November Ramblings

For the life of me I couldn't fall asleep last night. I finally drifted off this morning at 5:00 a.m. and didn't stir until 10:30 a.m. Then I had a couple of phone calls from both my sisters, so I ended up lying there until around noon! I should know better by now than to have a couple of Cokes with my dinner. Caffeine really affects me! I generally keep caffeine-free Coke at home and take my own, but I was out! So instead of tossing, turning and staring at the ceiling, I decided to "winterize" my blog. I hope my readers enjoy this new look. It was hard for me to deviate from the earthy colors of autumn that I had chosen previously, but I think it's the right look for winter.

I'm sipping a warm cup of apple cider and feel that it's a good day to stay at home. I have Christmas music softly playing in the background and a scented candle burning. Holly is quite content lying in my lap, as she often is when I'm "attempting" to type anything. She's lying here softly purring and her little cold black nose nudges against my hand. So whenever I quit typing, I just can't resist stroking her soft fur.

The temperature is holding in the 50's, though as I look out the window it looks a lot colder. It's windy and rainy. But it's starting to "look" more like winter. Trees are pretty much leafless now. The tall dark sculpture of the trees are a stark contrast against the dreary shade of light gray in the sky. I enjoy the beauty of trees all year around. The season of spring brings flowering crabapples, dogwoods, and redbuds. The summer season has the trees bedecked with varying shades of green foliage. My favorite season of autumn, with the jewel colors of yellow, purple, gold, orange and red. The controversial beauty of winter with the limbs laden with snow or  just barren. I'm not forgetting about the evergreen tree with it's constant beauty all year around. The white pine is my favorite as it evokes so many wonderful memories of vacations up north.