“Okay! I’m doing it!” I cried as I finished reading an article on ‘mindful eating’.

“What are you doing?” My husband Steven asked as he was passing through the living room and headed towards his office.

“I’m doing mindful eating during the holiday season.” I leaned back against a pillow and swung my legs up on the couch. “All I have to do is follow the five ‘S’ rules for mindful eating and I’ll be able to breeze right through this holiday season.” I tucked my hands behind my head and crossed my legs at the ankles.

“You seem pretty happy with yourself right now.” Steven laughed.

“Well, I just finished the article and it seems really easy.” I sat up and grabbed my phone. “Mindful eating is supposed to stop me from eating something just because it looks or smells good.” I looked over at Steven and raised my eyebrows. “Definitely a problem for me when all the holiday goodies start arriving.”

Steven moved my legs over and sat down next to me. “So what are the five rules?”

“Okay, the first one I’m really good at.” I laughed. “It says to Sit when you eat.” I pointed to my backside that was firmly glued to the couch. “Check!” I began to shake my head. “I haven’t wandered around eating since the boys were little and there was no sitting down!”

Steven laughed. “I remember those days.”

“The second one might be a little harder for me.” I grimaced and shook my head. “It says to eat Slowly.” I sighed. “I usually eat like I’m participating in a timed Olympic event and I’m in it for the win!”

Steven nodded as he laughed again. “We do eat fast.” He agreed.

I looked back at the article. “This next one might be a problem for me too. It kind of ties into the eating slow point.”

“What’s that?” Steven asked.

“It wants me to Savor.” I laughed again. “Do you know there have been times that I’ve actually eaten something and a few seconds later forgotten what it was?”

Steven shook his head. “That one has never been a problem for me. I can remember a meal I had years ago. Especially if it was good.” Steven noticed the confused look on my face as I was looking at the next rule. “What’s wrong?”

“Now that I’m reading the rules over again the next one seems kind of odd.”

“What is it?”

“To Simplify.” I looked back at Steven still confused. “What’s that supposed to mean?” I scrolled through the article. “Oh, okay. It says to simplify your eating environment by putting the food away as soon as you’re done eating, so you don’t pick.” I hit the phone with the back of my hand. “So why not just say that?” I cried.

“Maybe because it didn’t go with their ‘S’ theme?” Steven laughed.

“Oh, yeah. I forgot about that.” I laughed as I looked at the last one. “This one can’t be serious.”

“What?”

“It says to Smile in between every bite.” I just shook my head. “So, now they’re just asking me to look stupid while I’m eating.”

“Stupid is an ‘S’ word.” Steven reminded me.

“That’s true!” I laughed. “But I think I’ll just be sticking to the first four rules this holiday season.”

My son Alex came into the living room where I was sitting on the couch smiling as I looked at my phone.

“What has you so happy?” He asked as he came over to the couch and sat next to me.

“I just got an A on my first Spanish test!” I showed him the results on my phone. “Eleven questions and I got ten right!”

“That’s great!”

I shrugged my shoulders and laughed. “Honestly, I think I’m just a good guesser.”

“What makes you say that?”

I clicked back to the first test. “Here, why don’t you take it and see what grade you get?”

“I don’t speak Spanish.” Alex argued.

“Just take it. I bet you can get an A too.” I hit start. A woman said. “Blanco”

Alex looked at me. “Isn’t that white?”

I clicked on white and a green check mark appeared. “You’re right.”

I went to the next question. “Morado.”

Alex thought about it for a second. “I’m pretty sure that’s purple.”

I clicked on purple and the green check mark appeared again.

“See! You know your colors too!”

Alex laughed as he shrugged his shoulders. “I guess.”

“Exactly! You guessed too!” I started to laugh as I put the phone down on the coffee table and got up from the couch. “I think it’s time for me to get the Christmas decorations down from the attic. Can you get your Dad to help us?”

“Sure.”

I went into the hallway and pulled the attic stairs down. Climbing up I sat on the attic floor with my feet on the top rung of ladder.

A few moments later my husband Steven appeared in the hallway.

“Feliz Navidad!” I called down to him.

He looked over at Alex with a confused look on his face.

“Mom’s decided to learn Spanish.”

Steven looked back up at me. “Como estas?”

I looked over at Alex and shook my head. “I have no clue what he just asked.”

Alex shook his head. “You two are the ones wanting to learn Spanish. Not me.”

