Earlier in the week, a truck had broken branches off a few of our trees that overhang the street, so my first task was to get out the chainsaw and the pruning saw and clean up the ugly scene. Even though it was cold and damp, this was a pleasant enough task for a Sunday afternoon, made merrier by a fine fifth of Eye of the Hawk.

Taking a break as a neighbor drove by, I noticed an abundance of mushrooms, sprouting through the pine-needle duff. Taking this as a sign that it was break time, I went inside for the camera (and a fresh glass of ale), then set out to catalog the various mycological forms. All of these photos came from the land along the road, either under the chinese strawberry trees on our side, or under the now-gone pines on the other side.

I'd be happy to replace my captions with more accurate names, should anyone be able to positively identify any of these specimen photos. Just send email...

One final comment... Last View of the Pines is truly a last view, as the tree-trimmers arrived during the following week to commence removing these magnificent trees. I didn't get a chance to find out whether they were diseased, or just old (and thus too much of a legal risk), but I miss them...So far, I like having more light in the yard, but it's a steep price to pay...