Musings on a Small Life

I was at our "big" shopping centre Saturday morning, missed the bus over to the box store shopping complex. Rather than hang around for half an hour to wait for the next bus, I reluctantly decided to walk over. It's not far and the path passes through a little park by one of our libraries, but it was hot and sticky, I was very stiff and sore from some heavy work over the past couple of days, and was feeling tired and grumpy and more than a bit out of sorts. However, sometimes those "misses" in life bring us the true "wins". This Monarch was feeding a bit too far away for a decent, quick snapshot, but then obligingly came close, very close, in fact. S/he didn't seem to mind the camera lens only inches away, and fed for quite a long time, almost as if to ensure I could get some decent pics. (And I snapped a lot of pics, saved 18.)     A short distance away I spied this . . . what? Whatever it is, it was happily feeding too. If y...

It's been a lovely afternoon and evening and I left work an hour early and have spent most of the time out back with the fur kids. Me reading, them sunbathing and chasing moths or butterflies, whatever they are. It seems to be peak mating season right now, or so I assume, and the back space is almost swarming with them. One landed on my nose for about two seconds, just long enough for me to hope Derry didn't see it. He's been stalking them and pretty much turning somersaults, trying to catch them, and all I could think was that if Derry saw one on my nose I'd be in trouble. Or my face would be! A bit later another one hit me in the left eye, and later still one came close to parking itself on my sweater. I don't recall a recent spring where I've seen so many. I'm sure Derry eventually will catch one or two, if he's patient enough. Nicki, however, doesn't have the patience to stalk prey, he just charges after them and scares them off, of ...