It's fall!

Leaves are actually falling, as though calendars mattered to my yard. There will be hundreds of moonflowers. I'm kinda stunned. There have been thousands of morning glories and that didn't surprise me. They're in eight different places, and a couple of those places pretty extensive.

We have ten days before we leave for the Live and Learn Conference. I've been doing pretty well this time about being ready early, but by "ready" I mean keeping my last-minute list to a manageable level.

For me, it's easier than for Keith who has to take time off during a pressing project at work. Kirby and Marty have arranged to take off too. That's a lot of people's days off. And we're having two housesitters to share the load here, and they might subcontract to other friends in that group. Sometimes I wish for the ease of just locking up a one-bedroom pet-free apartment and getting a ride to the airport, rather than all the whole-family, four-pet, yard-watering planning. Six pets--forgot the rats for a moment. But in the "at least..." department, at least we're not on the Gulf coast and we don't have milk goats.

The conference details are here, and I'm speaking or leading games or music seven times. Nothing really difficult, just a lot of it.

http://www.liveandlearnconference.org/

Next year it will probably be in Albuquerque! Much less prep if so!

Moonflowers! (and a mystery flower)

Yes, a moonflower bloomed, and dozens more are building up blooming. This one's about ten feet up, so we couldn't get a clear shot (and it's not quite fully open at 9:30, either, but I have hot tub and sleeping-like-a-rock plans because I have a cold).

And then there's a mystery flower came up yesterday and bloomed today. It might be a bulb, but it came up pretty suddenly and without any blades or leaves, just the stalk (about ten inches high) and a freakish, elaborate bloom like the tails of five exotic cartoon birds. Does anyone know what this is!?