2025

Morning clouds are starting to break up, and it's to be the last nice day, 82° before another run of 90s.

Sighs. But it's just for the week. There's relief in sight, the forecast says the weekend is back to mid 80s.

There is a glorious Alder tree that I walk under, about half way to the garden. It's making cones and catkins!

At the garden, I'm just there to gather the harvest, no watering and no work.

My back neighbor Kevin is puttering in his plot and he mentioned the beautiful morning and then asked Hey, did you ever get a Compliance email?

I assume he means the Summer Compliance Check that happened at the end of July. So that's a curious question. I said No, and wait for more information.

He said they usually CC him, so he knows who and why gardeners are getting non-compliance so he can answer questions. But not this time. They didn't tell him anything this time.

huh. I asked, So did ANYONE get a non-compliance? thinking maybe it just didn't happen.

But Kevin replies, Well, they said the emails went out. And he seemed confident about that.

But why would the powers that be, cut off information from their Very Hard Working Volunteers? As Site Coordinator, Kevin does a lot of incredible work. He is the awesomest, and I am completely offended on his behalf that the director cut him out of the loop!

Kevin goes on to say he was glad they didn't ding me on my Borage.

heh. And here I just kind of small talked my way out.

Because what I wanted to say was something like... Oh, if they had dinged me about the Borage, I would have told them to GO TO EFFING HELL!!!

*laughs*

I go back to collecting Wax Beans. Because there's nothing I can do about how crappy the Community Garden Directors are.

And I keep collecting... and I am totally excited because I end up with 100 Wax Beans!!

Woo!

Walking home, I'm thinking about the Wax Beans!

Last year I cut up the Wax Beans and blanched them before bagging them up and putting them in the freezer.

But... I hate to cook, and really... what's the point? I'm going to eat them pretty much the instant I run out of fresh garden food!

So I wash them and cut them up. Put them under a fan to dry them out... That was a problem last year, the beans were still damp when I put them in the freezer and it was just a solid chunk!

Every single day, the news about what the US Government is doing... makes me so very angry.

Unfortunately, every single day, there's like five or eight news articles about what the US Government is doing.

I'm angry about everything, but I can't even finish READING a single article, let alone form some words to rant about it.

So I've been quiet these past weeks.

But this. This is so horrifying. Even if I can't formulate some words, I need to put this up...

∞ The Questions No One Wants to Answer: Where Were the Children, and Why Were We Kept in the Dark?

600. Unaccompanied. Children.

Actually, The Guardian says it is almost 700. UNACCOMPANIED. CHILDREN!

∞ Judge orders US to halt deportation of hundreds of Guatemalan children

W.T.F.

The Guardian article says that ten of those ALMOST 700 children had lawyers, and those ten kids were 10 to 17 years old.

But it says nothing about the other ALMOST 700 kids... Exactly how young are they?

And the US Government was going to put them on a plane and just dump them in another country.

And to pull this off, there's dozens of people who were working to make this happen... ICE agents, government lawyers, pilots and airline personnel.

That's a lot of people who could have stopped this horrifying process. Instead it took a judge, at the last instant. When kids were already boarding a plane!

I just cannot understand how there are SO MANY complicit and completely evil humans in the US. 'Good Germans' and Just following orders in our ethnic cleansing.

I just cannot understand.

*Screaming*

*later* and, good... here's some more info.

∞ ICE Tried To Kidnap Kids Over Labor Day Weekend. Hero Judge Said Hell No. Judge Sparkle Sooknanan won't let Stephen Miller deport kids to Guatemala on her watch.

Terrified kids, dragged out of their beds, with a two hour window to get ready. and there were two planes on the tarmac, closed up and ready to go.

Full of UNACCOMPANIED CHILDREN.

I'm watering at the garden today, for the heat.

My neighbor on the other side of the crazy family is here. Her name is Iris and she likes to chat sometimes. She is telling me how pleased she is with the garden this year and how productive it is.

Ha! I am instantly jealous! JEALOUS! I say something about my difficult year and she's all That's right, you got a pretty late start, didn't you?

*laughs* That's one way to put it! When all the plants are murdered by the bugs and slugs time and time again.

But I kept throwing money at it, and replanting and replanting. And, yeah, the garden did eventually do something...

But I'm still jealous of Iris! heh.

I decided to let the Wax Beans go today... I've still got plenty to eat in the fridge. And maybe tomorrow there will be enough to freeze another bag!

Those are spent Borage blossoms on the corner of the ziplock.

They litter the ground under the Borages, and make even the weeds look pretty.

Iris has left, and I don't see any other humans around. So I wander over to a stand of Sunflowers where I can hear the Goldfinches.

They perform acrobatics to get at the Sunflower seeds!

The parents are still feeding their children...

Well... This parent changes his mind!

He eats the seed himself and says, Child! We are surrounded by food!

*laughs*

Good Morning My Dear.

Muggy.

And it's kind of funny... We've got 100% humidity all winter and I never notice it. But one morning of 73% humid in the summer and it's Muggy!

Usually the humidity is in the 40% range when I head out for my walk. But it's been in the 60%s for much of this week. I'm not sure why I'm noticing it in particular today!

Excuse me? You in the back? Can you pause with the preen? Smile for the camera?

Sheesh. You birds with your high maintenance feathers! *laughs*

I walk by the Community Garden, and Kevin is at the back corner, fixing a hole in the fence.

A homeless person had broken in yesterday and had stolen a few items from people's plots, and gotten some food as well.

It is a shame that we can't have a stand or something outside the fence, so that gardeners can put out extra produce. But the logistics just wouldn't work out: there's no shade around the garden, and we don't actually get much traffic. I think it would just waste food.

This is the unknown plant that popped up next to the Tomatillo that I transplanted from the path to under the big trellis...

(and some bugs! :) It's completely shaded by the Cosmos and the Wax Beans. The leaves have gotten bigger - they are probably 5 or 6 inches wide! - but it probably doesn't have enough sun to do anything beyond that. And without a flower I won't be able to figure out what it is. humph.

I decided to pick the first Aubergine today!

And another load of Wax Beans... I directly cut them up and threw them in the freezer.

And the Aubergine! I was so excited, I started looking up how to cook it as soon as I got home!

And... ugh, it's complicated. Drying them out with salt? And I don't want to run the oven in this heat! (or, ever. I hate cooking!) So, yeah, that all is too much work for me.

So I found a couple of microwave directions.

I nuked it. And the skin peeled off fairly easily. And ate it.

Well. Tried to eat it. It was the tiniest bit bitter... I thought it had gone a little bit too long when I saw the seeds forming when I cut it open.

But the bitter wasn't too bad, and not in every bite.

But the ... texture? Kind of... slimy? blah.

