November in Shirtsleeves

It was crazy mild this weekend, with highs around 70F/21C. I canoed in a t-shirt!

I hoped to go for a paddle while the leaves were their most colorful but they changed and fell very fast this year.

Some deep red remained in the bankside oaks,

where hornets summered.

The reflections weren't very colorful, but they were pretty nonetheless.

Whitetail Deer were moving about this weekend.

Here, a buck escorted a doe across the river and is leading her onto the gravel bar on the right (click to enlarge).

I was surprised at how quickly the Black Walnuts disappeared this fall. The crop was healthy enough but they barely hit the ground and were gone. Squirreled away for a "bad" winter, perhaps? Other creatures are filling up and storing food--

this was the second corn cob of the day for this Eastern Chipmunk.

A White-breasted Nuthatch fed at the feeder,

and a Carolina Chickadee-dee-dee-dee.

You can see we don't rake our leaves. How silly would that be, to rake, bag, pay for removal, get in the car, buy a bag of fertilizer wrapped in plastic, spread the fertilizer, then dispose of the bag? Better just to sit back, have a beer, and let it all rot. :o)

The reds of the Blackgum leaves from last week deepened in color.

The garden is looking a little scruffy, littered with leaves, but most things have happily survived a couple of light frosts.

The garden is still producing radishes, turnips, several kinds of greens, and spinach. And look at that carrot! Isn't it magnificent?!

It's our first carrot!!!

I pulled and pulled and absolutely squealed when the thing came out of the earth. Then I ran inside to share with O, who shared in my excitement.

Then I killed it, sliced it, and served it in a salad to friends. There are worse ends, I guess.

Of half a dozen persimmon trees, just one produced again this year. They're sparse but seem bigger than last summer's. They're way, way up high--this shot is zoomed in--so we're not likely to taste any. Enjoy, Opossums and Raccoons!

I wanted to photograph the Pin Oak in the front yard but it’s surrounded by trees and I couldn’t get a clean shot of it. So I filmed it, trunk to crown, just to give you an idea of its size.

A friend allowed us to raid his wood lot for trees many years ago. We chose this one, which was far too large for two people to move. We dug it up, schlepped it through the woods, brought it home, dug a hole, planted it, and gave it a good drink. There was much grunting and groaning, and backs were sore the following day. It was worth the trouble.

Photographs I didn't get this week:

* The first snow--I was stuck in my cube in my office many miles to the south when it happened. I hate missing the first snow.

* A Bald Eagle on the river nearly every day. O saw him and phoned in reports to me. I spent most of the weekend looking out the window but he seems to only work Monday through Friday.

* The Screech Owl who flew in front of my face at arm's length as I walked the puppy in the dark. Yes, their wingbeats really are silent.

* The Ghost Deer of 'Possum Valley, clearly seen this evening across the river but too dark to photograph.

I managed to get a shot of sunlight on the pond yesterday. It looks like a starry sky, don't you think?