Detail Diary, Vol #35

November | Frozen leaves and fractal trees

November 2025

Dear friend,

After an extended grace period of mild autumn, in which there were still roses in the Jardin des Plantes, November delivered us winter. We have white mountains and warm clothing is non-negotiable¹. Leaves hang on here and there, especially in the cones of street lamps where the artificial light extends the day. Other trees dangle the moon in their empty branches.

I’m preparing to leave Grenoble in just a few weeks. Every weekend I go to the city center to visit old haunts or hang out with friends, but mostly I try to be present in the stream of my routine, savoring each day and its horizons like one of the last few candies in the jar. I’m feeling sentimental. Two last posts I’m hoping to send out from Grenoble: a tour of the arboretum which has featured so heavily here, and a Goodbye France reflections post.

And then, with practically a snap of the fingers, we’ll be deep in Idaho-Utah winter. The next Detail Diary recap will come to you from those hoarfrosted plains and drifted valleys. That’s all I really know for now!

Meanwhile, read on for the Details…

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(There’s a good dog in the first “Park sightings” photo that may have been cropped out, so click if you’re dog-happy and want to see it…)

(The square cropping is really messing with the aesthetics of the instagram-style hot chocolate pic…maybe click and expand that one…)

Bonus: A fun bit of chain letter in which I share five of my favorite poets ~

And in case you missed it, the reason for my poetic frame of mind: an October poem-a-day project in the whimsical world of Paul Klee.

Preview of the first poem in the collection:

1. There’s a young guy living in a tent in the arboretum behind my office lately, and as the “vague de froid extrême” hit like a wall of ice in mid-November, I quietly freaked out when I saw that he seemed to be staying in spite of it (most rough sleepers in Grenoble stay near the city center where there are shelters and resources). I’ve never seen the guy in anything warmer than a sweatshirt. It’s hard to be whimsical about the changing seasons and celebrate the onset of cozy time when for others it’s an existential threat. I did what I could to find out about his situation and all I know is that local aid organizations are in contact with him.