Steven laughed. “I asked how are you doing?”

“Clearly you’re further along in your Spanish lessons than I am!” I laughed. “I’m still learning my colors.” I had dragged one of the Christmas boxes to the edge and began lowering it down. “I’ll definitely be feeling better when I finish decorating the house.”

Steven had taken the box from me and was standing there holding it. “Which room do you want this one in?”

“The rojo one goes in the living room.” I called down as I crawled further into the attic to grab another box. Pulling it to the edge I began lowering it to Alex. “This verde one can go in the dining room.”

Steven was back at the base of the ladder. He was looking up and laughing. “So what other color boxes do you have up there?”

“Lucky for me I only packed in rojo and verde boxes for Navidad.” I looked over at Alex and smiled. “And with that I’m going to consider my first lesson a success!”

My son Alex and I were walking through our neighborhood when I couldn’t help but notice all the piles of leaves at the curbside.

“It’s so weird that you never see kids jumping in leaves anymore.”

“That’s probably because everyone’s worried about mold and ticks.” Alex said as he kicked an acorn further up the sidewalk in front of us.

“It’s just sad that we have to worry about everything all the time.” I let out a small sigh. “I remember when I was a kid how much fun it was to jump in a pile of leaves we’d have raked together in the driveway right before my Dad would light them on fire.”

Alex looked over at me with a confused look on his face. “You’d light piles of leaves on fire?”

“Sure.” I nodded. “Everyone did.” I had to laugh. “That was before the days that everything had to be safe. We didn’t wear seat belts. There was no such thing as a car seat, you got thrown in the back of the station wagon and learned to hold on when your parents drove around a corner too fast. None of us even knew what a bike helmet was.” I sighed. “Back in the good old days when you could drop a match into a pile of leaves and no one gave it a second thought.”

“It doesn’t sound like the safest thing to do.” Alex countered.

“It probably wasn’t.” I shrugged my shoulders. “But my Dad was a fireman so he always had a garden hose ready.”

“But wasn’t it illegal to do that?” He asked as we rounded a corner and began walking up hill.

“Nope.” I could feel the burn in the back of my legs as the road go steeper. “Not when I was a kid! It was perfectly legal!”

We both got quiet as we walked up the rest of the hill. As we were passing another pile of leaves I stepped off the curb and kicked at the pile of leaves that came up to my knees. “Do you know how bad I want to just lean back and drop into these leaves?”

“How bad?” Alex looked up and down the street to see if anyone was watching.

“Not that bad.” I laughed as I stepped back up the curb to continue our walk. “I guess having a couple of tick borne illnesses helps change your mind on that.”

We were getting closer to home when I stopped to check the hem of my pants.

“You’re afraid you got a tick on you!” Alex laughed.

“I thought I saw something.” I said as I brushed a piece of leaf off my pant leg.

We started walking again but I had gotten quiet.

As we turned the corner on our street I could see our house up ahead. Alex could hear my sigh of relief.

Alex pulled the house key out of his pocket. “I bet you can’t wait to get inside so you can check yourself for ticks.”

“Oh, I’m not just checking for ticks I’m jumping right into the shower to make sure if one is on me it’s going down the drain!” I laughed.

Alex unlocked the door, pushed it open and stepped aside. “After you.”

“Don’t have to ask me twice.” I said as I went in and headed right for my bathroom. “You know,” I called over my shoulder. “I feel sorry for kids these days. They have way more stuff to worry about than when I was a kid!”

“LUNCH!” I called to my husband Steven and our son Alex.

A few minutes later they made their way into the kitchen from wherever they had been in the house.

“What’s for lunch?” Steven asked.

“I made artisanal sandwiches!” I waved my hand over the plates on the counter-top like Vanna White did on The Wheel Of Fortune.

“Artisanal?” Alex laughed as he picked up a plate and looked at the sandwich. “So what’s on it?”

I took my plate, grabbed some napkins and my drink and headed for the dining room table. “Well, it’s sliced oven roasted turkey with sharp Swiss cheese, coleslaw and Russian dressing on whole grain bread.”

“So what you’re saying is it’s a turkey and cheese sandwich.” Steven took his plate and followed us into the dining room.

“Well that’s what most people would call it.” I laughed as I sat down. “But now that everyone has something artisinal on their menus I figured why not me, too!” I shrugged my shoulders. “It seems to be the new buzz word and I don’t want to be left behind.”

