Mushroom Forest

Today was stomping around the New Forest, that turned into a mushroom hunt just because there were so many. We found some edible ones- chanterelles and portobello, and some deadly ones- death caps.

Here's a cute little baby death cap!

You can click on the photo to see a few more pictures from the day. I just love being outdoors though, it makes me happy. And when I'm happy I want to share that with all of you!

Forests and fungi,
Limpet x

Goal 9: Go Back to University

Today's the day! Today I go back to university! It's been a very long 9 months and I feel like a completely different person. I've had so much life experience since then, and illnesses both physical and mental have matured me a lot as a person. I haven't become cynical, of course not, but I know what the real world is like now. Things are serious, and I'm ready to do what it takes to get my degree and my dream physicist career afterwards.

Love yourself, you can do it! Don't give up!

Limpet x

Goal 36: Go Fossil Hunting

It was the best Sunday, and exactly the kind of thing I wanted to get from my Big Old To-Do List. I had an amazing time doing something I wouldn't have usually done and it made me a very happy little limpet.

And of course, there were a lot of limpets on the beach.

As promised last week, here's a photo dump of the fossil hunting part of my day.

Adventures into the Wild

On Sunday, I'm going fossil hunting on the Isle of Wight! I couldn't be more excited and I've been planning it. Booking the ferry, finding out what else there is to do, etc. (like going to a monkey sanctuary.)

Something any self-respecting nature lover must have: a decent pair of walking boots. I left mine in Kent (whoops) and they had holes in anyway so I went to get some today and they ended up being an amazing bargain.

£10, £10!

I have funny shaped feet and that usually makes buying shoes difficult. My toes are too long and my heel has a bony lump that sticks out at the back. However, I got to this place and found a pair that fits me just perfectly. So I got some big stompy waterproof boots for hunting dinosaurs at the beach in, for £10 when they should have been £80.

Expect a monstrous post after Sunday, with lots of photos. Hopefully I'll find some really interesting things to show all of you!

Limpet x

Free Cuttlefish Crochet Pattern

This is not my pattern. It was written by Steven Wyckoff of www.wyldscallyns.com, and I found it here on Ravelry. Unfortunately the pattern no longer exists anywhere on the internet, so I am posting it here as found originally. It's just too cute to be taunting so many people on the internet with no pattern.

Take it away, Steven!

Ouch

At the pub, and I walk into the toilets. Like an unexpected slap in the face, my boyfriend's ex is looking at me with pure hatred in her eyes. I'm shocked; it's like I've walked into a physical barrier. My body's gone into fight or flight mode. I sidestep into the nearest cubicle. All the happy alcohol-and-friends feeling has leaked away and I'm conscious of my own heartbeat. I go to the loo and when I come out she's gone and left the pub and I feel like I've just avoided being stabbed or something.

There's nothing I can do, is there? It's too far gone to ever try and smooth things out between us. I've become someone's enemy. It's a difficult thought to stomach.

Goal 63: Bind a Book

In a rather fetching yellow and with added origami paper for extra oriental effect: my first bound book! 

This will contain nature sketches and such.

The Rescue Snakes- Dealing With Mites

(I promise this will be the last snakey post for a while)

"Two snakes, four snakes, what's the difference?"

So we were thinking. We like snakes, and there are lots of snakes out there that need a home. These two lovely creatures are a morph called mahogany (we affectionately call them 'the hogs'), which unfortunately isn't very popular as it looks very similar to a normal. We got them from a man in South Yorkshire when we went to visit family up there, and he really didn't know what he was getting into when he bought them. They weren't terribly looked after, but it was dirty and they hadn't been handled much. Also, they had mites. He didn't tell us they had mites, the bastard, we only found out when we'd got them home. I hate to think how long they'd had them.

My Reading List

You may have noticed a new little page labelled "Reading List" pop up on the side of this blog recently. As the name suggests, this is all the books I've read/want to read within the time frame of my Big Old To-Do List, which I haven't actually decided yet. I'll be updating it regularly when I get more books and finish them, but as any reader knows it's tricky to keep on top of the ever-growing pile!

Stole Dune from my parents and I've been a sci-fi lover ever since.

Baby Octopus Crochet

On Sunday I went to the christening of my boyfriend's cousin's baby (1st cousin once removed?) and it was the first christening I've ever been to. I didn't even have one myself and my boyfriend had a naming ceremony instead because his parents are hippies. It was the first time I'd met this branch of the family and I can now proudly say I've met every single one of them. Boyfriend family challenge = complete!

Anyway, I wanted to make a good first impression so I thought I'd make a baby toy with my new-fangled crochet skills. I started it on Thursday and finished on Saturday morning as we were driving up in the car (I had to buy some black wool from ASDA on the way for the eyes.) Here he is, sitting on my knee in the car: