tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-90767034008700222342023-11-16T03:54:18.358-08:00Why yes, it is nice here in my little world, thanks.Thoughts from the frequently-wandering mind<br>
of an aspiring author, amateur photographer,<br>
fantasy artist and full-time geek.Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.comBlogger28125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-64609458231352336562009-02-25T08:38:00.000-08:002009-02-25T09:32:21.347-08:00I am very bad at keeping this updated.<br /><br />It would be a bit ridiculous to try to recap all the time since my last post, so I'll stick with the photography-and-arts themed stuff. <a href="http://www.magicwings.com/">Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory</a> and <a href="http://www.ansp.org/museum/butterflies/index.php">the Butterflies exhibit at the Academy of Natural Sciences</a> in Philadelphia are both awesome. Magic Wings also has wandering leaves and stick insects, making it even more awesome. So does the Academy of Natural Sciences, but they're not presently out on display - the keeper was nice enough to point them out to me (in terrariums just sorta visible in the back room), but they were not close enough for photography, sadly. I was able to get some really nice pictures of the ones at Magic Wings, and I've gotten some good butterfly shots at the Academy. I've also ventured back into painting, recently, and discovered that I've missed it. I want to do more painting.<br /><br />So, pictures -<br /><br />From Magic Wings:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8RX2n5iOpj_iJQU7nmC6nCp1BHTtuRU0K6S2dlf9L5bOqqaQJNe3-yEijGWDZlZ2g3xRn9VXykg7YjeZTDYb9P-wY5swA9j_FqnvVW8_XsG0wP7L3Uz6TMiyAsdXJiOsTurWdw7dEQik/s1600-h/IMGP2473.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8RX2n5iOpj_iJQU7nmC6nCp1BHTtuRU0K6S2dlf9L5bOqqaQJNe3-yEijGWDZlZ2g3xRn9VXykg7YjeZTDYb9P-wY5swA9j_FqnvVW8_XsG0wP7L3Uz6TMiyAsdXJiOsTurWdw7dEQik/s400/IMGP2473.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306779541019438546" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGt5KABuW_NQwMOzGthL-lN68If5R5O164VBM_oKM1J5boScRnZQbT5cFGXSmxBpp8OsvdJ2BU7P9RhwlEdsH6Cy1Gut_ACtID1siY4m8RNADc1cjvFPqaadY-rYk1-TRs7GTr4wgutpM/s1600-h/IMGP2167.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGt5KABuW_NQwMOzGthL-lN68If5R5O164VBM_oKM1J5boScRnZQbT5cFGXSmxBpp8OsvdJ2BU7P9RhwlEdsH6Cy1Gut_ACtID1siY4m8RNADc1cjvFPqaadY-rYk1-TRs7GTr4wgutpM/s400/IMGP2167.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306779529011959202" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirhtA9zcSUVglxI9OjTcBD_0JfXjenIBfF8Cjnkx6zTXYIMBnWUc6RedmPuShC0H8b-4kx98LLctqLseHy-sFL3nJgT9u73YEuh_bTtZ0u3deacnw-rEvOUkNYu0mGLGGPuL224x4W84s/s1600-h/IMGP2293.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirhtA9zcSUVglxI9OjTcBD_0JfXjenIBfF8Cjnkx6zTXYIMBnWUc6RedmPuShC0H8b-4kx98LLctqLseHy-sFL3nJgT9u73YEuh_bTtZ0u3deacnw-rEvOUkNYu0mGLGGPuL224x4W84s/s400/IMGP2293.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306779498251761250" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh5Ew_1YHPwJofRqxREzzS3wAkm2_8GJOrsIEiSURYIoA_-1HGME-7SSiRvNjLpuEqICvtRORbyEHYyrQo2m9dww-yxfejTNfa-KKebqRaPqRPppjZocyFIAumg3ju7x8Vy1PjxtmVZB0/s1600-h/IMGP2294.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjh5Ew_1YHPwJofRqxREzzS3wAkm2_8GJOrsIEiSURYIoA_-1HGME-7SSiRvNjLpuEqICvtRORbyEHYyrQo2m9dww-yxfejTNfa-KKebqRaPqRPppjZocyFIAumg3ju7x8Vy1PjxtmVZB0/s400/IMGP2294.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306779487700427474" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTAUy9mShDI0acQTxdS5DlIRsdl9NWxJVeMtS36GuHuiT-3zPviG-gqWbg8NA80bIhghN_WoGSfvDDF7DhmmkBQun9G1gfaXvaollKC4RoToQW172jsvKU_o6a-9_cMusFoG1AR7ElFWE/s1600-h/IMGP2163.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTAUy9mShDI0acQTxdS5DlIRsdl9NWxJVeMtS36GuHuiT-3zPviG-gqWbg8NA80bIhghN_WoGSfvDDF7DhmmkBQun9G1gfaXvaollKC4RoToQW172jsvKU_o6a-9_cMusFoG1AR7ElFWE/s400/IMGP2163.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306779463474993506" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnjdjZHLU_lHGQTPKZiv-smWSgM_-PNcFPTidShyVS6EaI78ZXvyULcWZgUBYhqZ_ByZchsTO9Zf61PvwF0g_XCYWHQ89yD8V3CN7uGxKZ9FJg2gz644vrVzh-RSZGuf4shGCoSmBPNc4/s1600-h/IMGP2029.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnjdjZHLU_lHGQTPKZiv-smWSgM_-PNcFPTidShyVS6EaI78ZXvyULcWZgUBYhqZ_ByZchsTO9Zf61PvwF0g_XCYWHQ89yD8V3CN7uGxKZ9FJg2gz644vrVzh-RSZGuf4shGCoSmBPNc4/s400/IMGP2029.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306782763357183138" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsz2jz8kz-z0ekaOEit17NwyGDfP2s-JfU73vb_t-7op-kq2VdRiaA961blZfknwb8BDYT_gObgV3uWcgd2YbJuxkx2GWjjSdZiiIC4AacJrrjT2egw_AUUoLtkcvsJEulmqlWzJhaF3U/s1600-h/IMGP2060.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgsz2jz8kz-z0ekaOEit17NwyGDfP2s-JfU73vb_t-7op-kq2VdRiaA961blZfknwb8BDYT_gObgV3uWcgd2YbJuxkx2GWjjSdZiiIC4AacJrrjT2egw_AUUoLtkcvsJEulmqlWzJhaF3U/s400/IMGP2060.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306782762743462642" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtMnb-BymLa3x7ZVDEel_vrlfluVrawOll-XQnITIAi0BWDetRn-IU-8jhKsqlTg_eOQlzSqxl7y2zpR2uc1pVWWVPfskH6WrQZz_FCVNgY25a15cTjWkLfuBGLAdq-7cI28pJHALafn4/s1600-h/IMGP2020.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhtMnb-BymLa3x7ZVDEel_vrlfluVrawOll-XQnITIAi0BWDetRn-IU-8jhKsqlTg_eOQlzSqxl7y2zpR2uc1pVWWVPfskH6WrQZz_FCVNgY25a15cTjWkLfuBGLAdq-7cI28pJHALafn4/s400/IMGP2020.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306782752604512994" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWwcVppklyy7Y29Uj9czivjh5PtpS43Mtu89v-j_qFzz5lwmRLd59mN2fq8pXnazBXdTilNcQ7CEbUtN8kX9mInOfvCMlYuQhzHGz8jG5Da1P6uTAhoASnz1hUqmX7eQWYVBxWKkfEuf4/s1600-h/IMGP2433.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhWwcVppklyy7Y29Uj9czivjh5PtpS43Mtu89v-j_qFzz5lwmRLd59mN2fq8pXnazBXdTilNcQ7CEbUtN8kX9mInOfvCMlYuQhzHGz8jG5Da1P6uTAhoASnz1hUqmX7eQWYVBxWKkfEuf4/s400/IMGP2433.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306782769916973106" border="0" /></a>(Not a butterfly or insect, obviously - this would be the very adorable offspring of my friends Heather and G., who live near Magic Wings. The baby was very, very fascinated with leaves. Also very, very cute.)<br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: left;">From the Academy of Natural Sciences:<br /><br /></div></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7TrlwDgIALbYnJhG-qrfXmjTeHg_wiMLS0QxI52dCd0_8JXnX1lmwNzoC0YB6aG7U_lYGgUc6UxNasCCoi-LiBfwQc7OAT_AXhOnKO2GDOP_o-NBCFzK_GF8gaKAEdhgLAamiznPZNao/s1600-h/IMGP3215.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj7TrlwDgIALbYnJhG-qrfXmjTeHg_wiMLS0QxI52dCd0_8JXnX1lmwNzoC0YB6aG7U_lYGgUc6UxNasCCoi-LiBfwQc7OAT_AXhOnKO2GDOP_o-NBCFzK_GF8gaKAEdhgLAamiznPZNao/s400/IMGP3215.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306785471616335490" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Nv9weja6d-QlzEImMJ0zmtPwhvJKWw9STXltL4M3oMFF1q3vcHjvLuvZYvTj67kiYS2KtABmIhspw3DSND-S0T0FFZcVc8m5rYQ6o24jhpR5CVYphjWDwuoziQVOe5byjoicBlxSarU/s1600-h/IMGP2755.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg4Nv9weja6d-QlzEImMJ0zmtPwhvJKWw9STXltL4M3oMFF1q3vcHjvLuvZYvTj67kiYS2KtABmIhspw3DSND-S0T0FFZcVc8m5rYQ6o24jhpR5CVYphjWDwuoziQVOe5byjoicBlxSarU/s400/IMGP2755.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306785469727797122" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKiX-0Y0t1chqUs0KNJyyyb2AGbDNdYRTNwLKw_yAhO8b4-SUGNT-ncG-BQZ9sHIClA6kdgcibptNfY2Bo_cLvBtHyAoEhNobKz7my86PKZqyYJddiEVYDARdxboSJvXITXKIt8HhsWfA/s1600-h/IMGP2703.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKiX-0Y0t1chqUs0KNJyyyb2AGbDNdYRTNwLKw_yAhO8b4-SUGNT-ncG-BQZ9sHIClA6kdgcibptNfY2Bo_cLvBtHyAoEhNobKz7my86PKZqyYJddiEVYDARdxboSJvXITXKIt8HhsWfA/s400/IMGP2703.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306785465984797154" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaP5qGEjzkMw8OXnfBmFEbHj_2dCaso_sQxanW6LMWVgYRmNqV7yo41hDFGu8M66zYilcT-JFCAbU_p0N-qDvQF8HIl1gxLAEwd_liq0bDVjdWx6Nq_5pd8E_IVzENUW115NJT_deshvE/s1600-h/IMGP3440.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaP5qGEjzkMw8OXnfBmFEbHj_2dCaso_sQxanW6LMWVgYRmNqV7yo41hDFGu8M66zYilcT-JFCAbU_p0N-qDvQF8HIl1gxLAEwd_liq0bDVjdWx6Nq_5pd8E_IVzENUW115NJT_deshvE/s400/IMGP3440.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306785461460771218" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoHpOPN37I_1Wnd1VQocRggH8opmINSjPQEP8xSoMBQ60JbRtLvIZa1yIg0rATTgfxYfGffhvwgfsyAiJdST-wxA1DWcHKZFQc-khikbA1cznvFICJaTd1qR27YbWfCdv9GnXGDBp5pCM/s1600-h/IMGP3359.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhoHpOPN37I_1Wnd1VQocRggH8opmINSjPQEP8xSoMBQ60JbRtLvIZa1yIg0rATTgfxYfGffhvwgfsyAiJdST-wxA1DWcHKZFQc-khikbA1cznvFICJaTd1qR27YbWfCdv9GnXGDBp5pCM/s400/IMGP3359.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306785448460516562" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBK_6To3VASbuGmp5v1BPLLZ_w38Bq5Rtjx9gUApSk6LKmG3RIQm3BYRk0rQroJqXBYg41kPXULSM7762MwSsRBfRjWgoBzm4UGX1Faa3ODS5ylpLpuwEDyWU-G6W9imBG72jVR6lnJcc/s1600-h/IMGP3233.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBK_6To3VASbuGmp5v1BPLLZ_w38Bq5Rtjx9gUApSk6LKmG3RIQm3BYRk0rQroJqXBYg41kPXULSM7762MwSsRBfRjWgoBzm4UGX1Faa3ODS5ylpLpuwEDyWU-G6W9imBG72jVR6lnJcc/s400/IMGP3233.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306786675517981042" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVHTbr_hQaPJdYR1eeAOl5JSO_KRCVsp3D6BzWERQwnAoo6GjDdX8vfykUAbxfkGVGfh8mi57h8qMP34TiCWMo0G4NdqM05GjYNHLBPZWGAwk9YtmCMiR2d8edQRyWdIsXzbfpdx4YVb4/s1600-h/IMGP2950.