Happy Birthday...to who? Not me.

So it's Thursday, my sisters birthday. What's left of my family are gathering at the birthday girls house for a mini celebration. My other sister was picking up a tray (way too much) of Sicilian pizza for a simple but tasty supper. In case you don't know a Sicilian pizza consists of square thick pieces baked in a rectangular pan, with lots of sauce, not just a thin layer of sauce that's painted on, with the shredded cheese put on after the pizza comes out of the oven. In any event I arrived first. There was no cake so the birthday girl sends hubby out to buy a cake. I suppose it's unusual for the person who's birthday it is to be responsible for the cake but at this point in our lives it's more about getting together than it is to give gifts and making a big deal about someones birthday. We've all had many of them. As my brother in law is set to leave my sister reminds him to buy a card. I suppose it pretty sad when the person who's birthday it is has to remind their spouse to buy them a card but this is the way it is. Out he goes. In the mean time my sister and I are just sitting around talking waiting for our sister to arrive. She does with the pizza. 24 roughly, 5 by 5 inch, 1 inch thick pieces of pizza. It's an Italian thing. Make sure you have much too much food. In my family this probably comes from the people who  lived through World War Two and food became very important as you never knew when your next meal might occur. So after giving my sister the appropriate crap for buying too much pizza my brother in law arrives back with a cake but instead of a card he has a cooked chicken. I inquired if it was a Hallmark birthday cooked chicken. It is unknown if the fact that the words card and chicken both start with a C was what caused his confusion. He didn't even sign the chicken. So the three of us proceeded to give him the appropriate crap for substituting a cooked chicken for a birthday card. So after eating a simple supper of tasty pizza and salad the ladies go into the living room probably talking about their cats as they are wont to do. Jim and I are in the kitchen enjoying an adult beverage (OK we were drinking a Budweiser, well we each had our own can.) and my brother in law asks me how old I am. I tell him but a light goes on in my brain. I tell him that my birthday is in December.
"It's not your birthday!" Jim says with a puzzled look.
"No Jim. It's your wife's birthday!"
Now my sisters come back into the kitchen for it is time for cake! The cake is taken out of the refrigerator still in it's bag. My sister takes it out of the bag and places it on the table.
"Happy Birthday Paul!" she exclaims!
A Homer Simpson "DOH!" would have fit perfectly here. Time to dish out more crap! He got it from the 3 of us. All good natured of course.

So here it is a miserable Monday. It's rainy and windy. I'm off and I have no reason to go out so I won't. Later in the week I will be  taking part in a walk for one of my favorite charities, The Walk for Restless Leg Syndrome.
Here are some of my favorite fall photos from the last few years as the brilliant colors are pretty much done around here. I've posted these before but I did not get out this much this year so I feel compelled to post some more as I will have to wait another year and do more travelling especially out to Mt. Greylock in western Ma. It's not that much of a mountain as it is a large hill. We don't mountains here just lot's of hills but it's the highest one we have at about 3200'. Still western Ma. is especially beautiful in the fall with it's rolling hills and valleys in full color. Oh well there's always next year. Some of the shots here were taken in my hometown and the rest were taken in New Hampshire. The first group is from around here.

 These are from New Hampshire.

 Alright. I'm off and...
I'm outta here.