October 9

Well, the first thing I want to write is a correction:  the hummingbirds are not gone.  There is one little guy here who I guess waited all summer to have the feeder all to himself.  I don’t know if he’s noticed, but the days are shorter and the nights are colder. And Mexico is very far away...............  

We got back yesterday after spending two nights at Roberts.  What a surprise-----we didn’t catch any fish.....well, that’s not true.....Howard caught a small bass the first day on a Panther Martin and another one (maybe the SAME ONE) on a spinner the next day.

The water was about 64 degrees and the nighttime temperatures were in the upper 40s.    Howard thinks maybe another couple of weeks......I think maybe a miracle.

In spite of no fish, we had a very nice day on the water.  The water was like glass, it was so calm.  We saw a family of javelinas grazing in the shade of the other side.  We fished by the big rock and although we didn’t catch a thing, I remembered the photo of Brian as a little boy sitting on that rock, fishing.  The rock still sits there, looking the same, and meanwhile my little boy is now a married man.

Unfortunately, while searching for catfish on that side, Howard dropped the anchor over board and literally DROPPED the anchor overboard.  It slipped right through the rope and went to the bottom.  Howard insists it’s not lost----he knows exactly where it is.....

I’ve heard several salvaging theories so far........ including a family legend involving an outboard motor and a giant magnet..........

Huge okra was waiting for us, which I fixed differently last night:  I drizzled olive oil and Knorr Suiza on it and fried it up in the cast iron pan.  It was good!!

The cabbages, broccoli, et al are all happily growing.  I collected two Swiss Chard recipes from the NY Times this morning.......