It got cold overnight but now it is another absolutely gorgeous day. The sun is shining as the last of the orange and gold leaves fall in pools from the trees. Yesterday I braved the cold and the snow flurries to pull the last entrails from the gardens. The Dahlia I regretted pulling so yesterday would have been an icicle this morning anyway. I may even have lost some of the geraniums I had pushed to the innermost reaches of my porch last night. Phil O’Dendron hiding beneath the Lilac bush, I hope has been kept warm enough.

The house is 55 degrees, but I did finally give in and turn the small heater on in my room when it became obvious the sweat shirt was not enough. Now where did I pack that heated chair pad, cause I think the dog might need it? She spent much of yesterday out on the porch in her bed with one of my sweaters to keep her warm. 

All of this packing is making her edgy. She wants to be outside to keep an eye on the car and to make sure I don’t leave without her.Boxes and moving furniture has always made her nervous. Even all those years on the farm when we had never moved. I think she associated heavy cleaning with packing for a camping trip and figured we were leaving. Or maybe it was with the kids growing up, she saw them come and go and that worried her too.

I am anxious to get into the new place, and anxious about moving too. How will she react when I have to leave her in the new place the first time? I am hoping the presence of the other critters, and our things will reassure her.

I moved some of my plants to my daughters yesterday, as well as my pots, tomato cages etc. I still need to pack up my garden rakes, shovels etc and take them out to her farm. I’d better get those raised beds lifted up before they freeze in place. The dirt was just lovely yesterday, but I don’t look forward to shoveling it into the back of my car and hauling it out there.

I am old and weary enough that I can’t put off moving everything at the last minute. The landlord has his timeline for us to relinquish this house, and the seller has a timeline for my purchase. So the outside things go to a halfway point before they are frozen in. I hope my roses and azalea make it through the winter in pots, or that I get a break to set them in in January.

The sun is so bright outside I had to pull my drapes so that I could see the computer screen. At the corner of the window I can see the sun casting a deceivingly warm glow onto the neighbor’s house.

I must remember to leave for work early today. It is a catch the bus day. That will be a chilly endeavor. Waiting on the corner by the falls and then, up on the hill, walking across to the office. Just a month or so ago I was wearied by the summer heat radiating off the pavement and happy for any breeze that came my way, and now that breeze will cut through with an icy blade. Ah well, such are the seasons and I wouldn’t trade for Florida or California. The beauty outweighs the inconvenience most days.