One third of the fence has been cleaned and restained.
While I was weeding today, I startled a beautiful toad. I hadn't seen one in our yard in many years.

Over the past few years, my thinking about insects has undergone a sea change. Insects are more than an annoyance and intrusion into our lives. Insects are animals and deserve respect and care just like mammals or reptiles or birds. They are part of the wildlife. And, unlike us, they fill important roles in the environment ( Read more... )

The leaves of the clematis on the lamp post are turning black. Probably a fungal disease. Strange since it has been dry the last few weeks. That plant has been there for twenty years without any problems ( Read more... )

New walking challenge--Bree to Rivendell. Slogging through the Midgewater Marshes. Walked over six miles a day at Pennsic.

Driving back and forth from Pennsic (we made three round trips), we listened to the 1979 Mind's Eye production of "The Lord of the Rings." Loved Reverb Treebeard and the snarky Lieutenant of the Dark Tower, not as fond of the Gaffer's voice (he sounded senile and/or drunk) or the less-than-terrifying turkey gobble of the Nazgul. Lord Branwyn and ( Read more... )

The garden was neglected this week while I gadded about at the Pennsic War, an annual medieval re-enactment (sort of) event in Pennsylvania. No signs of a deer invasion while we were gone.

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I reached the Prancing Pony yesterday! 135 miles. I should stop in a pub for a beer to celebrate. A few days behind schedule. Now on to Rivendell to visit the elves.

Not much going on. Part of the fence has been scrubbed and restained. The smell of the homemade deer repellent is its own special horrible. Evil!Outdoor!Cat wandered through the front yard this evening. He didn't stick around. Our house was probably more fun when Chibi was around to hiss at him through the window.

I escaped Old Man Willow and am now getting lost in the Barrow-downs. Michael spotted an owl sitting in a tree! I have heard them around here (in fact, I was convinced our yard was haunted until I found screech owl recordings on YouTube) but have never seen one before.

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We finally started staining the wooden fence. We have a couple months to get it painted ( Read more... )