Monday, November 26, 2012

What is going on around here?

Something is going on around here. I'm not sure what it is. Something is different. Hmmm.

Flame-leaf sumac (Rhus lanceolata) is - well - flaming.
Fall-blooming Copper Canyon daisy
(Tagetes lemmonii)
Let me lay out the clues for you.

Strange colors have appeared out in the yard and woods. The normal greens have been interrupted by occasional oranges and yellows. Very odd.

The wicker rockers have disappeared from the porch. I've so enjoyed rocking in those chairs these past few months - feeling balmy breezes on my bare arms while gazing out at my colorful domain. The rockers have been replaced by a wood rack half-stocked with oak and cedar logs. This is not near as comfortable for domain gazing. Sort of knobbly. Strange.


My laundry has become bulkier, recently populated by sweatshirts and blue jeans, instead of t-shirts and shorts. Bizarre.

Here's the real kicker: it is cooler outside than it is inside. I know! What the h-e-double-l is transpiring here on the hill?

What? Fall? You mean, autumn? That elusive season that sometimes appears after the marathon that is summer in Texas, and before the sprint that is winter?

Oh.

Never mind.

Little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium)
is going to seed.


4 comments:

  1. I've been noticing how beautiful the sumacs are right now, but the ones around here are not as big as yours. Yours is just gorgeous! The little bluestem is fabulous, too. I love how you worded it - autumn is between the marathon of summer and the sprint of winter. How true!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. In reality, this has been a wonderfully pleasant and long-lasting fall . . . but not a fall by northern standards, I guess!

      Delete
  2. We do live in an odd area, don't we? Autumn begins in late November, is over by Christmas and may be concurrent with a rebloom of spring flowers. My pineapple sage still lifts red trumpets for the butterflies and hummingbirds that are still here.

    ReplyDelete
  3. And I loooove it! I only wish it would last longer than a day or two.

    Nice to "meet" another Texan!

    Kristin

    ReplyDelete