Yep, Autumn Is Here

On Monday, September 20 -- a mere 2 days before the first day of fall -- we hit triple digits again. I guess that is Mother Nature's way of reminding us who is in charge. The next day, our high only reached into the mid 80s. Then, on the second day of autumn, I stepped out for my morning walk just before 7:00 AM and was greeted with a temperature of 44 degrees, which is only 12 degrees above freezing.

That's a pretty good weather roller coaster.

Fallen acorns litter the streets, and they snap, crackle, and pop under my feet as I plod along on my morning walks. Our maintenance people will be quite busy for the next couple of months keeping the streets clean of fallen limbs, acorns, and leaves. It's a never-ending job for them.

And speaking of our maintenance people, one stopped in a few days ago to work on our garbage disposal. While David was here, we asked him about some snake rumors we had been hearing. Our next-door neighbor had told us a few days before about all the snakes that had been spotted in the neighborhood. David verified this, saying he had killed 25 rattlesnakes in recent weeks. He had also been bitten once, and showed us the fang marks still visible on his lower leg. With the nights cooling, those rascals have been seeking warm places to spend the nights, and some have been creeping into garages. 

We took another walk out of the neighborhood a few days ago. It had probably been at least 2 or more years since we had walked on the O.C. Fisher dam, so we decided to visit it again for an early morning walk. It's really a pleasant place to walk because it is level and there is no traffic. But it is also exposed to weather since it is void of trees and brush. We enjoyed the lovely sunrise that morning, and we saw numerous deer. Hard to go wrong when you get to experience those things.

Sunrise over San Angelo. You can see our small collection of downtown buildings along the right horizon.

We used to walk quite frequently at the dam. It's only a 2 or 3 mile drive from our house. The entire length of the dam is about 7 miles, so you can rack up some mileage there if you want. But for every mile you walk out, that is one mile you have to walk back in. The 360 degree views are quite nice. 

We spotted these pretty girls at the base of the dam on our way back in.

Donna went fishing with two friends a couple of days ago. They didn't have many bites, but they seemed to enjoy being outside and visiting. It's a good way to pass the time. 

Our COVID numbers do seem to be improving, but we still have a long way to go. Numbers will drop over a few days, then jump up briefly for a day or two. Overall, there is improvement. Hospital numbers are steadily dropping, but deaths from COVID are holding steady. Almost all deaths are from unvaccinated folks. There are a few deaths from vaccinated folks, but these are almost exclusively among folks in their 60s or older.

We continue to await approval of booster shots for the Moderna vaccine. We'll feel better about things once we get that behind us. We get flu shots next week.

As always, stay safe out there, and get out and enjoy this fall weather. It only comes around once a year, you know.

Cool Mornings

For the past week to 10 days, my morning walks have been very pleasant. The temps when I leave the house have hovered just over 60 degrees. In fact, last Saturday it was 58 when I started my walk. This has been some great walking weather. The extended forecast indicates these temps will remain. On the high end, the highs have been in the lower 90s. This coming week, we should see daily highs drop into the mid to lower 80s according to local weather reports. Yep, autumn is not far away.

Those of you on Facebook saw that Miss Donna enjoyed another birthday. She had lots of cards and electronic messages on her special day. Most people age when they have a birthday, but Miss Donna gets younger. Although we are not going inside restaurants these days, I did treat the old girl to a Whataburger. We took our burgers to Lake Nasworthy and parked along the lake shore under the flight path of incoming planes, and there were lots of planes that day. I guess they were practicing their approaches, because they came in low and slow just over our heads. It's fun to watch them approach across the lake. The temp was in the low 80s at the time, so with our low humidity and a slight breeze and parked in the shade of some mesquites, it was very pleasant. 

One of the many planes that dive-bombed us while we enjoyed lunch.

Donna loves watching planes. From our patio, we can see lots of activity at our regional airport. Goodfellow AFB uses the airport for training, and Angelo State University now offers training out there as well. There is always something in the skies out there to watch. 

After our lunch, I drove the birthday girl through Spring Creek Park, where we spotted a little fox and several deer. We seldom go to this park without seeing wildlife. It's so nice to be able to leave city noises and activity behind in just a few minutes. We do enjoy living here.

This shot is a bit grainy, and I apologize for that. The fox was eating some popcorn someone had dumped out. Notice the deer watching everything that is going on.

