White flowers

The mariachi party was definitely the highlight of the weekend – among other things, we ate delicious food (the caterer specializes in seafood – my favorite!), sampled yummy wine, heard lovely, heartfelt Mexican music from a trio of guitar guys in white embroidered shirts (even better than the big brassy uniformed horn section I had been expecting), and fell in love with these lovely, clean pure white flowers with green and yellow centers. Japanese anemones, I now know, are hardy, enthusiastic, and self-propagating via runners that can spread up to a couple of feet a year. I want to try some next spring in one of the hard-to-grow areas at the back of the yard.

The rest of the weekend was mostly devoted to seasonal chores around the house and in the yard, which might sound boring but actually is supremely satisfying, because you know the entire time that it's going to feel So Good when you're finished, and that's a highly enjoyable kind of anticipation – and then when you actually are finished, and it really does feel good, you get to enjoy it all over again.

For instance, I spent a couple of hours crouching and waddling around to gather a whole wheelbarrow's worth of apples and walnuts that had fallen on the ground (which Tater loves to bring into the house to eat, only I don't allow him to do that anymore because walnut mold is toxic to dogs!). My back was killing me the whole time, but I was also enjoying the smells and colors of the fruit, and the coolness of the air, and the geese flying by honking. I also loved discovering that not all of the apples are bruised and withered and not all of the nuts are pecked – which information gradually transformed itself in my head as I continued to gather them, into a plan to set aside the firm, not-too-worm-ridden apples, and cook them up, along with some walnuts from last year (this year's aren't ready yet), into an appley crispy thing for desert tonight. Thinking about that was so pleasant that before I knew it the ground was clear and I had moved on to promising myself that next year, I'm going to pay more attention to all the trees – peaches, pears and persimmons too – and not let another year's crop go to waste, ever again.

So now in addition to beekeeping, I'm reading about fruit trees. My first goal is to figure out how to save a 30-year-old apple tree that is splitting down the middle. Probably the tree should just be replaced, but I like having a mature tree in that spot, and aside from the split it seems healthy and still has great flowers and fruit. So I'm looking into various forms of securing the two sides together with bolts, cables, etc. and may also consult a neighbor who owns a tree service (though I'm afraid he'll just tell us to take it out).

Anyway. Just sort of rambling now. It's fall. We're still getting fresh flowers, tomatoes and fall fruit, but production is definitely near the end. Everything is balanced at that point just a shadow past its peak – not in decline just yet, but looking over the precipice in pleasureful anticipation of a long slow season of winding down, then settling into cozy winter rest in just a few more months again. I'm ready.