Howdy, All.  The weather talk is all about Sandy which might become a real menace.  Sometime over Monday into Tuesday it should join with the system that has brought cooler temperatures, clouds, and a bit of rain here to become a real nasty.  Thankfully, most of the governments and utility companies are taking the situation seriously.  It was chilly last night and I almost got up and got my afghan.  The forecast is for cool enough that I got it back on the foot of my bed this morning.
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Another Monday after a Sunday when I didn't see much to comment on.  I should note that doesn't mean I didn't read anything.  Sundays are usually light on the internet but my alerts always find things of interest.  Most, however, I have commented on before and have nothing new to say.  The news today is dominated by Superstorm Sandy.  Actually, Sandy has commanded the attention of the news for the last three days.  We are expecting high winds that may push lake waters on shore causing flooding.  We are on high enough ground far enough from the lake that flooding doesn't worry us.  High winds though are a bit more concerning.  Thankfully, we don't have much out on the patio that can be carried off or damaged.  I might bring in the bird feeders tonight even though they have been fairly well protected inside our fence.  We'll see.

I brought in the last harvest of stevia and pulled the plants yesterday.  Six trays in the dehydrator.  Everything else still in the gardens look fairly good.  I was surprised to see some nice healthy new growth on the roses.  This has been a very nasty year for them.  I was thinking of simply taking them out.  Now, depending on how they survive the winter, I may simply move them into their own smaller pots.  The blueberries are also showing stress from the extreme heat of the summer and, for the last three weeks, cold and wet weather.  I may change their positions next spring.

For those following the fungal meningitis story, NBC reports that a second compounding pharmacy in Massachusetts has been closed by health officials for unsanitary conditions.

I take the polling data with a large dose of salt.  It doesn't matter who is ahead in which poll, I simply don't believe they are all that accurate.  My skepticism, it seems, is well founded.  The pollsters are having a hard time getting responses from today's voters.  Part of the problem involves the increasing numbers of voters who use cellphones exclusively.  Part of the problem also involves voters who simply refuse to answer the poll questions.

We just got back from our weekly shopping trip.  The wind is wicked already though we do have nice bright sun.

HuffingtonPost reminds us, with Hurricane Sandy looming, of one of Romney's policies that might be counterproductive should he be elected President: dissolving FEMA (and other emergency services) and sending the money back to the states or, even better in our predatory capitalists, to the private sector.

Jasmine Tea and Jiaozi has a post that sounds all to familiar over here.  Unfortunately, when "labor" becomes an abstract concept divorced from the individuals who provide it and when the individuals become replaceable cogs in the economic machine easily changed out without thought or concern, that situation becomes much more common.