Frosty Morn

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Same strawberry, one day later

Some critters didn't make it

The 2-inch edge of a 2x4 (above)

Jack Frost did some fancy footwork on the glass-top table that resides on the deck. The ice is actually white but the reflection of the sky turned it blue when translated through my camera.

And of course my little dog Jack wants to play ball no matter what the temperature.

Winter Strawberry

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It's 40 degrees outside, feels like 32, and this morning I come across a strawberry. Good grief!

Hail

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It began as a downpour of rain, pounding the roof, the trees, the tarp outside spread above our grill. Then suddenly it changed to hail, the tiny round beads pounding down, sliding off the tarp, making a blue-white pile on the grass.

The Orb Weavers

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Notably absent from my autumn garden this year, I usually run into (literally) the webs of these guys strung across pathways where I walk, causing no small amount of sudden surprise quickly followed by, "Is it ON me"!? "WHERE"?
This is one of a mere handful that I've seen since September and seems oddly out of place traversing the cement pad in front of the shop building - a long trek for an arachnid.
Much as I dislike walking into their webs, I do hope they will return next year, in the great numbers they once were, thereby quelling, however briefly, my fears that they too may be succumbing to the effects of global warming.

Click on photos to enlarge. The details are spectacular.

Hangin' In There

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Caught out in the mist, heavy with dew, the intrepid caterpillar hangs on, and hangs on, and ...

Oops!

It took a little rest, uncurled itself and, not able to shake itself like a dog, crawled off to climb, climb again.

Red Sky At Night . . .

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. . . Sailors' delight. But there was a red sky the following morning (Sailor take warning) and it's been rainy ever since. It's hard cleaning up soggy plant clippings in the rain.

Early Azalea

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The first pink azalea bloom of the season. These blossoms usually don't appear until December, but this is hardly what I would call a normal year. It's been rainy and warm, in the 60s. Global Warming? I think so.

An Unseasonal Snake

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A common site in my summer garden, I was surprised to see this adult snake out in plain daylight today. After the rains begin (and they have, believe me), these guys usually hide out until the following spring. Maybe the rains caught him or her unawares like they did me this year. After doing my camera magic, I gently shooed said snake under a log. These snakes have never bothered us. They seem very docile and mostly just want to get away. I've tentatively identified them as Garter snakes, but none of the photos I've found on line really match them. If anyone knows more than I do about these critters, I'd love to hear from you.

Salamanders

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I've been outside cleaning up for the arrival of Thanksgiving guests, raking leaves, hauling plant clippings to the burn pile and occasionally turning over a log or large flower pot. These two were under just such a pot; the first salamanders I've seen this year. Salamanders are prevalent on the north coast of California. Judging from the photos on this web site, the ones I found are called Ensatina. I also come across the Pacific Giant Salamander and a really tiny one called a California Slender. Obviously I find them enchanting. After subjecting them, gently, to the indignities of being photographed, I safely returned them to the underside of the flower pot.

Next Spring's Demolition Team

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They looked kind of pretty all clumped together, nesting in the earth and decaying leaves under a log. So much so that I couldn't smash them even though they will turn into slugs sometime over the winter and invade my garden in the spring. I'll leave them be for just a while longer.