Autumn Leaf Of The Day #9

 

"Autumn shows us how beautiful it is to let things go."

~Unknown

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #5

 

"A leaf is a letter sent from the trees."

~Unknown

I like that! With a little luck, Trump won't mess with that mail!

38 days until election day! 

If a leaf was my ballot it would be whispering... I can't wait to fall!

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #3

 

"By all these lovely tokens, September days are here. 

With summer's best of weather and autumn's best of cheer."

Helen Hunt Jackson

Summer Homes

 

"The greatest artist and web-designer ever, is indeed a spider!!"

~Munia Kahn

With summer on it's way out the seasonal door, I would be remiss if I didn't mention one of my favorite parts of this time of year, the amazing summer webs! I will continue to look for webs throughout autumn, but there is just something about the webs spun in summer that speaks to me. I just wish I could have seen the spider, or spiders, who built this intricate arachnid condominium.

Blackbird Singing In The Dead Of Night

 

"Blackbird singing in the dead of night

Take these broken wings and learn to fly

All your life, you were only waiting for this moment to arise."

~The Beatles (Paul McCartney)

Blackbird

A blackbird, waiting for autumn, or maybe just relaxing for a bit. Or maybe both.

What am I waiting for... the midterm elections.

47 days... just 47 more days to go.

Tuesday, November 3rd, 2026

It's A Summer Thing

 

"There is time in the last few days of summer 

when the ripeness of autumn fills the air,

 and time is quiet and mellow."

~Rudolfo Anaya

Bless Me, Ultima

What says, it's the last days of summer. quite like finding a gorgeous, Great Egret, sitting in a tree, waiting for a dragonfly to hop into it's mouth.

Shrug. I guess it's a summer thing.

Ellipsis Weekend Cooking... Zucchini Souffle

 

Zucchini Souffle - NYT - Recipe

"The only thing that will make a souffle fall, is if it knows you're afraid of it."

~James Beard

As we get ever closer to the magic day of, September 21st, I find my body not just hinting, or suggesting, the need for comfort food, it's screaming that message loud and clear! So, how about souffles this weekend? And as I have been missing my fruits and veggies of late, how about we start with a nice Zucchini souffle? And for a side, there's this lovely sounding salad. I LOVE Cara Cara oranges, but be sure to quality check them before buying, they tend to dry out faster than navel oranges. I am not sure if that has just been my experience, or if that is a universal truth, but just check. 

Citrus Salad With Fennel And Olives - NYT - Recipe

Okay, that's it.

 Go cook. 

If you make these recipes, let me know how you like them.

A Western Kingbird In Late Summer

"The list total isn't important. The birds themselves are important. So the list is just a frivolous incentive for birding, but the birding itself is worthwhile."

~Kenny Kaufman

Kingbird Highway: The Biggest Year In The Life Of An Extreme Birder

This pic is from my last outing with the camera. I took it on August 29th. I am still not finding that many birds, it's been a difficult year, with the car and the overwhelming heat of the summer, but the Pacific Flyway is about to open, and I have a lot of hope that next year will be different. Although, I am a little concerned about finding my Sandhill Cranes over Woodbridge. They usually show up around the middle of September, but it looks like their numbers in California are quite low, at least among the banded ones. I am really looking forward to seeing them, I sure hope this won't be another disappointing year. I really need the connection to nature.

Autumn's Fake Gold

 

"I'm not upset that you lied to me, I am upset that from now on I can't believe you."

~Friedrich Nietzsche  

Trump Phones.

 Are you surprised they still haven't filled the orders,

 almost 5 months after they were due to be delivered?

 6 months after the initial rollout?

Nothing this year has surprised me less.

Do I feel sympathy for the folks who trusted him with their $100 deposit?

Nope.

What has to happen before they finally understand who this man is? 

Good luck to the gullible.

Read all about the fake gold refurbished phone here...

Trump Phone Is Still MIA 5 Months after It Was Announced

When Autumn Falls

 
Take no one or anything for granted.

 Love deeply.

