Another gorgeous day here in the Kingdom. Lots of tourists enjoying the foliage and local hospitality, too. With a long weekend coming up I expect there will be a lot more visitors to our area.

More people are leaving the area to go south for the winter. I was over on Narrows Drive this afternoon and everything is pretty well closed up. I saw some folks who were renting, and of course Theresa Powers is a year 'rounder, but she told me it's pretty quiet. There were signs some people were having work done on their cottages; there were some shrink-wrapped boats parked near the cottages - a sure sign of the end of summer. Another sign is that "fair weather" cars like the yellow VW, familiar to many of our Joe's Ponders, are put away for the winter. This picture was taken today at Thurston Auto Sales in St. Johnsbury, where the VW was being prepared for winter storage, too. It will reappear with kindred daffodils next spring!

Phil Rogers on W. Shore Road very generously let me copy from his collection some picture postcards for the Cabot Historical Society, and I returned his album this afternoon. With temperatures in the range of 70 degrees, the door onto their porch was open and the wonderful aroma of beef stew (at least, that's what I'm guessing it was) wafted over us as we chatted there. Joyce is an exceptionally good cook . . . Phil and Joyce will be leaving for their home in Florida, but being a native Vermonter, Phil told me he may opt for braving whatever weather November brings in order to indulge his passion for deer hunting. I fully understand that. I hunted deer with my Dad when I was young. I never shot anything - and probably would have had buck fever and not been able to pull the trigger if I'd had the opportunity, but I remember well the excitement as my uncles, cousins and friends gathered at the farm during hunting season and the stories they told at the end of each day. The ones coming from away planned their vacation time around deer hunting, and on the farm, work was planned around hunting season. They didn't go to deer camp - there were chores, cows to milk and animals to feed, even on days they were hunting, but the hunting grounds were mostly close to home. There was real excitement when someone actually shot a buck. There didn't seem to be as many deer then as there are now, though, and they spent long, often very cold hours on a stand, or walking miles on a drive. So today as Phil talked, I understood his enthusiasm, but quite honestly, I much prefer watching the deer in the wild to stalking them, and always sigh in relief when hunting season is over and we find deer tracks crossing our property. We know some have survived.

When I got home, Fred was in the process of taking down that big old maple tree in our back yard. It seemed to have died over a year ago, but we hesitated to cut it down just in case it was having a bad year and might bloom again this spring. It didn't, and as the bark and limbs began to peel and fall in every wind storm, we knew it was time. It was quite tall and we knew if it happened to go the wrong way when it was taken down, it would land on our roof, so Fred picked a still day and carefully lopped off one big limb that might have weighted it towards the house. Then he made his cuts and it went precisely where he wanted it. I was there to cheer him on - and to take pictures!

It was sad to lose another of the three maple trees my parents had planted strategically on the south side of the house in order to have shade on the hottest summer days. The one remaining maple will probably be ok, and we've planted some young maples nearby, but it will be years before they provide the shade that these did. My folks planted those three trees in about 1963 when they built the house.

This came to me today by way of the jpwebmaster e-mail address. Larry Thompson, CWO USN, Ret., a Cabot High School classmate of mine, served aboard the Nautilus. He and his wife, Marie, were at the Fall Foliage Day last week and he told me they had attended the Nautilus Reunion. The symbolism of the empty table display pictured is as follows:

The Tablecloth is white, symbolic of the purity of our shipmates who responded to their country's call to arms.

The Single Red Rose signifies the blood they may have shed in sacrifice to ensure the freedom of our beloved United States of America. This Rose also reminds us of the family and friends of our missing shipmates who keep faith while awaiting their return.
A Slice of Lemon on the plate reminds us of the bitter fate of those lost in the line of duty.

The Salt sprinkled on the plate reminds us of the countless fallen tears of families as they wait.

The Glass is inverted – They cannot toast with us this night.

The Chair is empty – They are not here.
The Candle is reminiscent of the light of hope which lives in our hearts to illuminate their way home.

The Nautilus is historic. It was our first nuclear powered submarine. In 1958 it was the first ship to cross the north pole. It shattered records for submerged distance and speed. To learn more, click here: USS Nautilus