Hello, mystery person

Hi Sierrosmith or Q-topia. I have a feeling, judging from the photos, that we're neighbors. I'd love to know who you are. Also, several of my friends and former students want to post comments on my blog, but don't know how. Neither do I! :) Apparently you know how it works because you're a "follower." Could you enlighten us? I'm still a neo-luddite, even though I'm trying to blog.
My next post will be "bug" photos collected over this past summer. Joe

Pictures to hang onto summer by

As cold weather approaches, and my firewood is all split, stacked, and covered - finally - I'm simultaneously bracing for winter and not wanting to let go of summer. Winter will come, and I will adjust. But, meanwhile, I'm posting two more photos that remind me of the best of summer - the Pacific Coast Tree Frog, Hyla regilla, and the Goldenrod Crab Spider. Both are subjects of greeting cards in a line I hope to release before Christmas. The frog, by the way, has recently been renamed Pseudacris regilla, and is now a "chorus" frog rather than a tree frog. I guess I must have had a premonition of this back in 1981 when I published an essay titled "Our Tree Frogs Don't Like Trees." Having learned zoology back east where both types abound, I knew that our California frog had habits and appearance more similar to the Pseudacris clan, but I never really questioned the name. I liked the Hyla clan so much I named my first child Hyla. Now I'm hanging onto the first name just like I'm hanging onto summer.
The Goldenrod Crab Spider is a work of art, and I have photographed it often. In my next post I'll include a few more pics of it plus some other bugs I enjoyed this past summer.

Quercus kelloggii

I didn't think California black oak could get any prettier, then I went to get a donut at Papa's, and there it was!

Black Oak, Quercus kelloggii

Here are a couple of pics of the plant that inspired this blog and my publishing operation. Later, I'll post a brief history of the name and biographical info about Dr. Kellogg. These pics were taken October 3, as the fall colors are just beginning to emerge around my home town.

A poem from one who is not a poet

Here's the poem I promised a few entries ago.

ODE TO SOLANACEAE

Oh, deadly nightshade,

You mysterious bundle of DNA,

Perhaps you knew we were coming.

You killed some of us, but

You spawned many tasty cousins:

Potato, tomato, eggplant, and peppers.

Your cousins, too, are toxic

Except for the parts we eat.

So intriguing, your beautiful toxic flowers

And your often delectable fruit.

Both feared and admired; Solanaceae,

I thank you

for forcing me to pay attention.

Fall Colors, Quincy, CA

Fall is in the air and the weatherman says we should get our first freezing night tonight and tomorrow will be our first truly cold day. This will speed up the changing of leaves to bright reds, oranges, and yellows. Very exciting. This past weekend, we got a preview, finding a few dogwoods turned red in the watershed of Big Thompson Creek, 15 minutes from downtown Quincy. We continued on down the LaPorte Road to the Middle Fork of the Feather River and found lots of Bigleaf Maple and the nice reflection scene shown here. I contribute a lot of photos to the nature blogs at the Plumas Visitors Bureau. The current one, called Leaf Peepers, emphasizes fall colors, and the springtime blog emphasizes wildflowers and is called Bloom Blog. If you live in this area, or if you visit, check out these blogs, then get out there with your camera and make a contribution. I find my camera gives me incentive to pay closer attention. Then I notice special little details like this "crown" at the top of a horsetail stem (top).

I'm back!

I need to get back to this blog. I've been contributing to blogs at the Plumas Visitors Bureau website, but ignoring my own. More pics and recent news will come tomorrow. Promise! Joe