Slow Down Baby

Autumn 2008, Marathon

I rush a lot at work. Sometimes I like to rush through tasks in life. There are times when I wish I could rush through the rest of this contract and dash back into the swing of civilization and something of the life I had before moving here. I need to remind myself to slow down, to take my time, smell the decaying forest (so to speak). 

I miss summer already, even as I remember how much I love the season we're moving into. Fall moves me and it also changes my pace in a way. I like to hike and walk a lot during this time of the year but I don't feel like rushing, I want to stop and look at everything. I want to take my time, stoop to rifle through the leaves and peak underneath rotting logs. 

I found some crow feathers today and part of bone. My first thought was that it belonged to a moose but other people believe it belongs to a deer. I will need to do some further investigating. Pictures to follow. Right now it's time to be slow: to put the photos on the computer tomorrow, to ruminate over my found  objects and to walk in to work in a few minutes with the peace of mind I gathered while I walked in the forest today. 

Be slow today. 

Forest Foray

    

Rysio and I hiked the Moose Trail today. We didn't see any Alces Alces but we saw plenty of their "evidence." It was a perfect day for a walk in the woods: no bugs, moderate temperature, new things to look at as the season begins to change. The fungi were out in full force. There was plenty of Labrador Tea to harvest. The forest was thriving, even as the deciduous trees were shedding their leaves. Autumn is my favourite time of year for hiking, I can't wait to explore more trails in the coming months.

In case you are curious, the above fungi is a Ramariopsis kunzei that we accidentally found under an overturned rock. It is a common form of coral fungi that is: widespread, "attractive," easily identified and is also edible. (Source: Lone Pine Field Guide: Mushrooms of Ontario and Eastern Canada by George Barron). But you won't catch me cooking up any fruiting bodies anytime soon. I keep my mycological love to photography and identification. I like to play it safe and buy my mushrooms from the store.  

Forgotten Moments

I don't have any news or adventures to recount today. Last night I opted out of a paddle under the stars with the boys in favour of a few extra hours of sleep. My pillow time is very precious to me.

Instead I will keep this brief and share some 3-6 year old photographs that I altered with Poladroid. Although it looks like I spent barely any time gathering these together and uploading them, you have no idea how much I have wrestled with the internet and Blogger today. I like to look at these and think about what I was doing on that day, how I was feeling, who I was with, what I was wearing, where I was living and so on. They evoke so much more than what is pictured.

    

 I hope you have some memorable moments today.