2023

It sprinkled off and on for hours last night... It was so nice to lie in bed and listen to it!!

Yesterday's rain accumulated to 0.15 inches and after midnight we got 0.07 more.

Oh look! How very migratory for the first of September! *laughs*

They weren't honking like Canada Geese, I think they are Cackling Geese. They winter here in big flocks and I'm happy to see them.

hmm. Is this the same Hummer I've been seeing lately? I wonder if he's going to make a territory in the Community Garden?

He looks like a girl, lacking the black feathers on his face that would be iridescent in the light. But I think he's just a juvenile and hasn't got his adult plumage yet.

I hope he's successful in defending a territory here!!

There's a good sized Zuc I need to bring home. And that's the Butternut vine, with a flower!

Soybeans!

Okay, here's today's work. I've forked and weeded a bit more of the front garden square. And then I sowed some Fava in the dirt to the right of the stick...

As I was working, Becca our Garden Coordinator, walked by with a coworker. They were accessing the plots and doing compliance checks and Becca stopped to chat. What'cha up to? she asked.

I'm preparing for a cover crop! I announced. Oh, she was excited! *laughs*

And when she and her companion had moved on... A Snake came from the path into my plot, just a few feet right in front of me!! How Awesome!!! Just a little skinny one, maybe 2 feet long! Oh, I wished I had the camera ready, but she was too quick.

A sunflower drooping over the 2nd Cucumber Empire, full of borage and Tomatillo blooms.

With the bit of rain we had on Thursday and thru the night, I feel like I can let the garden go without watering, even tho it's hot again today at 88°F (31°C). I need a break, and I head out to the river!

There's some haze today. And some Vultures. :)

Looking straight down from the bridge, I see this fellow napping. He's a Manky Mallard and aren't his feathers beautiful?!

And then I walk thru the Delta Ponds, but this Gadwall is about the only bird I see. Weird that it's so empty out here today.

I'm happy to see a good sized Western Pond Turtle, our native species! The two at the bottom are very invasive Red Ear Sliders.

Ah! Here we are... there's a few birds hanging out at the big back pond. Most are far away, and the Great Egret looks cool out there, the photos don't do justice. And then I see a Green Heron at the Beaver lodge!

Ha, a fledgling...

Ah! Such a lovely day!

I get to Owosso walking bridge and suddenly decide to go across and see if I can find the Osprey platform nest. I noticed that it was being used this year, but I've only seen it from the other side of the river.

On the way, this one flies by and settles in a tree...

She or He is a Red Tail Hawk, and they've caught someone! But the photo is too crappy, and I can't tell who they've killed.

And then I find the Osprey platform nest. haha, I can hardly miss it with this fledgling begging so loudly!

But this is so cool! The path goes right underneath the platform nest! And with a successful nest, the parents will be sure to return here next year.

Too bad it's so far away from where I usually park... around 2.75miles. The nest across from the Rose Garden is about ¼mile from parking and the nest at the Downtown Riverfront Park is maybe 1½miles. So this one is a bit of a trek to come out and visit.

There's a second fledgling who is taking turns with their sibling with the begging! There's no sign of the parents tho... they are probably thinking those kids should start hunting for themselves!

I wander around, but don't go quite far enough to visit Pluto. On the way back... laughs.

Look at all the berries! It's a Blue Elderberry tree.

Aww! This is nice to see...

And then he passed by me on his eScooter, and I find him again!

And then these two...

Wow, aren't they just beautiful!!

I'm back at the garden today, and I'm excited to pick the very first Crookneck! There are several more on the way, too!

Note to self: If you ever plant a Striped German tomato plant again, pick fruits when they are orange... red is too far gone!

I should really think about picking this Slicer Cucumber soon, too. I just love how all these plants have come together in the 2nd Cucumber Empire...

The Volunteer Tomatillos are sprawling all over the place. Top left corner, you can barely see an Amaranth bloom. It's a volunteer too. Top middle is a couple of Crookneck Squash leaves and to the right is a living Fava and then a stalk which has lived out it's life and is now releasing the next generation of Fava beans. And on the far right is a Fava with some green pods.

And the Tomatillos are so photogenic!

Okay! Today's work! I've finished forking and weeding the front part of the garden square! Look at that nice, boring dirt!

I've also managed to hurt my hand. Actually, all of my fingers are kind of achy and sore from the digging I've been doing. But my right pointer finger. Ugh. There's something wrong with it. Sheesh.

The smaller volunteer Sunflower growing in the Wax Bean patch has fallen over. I know how you feel, buddy.

And there's just smaller blooms left on the big volunteer Sunflower.

As I'm leaving the Community Garden, my eye is drawn to these Lemon Yellow Sunflowers again, in a neighboring plot. I just love them!

