31 October 2015 - The End of Fall

It is Halloween today and I'm afraid that we are coming to the end of a beautiful fall. This October is now officially the hottest on record. Even today, the grass is lush and green, most of the trees are still green with the leaves just starting to turn yellow, the flowers in my pots are blooming madly, as are the roses. Even the tomatoes are still ripening on the vine. 

I feel like I am being shoved face first through the door into the next season. I am hanging on hard to the door jams, because I don't want to go. 

The time change tomorrow will make it dark an hour earlier. I feel like running into the night and hollering some Dylan Thomas:

  "Do not go gentle into that good night,
   Old age should burn and rage at close of day; 
   Rage, rage against the dying of the light."

So dramatic. But this year something has changed and I want fall to linger. I want the leaves to slowly change and fall, not get ripped off the trees by wind, rain and snow. I do not want to be flung into winter. 

But according to the forecasters, today is the end of fall as we have known it. Tomorrow the rain starts, followed by a week of possible snow. It does not seem possible. I have been running around like a crazy person. There is an awful lot to do in a short time:

• Turn off the outdoor water and drain the lines. 
• Drain hoses and put them away.
• Gather up the outdoor furniture and get it under shelter. 
• Roll up the hammock, bring the umbrellas in. 
• Move all the flower pots onto the porch so they can be enjoyed as long as possible. 
• Do some caulking
• Drain the fountain pool and remove the pump
• Hook up the extension cords for the heated birdbaths
• Mulch the tender plants for the winter
• Clean up the vegetable garden and pick the rest of the tomatoes and chard
• Mow, again.
• Get the indoor plants that have summered outside ready to come back in. 
• I always like to get all the windows washed before everything is buttoned up for winter. This may wait for the next nice day. Please...let there be one. 

And that is just the tip of the iceberg. October has been so gorgeous for so long I haven't been able to bring myself to even start thinking about this until today. 

I had to make a run to the hardware store. Driving home I noticed two of my neighbors busily working on hanging Christmas lights and putting roping up. Really? On October 31? Most people around here do that on Thanksgiving weekend. 

I started this day with plans to work in the shop, but the weather report made me reevaluate that idea. So far I have everything done on my list except the windows, the vegetable garden clean up and I didn't quite get all the mowing done. Although I did have help. My brother came and helped me drain the pipes and pull the pump. This was followed by dinner and another game of Scrabble in our continuing competition. 

 Not a bad day's work. 

26 October 2015 - Hitchhikers

I have been thinking about hitchhikers lately. Not the kind you see on the freeway with a thumb sticking out, but other kinds. 

There are four reservoirs within 30 miles of my home where I often go for birding. Just last weekend I hit three of them. The entrances to the boat ramps have signs saying if your boat has been in certain lakes, it has to be decontaminated before it can be launched. Seems there is a problem with hitchhikers--in this case quagga mussels. 

I am trying to make my own yard more bird and insect friendly. This fall I have been collecting seeds of wild plants--particularly milkweed. Monarchs are in decline due to the loss of their food source. Round-up ready crops are killing milkweed, not to mention the suburbanization of the rural areas. I am planting several large patches of milkweed to help the monarchs. 

Today I stopped at patch of milkweed where the seeds were bursting out of their pods. I was admiring the seeds, as they really are stunning. If your timing is right and there is a breeze it is fun to watch each little parachute being blown out of the pod. 

I took a closer look and saw the stem was covered with aphids. 

Decided I really didn't want to bring these into my own yard. 

 Looking even closer I realized that each little seed and parachute had hitchhikers that would be carried away with the seed. I don't need to be aiding and abetting these little hitchers. So I ran my fingers up and down the stems smishing as many aphids as possible. Just my small contribution. 

It isn't just mussels and aphids that hitchhike, it is all kinds of seeds, especially now in the fall. Here are some hitchers I got home with after a birding trip. 

These are cockleburs. Extremely prickly, and they can really hold on tightly. Their flower is pretty, but the seeds make them less desirable, in my opinion. These go right in the garbage can when I extricate them from my laces. 

I really feel for this cow who is covered with hitchhikers. These cockle burs will work their way through the hair down to the skin. Ouch! 



Another hitcher that is ubiquitous in the fall are the flat sticky seeds of cynoglossum. These get in your socks and are almost impossible to get out. The plant is attractive and the flower spikes of dark reddish purple flowers are showy. 

I made the mistake of letting it grow in my yard for the flowers. Now I seek and destroy all the plants in the spring. If the seeds can't reach your socks they will cling onto your laces and glue them together. 

Another hitcher is called Goat's Head. This little seed is so spiny that it can actually puncture bicycle tires. Think what this can do to an unsuspecting dog's foot.  I don't know if they have any effect on horses or cows, but man, they are nasty. The plant grows so flat on the ground that it becomes invisible, blending in with or under other vegetation. 

These are just a few of the hitchers that get carried around by people, animals, the wind, boats--you name it. But it does make you stop and think just how far stuff can spread by hitching a ride. 

13 October 2013 - Fleet Week Air Show

I was in San Francisco last weekend. When I went I had no idea it was Fleet Week, which brings more than a million people down to the waterfront. I was at the waterfront looking for birds, but found a whole new kind of birds--motorized birds performing incredible stunts. This was the first air show I have ever seen and I must say I enjoyed it immensely. 

The finale featured the Blue Angels who were absolutely amazing. 

It started with the Navy Leap Frogs Parachute Team jumping out of an old prop plane.

First  out was a guy who unfurled a huge American flag. His flag was four times as large as his parachute. He was followed by the team who linked up in the air. 

When the three of them linked up it was hard to imagine why the parachutes didn't tangle. 

Not sure what this plane was, but it was small and fast.

Because the show was on the SF Bay, there was a US Coast Guard Rescue demonstration. From my vantage point, it was behind some trees so I didn't see much.   

Next up was the Red Star Pilots Formation Team...

followed by Michael Wiskus in a small plane that spun straight down creating beautiful spirals. 

His acrobatic exploits were followed by the Patriots Jet Team. The surprise here was that this is a civilian team. Wow. 

Stuff to make your hair stand on end. 

Oh yeah, then they all fly upside down. 

Unbelievably there was a 20 minute commercial for United Airlines who sponsored the event. A former flight attendant extolled all the virtues of United while a 747 lumbered in three slow circles over the Bay. It was funny in an odd way. 

Nearing the end, we have Sean Tucker flying the Team Oracle biplane. He executed many straight up flights, then the plane would stall out and plummet before the engines started again. These guys definitely have a screw loose. He flew upside down, too. 

Finally it was time for the big finale. The Blue Angels are everything you can imagine and more. They burst over the Bay, out of the smoke in a roar of noise accompanied by nonstop breath-taking action. I didn't even realize I was holding my breath until I had to gasp for air. Whew. 

Seriously crazy.

And since one up, and one upside-down wasn't enough, they tried it with two up and two upside down. 

They go up...

Then come back upside-down. 

Full speed runs past each other, both upside down. 

From this...

 to this.

And this...

to this spiral explosion.

And finally, this

to this lovely fleur de lis.

I was exhilarated and exhausted by the time they were through. I would definitely do this again. 

6 October 2015 - Invasion of the toadstools

It's October when many people start decorating for Halloween. I am not one of them because I am too busy trying to hang onto summer to worry about it. However my yard thinks otherwise and has decided to create seasonal decorations of its own: toadstools. 

They are showing up around the yard. All kinds, in a wide variety of locations. Creepy!