I mean, seriously blah! I put some oil on it. I added ketchup. I added Yumm Sauce. Nope, nope, nope.

I couldn't finish it! *laughs* My cooking sucks and I put it with the kitchen scraps to take back to the compost heap!

Oh well. Experiment failed. That's okay: Live and Learn!

On the walk home... what?

Aww. Postcards. Someone littered postcards.

I wish I could reach them, I wish I could rescue at least a couple. But they are on the other side of a railing, and deep in the blackberries.

Bummer.

Good Morning My Dear!

I head out into another day of heat, to be 91° today, when normal high is 81°. But there are more reasonable days ahead!

The forecast says 85° tomorrow and then lower 80s over the weekend. and possibly mid 70s after that!

The break in the heat will be so very very nice. I don't want the summer to end abruptly, but the heat has been so hard to bear.

This is that boy-o who has that white patch on his neck. This is the third sighting of him...

But I was interrupted from the photography by one of my bike path friends. It's the guy who flirts with me sometimes.

One time, he rode by on his bike and said, Hey! You want a ride? I was all, Huh??

There's plenty of room on my handlebars!

*laughs* Silly Flirt!

On the way to the garden...

Huh! There aren't any peafowls around here! Probably someone picked up and dropped a decoration.

At the garden, I stop to admire the Buckwheat seeds that are ripening.

As I'm gathering the days harvest, I get buzzed by a hummingbird! He zooms to the back of the plot and stops at Kevin's big trellis.

I don't know what this variety of purple beans Kevin has, but the beans are about 2 feet long! Does the Hummingbird see some bugs to eat in there??

Hello My Dear!

He looks like a girl, but he's a juvenile male Anna Hummingbird, his adult feathers haven't come in yet. He'll have a hood of iridescent red violet covering his head.

He sings there for a moment. And then gets on with his day.

And I get on with my day.

I change my mind about that cracked Brandywine on the right... I toss it. I'm getting plenty of tomatoes, I don't need to save every single one!

The Mystery Flower.

This is one of the Volunteer Tomato plants.

The fruits are getting bigger than regular cherry tomatoes. You never know what you will get with a second generation Sungold!

The Nasturtiums at the back of the small trellis.

And some flowers at the back of Kevin's plot.

And then I go wandering thru the Garden.

And then Kevin walks by and interrupts me. Ha, it's a day of interruptions!

You know birds? he asks. ha.

He goes on. What is our smallest woodpecker? he asks as he shows me how small with his hands. And just a little bit of red, on the back of their head.

Wow, he is very observant to notice that!!

I nod and tell him That's a Downy!

He saw one go into one of our bluebird nest boxes! They wouldn't be living there, would they?

Nope. Nesting season is over. He was probably going in to look for bugs!

Kevin moves on, and I go back to wandering.

Oh! I don't know what these purple things are, but pretty!

I don't know what this purple one is either!

But this weird looking thing is called Cockscomb!

Trump has straight up murdered 11 people.

∞ US strike on 'Venezuela drug boat': What do we know, and was it legal?

And here, again... Why did that Navy ship follow orders to fire on that little boat???

WHY?

Running drugs is a crime, but the punishment is NOT the death penalty. We rely on Due Process... We do not just murder random people in a boat.

Why were there so many people on that little boat? It doesn't take 11 people to run drugs. Those extra people would have slowed the boat down... an obvious indication that this was not a drug run.

Did the Navy ship see all the people on the boat? Did they think about what they were doing at all?

Aw, the grape vine.

Someone had planted this, happily against the Community Garden rules, which say no woody perennials. Grapes and raspberries must be grown in a pot, which is the most ridiculous thing ever.

The heat must have killed this illegal vine, or someone didn't give it enough water.

But the base is still alive, a couple green leaves there, so maybe it'll come back.

At my plot, the Pet Nasturtium in the Strawberry patch is making me happy. It's gotten so big!

And then I try to get artsy with Kevin's Zinnias.

The one Butternut continues to ripen.

The fruit that had started at the end of the vine, turned out to be not fertilized. I cut it off so we could focus on getting this one done!

Thunderstorm woke me at 1:15am! Lasted about 15mins, no rain.

When I get up, the clouds are so dark and heavy, the porch light is still on. It's automatic and controlled by a light sensor.

It's so dreary, even the mushrooms feel like growing!

The clouds and the cooler weather today ... so blissful after weeks of over 90° days.

As I walk along the creek, I heard a Kingfisher, laughing as she flies by!

And again I wonder. Is this a new Kingfisher? Or is this the same one who lost her mate over the winter?

I read a book... Halcyon Journey. I picked it out because it won the Burroughs Medal in 2024, an award for nature writing that I occasionally follow.

The author says that the red belt of the females is individual... You can tell them apart by their belt! Some belts are wider, some more streaky, some belts don't quite join in the middle!

So... In theory, if I ever get a photo of the Kingfisher who is here now... I could compare her belt to the photos I've gotten in the past, to see if it's the same girl.

It's a long shot. Kingfishers don't like to sit around for photography. All of my photos that I happen to get are pretty crappy! :) But it's something to contemplate!

As I walk to the garden, I'm thinking about doing some work. I could clear out the Sugar Snap Pea patch in the front and maybe try for some fall lettuce.

The slugs ate all the spring lettuce, but they are sleeping now. So maybe there's a chance that the lettuce could live?

Here's what the front of the plot looks like...

Heh, just a big beautiful pile of Borages! With a few wild type Amaranths poking up here and there! On the left is the ProCut Red Sunflower and what's left of the Lemon Cucumbers. and the dark green, bottom right is a patch of clover that I'd like to keep.

As I pull out the Borage, I lay those plants in the paths thru my plot... if I walk on them and spray them with water a little bit, they will break down quickly and add nutrients to the dirt!

As I get deeper in, I'm surprised at how many Sugar Snap Pea pods I'm finding! That's great! I gather them and I'll save them to plant next year!

Ha, I also find some blackberries under that mess!

Invasive. The birds spread their seeds far and wide! I dig them out with the dandelion tool.

I decide to keep the Borage along the border with the Community Garden pathway, and I stop clearing once I hit the Beet patch.

It's a small clearing, maybe 5x4 feet or so. But I don't need to grow tons of Lettuce. Five or six plants would be great.

Now I just need to go thru my seed packets at home and see if I actually have any Lettuce seeds left over from the spring planting!

I also found a hidden Lemon Cucumber! ha! It's dark yellow so won't taste as good, but heck yeah, I'll eat it!

All those dried Snap Pea pods! Wonderful!

More Zuc on the way.

And more Crooknecks too.

Heading out, I look at the neighbor's Dahlias, again.

∞ These Supreme Court justices want you to just shut up already

Trump's bought and paid for SCOTUS is so utterly despicable.

