I'm not doing the Micro.blog September photoblogging challenge but thought I'd share a photo for today's Date in the life. For the past 22 days I've been working on our gravel road. Moving 5-8 wheelbarrow loads a day from our dry creek bed to fix a few washed out sections. 100+ loads total, 2+ hours of daily exercise, about 1,100 cal burned as a workout. I like getting actual, needed work done as a workout. Several more sections to fix, another few weeks of exercise. The road actually looks messier because now its a mixed up conglomeration of the original, uniform gray road gravel but with lots of dirt, sand and creek gravel all mixed in. In the process of digging out the shoulders to resurface the burried gravel, adding the creek materials I've raised the whole section of road an inch or two while also lowering the shoulders for better drainage.
Obviously working with just hand tools takes far longer than using a tractor or other motorized equipment but I need the daily exercise anyway. 2 hours a day spent listening to music and working out in the woods to fix a problem makes sense. With two hours a day through September, October and perhaps a week or so into November I should have it done before the ground starts to freeze.
Over the past 3-5 years we've been getting more intense, 7+" rainfall events each year. With each such event more excess gravel is left in the creek while more of the road gravel is washed off the road. Going forward I'll have to spend more time maintaining it but the work now should result in a more stable road and also better divert the excess water during storms. The goal is to have more water shed off the road rather than flow along it.
Copperheads are fairly common in my area and I see several each summer. They're beautiful snakes. Venomous, yes, but in my experience never aggressive. Just respect them and let them have their space, they make fine neighbors. And frankly, they're beautiful animals.
Tiny little fungi! Witch's Hat, Hygrocybe conica.

Unidentified mushrooms 
Seen on a morning walk, Campanula americana, American bellflower
I've found the most comfortable position when working from the bed/futon in my tiny house. Never thought I'd use a pillow stand but was given one and it actually works really well with the Logitech Combo Touch. Perfect eye level and typing angle and really stable when placed on a pillow.
Tiny little Splitgill mushrooms, Schizophyllum commune. So tiny but both the top and bottom sides are full of texture.
This morning I discovered a small group of pawpaws growing just 150 feet from my cabin! 🤗 I planted 2 in a different spot last spring but these volunteers are growing in the other spot I was considering. Which leads me to think there must be more in the area that I have yet to discover. 🤗
Oh, this cute boy wants attention.
My favorite and most eaten breakfast and snack is oatmeal. Simple, healthy, easy to prepare and so many optional variations. Most recently, it's blackberries because my bushes are covered. I just blend a cup of blackberries with a teaspoon of sugar, pour it over the uncooked oatmeal. Stir, add a wee bit of water if needed then microwave for a minute.
From a recent morning walk. Some beautiful sun rays and a tiny little wildflower.
Dianthus armeria, the Deptford pink
From the morning walk. The smoke from the Canadian wildfires has made its way down to mid Missouri, a bit hazy this morning, but a pretty sunrise.
Spotted water hemlock, Cicuta maculata, highly poisonous.
Futzing around in my photos, these were taken a few years back.
Panorpa helena, scorpion fly.
Unknown bee on Spiderwort
A nice morning dog walk with all of the usual characters. I'm getting better at identifying bird song. Today: White-eyed vireo, yellow breasted chat, northern parula and cardinals.
Also, flowers:
Queen Anne's Lace
Chicory and a green bee, perhaps Agapostemon virescens.
Button bush, Cephalanthus occidentalis is always popular with the butterflies and bees. They have a very nice spicy fragrance too.
Pipevine Swallowtail
Milesia virginiensis, known generally as the yellowjacket hover fly. They look intimidating but are friendly.
Eastern tiger swallowtail
From my archive, a buffet of Purple Coneflowers being enjoyed by pipevine swallowtail, Battus philenor and monarch butterfly. Native wildflower gardens always bring the prettiest critters. 🥰
I needed some images for a project and while searching photos from 2020 I came across these. Taken when I was able to get out on longer gravel rides on the back roads. Taken on an early morning ride when there was still a bit of fog in the low lying areas.
Trail photos!
Hydrastis canadensis, Goldenseal
Gymnosporangium juniperi-virginianae, the fungi that causes apple cedar rust. Such a strange and beautiful fungi!
A few recent photos taken around the cabin and on the trail.
Camonotus castaneus, chestnut carpenter ant
Arilus cristatus, Wheel Bug Nymph. This one was tiny and moving quickly hard to capture up close.
Ramaria caulifloriformis, coral fungi
From today's trail ride.
Ramaria caulifloriformis, coral fungi
Cortinarius distans or Laccaria, not sure!
After breakfast this morning I had about 90 minutes before the rain was scheduled to come in so I got out for a walk with the dogs.
There was a lot of bird song so I took the binoculars and went slow. They were deep in the woods, so I didn't see many but they were all around me: blue-winged warbler, Wilson's warbler, white-eyed vireo, red-eyed vireo, summer tanager, ovenbird, Carolina chickadee.
Birds that I did get to see were: indigo bunting, chipping sparrow and a gray catbird
Got back just in time to take a quick ride down to the creek. A peaceful twenty minutes before the storm listening to the birds and the light rain dripping through the forest.
A few hours later an unexpected visit from a friend who I've not seen in awhile (Hi Bill!). We spent some time catching up on the porch and listening to the bird song. He has an uncanny ability to identify birds by their song and it's always a delight to visit with him. While we chatted another welcome visitor stopped by, a bright red summer tanager landed on a branch not too far away.
A few photos taken around the cabin yesterday. It's so easy to miss the beautiful but tiny critters.
Camonotus castaneus, chestnut carpenter ant
Augochlora pura, a solitary sweat bee found in the Eastern US.
Halictus ligatus, a eusocial sweat bee
Observed on the morning walk: honeysuckle and Auricularia fungi.
From the trail ride today: Polystichum acrostichoides, Christmas fern Tradescantia, Spiderwort
My photos only show a small area along the trail but this hill is covered in Mayapples. It's quite something.
Lots of Mayapples on the trail as well as Andersonglossum, wild comfry which has simple, five petaled flowers. Very pretty evening bird song including: summer tanager, northern parula, and red-eyed vireo.
