Fungi!

Another mushroom has popped up in my planter with the baby oak tree.

I pretty much petered out after I wrote here last night

and went on to bed, but couldn't sleep for some reason, and I probably didn't actually fall asleep till about 2:30 am, and I got up at 5:30, and what rest I did get was broken by my waking up often. Despite that, I got through my day without being terribly tired. I went into work at 7, getting a couple of egg and cheese biscuits since our cafeteria doesn't serve breakfast until 7:30. I caught up on all my various duties, both the charge entry and library positions. I filled some interlibrary loans. I was going to fill the clinic cart as well, but really, it's pretty well stocked from last time, and probably needs about a half a shelf of new books. I try to keep it full, checking it every week or two.

After work I went over to my friends' house, where we ate and watched various YouTube videos and a few short episodes of something on Netflix. I also got the Cthulhu game notes finished today (yay!), so I won't be pressed to do so tomorrow.

Tomorrow the plan is to get up about 7:30 am and finish the bedroom and vacuum the house. That should make the house livable and presentable. By 11 am I'll be over at my friends' to do grocery shopping and also to take one on an errand or two.

I have a mushroom growing up in the pot that has the little oak tree in it. I should probably remove it, but I am fascinated by fungi, so I'll leave it for now.

I think I'm going to call it a night, even though it's a bit after 10 pm. I may listen to a little music before actually sleeping, but I really have done well today as far as staying awake (I've also taken all my meds as directed, and my blood sugar is doing better as a result, so I am not getting terribly sleepy in the afternoons after lunch like I was. But starting Monday I'm going to try to eat healthier--I've been eating too many snacks when I'm not particularly hungry, and unhealthy ones at that, along with desserts, and I just shouldn't do that. I'm going to start tracking my food again and see if I can lose some weight. I've lost some (I'm 15 lbs under my maximum weight right now, but I could stand to lose, oh, technically about 110 more, although I'd be happy if I could just get down to say, 225 even (I'm at 291 no, at 5'4"), and would like to go down some for health reasons more than anything else. I get the fat acceptance people, and yes, I do believe that you can be healthy and overweight (although obese is perhaps another matter), but I'm not healthy, and so I need to take steps, including diet and exercise, that will help my health. If I can make small changes in my lifestyle, and stick to them, then hopefully I will feel better.

You've got to love that headline

Zombie ants fight fungus with fungus

:)

Doesn't this look Cthulhoid???

I took this photo over near the sidwalk at on the campus of St Joseph East hospital. The colony is about two feet long by 1 1/2 feet wide. We've had so much rain lately, I've seen several mushrooms and other fungi. But this one was the most interesting.

Medical term of the day

From MedTerms.com:

Histoplasma: Full name: histoplasma capsulatum. A microscopic fungus that causes the disease histoplasmosis. The fungus is found throughout the world in river valleys and soil where bird or bat droppings accumulate. The spores of the fungus are released into the air when contaminated soil is disturbed (for example, by plowing fields, sweeping chicken coops, or digging holes) and the airborne spores can then be inhaled into the lungs, the primary site of infection. In the US, the fungus is so common that in parts of Kentucky and Tennessee nearly 90% of adults show evidence of exposure by a positive histoplasma skin test. The fungus can be transferred by organ transplantation.

There's a very, very, good chance, as someone living in Kentucky, that I've been exposed to this. I had no idea it could be transferred through organ transplants. I first learned about the fungous and histoplamosis (and the incidence of occurrence here) in my introduction to biology class. In some people, the disease can be fatal, although most people weather through it without symptoms.

Beautiful--and alive

Ancient rock art's colours come from microbes

A particular type of ancient rock art in Western Australia maintains its vivid colours because it is alive, researchers have found.

While some rock art fades in hundreds of years, the "Bradshaw art" remains colourful after at least 40,000 years.

Jack Pettigrew of the University of Queensland in Australia has shown that the paintings have been colonised by colourful bacteria and fungi.

These "biofilms" may explain previous difficulties in dating such rock art.