I just got done mowing the front yards. I never seem to remember to pick up all the sticks first, so I end up stopping Johnny to do the job right. I don’t really feel like picking up sticks. I just want to mow and be done with it. It’s 8:30 and although still cool, it’s not going to stay that way for long. The haze shimmers in the air and the woods in back of the house are not quite in focus. I think we’re in for storms this afternoon. Okay, let’s just pick up the sticks Lynne and get it over with. First I spy a blue jay feather. I stick it in my pocket to give to the kitties. They love bird feathers. Oh, look, mushrooms! Cool. Wonder what kind they are? I place a stick in the ground so I can find them again since I want to get a photo of them in case they aren’t here by the time Rick returns home. Maybe we can identify them. Plus, I don’t want Johnny to mow over them.

It’s a good thing I am doing this because they are some really large pieces of branches on the ground. Trees, you gotta love ‘em! Wait, what’s this? At first glance it looks like a clod of dirt, but it’s really a bird’s nest that must have blown out of the tree. It’s finely crafted from mud with some twigs [but really mostly mud] and lined with grass and bits of plant material. The back side is completely flat but the front side bows out to form a semi-circle. A cozy home for any little birdlet to grow up in! Hopefully this bird’s crop of kids have already flown the nest or they’ll have to start all over again. Anyone know what kind of bird builds a nest like this?? Let me know if you do!

I find a few more mushrooms that are a kind of puffball. Some are already spent and nothing is left but the shell, weird looking.

When I get back inside and I download the photos, I find this one. I didn’t realize it when I was actually taking the shot, but look closely. Don’t you think it looks like a face? See, the two little mushrooms are the eyes, the big mushroom is the nose and there are slight indentations in the ground that could be slashes of mouth on either side of the “nose.”  What do you see?

So, without the sticks I wouldn’t have seen any of this today. Thank you, sticks! All 52 of you!