Steven picked up his sandwich and took a bite. After a few seconds he began nodding his head and smiled. “You’re right. That is a good sandwich.”

“Told you!” I watched as Alex was ready to take his first bite. “It’s been crafted by an artist!” I pointed my thumb towards my chest.

Alex took a bite. He began to nod his head.

“See!”

Alex took his napkin and wiped his mouth. “So when did you become a sandwich artist?”

Tapping my pointer finger to my chin I thought about it for a moment. “I’d say about ten years ago, after making hundreds of sandwiches. I’m pretty sure that’s when I hit my artist status.”

Alex seemed confused. “I’ve never heard you call yourself a sandwich artist before.”

“That’s because it was never a thing.” I shrugged my shoulders. “Back then people just said you made a good sandwich.”

“Exactly.” Steven picked up his plate with half a sandwich still on it. “So, I’m pretty sure I’m just going to keep calling it a turkey and cheese sandwich.” He went over to the drawer that had the plastic wrap in it. “I’ve got to get back to work so I’m going to save this for later.”

I looked over at Alex.

“I’m pretty sure I’m with Dad on this one.” Alex laughed. “But it’s a really good turkey and cheese sandwich.”

I sighed. “Thanks.”

As Steven was putting his sandwich in the refrigerator he looked over at me. “So what are you thinking about making for dinner?”

“Well, I was thinking of an artisanal pot roast with loaded mashed potatoes and green beans.”

Steven walked by the dining room table and kissed me on the top of the head. “Pot roast, mashed potatoes and green beans sound great!”

I sighed again. “It’s beginning to feel like no one wants to play this game with me!”

“I think you’re right on that one.” Alex laughed as he was ready to take another bite. “But it is a good sandwich.”

My son Alex came out of his bathroom and passed me in the hallway as he headed for the kitchen. “There’s a spider in my bathroom.” He called over his shoulder.

“Oh, I can get that for you.” I went into the bathroom and began looking around.

“That’s okay. I’m getting a glass so I can catch him.” Alex called from the kitchen.

I spotted the spider in the corner by the ceiling. Grabbing a couple of tissues from the box I balled them up, reached over to put the lid down on the toilet, and climbed up on it.

“What are you doing?” Alex asked as he came back into the room holding a glass.

“I’m getting the spider for you.” I was slowly reaching over to squish the spider into the tissue when it suddenly dropped from the ceiling to the floor. “Whoops.” I looked down and couldn’t see where it had landed.

I could hear Alex sigh as I stepped down from the toilet.

“Sorry about that.” I shrugged my shoulders as I dropped the tissues in the waste basket. “I’m usually pretty good at catching them.”

“Actually you’re pretty good at killing them.” Alex corrected me as he put the glass down on the sink and began looking for the missing spider. “I was planning on catching him and putting him outside.”

“Well, it’s not the only spider we’re going to be finding in the house.” I reached over and turned the sink on. “It’s that time of year.” I soaped up my hands and then quickly rinsed them off. Shaking the excess water off before I leaned past him to reach the hand towel on the rack. “Did you find him yet?”

“Nope he’s gone.” Alex stood back up and took the glass back to the kitchen.

“He wasn’t a real big one.” I said trying to make losing him a little more palatable.

“It’s still a spider that’s now lost in my bathroom.” He said as he put the glass back in the cabinet.

“All right.” I said as I turned to go back to the bathroom. “I’ll go look again.”

I went back and searched the entire room. When I couldn’t find him I went to Alex bedroom door and knocked.

“Come in.”

I cracked the door open enough to see him sitting on his couch looking at his phone. “I’m really sorry.” I apologized again. “I can’t find him.”

“It’s okay.” He looked up from his screen. “I’m sure he’ll turn up.”

I went back to the living room feeling guilty for losing him. I was sitting on the couch reading my book when I saw Alex go into the kitchen and grab a glass.

“What are you up to?” I asked as he headed to his bathroom.

“I’m getting a drink of water.” He said as he closed the bathroom door.

A few minutes later he came out of the bathroom his hand held over the glass.

“Did you catch him?” I asked as I stood up and followed him to the back door.

“Can you open the door for me?”

“Sure!” I opened the door and stood back so he could go first.

Alex went to the railing of the porch, took his hand off the top of the glass, tipped the glass on its side and we both watched as the spider scurried out of the glass and onto the railing.