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVHTbr_hQaPJdYR1eeAOl5JSO_KRCVsp3D6BzWERQwnAoo6GjDdX8vfykUAbxfkGVGfh8mi57h8qMP34TiCWMo0G4NdqM05GjYNHLBPZWGAwk9YtmCMiR2d8edQRyWdIsXzbfpdx4YVb4/s400/IMGP2950.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306786666867998642" border="0" /></a><br />And the painting:<br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDKpJAVHDgtvA-H6Dfmj4evcXq4Bsb0QYr5ATEzTSx3okahfazHElG13OE2GwzctSw8FlVyurqMDwCJpmjAx1BmkA9n4N1NRaU5QZsFslJhzTm2AzVVVVuKHNtbGYek-_0Br2wlEfGH2Y/s1600-h/katydidpainting.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDKpJAVHDgtvA-H6Dfmj4evcXq4Bsb0QYr5ATEzTSx3okahfazHElG13OE2GwzctSw8FlVyurqMDwCJpmjAx1BmkA9n4N1NRaU5QZsFslJhzTm2AzVVVVuKHNtbGYek-_0Br2wlEfGH2Y/s400/katydidpainting.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5306788342397560274" border="0" /></a><br />Bush Katydid nymph on Bee Balm flower, watercolor on canvas, 12"x16". The reds aren't really quite as neon-road-marking-paint bright as they look here, and the buds toward the bottom are more green, but this was the best I could do photographing it in indoor light, and it's windy outside.<br /><br />Next week I am off to England to visit good friend E and her husband M and their offspring, aka the honorary nephew. I am hoping that while I am there I may get to stop by the Zoo of London, which apparently has both a butterfly room and an insectarium. *squee*<br /></div>Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-36735337669703793512009-01-01T07:05:00.000-08:002009-01-01T07:07:49.373-08:00Oh, forgot - and I made myself <a href="http://www.toomanythoughts.net/photography.html">a photography website</a>. Go check it out. :)Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-81720318567797668562009-01-01T06:24:00.000-08:002009-01-01T07:05:25.425-08:00Long time no post, I know. I have been surviving <s>that cold icky time that doesn't really need to exist</s> winter. I did get to the insectarium, finally, and was rather disappointed. I really have nothing else to say about it that wouldn't turn into a rant.<br /><br />I also went to visit my friend Mihan in Mississippi, and was <span style="font-style: italic;">not </span>disappointed - had an awesome time and gained . . I think I can blame 5lbs on her. The other 5lbs I think I need to blame on Christmas cookies. But, anyway, she is an amazing cook and generally an awesome person, and her offspring is adorable. See?<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNheSYyilGOnl2chS4ob8Q8ot3Y2tZNt6E9OUa5faJWDX1aUilUv_coI7pJX0CjKlFcUwa_sHmusq1qMnSOUFtUbVyGoCYCAGoThwDqXqmtPhcOquJ6JfUAU3rvdUSwB-_jwaLI0vPOJ8/s1600-h/IMGP1650.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNheSYyilGOnl2chS4ob8Q8ot3Y2tZNt6E9OUa5faJWDX1aUilUv_coI7pJX0CjKlFcUwa_sHmusq1qMnSOUFtUbVyGoCYCAGoThwDqXqmtPhcOquJ6JfUAU3rvdUSwB-_jwaLI0vPOJ8/s400/IMGP1650.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286332381560285778" border="0" /></a>(Well, you can see that the small person she has produced is cute, and possibly discern some inherent coolness on her part, but you probably can't tell about the cooking from a picture - so just trust me, it was good.)<br /><br />We've had a few warm days up here, wherein I dragged myself out to the nature center and took pictures of what bugs I could find, most of which were not quite so photogenic as the bugs to be found in summertime, but they were still bugs - and a snake, and the one very warm day, also some frogs - and I found them reassuring. Life is still going on about its business (not that I didn't know this, what with the general cyclic nature of the seasons and all, but I like being able to go out and observe it.) Here's a picture of a six-spotted fishing spider, and one of big and little snails in the thawed pond, which I thought were rather cute. (The pictures, in general, sort of sucked, but that's okay. I'll take good pictures in the summer; in the mean time, I'll maintain my sanity by taking bad ones.)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4q9W-QXiuFSLkkkthNHa_0nQrmyfthQVsrsf2gg6yej4_6KR6sVWdwkkGcUASc1liftNOpxYSleauGDVX4lR8Oib21Gq5VdegT8gwO-BV2WBaGzr3xjZhwKepKVJkn9sEU_h37fSMpEw/s1600-h/IMGP1887.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4q9W-QXiuFSLkkkthNHa_0nQrmyfthQVsrsf2gg6yej4_6KR6sVWdwkkGcUASc1liftNOpxYSleauGDVX4lR8Oib21Gq5VdegT8gwO-BV2WBaGzr3xjZhwKepKVJkn9sEU_h37fSMpEw/s400/IMGP1887.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286335796707742802" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOEHe2vCbxQrckhuOSb7I8Wq44qEZIYg7KJRBUUNd-Jw_133tjfmXJuo3S_w_LudkwayEISpF6iDTZrtm1iX7fK_jLEOdmfCHWXMzyYAId0scdyomYtdsHoO6AjnIu76pgwWrq-n3_2xM/s1600-h/IMGP1961.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhOEHe2vCbxQrckhuOSb7I8Wq44qEZIYg7KJRBUUNd-Jw_133tjfmXJuo3S_w_LudkwayEISpF6iDTZrtm1iX7fK_jLEOdmfCHWXMzyYAId0scdyomYtdsHoO6AjnIu76pgwWrq-n3_2xM/s400/IMGP1961.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5286335788811543906" border="0" /></a>Or, I may get to take some good pictures this weekend, at <a href="http://www.magicwings.com/">Magic Wings Butterfly Conservatory</a>. I've been there once before, and the place is just awesome. And they have a few other exotic insects besides the butterflies; I want to spend more time trying to get good pictures of them, this time. I'll be up in Massachusetts visiting <a href="http://holy-vignettes.blogspot.com/">Heather</a> and <a href="http://snarkittome.blogspot.com/">Gerbil</a> (Gerbil, are you unilaterally opposed to the use of your real name online in a blog-like setting? I'm erring on the side of caution here), and <span style="font-style: italic;">their</span> highly adorable offspring - lots of adorable little people around, lately.<br /><br />And on Sunday it will be my birthday - and also Gerbil's. As I recall, I am 17 hours and 57 minutes her elder. I must try to think of some deep elder wisdom to impart in that approximately 3/4 of a day.<br /><br />I find it kind of cool that my birthday is on the <a href="http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/physical_science/physics/mechanics/orbit/perihelion_aphelion.html&edu=high">perihelion</a>, and would not want to change that, but sometimes I do wish it fell not quite so close to the new year. It's sort of like being whacked in the head with the fact that time marches on, all at once - and time has not stinted on the marching this past year, in ways both good and bad.<br /><br />Plans for the new year presently involve visiting as many people as possible as many times as possible, but definitely E over in England and <span style="font-style: italic;">her </span>adorable offspring, aka the honorary nephew. Also taking pictures of many bugs, possibly trying to sell said pictures, keeping on keeping on in the quest for a literary agent, writing that sequel (about 34 pages at present, I haven't checked a word count recently), and putting lots and lots of money in the bank so that hopefully at the beginning of 2010, I can be a home owner (hopefully of a home located somewhere that I won't get shot and/or eaten by a bear coming out my front door; my present budget gives me more or less those two options). Also I should probably promise to do some sit-ups and eat some fruit and wear sunscreen, or something like that, but really, everybody dies sometime - I'm more concerned with having a life while I'm here. So this is what I intend to do in 2009 - live lots, and hopefully not die. Cheers.Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-31913495091278669872008-11-30T08:51:00.001-08:002008-11-30T09:10:36.543-08:00Still haven't made it to the insectarium - was going to try to go yesterday, but got out of work late, and they close at 4, and I was wary of ending up in the same situation I was in last week, i.e. it's too close to closing and they won't let me in. Also this past week, despite being interrupted by the holiday, has been absolute unmitigated insanity at work, and I was pretty tired.<br /><br />Anyway, over the holiday break I made myself a photography website: http://www.toomanythoughts.net/photography.html I'm now working on adding species-specific galleries (fork-tailed bush katydids still have more fun). <br /><br /> . . I do not have more fun, right now, because it's 34 degrees out and I had to kick a wolf spider outside this morning (if it were me, I strongly suspect I'd just throw it into the terrarium until we hit a warm day, but I think this would not amuse the housemates - especially as the terrarium is open-topped and it could decide to venture out exploring again if it wanted). So I tossed it into an area with lots of decomposing leaves, which should provide it warmth, but still, poor spider. I do not like winter. I do not like winter at all. (Why do I feel like I'm reading from some sort of seasonal-affective-disorder parody of 'Green Eggs and Ham'?) I really, really wish I could go outside and take pictures, but sadly, see above re: raining, 34 degrees, lack of bugs (except the poor spider). <br /><br />I did find a boxelder bug (or possibly a large milkwood bug - I have difficulty telling them apart) drinking from the cat's water dish the other day, and that I did throw into the little greenhouse shelf in the kitchen . . and it did decide to venture out again, because I can find neither it nor its spiderwebby corpse (as there was apparently a wolf spider around) anywhere near the greenhouse shelf. Oh well. I <span style="font-style: italic;">did </span>take its