November

I've been meaning to post for a while, but haven't gotten around to it. I blame it on a combination of travel, being ill, busy, too much thinking, and just downright laziness. Oh, and maybe sleeping well. I only write now because of the insomnia....

I have a few pictures I can share. Woo pictures!

When we lived in England, we found out that November 5th is a big holiday there. Bonfire night! In a large park near the University of Oxford, they held fireworks and then lit a huge bonfire. There was food, and carnival rides for the kids. Here, we are all about adapting other holidays for our own purposes.

So on November 5th this year, we built our own fire for bonfire night.

That's Jonathan basking in the warmth of our backyard fire. The fire pit has been a fun thing to have in the fall.

Although admittedly we've only used it twice.

Those two times have been fun!

As we were watching the fire, I realized my throat was a little scratchy. And then within a few days, I had the full-blown man-cold that I posted about earlier. So these pictures did not get posted earlier.

The following weekend, I was in Austin, Texas, at the University of Texas.

Our family lived in Austin for three years, starting when Jonathan was a baby, and this was the first time I've been back since we sold our house there.

Our second year in Austin, Jonathan's name came up on a wait list, and he entered the UTCDC -- the campus child development center. That place was so wonderful! I would put Jonathan on the bus with me, and we'd travel to campus together in the morning, where he would get to play with friends and toys and teachers who loved him all day (except for that 2 hour nap), and I would teach math and write papers. And then we would both come back together after a few hours, so happy to see each other, and ride the bus home.

Anyway, it turns out that the campus of the University of Texas is not as big as I remembered.

If you don't have a 2-year-old in tow, you can walk from the bus stop, past the fountain, to the turtle pond,

down the 25 steps to the statue, past the rocks at the geology building, over the bridge, to the stadium bus stop -- all in about 5 or 10 minutes! My friends, it is not really a 30-45 minute walk when you do not have the 2-year-old.

I found that to be both happy, and sad. *Sniff*

And the other news is that, here at home, my 12-year-old commuter bike broke. Broken broke. Kaput. The frame is cracked. While I have been traveling, and sick, and busy, and thinking too much, and just plain lazy, I have not figured out what to replace it with. So I have had to drive the car to and from work and school and other places I go for weeks. It makes me feel like such a slob!

On the other hand, we bought an all electric car in August. That means it costs only pennies to "fill up". There is very little wear and tear when I drive to work and park. No belts, no fluids. We paid almost all the costs for that car up front. And so I have been reminding myself that I do not have to feel guilty about driving. No guilt! No emissions! Sure, no exercise, either. But Reader, I have been sick. With a terrible Man Cold.

Here I am looking happy with my little electric car. (In September. The trees don't look like that anymore. Nor am I wearing T-shirts in the freezing temperatures. But I am equally happy with my car. I am.)

Anyway, I think I have found my new commuter bike, to purchase maybe even Today! So the electric car will stay in the garage more in December. Maybe.

That, Reader, is Some of the Exciting News from November. Stay tuned for more.