I was surprised at how quickly the train ride went by, especially since it was 2 hours late (mudslide in Pennsylvania). 2 hours sitting in that rundown little old station in Raton wasn't so bad since I had knitting and a New Yorker magazine. There were plenty of other passengers waiting this time, too. I forgot to mention the ride to Raton - a brilliant fall day, blue-blue sky, snow covered mountain peaks (not just a dusting), bright yellow and purple flowers all the way down.

I did run into a couple in the dining car who spent time at Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival last summer and brought back memories of my summer spent there after high school. I'll have to explore that memory sometime .

But now I'm here, getting settled before getting back on my course tomorrow. I set out for a late afternoon walk up Edgemont to Franklin then over to the shopping district. A tree loaded with ripening pomegranates appeared to my left, then a budding gardenia beckoned, after that, roses that were as tall as me - then a persimmon tree and lots of lime trees, all bearing fruit. In and among all these plants that I recognized were ones I've never seen before and they all kept ushering me further along until I had quite a nice walk under my belt. I turned back down Los Feliz and stopped in at Jon's for some sandwich makings then headed home.

I love LA, especially this neighborhood I've adopted as a second home for a while.