picture. <br /><br />Which I could show you if my computer were recognizing my SD card. Which it's not. <span style="font-style: italic;">Because life hates me. <br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span></span></span></span>Okay, okay, /pity party. <span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span></span></span></span>111 days until spring. <span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span><br /></span>Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-47562451245580658432008-11-22T13:42:00.000-08:002008-11-22T13:50:14.314-08:00I attempted to go to the <a href="http://www.myinsectarium.com/">Philadelphia Insectarium</a> today. The gift shop / ticket counter shares space with an exterminator's office. I have the distinct impression I'm being laughed at in some abstracted sort of way, by way of this arrangement. Oh well. <br /><br />Anyway, I managed to drive past it about three times before I actually figured out a.) what building it was, and b.) where I could park (streetside parking was prohibited by special police order today, for no apparent reason that I could discern). This resulted in it being about 20 minutes to closing when I finally got there, and the nice older man working the desk at the gift shop / exterminator's office / ticket counter (who looked downright shocked to see a person walk in his door) wouldn't let me in. He was pleasant and polite and gave me a free admission pass for next time, though, so it's all good. I do intend to go back and be mocked by the whole set-up some other day, because they apparently have bugs that look like leaves and preying mantises from India with purple eyes. <br /><br />I also emailed these people: <a href="http://www.mindenpictures.com/bin/mp.dll/go?a=disp&t=home-loader.html&_yp1=0&_yp2=0&_yp8=0&_men=menu_0&_m=0&_s=0&_ml=Home&_sl=About%20us&si=D292BA15F21D4ABC8FE6A5D419341A&rnd=2268.24">Minden Pictures</a> - to ask the proper procedure for submitting a portfolio. I don't seriously expect anything to come of this, but hey, it's worth a try.Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-955676581289461812008-11-13T07:37:00.000-08:002008-11-13T07:59:51.935-08:00This past month has been full of re-writes and sewing projects; while I haven't heard back from the various folks who have the re-written novel bits just yet, I'm fairly confident in them. They probably need polishing, as first drafts of anything usually do, even random bits of new in the middle of lots of has-been-edited-80-times, but I think they make the book better overall. I now have vampires that don't feel so tacked on, further illustration of Darren's abilities and what exactly the vow of Wardenship does, and a tiny little bit of character development for the vampire formly known as Claudia - I've re-named her. She's Lydia now (just as of today, actually, so that'll be news even to the people who have the re-writes). And all of the above, when combined, make this fictional supernatural world that I'm building a little bit more ominous - which is good. So generally, I feel accomplished about this.<br /><br />In the way of sewing, my most ambitious project was a winter coat. It's finished, sort of, but I'm not entirely satisfied with it. I wanted it to close in the front with these pretty pewter-looking clasps, but after a few weeks of use, I'm not sure I'm sold on their practicality. I sort of want a zipper, just for convenience. But a zipper would just look so much less cool. I'm still waffling on this. It'd be easy enough to go back and put in a zipper instead, but it'd make the coat not nearly as nifty.<br /><br />Also, the cuffs are huge. This is owing in large part to the sewing machine on which the coat was made - the cuffs, to get sewn, had to be able to fit around the . . . part of the machine where the bobbin goes? I'm unsure of its official name, but it's significantly wider than my wrist. I'm debating on ways to fix this still.<br /><br />So the coat is in use, but it's not really quite finished, so I'm not posting any pictures just yet. I'll post pictures when I have a truly final version of the coat to photograph.<br /><br />Also, I've been making skirts from curtains.<br /><br />This is an idea that had occurred to me some time ago, but at the time, I'd been thinking mostly of buying fancy curtains and making fancy dresses, and I have a number of fancy dresses already and very few occasions for wearing them, so this possibility was never explored. Last week, though, I was in the Linens & Things (which is closing down - the entire chain, apparently) buying some flannel sheets, when I saw a very pretty one-panel curtain package, in a floral pattern, at a very clearance-like price, and thought, hrmm . . . that'd make a pretty skirt.<br /><br />And it did make a pretty skirt, and I was so amused by the idea of having all the many truly nifty fabrics used for curtains available to me for much, much cheaper than the home decor fabrics are sold at the fabric store ($20/yard and up, mostly - a bit out of my budget), that I went out and bought two more on-sale curtains. The one was a really gorgeous red silk that was so cheap I figured it was worth getting even if I don't have a particular use for a red silk dress at the moment - something will come up eventually, and I'll never see red silk for roughly $3/yard again in my life, I'm sure. The other was a sort of jacquard chenille tapestry-ish thingie, which I though would make a nice winter-weight skirt. It did.<br /><br />The skirts:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCH8Z5Ir6xoZOm-v0sCj2DonjBFXo43viOG7cbwf5W0Ie2dyh8jF3D9yiOvdhA5DTf-AjZL4Gtdiu4BT99PoYaUqMT63rJjJ5Fx04KSJEZeNU_wyiRW6TEXlfeo2eBbfFkv2_WdJtA4Xw/s1600-h/IMGP1332.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjCH8Z5Ir6xoZOm-v0sCj2DonjBFXo43viOG7cbwf5W0Ie2dyh8jF3D9yiOvdhA5DTf-AjZL4Gtdiu4BT99PoYaUqMT63rJjJ5Fx04KSJEZeNU_wyiRW6TEXlfeo2eBbfFkv2_WdJtA4Xw/s400/IMGP1332.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5268171829179675698" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMNYmo0h_lZMi-SjDUv7GLV2_xXRQdmoFwx79ABLnSgGJ5UJuyklOCz9smXJfp9Q_FN88qp6B6CWK5wd_JDGpfqEitkeF5qHGfmBAzCc2PGu-JQEU4UBemDazQR-iejVhq3zau4CZqHI0/s1600-h/IMGP1333.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMNYmo0h_lZMi-SjDUv7GLV2_xXRQdmoFwx79ABLnSgGJ5UJuyklOCz9smXJfp9Q_FN88qp6B6CWK5wd_JDGpfqEitkeF5qHGfmBAzCc2PGu-JQEU4UBemDazQR-iejVhq3zau4CZqHI0/s400/IMGP1333.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5268171836938283202" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHjkUJWhRVa3kcemOjY0baExhlib3cFDXB6YlhLQzmQZtM8Iq4O9PLCiT8vVFlQHglIJdj8zd3vwo-VilPXOuqOoFAGgNLdrTyO-57G9bjjfNs5ru2XMPL97zFicrTZOFw8DKVOfIBui0/s1600-h/IMGP1336.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjHjkUJWhRVa3kcemOjY0baExhlib3cFDXB6YlhLQzmQZtM8Iq4O9PLCiT8vVFlQHglIJdj8zd3vwo-VilPXOuqOoFAGgNLdrTyO-57G9bjjfNs5ru2XMPL97zFicrTZOFw8DKVOfIBui0/s400/IMGP1336.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5268171840103944322" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCeL0WE2A_Us9iWZGGig3Jb5C9Zk7e8jU0A0Be6WL0e-ehG0EnyxZfLw-ZXEudcBovRhraKtWMIHYlx7RaheTGeXGOQyfhU7Es6wusEK7i8M6jnyD8VcL8G7CHFqelahjLnYbfBgg4mTA/s1600-h/IMGP1338.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCeL0WE2A_Us9iWZGGig3Jb5C9Zk7e8jU0A0Be6WL0e-ehG0EnyxZfLw-ZXEudcBovRhraKtWMIHYlx7RaheTGeXGOQyfhU7Es6wusEK7i8M6jnyD8VcL8G7CHFqelahjLnYbfBgg4mTA/s400/IMGP1338.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5268171849359714274" border="0" /></a>Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-48047525951135502032008-10-29T06:54:00.000-07:002008-10-29T08:16:26.885-07:00I enjoy summer. As a general rule, I do not enjoy winter. I really, seriously dislike being cold. Spring is enjoyable mostly in that it means summer is coming, and fall is generally not too bad in that it's not too cold yet, and the leaves are pretty and when you first break out the cool-weather clothes, your body isn't used to being covered in sweaters and heavy corduroys and is actually warm. (Then you adjust, just in time for the weather to turn truly frigid, and pretty much everything after mid-December is just miserable.)<br /><br />It is October 28th here; on the waning side of fall, but still firmly within the realm of autumn, and not winter.<br /><br />So somebody please explain to me why in the heck we had <span style="font-style: italic;">four inches of snow </span>yesterday.<br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjluHsCtE2i-tZ7MkUVkv_aFSTEYgJHzohWsho9wZCnjmydx7JkSC_wqqn2EWwbfCoNpxG19NtXYWV1cpiXqPBR_czwcYLGsHVhI7b7rLYFOlS5XKSSJKRcmfftn7xUUSaGYvgqR3Y8dvE/s1600-h/IMGP1297.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 300px; height: 400px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjluHsCtE2i-tZ7MkUVkv_aFSTEYgJHzohWsho9wZCnjmydx7JkSC_wqqn2EWwbfCoNpxG19NtXYWV1cpiXqPBR_czwcYLGsHVhI7b7rLYFOlS5XKSSJKRcmfftn7xUUSaGYvgqR3Y8dvE/s400/IMGP1297.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5262578840790866722" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUGRnMDsZDbTgi2Xz69oENiO6Pgdu0dcvj1h6L9h-Xx7x_EVH8tbm8E7swEOYG9mBVF35Za5-gltCmEP1FNflQgWhGiX_JKNa5miBOWEr4gRKhDHSm28BSJ_z-hUAJQrnoSPzjv_K9CkU/s1600-h/IMGP1306.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer; width: 400px; height: 300px;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUGRnMDsZDbTgi2Xz69oENiO6Pgdu0dcvj1h6L9h-Xx7x_EVH8tbm8E7swEOYG9mBVF35Za5-gltCmEP1FNflQgWhGiX_JKNa5miBOWEr4gRKhDHSm28BSJ_z-hUAJQrnoSPzjv_K9CkU/s400/IMGP1306.