Butterflies
Have you seen the many butterflies, believe they are Painted Ladies, counted 50 in 1 minute.
When for a walk/bike ride in the hills and saw even more, and trying to get in better shape.
 They seemed mostly to be going in south westerly direction. Also varied redder types and some more buf brownish. Met someone else walking there mentioned walking a trail as going around a
curve , a cloud of butterflies came off a shrub Just went out to take a photo and only found 1 and camera battery died. Wonder where they go at night and where their final destination is.

 This one found on walk and it was missing part of wing, so brought home to put on flowers and give it water.

IRIS 

Hi,
Have been meaning to post, think of things while walking to the bus stop.
Write on back of old envelope that has days to do list, just other
things get prioritized, like eating...
When look out window have seen this iris for last month. Call it root beer Iris, for it fragrance, not its color. Is a nice purple and lavender with tiger like area on fuzzy area of the falls.
Will go take a photo of it later. Seems to matter what time of day and temperature as to how it
smells of old iris or root beer . Blooms in April, single bloomer (one time a year), from
older then 1920's. Have donated many of these to others in different places I lived.
Reminds me of the sweet violets had in yard as a kid, my mother got them from someone in their 60's
who got them from her mother in Ohio. I even cooked the leaves for a vegatable for dinner after reading Euell Gibbons from the library. Think Mom and I were only ones willing to try them. 
Went back to the old house and all were removed and side yards cemented in for their boats , cars and assorted. 

Bengala Weaving

Bengala Weaving

The colors are so nice!

Do you have a label for which used for the pink or the purplish yarns and warp?

Do they stay on yarns after washed?

Thank you

Lynn D

YARN DYED RED

  Was so excited to see results, though still knowing it might not be fast after drying, or washing.

This is from making the dye bath acidic with vinegar and lemon juice, and crushing the Pokeberries, 

soaking for a day, 

straining

presoaking wool and yarn in acidic water ( had some old pickle juice )

adding fiber to dyebath

heating for about an hour with can of sterno (use outside)

let cool overnight in dyebath

dry for a week in the shade ( yes, I forgot it )

Rinse and dry again

Dyepot after removed yarn, wonder why the purple wool piece.

After rinse and dry in shade 10 days.

These were from the ferment Pokeberry dyepot, cotton glove, wool fiber,wool embroidery thread, cotton yarn (upper right), noticed the purple and green colors on the yarns. Maybe from changing pH.

Also had some nutritional supplements that used for experimenting as after mordants, Copper, Zinc, and some epsom salts.

The copper and zinc lost the red and the epsom, faded some. Will take a photo later. Trying to find safe mordants.

Have a Eucalyptus cinerea bath soaking now (Silver Dollar Euc.) also Robinia pseudoacacia leaves, found on city lot. Did read that all parts are poisonous, so am leaving it outside.  Black bean soaking water that poured off into old pickle jar has cotton yarn waiting to take up color.

Was 52 degrees this morning at 6am , with a low of 52.

Acorns become Oak trees.

Was is a parking lot, walking from bus stop to grocery store and found an acorn. Then several more, some squashed on pavement from cars, others on landscaped area. Evan noticed a small oak tree seedling.
Wonder where the next very large oak trees will be coming from. Some of the Oaks dont look real healthy.
When I go for walks in public areas that left the old native White Oaks be, they seem to be healthier and see
some seedlings and young trees. If we collect acorns and find good places to plant them (not next to your house as grow so large ). I used to do this, collect some acorns and find crevices in hills to plant. Also tried a few times to  make acorn bread, it takes a lot of work to remove the excess tannins which are less in the white Oaks then the Black Oaks. It came out good, other time, forgot them in a bag and grew little grubs.

Acorns from Black Oak,Quercus agrifolia, See the prickly leaves.

The acorns usually come out around August to November, is different each year.

Acorns from Quercus lobata, Valley Oak. September

Maybe our cities would like the trees from local grown acorns for parks or landscaping in the city.

Chasing Monarchs

  Saw a Monarch butterfly flying across the view of my window and hopped up to see where he/she went, but seemed to disappear. Dont have a new photo of a Monarch. Also saw a blue or maybe it was a hairstreak, it landed on a dried mustard stem and stayed till I walked closer to see. Tried with reading glasses and without, just couldnt tell what it was, except that it seemed to be in  rest mode and was sunning itself. Next time may just watch while it suns.
  What if we all (or most) had some native milkweed plants or community space where the Monarchs could go. Found a whole bag of milkweed silk and seed the other day while sorting through mothers "stuff" to find what my brothers and I want to keep or pass on. Mom had collected it when on a hike. She liked to walk and go bicycling and camping, so when I see this wrinkled paper bag of seeds and floss think of being loved and listened to. Had wondered if the silk could be spun into yarn.

Milkweed silk and seeds in a paper bag.

There was a large patch of milkweed in a field near my school when a child. Would show the kids how the insects really liked this plant. It had bees,wasps, some being a couple inches and blue with red wings, called tarantula hawks. And butterflies.
  Sometimes we need to move more, look up more, get up and notice whats right here.

Healing , Sunrise

Someone asked me if any ideas that might help to loose weight. I am not trying to at all. They had started going on walks. That seems like a very good idea, get body moving and change of view...
Then remembered the other day someone saying they heard that being outside during sunrise, was healing. So they did it everyday and noticed they lost unwanted weight. Wonder if I go out during sunset , would gain muscle,,weight? Or Moonrise. I think when we try to help, ourselves or others, it can create a more positive feeling and that is also healing!.
Woke up early this morning and went outside to see what is like, so beautiful sky and planets and stars!
Wish it smelled better, as cigarette smoke was even in my bedroom from the neighbors.
Son said he had to shut his window for the same reason.
Wonder what people are willing to do to get healthier,
would they stop smoking
or maybe they have joint pain from tomatoes or wheat.
What parts of the way we currently feel are in our choices.

MoonRise