Apples and pumpkins in Ellijay, Georgia

October is over.  It went by so fast.  We have been very busy again this month and spent many days away from the house.  After our week spent in Tennessee there were two weddings in the family.  Unfortunately they were on the same day and in different states.  My husband's nephew was married by a lake, in Georgia, and a member of our younger daughter husband's family was married in Texas.  We went to the wedding in Georgia with our older daughter, fiance, son-in-law and two grandchildren.  Our younger daughter attended the wedding in Texas with the other two grandchildren (the sister of my daughter's brother-in-law was married that day.)  Here are three pictures of each wedding: by the lake, and my daughter and granddaughter wearing Indian saris in the Texas wedding.  In another picture they are with her parents-in-law.

This year again we went to take a look at the Chalkfest festival on the Marietta Square.  I took many pictures and will have them in a post shortly.  As I mentioned in my last post my main desktop computer broke down.  I did not buy another desktop computer, just a large size monitor to go with my laptop computer.  While we were away I took my other small notebook computer with me but it never let me access anything online, so it has to go for repair, too.  I rarely opened a computer and I am way behind again visiting my friends' blogs.  When I wrote my last post the leaves were still green here, but now some of the trees are starting to show beautiful fall colors.  I took these photos below yesterday in our yard.  The fallen leaves keep my husband busy sweeping.

My husband and I also spent about a week in the western North Carolina Mountains and the North Georgia Mountains.  It was a relaxing week - no telephone, no computer and no television.  While driving these very narrow and curvy roads in the mountains we listened to satellite radio in our car.  I took many pictures but they have not been downloaded yet.  We did see the waterfall below (photo courtesy Dave Allen.)

When we came back home we briefly tuned into our television and the Republican debate was being shown.  Although after I heard presidential candidate Jeb Bush's comments, I turned the television off.  For my friends out of the country - previous US President George W. Bush's younger brother Jeb is running for president this time.  And, just as the rest of the Bush family, Jeb likes to bash France.  Jeb, while attacking another candidate, Marco Rubio, told Marco that he needed to show up for work - and added it wasn't that difficult, given the Senate's "French 3-day work week." However, the French Ambassador to the United States, Gerard Araud, did not appreciate the comment and replied, via social media "A French work week of 3 days? No, but a pregnancy paid leave of 16 weeks yes! And proud of it."  It does not seem an intelligent diplomatic move for Jeb Bush to try becoming a US President by alienating and insulting a friend and ally.  I guess Jeb feels bashing the French is OK in the US, and a family tradition since he must have heard many similar racist comments from his brother, George (because French President Jacques Chirac did not want France, just like Germany, to join the US-led invasion of Iraq.)  Chirac had said "whenever there were difficult circumstances the French were side by side with the Americans.  The French don't either forget what America and Americans did for us in both world wars.  It is in our minds and also deep down in our hearts ..."  "But if I see my friend or somebody I dearly love going down the wrong path, then I owe it to him to warn him be careful ..."  Chirac thought it was an unnecessary war that would destabilize the region.

We had just finished traveling in beautiful autumnal landscape and this television program was a sad way to return to daily life.  Below are the mountains in the evening sun glow in North Carolina.

The next afternoon we reached Ellijay in the North Georgia Mountains.  I already wrote a post on the Apple Festival in Ellijay, an important event for the town.  See my post of October 18, 2011 "The Apple Festival in Ellijay."  This time we only stopped at the Panorama Orchards - a family run fruit farm established in the 1920's.  They offer more than 20 varieties of apples, as well as other fruits and vegetables.  They are located off the highway in front of another apple producer, Penland's Apple House.  The day we stopped the large Panorama Orchards market was full of patrons.  You can see in my picture below that some people came from Ringgold, GA, which is about 55 miles away (88 km.)

There were also colorful pumpkins for sale in the parking lot.  The market is on a hill and the mountains can be seen in the background.  On the other side you can see the railroad tracks and kudzu vines that will die out upon the first frost.

We started by looking at the bakery.  I placed some sourdough apple bread and a large apple pie in my basket.  We also stopped by the fudge counter.  We sampled some of the jams, spreads, barbecue sauces, etc., and I picked up a jar of sorghum syrup, and one of apricot-ginger teriyaki sauce for stir-fries.  (Click on collage to enlarge.)

Then we walked along the shelves that bear a multitude of preserves, jars, sauces, pickles and more.

Since it was almost 2:00 pm, we stopped and bought some ice cream as a small lunch meal ...  We also bought, to take home, some fried apple pies.

I then took pictures of the fried apple pie bakers and staff - some stopped their work to smile at me.

The market has an "old timey" style.  Antiques are used to hold merchandise and notes are written on blackboards.  You can also watch where cider is being made.

Before leaving we went towards the fresh apple stands.

First, we tasted samples of all the apples for sale and selected one half peck of the Pink Lady and Cameo varieties.

Back home I took my apples outdoor and placed them on the table in a still-life type arrangement, such as in the painting of Paul Cezanne below.

Pommes et biscuits - Paul Cezanne, French, 1839-1906

Of course my apples are a photographic still-life.  I am not sure which picture I like the best - I did take 20 pictures of the apples, here are some of them below.

But it is Halloween night, so I should show pumpkins instead of apples.  Here are three of my grandchildren below with pumpkins and some vintage postcards.

and I'll finish this post with a worked-up picture of one of my apples style-life.