Monday, September 20. The Leafy Calendar. Pizza Man Versus The Saints. Took a midday stroll through the woods. It's a great break from building web pages. But all the rain in recent weeks kept the trail impassable for days after the rain stopped--and then it'd rain again. But we've had ten consecutive dry days, enough to make parts of the lawn start to shrivel.
I built my meandering trail six years ago, and have walked it thousands of times. Enough to recognize the repeating cycles of the flora. Two signs of fall are apparent now. The black tupelo trees are dropping their leaves, putting a thick blanket of them on the ground in an area with a concentration of those trees. This early leaf dump may help them withstand hurricanes. Not one single black tupelo so much as leaned after Katrina--the only tree species at the Cool Water Ranch about which that was true. The birds like the little fruits, which are edible but don't have much taste.
A little farther on, the ferns that cover a good-sized clearing are beginning to fade. Their timing is reliable: six months on, six months off. So we must be near the autumnal equinox. Sure enough, the Old Farmer's Almanac says it's the day after tomorrow.
I struggled through the radio show. A lot of people are tuned into the pre-game speculations on this Saints game day. I should have known that, but was taken by another surprise when I arrived at Pizza Man. For the first time in the twenty years we've gone there, the place was completely empty. The entire time I was there, the door opened only for two guy picking up take-out orders. I stayed to burrow through the enormous mound of salad they give you here, and about a third of a large "board" pizza. (Olive oil, spicy capicola, garlic, onions, mozzarella, artichokes, fresh spinach, and feta; no tomato sauce.)
The reason I ordered a large is that I've become hooked on having a half-slice of pizza as lunch on busy days, and the one from Carmelo that I've been eating for two weeks is gone. Pizza Man's masterpiece holds up well, and my new toaster oven does a great job resuscitating pizza. Not as good as fresh out of the parlor's oven, but better than Stymie Brand Potted Frog Meat on a zwieback cracker.
Pizza Man Of Covington. Covington: 1248 Collins Blvd. (US 190). 985-892-9874.
