I'm taking days off this week for a long fall break, and it looks like the garden has given me something to do with my time. To start, I'll make a batch of green tomato relish. Last year I had nearly a half-bushel when the first frost threatened, this year I have maybe 10 pounds. Enough to fill a few jars and tide me over till next fall. (I can't bear to pick them green when I know they have time to become ripe fruit - green tomato relish is a perfect remedy for this time of year.)

A batch of branches are chipped, and the larger ones are cut to a size to burn in a small makeshift outdoor fireplace that yesterday I put together as a test. If the size and location work, I'll get more bricks and build one that the dogs won't knock down during rough play. This was constructed with existing materials around the yard and house (the spare bricks, a couple of grill racks, sand, etc.) Decluttering through construction.