Hiking at Clinton Lake in Lawrence

   Today Charley and I had planned to head out to Lawrence early, get in a good hike around Clinton Lake and enjoy the 60+ degree temperatures and sunny skies, and then grab a bite and a pint at Free State. (It had been WAY too long since I'd been out to Free State!)

   Many of the colorful leaves had fallen and turned to brown, but there was still plenty of color to see and appreciate...

   Brains! Or hedge apples, as it were. These things were EVERYWHERE! And huge! And apparently they're fruit! After years of pondering, I finally looked them up.

 Aki sails right through the teepee (or should I say "tree-pee"):

 Charley was a bit tall for it. I think Taylor dragged him through.

 The lake:

 A break:

A lil' mistake:

    I let Aki take an off-trail excursion, which led to her being being peppered with burrs. But the dogs seem to think that the number of burrs in your fur is directly proportional to the amount of fun you had on the hike! (Guess which doggies are getting a bath tonight?)

    As we walked around Lake Henry, our turn-back point, we spotted a small, gracefully thin snake who was sunning itself on the path. It took off swiftly and silently toward the bank, through the rocks and into the leaf litter, and despite my best attempt, I was unable to chase it down and catch it before it disappeared. I was disappointed. I wasn't 100% sure what it was, but I guessed a ribbon snake (lucky guess!), which was right on: a Western ribbon snake, to be exact! If memory serves, this was the first snake I've seen in the wild since I moved to KC... 14.5 years ago!
   We sat at a picnic table for a few minutes, enjoyed the view and some apples, then headed back. Suddenly, Aki hopped into the grass excitedly, then froze. "What's she after?" I asked. Then we saw it: a much larger red-sided garter snake!

   It's a darn good thing it is harmless; I was excited and all too willing to get a closer look. After Aki scared it, the snake took off down the bank to hide and embedded itself in a thick clump of grasses. Fortunately, the tip of its tail was visible, so I nabbed it, then lifted the grass firmly, and voila: a snake! 

   The snake was a little agitated about being held—mostly because it thought it was in danger, I'm sure. It lashed out at the camera repeatedly, but fortunately calmed down after a while. (But not before releasing its gross, musky warning signal all over my hands... ick. I smelled like a big smelly snake for the rest of the hike. Rinsing my hands in lake water hardly helped at all.)

    The dogs were SUPER curious and all too ready to lunge at the creature. Even Charley had a tough time restraining them. "Small but mighty" runs in the family!
   (I love this photo because it looks so much like the Taylor vs. Baby Possum photo from earlier this year!)

    I finally quit harassing the poor snake and let it get away, but not before I got a few more nice photos of it. Snakes have a bad rap, but they're fascinating creatures. Their scales on their belly are sleek and smooth, and their coloration and pattern are remarkable. They have a very intense look on their faces... maybe that's what scares people. Most are harmless to people, and they control pests like mice, rats, frogs and insects. What's not to like?*

* Unless you're my mom. I think I ruined any chance of her ever liking snakes.

    We finished the hike and returned to the car to head to a late lunch. Taylor looked very happy:

 Aki looked a lil' sleepy:

 Okay, maybe a LOT sleepy! Zzzzzzzz

  "Dog is my copilot." Or backseat driver, as it were. Taylor says, "Drive towards those trees; I think I smell squirrels!" (This was shortly before he returned to the back seat and crashed next to Aki.)

   And finally, Free State Brewing Company! A Cyclist (wheat beer + lemonade) and a burger never tasted so good.

This puts my pumpkin carving prowess to shame! Nice buffalo!

   Here are a few pics from my last Clinton Lake hike... more recent than I had remembered, on a similarly perfect November afternoon!

Funny-slash-weird

   Today was one of those days where I needed a laugh. I had a long day at work, and then a meeting that lasted until almost ten. By the time I got home, I had been done 14 hours, missed a happy hour with friends, and was starving. So I started heating up leftovers.
   When I walked over to the sink to wash my hands, I noticed something sticking out of the disposal on the other side of the sink. Which was odd, because nearly 100% of my food waste goes into the compost bin. My first thought was that I had absent-mindedly shoved some celery remnants in there while I was making soup.
   Upon closer inspection, I realized that it was a SPROUT that was GROWING out of my disposal! Of course it totally grossed me out initially, as I was thinking it was a fungus. Ugh! So I bravely reached my hand down there and pulled out... a large handful of PUMPKIN seeds that must have been washed down there when Dave & I carved pumpkins 3 weeks ago, each with a 6-8" sprout!

   So if you need a pumpkin for Halloween next year, feel free to stop by. I'm growing them inside of my sink.

Saggy Jack

:(

Ol' Man Jack

   Aww, rats! My jolly jack-o-lantern is rapidly melting in the 80-degree temps, and he's getting gums like an little old man! At this rate he'll never make it 'til Halloween! He's kinda cute, though, isn't he?

Halloween Cuties

   Okay, I'll admit it... I sneaked away from my creative directorial duties for a couple of hours this week so that Lynda and Karla could teach me (and a group of illustrators and lettering artists) how to do wool felting. I haven't taken a workshop at work since I became an art director... in 2004. Yikes. I may be a manger, but I'll always be an artist! And I've wanted to learn for YEARS—ever since my sister, Kelley, gave me a kit for Christmas. Which has sat in my closet unused... until now! I was also given a a Shiba kit from Japan by my dear friend Patty, as well as a bagful of Shiba-colored alpaca fiber by a friend who raises alpaca in Columbia, MO.

   I can really go to town now. My plan is to make a spooky black kitty next (an homage to my Atom) to complete this Halloween set, and then to start some Shibas. Wish me luck! I'm really, really skilled at poking my fingertips thousands of times with the needle in the process... but I think they're worth the pain.

Hangin' with alpaca

Alpaca farm

Pumpkin-Palooza

   Dave and I carved pumpkins tonight... something I haven't done in many, many years. I don't know why... it was super-fun! We drank sweet tea-flavored vodka, listened to Metro and Biggie, and then watched the Project Runway finale.

My sketch...

Dave sketches...

Start your engines!

Ooey gooey

Time to remove some guts...

The final products

Who dat?!

Punkinhead Jen!

Dave-a-rino

DJ Punkinhead Dave-a-rino

Spooky punkins at night

Spooky

   Just pulled in the driveway to see a cat that looked eerily like Atom sitting on my front porch. He even has the white patch on his chest! My heart stopped for a second, like I was seeing the ghost of my dear kitty.
   He was skittish but friendly, so I went inside and brought him a handful of cat food—which he appreciated and gobbled up, though he didn't appear to be underweight. He wasn't wearing a collar or ID. I'm NOT taking in another cat, but if he keeps coming around I'll get him to a shelter...

Get Thee to a Winery

   After our morning fun, we drove a short way to Stone Hill Winery in Hermann, MO, the historic German town, for a wine tasting & lunch...

   We dined on sauerbraten, red cabbage, spaetzel, and potato pancakes.

It's that kid's 13th birthday... And here's his new Facebook profile photo!

What a perfectly fun day with friends!