Summer is over, and the air is turning cold. How strange it is, that during the summer we wish for cooler nights, and when it's gone, we miss it as we huddle under the blankets wondering when the central heating would be turned on. Hubby and I are decked in long pants and doubling the comfy T-shirt with another long sleeved one on top.
Looking though some of the photographs taken during the summer makes me feel warmer though. Here's the last time Hubby and I went to the beach this summer. This was taken Aug 1st '09.
But alas, the earth continues to spin, the weather continues to change. No more flip flops, bare legs or arms, and no need for sun hats... Although I think it is significantly cold now...about 14 oC, not all the foliage has withered away. Most in fact are still green, though the first signs of autumn has started showing itself. The sugar maple tree is the first to start turning red. The other maples have not turned yet. Here's a tree, half-red-half-green.
But alas, the earth continues to spin, the weather continues to change. No more flip flops, bare legs or arms, and no need for sun hats... Although I think it is significantly cold now...about 14 oC, not all the foliage has withered away. Most in fact are still green, though the first signs of autumn has started showing itself. The sugar maple tree is the first to start turning red. The other maples have not turned yet. Here's a tree, half-red-half-green. 
A clearer shot of the red leaves below. It is standing beside another species of Maple, but as you can see it is completely green.
The oaks are still completely green too, can't wait for them to turn red. In spring time, we get lovely cherry blossoms, tulips which soon disappear into the summer, with lots of lilies and roses blooming away. Now the lilies have withered, and the roses that were blooming have now turned into "fruits", little rose hips.
And A LOT of shrubs around the neighbourhood bore lots of berries on their branches! Berries berries everywhere! Here, I'll show you:Red berries close up:
From this red berry bush:
Another red berry bush...you can see from the needle-like leaves, that this is a different bush:
A close up of the berries... they look like little bells.
Here's another shrub with lots of orange colored berries.
But most unique of all are these tiny purple berries, in an amazing striking shade of violet:
Every twig joint seems to be sprouting a little cluster of these purple berries.
And here's what this bush looks like. Quite interesting isn't it!
Every season has its popular flowers. And as I was telling my mother the other day over the phone, that although chrysanthemums are really popular back in Singapore during Spring (Chinese New Year) time, they seem to be all the rage here in the fall! It's the main potted flowers on sale at the Farmer's Market now. Some red chrysanthemums: 
This is a really common sight now. I think it may be part of Thanksgiving. Red, white, yellow chrysanthemums lining the stairway to the house:
Do you notice two little orange things displayed alongside the chrysanthemums outside people's houses too? They're pumpkins! Hahaha if they were mandarin oranges, it'll really look like Chinese new year together with the chrysanthemums isn't it! Here's another picture of Chrysanthemums with much larger pumpkins on the stairway of another house:
Hubby tells me that Thanksgiving was a holiday that started when the early settlers in America wanted to thank God for all the harvest and blessings for the year. Which is a nice thing to do, being in a strange land far away from their European home, growing crops like corn which they have never grown before.
From this red berry bush:
Another red berry bush...you can see from the needle-like leaves, that this is a different bush:
A close up of the berries... they look like little bells.
Here's another shrub with lots of orange colored berries.
But most unique of all are these tiny purple berries, in an amazing striking shade of violet:
Every twig joint seems to be sprouting a little cluster of these purple berries.
And here's what this bush looks like. Quite interesting isn't it!Every season has its popular flowers. And as I was telling my mother the other day over the phone, that although chrysanthemums are really popular back in Singapore during Spring (Chinese New Year) time, they seem to be all the rage here in the fall! It's the main potted flowers on sale at the Farmer's Market now. Some red chrysanthemums: This is a really common sight now. I think it may be part of Thanksgiving. Red, white, yellow chrysanthemums lining the stairway to the house:
Do you notice two little orange things displayed alongside the chrysanthemums outside people's houses too? They're pumpkins! Hahaha if they were mandarin oranges, it'll really look like Chinese new year together with the chrysanthemums isn't it! Here's another picture of Chrysanthemums with much larger pumpkins on the stairway of another house:Hubby tells me that Thanksgiving was a holiday that started when the early settlers in America wanted to thank God for all the harvest and blessings for the year. Which is a nice thing to do, being in a strange land far away from their European home, growing crops like corn which they have never grown before.Anyway, the pumpkins have varying sizes, and here's an example of some small pumpkins sitting on the window sill: 
And here are some really HUGE ones, taking up the entire space on a garden bench.
Other than pumpkins, there are also decorative maizes and squashes, and "scare crows" on sale. Here at the supermarket they also sell MINI pumpkins! I've seen some offices use these mini pumpkins as decorations on the front desk. 
Did you see the painted on faces on the larger pumpkins? Haha, what does that remind you of?
Halloween! Haha some houses of the neighbourhood are decorated for Halloween too. And supermarkets are having big sales on candy and mini-bars of snickers, Reese's, etc. I wonder what is it they put to make it look like they have cob webs around the fence. Can cotton wool stretch that long? And wouldn't it be soaked from the autumn rains?
Anyway to end, here's a picture of a house decorated for both Halloween and Thanksgiving. With plastic "ghost dolls", scare-crows, and a pumpkin at the doorstep. Can you spot the pumpkin in the picture? It's a big pumpkin, but it turned out really small in the picture. ;-)
Goodbye Summer.
And here are some really HUGE ones, taking up the entire space on a garden bench.
Other than pumpkins, there are also decorative maizes and squashes, and "scare crows" on sale. Here at the supermarket they also sell MINI pumpkins! I've seen some offices use these mini pumpkins as decorations on the front desk. Did you see the painted on faces on the larger pumpkins? Haha, what does that remind you of? Halloween! Haha some houses of the neighbourhood are decorated for Halloween too. And supermarkets are having big sales on candy and mini-bars of snickers, Reese's, etc. I wonder what is it they put to make it look like they have cob webs around the fence. Can cotton wool stretch that long? And wouldn't it be soaked from the autumn rains?
Anyway to end, here's a picture of a house decorated for both Halloween and Thanksgiving. With plastic "ghost dolls", scare-crows, and a pumpkin at the doorstep. Can you spot the pumpkin in the picture? It's a big pumpkin, but it turned out really small in the picture. ;-)
Goodbye Summer.
Hi there, I just arrived in NYC barely 3 weeks ago. While looking for some Singaporean organizations on the web, I chanced upon your blog. I'm hoping to make new friends in the City since I just arrived. I just started a new blog too. It's http://manhattanbabe.blogspot.com/. Check it out!
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