Pretty Leaves and Fuzzy Caterpillars

I’m visiting my family in the Bay Area this weekend, but here are some pictures of the arboretum and the cute caterpillars I met there a few weeks ago.

Red maple leaves and a nice clear sky

Pink flower of some sort

Cool sunshine over a structure at the arboretum

Variegated leaves on a pretty plant at the arboretum

Adorable fuzzy caterpillar!

I had to move a few of these guys off the path. Don’t touch these fuzzy guys with bare fingers unless you know they’re friendly. Some have stinging hairs.

Light purple aster (I think) flowers

I’m Still Not Used to Having Seasons

It’s interesting to feel how decisively Summer turns into Fall in Seattle. I grew up in the Bay Area in California, which really only has two seasons: Summer and Fall, but there’s not a ton of definition between them. You just eventually notice that Starbucks is carrying pumpkin spice lattes and decide that, even though it’s still uncomfortably warm out, you’re gonna wear a scarf, dammit. (And then stubbornly wear it all day while your neck itches and sweats. At least it’s cute.)

In Seattle, I just step outside one day and it feels like Autumn all of a sudden. It wavers back and forth a few times, but after that the Summer is pretty solidly over. Even the bright and sunny days that follow feel muted. The sunshine gets a little more golden, like it’s permanently set in late afternoon mode, and the flowers look like they’re getting ready for bed even though they’re still blooming bravely away. There are days like this in California, to be sure, but they’re usually heavily interspersed with heat that feels like it’s been personally sent to punish you for getting out of your air-conditioned car.

I can definitely get on board with this kind of beautiful, crisp Autumn, although I’m still not convinced about the whole snow and ice in Winter thing. I think that I’d still choose light sweaters and sushi at Christmas over getting snowed into the house and watching the neighbor kids sledding down the street with their big old dog, intriguingly novel as that very Hallmark experience was.

Spring is on probation. It’s awfully damp and the days are too short, but it makes the salamanders happy. Gotta think of the salamanders.

Blackberry vines running through a bush that’s turning bright red

Pink fuchsia flowers. They always look like ballerinas to me. If you pluck one and pinch off the stem, you can stick it through the middle bit of the flower to make a tiny little doll.

A hot pink dahlia flower that’s been nibbled at a little bit by slugs. Still pretty, though.

An unopened sunflower with little earwig tenants

A Walk in the Washington Park Arboretum

This is definitely my new favorite place to walk with the dogs. It’s so peaceful, and there are so many different paths to take.

Beautifully arranged rocks among the greenery

Mossy branches and emerald green leaves

A cool plant with broad leaves next to a pond covered in floating duckweed

A mossy tree trunk

A well disguised salamander larva lurking in the mud at the bottom of one of the ponds

Another baby salamander hanging out under the duckweed

One of the beautiful calm pools around the arboretum. I love that they don’t keep fish in any of them, which means that amphibians can use them safely for breeding.

A pretty pink flower in the undergrowth

Cute little brown mushrooms on a mossy log