven consecutive years.

6. I talk a lot about my favorite science fiction novels, but I rarely mention one of my all-time favorite novels, "The Power of One," by Bryce Courtenay."

Powerful and moving.

7. I am so happy -- and warm -- wearing my knitted, green Mongol hat. Mistress Bess gave it to me as a Christmas present to Sir Yesengge. A Christmas present? Well, he's a Mongol, so she got him a horde. Alethea has a sparkly Mongol hat.