today i just wanted to quickly share something that i am very excited about. it's a trailer for an upcoming documentary about finnish folklore and mythology before christianity. it features a.w. yrjänä, the lead singer and bassist from one of my favourite bands, CMX. saw them play last night, for the first time in probably more than ten years. it was a great mix of the old and the new, the latter which i'm largely unaware of, yet it was all good. glad i went. their new album is called mesmeria. there's an eagle in the cover art, and when i took the bus to town to see the show, i saw a sea eagle flying above a large clearing in the woods by the road.

a very forlorn-sounding bird sang sad songs all day on top of one of the old, tall spruces today. probably some thrush. it sounded not only sad, but like it had the flu. it was whining, more than singing. a raven also flew low over the yard and swerved into the top of that spruce on the right in the picture. i hope it wasn't a squirrel's nest that was rummaged, although i know baby ravens got to eat, too... i was rather hoping it might be the raven's nest there, because that would be amazing, but it's also very unlikely.

thelebolus terrestris

it's quiet in the woods fungi-wise, but there's always something. patches of yellow here and there on the ground. this thing grows on moose pee (and poo) and is usually found in the warmer months but the winter has been mild with little snow.

these mystery shelves i wasn't able to identify. possibly they are some kind of inonotus. i just found the style of growing very fascinating. they grew on a damaged willow trunk in the garden, the same on which i found velvet shank earlier. they were tiny, maybe an inch wide or less.

things don't get done around the house and i blame this one, for being too cute and distracting. sometimes i just sit and watch him sleep. this serenity followed a bout of absolute madness over the smell of goat's cheese baking in the oven (and being given a nibble).

you are looking at homemade rat bisquits! basu baageli's exact birth date is unknown to me, but he turns two this month so we celebrated today, it seemed befitting. i was inspired by the dog treat recipe on etsy, but substituted just about every ingredient. mine are banana-buckwheat-rice-strawberry-almond-shiitake hearts. they were wildly appreciated. i ate a few, myself. nice and chewy.

the birthday boy may be getting slower with age, but not when it comes to tasty treats! i think he may have stashed some of these in the kitchen, and later stuffed two in his mouth at the same time and made for the nest. his enthusiasm that borders on anxiety is amusing at times, because he has no competition for food whatsoever, yet his instinct is to treat every morsel like i might steal it away at any second. never mind that i am the one who provides all the food and spoils him rotten... anyway, here i was testing the speed shutter and yes, that rat is fast.

i've had a quiet day, playing with fabric design + entering a spoonflower contest, reading a good book (the shock of the fall by nathan filer) and munching crisps and fries. i think it snowed in the morning but i didn't set foot outside all day. tomorrow i will make up for it and take a long walk.

in case the heart bisquits weren't enough proof of my love for cheesy & romantic stuff, and especially dear ratty friend basu, have a look through my eyes at how i view the old, furry critter:

winter has returned, and how! everything is heavily frosted, trees drooping under the weight of snow. i took these photos on sunday and more has fallen more since. fantastic weather for sparkly wonderland shots, but i've been a bit unlucky lately. on sunday my camera battery ran out as soon as i got into the woods and today on my walk i realized i'd left the memory card in the laptop. it was a perfect day, cloudy on the way to the shore, sunny on the way back, a peek at the blue sky even. so, so quiet.

so thrilled that the weather forecast said the temperatures will stay below zero at least until friday. that means this winter is mine to keep for a few days. (can you tell i'm a winter person?)