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5262578847968491378" border="0" /></a><br />There was a wolf spider in my work yesterday, which I had to put outside. I felt really bad. I dug it a little hole down into the mulch where hopefully the heat of decomposition will keep it non-frozen, but still, poor spider.<br /><br />Today I am finishing up sewing clasps on my winter coat (which I would have liked to have had yesterday, though at least I wore the old one, and not my fall jacket), doing re-writes on the first novel, and waiting to find out if I'm going to be going in to work this afternoon. I'm supposed to be filling in for a coworker, but as of last night, the appointment schedule looked so sparse that they may decide they don't need me.<br /><br />Re-writes are a little unnerving; I think I am improving the book (it has vampires who actually exist, in a not-tacked-on-as-an-afterthought sort of way, now), but my wordcount has jumped significantly. It's not yet over 100k, but it's nearing it. 100k is generally the upper end of what's acceptable for genre fiction, unless the genre is sword-and-sorcery type high fantasy, which this isn't. (Though it does contain both a sword and an individual capable of magic.) I suppose once I get done adding in stuff that should have been there, I'll have to go back and see if there's anything that shouldn't be there.Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-41345254509028445352008-10-15T06:15:00.000-07:002008-10-15T06:25:53.968-07:00Back from England; had a really good time, ate tons of crawfish, drank good beer, and generally enjoyed myself. Also, being entirely objective on the matter, I have to say that my pseudo-nephew is, in fact, the cutest baby ever. See?<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH6irR4fUDf1FFDFVhxDhknWXSAK4qaRMuSpQvF8SpLS0hIZqOOW735VDzyaI2sQd_rLWBt-W0hs26ReWVzEZY5BE5ZwTIrOaCGfbVcGZsoRlr3PHfU0m3B8I_8gaj69oTP7-K7SJ5cO8/s1600-h/IMGP1236.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH6irR4fUDf1FFDFVhxDhknWXSAK4qaRMuSpQvF8SpLS0hIZqOOW735VDzyaI2sQd_rLWBt-W0hs26ReWVzEZY5BE5ZwTIrOaCGfbVcGZsoRlr3PHfU0m3B8I_8gaj69oTP7-K7SJ5cO8/s400/IMGP1236.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5257371070839963570" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdqH3bBzv8b7gzdIXtejINdXX3cZNqM4v_0KwPznA6LG1DFkCX1AbtK1OiW95r3wCmsRQFoNorRI57sFIBpdVx5pr1xswFheRtPrlSUjBvW7CT7MUcVeOfQWECNOA_MPoriLKFdD6lS4k/s1600-h/IMGP1062.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjdqH3bBzv8b7gzdIXtejINdXX3cZNqM4v_0KwPznA6LG1DFkCX1AbtK1OiW95r3wCmsRQFoNorRI57sFIBpdVx5pr1xswFheRtPrlSUjBvW7CT7MUcVeOfQWECNOA_MPoriLKFdD6lS4k/s400/IMGP1062.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5257370178576013122" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjme6aImJIFT1GxQMd4bkU556KmTT_-7vdidZYCZQ00ezs6uZxbO3S8l8507z82gAUQ8uN7aSeeGYv7LbaTwFs5aiDZiOQGVsapmaCR0xSrPVKNHTk_uQqs1pIVmi1ybw-vO-mwutaqfPg/s1600-h/IMGP0873.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjme6aImJIFT1GxQMd4bkU556KmTT_-7vdidZYCZQ00ezs6uZxbO3S8l8507z82gAUQ8uN7aSeeGYv7LbaTwFs5aiDZiOQGVsapmaCR0xSrPVKNHTk_uQqs1pIVmi1ybw-vO-mwutaqfPg/s400/IMGP0873.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5257370185082950082" border="0" /></a>Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-7147396168043779172008-10-03T23:10:00.000-07:002008-10-03T23:27:14.967-07:00Before most major trips in recent memory, I have engaged in an ambitious sewing project. There have been ball gowns, experimental sort of cocktail dresses, and most recently, a fancy winter coat. None of these were strictly speaking necessary - I did need such a garment for each occasion, but in all cases, I already owned something I could have worn. And in the case of the fancy coat, I really probably didn't need a dressy coat so much as a functional coat, and I did already have one of those, making the coat-production of even more dubious necessity.<br /><br />Before the sewing projects . . actually, in between the sewing projects, also . . there was the artwork for sale at WriterCon, which required printing and fixing and matting and such.<br /><br />In each case, I was up until some ungodly hour of the morning for the two nights before the trip frantically attempting to finish the project in question. I arrived at my "vacation" destination wanting nothing so badly as 2 days' solid sleep.<br /><br />Before this upcoming trip to England, I was sewing shirts - everyday-wear kind of shirts for myself, and I attempted a skirt - and baby clothes. And I made a resolution: I was not going to be sewing/matting/doing-any-sort-of-project the night before. I would start early, I would set reasonable goals, and if the deadline started to loom close, I would scrap whatever project / aspect of project could not be completed without compromising my sleep. And, wonder of wonders, I actually stuck by this. I did not complete my skirt; I discovered that I fail at making appliqued baby blankets and decided to just go with baby stuff I knew I could complete successfully. I was quite proud of myself.<br /><br />It is 2:16AM the day before my departure. I don't fly out until 9PM tomorrow, but I have to be at work 9AM to roughly 2PM. I still have a little bit of packing to do, but not much.<br /><br />. . . I just finished repotting a tree.<br /><br />Before that, I repotted several violets.<br /><br />I'm contemplating going out and catching and relocating the baby dragonflies now (they need to get out of the wheelbarrow, as parents want use of the wheelbarrow while I'm gone) by flashlight - all that's stopping this plan is that I don't know where in the heck I put the fishbowl.<br /><br />What do trees, violets, and dragonflies have in common? They all really could have been re-homed tomorrow between when I left work and when I need to leave for the airport. I've got 4 hours, and I'm 90% packed.<br /><br />What do overly-ambitious sewing projects, artwork in need of matting, violets, trees, and dragonflies have in common? They're excellent ways to occupy one's brain when one can't get one's brain to stop spinning. It seems that I was putting the cart before the horse in terms of the cause and effect of my recurrent pre-trip sleep deprivation; I simply cannot sleep for about 2 days before a major trip. I discover boundless reserves of frenetic energy. I could build you a small bridge out of chewing gum and toothpicks, right now.<br /><br />Unfortunately, or perhaps fortunately, all that just seeps right out the soles of my shoes the minute I actually set foot on the plane. Pre-trip, I am extremely productive but also extremely anxious - in hyperdrive mode, and unable to snap out of it. Get me up in the air, and it's like flipping a switch. No matter what I've forgotten, left unfinished, or possibly messed up - no matter what catastrophes may be brewing in the world down there - I am several thousand feet in the air in a glorified tin can, and nobody and nothing can reach me.<br /><br />I <span style="font-style: italic;">love </span>flying. I really, sincerely, truly do.Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-46783613992404387142008-10-01T14:18:00.000-07:002008-10-01T14:40:12.771-07:00So I've been quiet here - I promised a review of my new camera and that didn't happen. It's still not going to happen, because I'm much too busy today to pull out the camera (a Pentax Optio S12) and get into detailed analysis of all its nifty functions. It is quite nifty, though - I am entirely pleased with it. I took these with it:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJvA-commVqCtqUpGJdBvdaFlm7yGCjUrRZIPUZdsqZ8RNGBtobr-RtvIQKkiRsBJ41fSVFniXgBmX6rRWW-wflYtZxn2rrzVV3M36G5-1wf39uChTyJOt9DbPWY2H8DPn_poFOTLM9yA/s1600-h/IMGP0805.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjJvA-commVqCtqUpGJdBvdaFlm7yGCjUrRZIPUZdsqZ8RNGBtobr-RtvIQKkiRsBJ41fSVFniXgBmX6rRWW-wflYtZxn2rrzVV3M36G5-1wf39uChTyJOt9DbPWY2H8DPn_poFOTLM9yA/s400/IMGP0805.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5252299340735574642" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcSYpW9Y9yupHs7wjcpG9P75V4RfsnvimzYz-BBdqFY-qczPkZOKHk-jngO-tKa02c26BEW8C0HP1crxpW4VGQoEeCnkIqmOO9o6RdJ6TP1JnIv0dR0U0QdNbsfNqfddlGIrXVLbVyxB0/s1600-h/IMGP0486.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhcSYpW9Y9yupHs7wjcpG9P75V4RfsnvimzYz-BBdqFY-qczPkZOKHk-jngO-tKa02c26BEW8C0HP1crxpW4VGQoEeCnkIqmOO9o6RdJ6TP1JnIv0dR0U0QdNbsfNqfddlGIrXVLbVyxB0/s400/IMGP0486.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5252299347683383074" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPXvWOVi2C0X_giQqax-y8TRGGeOGoir9v85yED53v_I4GQL8_hD9d6NNoo1YSfXHxZ83DDUzwrv8WkriiRgxYqzpJhZ-cYnyCA2ZB-9YqDg283sXIcTdjjxNKuVcjI31ieWBWaH3gFt8/s1600-h/IMGP0198.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjPXvWOVi2C0X_giQqax-y8TRGGeOGoir9v85yED53v_I4GQL8_hD9d6NNoo1YSfXHxZ83DDUzwrv8WkriiRgxYqzpJhZ-cYnyCA2ZB-9YqDg283sXIcTdjjxNKuVcjI31ieWBWaH3gFt8/s400/IMGP0198.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5252299350121991714" border="0" /></a><br />There are depressingly few bugs outside anymore, but I am waiting until the first hard frost before taking off for the insectarium (mostly as an antidote to getting totally depressed after the first hard frost). I'm also waiting until I get back from my upcoming trip - I will be leaving this Saturday to go visit my good friend E, her husband M, and their highly adorable, new offspring, J. I will be testing out the camera's use for taking pictures of <span style="font-style: italic;">slightly </span>larger creatures, i.e. the baby. I don't know if I'll be posting those pics here or not, will have to see what E and M think on that.