So he laid out a nice simple picnic lunch.
There was nothing but pie.
But there were all nine kinds of pie that Harold liked best.
When Harold finished his picnic there was quite a lot left.
He hated to see so much delicious pie go to waste
                                                         from Harold and the Purple Crayon
                                                                          by Crockett Johnson
       Thursday’s Thanksgiving. I’m not making a picnic lunch, it will be an inside dinner, with cloth napkins and not-plastic dishes and flatware. I will not have nine kinds of pie, just three. I’m not planning on having anything go to waste, but inevitably, I’m sure it will happen.
       I heard a story on NPR recently about how much food we throw away. If I remember, it’s about one fourth of what we buy. Then, I thought about the grocery stores and all the restaurants. I know some of that food is donated to shelters and soup kitchens, but really? So I just looked up the story. I was wrong. One fourth? No, one HALF! http://wysu.org/content/npr/just-eat-it-filmmakers-feast-6-months-discarded-food
       So, what to do? According to filmmakers Jen Rustemeyer and Grant Baldwin who were interviewed for the article:

1. Buy less.
2. Be less choosy about the perfect apple.
3. Don’t worry about expiration dates. [They] don't really tell you anything about whether food is safe. http://www.npr.org/sections/thesalt/2012/12/26/167819082/dont-fear-that-expired-food
4. Eat leftovers.

       Harold drew a hungry moose and a deserving porcupine to help him clean up his leftover pies. I invited a couple of friends, who are deserving, but not, thank goodness, hungry.
       My husband, two daughters, their husbands, my five grandchildren and a couple of friends will make sure that five deserving, but not hungry, cats will have some leftover turkey.
Happy Thanksgiving!

                                                                   --stay curious  

In November, at winter’s gate, the stars are brittle. The sun is a sometime friend. And the world has tucked her children in, with a kiss on their heads, till spring.
                                                             from In November
                                                               by Cynthia Rylant
       I’m not much of a list maker, except for the short term do-list and a grocery list if I need more than five items. (That’s a memory thing. I like to know I can remember at least five fairly unrelated items.) So this post will not be a bucket list or a did-list or a list of resolutions. I won’t give you a catalog of accomplishments.
       November is my birthday month. I share my day with a former student, a former co-worker and the mother of a close friend. My niece and the husband of another close friend celebrated birthdays yesterday.
       Abraham Lincoln delivered his Gettysburg Address on my birthday. Actually the Address came first!
       I never held Autumn as my favorite season. All the symbolism seemed too real. Names of nursing homes and retirement homes like Autumn Acres and Autumn Hills and Autumn Woods remind me of the Long Sleep on my horizon.
       But, sleep is necessary. In autumn, the trees wear themselves out in their blazes of color and then rest. Squirrels frantically bury nuts they may or may not be able to find. Bears eat so much that they acquire an extra layer of fat so they can rest all winter. There is much flurry before the quiet time.
       I've gained an appreciation of Autumn--a busy time before a quiet time. I’ll spend my birthday doing something new. I’ll make a list of what I want to accomplish, try, learn about. Winter will be quiet, and cozy.
       Happy Birthday Sarah, Tommy, Jason, Joey and Mrs. Little.                                                                           --stay curious!

Now in that small cottage
lives Mrs. McTats,
all happy and cozy with her
twenty-five cats...
                              from Mrs. McTats and Her Houseful of Cats
                                                       by Alyssa Satin Capucelli
​       Last week, before the weather turned cold and rainy, I found a cat sitting in the sunshine on my front step. He (She?) came back the next day, too. This time, spending the sunshine grooming. I noticed one triangle ear and one ear not quite triangular anymore. Hmmm. It looked up and we locked eyes. Is that a purr, no just my imagination, I’m sure!
       You might remember that I have five cats. Four boys and one girl. I lured three of them in from the big bad outside. One is on permanent? loan from my younger daughter and one was given to us in a desperate rescue during a subzero snowy coldspell.
       I don’t feel like a crazy cat lady. I have limits. My husband and I have set up a no-cat zone in our house which includes our bedroom. I miss their warmth and comfy purring, but the hair became overwhelming.
       My older daughter, currently pet-free by the way, suggested that if I took in this cute, fluffy, well-groomed, sun-loving cat, I’d need a kennel license. Well, a quick check disproved that, but I will concede that laws vary by jurisdiction. I did not delve too carefully into my own.
       So we were eye-locked. Only a glass door stood between us. I slowly released the latch and inched the door open. My cat was off like a flash, tail barely keeping up with those sorta pointy, cute, little ears! This one’s an outside cat, for sure.
                                                                                                                                                      --stay curious!  

The voters had spoken. Duck was officially in charge.
                                                                    from Duck for President
                                                                              by Doreen Cronin
    
​       I have been known to sometimes procrastinate, rationalize and be skeptical about stuff. But voting is important and I do it.
       Every time.
       Some people don’t vote. They give many reasons.

• Maybe they are out of town (and didn’t plan ahead taking advantage of Early or Absentee Voting)
• Maybe they were too busy (doing what?)
• Maybe they didn’t like the candidates or issues (but isn’t this the opportunity to let people know what they DO like?)
• Maybe they just weren’t interested (in their community? their children’s/grandchildren’s education? their life?)
• Some people even said they forgot (really? with billions of campaign dollars reminding them?)

           ccording to Matthew Weil from the BiPartisan Policy Center                      http://bipartisanpolicy.org/blog/why-people-dont-vote/
(but it’s all me in the parentheses!)
And according to the U.S. Census report even though over half of 18+ year old citizens are registered to vote (60some %) just a little over half of THEM actually pull the lever, color in the oval, or cast their ballot some other way. 
                       http://www.census.gov/hhes/www/socdemo/voting/

       Today is the first Monday after the first Tuesday in November. What are you doing today?
 
Thanks for listening to my rant! Next week I’ll be back to normal, whatever THAT is!
 
                                                                   --stay curious!