It's been almost tropical-feeling today, so warm and though windy, humid. There was light overnight rain, and the cloud cover seemed determined place its lid on the sky, with occasional bursts of sun for brief intervals before the day set itself stolidly into a heavy overcast. But that's it, no more Indian Summer. Tomorrow we're back to an afternoon high of 11C. Compare that to today's 21C...

This unusual mild weather was brief but hugely appreciated. It hasn't stopped the trees from releasing their colourful foliage from bondage to their branches. Now, most of the deciduous  trees in the forest are bare or almost there. And the intense, eye-dazzling colours have given way to desiccated, dark remnants of once-glorious foliage, emptied from the crowns of  trees to the forest floor below.

 

This turned out to be a busy day with more accomplished than we realized would be the case. Yesterday we filled out all the forms required to secure appointments for each of us -- together -- to receive this flu season's vaccine. And because of our age we qualified for the 'super' vaccine. Which our own family doctor was unable to provide for us, since it was explained to us it just wasn't available; supply problems.

Strange this is. Our experience this past two years has been that the municipal health department which steadfastly urged residents to contact them to schedule for COVID vaccine appointments could give us only awkward time-place appointments and none too efficiently. Whereas, by calling our local pharmacies with far less bureaucracy we were able to secure the appropriate vaccines of our choice through the services offered by pharmacies.

 

Our appointment was for 1:40 this afternoon. Although when I was filling out all the 'paperwork' on line the question/offer arose to simultaneously receive the latest bivalent COVID/Omicron variant shots. Through Ottawa public health there was never a choice of manufacture, through the pharmacy there is. Since it's only been five months, not the required six between shots since we had our second booster, we bypassed that offer.

However, while we were awaiting our flu shot at the pharmacy, the matter of the COVID shot came up, and we were advised we could proceed with having it done as well. More paperwork, this time right at the pharmacy and in no time at all we were ushered into the little private booth used for the administration of vaccines and both were delivered to us. While we were 'waiting' afterward as requested before leaving we were given the print-out, and snuck out.

 

To another pharmacy in the same plaza which was advertising vitamins on sale; buy one, get 50% off a second. So that worked for Vitamin D3 and B12 and Aspirin. Two of each. We prefer 2500 IUs of D.

Then Irving went to the bank, and I delivered a few bags of clothing to our local Salvation Army thrift shop. Done!

The puppies were exuberant with gratitude to see us back again, and we promised them a romp through the ravine was in order, instanter. And that's where we found ourselves not long after our return home. No wasting such a magnificent weather day. The leaves down on the forest floor are fast fading to black and swiftly drying to that traditional crisp appearance that creates that crunch so familiar to us from our childhood. 

 

The acrid odour so redolent of fall, reflective of the drying leaf tannin took us back through the past where over so many years we roamed together through woodlands loving the sounds and smells and appearance of this season. We had always, together, valued any opportunity to immerse ourselves into a natural landscape, to walk at leisure and discover manifestations of 'natural' life left behind as ever more of our time graduated to an urban lifestyle.  Perhaps it's not surprising that in our elder years we gravitated to the best of all possible worlds; an urban/suburban domicile adjacent a natural forested ravine.