Some nice clouds again today and the forecast says 40% chance of rain in the morning, again. It's awkward with my rain jacket stuffed into my small backpack, and it would be terrible if I actually had to put it on if it started raining... it would be a sauna! But I would do it, if I had to protect the camera!

Ha! How Cute! House Finches all in a row!

I start out clearing a new area in front of the Tofu patch.

Look at those deep cracks in the dirt! This was a wild area, and I've not watered it at all this summer!

The Soybeans are happily surrounded by blooming Borage. And the little pods are coming right along!

But then I decided to start gathering some Fava Beans from last year's cover crops...

It's not very easy to get the beans out of their pod... they really want to stick in there! I guess I need to work on my de-podding technique!

And you see the bean with the drill hole? That was made by a Fava Weevil as she or he came out of the bean.

The eggs are laid on the outside of the pod, and after the babies hatch out, they make their way into a bean. They eat just the tiniest little bit from the energy stores inside the bean. And then they transform into their adult beetle self, and come out of the bean, thru that hole.

There were a few Weevil Beetles coming out and being clumsy youngsters as I opened pods. But they each got their bearings pretty quickly and flew away! Good Luck, Little Fava Bugs!

:) They don't do much damage to the Fava Beans, and the beans are still viable. I am happy to support bugs!

I happened to find two overly ripe Lemon Cucumbers!

I wander thru the Community Garden a bit before I leave.

Eggplants! Aren't they Pretty!

I am not a huge fan of Eggplants as food, but I've tried to grow them a couple times. Invariably, there's a cold night after I plant them, and they die.

But they are so pretty! I think next year I will try again.

On the way home... Some rose hips of our wild and native Nootka Roses. They were planted along the creek to prevent erosion.

A few leaves of the Red Osier Dogwood are changing.

And a wild Apple Tree. I guess Nature is eager to move along from late summer to early autumn.

Good Morning My Dear.

At the garden I begin with a wander about.

I don't know what these things are, but they are pretty.

Oh wow, these Garden Pinks are really fancy!

Oh cool! This is some kind of wasp, I think. But look at her beautiful eyes!!

Okay! Here I am at my own garden plot. The Early Girl is still doing stuff!

I've gathered some more Fava Beans today. They seem a bit more buggy than the batch I did yesterday... you can see several beans in the bag with the Fava Weevil drill holes. Happy Bugs!

Oh, Mx Crow. haha. I don't mean to laugh at her, but she's molting on her head and it makes her look all scraggly and pathetic!

I've brought back the bags of Fava Beans, that I had gathered the last couple of days. There are a couple of Fava Weevils who have emerged from their bean and who were trapped in the zip lock!

I'm setting them free in the garden so they can work on the next generation. They each pause for a moment when they realize they are free to go. Just getting their bearings. Or maybe just saying See ya around! And then they fly away.

My pics aren't great. But I'm sure I'll get the chance to try again!

I've only brought my small back pack, but I decide to haul home another Spaghetti Squash. It fits! I think there are 13 Spaghetti Squashes all together from the two vines I had in the garden square!

I had hurt my finger, the other day, digging in the dirt. It's gotten more annoying. And it turns out... holding a pen and writing? Ack! The last joint of my pointer finger pops randomly and painfully when I'm writing.

So this isn't good. I like to write! I write postcards or a letter most every day! And this popping thing is so uncomfortable and distracting. ugh.

Yep, just need to take a break from the garden and look at something different. Today is a very pleasant 79°.

You got the mange? Oh, I guess it's the beginnings of Avian Pox. Poor Baby.

oh sheesh. I looked behind me and apparently I had walked right past this beautiful one. ha.

I walk back but now the sun is in the wrong place for pics. Oh well. I count feet and see we've got all of them. *laughs* I wonder if I will ever again see that Vulture with the missing foot.

I miss Blazey. sighs.

oh no... Is Neighbor Bob the guy with the prosthetic leg? He used to come out here to the bridge to smoke and greet all the passersby.

Sighs.

Here's something I've not seen before... a Wild Squash! It's growing on the other side of the creek. I wonder who will eat that tiny little squash that's forming.

Some Autumn Crocuses. They aren't actually related to crocuses and they are pretty toxic, to boot. They are also called Naked Ladies because they come up without any leaves.

This huge thing is still blooming. The size of this flower is just crazy... it's well over a foot across!

This water feature delights me. Looks like it used to pour water from the top two containers. It's probably some work to maintain it.

Here's a fun article that amused me!

∞ The Guardian: As a scientist, I did a self-experiment to compare a vegan diet with eating meat. Here’s what I found out. Some studies suggest vegans are healthier if more depressed, slimmer but unpopular. Still, veganism works for me.

Ha. Yeah, we are depressed because we face the fact that animals are murdered by the billions. And we are unpopular because, just by existing, we remind people that animals are murdered by the billions.

And... not to be pedantic or anything. But it's not a vegan diet. If you are just eating to be healthy, you call it a Plant-Based Diet.

