The last several days have seen continuous 45 mph winds out here on the plains. A sure sign that the cooler weather of fall is on the way. In fact, the first frost might well happen this weekend. Which means an end to all the daily fresh melons and vegetables from the garden until next year. Just time to clean up and prepare for next spring and then batten down for the cold and snow of winter.

Other than all the branches and street lights and other things blown over and about, the worst part of the wind is the dust and sand. There are stories of the original settlers out here in sod houses being unable to stand the day after day beating of the wind and dust, to the point of giving up hope and just lying down and dying. The wind reminds me of the Santa Ana winds in southern California: the ionic charge in the air makes one literally feel bad. So needless to say I have not been in the most pleasant of moods. Of course, neither has anyone else, so we all have been ready to verbally spar at the drop of a hat. A good time to just hunker down and remain calm. At least the wind has died down a bit now as the cold and rain gets ready to settle in. But it still leaves my mind in a flipping and flopping state where seemingly random things connect to other things and then hook into something even further afield. For example …

I love the fall weather once it gets here. There is that sense of drawing back into one’s self for the coming days of winter, the slowing down of the pace of life. There is nothing that says job well done like the feeling of brisk air in the morning and the sound of geese circling the harvested corn fields.

The sound of geese as they migrate also reminds me of my grandfather. When he found out that he had inoperable metastatic cancer, he lived on with his steel will to see one more cycle of planting and growing. And when the fall and harvest came, he decided it was time and died. I remember slipping away from work, bundling the son in his infant carrier, and driving the 30 miles over to his farm to just to sit with him in his final weeks. And I remember the sound of the honking geese circling as I would leave to head back home.

That of course brings to mind how lucky I was growing up. I not only knew all my grandparents, but some of my great-grandparents. A consequence of being the oldest child of the oldest child on both sides of my family. In fact with the exception of L’s grandfather, we had a complete set of grandparents on both sides when we were dating. So we both grew up with the presence of grandparents in our lives. It makes me sad to think of all the people who aren’t so lucky.

Enough meandering, time to get back to work.

I saw this over on 2dayBlog.com today:

and do know you what my first thought was? It was “Hasn’t everyone?”

And my second thought? If you haven’t, you are not living your life with enough passion. Time to get passionate.

So what was your first thought?

Speaking of things that have been delayed a bit, the watermelons are a bit late here this year due to the odd weather. So this weekend I was out in the watermelon patch picking a few as they ripened. L took this picture with my phone – one of the clearer ones I have seen it take.

The melon in my arms is about 22 lbs. – a good size but enough melon to keep L and I eating for days.

Did you know that you can tell when a watermelon is ready to be picked by looking at the first curly tendril on the vine nearest the melon?  When it curls and browns, the melon is ready for picking. I like that much more than the myriad of odd ways to tell when cantaloupe, muskmelons, and honeydews are ready. Just one simple visual inspection and you are set to go.

Back to getting ready for the 5K this weekend.

I am the executive director of the Logan County Humane Society. This Saturday is our 2nd annual 5K Run and Pet Walk. So this week is busy with everything from getting T-shirts printed to painting the route on the streets. Not to mention all the silent auction donations and …. (If you want to sleep in for the animals and get a T-shirt or make a donation, you can sign up on our website.)

Last year was the first year and we had about a 100 participants. We have already almost tripled the corporate sponsorship this year, so it will be interesting to see the participant turn out. It is one of the more amusing factoids that there are certain characteristics in how people sign up for such events. Females tend to sign up early for the pet walk. Males and 5K runners tend to wait until the night before and/or day of the event to sign up. (I assume they are checking the weather forecast.) Thus the planning is always a bit up in the air as we wait on pins and needles. You never want to be short of coffee and donuts for a crowd of animal people. {*grin*}

One of the fun aspects is painting the streets to mark the route. We use a bright pink paint and, as I once said to a colleague, when else do you get to vandalize the city streets for a good cause. Three of us will get together Friday afternoon to walk the course, marking and measuring via a GPS unit. (Nothing makes 5K enthusiasts more upset than a course that isn’t exactly 5K. Many of them seem to lack a sense of humor about that. {*grin*})

I’ll leave you with our logo for this year:

Many of you remember when I was mayor that many disputes had a certain resemblance to two young kids poking each other. The same thing happens now that I am the Executive Director of the humane society. The only difference is that the level of insanity seems to be higher when dealing with animal rather than urban issues.

For a classic example, I give you this letter that arrived in my mail recently:

Spot the classic signs of the jab fest? They include:

• No signature
• Unverifiable claims
• False concern for others

How much do you want to bet that the complainer runs a similar food business and has lost business to the yellow trailer. Why not simply keep a sample of the offending food and send it in for analysis. Why not … In any case, this missive ended up in my trash can.

I long ago adopted a very simple rule. If I get an anonymous accusation against my staff, I investigate it because there might be a possible justifiable case for anonymity. If I get an anonymous accusation against some other person or organization, it goes directly to the trash can.

If you are unwilling to stand up and identify yourself, why should I waste my time on your complaint. I think that too many people today hide behind anonymity. If you have something to say, stand up and say it proudly. Deal with any consequences in the open. Don’t hide behind anonymity and act maliciously like a cowardly teenager.

What do you think?