“Is that the same one from before?” I asked.

“I sure hope so.” He said as he picked up the glass, went back in the house and put the glass in the dishwasher.

“Why did you say you were getting a drink of water when you were really catching the spider?” Alex laughed as he walked past me patting my shoulder as he headed for his room. “I was afraid you were going to offer to help again!” He called over his shoulder.

We had just finished dinner and my husband Steven and son Alex were helping me clear the table when I looked out the dining room window and noticed something growing in our fire pit.

“Is that corn?” I asked in disbelief.

Alex and Steven laughed as they took the plates out to the kitchen.

When they returned to the dining room I was still standing by the window. “Guys, I’m serious!” I pointed towards the fire pit with the plate still in my hand. “That really looks like corn!”

Alex and Steven stopped to take a look. “It does kind of look like it.” Steven admitted.

“Didn’t we cook corn on the cob in the fire pit awhile ago?” Alex asked.

I was confused as I looked over at Alex. “But that was last year!” I shook my head. “It was ears of corn and we ate them. It’s not like we dropped kernels of corn in there.”

“So, maybe it’s not corn.” Steven said.

“I know one way to find out.” I took the plate to the kitchen, placed it on the counter, and headed for the back door. “I’m just going to look it up.” I took my phone out of my pocket and went out the back door.

Steven and Alex were following behind me.

“I love this plant identifying app I have on my phone.” I looked over at Alex as I crouched down to get the plant centered in the photo. “How many times have we used this?”

“We’ve used it a lot.” Alex nodded in agreement as I snapped the shot. I stood up and we all watched as the photo on my phone began buffering.

Finally the identifying plant appeared.

“Wow!” Alex laughed. “You were right.”

We were all looking at an image of corn. “Also known as maize, sweet corn, Indian corn or flint corn.” I read then looked back at the plant growing in our fire pit.

“So, the farmers say if the corn’s knee high by the fourth of July it’s going to be a good crop.” I laughed. I looked at Steven and then Alex. “What do you think they’d say if it’s knee high by Halloween?”

“I’m pretty sure you’re not going to get a harvest on that one.” Steven pointed to the plant.

“What do you think Alex?” I asked

Alex shook his head. “I think it just proves how long it’s been since we’ve had a fire!”

“True.” I laughed as reached over ready to pull the plant out of the ashes. “Maybe we should have a fire tonight.”

“Wait!” Alex stopped my arm from going any further. “Maybe we should give it a chance and see how big it gets?”

“Really?” I stood up straight and thought about it for a moment. “I guess you’re right.” I looked back at the plant as it’s leaves gently swayed in the breeze. “If it tried so hard to grow in the ashes of a fire pit we should give it a chance.”

Steven looked at both of us. “So you’re saying no fire pits until after the first frost?”

I shrugged my shoulders. “It’s only going to be another few weeks. Besides aren’t you the one who’s all into gardening this year?”

Steven laughed as he headed back to the house. “I’m going back in to finish clearing the table.”

I looked at Alex who was still standing next to me then back at Steven as I watched him climb the steps of the back porch. “We’ll be in as soon as we finish tending our new crop!” I called to him.

The weather had finally turned a bit cooler, so when I walked out on my back porch I couldn’t help but give a quick shiver as I pulled the hood of my sweatshirt up to cover my ears.

I began checking on my geraniums, pulling off dead leaves and seeing if they needed any water. While I was deadheading the last few remaining flowers I happened to look over at the side table and noticed my little polka dot plant was in urgent need of a drink.

“Let’s get you inside.” I said as I picked up the little plant with it’s pink dots splattered over its wilted green leaves.

When I walked inside my son Alex was coming into the kitchen. “I see your green thumb is working overtime.” He laughed as he looked at my plant then reached in the cabinet and pulled out a loaf of bread.

“No worries.” I went over to the sink and turned the water on. I put the plant under the running water until it was flowing from the drainage holes in the bottom of the pot. “Now you’re about to see a magic act!” I said as I placed it on some paper towels and left it on the counter-top. “Come back in about an hour and it will look like a brand new plant!”

I began gently pushing the wilted leaves aside to check in the dirt.

Alex was watching me. “What are you doing?”

