The cold has settled in for a bit. The sky is mostly cloudy with only a bit of blue. The sun is intermittent but is shining now. It has a glow about it which gives everything a brightness, even the browning leaves. The birds are active. Gracie’s coat is cold to the touch when she comes into the house.

We had very few trick or treaters last night, but they looked great. We had a Harry Potter, a soldier, a princess or two and a few I don’t remember. Even their fathers were in costume.

I’m going to pick out a new car today, a new used car. My old car is just fine, but I’m tired of it. It’s a 1999 Corolla I bought used in 2002. The car has been wonderful but it’s time we parted ways. I called my car dealership, and they’ll have a couple for me to look at when I go there today. My only stipulation was no silver or black.

I bought my first car when I got home from the Peace Corps. It was a boat, or at least the size of a boat. The car was a blue Chevy Impala, also used. The back end was huge and had a wing like look about it. No way could I parallel park that beastie. I would have needed a runway.

I stayed with Chevy’s for a while. My parents sold me my next car for $1.oo, their old car. It was a yellow Impala but smaller than my other one. I couldn’t parallel park that one either.

The first and only new car I ever bought was a blue Tercel, and I had to learn to drive a standard before I bought it. My friend took me to the school parking lot on a Sunday so I could practice starting, stopping and shifting. The first obstacle was when my friend told me to feel with my foot the spot on the pedal for idling the car in gear. We were jerked a few times, actually quite a few times, before I understood what in the heck he meant. I also kept stalling the car when I’d shift to the wrong gear. Finally, I got it and the bucking and stalling stopped. I was glad for that. My whiplash went away. I could parallel park that car in even the smallest space.