I actually found some of these today in a totally unexpected location which was a really big thrill. So it seemed appropriate/a sign from the underneath ones to poemify this species today (they were on my list [along with so many other wonderful fungi I haven’t yet gotten to] so it wasn’t a particularly difficult decision).

The Poetic Factoid grew out of one of the things I learnt about SICs today — philately & fungi. Which for a time led me down a very odd yet pleasant, little rabbit hole.

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fungilegium: Shaggy Ink Cap
Coprinus comatus

Shaggy Ink Cap. Shaggy Mane. Lawyer’s Wig.
Pretty like a ballroom gown. But quickly. Turns 
into. A Tim Burton movie. Melts black. Dissolves.
It’s eating itself. Basically. Looks like it’s bleeding.
Witches hat. Deliquescence. Another beautiful word.

Lawn dwellers. Or where earth has been disturbed.
Tough enough. To push through asphalt. Allegedly.
On an Aussie stamp. Back when they were only 35c.
(Also; Maldives, Togo, Spain, Mongolia, Belarus, etc.)* 
So named. Cos back in the day. Really were used as ink.

* PLUS Angola. Argentina. Botswana. Bulgaria. Cambodia. Central African Republic. Chad. Channel Islands (Jersey). Comoro Islands. Cuba. Dominica. Georgia. Ghana. Grenada, Carriacou & Petite Martinique. Guyana. Iceland. Isle of Man. Korea, North. Korea, South. Laos. Liberia. Malawi. Mali. Mexico. {}. Mordovia. Netherlands. Niger. Pakistan. Romania. Russia. Rwanda. Sao Tome & Principe. Sierra Leone. Singapore. Somalia. St Kitts-Nevis. St Thomas & Prince Islands. St Vincent. Sweden. Tajikistan. Tanzania. Not to forget, Tuvalu. (& possibly others I’ve missed)

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Day 29 Factoid Overload — There’s Weird & Utterly Wonderful Folks Who Collect Combinations of All Sorts of Things

fungi philately

TIL : there’s a subgroup : of collectors : who solely collect : stamps : depicting mushrooms : (& other fungi) : because : of course they do : & i think this : whacky nicheness : is wonderful : fly agaric : porcini : & golden chanterelle : the most popular mushrooms : on stamps : worldwide : there’s even a book : because : of course there is : Philatelic Mycology: Families of Fungi : which defies philatelistic tradition & protocol : for : instead of organisation : by country of origin : then date of issue : [logical, sensible, proper] : in this quirky book : that knows its audience : all too well :  exactly 1,000 international stamps : are organised : by : taxonomic family : shroom! : take that : regular stamp collecting dudes