a dark time

candles on our glass dining room table after dinner

This time of year it's hard to get any sun.  The sun sets by 4:32, and will set at 4:32 every day until the 17th of December, as observed by the Updraft Blog.

It's a dark time of year, and a good reason (as well as the holiday season) to hang lights and put shiny sparkling things in places where they'll lift your mood.

This year, we have some additional darkness.  For our family, that is.

in praise of the urban heat island

tomato, post-frost

In the outlying Twin City suburbs- Blaine, Somerset, Waconia, Jordan- there was a killing frost on September 15 this year.

In our St. Paul yard, it came October 22nd.