Autumnal Equinox

There are roughly 12 hours of light and 12 hours of darkness everywhere on Earth today, give or take a few minutes. The South Pole, Australia, Equator, Europe, Siberia, China, everywhere.  A cool thought and it only happens twice a year at the Spring and Autumn Equinox. 

Now the North Pole begins to slowly tip away from the sun. Day by day, light dwindles in the Northern hemisphere until we reach the Winter Solstice in December, the shortest, darkest day of the year.

No one is complaining after our smoke nightmare, but the transition to fall seemed more abrupt this year.  The awful week of air pollution ruined the last chance for warm Indian summer weather.  We were all stuck inside.

The rain and wind eventually blew away the smoke, but left behind a chill in the air. A curtain came down. The neighborhood suddenly feels quiet and sad. But I'm just speaking for myself.  For most people, fall is their favorite season. I'm a spring-summer person.

Still, autumn should feel like a fresh start. Vacations (what's that?) are over, school begins (not really) and we start to look forward to the holiday gatherings (probably not.)

Instead this autumn is fraught with uncertainty and worry. Even the most Zen among us must be feeling pandemic weary.  No one old enough to remember it will ever forget 2020.  We can hope and pray to get back to something resembling ordinary life in 2021. 

 

 

 

On to brighter subjects. The crops are in. The cherry tomato was freakishly prolific and we ate as many as humanly possible. And quite a few peppers here from one small potted plant. I picked them all yesterday. Hot pickled sliced jalapenos sound good, if I feel like dragging out the canning paraphernalia again.  

 

Speaking of spicy food, we've been streaming the "Taco Chronicles" on Netflix, a documentary about the complex culture and history of simple tacos in Mexico. Actually, not so simple.  The documentary has subtitles and fast Spanish dialog, so you have to pay attention. The first episodes were filmed in Mexico City.  How rich and exciting street food culture is in other places, compared to the boring sameness of our endless American fast food chains.

Well, I'm doing more today than I typically do in a week!  Pretty exciting.  A rare haircut, then meeting a friend for a little walk on Alki.  This afternoon, we're taking my car in for a new battery before winter knocks at the door.