 Be gracious. Be Thankful! Grateful for your life!

"Wind warns November's done with. The blown leaves make bat-shapes, web-winged and furious.

~Sylvia Plath

The Collected Poems

Autumn is slipping away now. The trees are beginning to stir grief in me. Loss has been great this year, and the nearly barren trees remind me of Hendrix's death. He was an autumn cat, he was born at the end of September in 2008. Along with Dylan, they were our autumn cats. Hendrix was black, and Dylan was orange. Perfect. They helped in healing from Elvis's death, just a few weeks earlier. I miss Hendrix with a deep sadness that I try to not manifest because I can't live in the pain anymore! Instead, I think of how happy he made, and how loved he made me feel. I am okay, and lucky enough to still own Joey, and now, Simon and Tyler! During this season of thanksgiving, I know, I am truly blessed, but I will miss those leaves, very much. To everything, there is a season.

It's The Third Dragonfly, But There Could Be More

 

 
“It looked like the world was covered in a cobbler crust of brown sugar and cinnamon.” 

~Sarah Addison Allen,

  First Frost 

 

This the third dragonfly. I captured this beauty at Yolo Bypass Wilderness Area about a week ago. It's been a hot September, and the dragonflies are loving it, but as dragonflies go, I haven't seen a lot of varieties yet. I will keep looking, and hopefully be the time the weather changes to the cooler days of autumn, I will spot many more dragonfly colors and shapes. I love the blue ones, and the ones with double wings. Here's to the journey! 

 

Grasshopper, GRASSHOPPER!

 

“Even tiny plants experience autumn.” 

 
~Devika Todi,

  Dreaming in A Fish Bowl

 

 

 

Okay, first, let me share, I hate bugs, but love and appreciate what they do for the ecosystem, but damn they are spooky looking! Like a mean spirited alien from some unknown planet. I've learned about different insects since moving to the San Joaquin Valley, but I hadn't gotten around to the grasshopper. As it turns out, I learned that they are actually fascinating creatures, and not bad to have around. Most cannot possibly be less interested in humans. But you see, I visited, Mount Diablo State Park, last week, and I met a bug a little less harmless. The Black wasp. Ugly, and come to find out, it has a really painful stinger. To their credit, they are not really aggressive, but you know, sometimes you meet someone and you just don't get along with them, the chemistry is just off!

 

To be fair, it was mostly me I guess. It flew into the car window and landed on my hand, surprising me, and I panicked! It bit/stung me, I went to smash it on the door, and it bit/stung me for the second time. It. FUCKING. HURT! We had only just arrived at the top of park, at 3,848  feet! What a way to begin a pleasant day. I am very sentimental about Mount Diablo, it has soothed my nerves to know that even if you live in the valley, if you can see that mountain, then the Bay Area is close by. I get a little bogged down out here, my nerves fray, my depression gets to me, and of course, there is gun fire all around me, but I can always see Diablo from anywhere along Hwy 5, and feel like I am home when I need it. 

 

As for the grasshopper, I didn't find him on Mount Diablo, I found him at the Yolo Bypass wildlife area, in Davis. And he got nowhere near me, but damn did I have a tiny flashback of panic! I was not interested in being stung by yet another insect, especially since I haven't been stung once, since visiting the bypass for the first time several years ago. Lets keep that place pure. Soon, the ducks, geese, cranes, and stilts will arrive, and I plan to visit... often! So no drama please. I also have not ruled another visit to Mount Diablo! They have a lot of wonderful creatures to see, like the tarantulas, especially during their mating season in October, and foxes, coyotes and on occasion, the California Condors. I'm kinda planning for a visit there next month, but I have a long list of places I would like to visit. I dunno, who knows, it could happen!

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #3

 

“The autumn leaves remind me of my own faded memories.
The leaves hold their own precious stories,
which drift about in the wind,
finding a new place to settle
and continue to exist.

The bare branches of the elm tree
still stand tall and strong, like I do.
It is a reminder that life still continues
even during the most adverse times.

