A bright morning, chilly but no frost. The foliage is ever thinner and the remaining vibrant patches fewer. Still, the maples show some rich reds against the autumn blue sky.

November came in with a great blow. Halloween night the wind shrieked and howled, with gusts approaching 55 MPH. Those who went out to trick-or-treat deserved all the goodies they received.

We underwent time change overnight. As usual, it is oddly disorienting, and will likely become more so as the day progresses. If everything holds to form, tomorrow will be stranger still.

Nori the Cat has been overgrooming so I am trying to make our rituals as consistent as possible in order to reduce her stress. She does not do time change so I will let her get used to our new sleep schedule, then, maybe, slowly adjust her feeding times. For now, I am letting well enough alone. Last night she napped for a few minutes in my lap, played with me for half-an-hour, spent an hour trying to get me to go to bed, then, when I finally crawled into bed, left to sleep in a different room. Fickle she can be.

Nori’s cat sitter had a busy weekend when we went away and did not spend much time with her. As a result her anxiety level has gone up considerably. To make matters more challenging, she was in pain Thursday so we took her to the vet just before taking Jennie to the train. It turned out that Nori is just fine, but the trip added even more to her anxious plate.

This morning she played with me for over an hour which was delightful. As soon as I put on my coat to go for a brief photo outing she became concerned. I sprayed the space with anxiety reducing mist which seemed to help only briefly. Given her reactions I suspect she is both afraid I will leave her and terrified I will catch her and drag her to the vet. For the moment I am staying put.

Our local crows have become more gregarious and vocal as winter approaches. They congregate in flocks large and small, and watch our comings and goings. They can identify individual humans and carry approval or grudges. I have always had a good relationship with them but can readily understand how they came to be associated with Halloween and evil.

Flocks of sparrows gather in the thickets.

Winter cannot be far away.