My truck is rapidly becoming a closet. The mornings are chilly so I appropriately bundle up for outside work. As the day progresses and gets warmer by the hour, I begin shedding layers. At the end of the day I’m too tired to bring in the clothing so I start anew in the morning. By week’s end everything I own is in the vehicle. I vow to get organized next week but, sadly, I’ve said that for decades.

Often at a job site, I need a stake to support some wayward plant. A handy substitute is a dead stick on a hydrangea. Recently, during a fall clean up, I discovered one of those sticks had re-rooted and was sporting leaves. I’m leaving it until spring to see if it will survive a winter.

I am busy digging and using as many leeks as possible. I want to leave them in the ground until spring but it often ends badly. One year, Lyn Weber suggested digging them and storing in damp sand in an unheated room. I’ve had good luck with that method. We’ve been eating them like crazy. They are Violet’s favorite vegetable. We made several quiches with them and Mermaid Farm feta cheese. Oddly, I still am getting eggs. Usually, the hens take a rest when the days get so short. This year I have several new layers that one of my old hens hatched herself. They are just five months old and beginning to lay. Lucky me.

I missed my calling in advertising. I have a couple of commercials this week. I never miss an opportunity to sing the praises of the all-rubber Goodyear garden hose. I am draining and coiling them in winter preparation. It’s an easy task compared to the more expensive vinyl ones which constantly kink and reuse to cooperate. If the cuss bucket was on site I’d be adding some big bucks.

Violet has been home on Zoom for college. She took up sewing as a Covid-relief activity. She’s on the machine all her free time from classes. She’s making clothing, masks, handbags, clutches, headbands and totes. Hopefully, next Friday she will be at the Oak Bluffs Black Friday flea market. It will be outside and all the vendors will supply gloves. With the Covid cases spiking here on the Vineyard every precaution is in order.

We have a soon-to-be former President who continues with his self-serving and childish behavior. He clearly does not care about the health and well-being of his fellow Americans. I guess there is nothing to be said.

I shall end this week with eight home remedies for a cold from the 2021 Old Farmer’s Almanac.

1. Cook with and eat onions; they may have antibacterial qualities.

2. Drink rose hip tea; it contains vitamin C and can help relieve cold symptoms.

3. Got chills? Take fresh ginger root.

4. Consume prunes; they are rich in fiber, vitamins A and B, iron, calcium and phosphorus.

5. Consume lemons, oranges and apple cider.

6. Eat hot and spicy foods like chili to clear the sinuses.

7. Use horseradish; it generates lots of “heat” to help offset colds.

8. Add chopped garlic cloves to foods or take small chunks of raw garlic as you would pills. This may reduce the frequency of colds.

There you have it, stay safe, wash your hands, don’t touch your face and maintain some semblance of optimism.