As I land gently on the grassy plain,
my attention is drawn to the sight of fallen autumn leaves,
floating across the steady stream of water.

Sherwin has presented me with
many of these beautiful leaves in the past.
They are symbols of our steadfast endurance as a couple
and bring warmth and joy to my heart.”

 
~Susan L. Marshall,

   Fleur of Yesterday

 

Go visit a park. Spend time in your garden. Visit a river, or the beach. Sit on your front or back porch and study the world around you. See the colors. Listen to the sounds. Just step out of this life we are forced to endure. There is so much more than the stupidity of the moment. Stepping away from it all, is the best way to be in the here and now. Make new memories by letting go for a little while!

 

 

Autumn Leaf Of The Day #1

 

“That old September feeling, left over from school days, of summer passing, vacation nearly done, obligations gathering, books and football in the air ... Another fall, another turned page: there was something of jubilee in that annual autumnal beginning, as if last year's mistakes had been wiped clean by summer.”

 
~Wallace Stegner,

  Angle of Repose

 

 How beautiful is that leaf?

And it's only the first leaf of the day for 2025!

I can't wait to find all the beauty autumn has to offer!

 

  

Summer Berries And Cobwebs

 

Night is brushed aside like so much cobweb. The day is wound up and begins even before the last haunted dreams, the last of the fog, those spectral and evanescent residues, have faded away.”

 ~Gregory Maguire,

 After Alice

 

I hoped to see a spider, but alas they were nowhere to be found. But there is amazing beauty in cobwebs left behind, so I took my time searching for the dazzling, romantic strands of silver thread, and daydreamed of time well spent.

 

 

Rashes In The Hinge

“Be careful about reading health books. Some fine day you'll die of a misprint.”

 
~Markus Herz

 

A couple days ago I shared a post about a sign I saw at the hospital, which for whatever reason tickled my funny-bone. The post contained a couple photos of signs for the rash clinic at Kaiser. "Rash Entrance" and "Exit" on the ceiling right next to it. It pretty much told the story, but I neglected to include this photo. It is the actual door to the rash entrance, the "Rash Waiting Room." Beyond the choice of words, is the fact that if you look closely at the door, on the right side hinge, there appears to be something red just on the other side, giving the appearance, at least to me, of the door actually having a rash. But I see stupid stuff, so really I suppose it's just my imagination goofing on me. Or maybe you see it too. Shrug. 

 

Just remember, laughter is the best medicine. 

 

But if you have a rash, especially in the hinge, seek a doctors advice. 

 

Read my original post here. 

 

 

 

    

A Blurry Photo, Of An Old Friend

“This morning I stopped to watch the geese fly, even though I didn’t have the time to do so. And I realized that not having the time to do something might be the very reason why I need to do it.” 

 
~Craig D. Lounsbrough 

 

I wish I could have taken a better photo, but I just couldn't get a clear shot, and my camera wasn't being particularly helpful. There were too many weeds in the way. But who cares? Today was the first day I have spotted my favorite geese, the Greater White-fronted. I saw only 4 of them, but I am sure there were more way in the back of the pond. I saw all kinds of birds frolicking today, among them, Northern Pintail, Stilts, and Greater Yellowlegs! Desmond road is paradise to me, I have seen so many amazing birds for the first time, such as the Bald Eagle! I actually went out today in search of the Sandhill Crane, which has been spotted here and there, but with no luck. That's okay, as it happens often with birds, you go looking for a certain bird, and you might just spot someone else you weren't expecting! And that's a good thing!

 

The suspense continues, maybe tomorrow will be the day

 I spot my amazing Sandhill crane!

Summer's Twilight

 

“Dusk is just an illusion because the sun is either above the horizon or below it. And that means that day and night are linked in a way that few things are there cannot be one without the other yet they cannot exist at the same time. How would it feel I remember wondering to be always together yet forever apart?” 

 
~Nicholas Sparks

 The Notebook

 

Those summer twilight's...

 

 

   ... on the Franklin blvd and Desmond Road.