Flying South

So today I did what I hate doing every fall. I took down the hummingbird feeders.  In Indiana, you typically won't see those ruby throated beauties until around late April. They are just scattered here and there in the following weeks and come August they are thick.   By early October you leave them up hoping you might be giving some late mover a drink on his way home. 

I usually set out three to four feeders and have planted several perennials that attract hummingbirds and butterflies. I place the feeders where I can see at least two of them from my kitchen. 

Last year, we also attracted one of those sucky-toed toads and found him attached to one of the sun room windows. 

Didn't see hide nor sticky toe of him this year. 

What kept striking me as odd as I was fighting off the nasty bees reclaiming my feeders was that it appears we might actually really spend the winter in Florida. We're expecting a bit of frost this week and I just despise cold weather. 

Will it really happen. Packing up as much as will fit in the SUV immediately after Christmas and driving 2 days and living in beautiful weather and eating fresh seafood for 3 months??????  

Possibly checking on last minute cruises out of Fort Lauderdale or Miami since it's only a two hour drive away.  

Nah, I'll believe it when I see it. 

And in other news.  

I decided to start a new sourdough starter yesterday. Easy really,  1/2 cup warm water and 1/2 cup bread flour in a container and stir.  Add some more each day and remove some and in a couple weeks you should have some sourdough starter. 

I picked the last of some too tiny heirloom tomatoes and a couple of poblano peppers I have growing beside the garage. 

Tonight Indy is hosting the War of 1812. I'm sure most do not care, but our beloved Peyton Manning, the former QB for the Indianapolis Colts will be playing his best season ever against the Colts as a Denver Bronco. Indy retired Peyton's #18 when they traded him and brought on a promising rookie, Andrew Luck #12. Thus the War of 1812 was born. 

The Lucas Oil Stadium has a retractable roof that is rarely open. I was wondering why at 59 degrees they would open the roof tonight and come to find out Peyton hated the roof open, so apparently to try to throw him off his game they have the roof open. 

They had a moment in the stadium with a big Thanks Peyton on the jumbo tron while the crowd stood and cheered for several minutes. He removed his Bronco helmet and was clearly a little choked up at being in Indy and playing against his old team for the first time. 

I know many don't give a rip, but it isn't that he brought this town to be a football town, it was that his charity work here was a force to be reckoned with. One year giving $70 mm to a local hospital alone. 

I have to say whenever Indy is highlighted for a special game! the city looks gorgeous. It's a nice city, clean and not too large. 

But it's still no fun in the winter. 

(Oh, and I hate the token women football commentators they insist in using on the sidelines. No one I know, male or female like them. )