Amy Coney Barrett: I think the Constitution is alive and well. I don't know what a constitutional crisis would look like. I don't think that we are currently in a constitutional crisis, however. I think our country remains committed to the rule of law. I think we have functioning courts.

Jeez. It makes you wonder... is she a moron? As a trump nominee, as a cult member, yes, I think it's very very possible that she's a moron.

but my god. The Rule of Law? Functioning Courts? Was she even there when she and her group granted Trump immunity?

Seriously.
Will the US ever recover from this?

Overcast today, and I decide to walk in the opposite direction. I won't see much wildlife this way but it's nice to take a break from the same mile I walk every day to and from the Community Garden!

I walk a little bit along the bike path before turning south, and Look! A Blonde Duck!

Nevermind the crappy photo. Because this is the second identifiable Mallard I've found this season! Along with the duck with the white patch on his neck, I'll have all the ducks named by winter! haha!

They've finally finished the upgrades on the bridge.

Just need to draw some lines on the road. Too bad the traffic on my road isn't noticeably better.

This bush of Asters is just lovely!

I had Asters at the front of the garden plot, many years ago. I killed them eventually, of course, but I think they lived a couple years.

I really like Asters... I should get some and try again next year! I should just have more flowers in general!

This type of Hibiscus does really well here.

They survive our mild winters, and grow into huge bushes!

I'm heading home in a loop, and the clouds are breaking up. It's pretty early, but a couple of the trees are showing some autumn colour!

I pass by the Persimmon tree, and can't resist it's beauty.

8:25am the day starts with dark clouds and another thunderstorm! It keeps rumbling until 8:50 or so! A couple sprinkles of rain.

When I finally got organized, I walked out the door without my rain jacket. Oops!

I think about going back for it, because it does start sprinkling again. But, no, the sprinkles are so light, I barely notice it. If it does get dire, I can put the camera into a plastic bag from the backpack to keep it dry!

But no extra protection for the camera is needed... after about 10mins the bit of wet stops coming from the sky!

I've brought the kitchen scraps in the backpack, to toss on the Community Garden compost pile. But I see there aren't any cars in the parking lot and decide to walkabout!

But after looking at the rather disheveled pollinator garden, I see that my friend Roz is here, with his bike, puttering in his plot.

I stopped to chat with him for a minute.

He has started keeping his old sunflower stalks, just like I do. And he points out some little holes in a stalk that is still standing from last year...

I look, with curiosity, and he says a woodpecker made the holes. He even has a video that he shows me on his phone... sure enough, a little Downy Woodpecker is hammering at the stalk, looking for bugs!

(That's awesome, but oh bummer, I can't find the video on his YouTube channel. I'll have to ask him to upload it, the next time I see him!)

I love all the flowers in his plot and I say I wish I had more flowers. He offers one of his Echinacea, he says they pop up all over the place.

Ha! I tell him I wasn't planning on doing any work today, I don't even have my little hand spade with me! But he says we can get a shovel out of the tool shed, and yep, okay!

He digs up a half grown Echinacea and I thank him profusely and take the plant and it's dirt on the shovel to my plot at the other end of the Community Garden.

Now. Where to put it. I do want it towards the front. But maybe not in the newly cleared spot where I want to plant lettuce seeds? hmm.

I put it in the Beet patch.

I hope it lives!

I gather up the days harvest.

And then do my own puttering.

The Green Zuc has a couple squashes coming on.

And the Patty Pan is thinking about some.

The big trellis.

The Volunteer Cosmos has some branches as tall as the trellis, 4feet! But still no sign of flowering.

At the other side of the trellis, the Mystery Flower and the Basil are hanging out under the ProCut Plum Sunflower.

It's probably time to google the Mystery Plant... but I kinda like it being a mystery! And I think it's pretty despite my Mom thinking it's a weed!

And I look around and see no humans. I think Roz left, shortly after I took his Echinacea. And no one else has shown up!

So I'm walking about after all!

I wish I knew what this plant stalk is that this American Goldfinch is standing on... there are several finches eating stuff from them!

But that Red Amaranth in the background is making for some really nice photos!

And the lightning this morning? There were almost 1,000 strikes!! Wow...

The National Weather Service reported 600 cloud-to-cloud strikes and 300 to 400 cloud-to-ground strikes.

But then...

∞ Fire sparked at Spencer Butte, likely by lightning

Yikes!! Spencer Butte is the hill on the south side of town, a wonderful place to hike.

But it's also just a mile or so from Cascade Raptor Center, and you can imagine how alarmed they were when they saw the smoke!!

One of the staff there, headed out on the Ridgeline Trail to find the fire... and they ran into the fire fighters who were also on the trail looking for the fire! They had to leave the fire truck behind because there's no roads up there!

They found the fire and it took a while to deal with because everything is dry from the summer. But they got it and they watched it over night to make sure it was out.

And meantime, the Raptor Center had only activated the very first part of their evacuation plan... calling volunteers to say Get Ready!

I don't know how many birds they have in their hospital right now. But the article said that all the birds who live there are trained to jump in a crate so they can be moved out quickly.

It's really reassuring to know that there are plans in place to save everyone, in case of a wildfire. The Humane Society had a scare this year as well, and they were ready for it, too!

The seasons are moving right along, and here is some proof.

Some apples are munched by the squirrels! A tasty treat for them!

I walk across to look at the pear tree. Wow, it's prolific!

A couple of the pears have been munched by squirrels as well, tho it takes me a minute to see any just because there are so many pears!

It's another gloomy day, nice and cool with a high of 72° and a 40% chance of rain this morning. And the same in the forecast until friday when we might get a little warm up of 80°.

For the garden, I'd ask for more 80° days! And, honestly the sudden drop from the 90s to the low 70s has me all discombobulated!

With the tiny bit of rain yesterday, and a good chance of rain tonight, I don't need to water at the garden. There is a Zuc that's getting big tho, so I do need to stop by. But I'm going to walk a bit first!

As I walk by the Community Garden, I hear my friend the Kingfisher again, laughing as she flies by, over the creek. But will I ever get to see her?

And then I get buzzed by a Hummingbird! He's a little flash of orange, another Rufous Hummer!! He is heading for the garden to refuel for his migration.

It starts sprinkling when I approach Dragonfly Land.

I've got my rain jacket in the backpack today! But I don't pull it out. It'll be too hot to wear, so I just drape my arm over the camera.

I don't go too much further, and soon I'm back at the Garden. The Echinacea that Roz gave me yesterday is still looking good!

The Patty Pan... poor mildewy thing!

But the Wax Beans on the right are looking great.

I glance over the Cosmos... Oh Yay!

Kevin's Zinnias and the Pet Nasturtium!

