Winter approaches

My sister, aged 85, who moved to Kansas so she could live near her son and his wife, came to stay with us for a couple of nights so she could accompany us to our aunt's funeral.  She jokingly said that we've seen more of one another since she moved away than when she lived in the Kansas City area, and I guess that is true.  We plan to visit her before too long so we can see the house she bought in McPherson.  I sent some turnips, sweet potatoes, and fresh eggs home with her.

Cliff and I went clothes shopping today, in spite of the fact that he has a terrible cold.  Actually, I think it's sinus infection; as I told him, his breath smells like something crawled down into his throat and died, which usually means he has sinusitis.  He was in denial for two days, and finally today decided that, perhaps, he has a cold.  

We bought Cliff a pair of Big Smith overalls, but they are getting harder to find all the time.  The smaller Walmarts have stopped carrying them, and even the dreaded Blue Springs Walmart didn't have all the sizes today.  We made the mistake of being at that particular blight on the earth around 11 A.M., and I barely escaped with my life.  They would have sold me some jeans if everything hadn't been in such disarray, but I fled the place and paid more for some jeans at Kohl's.  We were in search of a couple of decent-looking shirts for Cliff, and found those at Kohl's also.  

Back home, we watched some shows that were recorded on the DVR.  

Then Cliff napped and I went to the garden to find some lovely green beans and picked about two-thirds of the row.  By then, my fingers were numb from the cold and I quit.  I picked one of the latest-planted carrots, which tasted sweet ant good, not at all strong-tasting like the ones that had to grow through the summer drought.  I brought in some radishes for Cliff to taste-test, and he pronounced them good.  I brought in what is probably the last four cucumbers and a ripening tomato.  

And I dug a couple of hills of sweet potatoes.

   
This year's garden may have been my most successful one ever.  The green tomatoes that are left in the garden aren't good enough to save for later ripening, being cracked and ugly.  But hey, they've lasted this long, and that's a good thing!  Tomorrow we'll have those green beans I picked and some fried green tomatoes.  

If any locals would like a giant sweet potato, just say the word.