a collection of sun bleached bones found on the shores of the great salt lake in utah a couple of weeks ago.  i put them in a plastic bag and carried them home in my carry-on, grateful i didn’t have to explain anything to a customs officer, and musing on the absurdity of being able to carry animal bones across the country but no more than 2 fluid ounces of water.

i had originally thought they belonged to a former coyote, but now i am second guessing myself and thinking the delicate rib bones are too small for coyote.  maybe raccoon?  it’s all the same to me, they are both, since March of this year, “chicken predators” in my book.

great salt lake, utah

seasons are about abundance and scarcity. just when you think you never want to eat another strawberry, see another snowflake, mow another blade of grass, rake another leaf, suddenly there are no more strawberries, snowflakes, blades of grass, or turning leaves to be seen. here are a few flame tipped maple leaves to be acknowledged, before they disappear for another year beneath a blanket of fresh, unfamiliar snow.

green maple leaves tinged in orange

saint paul, minnesota

i looked down at my feet this afternoon while feeding the chickens, and this delicate little mushroom was staring wonderingly up at me with an unblinking brown eye in a freckled face. i was charmed.

lbm (little brown mushroom)

found in leafy duff in the woods in front of my house