Moni: So, you were at Turner Falls, OK. If its the palce I am thinking of, it is very nice and located in the Arbuckle Mountains of Okahoma. Most folks do not think of "mountains" and "Oklahoma" together, but there it is! The Arbuckle Mts are ancient, possibly older than Appallatia, hense its peaks have worn down to low lying, rounded points, at least that is what the geology books tell me. Turner Falls is a delightful place. I was there once in 1955.

The bridge we cross every time we go to town was built in 1965. It has many wooden supports under it, so many that there is a log/debris jam every spring. Sometimes, they brings a backhoe out, and have to sit on the bridge, reach down over the edge with the backhoe and break up the blockages. This spring, a fisherman called the sheriff and reported damage under the bridge. Missing support, a truss is also broken. The MN Department of Transportation decided it can be open this year, but only one lane. They brought out a portable traffic signal. You sit right in the lane, when you are west-bound) while cars come towards you (slowly, thankfully). A nice fall day, though going under it is rather un-nerving. Next summer, we will be taking the longer way to town, they figure this will take 5 months to replace. Hopefully, this time around they will use metal and design a way to not have so many supports. The following year, they will replace the smaller bridge between this bridge and our house, so we will be taking the longer way to town for the next two years.

I took this photo on 10/21. Since then the winds have blown - gustily (is that a word?). Less than 1/3 of the leaves are left on the Autumn Blaze Maple. I am raking and piling them to shred them to put in the flower beds and vegetable garden.

The view from the breakfast table this morning. The 'entertainment committee ' must be off today, no birds in sight.