Fall is Here

I'm working at the Rock Creek Library this fall. I'm also taking a Spanish class at Rock Creek on Monday and Wednesday evenings. I decided that instead of buying a parking permit for the fall term, I would park at the nearby shopping center and walk to campus. That way I would have to walk (and get some exercise) every day, even if the weather was bad and I'd rather stay indoors. The distance is just under a mile. I've taken a few different routes though the neighborhood. (map) So far, I've been lucky. Although it's rained a lot this week, it hasn't really been raining during my walks any day this week.

Yesterday, it had rained a lot just before I started my walk to work. The sheep (for the vet tech program) were all sitting under the trees and the light was shining though the mist just so, and everything was sparkly... of course I didn't have my camera with me. Today I took the camera and got some nice pictures of the fall leaves in the shopping center parking lot, but unfortunately the sheep weren't posing today.

In Oregon, we don't have a lot of native trees that turn bright colors in the fall. All of the ones in these pictures are introduced species that are planted for their ornamental value.

Below left: Ash - Fraxinus sp. Right: Japanese Maple - Acer palmatum.

Sweetgum - Liquidambar styraciflua

Cedar Waxwing - Bombycilla cedrorum

These birds are relatives of the bright red cardinal most people are familiar with. We don't have cardinals in Oregon.

This tree on campus was just full of the waxwings, but a bus drove by and scared them away before I could get any more photos.

Hummingbird

I saw this little bird on my walk back to the car after work. I couldn't tell the species since I only saw him in profile.

We have a couple of common species of hummingbirds in Oregon. Usually they go south for the winter.

(?) - sp.

Back in the parking lot and ready to head home.