Frost has had its way with some of the garden denizens; Canna lilies for one are extremely unhappy and no doubt mortally fatigued. Petunias are ragged and struggling to send out a few more blooms before expiring. The Hibiscus is slowly unfurling its last bloom for the season, and the Nicotiana have sent the message signalling imminent departure. Most of the dahlias no longer produce flower buds, but the asters grown from seed are finally, after summer has fled, putting out wan flowers.

Irving mowed the lawn today and fertilized the grass. A really mild day after all the frosted nights we've had. There was morning sun, and then clouds moved in for the rest of the day. No wind to speak of, a perfect day to cut the grass. As for putting down fertilizer, tomorrow is forecasted to be only 9C, in comparison to today's 18C, and rainy.

Our next-door neighbours, Lynne and Dan, have returned from their trip to Turkey, and they're full of praise of what they saw. The architecture was magnificent, as we knew it would be, the hotels and food were excellent, and they really enjoyed themselves. They were surprised at the number of mosques in Istanbul. Surprised too at how cosmopolitan it was and the number of Turks they came across who spoke badly of their president, the Islamist Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

There were 29 altogether in their group, two Canadians aside from Lynne and Dan, and the remainder a mix of East Indians and white South Africans, and everyone got along beautifully, they told us...and why would they not? The traffic in the ancient mega-city was the worst they've ever seen, they said. The calls to prayer exotic, the people friendly and the weather was hot. It was in the countryside, they said, where the population was more traditionally Islamic in garb and gear.

As for us, our day included as usual an afternoon haul through the forest trails in the ravine with Jackie and Jillie. Because tomorrow will be a rainy day and we may not get out with them if the rain is too intense, we decided on a longer circuit. When we had been out about a half-hour, rain began, but it was light, and soon tapered off. And then for the next hour or so rain re-visited us now and again, but always light enough that the forest canopy fairly well shielded us.

The forest floor is now sporting impressive layers of bright coloured leaves. To the extent that though we can see a fair amount of colour in the forest interior, there's far more on the floor of the forest than there is in the canopy. Intense scarlets, soft pinks and orange, bright yellows, the spectacle of fall excites the senses. Nostalgic and beautiful with a wistful touch of sadness.