November 2nd

The October weather here in Suffolk was so mild that it's almost a surprise to be in November already, we missed both the named storms and although there was some wet weather it didn't cause any problems and hopefully has helped fill reservoirs and replenish ground water.

So now into November and the local long range weather forecast says mainly settled and dry in the first half of the month but with some foggy days that won't be very warm. More unsettled in the second half of the month....... but will we have really cold weather or ice?..............

   If there's ice in November to bear a duck

The rest of the winter is just mud and muck.

  

I googled November paintings and this come up, by Fidelia Bridges an American artist 1834-1923

Very atmospheric 

Autumn by John Clare (1793-1864)

 I love the fitful gust that shakes

The casement all the day,

And from the mossy elm-tree takes

The faded leaf away,

Twirling it by the window pane

With thousand others down the lane.

I love to see the shaking twig

Dance till the shut of eve

The sparrow on the cottage rig

Whose chirp would make believe

That spring was just now flirting by

In summer lap with flowers to lie

I love to see the cottage smoke

Curl upwards through the trees,

The pigeons nestled round the cote

On November days like these,

The cock upon the dunghill crowing,

The mill sails on the heath agoing

The feather from the ravens breast

Falls on the stubble lea

The acorns near the old crows nest

Fall pattering down the tree

The grunting pigs that wait for all

Scramble and hurry where they fall

November can be a grey month with fog and rain which is probably why Thomas Hood (1799 - 1845) wrote his well known November poem which starts

No sun, no moon,

No morn, no noon

No dawn, no dusk, no proper time of day;

No sky, no earthly view,

No distance looking blue.

And ends with

No shade, no shine, no butterflies, no bees,

No fruits, no flowers, no leaves, no trees.

November!

Thomas Hood was at that time a well known poet, publisher and humourist so I think his November poem was written very tongue-in-cheek, as surely November isn't that bad!