Being Vegan is a life-style that influences every part of your life, not just the food you eat! It's totally about doing less harm to the animals and to the environment.

A squirrel greets me right out the door.

I crouch down and we look at each other. I wonder what she thinks.

Ha, there's a squirrel at the garden, too!

This one is probably thinking, Do you mind? I've got a feast here in front of me, and I'd really like to eat now!

I gathered some more Fava Beans today, and then I gathered some veggies! A good selection today, since I had let it go for a couple!

The second Crookneck Squash is a good size. And yep, those are still a couple of Sugar Snap Peas. It's crazy to get peas in September... but I planted the seeds on Jun and they did their thing!

When I was looking for Tomatillos to bring home, I found this. Someone had eaten just the husk, and not the fruit. odd.

Typical.

This young fellow is hanging out in the neighboring plot again!

It would be really nice to have a hummer here again. Singing to me and watching over me. :)

Here's the section I'm going to tackle today. It's at the back of the plot, and the Roma Tomatoes belong to the plot neighbor behind ours.

I move the extra tomato cages and I pull out the spent Fava and a little bit of Borage. And I shove the end of the Sweet Potato vine out of the way. And then I hand fork and pull out grass roots.

There were so many Fava Beans in the dirt, which had fallen from the spent Fava plants! I won't need to plant any more here. I think I can just start watering it and this little square will flourish with cover crop!!

I pull one fat yellow Zucchini to take home and then I take a few photos in the plot diagonal from ours. That guy's peppers are just so photogenic!

I got an email today celebrating my 15th Anniversary with Postcrossing! HA! I have sent 507 postcards over the years and I am still active, every once in a while.

It averages to 34 postcards every year. About 2.8 postcards per month. For 15 years. Not too shabby.

I do feel like I should update my profile there tho. Nothing's changed and everything on the profile is accurate. Just maybe a face lift would be nice. :)

∞ RiftVegan at Postcrossing

My little hummer Supervisor is still here, again today! But I could not get my act together with the camera. *laughs* oh well.

The Tofu Patch is coming right along!

Hauling home another Spaghetti Squash. The SunGolds have slowed to the point where I'm only eating a little handful at the garden, no extra to bring home. There's still plenty of Early Girl tomatoes, but we've got loads at home already... Gotta get to eating them!

I just adore these lemon yellow Sunflowers!

And then I met this cute fellow on the way home.

I couldn't decide which portrait I liked better!

This is looking down the Comm Garden path that our plot is on... There is a stylized Sun sculpture hanging from the fence at the end. The Sunchoke growing in the path is from a plot that's diagonal, across the path, from ours. Annoying, right?!

I am gathering Fava beans again today. This batch is from the patch in the back that I cleared yesterday... And they are bigger and much healthier looking than any other Fava beans I've gathered so far! Hardly any Fava Weevil holes.

The Monster Spaghetti Squash that was growing in the front garden square! I'm going to haul it home today. It is SO stinkin' heavy!

But then I weighed it... It's actually only 4pounds 8.6oz, just barely over 4½pounds. I thought for sure it was well over 5 pounds. Oh well, not quite the monster I thought it was. It will still taste yummy!

On the way out of the garden, I came across this lovely one. A Millipede!

I had to look up the difference... Millipedes have four legs per segment, two on each side. Centipedes have two legs per segment, one on each side. Also Centipedes have very long antennas, and Millipedes have short ones.

This one seems to be missing a leg or two, up front. I hope it doesn't bother them too much. It's fun watching them walk along, so coordinated and beautiful like a wave!

But here's what I was actually going to take pics of, when I crouched down... Fava seedlings coming up in the garden square! Yay!

I planted those on Sept1 and I'm so happy to see them coming to life!

I am looking at 9/11 stuff, and I find this cool thing... They had found a Pear tree, buried in rubble at Ground Zero, and they replanted it and the poor thing came back to life!

Aw, I love the video... poem read by Whoopi (she will always be Guinan of Star Trek TNG to me *smiles*). Go check it out, it's beautiful!

∞ Survivor Tree

And from that tree...

∞ Survivor Tree Seedling Program

Wow! This is awesome! But dang, must be so hard to choose which communities get a baby survivor tree. *shakes head*

I walked on past the garden today, and noticed this beautiful flower bed. I just love the colours!

And then I met a Devils Coach Horse!

I love these bugs! They are quite big, about an inch long. And usually quite curious about the human who has crouched down to look at them. :)

But this one was upset about something when I came across her. She calmed down and glanced at me. But then a bike went by and she was upset again!

They pretend to be a scorpion when they get upset, but they don't have anything poisonous. Careful, tho! They do have stink glands and plus, they will bite!

They are carnivores who occasionally eat slugs... I wonder how to invite a pair into my garden plot! heh.

I do stop at the garden, on the way home, to water my happy baby Favas!

