Thursday, October 23, 2025

Go Leaf Peeping!

 October To-Do List

I hope I can be the autumn leaf, who looked at the sky and lived. And when it was time to leave, gracefully it knew life was a gift. – Dodinsky

How best to do that?

By taking the Cuyahoga Valley Scenic Railroad excursion.


The restored vintage railcar is an operating diesel-electric and steam-powered
excursion train between Akron, Ohio and the greater Cleveland area.




The air had a cool crispness to it as we drove toward the old Rockside Road.



But first, lunch.


Chimichangas, “lobster” taco, and to-go churros. Cozumel Mexican Restaurant, Independence, Ohio





A slight shower had started when we arrived at the Rockside depot which was our primary starting point for the trip.

Autumn rain, autumn wind.

Forty degrees outside. There was no gap in the clouds for the light to shine, but we stayed cozy inside.



Latrobe Inn





Time to savor the sight up close and personal.

The view didn't disappoint. Right off the bat, every leaf spoke bliss, fluttering from the autumn tree.





Japanese maples with stunning red, gold, bright green, orange, and yellow foliage dotted the landscape. Photo: V.E.V.




Leftmost: Profuse red, orange, and yellow trumpet-shaped flowers of the Esperanza vine lent a tropical ambience.

Left: Basswood yellow leaves contrasted with black branches.








Attractive bright green leaves and showy pink-purple berries of coralberry bush bordered the landscape.











I would love to live like a river flows,

carried by the surprise of its own unfolding. 

John O’Donohue

 

The Cuyahoga River, whose name is believed to mean crooked river, wove through constantly refreshing and changing scenery.





How best  to end a trip, but with homestyle comfort food.

Grilled tilapia and trout, apple streusel pie a la mode. Cracker Barrel Old Country Store, Sunbury

The trail is the thing, not the end of the trail.

But now, to our favorite destination at the end of every trip – home.

Tuesday, October 21, 2025

Celebrate Aflak's VB End-Of-Season

 October To-Do List

Volleyball is life. Everything else is just details. – Anonymous



Aflak’s Gahanna East Lions Volleyball Team hustled.










Hit.

Never quit.




Together, they stood and made it into the Gold Bracket with a record of 12-3.







Then, made it to end of season. And that’s worth celebrating.

Girls just wanna have fun. Flanagan’s Pub. Blacklick, Ohio: October 21, 2025



Do I want BEER?

a) Yes

b) a 

c) b




Pizza is better eaten with friends.

Congrats, Aflak, on your hard work and dedication!

Thanks for believing in us, Coach!

Teamwork makes the dreamwork: 7th Gahanna Lions East Volleyball Team 

Today was good.

Today was fun.

Tomorrow is another one. - Dr. Seuss



Saturday, October 18, 2025

Flaunt My Harry Styles-Inspired Cardigan

 October To-Do List

Leaf me alone, I'm feeling fall today. - Unknown

Do you know Harry Styles? This week, I'm featuring my hand-crocheted Harry Styles-inspired cardigan

Cute and colorful, this sweater taken from a British label Spring/Summer 2020 Menswear collection, had sparked a Tik Tok craze. At that time, like everyone else, I had been in lockdown because of Covid, but I resolved to make my isolation time productive by crocheting a replica of this checkerboard designed design.


YouTube was helpful.

You crochet 72 granny squares that are afterward laid out (see pattern, leftmost) and sewn together.





Many years later, my creation was finished at last.

What year is it?


 It’s fall, y’all.

Keep calm and stay cozy.


                                                   October 5, 2025

Saturday, October 11, 2025

Decorate Beau's Home For Fall

 October To-Do List

How about adorning your pet's house/cage with fall-themed decor?

That's exactly what I've done for Beau Bean - my adopted, inherited-from-Second-Granddaughter gerbil.


Use red and yellow color ceramic dishes for his daily ration of frozen green peas, carrots, corn, lettuce, blueberry, bit of Brioche bread, and pumpkin seed.

Hang gourd on door. 







Atop, arrange a sprig of maple leaves and mini orange balls.

It is simple and rustic. Southern Living calls it "an easy wow."








Finally, add a wooden stand-up glow-in-the-dark Boo ghost. 







Right: Bobo eyes his favorite Queen of Greens Premium lavish sweet baby green lettuce.

So there! Chirp, chirp, purr.

Home is home, be it ever so humble.




Saturday, October 4, 2025

Eat Tacos on National Taco Day

 October To-Do List

'Tis the season to be fall-y. - Unknown

The air gets a little crisper, the leaves go full-on fireworks, and you live in your favorite sweater-weather pullover. For sure, it's also the perfect excuse to jump into your fall to-do list.

Why not?

There's no shortage of ways to make the most of this magical month.

Let me share with you some of the things that I plan on doing.  

****************************************

I want someone to look at me the way I look at tacos. – Unknown

Celebrate National Taco Day. It rolls through on October 4.

