Even though the afternoon was mild, somebody in the neighborhood didn't bother to open their windows to warm their house, but burned wood in their fireplace instead. I smelled the smoke all afternoon and finally had to close my own windows before the evening turned chilly, simply because I didn't want the smoke coming in anymore. The house didn't get the full advantage of the warm day, and tomorrow probably won't be warm enough for opening the windows.
The moon is very bright tonight, and the brightness is intensified by the fact that the trees have now lost so much of their foliage. Their shadows have grown bony, even as the leaves lie moldering under them. It gives the night a melancholy air. There are still many leaves on the walnut tree, though, and every time a breeze stirs, dozens of them fall with a sound almost like rain. But I'm sure no rain will come anytime soon. It is turning out to be a very dry autumn.