Corn Harvest Underway

  Late-afternoon yesterday the farmer who plants the fields around us began harvesting his corn. I think it is incredibly late. Looking through past blogs, in 2008 I found the harvest began on 10/04 (though it continued on 10/27); 2018's harvesting was done on 10/04; and 2022 was harvested on 10/11.

 This is the year the seeds were planted quite early on 04/13 and what I would call killing frosts followed. But the crop looks quite successful from what I've been seeing yesterday and today.

10/18 - 4:29 pm

 Late yesterday I heard the harvester pass the house and looked out the window to see this. He worked in that field until it was dark.

 Here's how it looked early this morning ...

10/29 - 8:10 am

 I was completing my morning walk when I took this shot and the sun hadn't yet broken the horizon. The field looked incredibly empty with only stubble littering the ground.

 Can you see the jet approaching at the top of the frame? That's an Airbus A320 bound from Washington DC to Denver. It took off just 54 minutes before I took the shot. It was at 38,000 feet. I zoomed in for a closer look.

10/29 - 8:10 am

 It silently passed just south of me. I wonder how many souls were onboard and what these farm fields looked like to them?

 Today the harvest continues with the field to my south ...

10/29 - 10:49 am

 I peaked at one ear just to see how the corn had developed and I think anyone would agree it's perfect.

10-29 - 8:00 pm

 Still working on the south field. As they unload the corn dust rises in the bright light. My guess is they're about done for today. The beautiful weather is holding so there is no hurry in that regard.

 Later  ... last evening the field behind our house was started. At least a few swipes were done in the dark. With another day of perfect weather I'm sure the job will be finished today. Here's a section of that west field this morning as I took my walk.

10/30 - 7:57 am

 By the way, I believe since I moved here in 1987 these fields have been worked  by DR Coffman. This year DR has retired and his son-in-law Kenny Lucas has taken over the task. I'd say things are still in good hands.

Hunter's Moon Sets

  I am out doing my early morning laps before 8 am and am startled by the setting Hunter's moon, visible over the unharvested corn. And that is not all that startled me. For once I am not alone.

 This is my first view of the October full moon as I start back the neighbor's lane. It is already setting and won't be visible for long. There is still no sun behind me and the atmosphere is still a dusky dark. I lift my phone to take this picture and see movement about a hundred feet in front of me. It is a fox, I think - though perhaps a coyote in the dim light - and it drifts silently across the lane and disappears into the corn on the south. The corn  is silent with his passage.

 This Hunter's moon, Google says, is named for this: "It marks the time when fields have been cleared by the autumn harvest, allowing hunters to easily spot deer, foxes, and other animals gathering food for the winter". Ah, the fox is even mentioned. But why is the corn still not harvested so late? The ears have all turned  down; it is ready. It has been ready.

 As I near by neighbor's house I seen the moon just  above the western horizon. It will disappear in minutes.

 Last evening  when I went to bed (about 10:30 pm) this same moon was shining in my bedroom window and flooding the blanket with its white light. Throughout the night - for I am getting over a cold and not sleeping deeply - the moon pivots across the southern sky and selects another window as it rounds the house. Parker is sleeping well but the house is cool (I don't have the second floor HVAC turned on) and I lift the blanket and invite her beneath. She accepts the invitation, rattles her collar and disappears from sight, adjusts her position, sighs and is back asleep in mere seconds.

 I soon join her.

Later (10/27):

 The moon is just past full this morning but I don't think it's possible to tell that by just looking. It was full yesterday (10/26) at 12:11 am. It was a cold, white light as I walked just before sunrise this morning. By the way, zooming in on the moon with my phone takes most of the sky out of the frame so that the camera does a better  job of exposing the moon itself. I must remember this.

HAZMAT?

  I have been waiting for a CVS OTC (Over The Counter) medical supplies order since 10/05. Usually they take a few days. It was shipped on 10/08. On that same day I received an email from CVS saying the "Your order is delayed". It had been set for delivery on 10/10.

 So what was going on? All three items were shown as in stock when I ordered them. Tracking history shows it shipped on 10/08 from Missouri. I could drive there in an afternoon.

 The package made a number of unidentified stops, simply shown as "In Transit to Next Facility". On 10/12 it was noted as being at the "Metro NY Distribution Center". New York?

 It arrived today (10/19). The order was placed two weeks ago and it has been in transit for eleven days.