I know it’s early, but I’m already thinking tacos. My head says, Take a morning walk, but my heart says, Tacos.



If you want homemade tacos, you only need to grab some tortillas and stuff them with savory fillings such as the traditional carne asada, cheese, tomato, lettuce and sour cream or with more exotic delights like fish and chorizo.



Or take advantage of the many freebies and value deals that abound.

Taco Bell is pulling out all the stops to make sure it’s top of mind for the occasion. The chain will offer $1 tacos throughout the day, as well as delivery deals. Also, starting at 9 a.m. Pacific Time, a limited number of customers will receive an exclusive National Taco Day T-shirt.

Starting at 11 a.m., it will offer Cantina Chicken Soft Tacos for $1 every other hour. At 7 p.m., 100 customers will receive $160 gift cards for a year’s worth of Taco Tuesday orders.

October 3 to 7, El Pollo Loco’s Loco Rewards members can get any three chicken tacos for just $5, offering a mix-and-match deal featuring the Chicken Taco al Carbon, Chicken Avocado Taco, and Shredded Chicken Taco.

7-Eleven is celebrating National Taco Day with BOGO lunch tacos and 2 for $5 El Gran Tocino Breakfast Tacos.

Just ahead of National Taco Day, Del Taco has released a new Del Dorado Chicken Menu, including Del Dorado Chicken Tacos, among other items.

Or head to Chuy’s on October 1 and October 4 for all-day taco and drink specials. Add a ground beef taco, crispy or soft, to any dine-in entrée purchase for just $1!

Have a taco costume laying around? Dress like a taco when you go, post your photo on social media with #ChuysTacoDay to get a free, dine-in entrée of your choice that day.

Navajo Taco Delight. Chile Verde: October 8, 2025

And how about a Navajo Taco (a personal favorite) - an authentic flatbread topped with jalapenos, black olives, pico de gallo, lettuce, cheese, and a signature sauce at Chile Verde?

Es muy delicioso!

What are we waiting for? Get a taco. Eat a taco. 

After all, life is like a a taco. 

Well, not really… I think I’m just hungry.


Saturday, September 27, 2025

Summer's Wave Goodbye

September Vibes 

By all these lovely tokens, September days are here
With summer's best of weather, and autumn's best of cheer. - Helen Jackson

I see it. Fallen leaves everywhere. Summer's wave goodbye. 



Beautiful days that intersect perfectly with the start of fall.


What happens if you swallow a whole corn on the cob? You get corn-stipated. Hot Times Community Arts and Music Festival: September 12, 2022





Mornings that dawn clear and cold.

Walnut Creek sits atop a 200-foot high ridge and is part of the Tuscarawas River watershed. Photo: I.T.V., Holmes County, Ohio: September 9, 2023

And, most importantly, a wondrous birthday celebration of a very especial person...

Left: Train Ride To Zanesville. Southeast Ohio: December 18, 2022 
Right: Ciao! Italy: July 11, 2023

... Enjoying moments in her life because in life, there are no rewinds, only flashbacks.

When life gets complicated... I wine. 
Christmas celebration with Columbus police: December 21, 2023 

... Enjoying the little things, for one day, you may look back and realize they were the BIG THINGS.

Walking can bring the soul back home. Niagara: July 27, 2024

... Taking the moment and having fun being yourself.

I'm water-falling for this place. Wild, beautiful, free, and wet at Niagara Falls: July 27, 2024

Beer Makes Me Hoppy! The best beer is free. The second best beer is cold. The third best is personal preference. Toronto: July 27, 2024

Nobody's perfect, but my September-born is pretty close.


Birthday Brunch. Original Pancake House. New Albany: September 28, 2025

Just remember, you're older today than yesterday,

but younger than tomorrow.

After-Brunch Walk. Taylor Farm Park, New Albany


Walk towards the sunshine,

and the shadow will fall

behind you. - Mary

Engelbreit

And, as Aflak says, Look at the stars (even if they're covering zits). 
See their beauty and in that beauty, see yourself.

Happy birthday, sweetheart! 






Saturday, September 20, 2025

Harvest Moon

September Vibes 

Oh, shine on, shine on

Harvest moon up in the sky. - Jack Norworth

There is a full moon rising. Close to the same time several days in a row. Reportedly, it happens around September 22, depending on the year and time zone.

Internet pic only


Harvest Moon.

What a unique, if not, eerie occurrence. Imagine seeing a moon at sunset. Refraction causes more of the red sunlight to come through, giving the moon a red tint.

Not to be alarmed. 

This phenomenon is actually a festive occasion that is celebrated in some Asian cultures with lanterns, mooncakes, and outdoor gatherings. 

A time to give thanks for the bountiful harvest and embrace the new season.

Make corn, bread, or other foods with grains.

Drink wine.

Have a bonfire.

And with a giant, orange-tinted moon hanging low in the night sky, it likely won't be that hard to conjure some good feels. 

May your life be as abundant as the harvest,

and your heart as full as the moon.