In the afternoon, I'm reading on my Kindle and I pause to go get a snack. When I come back... the Kindle won't turn on. The little power light doesn't come on and nothing happens.

I try plugging it in, even tho I fully charged it last night. Nothing. I plug it into the computer, to see if I can access the files. Nothing. It's dead.

Sighs. But I'm not even upset. I think I got the Kindle in 2010, maybe? It's old. It's had a good life. I guess I can get a new one...

I get on the computer but instead of looking at new Kindles at amz... I ask Dr. Google if there's anything I can do!

Yep!

∞ My Kindle is charged but will not turn on

Ha! This is just some random forum, but it holds the answers to reviving my Kindle!! (I've got the Kindle Keyboard, the original. It's not the exact edition that is discussed at the forum, but it was close enough!)

Basically hold the power button ON for 30 to 40 seconds and that should reboot it.

Mine didn't reboot, so I tried the next thing, holding down Alt+R for a bit.

Yay! The power button light came on and was green!

It took about 10mins or so to completely reboot. The book I was reading had disappeared, but I just re-downloaded it.

And it's FIXED! For today at least! And I know what to do if it dies like that again!

The cloudy morning eventually turns into another nice, late summer day of 84°. This one is just getting started with his morning calisthenics...

Stretch!

Stretch! Oh, yeah, that feels good!

Peck! *laughs*

I get to the garden, and there's a fight happening!!

Oh my gosh! A Rufous Hummingbird was fighting with my new Garden Supervisor (a young male Anna Hummingbird).

This is crazy. The Rufous lands on the preferred perch... it's really nice up there... you can see all around and it's close to the red blooming beans with good nectar. But this is unacceptable! My Anna chases him away!

But Rufous will not go, he swings around and sits on the good perch again! My Anna is mad!

*laughs* The Rufous is Totally messing with my Supervisor! Totally! Because the Rufous is migrating! He's heading down to a lovely place in Mexico! He's got a long ways to go, but here he is, making trouble instead! haha! Silly Rufous!

Meanwhile, my little Supervisor is having a little conniption fit! But actually, it's good practice for him to defend his territory like this. The Rufous will move on soon, and my Anna will have won! By default only, but he's a kid, he probably doesn't know that! :)

While I was watering, this one stood on the ground in the next plot and watched me for like five minutes. Then, she climbed up on this trellis...

And pointedly ignores me while she stuffs her face with sunflower seeds!

Aww, her hand! *laughs*

Taking home a good sized Zuc, possibly the last one tho there's a few tiny ones on the plant. And, the Butternut has two blooms on the end of it's vine... will there be enough warm weather left in the season for them to do anything?? Doubtful, but hope springs eternal!

There will be more migrating birds here soon! I look forward to seeing our winter visitors.

Good Morning, Squirrely!

And Good Morning, Other Squirrely! This is one of Falkor's Squirrels.

I've not seen Falkor or her Companion in ages, and I miss them. Do Crows migrate? Hmm... *Partial migration* - where some individuals within a population migrate and some don't - is common among birds.

So, okay. They needed a change of scene and headed out like snow birds! I hope they have fun there! And they should be back again in the spring!

I'm walking on past the garden again, to have a change of scene myself.

Here's a new dragonfly. But oh, what's the matter with your wings? He seemed to be flying okay, but poor guy, it probably hurts.

He's a Variegated Meadowhawk. They are common all across the US and southern Canada. Here, they usually migrate down, along the Oregon coast in the fall!

It's funny to think about bugs migrating. But Monarch Butterflies do it so well!

On the way back, I stop at the garden to water. Tofu patch is doing it's thing!

I have to look hard for a single Tomatillo. There's zillions of them but they take a while to ripen up, so right now I'm just getting one or two at a time.

I didn't like the taste of Tomatillos when I first tried it. It's very Lime-y. But when you throw it in with tomatoes and other stuff, it's a ... interesting compliment flavor... and texture! It's crisp and has a crunch! Anyway, it's kind of growing on me. :)

It's been over a week and a half since I injured my finger and it doesn't seem to be getting better. I'm avoiding ever more activities which might hurt...

Specifically, I'm taking days off from writing. And it just makes me sad to not send any mail. So this state of affairs cannot continue!

Last night, I asked the Internets about some exercises or something that would help. And I discovered that I have Trigger Finger. Ha! The bump is called a nodule, where the tendon or the sheath it's running thru is swollen and making things not work right.

Fortunately my problem isn't so bad that my finger is actually triggering. The tendon is just popping in a painful way.

Healing will come with rest, and ibuprofen will help with the swelling. So, I'm doing the right thing by avoiding activities.

And maybe I will make myself a brace, to keep the joint from popping while I write. Because I just have to write!

It's been heating up again and it'll be 94°F today, when normal for this time of year is 79°. That's okay, cooler temperatures are in the forecast! It'll be down to the mid-70s after the weekend, and I'm looking forward to it!