<br /><br />I have been sewing a ridiculous amount - mostly baby clothes. I <span style="font-style: italic;">will </span>take pictures of those, to be posted after they've been given to E, as I don't want her to see what I've made ahead of time. It'd ruin the surprise. :)<br /><br />I've also made myself a couple nifty shirts. I'm presently very in love with large, billowing sleeves with small, gathered cuffs. They're just nifty.<br /><br />I'm considering getting some manner of sticker for my car - not a political type sticker, but just something pretty to personalize it a bit. I like this: http://www.purplemoon.com/Stickers/pentacle-seasons.jpg . . and this: http://www.purplemoon.com/Stickers/firefly.jpg<br /><br />. . the firefly sticker is fairly nondenominational, apolitical, and generally inoffensive to most people, I'd think. I'm a little more nervous about the idea of the pentacle sticker. I've yet to find a label that fits me well on . . well, any subject or aspect of life, really . . but religiously, I most often refer to myself as an agnostic pagan - which really does make sense, I swear, but is difficult to explain in less than an essay and is not the point of this post. Point is, I am not a traditional sort of neo-pagan (though the words "traditional" and "neopagan" are sorta funny to put in the same sentence to start with), and this makes me a little bit wary of using traditional neopagan symbols, however much they appeal to me and fit what I believe. I don't want to appear to be representative of something that I am not. And I'm very <span style="font-style: italic;">not </span>open about my religious beliefs at work. I don't exactly hide anything - I mean, I've taken the summer solstice off for two years running now, surely someone has noticed this, and hey, making this post on the internet under my real name - but I do not discuss religion at work, period, the end. And I have a feeling that if I stick this sticker on my car, I will be discussing (explaining, maybe justifying) my religion at work. I don't really want that.<br /><br />. . but it's a very pretty sticker and I don't particularly like the idea of <span style="font-style: italic;">not </span>buying it solely for that reason. That feels a little closetish.<br /><br />Anyway - back to sewing and packing and generally losing my mind.Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-33144008342013479212008-09-02T21:30:00.000-07:002008-09-02T21:46:47.372-07:00A few weeks ago, PetSmart stopped carrying the cat litter I previously used (a biodegradable, environmentally-friendly paper-based product). I bought several bags and resolved to find it elsewhere. Except, I think it's possible it no longer exists. At least, I did not find it elsewhere, and after attempting to buy it online and being told by the PetSmart webside that they had <span style="font-style: italic;">one </span>bag in stock, I decided I was just going to have to find a new litter. <br /><br />I tried enough varieties of litter when Oliver was a kitten to know what I didn't want (anything corn-cob or wheat-based was out, and I definitely wanted scoopable). I really, really wanted to find something else biodegradable . . but I found nothing that seemed like to actually <span style="font-style: italic;">work, </span>in that catagory.<br /><br />So I figured in for a penny, in for a pound, and bought a major brand regular-old-clay scoopable litter, designed for small spaces (the small space shared by me and my cat did require some highly frequent litterbox maintenance in order to keep things breathable, with the old litter). <br /><br />The litter itself works beautifully - better than the old litter (*sigh* - I am such a sell-out). However, it comes in these big old Rubbermaid-like plastic <span style="font-style: italic;">tubs. </span>I didn't even really think about this in the store, but then I got home, and put it in the box, and had an empty tub that looked suspiciously like something I could buy in its own right for about $10 at Walmart. Huh. I tried, momentarily, to figure out what I could use it for . . before I realized I was going to be acquiring a new one of these about once a month.<br /><br />I do not need 12 tupperware tubs a year. I really, really don't. <br /><br />I tried to see if I could buy this litter in more sensible packaging - I recalled seeing other types of litter made by this same company on the shelves in larger cardboard boxes, or bags. But no - not the small spaces litter. The small spaces litter only comes in packaging designed to clutter your small space. <br /><br />So I wrote to the company, and complained (politely) about how wasteful and unnecessary this was, that I did not want to be contributing 12 rubbermaid tubs to a landfill per year, or to use the energy that would be required to recycle them (they're heavy-duty plastic). <br /><br />Company replied with a form letter apologizing for the fact that I found their packaging inconvenient and assuring me that my concerns had been passed on to the folks who did packaging research (Dude, there are people who research how to package cat litter? Really?). Also they promised me coupons. I saw no evidence anywhere in this response that my letter had actually been read, but oh well - I suppose I can put whatever money I save via the use of my exercise-in-futility coupons towards saving for a less-small space. And then I can buy the litter that comes in the cardboard box. <br /><br />In the mean time, anybody need plastic tubs?Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-47213418915933929732008-08-27T16:56:00.001-07:002008-08-27T17:02:40.335-07:00So in about 4 minutes (less by the time I post this, most likely), my local township will be spraying my local park for mosquitoes. My father got a phonecall a little under an hour ago informing him of this, and that we're apparently local enough to the park that we may get hit with some drifting of sprayed chemical, depending on the winds. Per the nice township phonecall, this poses "minimal" risk to people and pets. <br /><br />I'm more than slightly peeved; IMO I ought to get a vote in what gets sprayed on my property (or at least my parents should, being the legal owners of said property - still, I am a tenant, I do live here, I am affected by toxic stuff sprayed in the vicinity). I know they are concerned about West Nile, but I do not want the rest of my insects killed off, and I have a population of dragonflies that controls my mosquitoes, and I have ethical and religious objections to the indiscriminate use of insecticide, and in general there is no aspect of this that does not make me want to go stand in front of the park with a pissed-off type sign. (I won't actually, mostly on account of an hour being too little time to come up with something really witty to write on said hypothetical sign). I don't recall any such program of insect control ever being put to a vote, at least a vote in which I was included or of which I was notified . . . I suppose that's what we have representatives for, but still, I feel disenfranchised and unamused about this.Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-18544405986298065092008-08-26T19:06:00.000-07:002008-08-26T19:14:14.316-07:00I caved; a <a href="http://www.pentaximaging.com/products/product_details/digital_camera--Optio_S12/reqID--10506253/subsection--optio">Pentax Optio S12</a> is winging its way to me via Amazon as we speak (well, actually, it's sitting in an Amazon warehouse because I opted for the free shipping, and ergo it won't ship out until September 2nd; but the process of its eventually reaching me has been set in motion! Just . . no actual <span style="font-style: italic;">motion</span> type motion yet.) I tried and tried to find a store that had one in stock so that I could try it out before I bought it, but nobody within 25 miles seems to stock them - and sadly, gas prices being what they are, it's really not worth driving farther than that as opposed to just returning it if I don't like it. And Amazon had it on really, really ridiculous sale, so there you go.<br /><br />I will post a review when it arrives and I've had a chance to try it out. I'm kinda bummed that it's not likely to arrive before the holiday, but oh well. <br /><br />This was brought about in part by the optical zoom on the currently-owned Pentax Optio S7 dying an untimely death on me. I can't blame the camera - I've taken upwards of 15k pictures with it in the last 18 months. It's done its duty. But, never the less, I have a camera that shuts itself off if I try to use the zoom outside of macro mode (yeah, I know, I work almost exclusively in macro mode, but still) and is threatening to give up the ghost entirely. Even in macro mode, the focus is not what it used to be - sometimes it works, sometimes it gives me a big blur. And the summer's not over. This is decidedly not cool.<br /><br />But I got this one before it started to go wonky on me. This is entitled, "No, Pixar did not make me up, I swear." <a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW4ktjLVPgcp6PYfYLFgSfmmhcErQdCznZiz0KWQPHr_Dsi_6F46hUNrLopBbwIxOTKGEh7z5FMA92mI3zkiOqsvyt3LiWnAvWNrTe7mVkxPpp0LfBvsJR8t95A7bQHiL5EIKYiY-k100/s1600-h/IMGP6137.