Bahaha... I was Trying to focus on the Goldfinch in the middle. But does the camera ever listen??!

I walk about and am delighted with this plot!

Heading home. But on the way, I come across this boy!

It's pretty unusual to see one of our native Western Grey Squirrels here. They prefer a bit of forest!

And so muddy! ha, where have you been digging, my dear!!

The Supreme Court makes a ruling so this regime can continue the ethnic cleansing...

∞ SCOTUS is on board with racial profiling

Here's something more in depth...

∞ US supreme court 'effectively legalized racial profiling', immigration experts warn by Lauren Gambino

And it's all just disgusting.

And this other thing has been swirling around in my brain as well.

I get so angry at the hypocrisy of Christen Nationalists, evangelicals and MAGAs... These Christians willfully forget the part where they are supposed to Welcome the Stranger. Feed the hungry? Love your neighbor, and all that? Did they pay attention to a single thing Jesus said?

And sometimes I watch this guy's YouTube channel. He's a biblical scholar and I like how he sets things straight.

∞ Dan McClcllan: Responding to Kirk Cameron

We got a bit of rain yesterday evening, and I don't need to go to the garden... so I'm heading out in the opposite direction.

These are pretty!

And my cute friend must be waiting here to get warmed up before she begins her day!

The Hawthorns have had a very good year... all of them are just exploding with pomes!

The prairie at Stewart is lovely as ever.

There's a few guys playing Frisbee Golf today, but they haven't scared away all the birds. I can hear some singing in the forest!

Not that I'm deemed worthy of decent photography!

*laughs*

Oh well.

ha, Apples are pomes, too!

They still haven't taken out this fallen Oak tree. I wonder if it's an obstacle on the course.

huh. With those big, blue shoulder patches, I thought this was Henrietta... but looking at the photo, it's definitely not!

Always nice to meet someone new!

Mackerel Sky!

So nice to see you!

I start gathering the days harvest at my plot, when I hear an Anna singing from Kevin's plot!

I'm sure it's the same youngster who I saw the other day!

Oh, I hope he stakes out a territory here and stays!! It would be so lovely to have a Garden Supervisor again!

The volunteer Butternut and the Green Zuc are the only squash plants that are free from mildew, which is getting worse during these gloomy days of high humidity. I try not to look at them!

As I was harvesting all those Sungolds, arg, about half of them were cracked and had to be tossed! We only got 0.09 inches of rain! But it's too much for the tomato plants!

The big trellis, making me ever so happy with the Wax Beans and the growing Cosmos!

The first buds on the Cosmos are coming along! Yay, I can't wait!!

And the front Nasturtium is just lovely. Nevermind the stupid Crookneck leaves, dying of mildew!

I look around, and don't see any humans! Walk About!

Oh, haha! I didn't realize I was being watched by someone with a lot of eyes!!

And when I get home, I bagged those Wax Beans to freeze...

uh, oops! What day is it? *laughs* I wrote the wrong date! But this is the fourth bag of Wax Beans, so far.

Oh hey! It's Mackerel Sky Again! Good Morning!

At the garden, I decide to leave that Green Zuc on the plant to grow a little bit more...

And that makes room in the backpack so I can get a Beet instead!

This is the third beet I've pulled up to eat, and it's big, but not as big as the last one. It's probably around 1.5pounds.

I am doing a bit of weeding around the Patty Pan today... maybe some more air flow will help it survive the stupid mildew.

The biggest volunteer tomato plant is there as well, and I stop to admire it. It has damage from Flea Beetles on the bottom leaves, but the top leaves are pretty!

It's a second generation Sungold... The tomatoes are the right colour, but a bit bigger than normal Sungolds. And they are not sweet like Sungolds should be, but they actually have pretty good flavor! I'm not getting many cherry tomatoes from this plant, it def isn't prolific like a Sungold, but I'm glad I let it grow!!

I also stop to admire Kevin's Nasturtiums which are leaning into my plot from his raised beds.

Nobody around! I'm gonna look at the flock of American Goldfinches!

Huh. This is an interesting plant!

Eugene is celebrating the grand opening of another section of the Downtown Riverfront Park... The Plaza includes event space and a playground with a splash pad.

The grand opening celebration includes music and food, and it just sounded fun and I wanted to go!

But the car being what it is - half dead, and well on it's way to totally dead - I decided to drive to the closest parking lot at the river and then walk the rest of the way. Around two miles of the most beautiful section of the Ruth Bascom Riverbank Trail!

And of course, I couldn't just walk by the Rose Garden!

I am such a sucker for the roses, but I don't spend too much time in the Rose Garden.

Here's my first glimpse of the Plaza. The band is just getting set up.

Yesterday was cloudy and cool, but today is a glorious day for the new splash pad!

I watch the kids playing in the water for a bit. oh my gosh they are having a blast and it makes me happy!

I decide to walk a little further. Ha... this round thing in the viewing platform was spraying water as well!

A group of friends was trying to get their dog to run thru the water. Dog looked like she had a good bit of Lab, but she was not having it with the spray! haha!

The old Steam Plant is the next project for the park.

They want to redevelop this building to be a mixed-use public space with restaurants and retail space, and a hotel and office space above!

It sounds lovely, and I would totally buy a snack and a drink here! But it's going to cost the big bucks, and who knows when it will be done.

I start to wander back to the party. There's a woman, strangely crouching down and fiddling with her phone. And when I get closer... Woolly Bears!!!

The woman rescued her Woolly Bear from the sidewalk, and I walk down and rescue a couple more!

I don't know why the Woolly Bears insist on walking on the sidewalk, but it's really not safe for them.

I'm coming up the boardwalk, there's more people at the park and the band is starting to play.

I stop in the shade of the Art Pavilion and listen to the band for a while.

People are lined up at the food truck, and the people running the bike valet are getting busy. There's some families sitting in the grassy area in front of the band.

There are good vibes all around and everyone is having a good time! I'm so glad I came out here today!!

But, eventually, it's time to head back. On the way I run into a family of wild Turkeys!! Here's Mama!

She's got three kids with her!

As I'm watching them, I realize one of the kids is quite a bit smaller than the other two. Here's Mama at the back, the smaller child in the middle...

I wonder if she is a runt, or an adoptee.

Here's some better photos, from yesterday's Plaza celebration...

∞ Eugene celebrates Downtown Riverfront Park Plaza grand opening: Photos

A bit of rain last night and there were puddles on my window sill this morning... really glad I thought to unplug the little fan that sits on the sill!

There's still a 40% chance of rain by the time I head out, but I'm leaving the rain jacket behind again.

At the garden plot, this is the Perth Pride, one of the freebie veggie starts I got at the beginning of the summer.