Oh! The Vulture again! But this time, I didn't walk past her!

I walk back to the garden to water everybody on this hot day. The bees are humming, and I have to rescue two of them from getting hosed down! The second one climbs up my sleeve and is able to clean herself and dry off. She flies away after about five minutes. But this one...

This one had a wing plastered down and it took a long time to dry! She just hung out on my hand and patiently waited. I kept watering and held my hand up so my little friend would stay in the sun as I moved around.

And. It's very tricky, trying to take photos with the left hand! Haha! Eventually she dried off, and her wing came free. She cleaned herself up and flew to a nearby Borage to rest for a little bit longer.

Most of the Early Girls I got today had a bit of Blossom End Rot. It's just the skin that looks yucky tho... you just cut it off and the fruit under is good to eat!

SunGolds have decided to try a couple more blossoms after all!

And sporting a tiny fly!

I wish I knew more about bugs. I did a little google, and Look!

∞ Coursera: Bugs 101 Insect-Human Interactions

A class about bugs!! This is awesome. I don't know a thing about Coursera, so I'll have to do some research... it says Enroll for Free, but then Financial aid available. So I'm not sure what that means. But I'm very interested! I will look into it!

And then, walking home... One more bug!

The Woolly Bear was walking across the bike path, typical, and I stopped to scoop her up to move her into the grass. A lady jogging with a stroller went by and asked What do you have there?

A Woolly Bear! I announced.

When the caterpillar climbed up into my hand, I stood and showed them to the woman.

Oh! How Cute! she said. Thank you for saving him!

:) I moved off the bike path and I let the Cute One stride off my hand, and into the grass.

Still with the overly warm days, it's 88° today. But Autumn is arriving, here and there.

Someone still leaves cat food on Blazey's Throne. It's like leaving an offering for the god. :)

... The Deity of the bike path, protecting travelers and lifting the spirits of those who pass by with kitty energy!

Soybean pods are getting bigger! The pink is Smartweed blooms, a native wildflower.

After watering, I go looking for a couple of Tomatillos.

As I'm about to leave, I happen to notice a little ruckus in the new winter cover crop area... oh my gosh, it's Yellow Jackets attacking a Honey Bee!

I briefly think about trying to rescue the bee. But no, this is silly... The Honey Bee is an invasive species, the Yellow Jackets are the ones who belong. Plus, the Yellow Jackets will be feeding this bee to their babies!

More Yellow Jackets come to watch the attack with me...

Adult Yellow Jackets only eat sugar: nectar and your coke at the picnic. But the babies are fed meat, and this is what the Yellow Jackets are doing this time of year... feeding the kids!

Another offering at the bike path.

A little bit of colour in the trees out there!

*laughs* Yep, the same Sunflower as yesterday. I obsess! Plus, the curls of the spent Comfrey blooms on the right side, kind of delight me. :)

The above is the third Butternut growing on the plant. And here's Butternut #1, nestled under the invading SunGold!

The lemon yellow Sunflower that I love has fallen over. That's okay. I can still take pics!

On the way home. It's surprising that there are still blackberries around to be eaten. Probably the rain we had at the beginning of the month revived the vines enough to keep making berries.

and Probably very annoying for the people who try to control this aggressive invasive!

Cooler weather is still in the forecast for this coming week!

Autumn is my favorite season... but I'm a little bit sad to see this summer start to wind down. I worked so hard at the garden plot, and I've been so happy with everything going on and all the veggies I've gotten to bring home!

Aziraphale: Oh, Crowley. Nothing lasts forever.

(Wai!!! Such a brilliant scene there at the end of Season 2 of Good Omens! So well done. It's not just sunflowers I'm obsessed about... it's this show, as well!)

A most delightful 75° today... maybe autumn has broken the hot weather spell of summer.

Wow, Kitty. You'd think there would be a less precarious way to do this. But I get it! You're a dare devil! Living on the edge! *laughs*

I walk by this flower display again, and I just can't help myself with the photos.

Wow, the camouflage is almost perfect with this one!

I stop by the garden to water, since yesterday was still pretty warm.

As I'm leaving, I realize there's a Pea plant growing at the edge of the garden square where I had planted the Fava winter cover crop! Ha! Where did he come from?

*laughs* I am such a sucker for taking photos of the roses!

I decide to have some fun with the shiny Heron!

Aw, there's a little group of Cedar Waxwings, but I can't get any good pics.

Looking upriver at Interstate 5.

Oh! ha! I only ever see Downy Woodpeckers, and I was starting to think that we didn't have any Hairy Woodpeckers.

It's a nice cool morning, it'll just be 72°F today. And I load up my backpack with my hand tools before I head out the door.

The Song Sparrows have been quiet for a while... I think they molt after their nesting and they have to keep a low profile for that. But I've been hearing their Jeep. Jeep. Jeep. contact call again for the last week or so!