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhW4ktjLVPgcp6PYfYLFgSfmmhcErQdCznZiz0KWQPHr_Dsi_6F46hUNrLopBbwIxOTKGEh7z5FMA92mI3zkiOqsvyt3LiWnAvWNrTe7mVkxPpp0LfBvsJR8t95A7bQHiL5EIKYiY-k100/s400/IMGP6137.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239014708449481138" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGkbeg4yNZWyEdnRg2w5kopGbAWmYqTPoxBo7HAG2OAZ7rIjZxmvDrLZZWhoPLoRtFGGF7_0W4lYfyPDPMKySJlMi2PVGMkkeZZJIF23t35FTjrsYnqdGtc4Q9UYnNv2stV76U5kq7qUw/s1600-h/IMGP6139.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiGkbeg4yNZWyEdnRg2w5kopGbAWmYqTPoxBo7HAG2OAZ7rIjZxmvDrLZZWhoPLoRtFGGF7_0W4lYfyPDPMKySJlMi2PVGMkkeZZJIF23t35FTjrsYnqdGtc4Q9UYnNv2stV76U5kq7qUw/s400/IMGP6139.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239014714190358754" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0O3S7_YgkCN3sGtRZvN4j4n_H8xjAT00ql6c-Xo8uu3VQgo4Gsg03l0Gv9cmGinCEgVAssfHncyONE0xiibVC0AZIWbICb2Z91hK-fcqkpCdisdqT0JeOCmsatYNtsHdFcKv2HFDYvSE/s1600-h/IMGP6142.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0O3S7_YgkCN3sGtRZvN4j4n_H8xjAT00ql6c-Xo8uu3VQgo4Gsg03l0Gv9cmGinCEgVAssfHncyONE0xiibVC0AZIWbICb2Z91hK-fcqkpCdisdqT0JeOCmsatYNtsHdFcKv2HFDYvSE/s400/IMGP6142.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5239014729044028610" border="0" /></a>Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-84992913080548063622008-07-20T09:57:00.001-07:002008-07-20T10:12:47.380-07:00Today's Topic: Is The Author Insane?<div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnc3RHNvnYOE1nLOBAeMpfNoS6vN5j9wLHXYy_XQT4jNgJEYieejsg-NbQat7dSrZG_vfptjqRUOUI2BXog7WHElibSw-u3leq7g92RuQm0t-kHxRb24Mp-390FSaqbo0aYJKjLEFhwLY/s1600-h/IMGP4309.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhnc3RHNvnYOE1nLOBAeMpfNoS6vN5j9wLHXYy_XQT4jNgJEYieejsg-NbQat7dSrZG_vfptjqRUOUI2BXog7WHElibSw-u3leq7g92RuQm0t-kHxRb24Mp-390FSaqbo0aYJKjLEFhwLY/s400/IMGP4309.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5225142728293547090" border="0" /></a>Yes, I was about 3" away from these guys. Yes, they did notice . . <br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji8sPNn1AYkmFSPaxzfwDiMhvf439F1qVdJM5o_4ud9WDMV9SRsuR_2XgkaFLUZ2EPQsiTHu6gkDMaAkPebGZiqotzbiAo_mEk_bgBFs_Ze3nd1n218kN_LjP5t3QlMZDmfnjo6hArmtY/s1600-h/IMGP4347.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEji8sPNn1AYkmFSPaxzfwDiMhvf439F1qVdJM5o_4ud9WDMV9SRsuR_2XgkaFLUZ2EPQsiTHu6gkDMaAkPebGZiqotzbiAo_mEk_bgBFs_Ze3nd1n218kN_LjP5t3QlMZDmfnjo6hArmtY/s400/IMGP4347.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5225142733977087106" border="0" /></a> . . . though not as much as these guys did. The yellow-jackets above were actually remarkably complacent about bright lights being flashed in their proverbial windows. They stared, but it was a, "Huh. That's weird. We'll keep an eye on that," sort stare. These guys above, though? Not. Pleased. There was annoyed staring, there was agitation, there was some vibrating of wings. That was when I decided to leave them be. <br /><br />The location of either of these is being kept undisclosed, as I suspect it would not contribute to the longevity of the residents if I made their existence known - and they're really not hurting anything, they're out of the way and, obviously, not that aggressive. (Protecting your sources - not just for reporters!)<br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi47z2KhuNXBLZl_azcEYGWVbJsE8MTxsLx6EA4uLiYQbSvocLCw-C2OxhCw0wXAyvI4GkZPhHgK1IinlUiOLvFqD0N0zQpsL6iZZdXELsOyR_0e5GkAE8I2eptmGhx85XKI6BDsX7ULoU/s1600-h/IMGP4420.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi47z2KhuNXBLZl_azcEYGWVbJsE8MTxsLx6EA4uLiYQbSvocLCw-C2OxhCw0wXAyvI4GkZPhHgK1IinlUiOLvFqD0N0zQpsL6iZZdXELsOyR_0e5GkAE8I2eptmGhx85XKI6BDsX7ULoU/s400/IMGP4420.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5225142740410351762" border="0" /></a>Look at its eyes. They're <span style="font-style: italic;">striped. </span>How cool is that?<br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8VdHfmDgIeKdDwxLH2lKi3GvDCjaUJgWudbI-f1xzRiSbBYjZZ-8bae_UjTNv9ft7fABPnc2Y9twrCxcc902vz5gzvuESbGuGbHseFNIcBkVZhPRwnXErp-6zjFbMa8qI0kZAYFjinQ0/s1600-h/IMGP4544.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh8VdHfmDgIeKdDwxLH2lKi3GvDCjaUJgWudbI-f1xzRiSbBYjZZ-8bae_UjTNv9ft7fABPnc2Y9twrCxcc902vz5gzvuESbGuGbHseFNIcBkVZhPRwnXErp-6zjFbMa8qI0kZAYFjinQ0/s400/IMGP4544.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5225142743740698050" border="0" /></a>I know this is rather blurry at full size, but <span style="font-style: italic;">it's staring at me. </span>Its expression was just too nifty not to post. <br /><br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSuB5rfGo_Y9TWbZvQ5FRy-RyuVk-FduFc0xI7njGCLSFanqHBvN427Vj4oUWoYfE0cB3TDwyIoiI09-lf94zlkHmaQNAVsZqTiqEr5cV9PeO3yHO1fK134gBh8ScCVZs-nWXc6dNWoOw/s1600-h/IMGP4529.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhSuB5rfGo_Y9TWbZvQ5FRy-RyuVk-FduFc0xI7njGCLSFanqHBvN427Vj4oUWoYfE0cB3TDwyIoiI09-lf94zlkHmaQNAVsZqTiqEr5cV9PeO3yHO1fK134gBh8ScCVZs-nWXc6dNWoOw/s400/IMGP4529.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5225142753548740418" border="0" /></a> . . and another in the series of bugs with challenges; this guy's only got one back leg. He was getting around just fine without it; I even saw him make a short jump. How in the heck he can get an accurate trajectory, I don't know, but he landed where he was looking, so I think he can. <br /><br /></div>Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-24562201797922294602008-07-17T22:05:00.000-07:002008-07-17T22:14:45.465-07:00It seems I <span style="font-style: italic;">did </span>move the preying mantis far enough away from the katydid to prevent the former from eating the latter, 'cause look! It's all grown up!<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgydghKysSud5Fi0H0A08frD-_OvmxOd64eBcgupYNJADL-jw9uQjmiPuTKZGmQMTPLW0EExFio8MTBcGYz_OgoWKQlYz3nWJfCY34WnrpTdCaAdSuzqMjQV4LDuHoKhT4BtWT-7w-yA4Y/s1600-h/IMGP4137.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgydghKysSud5Fi0H0A08frD-_OvmxOd64eBcgupYNJADL-jw9uQjmiPuTKZGmQMTPLW0EExFio8MTBcGYz_OgoWKQlYz3nWJfCY34WnrpTdCaAdSuzqMjQV4LDuHoKhT4BtWT-7w-yA4Y/s400/IMGP4137.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224216585907572802" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtCjOFYa-BmDQ5d1gr7smh6KrqebOF-PH1O3CR-8ulX1KRuJMI8pK4ljuMEVoObyi0cmTcOcxxw33eWzPUjgOOnybrcDeA928gEx0dz7Q4v8YGWQVIPmgTCtVzmq_PkPENbv0yivamb3k/s1600-h/IMGP4116.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgtCjOFYa-BmDQ5d1gr7smh6KrqebOF-PH1O3CR-8ulX1KRuJMI8pK4ljuMEVoObyi0cmTcOcxxw33eWzPUjgOOnybrcDeA928gEx0dz7Q4v8YGWQVIPmgTCtVzmq_PkPENbv0yivamb3k/s400/IMGP4116.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224216592325348674" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgu_VYbygmNeHnLKK1ugM_Ijb_KVPlvpZIEgIgMFSG0v6b3R6Q9YRD3-e1MD1K7Jhz8Z_gs-uzI7iK04nVsciG4Kq9eYuJYiD9j8IYhcM2AXB58uXtP3Pv-Ie8BQIrvkrU4-zxjmKXMXU/s1600-h/IMGP4138.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgu_VYbygmNeHnLKK1ugM_Ijb_KVPlvpZIEgIgMFSG0v6b3R6Q9YRD3-e1MD1K7Jhz8Z_gs-uzI7iK04nVsciG4Kq9eYuJYiD9j8IYhcM2AXB58uXtP3Pv-Ie8BQIrvkrU4-zxjmKXMXU/s400/IMGP4138.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224216944171329474" border="0" /></a> . . I *think* this is a she, but I'm not entirely positive.<br /><br />Other things that proved the world is an awesome place, tonight:<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-LaQI6RZlsUXmdUMgNey0GdL1wCWh1PtQbDfZNPxjqNNoWr-7Pfe2hwgz3QbsmpXDYdqLNAbL3NoZCBLdxqhksfhR1ppOWDKckLNBbjFqwqacaxrPDcN5c3HMpW1l-vFqnLvK8YZU5I4/s1600-h/IMGP4202.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-LaQI6RZlsUXmdUMgNey0GdL1wCWh1PtQbDfZNPxjqNNoWr-7Pfe2hwgz3QbsmpXDYdqLNAbL3NoZCBLdxqhksfhR1ppOWDKckLNBbjFqwqacaxrPDcN5c3HMpW1l-vFqnLvK8YZU5I4/s400/IMGP4202.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224217995095653890" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0MBuPY5hu0J3BV5VUfGCq1XUUCiayrWubIeXaUD1-W3fuwfMga7UJlA1yZMJPNeCcEpBGEclMDAEIutyS9xWuGiDVncdOAxwWbG9cU6c3ucA6SLh2pB2eOqSWJE11gayIKdFZuPqeAgU/s1600-h/IMGP4213.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0MBuPY5hu0J3BV5VUfGCq1XUUCiayrWubIeXaUD1-W3fuwfMga7UJlA1yZMJPNeCcEpBGEclMDAEIutyS9xWuGiDVncdOAxwWbG9cU6c3ucA6SLh2pB2eOqSWJE11gayIKdFZuPqeAgU/s400/IMGP4213.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224218003423211986" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuSbwZ7ZVEaVWkseSqsnOEhjgBRf58vRERU5dAF7Rj5GGz7jxZSVpg8opiICFkcNMd6saGuTRaE6Eu80m5X0_LdaEPjEgO05-5vALd_zBtByqswSFTHAprmg1YqQiVlyi2OvOR6AzYPGE/s1600-h/IMGP4238.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuSbwZ7ZVEaVWkseSqsnOEhjgBRf58vRERU5dAF7Rj5GGz7jxZSVpg8opiICFkcNMd6saGuTRaE6Eu80m5X0_LdaEPjEgO05-5vALd_zBtByqswSFTHAprmg1YqQiVlyi2OvOR6AzYPGE/s400/IMGP4238.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224218014575338418" border="0" /></a>Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-82955770517517550472008-07-17T08:41:00.001-07:002008-07-17T09:04:39.915-07:00Fork-tailed Bush Katydids Have More FunI have not dropped off the face of the earth! . . . almost dropped into the pond/pool balancing on the side to take pictures of hatching dragonflies . . but have not dropped off the face of the earth. <br /><br />Today's post is going to be all about katydids, 'cause they're just <span style="font-style: italic;">cool. </span><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit8ad9kzF_5Nn-G5ek6r66MCkpKBESAckH323mGnUfhko2ineTd0M760m_vu9LOw9G4-WZGbMSO11GVl3CUN-5qUPPQQL7Q87Z8fd-pObfvQKRQ2QRA8FaDvc7zZO23Ht5XY5kaxIaFoo/s1600-h/IMGP3912.