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!  

first snow glow

 First snow!  First snow!!

The day before, it was so warm that I was still seeing bees and butterflies.  It was almost too warm for our bonfire!

you've got to have marshmallows!

Then...temperature drop, and winter wonderland.

Even as a child, I knew that there was something special about the first snowfall.  The crisp air, the silence, the clean white landscape...and now that I'm older, I love the atmosphere that it creates within the house.  This weekend, there were lazy late breakfasts with two cuddly kittens and homemade quilts...

...long knitting sessions...and there's nothing better than a good book by the fire.  Winter always brings amazing sunrises/sunsets, too.   

For me, winter is a time to recharge, to release expectations and to slowly form new intentions.  I have greater focus and more compassion for myself. Gone is the persistent pressure to go go go. I let myself read more...knit more...and take long afternoon naps if work permits.  I bake bread and make thick, hearty soups.  I've always preferred winter clothing and love my hand-knitted sweaters and jeans.  It's a wonderful time.  Then, when I start feeling restless...when the cold begins to wear on me and I'm tired of grey and brown outside...it's usually about time for spring.

We're all excited about what the next months will bring.

Have a great week!

apple grapple

The last pumpkin.

We've had a few more beautiful frosts...

Winter is coming...quickly.  But still...ootheca!

Ootheca!

Ootheca!

I'm finding them everywhere.  And despite our rapidly-falling temperatures, I saw a praying mantis, alive and well, a couple of days ago!

Still seeing a few mushrooms...

I dug up my dahlia tubers this week and was pleasantly surprised.  I did not fertilize, stake, or in any way care for my dahlias this year - they grew and fell in my 'weed patch.'  I had to follow the flattened stems to their bases for the tubers.  Some vole damage, but still a nice crop.

I mowed the garden and will leave it as-is until spring, when I'll lay down paths again and pull up the dead weed stumps.

We picked as many apples as we could...I estimate around 50 pounds!  Good thing, because the wind picked up and most of the remaining apples dropped.

These apples draw deer out of the forest at sunset.

Those sunsets are spectacular!

Days are shorter, and cats everywhere are curling up on blankets.

In other news, we've been stocking up for the arrival of our new pup.

Truth:  as a homebody with generalized anxiety issues, big disruptions to the home environment land me into a funhouse-mirror alternate universe, where everything familiar is distorted and slightly sinister. Even knowing this, I've been struggling a bit with this new pup since she came home yesterday afternoon.  She isn't interested in toys, food, or treats.  When I try to take her outside, she just shudders against my ankles in the cold wind.  All of the training videos prepped me for a frisking, treat-loving pup that I could immediately start to train and bond with, and I'm at a loss with how to handle a puppy that only wants to lay quietly in my lap.  We're hoping that a little bit of time will draw her out.  I won't be able to relax until we're in a definitive and familiar schedule.

Enjoy the last bit of fall!