DANG!!  The last couple of nights have been wintery, dropping to mid 20's through most of the night and only reaching a blustery 48-50 degrees during the day.  Temperature read 24 this morning and should reach low 60's today.  I woke around 4 AM, got up at 4:30............couldn't fall back to sleep.  Don't know if it was the pull of the harvest moon or too much Mexican food at the Monte Alban last night with our neighbor.  Worse than all that, I had a nightmare that caused me to sit straight up and shudder. I dreamed I was subbing the class from hell.  There were candy wrappers, pillows, blankets strewn about the classroom.  Neither desks nor students had any order.  The assistant principal told me I was upsetting the children with my stern body language.  Thank goodness it's Saturday and the Cherokee County Schools won't call me to sub today.

Except for the lingering rusty oak leaves that hang on throughout the winter, the other trees have shed theirs allowing the sun to warm the porch and the house.  One of our neighbors has a bear-cam and has been emailing us pictures of the black bear in their yard.  It's spotted quite often, day and night, up in their neck of the woods.  They probably have more acorns and a better supply of winter food.  Yesterday while filling the back porch bird feeder, I saw five deer grazing way down in our back hollow, the most I've ever seen here at once.  I accidentally stepped on a crispy leave laying on the porch floor and when the deer heard the crunch, they alerted each other with the white tail flick and a loud snort.  They are so fascinating to watch.  When I go down to the garden mid-morning to uncover the lettuce rows, I stand quietly scanning the hills for any sign of forest animals.  With the trees bare now, the view of the hills and hollows reveals more wildlife.