While still waiting for a bid for our renovation plan, we look for excuses to visit Chula Vista. Because I didn’t want to wait any longer to finally have a grill again, we bought a Big Green Egg. And because we didn’t want to move it from the rental, it was delivered to Chula Vista. The BGE offers amazing control over cooking temperature while imparting a delightful smokey flavor. Soon, now that I have a handle on direct cooking, I want to try to make a pizza sometime. Today, pork tenderloins. 

Beyond cooling temperatures and vibrant orange-yellow leaves, signs of the changing season appear everywhere. Mornings are darker and days shorter. Folks are less likely to leave the house without a light jacket. Our yard at Chula Vista no longer has so many purple flowers, in their place fluffy seed pods. We’re helping the bees to prepare for winter and stacking our own supplies too.

We are in the process of getting bids from potential contractors. There may be some alternations to the project once we get cost estimates. Some of our plans, however, are pretty firm. To start, we’d like a more sheltered place to park our car(s). Currently there are pillars blocking the garage and a breezeway. So, we’ll replace the two blocking pillars with one between the two. The gate will move to the backside of the breezeway. 

The place we are renting has a gorgeous yard, like a slow fireworks show (see above). The early spring had catmint, lavender, and a flowering fruit tree. Through the whole summer we had pink coneflowers and assorted daisies. Now in early fall the grasses, pampas, Karl Foerster, and switchgrass shine. Purple aster enthusiastically colors the wilder parts of the yard. I’m inspired.

Taking in the whole starry sky is wondrous. And it inspires deeper exploration. Almost immediately after moving to Santa Fe we purchased a 10 inch Dobsonian telescope. On clear nights we haul it out onto our deck and search the sky for interesting targets.

Bees give me hope and a measure of determination. One summer in grad school I watched wasps build a hive on the other side of my office window. Their diligent persistence demonstrated that with a little bit of work each hour they could do something noticeable in a few days. Encouraged, I wrote a next sentence. 

We’ve bought a house in northern Santa Fe.