Hello, November! Strange to see you so soon.

Um, hi...November? Is anyone else wondering how it is possible that 2011 is more than 80% over? It is the perfect time to go for an afternoon drive.

For those who did not know, I sold my car in early August and used my bicycle as my means of transportation from mid-August until late October. On Friday, though, I got a (new-to-me) car! I am really thankful that I got to spend my last semester in this little college town biking around everywhere and noticing things I normally wouldn't have in a car. But you better believe after all the Homecoming and Halloween festivities this past weekend, I took my car out and drove and drove and drove until I realized I was lost.

I rolled the windows down, turned my music way up, and sped through the back roads squealing at the bright pops of gold and red in the trees. (I did pull over to take this picture.) (And saying "pull over" always reminds me of Dumb & Dumber.) And while I really appreciate seeing things up close that would have passed me by if I had been in a car, it felt so good to drive a car and be able to go farther and explore more and explore longer.

I am a huge advocate for bike lanes now, however, and I hope to help as much as possible with the campaign before I leave. Biking in a city that isn't biker-friendly is tough!

Anyway. Cheers to November. I believe the month calls for lots of coffee, soups, the She & Him Christmas album, a trip to see my baby sister, and cozy scarves and boots (which, speaking of - my autumn/winter wish list is a mile long!)

Oh, and PS: is anyone participating in National Novel Writing Month? One of my roommates did it last year and it seemed interesting. I am a little intrigued. So perhaps add "writing a novel" to my November list?