The sunlight is coming through my bedroom window and the sky is a shade of blue that is foreign to LA, except after a rain shower, and usually in November.
This time of year makes me nostalgic for my childhood. It reminds of jumping into puddles at school and getting home drenched. My grandpa was an old school doctor and thought that rainy days should involve soup, cough medicine, bundling up with layers, and warm showers that weren’t too long. I love warm showers. I actually have to fight the urge to take scalding showers. If they didn’t make my eczema flare up, I’d probably damn near singe every hair on my body and I’d love every second of it.
There is nothing in the world like a hot meal. People hear that I’m vegan and immediately assume that I just chew on kale all day. This couldn’t be further from the truth. I actually don’t like salads. If I do have a salad, it has to have an element of warmth. Maybe some hot beans. Roasted chickpeas. Air fried tofu. Mmm. I’m hungry.
When I was a kid, I would warm up some top ramen and add ketchup and worchestire sauce to the broth. It was heaven. I’d sit by the window in the living room with my piping hot soup and listen to the rain fall or just listen to the traffic on the nearest busy street. California is the best because you can leave your house in rain gear and end your day in a tank top, soaking up the last bit of sun.
Thanksgiving prep! What a delight. Which reminds that I have to get on that. Vegan thanksgivings aren’t easy. I digress. Back to my childhood. The grocery stores would start carrying pumpkin everything. Turkey shaped sugar cookies with the frosting that made my teeth hurt. Honey baked ham. Candied yams (barf). Cranberry in a can that you just flip over onto a plate with all the ridges still on there. Don’t even slice it. Nobody’s gonna eat it. Christmas songs coming through the grocery story speakers, triggering everyone who doesn’t like being rushed into the holidays. A time before cell phones, so your grocery list was on a napkin or whatever you could find lying around before you left for the store. How did my family coordinate without the help of a group text? Did they call each other? I can’t remember.
I had a few sleepovers in November. Lots of pizzas were ordered. Ice cream was had. Movies were watched. Video games were played. Dance Dance Revolution fans, raise your hands and keep them up!
November is the buffer month before we gotta start wrapping things up and making resolutions for the next year. The summer sun still lingers, but it won’t be long before it doesn’t feel as warm. A trip to the beach still seems like a good idea – with a warm beverage, of course. A bike ride. A hike. A run in the aftermath of a good rain. A pumpkin spice latte, if you’re into that sort of thing. Some ramen. Some pho. Some caldo de res. A good book. A blanket. Shades drawn to let the hours of light in before the days start getting super short. That’s it. I’m going outside. The most beautiful days are definitely in November. IMHO.
this is EZ with friends 
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