Naked Ladies (BY DANIELLE)

 Because my husband had not yet inserted his hearing aids, I announced, rather too
loudly, “The naked ladies are back!” The priest in his cassock at the church across the
street and quite a few neighbours looked up and then down to the corner of the street.
Some context. Naked ladies are fall crocuses which appear in the fall without the
greenery that first comes up in the spring - without the blooms. They are a sure
harbinger of autumn. And so is the Roncesvalles Polish festival which appears at the
end of my street with the loudest polka bands and the smelliest porta potties for a
weekend each fall --that feels like a month. I am sure my neighbours (and the priest)
thought that the band had brought some lively female entertainment. But no. They were
still Rolling Out the Barrel but hadn’t added to the melee on the street in quite that way.
Now I am not one to complain (oh, please! I certainly am. I even taught kids how to do
it!) but my preference is definitely for the quiet fall flowers over the polka bands every
time. Meanwhile, once he has adjusted his hearing (probably turning it off all together)
my husband and I will stroll down Roncesvalles in search of what our neighbours tell us
are the perfect pierogies. I hope everyone is having a happy autumn weekend. The
weather is glorious, whatever your preferences.