made in the shade

 We've had...a lot of rain lately.

Some torrential downpours.

It brought out the frogs...

grey tree frog

...ferns...

...and fungus.

oyster mushrooms

bolete rubellus

scaly shield mushroom

Our walking path has been littered with storm debris.

It's nice to NEVER have to water any plants.  Things are growing well!

Plenty of rabbits around to eat the foliage (poor early-morning cell pics).

The kittens (fearsome hunters) are keeping a close eye on this development.

See the rabbit just outside the window?  Our string trimmer has been broken so a lot of green has sprung up in the walking path around the house.  It's a common place for rabbits....with a convenient perch for rabbit hunters.

Some fun discoveries in the garden!  I love seeing ladybugs there, eating the aphids.  

Here's the empty molt of a young ladybug:

Here's a larva, eating the remains of its former exoskeleton:

Here's a milkweed beetle!

Cicadas are out and about...

And so are luna moths.  I was lucky to see this one...they only live for about a week!

Some other nice fliers...this eastern pondhawk dragonfly...

...and a southern spreadwing!

A few headaches this month...

...but it's been a little better...have been able to spend more time out in the sun...er, shade.

Some quality non-headache time inside, too.

I've even finished another puzzle!  Woo hoo! Two thousand pieces, a great challenge.

Hopefully more in the next few weeks.  Cool weather is coming!

hibernation tendon-cy

Photos that I've taken this week:  three.  

One, when we had a freakishly warm day and made Claudia come outside for some fresh air:

Two, when said warm day created beautiful ice cracks in the front pond:

And three, a really beautiful late-afternoon sky that I observed from INSIDE the house.

Late January is tough.  It's cold, and I don't like to be outside in the cold much.  It's grey and wet, and there's just not much to photograph.  Not much going on inside, either.  I've developed tendonitis in both Achilles tendons and both shoulders...so no repetitive-motion activities right now.  No sewing, no embroidery, no puzzles, and minimal lifting heavy camera lenses.  I've started physical therapy and am hoping to get back to normal activities - on a limited basis - within a week or so.  Meanwhile, I've looked at some old photos from the late fall that didn't make the blog cut.  Still, I think they're worth remembering.  When the flowers, the leaves, and the green grass has faded for the season, sometimes the fungus that remains can provide both color and interest.

crown-tipped coral fungus

pink-mottle woodwax

unknown fungus

slime puffball

cantharellus lateritius

mushrooms forcing up through a crack in the concrete

mushroom unknown

Now, this LOOKS like a fungus, but it's actually a wool-sower gall.

The wool sower is a type of wasp which lays eggs in white oak trees.  The larvae develop inside these woolly balls.  They don't hurt the oak trees, and I think the galls are quite pretty!  

I like seeing these interesting shapes and splotches of color during fall hikes.  Speaking of hikes, we've got a big one planned this week, so hopefully I'll have some photo diversity soon!

Until then, more cats...

...and trail cams.  This one is from early January...the date is incorrect on the video.  One, two, three raccoons!  We're also feeding a couple of raccoons on our front porch every night.  They're huge!!

Here's to more interesting times in the next week!  

what would you think if I sang out of tune...

Sometimes...when you've been cooped up with illness for too long...when the hateful political climate makes you want to buy a one-way ticket to Toronto...and when the rapidly-changing leaves remind you of the impermanence of the season...you just have to get outside. 

The COLORS.

I still had to triple-layer because of my cold nature...

...but it all worked out.  The leaves were beautiful, and so were the other little vignettes scattered around the path.  Here-and-gone acorns...

...mushroom clusters...

...and pale ferns that lit up the shadows.

I saw a very well-fed woolly bear caterpillar...

...and a pair of bluebirds.  The brightly-colored male is on the left. 

It was great to be outside again.  Sometimes you just need a little help from your friend...

...to make you forget your troubles! 

Have a great week!