I love the way the leaves cover our front yard this year. This may be the first year the yellow-and-red blanket is is thick.  The photos show how it looked today.  The Husband raked the leaves the day before yesterday.  While the Husband raked, I put up a few Christmas decorations around the yard to cheer up the Mama as she looked out the window as she ate her breakfast.  This time I did more than add red bows to the tree. See the green bough on the fence? That's new, thanks to the Godmother. She was downsizing her Christmas stuff, so she gave me the bough and a bunch of cool ornaments. The Autumn leaves and the holiday decorations in the front yard are a few of the things that perked me up this week. How about you? I'm linking up with the lovely Jenny Matlock's Warm Heart Wednesday . Click here to join the meme and/or read more warming posts.

Lately, I've been helping the Mama pick up the leaves in the backyard. Even when it's about to rain or when the wind is being blustery. Why? Because the Mama is out there. And, she'll stay out there until she is a) satisfied that she has picked up as many leaves as she could before more fall from the trees,  or b) tired and has begun ranting about the next door neighbor's dirty tree that sheds lots and lots of clusters of red berries and skinny hard leaves, which are quite difficult to pick up. After years of calling out the back window, "Come in, Mama, it's too cold!" Or,  "It's windy! Just wait until the wind stops." Or, "It's raining!" I now step outside, followed happily by Molly the Cat who has been cooped inside because the Mama decided it's too cold, windy, and/or rainy for her to be outdoors.   I usually head to the other side of the yard  with my favorite rake. The sooner the leaves are picked up, the sooner t...

Earlier this week, I stood beside my car and took a shot of the evening sky to the west. Then I turned and took one of the sky to the east. How amazing the difference was! At least, to me. To the West To the East To see sky views from around the world, check out Skywatch Friday .

Dear Readers, I wish each and all of you joy, peace, love, and happiness. Thank you always for your visits.  Truly yours,  Su- sieee ! Mac

I like Autumn.  I seem to wake up in the fall.  Maybe it's because I'm a fall Autumn baby.  Yes, that sounds good. This week, I'm participating in Outdoor Wednesday , hosted by A Southern Daydreamer. See what other bloggers have been doing outside by clicking here . P.S. I'm also linking up with Follow Friday 40 and Over, hosted by Never Growing Old. Come check out other blogs with me by clicking here .

Because Veterans Day fell on a Thursday this year, the past weekend was a four-day one for some folks. A few of our friends think that the husband and I have a seven-day weekend because we work at home. I say they're just envious. But, I admit that if I ever had to do a 9 to 5 job again, it would be a very difficult adjustment. So, knock on wood that won't need to be. Anyway, back to the highlights of the weekend. Thursday The husband and I went downtown to watch the Veterans Day Parade. That was the first time I've been to one. Ever. It was a short, but fun, parade.  If you love a small town parade, come to Hollister, California.  A couple weeks ago was the high school homecoming parade. A couple of weeks from now will be the "Hey, it's time for Christmas!" parade. That's not the real name, but you know what I mean. Other annual parades that march through downtown include the Portuguese Festival Parade ,  the Horse Show and Rodeo Parade , and the Mexican ...

Yes, another reading challenge for me to try.  This one is all about Louisa May Alcott, the author of Little Women . It was one of my favorite stories when I was a teenager.  I identified with Jo, the tomboy, the fun sister, the romantic,  the outspoken one, and the writer. Who didn't? So, this challenge, the All Things Alcott Challenge .  What's it about? Click on the link to read the details. Essentially, participants decide how many items related to Louisa May Alcott to read, listen to, or watch that they hope to complete by December 31. My goal is the number 1. Between now and then, I will read at least one book by or about Ms. Alcott. Update of Other Challenges The 200 sit-up challenge . I finished that last week. Did 200 crunches all in a row. Yep, I did. Jumping three times daily . That's on hold. My right ankle is now screwed up.

For more sky views from other places around the world, click on: And, if you're interested in learning more about my hometown, click over to Take 25 to Hollister .

Asking for help can be so difficult for some people. The mama, for instance. The nearly-90-year-old woman  is stubborn about asking me to help her with the harder chores in the garden. But, she gladly takes the help, if I happen to give it without asking, "Do you need help?" It's taken me awhile to recognize how silly that question is.  It's similar to asking a visitor if she would like something to drink. According to the Mama, you don't ask, you just serve the drink. So, I've learned to keep my eyes and ears open to what's going on when she's outside. For instance, when I hear the sound of metal scraping against cement, I head outside to see what the Mama is doing. And, usually she has set up the ladder against one of her many trees to pick some fruits or prune tree branches. "Here, let me do it," I say, as I shove my feet into my shoes. "I can do it," she says, as she's about to climb the ladder. We spar back and forth a coup...

I took this photo of the clouds a few days ago. Like the sky, the events of this week have been simply glorious. The San Francisco Giants won the World Series. Yep, indeed! And, no wealthy fat cat was able to buy the governorship in our state. Ha! It's Skywatch Friday and Follow Friday 40 and Over! for me today. Join me, won't you? Click on the links to check out what other bloggers are posting.

San Francisco Giants, that is. Yay, Giants! I admit it. I jumped onto the bandwagon when the Giants won the first game of the National League play-offs. I watched some of the second game, they lost. I missed the third game, they won. I saw a bit of the fourth game, they lost. I decided I was a jinx. So, I stopped watching. I didn't even read Facebook updates on how they were doing, and just read the headlines the next day. Since I stopped paying attention to baseball after the 1995 baseball strike, I had to show my loyalty to the Giants by not watching them win the NL pennant and the World Series championship. Boy, did I miss some good baseball! Between 1986 and the baseball strike, I was a Giants fanatic. Those were great years. Roger Craig was the "Hummmm, baby" manager. What a crew he had.  Together, Craig and team eventually worked their magic to play against the Oakland A's in the 1989 World Series. Unfortunately that series played second fiddle to the 7.0 Loma P...