“I’m checking to see if any bugs made a nest in the dirt.” I didn’t see anything moving but I wasn’t going to take any chances. “It’s time to move this plant indoors but I’m not going to put up with what happened when I brought that one indoors a few years ago.” I kept looking in the dirt while I pointed to the large pathos plant in the corner of the dining room.

“What happened with that one?” Alex asked as he popped a piece of bread in the toaster.

“You don’t remember?”

Alex shook his head no as he went to the cabinet to get the peanut butter out.

“The year of the ant infestation!” I cried. “You don’t remember the fall we had that terrible ant problem in the kitchen?”

“Nope.” He opened the peanut butter and went to the silverware drawer to get a knife.

“I made the mistake of putting it outside a few years ago and when I brought it back in the kitchen we started having this massive ant problem!” I shook my head and grimaced. “I couldn’t figure out where they were all coming from! It took me over a month to finally put the pieces together and realize the ants had made a nest in it’s dirt.” I shuttered as I thought about it. “I took it outside to re-pot it and had ants crawling all over me.” I shuttered again. “It was horrible!”

“Why didn’t you just toss the plant out?” His toast popped up from the toaster and he placed it on a plate. Then scooped out a dollop of peanut butter to spread on it.

“Are you kidding me!” I looked over at my pathos plant. “I’ve had that plant for years!” I went over and checked one of the leaves. “It’s one of the only plants that can survive me.”

Alex leaned against the counter-top as he took a bite of his toast. “That’s not true.” He pointed to another plant I had in the living room.

“You mean the Peace lily? Um…” I cleared my throat. “I’ve replaced that one about four times already.” I had to laugh as I shrugged my shoulders. “But the good news is you’ve never noticed!”

It was a beautiful fall day and I was on my own. My husband Steven was out of town and my son Alex was meeting a friend for lunch.

“I’m not letting this day go to waste sitting inside.” I said to myself. So I scooped my car keys off the counter and decided to go to my favorite bagel shop, get a sandwich, then go to the beach.

As I was driving I had my windows down and was enjoying one of those perfect fall days that I would want to relive in the coming winter months.

Stopped at a traffic light I could smell someone had a fire pit burning. I took a deep breath. “Love it.” I said to myself before the light turned green.

Once I had my sandwich it was off to the beach where several other people seemed to have the same idea as me.

Sitting on the warm sand watching the waves roll in I could feel a sense of peace wash over me.

The beach has always been a happy place for me.

When I was finished I gathered up my garbage, brushed the sand off of me and headed back to my car.

Not yet ready to head home I decided to stop at another one of my favorite spots along a riverbank. When I pulled into the gravel parking lot I could see I had the place to myself. I couldn’t help but smile as I turned the car off and got out of the car.

It was low tide and the river was like glass. I walked over to the sandy shoreline to see that most of the moored sailboats had already been taken out of the water for the winter. I looked down and saw the perfect flat rock and picked it up.

“I wonder if I can still do it?” I asked myself as I tried to skip the rock across the surface of the water. It landed with a kerplop in the river. I looked around to see if I’d embarrassed myself in front of anyone.

“Nope. Try again.” I said as I looked around for another flat rock.

Getting down at just the right angle I let another one fly out of my hand only to have it sink again on the first contact.

“Come on!” I scolded myself. “I used to be really good at this.”

I scanned the beach for another rock. Found what I thought was the perfect one and let it sail out of my hand.

Another sinker.

“Okay, now I’m getting annoyed.” I found another one and with the flick of my wrist it skipped twice across the water before sinking.

“There you go!” I cried as I raised my arms in the air as if I were Rocky at the top of the stairs. But quickly stopped and once again looked around to see if anyone was watching.

Nope. Still alone.

I couldn’t help but smile as I headed back to my car and heard the cry of a seagull above me. “Did you see me skip that rock across the water?” I asked it as it circled past me and landed in the water. “Bet you can’t do that.”

“Okay, everyone. Listen up!” I placed the mums next to a small hay bail. “We’ve got to work together this year.”

My son Alex came out the front door. “Who are you talking to?

“All my mum friends I just bought.” I pointed to the three plants lined up in front of the stairs. “I’m pretty sure you know my success rate when it come to mums.” I sighed sadly.

Alex nodded his head. “It’s not very good.”

“Exactly!” I pointed to the mums and couldn’t help but accuse them. “Because you refuse to give me any kind of warning. All you need to do is get a little droopy. But no! Instead you go from looking fine one day to dead the very next day!”