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit8ad9kzF_5Nn-G5ek6r66MCkpKBESAckH323mGnUfhko2ineTd0M760m_vu9LOw9G4-WZGbMSO11GVl3CUN-5qUPPQQL7Q87Z8fd-pObfvQKRQ2QRA8FaDvc7zZO23Ht5XY5kaxIaFoo/s400/IMGP3912.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224009840117135554" border="0" /></a>A nymph - if I were really impressive, I could tell you its stage of development and all that. I'm not that impressive. But isn't it cute? It's washing its little foot!<br /><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_8A1mRt7QZdHkS0aSez3EdtA0YYn-Pl4oePSbJXRXPvassbfqkE91KLIgukd42FlnsQca3NK3s_LuW_zlLGqZ22x31RXd1hRSaKK0jDNxhwK0kTCz6L-aM-Ykhp8u7iK0e6rhdpwH7FI/s1600-h/IMGP4033.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_8A1mRt7QZdHkS0aSez3EdtA0YYn-Pl4oePSbJXRXPvassbfqkE91KLIgukd42FlnsQca3NK3s_LuW_zlLGqZ22x31RXd1hRSaKK0jDNxhwK0kTCz6L-aM-Ykhp8u7iK0e6rhdpwH7FI/s400/IMGP4033.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224009854430174626" border="0" /></a>"Hi, big freaky mammal-thing. Why are you flashing bright lights at me?"<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsJ4YRrl3fVKAbbZUDEwxM_wT4QHyEOEGxZ-4k_Ya-qMecY7alpQR_TDdiApcI9h-WcZ91Fy7BW9VTg3Uj7JKx_8QaB3Y3fFX3amqAYP6yvit483ePMqCVOurzkZfzNVDrrdYZQQCFx8g/s1600-h/IMGP4053.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhsJ4YRrl3fVKAbbZUDEwxM_wT4QHyEOEGxZ-4k_Ya-qMecY7alpQR_TDdiApcI9h-WcZ91Fy7BW9VTg3Uj7JKx_8QaB3Y3fFX3amqAYP6yvit483ePMqCVOurzkZfzNVDrrdYZQQCFx8g/s400/IMGP4053.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224009862453867442" border="0" /></a>"Oh - 'cause I'm cute, with my striped antennae. Alright then."<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK8Kog81fb4jU7A8CizaKkjC1x_R-sOYMS6B5CRaWGy9pnWs9PQkVHumBz4yTsscmmChPRHU6sJy_j2FGJwHEqXrRTglY1tkRJETGXnow3EYDiu5PrInczsfJRa9QXtCaraFuj-yZbnfQ/s1600-h/IMGP4023.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgK8Kog81fb4jU7A8CizaKkjC1x_R-sOYMS6B5CRaWGy9pnWs9PQkVHumBz4yTsscmmChPRHU6sJy_j2FGJwHEqXrRTglY1tkRJETGXnow3EYDiu5PrInczsfJRa9QXtCaraFuj-yZbnfQ/s400/IMGP4023.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224009872093219330" border="0" /></a>It's an antennae contest! (Other bug is a cricket)<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMyMMVhyphenhyphenb1Afw-F8DJyxUsXW6ltomGnp7nESlra0pG6-w8QjyUbs76w8D7kHGrRThgMQJpAa6lueC_75mcCc-QZLue0Mf-seZ9tF-VRitNM3N1uy4XWVLjKf1PGirJfsK_7FHq3H92toM/s1600-h/IMGP4079.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMyMMVhyphenhyphenb1Afw-F8DJyxUsXW6ltomGnp7nESlra0pG6-w8QjyUbs76w8D7kHGrRThgMQJpAa6lueC_75mcCc-QZLue0Mf-seZ9tF-VRitNM3N1uy4XWVLjKf1PGirJfsK_7FHq3H92toM/s400/IMGP4079.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224009878517447138" border="0" /></a>It's a baby! (I know, I'm so scientific.) But look! It's got bitty stubby antennae and its leg are the width of the ridges in my fingerprint. How adorable is that?<br /><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj2fi6a4NBkW6RU7Xz1i4_XoFH5BJw63eWWzY6dN8adEUqjoMlcin8xwSxB4cd16QZy20I3VfOBGtUit2UUIivdJ6kUecPd7juLjCr0L5mU9MOYpQBof2_wHqw6WoSQebNhxo6186GzZU/s1600-h/IMGP4081.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhj2fi6a4NBkW6RU7Xz1i4_XoFH5BJw63eWWzY6dN8adEUqjoMlcin8xwSxB4cd16QZy20I3VfOBGtUit2UUIivdJ6kUecPd7juLjCr0L5mU9MOYpQBof2_wHqw6WoSQebNhxo6186GzZU/s400/IMGP4081.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224010960254163266" border="0" /></a>"World veryvery big, and it very dark out. Me tiny. That long way down."<br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHJBAwUhHxXLMgs5brh3nIFS7Gx9F2WFgZSEDHnAEEOTddF3pUM0IMMylP_1PW7H_MowIrrS-m8zL4yq-aNwA3xMQ5gDO1RlZNFDu48DYd7EKAoURsELKdCwyG4SprT8u3X52VNyEJHmM/s1600-h/IMGP4066.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHJBAwUhHxXLMgs5brh3nIFS7Gx9F2WFgZSEDHnAEEOTddF3pUM0IMMylP_1PW7H_MowIrrS-m8zL4yq-aNwA3xMQ5gDO1RlZNFDu48DYd7EKAoURsELKdCwyG4SprT8u3X52VNyEJHmM/s400/IMGP4066.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224010963845614418" border="0" /></a>" .. and something's flashing bright lights at me. Me so confused."<br /><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMn1Bq7ylCEgs1uZuNgQlA0l2ktD81fyJjzngxfPluVwTUJAPue9iLFj5xP_b-4N-4SycjNoxPicWlP8DHxBBOgs0etzpxgD-UO1QrmlZ-Co40FVB6Sb0O49v2Dn0I6_25qV7PFwRfZG8/s1600-h/IMGP3537.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMn1Bq7ylCEgs1uZuNgQlA0l2ktD81fyJjzngxfPluVwTUJAPue9iLFj5xP_b-4N-4SycjNoxPicWlP8DHxBBOgs0etzpxgD-UO1QrmlZ-Co40FVB6Sb0O49v2Dn0I6_25qV7PFwRfZG8/s400/IMGP3537.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224010974510510194" border="0" /></a>Still a nymph, same species, believe it or not. (Not the same individual bug; I actually saw this guy (gal?) a few nights before the two above. When it's a grown-up, it'll have wings.<br /><br /><br /></div><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh_ciPI2eNqEaYTRwHup3Eex88XEQucRh88qIK1l8s0SlcmUlPMiQ27zCZvaO-kuoPjlOP02Oi3FGji5KwuIVK2HtJnEgXcSKe6g_X__Cm86J_V3IlorK_Gckp4ZoidMIM-FqCOF1dyTU/s1600-h/IMGP3629.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhh_ciPI2eNqEaYTRwHup3Eex88XEQucRh88qIK1l8s0SlcmUlPMiQ27zCZvaO-kuoPjlOP02Oi3FGji5KwuIVK2HtJnEgXcSKe6g_X__Cm86J_V3IlorK_Gckp4ZoidMIM-FqCOF1dyTU/s400/IMGP3629.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224010977982691730" border="0" /></a> . . right now it just had these cute little fin-like wing-stubs, which you can see in this picture, kinda behind the knee of its middle leg. It's eating my gladiolas, but I can't really care, 'cause it's posing so nicely.<br /></div><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiStf7fRGvA3tYApsMfqvzemYYcGqjomc3mYbBJIgEycUeNgNbZQfD34SP37ZXosz7r_waCKeC7RxOjMxu3aWQrRwdBhiwekjjr17frKvgIcfws1J2xXJNFyOe5ltvPuaJnL_upHs-n4Qo/s1600-h/IMGP3542.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiStf7fRGvA3tYApsMfqvzemYYcGqjomc3mYbBJIgEycUeNgNbZQfD34SP37ZXosz7r_waCKeC7RxOjMxu3aWQrRwdBhiwekjjr17frKvgIcfws1J2xXJNFyOe5ltvPuaJnL_upHs-n4Qo/s400/IMGP3542.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5224010986049143778" border="0" /></a><br />This is not a katydid, as hopefully even the least bug-oriented of observers could tell. :) This is the preying mantis that was stalking the above teenaged-ish katydid. It was relocated (though possibly not far enough, 'cause I haven't seen that katydid again). However, it gets a few cool points of its own, on account of turning itself <span style="font-style: italic;">pink </span>to match the daylilies. <br /></div>Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-48048103506540347362008-06-25T14:17:00.000-07:002008-06-25T14:19:45.289-07:00Discovery of the day:<br /><br />This . . .<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTL33lTOfrKQdcznEAF13gITlOhhkPdywdMQA1Wvx_9qbSv3EINBDb6fmOcUrg1pn0SCSpy8n1k6aE9VFvTn_hEJGGndZ8bLoqWxKOmd0taLsLVwTsirtXGTqxIaphXVyhi4KdGsAYJDM/s1600-h/IMGP9585.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTL33lTOfrKQdcznEAF13gITlOhhkPdywdMQA1Wvx_9qbSv3EINBDb6fmOcUrg1pn0SCSpy8n1k6aE9VFvTn_hEJGGndZ8bLoqWxKOmd0taLsLVwTsirtXGTqxIaphXVyhi4KdGsAYJDM/s400/IMGP9585.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5215931560344877250" border="0" /></a> . . . is a fork-tailed bush katydid nymph. <a href="http://buzz.ifas.ufl.edu/063dev.htm">http://buzz.ifas.ufl.edu/063dev.htm</a>Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-57884928480289379342008-06-22T20:09:00.000-07:002008-06-22T21:17:53.513-07:00Dueling spiders! These were taken last summer, but they've never been posted <span style="font-style: italic;">here, </span>so here they are.<br />(The photos are cropped, but otherwise unaltered; the video is entirely unaltered.)<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNdAD7FkNaw2p5HU02DFhWNq85SaXzUaU3soMjZrMW8ARt0nh9Douv_cPHLKNE1si7tVd_tkBc1mxXLDf673QoTkNfljdX6cIiA2rgxruRJibuQDnh7HGIb486sAptgHRvFXQCQqdBRf8/s1600-h/071407+049.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNdAD7FkNaw2p5HU02DFhWNq85SaXzUaU3soMjZrMW8ARt0nh9Douv_cPHLKNE1si7tVd_tkBc1mxXLDf673QoTkNfljdX6cIiA2rgxruRJibuQDnh7HGIb486sAptgHRvFXQCQqdBRf8/s400/071407+049.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214915982693633298" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisTAdGAn7rY7AMvO-PiKDi3J0V-mi9nS4v0lMlqK0k9KWjtTHAwh9RnHC5lEmtHNJrdBaTb8DFc177D0rzhnMbvZAEtbPa3dx-X42Esxc3RtTQzsbBZc-0QT7pNbrazOgBlh93OKzv9kE/s1600-h/071407+064.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisTAdGAn7rY7AMvO-PiKDi3J0V-mi9nS4v0lMlqK0k9KWjtTHAwh9RnHC5lEmtHNJrdBaTb8DFc177D0rzhnMbvZAEtbPa3dx-X42Esxc3RtTQzsbBZc-0QT7pNbrazOgBlh93OKzv9kE/s400/071407+064.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214915984610371106" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIY2_LzLogiFpTgJoMsxS3iMwHzX8sGygaLnKo2CQ6culZH3JC_WW3PMdnQkY4lepCpI56vOMLQ91mIaWsDH8mTX2uid3lmWFtNpeXUfPPbUk6_x9HrFWCD86lWvenylx9LjcKFPGdfLQ/s1600-h/071407+066.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIY2_LzLogiFpTgJoMsxS3iMwHzX8sGygaLnKo2CQ6culZH3JC_WW3PMdnQkY4lepCpI56vOMLQ91mIaWsDH8mTX2uid3lmWFtNpeXUfPPbUk6_x9HrFWCD86lWvenylx9LjcKFPGdfLQ/s400/071407+066.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214915984065285826" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0V7gGP1RVooqtmZYSKZCuPa8-AHpHPlVb2RMIVWbjgncH7g3HLc-Q57fA-87tuGXWa3VbKTmN4NwnTvQ-Om2-OWRPTj5pPxp-4q3xyTKsa0-ABwc2g_ofqOS-My7ZDakpBMomSTlbueI/s1600-h/071407+067.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0V7gGP1RVooqtmZYSKZCuPa8-AHpHPlVb2RMIVWbjgncH7g3HLc-Q57fA-87tuGXWa3VbKTmN4NwnTvQ-Om2-OWRPTj5pPxp-4q3xyTKsa0-ABwc2g_ofqOS-My7ZDakpBMomSTlbueI/s400/071407+067.