Fall has fallen

Well, we went from the last days of humid Summer to Fall pretty much overnight last week. We had a surprise visitor last Tuesday- my dear friend Jay was in town visiting his family including meeting his new nephew. We went to Django for an excellent lunch, and then I took him around the east Village and Gateway Market. Also got a chance to drive him buy the house we looked at twice last week- which met his approval. Such a great chance to catch up with a great friend- and Ms. Charlie was very happy to get some guy time and a belly rub.

So, you know last week how excited I was to get roasted Hatch chilies at the market? I haven't seen them here at all- until Wed. I went to HyVee before work and what greeted me was the humongous multimedia display of Hatch Chilis- d'oh!!

Ah well- braving a chilly morning- we picked up this week our first batch of honeycrisp apples, a buttercup squash, peppers, a leek, sweet corn and split a pumpkin pie cupcake from Carefree Patisserie. This time of year is my favorite at the farmers market- all of the summer produce and the fall stuff is just starting to appear.

I have decided that it may be a little better for my mental health to get most of my information about the Republican pres. ticket filtered through Jon Stewart. Oh, I promise my take on Gov. Pallin later this week. However, I adored Jon's comment on how the Democratic party always has to prove its patriotism, but everyone knows that the Republican party loves our country- they just hate half the people living here.

I just finished Thurston Clarke's hertbreaking account of Robert Kennedy's Presidential campaign- "The Last Campaign. Bobby Kennedy has always been an inspiration to me and this country suffered a great loss when he was killed. This book was a great insight into the campaign, not portraying Bobby as a saint but recognizing his courage and the huge shadow of his brother he overcame throughout the campaign. And repeatedly throughout the book- what really amazed me was his direct challenging of his audiences from ladies clubs to college campuses, saying that we were the reason why Vietnam was happening, that student deferments for the draft were completely unfair and discriminatory against poor Americans who couldn't afford to go to college, that black Americans were dying in Vietnam fighting for a country that was not guaranteeing their equal rights as citizens back home, we allow children to die of starvation in this country because we turn a blind eye to the suffering we can't see.

Now, just imagine today a political candidate, blowing off his advisers, and saying something akin to that in prime-time. The truth is hardest to hear- we allowed our country to get into this position and its up to us to fix it, one step at a time by making different lifestyle changes, getting involved in our communities and schools and forgo chilling on the couch every night to most importantly educating ourselves and voting in every election. Government by any means can not solve all the problems- but with the right leadership and agenda- it is a part of the solution.

And the author pointed out that in his speeches on Vietnam, that if you replaced the words Vietnam with Iraq and Communism with Al-Qaeda- it would just be as timely and persuasive today. Try it: "Our brave young men are dying in the swamps of Southeast Asia. Which of them might have written a poem? Which of them might have cured cancer? Which of them might have played in a World Series or given us the gift of laughter from the stage or helped build a bridge or a university? Which of them would have taught a child to read? It is our responsibility to let these men live....It is indecent if they die because of the empty vanity of their country."

For all you Democrats who may need reassurance:

"As long as America must choose, that long will there be a need and a place for the Democratic Party. We Democrats can run on our record but we cannot rest on it. We will win if we continue to take the initiative and if we carry the message of hope and action throughout the country. Alexander Smith once said, "A man doesn't plant a tree for himself. He plants it for posterity." Let us continue to plant, and our children shall reap the harvest. That is our destiny as Democrats."

Here is one of my favorite quotes from him:

"Few will have the greatness to bend history itself; but each of us can work to change a small portion of events, and in the total of all those acts will be written the history of this generation... It is from numberless diverse acts of courage and belief that human history is thus shaped. Each time a man stands up for an ideal, or acts to improve the lot of others, or strikes out against injustice, he sends forth a tiny ripple of hope, and crossing each other from a million different centers of energy and daring, those ripples build a current which can sweep down the mightiest walls of oppression and resistance. "