When I was done scolding them I started to walk back to the car. “Can you help me with the rest of the decorations?” I called over my shoulder to Alex.

Alex followed me and I handed him a net bag of gourds. “Here, you carry these and I’ll get the pumpkins.”

We carried them over to the display.

“Can you go get the scissors from the kitchen so I can cut open the bag?” I placed the pumpkin next to the mums and went back to the car for the other one.

Alex was coming out with the scissors as I was placing the other pumpkin on the other side of the display.

Alex handed me the scissors and I cut open the bag and began arranging the gourds on the hay bale.

Once I was done I stepped back to admire my work. “It isn’t until the pumpkins and mums come out that I really feel like fall is officially here!” I smiled as I wiped some sweat off my forehead with the back of my hand. “Even if it’s still in the 70’s!”

“I don’t know.” Alex didn’t seem convinced. “The weather’s telling me it’s not fall yet.”

“But look at everyone else!” I cried as I pointed to our neighbors homes. “Everyone’s decorated for the fall!”

“Just because everyone else is doing it doesn’t mean you have to.” Alex reminded me.

I had to laugh. “Okay let’s not use what I used to say to you when you were a kid!”

Alex began to laugh. “Hey, it seemed like sound advice back then I thought it might be useful for you today!”

I looked back at the display. “I guess I should fill up the watering can and give them a good drink.”

I started to head for the back yard when I stopped and took out my phone. “Maybe I should get a picture of this before they die on me.”

Alex started to laugh again. “I guess you’re thinking that pep talk you were having with them might not work?” he asked.

I checked the photo to make sure I liked the picture before slipping the phone back into my pocket. “I know me.” I sighed as I shrugged my shoulders. “Mums and I just don’t seem to have a good relationship.” I looked over at the flowers before heading to the back yard to get the watering can. “But I’m always willing to give it a try guys!” I called over my shoulder. “Just give me a little help this year. Okay?”

“Good luck with that!” Alex called before heading back into the house.

I was standing by the kitchen sink pouring the nectar that had just cooled into my hummingbird feeders when my son Alex came into the room.

The feeder in the sun had several bees landing on it. “Now the hummingbirds don’t have to fight the bees to get to the nectar.” I looked over at Alex and smiled. “I love being able to help them out like that.”

“I guess the hummingbirds will be leaving soon?” He asked as he took a glass from the cabinet.

“That’s why I’ve changed the sugar to water ratio in the nectar.” I was screwing the perch onto the glass bottle.

“What do you usually do?”

Taking the feeders out of the sink I placed them on the counter so Alex could fill his glass with water.

“All summer I do one cup of sugar and four cups of water. But now that they’re getting ready for their long flight down south I do one cup of sugar to three cups of water.” I picked up the two feeders. “Can you get the back door for me?” I asked as I headed in that direction.

Alex followed me onto the porch as I hung one on the side of the porch that was in the shade. “Okay, some nice fresh nectar!” I called to the hummingbirds. Then walked over to the other side of the porch where I hung the other one in the sun. “And this one’s for the rest of you!” I called.

“The rest of who?” Alex asked as he followed me back into the house.

I walked over to the sink to wash the sticky nectar that had gotten on my hands. “You’ll see.” I pointed out the kitchen window.

“Wow! That didn’t take long.” I rinsed my hands and grabbed a towel to dry them.

A hummingbird was already perched on the feeder taking long drinks before looking around to see if anyone else was coming before going for another long drink.

“I swear I think they sit out in the woods and watch me fill them!” I laughed. “Look at how hungry he is!”

Alex nodded before asking. “So who’s the other feeder for?”

I pointed out the window. “They’re right on time too!”

Alex looked confused. “The bees don’t go to the other feeder?”

“Nope. Not so far.” I shook my head and shrugged my shoulders. “I guess they like the one in the sun more.”

“Yeah, but the bee feeder is closer to our back door.” Alex pointed out.

“I’m sorry.” I looked over at him and raised my eyebrows. “But do you need to stock up on extra calories for your long flight south?”

“No.” Alex sighed. “I’m just the guy who’d like to sit on the back porch without a swarm of bees around me.”

“Well then that’s good news for you!” I said as I patted his shoulder and pointed to the feeder. “Because the bees are all over the feeder so they won’t have any reason to go by you.”

Alex sighed again. “I guess I’ll be finding that out soon enough.”