8/9/06

• CHAINSAW JUST BACK FROM SERVICE & SHARPENING
• it was working fine, but previous caretaker indicated that it was about time.
• BOUGHT GAS FOR MOWER (gas is 3.19/gal at present)

We've been mowing every 2 weeks now instead of every week due to gas prices and desire to pollute less, etc.
Went birding the other morning here w/CM and saw a wide variety of species: kingfisher, northern flicker, hairy woodpecker, possibly grebes, peewees, flocks of redwing blackbirds. Many others that I can't recall. The causeway on the west side of the lake overlooking the neighbor's pond seems to be the best place to bird.

We also listed to tapes and realized that our owl is an Eastern Screech Owl. Quite an eerie sound, human/mammal-like, combined with a horse whinny sound. It usually comes from the trees on the west side of the lawn.

Picked more boletes at the end of last week. We also found a large patch of coral fungus that we haven't identified yet. We found some huge boletes that at first sight appeared to be king boletes. However, close up they were fuzzy and light purple colored, with a rather fishy and putrid smell. Amazing + beautiful nonetheless.