It's supposed to be a dwarf variety, and sure enough, it's not grown much but that's probably just because it took a while to get over being so root bound.

It is a cute little thing tho!

The yellow in the background there is a volunteer Tomatillo, and the darker green is Fava...

Ha, I called this the Fallow Area but there's a few plants here!

Besides the Green Zuc and the Sungold, which are actually producing some food - not a lot, but some! - I had also planted Fava to help the soil since it's a nitrogen fixer. And it's just a nice plant to have around, especially since no Borage is growing on this side.

That was enough Wax Beans that I cut them up and froze them! My fifth small bag so far!

Someone's pretty, pretty Peppers!

I don't grow Peppers, myself. I don't like them. Partner really likes various kinds of peppers, but he does not eat vegetables on a regular basis... so the couple times I tried Pepper plants in the past, the fruits mostly just went to waste.

But maybe next year, I will give Peppers another go.

*Imagining the Future*

You know, Guinea Pigs like to eat Bell Peppers.

It's been a few years since I've had a pet... Mostly I don't want the responsibility of taking care of someone without a job and steady pay.

But I do miss having Guinea Pigs around. And Partner does as well. sighs.

Last night, sleeping under the open window, it got cold! I kept waking up to fiddle with the blankets.

Finally at 3:33am, I got up and put the quilts on the bed!

(What's that? I could've just closed the window?
ha! Never!)

The Cosmos gets ever closer to blooming!

The Brandywine has some smaller tomatoes that are ripening... these are barely 3inches. And that's fine! I've got plenty to eat at home!

The Patty Pan always looks like it's going to be bursting with fruits soon...

But the plant is so small, it can't support more than one squash at a time. So all those other ones coming on, won't do anything. sighs!

I turn around and it occurs to me to check on the dry bean again... what was it called? That freebie that I got with the Perth Pride tomato...

I push Wax Bean leaves aside... and Yes!!

Sorana or Pescia beans! There are several pods now! Yay!

I need some Wax Beans for my meals, I've frozen all the other's I've gathered!

I'm heading out but I stop to look at my right side neighbor. They've abandoned the plot, but the flowers that have come up at the front are pretty.

oh, haha. The butt of a Crab Spider in the Cosmos!

Oh Hey! Cloudy Sky!!

*laughs* I've got the exposure on the camera pushed way down for the sunny garden, and didn't punch it up enough to get portraits in the shade. oh well!

I finally went thru my seed packets this morning and found some Lettuce seeds!

It's been ages since I had cleared a place for them in the garden plot. Just took me a while to get organized.

What else is new?

On the way to the Garden, I meet up with the duck with the white patch on his neck again.

But jeez! Am I ever going to get a decent photo of this fellow???

It seems not!

I get to the garden and start putzing around... and there's a Cabbage White Butterfly standing on one of Kevin's Zinnias!! Oh what a beautiful picture!

And the Butterfly flies away as I get the camera. sheesh. Oh well.

And the Mystery Flower... I'm gonna look up to see what this is, soon.

Yes, soon.

I decided to grab those smaller Brandywines I noticed yesterday. They aren't quite ripe, but I don't want them to possibly crack from the bit of rain we got the other night.

I saw movement when I went to get the ziplocks out of the backpack... A Spider!

Oh My Dear! You don't want to be trapped in the backpack!

I went to scoop them out ... and that spider JUMPED!!

A Jumping Spider!

Ha, a black spider with a red mark. Very very cute, and eventually I got her out!

No photo, unfortunately, but I googled her when I got home. Possibly a Bold Jumping Spider? Ha, how descriptive!

Okay! Here's the Lettuces I planted today...

The ButterCrunch - doesn't that sound yummy! - is from 2020, and I threw down a lot of that just to get rid of it.

The Lofty Salad is from 2023, and that should grow fine...

Except this is my garden plot we are talking about here. So probably nothing will grow!

*Laughs* Let's see. The back of the packets say 2 to 15 days to germination. So, I'm gonna be here every day for the next two weeks to water the dirt here!

great. I have one more look at the Zinnias.

No butterflies. ha.

Yesterday was a randomly very hot day. It hit 93°, going four degrees over the forecast. And it's been mid-70s and thereabouts for the past ten days.

To be 83° today, and ya know... I would wish for more days in the 80s! We've skipped that part since it basically went from the 90s to the 70s!

It makes me feel like we've missed the end of the summer!

I head out into the sun.

I hear the Kingfisher rattling, declaring her territory behind me. I stop at a clearing where I can see down to the water, hoping to glimpse her as she flies by.

But nope. Arg. She stopped just before my clearing, rattled again and then flew back the way she came. I hear one more fading rattle call before she flies out of hearing.

Foo. How am I to figure out who she is if I can't even see her!!! *laughs*

I arrive at the garden and a spot of red catches my eye in the Strawberry patch!

I eat it! Yum! And there's more on the way!

And while I'm back here, I see the Avocado tree under the Brandywine is making another set of leaves!

The Tomatillo under the big trellis... this is the one that I dug up from the path.

It's started some fruits, but I don't think they'll have time to get big or ripen. Not sure if there just hasn't been enough time, or if the shade from the beans has slowed it down.

And underneath, a volunteer tomato plant has made a couple cherry tomatoes.

Red cherry tomatoes are definitely what I think of, for the second generation Sungolds... This volunteer over here, with orange cherry tomatoes is pretty unusual!

And of course, I'm checking on the volunteer Cosmos...

But, underneath! Oh my gosh!

Yay! The first Cosmos bloom!!!

So that's exciting!

Here's the Avocado tree growing under the cucumber trellis.

And there are actually a couple Avocado Trees growing in the fallow area! This is the biggest one.

*laughs* I just love them! I don't know what will happen to them over the winter. Will they rot in all the Wet Prairie puddles? Or will they survive to come back next year?

Hm. I think I'm going to mark them during the winter... It makes me nervous to set up tomato cages over the leaf mulch we are required to put down, because you can't see them. They are near invisible and dangerous to anyone walking thru. Maybe I can mark the cages with some fluorescent tape or something.

I will think about it... there's a long time to go before we get to that point!

I'm out on the bike path and there are several Crow families out with me. Probably 20 birds or so. Swooping and playing in the wind! They are having fun!

Then a few broke off to play King of the Tree!!

:)

They crack me up! I wish I could join their play!

Some new graffiti!

The clouds are breaking up as I get into the garden. and I decide... Today's the Day! It's time to look up the Mystery Flower!

Goldenrod.

And, yep... Mom was right, in her part of America, it is considered a weed. haha!

But it's been domesticated, and there are a lot of varieties for sale! And as a native wildflower, it supports a LOT of native bugs! And this is the part I am excited about!!

