Friday.

Anyone remember Gordon Lightfoot's Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald?  Especially the line about the "Witch of November came stealin' "?  I was reminded of it over the last while as we have been hit with nasty, strong and cold winds from the lake.  I did a bit of Googling and discovered the phrase has a longer history and traditionally refers to the cold, high winds coming out of the north.  We have been plagued by those winds all year giving us a delayed spring, a summer that didn't merit the name, and now a fall that is turning wintery quickly.  The Witch isn't stealing--she has been stomping through leaving us wondering what the hell is happening.  It is chilly here and about to get cold with a chance of snow over the next week.

At least I got the last of the clearing done in the gardens thanking the petunias for their beauty this summer and the hyssop for feeding the bees as I pulled the plants.  I emptied the last of the long planters and put it in the shed.  I plan to move it to a new area next season.  The rose remains but it is much too early to cut it back and mulch it for the winter--at least, I hope it is too early.  I hope it will survive the winter in its container.  If it doesn't I will stick with annuals or perennials that will be planted as annuals.

With friends like these---the disaster can't be far behind.  These guys are on the same page as our government officials in distorting language to the point where words have no meaning.  What does "democracy" mean when dealing with autocratic monarchies and military dictatorships?  And what does"terrorism" mean when it covers people who simply disagree with you?

Saturday.

Isn't it fascinating how this keeps expanding.  The numbers have gone from 100 to "a couple hundred" to 350 to 1000 and now to 1500.  Of course they aren't counted as "boots on the ground" since they are simply advisors, trainers, whatever.  Like they don't have boots and their footwear isn't on Iraqi soil.  Don't you love semantics.