Free Write - November

 

For the first time in three months Rick, Julia and I are doing our Tuesday morning Free Write in the same place in the same country. With pastries, espresso, tea and hot chocolate we ignored the rain outside and opened our notebooks. The prompt was November.

D-L's Free Write

November, my favorite month -- the heat and humidity are gone. I'm taking turtle necks and sweaters out of storage. A transition coat -- a coat YES! Hats may still be optional but gloves aren't. They are needed to protect my hands against the cold steering wheel.

On sunny days the sun beams shining through the trees make the yellow leaves iridescent. The color against the blue, blue sky reminds me of the Ukranian flag. Leaves create a solid carpet on the sidewalk making a crunching sound when I walk on them. Fallen leaves are for kicking.

I still miss the red leaves of my native New England. Here in Geneva every now and then, there's a red tree. I will stop and take a photo. I've done it so many times, that anyone looking at my shots, will think Geneva is a forest of red trees.

I love being inside when the rain hits. If I'm lucky, it will turn to the first snow of the season. I curl up on the sofa, the dog snuggled beside me, a book in my lap and listen to the wind.

A fireplace would be nice, but 98% contentment is fine.

Visit http://dlnelsonwriter.com

Rick's Free Write

From the Day of the Dead in Catholic cultures to American Thanksgiving, November is the penultimate fete season as prelude to Christmas, New Year’s, etc.

But for 25 years, November to me represented a trip to the toy store.

My toy store, in this case, was the annual simulation conference in Orlando where engineers displayed their latest innovations for training pilots, sailors, surgeons, and others in high-risk professions.

The computer-generated graphics got more realistic every year. The hydraulic- and later electric-driven motion systems were more refined. And more recently, more than half the exhibitors were using virtual reality goggles.

The one negative about the show was that some of us who had to set up exhibits either had to skip Thanksgiving dinner with family or fly out late that afternoon. The conference always started on the Monday after.

In some years before Covid, there were more than 20,000 attendees. But for many of us it was an annual reunion, seeing longtime friends again and asking, “What company are you with now?”

The week was always exhausting. But in the end, I won the title every year for the most tweets.

 Visit Rick's website https://aviationvoices.com

Julia's Free Write

Back in the day, he knew no one from the 11^th month of the year: a year being our current calendar, no, don’t ask me what it’s called.

 Now, it seems, everyone is from November: his DIL, his grandson, his DIL’s mother, two good friends – and the list goes on.

Still, it goes a long way toward filling in those gray days. He lives where fog is as predictable as the month.  And this year was no exception. A bad fall as it rained most of September and October and then the high fog started. Ugh!

Something he finds it hard to find the cheers until he looks at all the beautiful fall colors, until the round of birthday celebrations starts. Then at the end of the month he can look forward to an American expat inviting him for Thanksgiving – a celebration of the harvest, fall, family and friendships.

All in all, November turns out to be a stellar month.

Julia has written and taken photos all her life and loves syncing up with friends. Her blog can be found: https://viewsfromeverywhere.blogspot.com/