Pumpkin Mania

 

Pumpkins ... those huge, round, orange squash that come into season here at this time of year. They're everywhere at the moment … great mountains of them.

There's pumpkin pie, of course, but also pumpkin ice cream, pumpkin donuts, pumpkin spice coffee and chai. Then there's pumpkin cheesecake, Pumkin Ale, pumpkin muffins, pumpkin soup and even pumpkin spice room spray and scented candles.

Enough already! Why is this oversized orange fruit a symbol of Hallowe'en anyway. They didn't even have pumpkins in Europe when All Hallows Eve was first celebrated. They hollowed out turnips or mangelwurzels (big beets) to use as lanterns and carved goblin faces on them to ward off evil spirits. Though I have to admit, I'd prefer pumpkin ale to turnip ale or mangelwerzel pie.

The Great Pumpkin and good old Charlie Brown was fun for the kids in the day. The farcical Simpsons' Grand Pumpkin has taken over now in the spirit of modern times. The world record for actual great pumpkins, however, is held by Ron Wallace of Rhode Island at the moment. His Atlantic Giant weighed in at just over a ton (911.3kg). Now that's a Great Pumpkin.

Pumpkins are one of the most popular crops in the US. According to Wiki, we grow 1.5 billion pounds of pumpkin every year with the Midwest leading the top producing states. Usually, we tend to be lazy and get a can of pumpkin for our holiday pies. All those pumpkins around and we buy canned. Go figure. We served pumpkin pie to our Aussie friends on the boat last Thanksgiving. They weren't impressed. It's an acquired taste, I guess.

I do like Hallowe'en and I do enjoy carving jack-o-lanterns, it's just that the pumpkin stuff seems to have gotten out of hand. That said, pumpkins are symbols of the harvest and they're certainly preferred to Christmas decorations. Oops...spoke too soon. Look at all those plastic Santas!

Happy First Anniversary Just A Little Further

On October 12th, Columbus Day, 2012, we published our first blog post on Just A Little Further. Though we've been blogging for years, it wasn't until a conversation with our niece, Gentry, that we opted to expand our readership and our reach by launching the Just A Little Further blogsite. Since then, we've blogged daily whether we're at sea aboard Nine of Cups, exploring King Island in the middle of the Bass Strait or photographing Mr. Potato Head in Pawtucket, Rhode Island. There's always something to write about. Not in any particular order, here's a sampling of our favorite blog posts this past year …

Slaying Dragons - because that's what life is all about

Beginners Guide to Vegemite - It was a hoot writing it, trying it and doing the YouTube

The Blue View - Knots - David's passion for knots and his admiration for Ashley shine through

The Blue View - Refrigeration part 2 – An example of how boat projects usually don't go quite as planned

The Ick Factor – Sometimes the “real” side of cruising can be less than perfect

Magic Mysterious Enigmatic Easter Island – It's the most magic place we've ever been

Trusting Your Captain – because I do and this works on so many levels

Frugal versus Cheap – because there's a big difference and you don't want to cross the line

South Dakota - because Gentry read it and wanted to go back there. Good enough for me!

The Blue View - Edible Knot – because this is a knot I can get my arms (and mouth) around

FAQ - How do you do laundry aboard – another look at the “real” side of living aboard a sailboat

Cost of living on a boat - because so many people asked and so many responded

Do you have a favorite from this past year? Let us know what it is and why.

Tonight, we'll raise a glass to JALF and to our friends and readers. We love sharing with you, appreciate your feedback, and most of all, we like stretching our boundaries … just a little further.

Mabon Celebration - Celebrating the Harvest

 

I attended a Mabon celebration the other night at the UU church with my witchy sister and her very witchy friends. It's always a pleasure to be with this warm and friendly earth-centered group and Mabon was no exception.

First, let me explain that in the pagan Wheel of the Year, Mabon is the autumnal equinox. It's a time to give thanks for the harvest and fruits of the summer and an acknowledgment that winter will soon be upon us … a change in the seasons that is required to let the earth rest in preparation for springtime.

The Mabon altar was highlighted in candles and colorful fallen leaves. Pumpkins, squash, apples and grapes … fruits of September's harvest … filled the cornucopia. Lin led us in a simple ceremony of thankful words and contemplation of the season and its significance. Though I'm neither Wiccan nor Pagan, I can appreciate their contemplative nature and embrace their earthly philosophies.

We were each asked to bring a fallen leaf. On it we wrote the things we wished to cast away with the change of the seasons. I had a lot of “baggage” from this past year and I was happy to write it all down on a rather large oak leaf. We each folded our leaf and put it away in our pockets.

Pam had brought a sky lantern which I'd never seen before. Before the traditional potluck feast, we trundled outside the church into the crisp evening to light it. Its wick lit, it quickly filled with hot air, expanded and flew off into the night sky. We cast away our leaves at the same time. Luckily, mine was quite brittle and when the opportunity arose, I crumbled it and let it all go. Hopefully all the bad juju from this year went with it … and for that I will be thankful.