PHOTO-A-DAY CHALLENGE

When the Temperatures Dropped and a Brisk Day in Fall Pushed Summer Out the Door

Week 167 of the photographic documentary of my daily life

This week I was walking around in short summer clothes tanning in the sun on the meadow and layered up with my winter jacket, hat, scarf and gloves just days later.

Summer is over. Now not only on paper but in real life too. And it’s good. It was great to have an extended summer into mid-October after the July and August had been mostly rainy and cold but it is time for fall now.

And with fall, later sunrises and earlier sunsets, I get to experience more of these beautiful twilight hours and even get to see more game as well. The fact we’re barely working anymore certainly adds to it as we have lots of time for lengthy walks.

On Thursday the sun wasn’t shining and the sky was overcast with showers on the horizon but that didn’t stop us from venturing out on a walk across the countryside.

I suggested to head to the nearby pond I had been to once this summer and David had only seen from the air. His back is doing better day by day and the daily walks certainly play an important role in it.

We just came over a small hill when we were surprised by a herd of deer. They had spotted us already and were running across the field heading East. We counted seven which is the largest herd of deer I had seen since spring.

Upon returning from the pond, we walked past a smallish tree carrying a beautiful song across the hills. Soon, I spotted and identified the bird sitting perched atop a twig.

A yellowhammer.

Friday was the last day of summer. It started with a spectacular sunrise painting the sky in hues of orange, yellow, and red and reached its high point at close to 30 °C in the afternoon.

On Saturday all hell broke loose. Gale-force winds were blowing heavy rain showers across the airfield and we drove to my grandma’s 85th birthday party since the day’s work was canceled.

Driving in that weather was exhausting and dangerous as either winds tried to push us off the highway or the road was flooded with standing water.

We reached safely our destination and it was amazing to have all my cousins together. It might have been ten years since we were all together the last time. While they do meet up every year at least during Easter and on Grandma’s birthday, I’m usually the one missing because either working or in a foreign country.

Today, all my uncles and aunts, my cousins, and even Grandma’s three great-grandchildren were there. She was happy, and so was I being there.

No pictures here of the party, but one from when I went with David for a walk, as sitting in the car for close to three hours (one way) wasn’t the best for his back. It was raining, and I snapped this single raindrop on the bushes.

Did I mention the temperature drop? Sunday we were expected to hit minus two degrees, but before that, a turbulent weather day was hitting us.

More winds, rain and even hail. We were hiding in our trailer when the first hailstorm hit us.

We got hail three times on Sunday, and I worried about my cherry tomatoes which carried now more fruits than all summer. But luckily, the winds were coming from the North today, and the trailer protected the tomatoes from getting hailed on.

But for the freezing night, I pulled plastic bags over the plants.

As turbulent as Sunday was, the weather calmed down just before sunset when I headed out with my camera to embrace the beauty of the setting sun.

Talking about frost and freezing temperatures. This is what I woke up to on Monday. No clouds in the sky, but the meadow was covered in white.

We went for an extended walk on Monday, hiking for over five hours across the fields. We had lunch in town and wanted to explore a hidden ruin but had to turn around 50 meters from it as signs of private property prevented us from going further.

Returning late, just as the sun was disappearing behind the woodland, I spotted some deer in the field of winter barley. Soon, those deer moved onto the field behind, and I could spot a mother and her almost fully grown offspring.

On Tuesday, I was working on the laptop, writing a story, when I felt like somebody was watching me. I almost got a fright when I lifted my eyes from the screen as this hare was meters away from the window.

We do see them often in the meadow next to the trailer park, but usually, they hide far in the distance, close to the edge of the forest. This one was so close, I could see his chest moving.

Going for my daily sunset walk, I was bundled up with a scarf, hat and gloves as the temperatures were already close to zero. Coming around the corner of the forest, I marveled at the sun hanging low on the horizon when, again, I felt watched.

This deer was standing at the edge of the forest, not hidden from my view but from my attention. It took me a while until I noticed who was staring at me.

Oh, and this was why I went out in these cold temperatures. The sky bursting into a myriad of colors during the twilight hours. The game was just a bonus.

I did have a small but lovely garden this year. All plants were grown in pots outside our trailer. I had some basil and chives, three plants of chillis and three tomatoes. Some did better, and some barely survived.

I thought all three of my chili plants would just die. They didn’t grow for months and just stayed the same. Until one day, one of them got a decent push in growth and began to flower, too. I was ecstatic!

The other two just vegetated. I wanted to stop watering them both as the summer was almost over when I saw one of them having a full-size grown chili.

Happiness.

Now, I just waited for it to change color from green to red.

And look at it. The fruit is almost taller than the plant itself. What a weird one.

This has been my weekly photo essay. Anyone can join. Once. Or weekly. It doesn’t matter. We welcome everyone! Dennett started this photography challenge in 2020 and many have participated ever since.

Dennett / Erika / Eileen / K. Barrett / Juan / David / Mia / Susan / LensAfield / Kim / Barbara / Diana / Barb / Sandra / Shruthi / Ellie / Pene / Olive / Gustavo / Jane / Penny / Jillian / Shell / Ivy / Lisa / Lynne

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