 When the package was at last placed in my mailbox I gained some insight into the delay. The mailing label says "HAZMAT - SURFACE TRANSPORTATION ONLY".

 Hazardous materials?

 Here's what was in the package ...

 Anything there that looks particularly dangerous?

 Here's how Google AI answered my question:

 It would seem the section on "Aerosols and Sprays" is the answer. So CVS was just doing their job. But the rule seems a bit odd to me.

First Frost of the Season

  They've been predicting a "frost and freeze Sunday morning" and they hit it on the head. My Tempest shows a low of 30.7° and when I took my morning walk and delivered Millie's newspaper, the ground was patchy white in spots.

 At least it wasn't windy so the walk in the lane was pleasant. The sun rose at 7:50 am but I didn't see it that early. I was starting back out the lane before 8 am and it was still fairly dark.

 By the way, our average date of first frost is 10/09 so we're over a week late. This is my 53rd year of keeping frost records.

 Here's what I saw this morning ...

 Crinkled leaves along our driveway as I started my walk. There's frost on the edges.

 At the SE edge of our property, the frost lightly coated the ground white.

 Heading back the lane, and in the open areas, the weeds and grasses beside my path were white.

 Millie's yard was the whitest spot I saw. This shot was taken at 7:56 am and the sun was set to rise six minutes earlier. So where is it?

 I'm back, showered and warmed up. Time to drive to Eric's and help his move.

Broccoli Quiche for Lunch

  A few weeks ago Tom brought home a prepared broccoli quiche from Aldi. To say the least it was excellent ... but it was also expensive. About $10 I think he said.

 It's not something we have often. In fact the last may  have been eleven years ago when Tom made a quiche for Mom and I for our Easter meal. Click here to check it out.

 I decided I wanted another. They certainly look easy and that's actually the name for the one I just made. I used the recipe on allrecipes.com, my favorite site. Click here for that recipe.

 The only changes I made was to use garlic power since I didn't but fresh  garlic and I used a bag of frozen broccoli florets from Meijer which were perfect for this use. I baked the quiche the full 50 minutes because I like them done, not watery.

 I had Tom cut the quiche into four slices. They turned out too large to lift out of the pan so he divided them in  half (making an eight slice quiche). That's the proper size. But we each ate a quarter of the quiche. The leftovers will be good another day this week.

 Tom suggests I add fresh mushrooms next time. You'll note that he used  mushrooms in the Easter quiche noted above.

 This is a recipe I need to make more often. It's a rib-sticker and certainly easy when using a prepared crust.

Dense Fog this Morning

  While the expected rain from Hurricane Isaias was a big bust - just 0.11" here in two days of measuring - it left enough moisture in the air to generate a heavy fog this morning as the overnight temperatures cooled. It's 53° at 8:30 am.

 My walk was in the clouds ...

 This tree to the north of my neighbor's lane stands stark and alone against the field of unharvested corn. Surely it's late to get the corn to market. Especially considering that it was planted very early.

 Looking back out the lane, as the day begins the fog  begins to lighten a bit.

 Finally, Clayton Road  looking north. That's my driveway on the left.

 The Tempest reads 95% (the highest is ever reads is 96%) but the local NWS office reports 100%. It's certainly not the heaviest fog I've seen but it's still one that creeps inside the fabric I'm wearing and cools the skin. A mostly sunny day is forecast.

Adding a Few Pines

  It's only appropriate after all the trees we've lost that we add a few. This afternoon Tom has been busy planting three small White Pines. He bought them - and other trees - at Needmore Tree Nursery in Nashville, Indiana on Thursday. He went to nursing school with Mike Hater who owns the nursery.

Tookta Chaiyasit and Mike Hater

 I didn't want the trees planted in the yard since they cause me to take too long with my mowing so Tom planted them near an existing line of pines. A White Pine there, our largest, was topped by a wind storm in June 2025 and has since died.

 He also says he's planted them too close together so one, maybe two. will eventually have to be removed.

 But for now they're in the ground, watered, and can begin a new life at Pinehaven.

 Yesterday Tom planted two Witch Hazel by the chimney at the front of the house. He also bought them at Needmore.

Late day:

 Tom decided to plant the "Halloween" persimmon at the SW corner of our lot. It's the same location where we took down a dead pine so it offers a natural gap that could be filled. I think it will do well there and I'm certainly anxious to try a persimmon.