In the meantime I think I might be turning into a Crazy Mushroom Lady. Because apparently I don't have enough quirky, time consuming hobbies that might kill me already. I found myself noticing mushrooms on the side of the trail during my triathlon a couple of weeks ago and wishing I could stop to check them out. I didn't but it surprised me that it took some restraint. Today however I had no such time pressures and I pulled off the trail to check these guys out.
Brains. Perfect for if you ever have zombies over for dinner.
I was squatting in the dirt digging them up when a woman on a bike saw me and she and her dog came over to see what the excitement was about. Turns out she is also a Crazy Dog/Bike/Mushroom Lady and she knows exactly what they are-Albatrellus Confluens-and she also knows that they are edible. This saves me a lot of time and aggravation because it turns out they are not in my mushroom book and she warns me that you don't often see them in books. But I memorize the name (Albatross confluence) and Google helps me out with the spelling when I get home.
If I only had a brain . . .
She warns me that they degrade quickly and are often full of worms but this doesn't deter me and I stuff a couple into my backpack. I think I'm going to have to get a bigger backpack for my mushroom hauls, I could only fit 2. I washed them as soon as I got home, sliced them really thin, sauteed them in butter and ate a few slices. Because apparently I'm o.k. with trusting my life with a total stranger that I met in the woods. It's been an hour or so and so far no tubes down my stomach. They tasted very mushroomy, so good. The house smells like mushrooms. I suppose this could be a good or bad thing depending on your perspective.
I can take them or leave them. Maybe if they came with a nice steak.
We had a nice but short ride. I felt o.k. when I woke up but when I hit the trail I was more tired than I realized. I hate how agility trials wear me down like that without even providing any training benefit. Jonny took me on some different trails for a change.
The wildflowers are starting to fade a little but there are still a lot.
More about the agility trial when I get my video uploaded.
Whoa, now what are the chances of *that* -- one Crazy Dog/Bike/Mushroom Lady meeting another on just the right day to help you identify your find? Cool!
ReplyDeleteGreat news with that measurement! Lucy measured in at 20.75" but boy that Strummer sure did cut it close.
Beautiful views AND cool looking shrooms! :)
ReplyDeleteIt's just beautiful where you live!
ReplyDeleteYou are crazy to eat those mushrooms. What if that lady was wrong??? I'm glad you are ok.
Sorry I thought of something else. Do you know how many people pass me and I hear them say to each other," what type of dogs are those ?" and the other person says , very convincingly , " those are border collies". LoL some people just think they know everything. lol.
ReplyDeleteI video taped a run of yours and I will email it to you.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for taping us! I'm always happy for any video we can get.
ReplyDeleteAnd I'm still here this morning after the great mushroom experiment. I did look up the mushroom on the internet before I ate it. I'm finding that usually if a mushroom has an evil twin they warn you in the description. This mushroom didn't have any warnings about it and was so distinctive and fit the description so perfectly that I felt o.k. with the I.D. of it.
I also didn't have a whole lot of the mushroom at once. I had a few pieces when I cooked it then threw a few more pieces into my dinner to be sure I wasn't allergic or intolerant or something. The books advise you not to eat too much at once or too much over several days in a row.
But yeah I've had people with Border Collies argue with me that Strummer is not a Border Collie because he doesn't look anything like their Border Collie.
I laughed when I read your comment about trusting a stranger, because that was exactly what was churning through my brain. Glad you're still here to entertain me. Because it's all about me.
ReplyDeleteStrummer is a hardcore BC :-)
ReplyDelete