The pollen is heavy and sticky... That yellow reminds me of pine pollen that flies and coats everything. But Goldenrod pollen is too heavy to fly, so it doesn't cause allergies at all!

But it's so sweet and wonderful that the bugs eat it up! Oh yeah! Let's bring the bugs!

And when we get to the point of seeds, I'm going to try to save some for next year! Oh! Goldenrod also has rhizomes! Great! Tho of course, that might not survive our rainy winter.

I'm gathering the day's harvest...

At home, I'm all caught up with summer squash, so I've let this zuc get massive to give me more to eat! It won't fit in the backpack! The end sticks out! 2 pounds, 3 ounces!

We do have more tomatoes and tomatillos than we can eat! I've been eating them like mad, trying to get rid of them.

As I prepare my meals, I always think, oh, you can't have too much Brandywine! But then when I'm done, I'm all, blah, heartburn! *laughs*

I decide to run the hoe up the middle of the plot... We've got Compliance Checks coming up at the end of the month, and I know they hate all my wildflowers. damn them anyway.

But then the crazy family shows up.

Last year, this was the lady who completely destroyed her daughter's garden plot next to mine. Ripped out all the plants and flowers. It was terrible!

Crazy Lady had been Uninvited from the garden, and I THOUGHT they had changed the rules so that a family could only have one plot.

But here we are again... crazy family still has the left side plot AND the diagonal right plot.

I am glad that Crazy Lady has, uh, supervision. But what's to keep her from coming in by herself? And if the garden director isn't going to follow their own stupid rules, and allow the crazies back, with multiple plots?

I'm annoyed. And generally discombobulated that I have to deal with humans on both sides of my plot. So I leave.

But on the way out.

Oh! I wish I had noticed this little one and gotten a decent photo. What a cutie!!

Walking home. Some Bittersweet Nightshade. (It's not Deadly... ) *laughs*

Hello, Cloudy Sky! So nice to see you!

Aw! Green Heron!!

Another juvenile. And she's all tucked up like an egg with a beak and legs. ha.

My Dear? Isn't it time to migrate?

Green Herons are so beautiful, close up. But all their colours turn into decent camouflage. Just sticks and leaves here!

I get to the garden, and YAY! There's a bug on the Goldenrod!!! A Beautiful Bug!

I thought she was a wasp at first, with those bold lines!!

But when I got closer, I can see she is a beetle!

I thought all her lovely designs would make her easy to find when I googled... But I was getting nothing.

But I was searching for black and yellow beetles in Oregon... when I dropped that parameter, I found her right away.

Locust Borer.

And all the photos online show Locust Borers on Goldenrod blooms! haha!

There's some Spotted Cucumber Beetles on the Goldenrod as well. These are the friendly and cute ones. It was the Striped Cuc Beetles that were part of the problem, murdering plants this spring.

So. Locust Borer sounds like a bad thing, right?

But nope! They are good!

Originally Locust Borers were native in the same range as Black Locust Trees, a smallish area in eastern US. But, as humans expanded the range of the Black Locust Tree, the Locust Borer Beetles came with!

And it's a good thing, because Black Locust Trees are beautiful AND pretty darn invasive. So Locust Borers serve an important function to keep the trees in check!

On top of that, their babies, growing up under the bark of Locust trees... are excellent food for Woodpeckers!

So! Locust Borers... Super cool beetles!

And looks like everyone is getting along here, on the single Goldenrod!

Well! Good to learn new things! But back at the garden, I'm getting the day's harvest.

And being amused at the Goldfinches antics!

Yesterday in the mail, a Jury Summons came for me!

I've got a relatively low jury number, so I assume this time I might actually have to go in.

I don't mind.

I think this is the 4th jury summons I've gotten in my life?

I got one when I was in college, for a different city than I was living in. I got out of that one!

I had to go to the courthouse for my summons when I lived in Phoenix. That was kind of interesting, because I had never been downtown! ha. It was a busy place, sitting in a big room filled with people. They'd call up people for a couple of groups. I finally got dismissed in the afternoon.

The 3rd Jury Summons was here, just a couple years ago. My jury number was high, like 300 and some. When I phoned in that morning, I was outside the range of those who needed to go in to the courthouse.

Maybe this summons will be an interesting one!

Aww! The first Hooded Mergansers at the creek!

Trouble maker! There was a Mallard napping on a rock in the middle of the creek. These two paddled straight up to him and the male poked the Mallard with his beak!

Bahaha! The Mallard was surprised. But he just paddled off, probably with an eye roll. Mallards are a lot bigger than the small Hooded Mergansers!

Both the male and female are molting. They look funny without their hood!

Hooded Mergansers live here, year round. But they tend to disburse in the fall. It's nice to see ducks other than Mallards at the creek!

Oh hey! I assume this is the same youngster I saw yesterday.

A little too far away for decent photography. Oh well. This one is probably the last Green Heron in the area...

Don't you feel like migrating, Little One? Sure, you could stay here. But all your friends are in Mexico!

I'm walking out to the Leaning Tree saplings.

That stupid, invasive Tree of Heaven is still here too.

Walking back, the Kingfisher flew by. Silently again. weird. I thought she was back to defending her territory.

In the garden, the Locust Borer is still munching on the Goldenrod.

Haha... it looks like she's got an itch on her arm!

Do bugs get itches even with an exoskeleton? They must. Everyone with nerves must get itches.

The mildew has gotten pretty bad on the Patty Pan. But it's still making squashes, one by one.

The Perth Pride is growing it's next set of tomatoes. And this time, I've learned my lesson: I'm not watering it at all!

The single Butternut.

*laughs* The smallest harvest!

I just didn't feel like getting Wax Beans or going thru the tomato plants today.

I keep bringing home the Tomatillos... but the ones from the plants I bought, hmm, just aren't as tasty as the volunteers that I've always had.

They are supposed to fall off the plant when they are ripe, but I think these ones are getting over ripe by the time they fall. They just don't have that wonderful, sharp lime taste, like they should.

And the fact that they are yellow instead of green. Maybe they are just a different variety.

I prefer the wild ones! Too bad the couple of tomatillo plants that did volunteer this year, are all too late to make fruit.

On the way home, I meet a new butterfly!!

Unfortunately, she doesn't let me get close, and then she flies away too quickly.

She's a Sulfur Butterfly, but there's a bunch of different species and I don't know how to tell them apart with just one crappy photo!

Ha. Oh well!

It's been sprinkling since the middle of the night. The rainy season doesn't officially start until October, but I'm sure the trees and all are enjoying the bit of early rain!

As for me, I would rather not have to wear the rain jacket when it's so warm. The high today is 73° and it's already approaching 60° when I leave the house. Bleh. The rain jacket is like a sauna.

But there's nothing for it. I have to protect the camera from most of the drips!

