The season is turning. Gone are the long lazy summer days and the hammock is packed away for next year. With the temperature falling and the light fading, the trees are rapidly shedding their leaves and getting ready for the big rest.

The first of the winter storms has already arrived in our bay. The sea and sky are increasingly dull grey and blurred at the horizon. The sea, energised by the wind, shows its angry white caps and big waves to remind you that nature is in charge.

But the autumn garden makes for much work before we rest. There has been a bounty of veggies this year so the big cook up is underway: casseroles, soups, pickles, sauces and pies. Exhausting, but tea and plum clafoutis with a dot of cream is a great reviver.

And of The Book?  I’ve thought about it.

?Maybe a thriller; gang warfare in hospital’s corridors; secret societies plotting against each other for control? Is this interesting enough?

I’m off for the last of the summer sun in Portugal, sailing up the Douro Valley from lovely Porto to Mateus Villa, and on to the ancient university town of Salamanca. Then it’s The Book, honest.

So far, for October, it’s The Book — 0 vs. The Veggies — 1.

Mind the ghosts and ghouls of Halloween and come back next time for a progress report on The Book …..