The clouds are coming and going, but the sun comes thru.

Here's what I'm going to work on this morning. This is the front left of my plot, to the left is Mia's plot, my good neighbor. She hasn't gardened this year, but that's okay.

I've chopped the little Comfreys coming up along the border, and cleared out the wildflower life, down the edge of my plot.

The downed Sunflower is flopped over a small Comfrey in the front. And then the Wax Bean patch is in the middle of the pic. I carefully weeded there, too, and found a couple beans to take home.

On the other side of the beans, is a huge Comfrey. I've decided to get rid of it. It's annoying to have something so big right in the middle of everything... it's probably taking up 5 or 6 square feet. It's messing up the feng shui.

The smaller Comfrey in the front is better placed, and I'll keep it and maybe let it get bigger, if it wants to.

The Tofu patch is starting to get yellow leaves underneath.

In the garden square, behind the Sugar Snap Peas... I don't know what this is, but I think it's kinda pretty.

I really need to clear off more tomatoes from the Early Girl! But with my hand tools in my small backpack, there's not enough room to haul stuff home.

I'm taking a bucket of grass roots and weeds, pulled up from my plot, to the Community Garden compost heap. And there's a guy outside, on the bike path. He's got a skateboard, but he doesn't look like your usual skateboarder... he's very round and probably mid-30s.

I get the feeling that he's new to skateboarding and doesn't want to embarrass himself by actually getting on! *smiles* He's got a helmet... and is wearing flip-flops. *shakes head* Humans are stupid in all kinds of interesting ways!! *laughs*

I smile and nod at him on my way back. It's a beautiful garden! he declares. And I agree, wholeheartedly. I was just reading about a garden this morning.

I should be thrilled to run into someone who likes to read! But something about his tone, sets me on edge.

He continues. The Garden of Eden, Genesis blah blah blah

Great. That's just great. My feelings must have been plain on my face, but he's on a roll and keeps talking.

I walk on past, glad the Community Garden fence is between us. I suppose he stops talking at some point, but who knows.

I don't mind having a conversation about religion. I love learning about other points of view. It's interesting hearing about people's crazy beliefs.

With the Jehovah's Witnesses I do try to be patient with them... they do ask questions, but aren't really interested in your answer. But the cult they are in is terrible, especially for women, and I don't want to add to their troubles.

But I despise evangelists. They aren't interested in a conversation. They just want to blast you with their bullshit.

Good Morning, My Dear!

I just got started on the bike path when a biker coming up behind me says, Good Morning! Oh! It's the guy with the peanuts in the shell! *laughs*

He starts whistling for his corvids to come down and get a treat. Sure enough, they come!

It was so, so chilly last night... I kept my window open, above my bed but I had to pull out the quilts! I wonder if it killed any of the plants at the garden.

Just outside the Community Garden, look! Juvenile Golden Crown Sparrows... just arrived from Canada! Welcome!

And inside the Community Garden, the Lesser Goldfinches reign!

Okay! Here is my work today! Technically, none of this Horseradish is in my plot. Yet.

The post designates the back corners of four garden plots... Mine is bottom right, with the upside down bucket. Most of the Horseradish is in our diagonal neighbor's plot. But, it's encroaching.

It's really hard work, pulling this stuff up. But, I get it done...

Boom!

*laughs* I really am quite proud of this!

(The boards and black plastic are diagonal neighbor's paltry attempt at killing the Horseradish. They've been there since spring.)

And check this out...

This is why Horseradish is so invasive!

I was able to pull this out after I had loosened the dirt a bit, digging the other Horseradishes out... The dandelion tool is there for size reference: it's over a foot long. And you can see the root has broken off, well before the end of it!

Stupid Horseradish.

Oh. ha. This kitty has been hanging out with me lately.

He's a beautiful kitty, but he must know how much I'm annoyed to see him. He scares away the birds, and I miss my Hummingbird Supervisor!

He wanders off when I start watering.

No plants died in the chilly night... probably the ground had retained plenty of heat to keep them alive. And it looks like this thing is still growing!

And as I'm leaving the plot... Oh Yay! A sneaky Lemon Cucumber!

Another very chilly night, last night, but today is due to be warmer. It's 80/42 today, where normal is 76/47.

On the way to the garden, I decide to look up this plant. It grows along the banks of the creek, here and there, and really is quite pretty with the bright colour!

The Internets say it is Douglas Spirea, also called Hardhack.

It's native to western North America and it's used to stabilize stream banks and helps with the restoration of wetlands!

The plants provide good cover for birds and small animals. The flowers make butterflies and other pollinators happy, the seeds are eaten by a variety of birds and small critters. And it's a caterpillar host plant! Yay!