These are interesting. Brazilian Bellflowers!

Henrietta! Long time, no see!

Well! I wonder where he's been hanging out all summer! ha, probably at a nest somewhere! I hope his babies all fledged successfully!!

I am heading for the neighborhood to the south, so this is the last of the wildlife I'll see today.

That's okay. I enjoy looking at the flowers in everyone's yards.

I see this Little Free Library, and decide to go up a new street!

Awesome use of an old newspaper vending machine!!

Oh hey! There's a little walk thru to the next neighborhood!

These are unique! Some kind of Dahlias, I think.

They've seen better days, but still stunning!

The day started with a bit of fog! It burned off quickly, but there's still some in the hills!

I arrive at the Community Garden, and oh my gosh! There are several Woodland Skipper Butterflies on my neighbor's flowers!!

No luck there. Oh, hello! You don't mind the camera? Great!

Their tongue! Cutest Photo EVER!!!

And then I get into my garden plot... My Cosmos is blooming!!!

Yay!

I'm going to do a little bit of work today. I've noticed the Comfrey has grown up a bit, back behind the Crooknecks.

This is the second year that I've been trying to get rid of this invasive thing! I really love the flowers, little purple bells that the Honey Bees fit in perfectly. In 2023, I let a Comfrey get gigantic! It's footprint was well over 6x8feet! It was glorious!

But it was taking up too much space, and I decided to get rid of it. I dug out the roots that fall. And I've been trying to murder it, ever since! *laughs* The leaves keep showing up and I just can't dig down deep enough to get the roots they are coming from.

Eventually the roots will die from lack of energy... but letting the leaves get that big is not helping that process along! haha! So it'll probably be another couple years of murdering leaves as they show.

There's another new bug on the beautiful Goldenrod!!

A very leggy Beetle! Aw, her face looks like a snake! ha!

And my other friends are here as well! The Locust Borer and some Spotted Cucumber Beetles.

I double check on the Echinacea that Roz gave me the other day. It's all good!

And there's a good harvest today.

I'm packed up to go, but happen to notice the Sunchoke...

It's got some flower buds going!! Yay!

Haha, it looks like she's waving or something, but I think I just got the photo as she dropped the nut she was holding!

Time to mow the parks!

The tractor has three mowing attachments, one on each side and one behind. So he's cutting the grass in probably 15feet swaths. That doesn't make it quick work tho. This park alone is 8 acres, and the other half of the park across the road is 6 acres.

Further up the trail, some Crows are yelling about something.

Or, actually, they are yelling about someONE! ha, they were mobbing a hawk.

Other birds were watching the show as well.

But I never figured out who the hawk was.

Oh well.

I get to the Community Garden and GAH. The crazy family is here Again.

They've been here every day, the last few days. And I'm just getting sick of having to deal with humans on both sides of my plot.

I am glad that the Crazy Lady has supervision. But my garden time is not peaceful when I'm busy being annoyed!

So here I am, crouched down behind the small trellis... yes, I'm kind of hiding! *laughs*

But then I notice, oh hey, there's a Love in the Mist blooming here!

That's nice! I gather up the days harvest.

As I'm heading out, I happen to glance at the dirt I've been watering... Oh my gosh! A Lettuce has come up!

Yay! That's great! Maybe more will come up!

... well. Hang on. I'm getting ahead of myself. Let's see if this Lettuce lives more than three days before I start hoping about more! *laughs*

The Goldenrod is full of bugs and it makes me happy!

Beetles and bees! There's a second Locust Borer now!

A new kind of wasp!

And still, everyone getting along!

There's a second volunteer Butternut making a squash. But it's small, maybe 9inches, and there's not going to be time for it to ripen.

The Old German started out making very small tomatoes, about 2inch diameter. It's now making some bigger ones -- this one is a good 3inches.

But it's still not normal... Old Germans are supposed to be huge, 2pounds and marbled orange and red. These taste okay, but they also lack the subtle fruity notes.

And again, I don't know if the problem is with the plant, maybe it's genetics got messed up. Or if there's something wrong with the dirt. The Brandywine is right next to it, and it's doing great.

well. No use complaining, especially at this late date!

The Cosmos is getting a few more flowers ready!

The Crooknecks are terribly mildewed, but still trying to make squashes!

It looked like my one tiny lettuce wasn't growing at all, but using the zoom... it's being munched. WAI!

dang it. I really thought I had a chance with some fall lettuce. crud.

Okay. Look at happy things...

Oh look! The Woodland Skippers are here again!!

So interesting! I don't think I've ever seen them at the garden. I wonder what has brought them, this year!

Okay. Get the harvest into the backpack and head out.

And at the creek... It's White Patch!!

His adult feathers are coming in. I'm a little worried that I won't be able to recognize him... right now the feathers across his back are kind of a rich chestnut colour. Not that you can tell, by any of my crappy photos! haha!

At the garden... Well. The single Lettuce is still there. Still a little bit munched. Not really growing. And you know what I have decided?

Lettuce is stupid.

*laughs*

But over on the gorgeous Goldenrod, I've found three Locust Borers eating pollen and nectar!!

It's a party. Or will be soon. This one is practicing her moves for Twister! haha.

I'm going around, getting some food to take home...

And then the Crazy Lady comes in. And this time she is not supervised.

Yep. I knew it.

She was banned from the garden last year... and I don't know why we even bother to have Community Garden rules. And we've got Compliance Checks this week...

And thinking about THAT, and how they've got my beautiful Borage, companion plant supreme, on the damn invasive list of banned plants. Oh boy!

If they even think about dinging me and my Borage! I will throw the biggest fit you have ever seen!

Yeah. My brain is screaming.

I try to distract myself with flowers.

but, nah. I'm done here today. I go walk it off.

Okay! I am bound and determined to have a better day than yesterday!

This kitty lives on the next block over from the Community Garden, and I've seen him around a few times lately.

I continue on... I saw these cones out, just after Blazey's old spot on the bike path. I was worried, I could hear the machinery...

But it's okay! Phew! They are just trimming this beautiful Walnut tree. Not cutting it down!

I get to the garden, about the same time as yesterday. And so far, Crazy Lady isn't here.

Good.

The Goldenrod is a happening place!

That's the butt end of a Spotted Cucumber Beetle on the right. On the left... hmm.

Oh, a Hoverfly!

Hoverflies are interesting little creatures! Over 6000 species, all over the world!

And slowly but surely, I've been relaxing. I don't think Crazy Lady is coming to the garden today!

And I stand up and look around... and oh my gosh!

MY COSMOS!!!

White ones! Along with the red violet ones that started blooming the other day!!

I had vaguely noticed the white blooms yesterday, but got annoyed and left before I took pictures.

So that is awesome!

