Day 14.294: Exile #2's Sunday Column #368

Exile #2 writes...

We had a fairly wild night of storms and rain last night, which resulted in our roof springing a few leaks. Not ideal timing with more bad weather forecast but we’re hoping we can find someone who can help us out before the next round of downpours.

It’s also been a weekend of form filling in order that Exile #4 could submit their college applications. It’s amazing the amount of minutiae that are required. On more than one occasion I wished that our filing cabinet and computer were in the same room and not two floors apart but it was a good work out, I guess.

It all made for a slightly muted Halloween. Even the pumpkins went un-carved. E5N1 joined friends trick-or-treating, Exile #4 went out in costume to spend the evening with friends.

The rest of us stayed home and dealt with a bit more college admin (Exile #3’s this time) and quietly ate a few pieces of Halloween candy in the dark!! Happy Halloween!

Day 14.293: Is that a big-seller...?

"Is what a big seller?" you may be asking.

Well, the pink warning tape with the word "delineation" printed on it:

Day 14.292: It could be a coincidence...

...that Exile #2 made cherry Bakewells after she's been watching GBBO (or the Great British Baking Show as it's called over here), but let's just say I don't think it was.

I'm also not complaining.

Day 14.291: Scarborough Marsh

We had a nice walk at Scarborough Marsh in the bright sunshine of Sunday afternoon. Here are some things that caught my eye:

It wasn't the best day for birds, but we saw a heron and a yellowlegs (probably lesser) and saw them both have some success with their fishing. Several cormorants, a savannah sparrow and - probably - a northern harrier.

Day 14.290: In search of ink caps

On Saturday morning, we decided that the time was right for the shaggy ink caps on the Eastern Trail to be in the process of melting - we we right, but maybe a week too late for optimum ink cap timing.

We found one or two that were pre-melt:

A few (probable identification only) in the process:

And several patches that we could generously describe as past their best:

In the process, we met a dog walker who had become a mushroom spotter and had a little chat about how amazing they have been this year while her good boy waited incredibly patiently for us to finish.

Once we'd got our eyes in, we saw several other kinds of mushroom too:

Day 14.289: Cambridge visit

Our visit to Cambridge, MA yesterday evening started with some time-killing wandering. We spotted these rare denim deer:

The actual gig started with a vaccination check - everyone attending had to have proof of vaccination and wear a mask except while "actively drinking". Most people seemed to comply most of the time.

As for the main performer, Madison Cunningham seemed to have a great evening. She betrayed a bit of "is this really happening". Her first headlining tour was originally scheduled for 2020 - but, you know.

She really is a remarkable musician - crafting complex but approachable songs. She has an amazing voice and somehow manages to sing beautifully while not just playing guitar - but playing the hard bits! I highly recommend both her recorded music and jumping at any opportunity to see her live.

Day 14.288: Madison Cunningham

Tonight, we drove down to Cambridge, MA to see Madison Cunningham live and it was a spectacular evening. Maybe I'll write more about it later, but for now I'll just repeat what Exile #2 and I said to each other as we left - she's made of musical magic. Truly spectacular.

Day 14.287: Exile #2's Sunday Column #367

Exile #2 writes...

We’re due to have our first (probably mild) frost of the season tonight. We’ve done well to avoid it so far, so there are no complaints here. Nor am I complaining that our oak trees seem to have decided to lay off acorn production this year. Perhaps they can tell we’ve all had enough to contend with.

In other news, we seem to have been honing our descriptions of each other at home. I have decided to keep note of them, to see who coins - or inspires the best. Exile #1 described me as “manifestly not bad” the other day, which I thought I might adopt as a tag line. I can’t quite remember the context but perhaps I will get it made up into a t-shirt. Later in the week, E5N1, told Exile #3, mid argument. that she was “painstaking annoying”. It brought whatever the dispute was to a pretty swift end because it was hard not to see the funny side of being not just annoying but painstakingly annoying.

Day 14.286: Walk; fall

Exile #2 and I had a nice walk this morning before breakfast. We had a specific purpose in mind which was partially successful, but for now here are some pictures of the autumnal woodland that we passed through:

Day 14.285: Fungus among us

Here is my photo update of the fungi in Ferry Beach State Park from last Saturday afternoon - each week there's been something new to see - some arrivals and some that have changed a lot as they have developed.

The first one that caught my eye was the one second from the left in the bottom row that look like someone wearing lipstick had kissed them.

Day 14.284: Big sky

It's hard to say exactly why, but the sky seemed very big when I took this photo yesterday.

Maybe the real question is why doesn't the sky always seem big?

Day 14.283: Driver #4

After an extended Covid delay, Exile #4 is currently doing "driver's ed" and today was their first time behind the wheel - an early lesson starting from home and arriving at school for second block instead of having their scheduled study-hall (free period):

I believe it all went well.

Day 14.282: October on the beach

It was rather windy on Saturday afternoon a the beach - the bay was noticeably but not dramatically choppy:

There wasn't a whole lot to see - some gulls and some weed that - apart from its color - reminded me a bit of the mysterious squid eggs:

Day 14.281: Foliage sight site

The weekend ended up being pretty busy - so no major outings to see how the foliage was getting on. We were surrounded by trees at the art event yesterday and then there was this view as we crossed from the beach into Ferry Beach State Park on our walk on Saturday afternoon:

which is not a bad view at all.

Day 14.280: Exile #2's Sunday Column #366

We spent a fun afternoon taking part again in the Fall Into Art event hosted by Exile #3's old dance studio. As before, we did a quick half hour set of songs, and then stayed to enjoy more music and dance

It was not as cold as on previous occasions, when Exile #1 had trouble keeping his fingers working and my throat all but seized up but there was still a nice freshness in the air, a beautiful blue sky, and gently falling leaves - which occasionally had to be swept off the stage between dances.

Day 14.279: Beach; woods

Once again, we looped our beach walk through the park. The stretch along the beach was unseasonably warm, but very windy (and we were walking into it). It was much quieter in the woods except when we ran into a friend out on a family bike ride on the trails.