There isn’t much that can top autumn. The warm days, the cool evenings, the harvest going on all over. Color bursting everywhere as the trees and other plants get ready for a winter’s slumber by giving us a glorious show. For the sports fans there isn’t a much busier time. For those who love the delicacies of dining there are scrumptious flavors all over, especially from the ripening fruits.

The only problem is that autumn seems to speed by like a race car and then leaves us with the realities of winter. But before that happens we do have the wonderful holidays of Halloween, Thanksgiving and the Christmas season. Then we must wait another year for the exhilaration of another autumn.

As for us, one of the real highlights of autumn is that first pot of chile. No two pots of chili are ever the same around here. We often don’t know what will go in a pot until we start making it. Happy autumn all!

Were you paying attention ?

1) At the current time, which party has requested the most absentee ballots in Iowa?

2) September 26th, 1960. Can you remember the major event that took place that night?

3) Eric Holder announced his resignation as Attorney General this week. Who was his predecessor as AG?

4) Citing climate change as their motivator, which family that grew rich on oil began divesting themselves of oil ties?

5) Left over from last week – what major American owned beer label was sold to a Russian company?

6) Just a week ago a march for what reason drew a half a million people and went nearly unreported by the main stream media?

7) Monday the US began airstrikes in what ME nation?

8) Google, Facebook and Yahoo were among internet companies that ended ties with what ultra right wing group this week?

9) High school students in the Denver, Colorado area walked out this week over the altering of what course content?

10) A grand jury in Columbus Ohio refused to indict police officers for what incident in a Walmart in August?

11) In Kansas, Sam Brownback’s right wing utopia has been forced to do what to fill in the huge holes in the state budget?

12) The ACA or Obamacare is expected to save American hospitals about how much caring for uninsured patients this year?

13) Flights in and out of Chicago airports were halted Friday when what happened at the air traffic control tower in Aurora?

14) Thursday marked the beginning of what in Iowa?

15) An American workplace had a major incident when an “out of control” employee did what physical harm to another employee?

Well – let’s get this over so we can enjoy the day.

Answers:

1) Democrats with over 50%

2) The first Kennedy – Nixon debate took place. It was broadcast on all TV networks

3) Michael Mukasey (bet a lot said it was Gonzalez)

4) The Rockefellers

5) Pabst.

6) Climate Change

7) Syria – targetting ISIS among others.

8) ALEC – about time!

9) History – the right wing Jefferson county school board tried to downplay civil disobedience and related subjects.

10) The shooting of an unarmed black customer reported to have a gun

11) Sex toys. Read the story here

12) About $5.7bn.

13) A disgruntled employee started a fire in the basement of the facility

14) Early voting!

15) beheaded one woman and stabbed another man.