A Closer Look at Ottoman

This Year, It's the Thanksgiving Cactus

My Christmas Cactus gave it's best show yet this year, however on Thanksgiving rather than Christmas.

Bird's Nest Fungus

I first spotted this fungus, I believe, in the spring. I noticed that the fungi looked like yellow lentils on the ground. Then, over the summer, I spotted brown cups on some of the bark chips and Jenny reminded me of those lentil-looking fungi...of course! This fall, on closer inspection, I saw little seeds or spores in the cups. Then, I happened to find a vintage book I had been pining for at Powell's during a quick weekend get-away.

There it is, Common Bird's Nest. If you're observant, you'll notice that the subtitle of the book is dated, but still, the book is a gem. On a wee bit of further research, I learned that there are five species of Bird's Nest Fungus and I'm not totally sure yet if the one I found is still called Common Bird's Nest. Those "eggs" it notes are peridioles that contain the spores.

I'm starting to achieve my goal of "mushroom" hunting for the fall.

Too Late

We didn't make it back to the paper wasp nest until after the first rain storm (and I wanted to wait until it was cold enough for the nest to be vacated, but it just didn't get cold). I was able to retrieve most of the paper however. It was the perfect nest too, not too big and beautifully built. Maybe next year (I think I've said this two years in a row).

I started a bit of a "to do" list for the fall in order to remind myself to enjoy the most of the season. It isn't always easy because workaday life just happens. This list, however, has been helpful indeed:

1. go to a pumpkin patch

2. carve said pumpkin

3. go mushroom hunting (disclaimer: I'm really not an aficionado, I just think the forms are beautiful and I love to photograph them. Maybe I should start learning more....)

4. Hike! (this one is tricky because my family really only has one day a week to do this and it rains a lot in the Pacific Northwest...no, I'm not a rough-and-tumble hiker...I like fair weather)

5. Get hot cocoa mix: regular and spicy

6. hang leaves on the wall with washi tape

7. get or make one great new Halloween decoration

8. get lots of local apples

9. eat lots of types of winter squash

Not too bad! The pumpkin patch was built-in a bit since it was a school field trip and my parents took care of the Halloween decoration by finding something at a vintage store for me. There is a vendor at the local farmers' market that has a variety of apples that change each week depending on what is ready to be picked and they are organic; it's been wonderful. I have been eating delicata squash, but I have a butternut and, I believe, a kikuza in que. I'd like to get a couple more...and it would be fun to do a taste test, but baking and eating them all at once by myself isn't going to happen....It would be a fun fall dinner party idea though!

Where the Fox Lives

Our resident fox, who makes herself known by her ocassional repeated hoarse yelp, lives in a den made of blackberry brambles. I often wonder about the extent of her tunneled network, yet the mysteriousness of it all (I've only seen her once or twice in these four years) is rather enchanting.

I'm still slowly working on the new work. As of yet, it's mostly non-visual work, but I will share when there is something picture-worthy.