I am just watering at the garden today. After that good bit of rain we got at the beginning of the month, it's not rained since. So it's back to being terribly dry. But there's rain in the forecast, so hopefully I can quit watering before too long.

While I'm futzing around, I find this!

A Sweet Potato bloom! I'm excited because last year the vines had NO blooms, and I got NO Sweet Potatoes when I dug up the plant. So I'm hoping a bloom means there's potatoes to be had!

You can't really tell now, but once this flower opens up, it'll look a lot like a Morning Glory. Sweet Potatoes are related to Morning Glories! Isn't that cool?

Since I cleared out the Horseradish yesterday, I can now see into diagonal neighbor's plot. And his peppers definitely caught my eye!

Aren't they pretty! I don't like peppers, so I don't grow them, myself. But I'm glad I get to look at them in other plots at the Community Garden!!

No rain yet, but it's in the forecast for tonight. Some of the ponds are just dry land. and the water is kinda gross.

But there are more ducks on the ponds now... a group of Gadwalls here, a bunch of Teals there! Our winter visitors are arriving! It's good to see them all.

But this one? Ha... Shouldn't you be heading down to Mexico right about now?

ACK! Headless and Footless!

Okay, that's better. I assume she has a foot, tucked up in her feathers. :)

I encounter a little flock of young Cedar Waxwings! They are bouncing around too quickly for the camera and I don't get any good pics.

I didn't think she'd catch anyone, with these two so close... but actually they were driving the prey towards our hunter!

Looks like a Crawdad.

Poor little Crawdad.

Did you even say THANK YOU for the help???!

It is definitely going to rain, you can feel it in the air. I've got my rain jacket, and sure enough, as soon as I get to the path...

It drizzles and sprinkles my entire walk... and continues thru the day! Never a hard rain, just gentle patters.

I decide to head to the Community Garden and take photos of flowers... aiming the camera down will probably keep the lens clear of raindrops. For the most part! :)

I just adore these succulents in one of the front plots.

I get to my plot. Here's what the front garden square is looking like, with the cover crop just getting started...

All the cute little Favas! Once we get some very cold nights, the little Borages will die off (that's the seedlings in the lower right corner). The Fava will live thru the winter, unless it gets well below freezing.

oh, shoot. The sprinkles will keep the bees away. Will this flower get the chance to be fertilized?

The Tofu patch is getting ever more yellow!

*laughs* Trying to get artsy with the veggies!

That's a blurry Tomatillo at the left, a Smartweed bloom in th middle, and then a funny looking Crookneck squash! I just love it when all the plants get along together!

I grab a couple of ripe Tomatillos for my lunch.

The leaves of my Columbines are so pretty.

It sprinkled thru part of the night!

Sleeping under my open window, oh, that was so nice. Listening to the rain patter down while I was tucked under my blankets. So peaceful and restful.

And the ducks are happy for the rain. It raises the water level in the creek and washes trash and crud away.

Unfortunately, the Earth is a closed system... there is no *away*.

The male Mallards are starting to come out of their Eclipse Plumage. Their shiny green faces are coming back.

I happened across an article I found interesting.

∞ Nature: Vaccine specialist Peter Hotez: scientists are 'under attack for someone else's political gain' The physician-researcher who spoke out against misinformation during the Covid19 pandemic says attacks against science are formidable - and getting worse.

You prefer to say 'anti-science aggression' rather than 'misinformation'. Why?

Misinformation makes it sound like it's random junk that appears out of nowhere on the Internet. It's not: it's an organized, well-financed, politically motivated campaign that's meant to tear down the fabric of science. And we have to frame it in that way.

If you read the article, ooof, it's disturbing. Very disturbing.

I love me some science!

and dang it, I hate willfully ignorant people!

And from the local newspaper this weekend... I know, I know! I'm all over the place today! Bear with me... I need to rant!

The Register Guard is the main and only daily newspaper that's delivered on paper in Eugene Oregon... They are making massive changes to their Comics Section.

Mutts and Get Fuzzy and Bizzaro! GONE. WAI!

A handful of others, as well. Only the stupidest comics are coming in to replace them. Crap like Family Circus and Hagar. Denise the Menace??? Are you effing kidding me?

To add to the outrage, the words they actually printed, were After surveying and listening to our loyal readers...

This is an outright lie.

I am a loyal reader. I have paid for a subscription for over 18 years. There was no survey.

And I am absolutely disgusted about the bald-faced lie! A lie that they printed! Apparently without shame! I am so disgusted I think about cancelling my subscription.

I can't cancel. I support journalism. The reporters are good. I love the reporters.

But, GAH!

The clouds come and go, but no rain today.

Aw! There are some juvenile White Crown Sparrows bouncing around at the Events Center. They are So Cute!

There are some parents there as well, but they are bouncy too.

I don't know. Sometimes I just go crazy with the camera!

I took 416 photos today. I distilled them down to 47 in my photo file. And I am showing you 24 of those photos.

