Does this ever happen to you?

I woke a bit after five this morning. It was wake up or piss the bed.  I stumbled to the bathroom. When I got back in bed I could not shut off my brain. Thoughts crashed and fought throughout my cranium like heavily armored knights at a medieval tourney melee.  So here I am sipping coffee surfing the web on the old iPad, ready for the day.

Yesterday was my son's birthday.

Today is my son's birthday.

Yes my two boys were born a day apart, albeit with a five year span intervening.  The youngest turned a magical 21, the oldest boy 26.  For good measure, I should point out my daughter just turned 28 two weeks ago.  And yes, as you count backwards on your fingers, I used to really enjoy the cold nights of late December and January. Hey, when it is cold out you gotta snuggle to keep warm...

I had the day off yesterday. I mowed the yard, washed the sheets and made a pot of chili for supper. We had perfect weather and I will admit to sitting on the patio for a while reading a book and enjoying a good cigar in the autumn sun.  The big willow waved a long limb in casual greeting and the pear trees sighed in the light breeze. I saw a chipmunk scurry along the privacy fence where gladiolas bloomed not so many weeks ago. Winter is coming and my sunny days on the patio will be but a memory.  On the other hand, that means the cold nights of late December and January are not far off...