The back yard

I was picking up sticks around the yard the other day and found this cool-looking fungus under the evergreens. It's called Rounded Earthstar, and it's a member of the Puffball family. Wikipedia says, "It is considered inedible by mushroomers, because of its bitter taste. It is a common mushroom, but collections are at their peak during late summer."

The hummingbirds were late in coming this summer, but they are most entertaining. I haven't seen many of the males -- the ones with the ruby throats -- but the females are at my feeder almost continuously. When two show up together, they chitter at each other and chase each other.
I'm starting to see yellow leaves drop off the big walnut tree. Soon the walnuts will come crashing down onto the roof in the middle of the night, and I already saw a squirrel chewing away the tough green coating. Better him than me: the walnut produces a brown stain so indelible that a friend of mine uses it as hair dye.

No excuses

Fitness instructors are tough cookies.
My Pilates teacher taught class the other evening with a bad sinus infection. She told us she planned to head to the clinic in Kennett right after class to get an antibiotic prescription.
Another student and I suggested that if she wanted to cut class short, we'd understand -- even if she needed to eliminate a couple of moves, say various glorified pushups and one pose that involves holding a V-seat position while lifting weighted balls toward your pointed feet.
She may have been ill, but she certainly didn't fall for that one.

Cracked me up

A friend told me that her husband came off his horse while going over a jump during a lesson, landed hard and was in significant pain with what they feared were broken ribs.
I sympathized, per usual, and asked if I could bring them a pizza or subs for dinner.
No, thanks, she said. I could tell she was trying really hard not to laugh when she explained that they had to finish the previous night's leftovers ... BBQ ribs.
As it turns out, the ribs (the human kind) were not broken, just seriously bruised, and he's back in the saddle. So I had lunch today with the wife and the Cranky Friend, and the latter came up with an idea that is a sure-fire winner: there should be a shop in Unionville that stocks all manner of splints, braces, walkers, canes, cold and heat pads, and rehab equipment. Just on the off chance that anybody around here should suffer any equine-related injuries.

Cubbing

If you're seeing a lot of horse trailers out in the early, early morning, here's why: the foxhunters are getting ready for their season.
Some hunts are doing "hound walking" and others have already started "cubbing." The idea is to get the young hounds used to the idea of chasing foxes, for the young foxes to get used to leading the hounds on a merry chase and for the horses and riders to get back into the swing of things, supposedly at a slower pace (that doesn't always happen, from what I hear). The dress code is less formal than during the "real" season.
These dress rehearsals start much earlier in the day, too. The Cheshire hunt is still hound walking, which starts at 7 a.m.
But two of my dearest pals, who hunt with Andrews Bridge, get up at 3:30 in the morning to get their horses and themselves groomed and ready for a 6 a.m. start.
"You're home by 8:30, and you've already been up for five hours!" one said.

West Marlborough business

From beginning to end, the West Marlborough Township meetings on Aug. 6 lasted just 52 minutes -- and that included ample social time.
First the Planning Commission met and chose Jeb Hannum as its new chairman (former chair Josh Taylor became a township supervisor) and welcomed new member Gus Brown, who was named to the commission by the township supervisors in July. After their brief meeting there was general conversation among the audience members -- we always have plenty to discuss with our neighbors -- before Supervisor Bill Wylie called the supervisors' meeting to order.
The only bit of controversy at the meeting occurred when Springdell resident Bernie Langer stood and read aloud a letter he wrote to the board suggesting that they be more open when choosing new Planning Commission and Zoning Hearing Board members. He said vacancies on the boards should be publicized, candidates' names announced and public input invited on the candidates. He also said living in the township for at least five years and being a regular voter and municipal meeting attender should be prerequisites for serving on one of the boards.
In their letter of response, the supervisors told him they felt that following such a public procedure would be "hurtful and divisive" because it would necessarily create winners and losers. They also thanked him for being such an involved citizen and expressing his views.
In other business, Tom Brosius of Marlboro Mushrooms praised the township road crew for keeping the roadbanks so neatly maintained: he said they waited for him to mow his fields and even tidied a spot he missed. Supervisor and Roadmaster Hugh Lofting seconded the compliments for the crew, adding that they've had quite a job keeping stone on the gravel roads with the heavy and frequent rainstorms this past month.
At the supervisors' meeting, Planning Commission member Anna Myers filled in as minute-taker for township secretary-treasurer Shirley Walton, who had to make a family airport pickup. Anna is certainly no stranger to taking minutes: she does the same thing for the Planning Commission.

24/7

How did I not know that the Landhope convenience store in Willowdale is now open 24/7? I know I lead a quiet life, but others who claim to live under rocks say they've been well aware of the fact for months. Thank you, Sharp-Eyed Friend, for pointing this out, and rest assured you were certainly NOT the last to hear.
In my defense, I checked yesterday evening and found no signs at the store as to its hours. And the last time I drove past in the wee hours, I was coming home from some gala and was more concerned about keeping my giant evening cloak away from the brake and accelerator.

Darn you, autocorrect!

I was just texting a friend to meet me for lunch at La Pena Mexicana. She has not been there before, so I described it as "across from Wawa." The autocorrect dictionary was obviously not written by a local: it changed "Wawa" to "Wayward." It does the same thing with "Kennett," which becomes "Kenneth."