Autumn starts this week!

Hi neighbors. Believe it or not, autumn starts this Thursday! The seasons change much faster when you get older.

I have tried to learn and practice the art of appreciating each day as it comes and to enjoy the ongoing "now." That is even more difficult when costumes, decorations and candies for Halloween are already out in the stores! Why must we be in a perpetual hurry to move into the next big "thing" instead of just enjoying a few weeks of simply autumn?

Holidays are nice, but it doesn't have to be a holiday to enjoy morning coffee on the front porch, afternoons on the back stoop or walks around the neighborhood during the day.

Last week I dog set my son's Corgi, Zeus, while Bill and Amber went to North Carolina to visit her mother and extended family there. Zeus and I liked watching the squirrels run from tree to tree or do flips from limb to limb trying to impress the lady squirrels with their acrobatic skills.

I enjoy watching the birds fluttering around; some in large flocks sweeping from tree to bush in a raucous swish.

Others traveled in pairs or small groups; seldom any bird travels alone it seems. Although they are no longer nesting, many still sing.

They all seem to enjoy the day after lawn mowing. They scratch the cut grass out of the way to find bugs and worms. As the flock feeds, one or two sentinels on the outside area will flutter up a foot or two off the ground now and then and then settle back down.

Various species of birds will eat together, although most keep to their own kind in small flocks within the larger one. I suppose they know there is food enough for all.

My other outdoor friend is a rabbit. It was tiny this spring, but is now mostly grown. I see it hopping about the neighborhood in any of five or six backyards. It's quick to run if any thing moves or makes a sudden noise. I worry about where it will winter when the temperatures drop. I haven't seen any other rabbits but the one. I hesitate to feed it; but hopefully it will pick up leftovers from the bird feeder I will put out this winter. The squirrels never have a problem filling their jowls with birdseed!

After the days get shorter, television becomes my big entertainment. Of course, my children come over and I visit friends, but I have some television shows I look forward to watching each week.

I admit that for the rest of September I will probably have to write down what shows I don't want to miss on a tablet. The networks like to change the days and times they air different shows almost monthly. I think that knocks the foundation out from under some shows. It takes a while to get the plot figured out and to invest some interest in the characters.

I like horror but more so mysteries. The new season of "American Horror Story" started Wednesday night and it was sufficiently frightening! I never figure out what this show is about until the series is half over. It's written a bit like the old "Twilight Zone" shows and always has a twist at the end.

I will miss one of my favorite shows, "Penny Dreadful" as it completed its anticipated three-season arch and will not return.

I haven't seen "Ripper Street" advertised again either. This is set in 1890 London and focuses on the police department located in the White Chapel district. Good mystery show with lots of action; not a horror show though.

For a good 19th century mystery series, I recommend "Murdock Mysteries." Set and filmed in Canada in the 1890s it concentrates on emerging police procedural practices.

Two of my old favorites are available on weekday television. "Columbo" starts at 6 a.m., and "Murder She Wrote" starts at 10 p.m.

Still, no matter what is on television, I recommend as much time as tolerable be spent outside. Once the trees start changing colors, a slow drive through the surrounding countryside will offer some of the best views to be found!

Until the next time friends, remember that time comes and goes quickly. This minute is all we really have to consider and it is certainly always worth the consideration!