Crazy!

But look at all the interesting things I see...

The Willamette Valley has it's own little population of Bluebirds who do not migrate but stay here thru the year.

Some more Autumn decoration in the back corner garden plot!

At my plot, I ate a couple of SunGolds. They are def not as sweet anymore!

That funny looking Crookneck... but look! I got to harvest those ripe Tomatillos, and they are just Huge!

Yes! The Soybean pods are going brown!!

The Tofu patch used to be the Nasturtium patch... and I am happy that one survived. I don't really like the taste of Nasturtiums, too peppery, but I miss their cheerful orange blooms. I will have to plant some again next year!

Oh my gosh! The Colours!

This is one of the Sweet Potato plants leaves, and those colours... that combination is just beautiful!

Oh, she's beautiful... but I was making her very nervous so I only snapped a couple pics. I wish I could stay to get to know her, but she made her feelings plain!

They are mowing along the bike path, and the crows are looking to see what bugs have gotten stirred up!

Oh, bleh. One of the youngsters has Avian Pox. Well. She'll be okay, and then she'll be mostly immune.

I'm in the city park, right behind our apartment complex. Worf? Is that you? Have you been back here the entire time???

*laughs* I don't get close enough to see if it's actually him. I still miss Wes Crusher, especially since Worf didn't hang around for very long after he moved in.

But seeing a Western Grey Squirrel is definitely a good start to my walk!

There are a couple of Persimmon trees in a neighboring yard.

Some people have their Halloween decorations out already!

And across the street... Whoa! This is a little too real and too big, and too hairy!! It kind of scares me, and I love spiders! *laughs*

Here I am at the hiking trail.

This Black Tail mama has two kids, and not all of us were cooperative about getting our picture taken!

I get to the top of the trail and go a bit further. There's a family of birds bouncing around, and I pause to see what's going on. They are Acorn Woodpeckers, and it's obvious this is their home!

There's woodpeckers bouncing all up and down this snag! *laughs* I wonder if they are siblings, still looking for their parents to come feed them!

They are such interesting people!

Just checking to make sure the meals are still fresh!

He's a male. The females look the same, except they have a band of black between the white and red on their head.

An excellent hike up the hill!

Drizzle and mist for the entire walk today and I was content to walk past the garden and wander thru the neighborhood beyond.

Dark and Dreary! A lovely day for walking.

I got a Windows update over the weekend. And yet again they have fiddled with their Win Photo Viewer. (or I guess now they're calling it the Photos App. Whatever.)

Their fiddling drives me crazy! Usually they make stupid pointless changes... mostly they change the position of the zoom buttons: sometimes they are in the top right, sometimes it's top middle. It's annoying to get used to the new position.

But this time, they went too far and their stupid pointless changes... are not just pointless anymore. They are a deal breaker.

New windows no longer open in a full screen pane. I'm looking at photos, and you want to give me a tiny window and make me do an extra click to maximize it? Every single time? I couldn't change it, and that was super annoying.

But even more annoying... The 3rd photo I clicked on for a new window? It actually opened BEHIND the other two. And instead of looking at that 3rd photo that I just clicked on, the focus is on the first photo.

What? WHY? It makes no sense!

And the same for the 4th, 5th and n-th... they all opened behind all the other windows and we get to look at the top window instead.

I cannot work this way.

I kept thinking the photo I had clicked on was the one I was looking at! It's utterly confusing since the photo I had clicked on is actually behind all these other windows.

I use this program extensively. I mean, SERIOUSLY Extensively!

Not because I chose it. But just because it's there. It was easy and it was quick.

And now, it's not.
Now it's frustrating beyond words.

So, I look for something else. I need a simple program, that loads up quickly, so I can zoom in and compare photos in different windows. That's it. I don't need bells or whistles, clogging up the flow.

ImageGlass looked interesting. I got it installed. And then it crashed when I opened the second window.

Huh. I rebooted and it again crashed when I opened a second window.

We parted ways. and I looked for the next thing.

JPEG Viewer. Huh. It doesn't have an install file. That's weird. But I got it loaded up. I eventually got it on as my default. And then I figured out the keyboard short cuts I needed.

And, oh my gosh. Actual Functionality. Something the Win Photo Viewer never had! JPEG Viewer is SOOO much better.

So. Much. Better.

Thank You Windows, for sucking so bad! *laughs* Now my whole life is better without your crappy little photo program!!

The Heritage Cherry Tree in the rose garden is around 176 years old, and still blooming every spring.

*Laughs* Typical Bushtits... bouncing around too quickly for the camera!

I decide to try one of the trails that wends closer to the river. So I got to see Autzen walking bridge from a new angle!

The sound of the water here is just amazing. I would stand here all day...

... but we got stuffs to do!

Ha! Someone's Good Omens art!

And back at the Rose Garden, where I can't resist a couple more pics!