Things Are Looking Up

COVID numbers are looking better in our area, and for most of the nation as well, I believe. On the personal level, Donna and I got our booster shots on the first day after they were approved, and that gives us a sense of confidence. 

Warm weather continues to linger here. As we near the end of October, I'm still walking at dawn with no jacket. For the past several days, the morning lows have been in the lower 60s. This morning, it was just above 70. Hard to believe it is well into autumn. I expect we will see some changes in the weather soon, though. So far, we really aren't seeing any changes in colors around here. Leaves are not really falling, and they certainly aren't showing any autumn colors. Perhaps that will change soon.

Our two youngest grandsons will be spending a couple of nights with us soon. One of the reasons we have been so careful with COVID and were eager to get our boosters is to protect them. Since they are too young for vaccines, we want to make sure that we don't pass anything on to them. Donna is planning all sorts of activities for the little tykes. We'll try to keep them entertained. I'll just try to survive.

Below are some sunrise pictures I recently took, followed by a few pictures of a full moon still hanging high at dawn.

I snapped this about 10 minutes into my walk one morning. 

This is the same picture as above, only zoomed in. Colors become more vivid in the zoom.

The clouds were moving swiftly across the still dark early morning sky.

I really like this shot of the moon in an opening of the clouds. Both of these pictures were taken from my front patio as I was about to set out on my walk.

For a contrast, here is the same moon over an hour later at the end of my walk. This picture was taken from the same location as the previous 2 pictures. The only other difference is that I did not zoom in for this shot, so the gate, wall, tree, and eave of the house are included. 

Welcome, October

On the last night of September, we received just over half an inch of rain. The first day of October awoke to a cloud cover and the hope of more rain. Not a bad way to start the month in thirsty West Texas. A day or so later, we had a really good rain, receiving just over an inch.

For the next week or so, we had a stretch of some really warm days. You really couldn't tell that autumn had arrived. Our daily highs for that stretch were in the mid 90s, and our lows mostly were in the low 60s.

All of that changed Wednesday. 

Donna and I had an appointment early Wednesday morning. A few drops had fallen when we left the house just before 8:00 AM. We were heading back home about 9:30 or so when a good rain fell. It only amounted to a tenth of an inch or so, but the skies remained cloudy. We went out for a while during the lunch hour, and after we returned home, the rain really came down. By the end of the day, we had received nearly 2 inches of rain. On top of that, things had cooled off quite a bit.

When I rose yesterday morning, there was a heavy fog. Boy, this is good camping weather. It's times like these that I miss our travel trailer. It didn't take long for the fog to burn off, though, and then the day cleared and was a beautiful autumn day.

I got in a good walk this morning, enjoying the briskness. The temperature was somewhere in the high 50s, I believe. Tomorrow, though, the temp should be in the very low 40s, and that is getting a bit cold for me. It won't be long before I take my walk later in the day.

Donna continues to fish whenever she can. That girl does enjoy her fishing. 

Last Tuesday, we ventured down to Shannon Clinic for our scheduled flu shots. We were in and out in no time at all. Those folks do a good job. Since we were out and about, we decided to visit the state park to renew our annual parks pass. We've maintained a parks pass for a long time now. Of course, when we had a travel trailer, we spent lots of nights in the state park system. Although we no longer have an RV, we still frequent our local park with walks and hikes, and we often visit other parks as we travel the state. Most of all, though, buying the pass is a good way to support the park system and all the great things that department does for the state.

I'm delighted to see our COVID numbers falling at last. A month or so ago, we were reporting as many as 150 new cases a day. That number has now dropped below 30, and our hospital numbers have been cut in half. If numbers continue to level off, perhaps we can plan a trip or two soon.

Latest reports on the news indicate the Moderna vaccine should soon be available to folks like Donna and me soon. We'll feel much more confident once we get that additional half dose.

You folks stay safe out there.