A few days later, we rose early and headed to Middle Concho Park for a walk. This park is located on the north bank of the Middle Concho River between the Twin Buttes dam and Lake Nasworthy. It is a good-sized park with plenty of trees. It was just getting light as we arrived, and deer were everywhere. We probably saw 3 or 4 dozen altogether. The water was very smooth, and a light mist rose in places. It was a good walk.

Mist rising from the smooth water of the Middle Concho River in the early morning light.

These ducks are all in-a-row near a boat ramp in the general area where the Middle Concho River and Spring Creek merge before forming Lake Nasworthy.

Foundations from an old railroad trestle that spanned the Middle Concho before the area lakes were developed.

Very large house on a hill across the river from the park. There are several nice homes that sit on that side of the river.

Other than that, things have been peaceful here. The number of our active COVID cases has finally started decreasing. For a while, our daily count was averaging about 150 or close to it, but it is now under 100. We continue to monitor the news for information about booster shots, but right now there seems to be a great deal of confusion about that. We'll just continue to follow CDC guidelines and patiently wait for new developments. We need to get our flu shots.

I hope all of you are safe and sound.

Hello, September

We begin transitioning to autumn this month. I always enjoy this change to cooler weather. Now, don't misunderstand me; I'm not a fan of cold weather. However, I do enjoy crisp days and cool nights. It's one of the things I remember most fondly of our travel trailer days. I always enjoyed those times in state parks huddled about a blazing camp fire. 

We've not been doing much, just doing normal things around the house and trying to stay healthy. Donna goes out and terrorizes the fish at Lake Nasworthy from time to time. We both continue our walks, though Donna is not quite as regular in this exercise as I am. 

The turkeys have been grazing in our back yard quite a bit lately. I snapped this picture of a turkey that just plopped down for a rest beside our little oak tree late one day.

We've been having a few visitors lately, and the type we don't like. In the past few weeks, we've had a number of scorpions in the house. Perhaps it's due to the rain, perhaps the heat. Whatever, they are certainly unwelcome. One day, I noticed a couple of thin rust-colored strands extending from behind a light switch cover plate. They seemed to be blowing in a breeze, perhaps from the ceiling fan or air conditioner. I was curious, so I removed the plate. Well, inside I found a scorpion; it was its pincers that were extending from behind the plate..

On another morning, I went into the kitchen barefoot. Heck, I normally go barefoot in the house during the warmer months. I did not turn on the light this particular morning; I was just making my way around using the early morning light from the window over the sink. I stepped on something, and it felt rather crispy, somewhat like I would expect a thin piece of cardboard to feel. I switched on the light, and there was a scorpion. At first I thought it was dead since it had not stung me, but when I lightly tapped it with a shoe, it began moving. 

I've found a couple more of the little rascals around, but usually they are dead. We have our house treated every 3 months or so; as a result, most of the time we find only dead invaders. Needless to say, we've both been wearing slippers in the house lately. The exterminators are coming this week, thankfully.

Other turkeys grazing in the yard. Notice how green the grass is. That is unusual for this time of year in this part of the state.

We've also had lots of grasshoppers this year. They are all over the porches, hanging on to window screens, and just basically getting into everything. They really aren't a problem, though.

But we have been without some other visitors this year. Ever since we moved in just over 5 years ago, we have battled the martins. Now, I enjoy martins from a gardening perspective. Those little rascals can certainly aid in a gardener's battle against unwanted insects. But from the point of view of a home owner, I don't really care for them. They can make some really nasty nests in the most unlikely places. One of their favorite places to perch is on our patio ceiling fan and drop little bombs around. We retaliate by turning on the fan when we see them.

This is the turkey that was sitting in the top picture above. 

For some reason, this year they have not been a problem. I don't know what is different. We've had a little cooler weather -- but not that much. We've had a little extra rain -- but not that much. And we've had more locusts than normal. Regardless of what is keeping them away, Donna and I are grateful.

Boy, my heart goes out to southern Louisiana. Since Katrina, they have really been pounded by storms. Wildfires out west, hurricanes along the coast, tornadoes all over the place, and flooding all over the east. Wow! I certainly can't complain about our weather when I consider all of these things. Count your blessings!

Be safe out there.