In several hours I'll be meeting a friend to talk about blogs. Writing them and reading them. She's thinking about dipping her toe into the blog water. She wants to know if she would ever leave her house again should she venture forth. I told her it would be the opposite. She'd be out and about, her ears and eyes continually open for post ideas. Fellow bloggers, what say you? If the friend decides to go for it, she'll be doing it through Wordpress. Until three hours ago, my experience with that blogging platform was zilch, nada, nothing. Three hours ago, I was very hesitant about getting a grasp of the Wordpress blog basics. But, how was I going to give the friend an idea of what she would be getting into, if I didn't find out. There is definitely a difference between Wordpress and Blogger, which I've been using for the last three years. The first thing I noticed was how overwhelming the instructions were to do this and that. But, once I figured how to publish a...

This is how the sky looked like this afternoon. Beautiful, no? It's another new meme in which I'm participating today: Skywatch Friday . Bloggers from all over the world post their shots of the skies above. Come with me to check it out by clicking here .

Not KFC.  Not Starbucks nor 24 Hour Fitness Center. Franchise, a s in the right to vote.  Take advantage of your right as a U.S. citizen.  Tuesday, November 2, 2010. Just saying.  Today being Thursday means I'm playing in Alphabe-Thursday , a meme hosted by Jenny Matlock at Off On My Tangent . Click here to check what other F's are out there in the virtual world today.  Absolutely, after you watch and listen to the Beatles. Of course. 

Check out other Wordless Wednesday snaps with me by clicking here . Enjoy!

I'm still not reading books for fun regularly like I did before there were blogs, but at least I'm getting back into it. Last night, I finished Craig Ferguson's autobiography and picked up my latest to read from my pile of books yet to read. Really, I shouldn't even be thinking of buying new books or browsing for books at the library. But, I am. Since I have new book, I'm participating in the weekly book meme called Teaser Tuesday . Basically, you open the book at random and choose two sentences (though some bloggers choose more) to quote. The objective: To provide enough of a tease that others may be interested in reading the book, too.  So, after reading my offering, come join me at Teaser Tuesday to discover possible future reads. "Bart was right to warn her it wouldn't be easy. The mayhem, the turbulence, the mushrooming growth, the scope and pervasiveness of underworld activity, topped off by the massive disruption of the earthquake and f...

Who doesn't like awards, especially when they are received unexpectedly? I do!  Last week, blogger Sarah of Sarah Who Reads Too Much surprised me with the One Lovely Blog Award. Whoo-hoo!   Thank you, Sarah, I appreciate the honor. The award does come with a wonderful catch. I must now play it forward and pass it on to up to 15 other bloggers, which according to past awardees are writers of blogs that I have recently discovered. (What's considered a recent discovery is up to me, since no one else is saying.) I'm continually finding new blogs to read, many from blog hops, linky parties, and memes in which I participate. The following are my picks of some of the many engaging blogs to which I subscribe. You may find one, several, or all blogs that appeal to you, dear gentle readers. Check 'em out! A Matter of Opinion Bungalow '56 Chaotically Me Crunchy Betty   Miranda Moments of Whimsy   Monterey Daily Photo My Life as a Domestic Nerd Naked Without Books Off on ...

I went looking for orange in the sky. Kinda found it with my camera (back in June). Definitely found it when I edited the photo in Photoshop. What I want to know is which image represents the colors in the sky at the moment—the photo untouched or one of the edited versions?  What do you think? To check out other Photo Hunters' interpretation of the theme, click over to the site of our host, TNChick. The original print. How it looked when I clicked auto color in Photoshop. How it looked when I clicked auto levels.

Here's what this week looked like for a professional writer who hasn't been doing much writing lately. Be forewarned: You may fall asleep. That's okay. I may already have. Sunday The husband and I bought a Dyson vacuum cleaner. Although several friends had recommended it, I did not put it on our list of choices because of the cost.  At the store, we got curious and looked at it. Then all of a sudden Jesus appeared. "Can I help you?" he asked politely. (Really, the sales guy's name was Jesus. Not Hay-soos, but Gee-sus.) Very long story short, with Jesus' confidence about the machine and the store's return policy, we decided to invest in the machine. Monday I vacuumed part of the house. Result: Three containers full of dust. The mama made a mistake on her absentee ballot, so I took her down to the courthouse for a replacement. As we headed up the stairs, she said, "I feel so ashamed for making a mistake." In all her 50 years of voting, this was...

Eccentric. Adjective: Unconventional, extraordinary, offbeat, quirky. Noun: Character, individualist, free spirit, odd duck, kook. "My beard is flapping in the wind," said the husband. He was standing patiently next to me as I first snapped photos of a corn maze, then videotaped the corn swaying in the wind. He mentioned his beard flapping in the wind several times that afternoon. As some of you know, the husband and I shaved our hair completely off in January, just to see how long it would grow in a year. The husband also shaved off his beard and mustache. He is allowed to trim his mustache, but no can do with the beard. The husband says his beard is the longest he has ever had it. So, of course, I had to shoot a video of the husband's beard flapping in the wind. Enjoy! If you want to read more (or again) about our haircuts, please click here . This will take you to all the posts (I think) about our hairy adventure. Scroll all the way to the bottom to read about how we c...