City of Plano's Ornament-Making Workshop this Saturday

To commemorate Texas Recycles Day, the City of Plano is sponsoring a holiday-themed workshop. This Saturday plan to bring the entire family to make ornaments -- great for holiday decor or gifts! Here are the particulars:

• Saturday, November 17
• 10am to 1pm
• Building Inspections Training Room located at the Municipal Center (Avenue K and 15th Street)
• For more information, contact Kim Soto at kims@plano.gov or 972-769-4343

Red Flags

Yesterday's creek waddle -- er, walk -- took us in and around lovely fall foliage. Possumhaw (Ilex decidua) berries have turned from rose to crimson; the leaves have not yet fallen. Carolina Buckthorn (Rhamnus caroliniana) berries vary from yellow to red to black. Its leaves are still green rimmed with golden yellow edges and patches. The most spectacular fall color we observed is Prairie Flameleaf Sumac (Rhus lanceolata.) Among the persisting green of Red Cedar (Juniperus virginiana) and Eve's Necklace (Sophora affinis) are flashes of fiery Flameleaf Sumac waving like cheery banners welcoming back our old friend -- autumn. Summer and fall colors overlap in our area, but the turning of the Sumac indicates cooler weather is almost here.

Soon, Possumhaw and Eve's Necklace will drop their foliage, making their berries the focus of late-fall to winter.

What's new with our website?

Thanks to everyone who emailed us with your feedback! We appreciate your taking a look and sharing your opinions.

We have a few pages left to finalize and upload. Later today I should be able to upload the more detailed bio pages. Tomorrow, look for the publications and news pages. By next Monday the portfolio pages -- perhaps the largest section of our site -- should be finalized. With so many photos to choose from, we really have our work cut out for us.