As I left, I turned and tried to capture the gestalt of the huge cosmos and the rest of the big trellis. But the picture doesn't really do it justice! ha.

On the way home...

Oh Woolly Bear! The bike path is not safe for you!

With a little bit of encouragement, she climbs up into my hand.

Their little feet feel funny! I put her in the grass. I hope she finds a good place to hibernate.

And then!

Later in the day, I've rcvd the email to renew the Community Garden plot for next year...

And Borage is OFF the invasive list!! Yay!

There's just a note about keeping it a foot away from the border of your plot!

Yay! I'm so glad I don't have to worry about that any more!!

Ha! Party! Someone was setting off fireworks last night! I heard them thru the open window.

This Scrub Jay has a Gooseberry. It might not be ripe, and it looked like the Scrub Jay was looking for a place to bury it!

Maybe the Scrub Jay is going to try to make a Gooseberry raisin! *laughs* I think we get too much rain for that! But Good Luck, My Dear!

At the garden I pass by the illegal grape vine that someone planted at the fence. The top of the vine died in the heat of August, but the base has come back to life!

This is someone else's Sunchoke... mine hasn't started blooming yet.

But this is my Cosmos, and all those other buds make me happy!

And happy Bumblebees!

I am just so pleased!

Not so pleased with this, tho. Stupid Lettuce... still the only one that has come up. It's made a second leaf, which has also been munched.

well, whatever. There's a little pea plant that has volunteered in the Lettuce area! It's a cute little thing!

The day's harvest.

And one last look at the delightful Cosmos!

The Crazy Lady wasn't here again today, but her daughter has these lovely Dahlias!

Oh! First Gull of the season! We always have a few around over the winter!

He's getting mobbed by some crows. haha!

For some reason, Birders get all mad when you call them Seagulls. *laughs* (and laughing at the structure of that sentence, ha!)

I mean, sure, we are 60miles from the sea. But can you actually look at a gull, hear their voice, Without thinking of the sea??!

(I don't know enough about gulls to say what species this is.)

The Brandywine is starting to look a little rough, with a bunch of leaves dying.

The Green Zebra tomato is essentially dead, tho it's got a couple more fruits on it. It didn't last very long, and I don't think I will grow it again. It was fine, and interesting, but nothing special.

I wonder what next year's experimental tomato will be!!

The little Perth Pride is a beautiful plant. But I'm not sure I will get any tomatoes from it...

But that was my own fault for over watering it, so I missed the first fruits due to cracking.

And the volunteer Tomatillo next to it isn't going to have enough time to ripen it's fruits, either. bummer.

Nevermind! Look at the Cosmos! We are up to two dozen blooms today!

And loads more on the way!

And look over here! The Sunchoke has it's first blooms!!!

Yay! The seeds made here will make the birds happy!

I've eaten a good handful of Sungolds here today... but this is the first time I've come to the garden and not gathered any veggies to take home!

The veg is starting to wind down... and I'm not ready for that to happen! Wai! How can summer be over already??

It's been sprinkling off and on this morning, and there's a few days of light rain in the forecast.

Hello?

You are not here for the Paparazzi? oh. okay.

I'm at the garden, but because of the bit of wet, there's no other humans here! Yay!

These are pretty! Japanese Anemones.

I still haven't figured out what these purple things are.

The Community Garden's Bird Bath art installation.

I'm walking down the aisle towards my plot, and these dusky rose Cosmos catch my eye.

My goodness! What a unique colour! I love them!

I've arrived at my plot, and it's started to rain pretty good. No big deal, but it's a little bit too warm in the rain jacket!

I admire the Avocado trees... Here's one in the fallow area.

The one under the Brandywine.

But then I get distracted before I look at the Avocado tree under the little trellis...

There are FIVE Locust Borers here today! Yay! Poor things aren't moving around at all. A little too chilly for them I guess.

And then I have to admire my own Cosmos!!

And then... Yep, one more loop around the Community Garden!!

Canna Lily.

But really, the leaves are more interesting than the flowers!!

Our native Showy Milkweed is releasing it's seeds.

You know what. I just need to mention this article.

∞ How To Lie About Left-Wing Terrorism Like A Common Axios And/Or Trump Fascist! Come join the Ministry of Truth, it's fun and easy!

Fascinating. The Charts are fascinating.

And a couple of Very Interesting quotes...

Maybe we should read the actual study from the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), and see if that enlightens us as to what this is all about?
...
We see that blue line representing left-wing terrorism, which we guess you could say is 'spiking' if you consider the difference between 'one incident' and 'five incidents' to be 'spiking.'

AND...

What looks more remarkable to us is ... is that giant red line showing alllll that right-wing terrorism, just towering over left-wing terrorism every single year except the current one, which shows a curious drop to just, allegedly, one incident this year, namely the assassinations of Mark and Melissa Hortman in Minnesota.
...
But does it really feel like there's only been one incident of right-wing terrorism this year in the US? It sure doesn't feel that way to us.
...
Oh.
We guess reporting on right-wing terrorism changes if you pardon all the terrorists and/or dress them up in an ICE uniform and give them a salary.

Yeah.

∞ ICE Beats More US Citizens, Can't Seem To Shake 'Gestapo' Label Somehow Yeah, we know, that headline makes us a terrorist.

If they are beating US citizens without fear of reprisals, what do you think is happening to the immigrants?!

The sun is shining after a night of off and on rain. And there's a breeze bringing down the acorns in little gusts. They bang loudly when they hit the pavement. Surprisingly loud, actually.

The rain makes it feel more like autumn to me. Tho I'm still not ready to let go of the summer!

This morning, before I headed out for my walk, I noticed... Oh My Gosh! The Spider Plant is blooming!!

(And that's the African Violet in the background!)

The Spider plant is old, and I didn't think it would ever bloom again and I was sad about that. But a couple years ago, I had transplanted it and planted it's little spiderling clones in with the big plant.

They must have grown up! Ha, and now I'll need to be sweeping up the seeds as they fall! I don't know how they get pollinated, but I was sweeping up seeds from the original plant for many, many years.

And I'm out! I'm heading to Stewart Pond today, since I def don't need to water the little Lettuce after last night's rain.

I think I am physically incapable of walking past Persimmons without taking photos!

I'm walking thru the little bit of forest...

And there's a single Pacific Chorus Frog singing here!

Their breeding season starts in November or December, so this guy is only practicing his song! And once we get some rain going, some of this forest turns into shallow ponds where the tadpoles can grow up!

oof, blurry. A Flicker, and she's just too far away.

The fallen oak tree is still here.

I wonder if they will just leave it. One more obstacle for the Frisbee golf course!

At the last golf hole, there's a family of Bluebirds!

Again, she's too far away for decent photography. That's just how it goes some days!