56 degrees this morning, and I left the living-room window open. BRR! I have on my spider-web fuzzy pants and a flannel shirt. I love Autumn. LOVE! I have not got the flannel sheets on yet, but I sleep with two comforters and I am right cozy in the night time. I have started shutting the windows at night.

Last week there was a heat wave; it got near to 90* a couple of times, and yes, I did turn on the air conditioners. They're still in the windows. I doubt we are going to need them anymore, but I hesitate to take them out.

This year, I am for sure going to put plastic on some of the windows. I had a breeze coming in one of them last year. I have to remember to ask the handyman to take the screen out of my back door, and put in the storm window again.

The tree across the street appears to be changing its leaf colors, but it's hard to tell-- I think some of the leaves are actually dying. Which makes me sad, and also concerned-- why would they die?

I had slacked off on my deliberate spiritual practice for much of the past months-- I kept the Goddess and God in my heart, and I keep my vigilance for Paying Attention, as always, but I let go a lot of the meditation and self-blessing and smudging. I'm sporadically starting that up again, and it does feel good. In all honesty, I would love to make it a regular discipline, but when it feels like I HAVE to, the less I WANT to, so I have given myself permission to be a Slacker Pagan if I need to. That way, when I do do my spiritual disciplines, it feels more honest and less forced. Nothing feels good if it's not from the heart, eh?

57 degrees this morning. FIFTY-SEVEN! Wow. I have fuzzy socks on.

This morning when I took my shower, I looked out the bathroom window, as I always do, to the giant sentinel pine trees that guard the small parking lot, and there was the beautiful waning moon, surprise! Between two of them. So lovely. Hai, moon!

Lammas was lovely. The Asphodel folks put on a very powerful ritual-- they had a symbolic sacrifice of John/Jane Barleycorn, and at the last minute I decided to stand in the inner circle to possibly be picked. Barleycorn is the one who has a very, very bad year coming up, but the community pledges to support hir in whatever way possible-- perhaps free massages, perhaps rides here and there, food, phone calls, hugs.

I did not get picked, but I was so afraid that I would or that I wouldn't, that I had tears welling up in my eyes. I think the person who did get picked had already had a couple of bad years. I hope she is doing well, and I did offer my support in whatever way I am able.

The berries here in MA are late by comparison to NC. They fruit in August, Lammas-time. I forgot when they were in NC, but I am pretty sure they were June-- maybe July. Things are off by a whole month here. Tomatoes are just showing up at farmer's markets, and corn. I already have been feeling Autumn in the air, for a couple of weeks now.

How is it by you?