As our Pennsylvania super wet summer wanes, the leaves are beginning to turn but many have been turning brown because of the molds and diseases that plague the sodden landscape. They are the first to blow in the winds that push the weather fronts in and out of the region. Warm temps confuse the season's progression but waning daylight is everlastingly, reliably informing our planet of a northern hemisphere autumn.

Notwithstanding, the big box stores are already dressed out in orange as a plethora of back-to-school items gave way to even more sizable autumn and Halloween colored stuff.

It's not too late for pods to form...

...blossoms yet to smile through fences...

...or, for butterflies to visit...

Red-Spotted Purple Limenitis arthemis ssp. astyanax is the name of this visitor to Marge's backyard as identified with iNaturalist.org. 

...or, spiders to set up housekeeping...

...I just uploaded this spider to iNaturalist. I'll have to wait and see what ID and info comes up.

The Spotted Lantern Fly that sat on my knee and I uploaded in a previous post, turns out to be a local invasive bug that somehow got to Berks County from China and is now spreading into Montgomery County where the soccer game was, and now I've seen three more this week here in Bucks County. The Philadelphia Inquirer also reported on them. They don't harm humans or animals but drill tiny holes into trees and plant life to suck the sap. While doing this they become a vector for tree and plant-killing organisms. So, the article says the Berks County people are trying to eradicate them and please whack them. They're so beautiful though that it pained me to whack the one on our garbage can lid. I was glad the one on the garden table escaped my whacking. Sort of. The one on the car hood as I waited for a red light to change sprang far away when the light changed, living up to its 30 foot jumps claimed in the article.

From the Housekeeping Desk: Marge reports plastic box damage from migrating mice chewing a new door for their winter home in the splendor and plenty of her birdseed container. Hmmm. I thought we weren't feeding birds anymore since local kitty-patrollers lie in wait for birds at our feeders to let their guard down. The stored seeds must be pre-date that decision.

It's all about communication, qué no?

And, what a lot of communication avenues we now have! Whew! I remain off Facebook since Zuckerberg hasn't done enough to redeem himself. Such a short golden age. I'm not ready for the second "Age of Facebook". May it transform itself.

Well, here I am in the blogosphere judging another platform. Ha!

From the Upsizing Desk: A snap of the latest before boxing it up for its future home at Dock...

I couldn't pass up Saguaro and Saguaro fruit salt and pepper shakers and added the dishes from local sale shelves.

Now for word from Dock: I went to visit them a week ago to learn of any progress toward the promised apartment and where I might be time-wise, but received only "it's moving very slowly"..."which is a good thing". Yes, I agree in theory. Still.

Back to the soccer front. The last league game was played. I was the transportation to the game for Aidan while his mom is in North Carolina at the Horse Trials taking place there while Florence has beaten her way to the coast. Wendy appears unperturbed by all the weather news and we here in PA are letting her enjoy the time off her busy life to enjoy her friend Marci and their mutual love of sport horsemanship.

We got there early for the game. Aidan re-checks his messages. The weather held.

Aidan centered in background, just to right of the ref's shoulder.

From the Scribblings Desk:

...and my buddy...