Agosto

Since 2012, I have come to appreciate the joys of August. 

One of my favorite parts of August is the monsoonal thunderstorms, and we had a couple of good ones this week. Outside our house is a storm drain that is damaged, so the city has placed orange cones over it. Not once but twice this week, I watched cones travel down the gutter during the intense storms. They remained in an upright position while the water washed them away, so it was almost like they were walking away. It was kind of funny. 

This couple took a honeymoon down the block. I picked them up and took them back where they belong, but carrying two was surprisingly more difficult than just carrying one.

Last year's storms really took a toll on some parking strips that don't have plants in them, and once again they are devastated.

It's hard to tell, but the hole is probably two feet deep. The hole was not there a week ago.

I continue to pluck up goathead plants, and there was some environmental factor this week that caused them all to sprout at the same time. There was an insane amount of little baby goathead plants! It took me quite a while to pull them all up, but it's better to get them while they're tiny than to let them grow big. My dad likes to go walking past one of the patches, then the goatheads stick to his shoes, and he tracks them all over the house. But he remarked yesterday that he hadn't seen any this year, and there haven't been as many in our house. And that's all because of me and my efforts!

And yesterday, before the rain, I ran up—you guessed it—North Canyon. May and June are peak wildflower season, so I was surprised to see all the August flowers. On cloudy days, the flowers are more vibrant. And there were also some low-hanging clouds near the top. It was an amazing environment! But the mugginess drenched my shirt with sweat.

Fireweed and aspens

Over the last two years, I have continually added to the barrier over this unofficial trail.

fleabane. An ugly name for a pretty flower.

Streambank wild hollyhock! I don't recall ever seeing this one before!

Goldenrod and fireweed

Richardson's geraniums

There wasn't a lot else that went on this week that I care to share with the world. But I'm excited to see what the rest of the month will bring!