Despite the cold, what a great month this is already! Seeing the great turnout to vote, particularly among first timers (note Hyla right there giving moral support) and people of color made me wish that my best friend Murphy, and my Dad, were alive to enjoy the moment. I was so moved and excited by the election results, perhaps more than most as I am a native Chicagoan, and also worked in the very same districts as an elementary school teacher (though decades earlier) that Barak Obama worked in as a community organizer. As you might imagine, hearing that anyone in any prominence politically had ever even been to the poorest and most disenfranchised Chicago neighborhoods was amazing to me. And even though some people I both love and admire had what I thought was way too much misinformation about Mr. Obama in general, the one point I could speak to from personal experience was that NOBODY goes to Chicago's South or West sides for political advancement. Particularly without press..
Closer to home, Brittie the amazing got adopted last Saturday. This is always both a happy and sad moment for me. I know when I get these foster dogs that I am just one link in a chain that leads to their forever home, but it is hard to remember that sometimes. In Brittie's case, having to deal with the aftermath of her surgery (stitches that had to be examined twice daily for two weeks, probably no big deal to most folks but for medically phobic me, a real challenge), as well as the continued debate about just who owns the bed, and who walks who, actually endeared her to me even more. And a week prior to her adoption, she gave me great proof that she is in fact the smartest girl ever. Our dog run is accessed through a dog door Brian made in one of our porch walls, and secured from inside by a hook and eye latch. I always unhook the door for the current dog, wait until whatever has to be done is done, then bring the dog back into the porch and relock the dog door before going out the human door and gate to pick up, if necessary. I do this because I am really worried that a dog that doesn't know me that well might bolt the gate and run off to who knows where, and I take the foster responsibility very seriously. So when I was out one night past midnight to do the final pickup, I was surprised to find Brittie running right up to me. I thought to myself, I really AM getting old, I'm sure I locked that door! But just assumed all those "senior moments" had caught up to me in a big way. But when it happened again, the next day in full sun, I began to really worry about whether I was losing what was left of my mind. Then the mystery was solved - I went back to the porch, relocked the door with Brittie watching, and waited. She calmly went over, lifted the hook latch up with her nose, and pushed the door open. Apparently she learned this just from watching me do it, as I certainly never tried to teach her. Doggie genius!
And to conclude, we have almost finished putting the gardens to bed. Just one last tomato left to eat, and many bags of frozen tomato pulp to use all winter. As usual, the garden continues to surprise. The green zebras, best producers for the last two years, barely got a few dozen tomatoes out this year, I don't know why. The big reds were rather late (end of August!) but huge and delicious, and continued to set tomatoes all October. But the most prolific of all this year was something called Georgia Peach Tomato, which is actually yellow and about the size of a plum. They were the first to be edible, and put out so many toms I had to take bags of them over to the monastery. Sweet, pretty, and long-lived - what I wish for all of us!