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214915991705533746" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuAhtvN3LynBg-Ayiw2E7WCFR_ahHCocaNWCWXnmsVDzGDFFP2C4HcBQU4PE-5dzzAJy59HOTTj_XjZb1VVGRBpST8sh2r-fV0SyV0CeJH90tWvrip6FBhCPx-V9vsWJiKEHBkQq8Y0PY/s1600-h/071407+069.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuAhtvN3LynBg-Ayiw2E7WCFR_ahHCocaNWCWXnmsVDzGDFFP2C4HcBQU4PE-5dzzAJy59HOTTj_XjZb1VVGRBpST8sh2r-fV0SyV0CeJH90tWvrip6FBhCPx-V9vsWJiKEHBkQq8Y0PY/s400/071407+069.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214915990114044434" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY4h0mCd-udkbqiVmDtv9eGAZCdGIlbiE-1_-SdFQ8DOidTjGN4Efa6EYqq7fd9wSVIutzl1LvDNfUzqWOFQ9_WO6n1C7HddB34bIzRr_57h03szj5wDya6FpDxJpSStmEk3YnkDVwE-w/s1600-h/071407+071.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiY4h0mCd-udkbqiVmDtv9eGAZCdGIlbiE-1_-SdFQ8DOidTjGN4Efa6EYqq7fd9wSVIutzl1LvDNfUzqWOFQ9_WO6n1C7HddB34bIzRr_57h03szj5wDya6FpDxJpSStmEk3YnkDVwE-w/s400/071407+071.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214916433104971074" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyk_XyMkPzcpaQt8S0m7Zd4kb56BaPhWOor75oCAYLOOFurUNEuOcM58MfTJbYmeyuqetBzGYAoOTnIkU0VVQFHv5mi3C73eLX0JRaFEZyWbd2-H_x8F3p1rjVEvOqgoGkO5cwB-mny80/s1600-h/071407+072.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyk_XyMkPzcpaQt8S0m7Zd4kb56BaPhWOor75oCAYLOOFurUNEuOcM58MfTJbYmeyuqetBzGYAoOTnIkU0VVQFHv5mi3C73eLX0JRaFEZyWbd2-H_x8F3p1rjVEvOqgoGkO5cwB-mny80/s400/071407+072.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214916434616351954" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAAkiplOhkQg_e5HrZkXHad8FGte7Mou9W29YLDQTsV1OtW1RJSMkVoxcZPPNY3-ApKMYjNeBXEqfDDe909MzsRLHH_7ODcP7-Bmu7yNTJIGCArA0omB1SljhCfMBZwhD3fNzKCnegHrg/s1600-h/071407+073.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAAkiplOhkQg_e5HrZkXHad8FGte7Mou9W29YLDQTsV1OtW1RJSMkVoxcZPPNY3-ApKMYjNeBXEqfDDe909MzsRLHH_7ODcP7-Bmu7yNTJIGCArA0omB1SljhCfMBZwhD3fNzKCnegHrg/s400/071407+073.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214916437710853954" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTrIGhpZ2nxjLkC484H3uid9B1QWKQUNGiS0yb9HmQtfbze_9Frjq9YHCcUtIPDTN7ujEV_zntrutHtw7JkAS8erGsbTLxi2df2BIQjy1MZCZR4BokFaw_g5Qja4PLfq18goSKNJximHo/s1600-h/071407+074.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTrIGhpZ2nxjLkC484H3uid9B1QWKQUNGiS0yb9HmQtfbze_9Frjq9YHCcUtIPDTN7ujEV_zntrutHtw7JkAS8erGsbTLxi2df2BIQjy1MZCZR4BokFaw_g5Qja4PLfq18goSKNJximHo/s400/071407+074.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214916440459775586" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGDgQTOmbRAvx8i-iAICUilU6ZtpZbQN3z8sfNmx61F-Tgpewz40MuHKzVKSPApjgnDt6Ri_f1ocQNBZqDCE03rEPtdDWKZZVfgaAH5HFK_7JJfo_oB_Tnv4yOo82JMje32dfvLc3DcOQ/s1600-h/071407+075.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjGDgQTOmbRAvx8i-iAICUilU6ZtpZbQN3z8sfNmx61F-Tgpewz40MuHKzVKSPApjgnDt6Ri_f1ocQNBZqDCE03rEPtdDWKZZVfgaAH5HFK_7JJfo_oB_Tnv4yOo82JMje32dfvLc3DcOQ/s400/071407+075.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214916442780476834" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHsTxdOzvpX4APyTEz6L6go0aFrL3vVVOW691mAkrJ1M9EuABMkBIWIaizsyBzRQzi1SrAfsK8mBO9bbOC6b13EN0kZGFhXw1Vu00Rer_KsXAcQebCtL-oODDAJpwsn5ttE3v01-GE9pQ/s1600-h/071407+076.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgHsTxdOzvpX4APyTEz6L6go0aFrL3vVVOW691mAkrJ1M9EuABMkBIWIaizsyBzRQzi1SrAfsK8mBO9bbOC6b13EN0kZGFhXw1Vu00Rer_KsXAcQebCtL-oODDAJpwsn5ttE3v01-GE9pQ/s400/071407+076.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214917147517290402" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvV4G0WmFNRmPVZ9NMmf6F_zET9LRILP6CPxDnt9nl8qHdQhqPew1LxmWORJa6rwCOMAz-nf388Quro-3PM9QJcdl2ZZ9bOjmhy-6gI59uvbWd8tP2c4rM8kDlUmBsRpru8b04zQN2oyY/s1600-h/071407+077.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhvV4G0WmFNRmPVZ9NMmf6F_zET9LRILP6CPxDnt9nl8qHdQhqPew1LxmWORJa6rwCOMAz-nf388Quro-3PM9QJcdl2ZZ9bOjmhy-6gI59uvbWd8tP2c4rM8kDlUmBsRpru8b04zQN2oyY/s400/071407+077.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214917153992732754" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgNsGMMbFWiQc0lL_3qsWiqN4EN4BAKLyXOYVhPihOhknJJgjrVj1WX6Es-cjP3JQV-uQHBFQnYAQ615DUa8e_I_KKoL6A__KZlydUlbIEx7UmATzY77OXvI8ia2YYh8wO63ldm5it9Sk/s1600-h/071407+079.jpg"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgNsGMMbFWiQc0lL_3qsWiqN4EN4BAKLyXOYVhPihOhknJJgjrVj1WX6Es-cjP3JQV-uQHBFQnYAQ615DUa8e_I_KKoL6A__KZlydUlbIEx7UmATzY77OXvI8ia2YYh8wO63ldm5it9Sk/s400/071407+079.jpg" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214917157062536290" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dw5cTIptP62K2Y-4s-z5zItHn_0oe6POLgG6msW8baDfnD9G3HZ0OPhk0igf0Br_JWw0Jh2p8gXvW6y5iZASw' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe></div>Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-66277766561785990622008-06-21T16:24:00.000-07:002008-06-21T17:05:15.721-07:00A belated Happy Solstice to any who celebrate!<br /><br />(Dueling spiders <span style="font-style: italic;">next </span>post, swear.)<br /><br />I took the day off from work and spent it mostly out in the woods at Tyler Park, then at Churchville Nature Center, where I ran into someone else photographing bugs! This was very exciting. While I know there are other folks out in the world who photograph insects (most of them using nicer cameras than mine), I had never met another insect photographer in person.<br /><br />Some selections from the day:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUkbSOPr6aj8hIlOZE8GH4eqv_GWuI8Uau2-J9K2xdLGE7Jr8zDfNlzPivQIYVq1sqkPRPcN2gCHACGhAkRQjGiVFJarS5timyWU8m44HhUJRfEdX7w89udIHLYhoVoXPlNCKUCnmCAu0/s1600-h/IMGP0856.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjUkbSOPr6aj8hIlOZE8GH4eqv_GWuI8Uau2-J9K2xdLGE7Jr8zDfNlzPivQIYVq1sqkPRPcN2gCHACGhAkRQjGiVFJarS5timyWU8m44HhUJRfEdX7w89udIHLYhoVoXPlNCKUCnmCAu0/s400/IMGP0856.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214483833929698178" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzboAdU336EXo5sQPp7XOKFdESC3knPSPdD2LjpIL-SRxxZDYoISMNRhhCxeHb-9wnR1ORtNFJgJ2vPnaXlFXfzeI_iqThMHW-Fc9ptSZW6FZC6dug8o4K8PBRFzxSQhoirGvY63GZbsI/s1600-h/IMGP0903.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhzboAdU336EXo5sQPp7XOKFdESC3knPSPdD2LjpIL-SRxxZDYoISMNRhhCxeHb-9wnR1ORtNFJgJ2vPnaXlFXfzeI_iqThMHW-Fc9ptSZW6FZC6dug8o4K8PBRFzxSQhoirGvY63GZbsI/s400/IMGP0903.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214485888188013058" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPx_NOMZUAaXrPQEGS86_Pq-atdHWT9H21cvYnt90lx0UwbhY2HBKI4fwRUblqIHcBX2aUlrcOZ7dIic77ovCAQGRDK_JqruOgW-ZjS4AOSYBGd6zKWSaaP7ee-QZgDBppeXqBThV9clM/s1600-h/IMGP0927.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPx_NOMZUAaXrPQEGS86_Pq-atdHWT9H21cvYnt90lx0UwbhY2HBKI4fwRUblqIHcBX2aUlrcOZ7dIic77ovCAQGRDK_JqruOgW-ZjS4AOSYBGd6zKWSaaP7ee-QZgDBppeXqBThV9clM/s400/IMGP0927.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214483840677363490" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH4SmuYReRqRP10NWi-cKrn8_4W1uKt-SRR1yPk9X9Dz7UUOv8FywTtUdcaJWo9Euv7pT1Zr5wY8K8YgICIGrpiV5rcyOMyz2qxf0Vquyf_S_b9J8LtZHrGlIj9ZjgZ2IIgoqTU6mZY9A/s1600-h/IMGP1034.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhH4SmuYReRqRP10NWi-cKrn8_4W1uKt-SRR1yPk9X9Dz7UUOv8FywTtUdcaJWo9Euv7pT1Zr5wY8K8YgICIGrpiV5rcyOMyz2qxf0Vquyf_S_b9J8LtZHrGlIj9ZjgZ2IIgoqTU6mZY9A/s400/IMGP1034.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214483841664695202" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXk0tcb10iAjFOR415pWzvZK_Nhoeg8VS88lGoq0zI7nyl_8rFDSO5-shcLe2-7aCkODasIpbo3RdIT2sgR_5XNqgm8aRPWnvhfh0CTg5YyqjhXWk56SrN6CKVoklKshYivRFIZLwM3Rs/s1600-h/IMGP0993.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXk0tcb10iAjFOR415pWzvZK_Nhoeg8VS88lGoq0zI7nyl_8rFDSO5-shcLe2-7aCkODasIpbo3RdIT2sgR_5XNqgm8aRPWnvhfh0CTg5YyqjhXWk56SrN6CKVoklKshYivRFIZLwM3Rs/s400/IMGP0993.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214483852403874578" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWkRLAqRgirBDnwpL9k8C1nqzZbp7-3iSn6SRyr4LghAFfzTcQNdi65frqCa_adtWJxUnpeJGd-_Xaz2UYNRPZv-alHGCTeItjMl2tMdQCs0euFJIxLjN_0YtmMr1teJPY6O_0bM82CFQ/s1600-h/IMGP1011.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWkRLAqRgirBDnwpL9k8C1nqzZbp7-3iSn6SRyr4LghAFfzTcQNdi65frqCa_adtWJxUnpeJGd-_Xaz2UYNRPZv-alHGCTeItjMl2tMdQCs0euFJIxLjN_0YtmMr1teJPY6O_0bM82CFQ/s400/IMGP1011.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214483864839575346" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhZCu2xOzGNLZd9IhxqMrEmRMvaxx1wogTwtc1_s6t5p5u3p_jfADAgeoRNhuFdVDfW8E1X86BTDucigPRJKBTPzvWmlf9e7eZMUhuUsFZxE0WUfzjPahXnh5hRCRhjQvbVJRlBxH-H-8/s1600-h/IMGP0968.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhhZCu2xOzGNLZd9IhxqMrEmRMvaxx1wogTwtc1_s6t5p5u3p_jfADAgeoRNhuFdVDfW8E1X86BTDucigPRJKBTPzvWmlf9e7eZMUhuUsFZxE0WUfzjPahXnh5hRCRhjQvbVJRlBxH-H-8/s400/IMGP0968.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214485863484019634" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMZiOyDMILwYM4bmfoGN7CGiZeqHOuxErRjxxnik-4As3ELOA_9ozent0ZKrLqS3KwMQbTRT3ZOBtq-q49KjhnHAWaHc63PUFIv6b4YbZToMaUXkP8Jpv431BsF5wzXdlUopyGXpEFcTU/s1600-h/IMGP1025.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMZiOyDMILwYM4bmfoGN7CGiZeqHOuxErRjxxnik-4As3ELOA_9ozent0ZKrLqS3KwMQbTRT3ZOBtq-q49KjhnHAWaHc63PUFIv6b4YbZToMaUXkP8Jpv431BsF5wzXdlUopyGXpEFcTU/s400/IMGP1025.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214486392594436578" border="0" /></a><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjytlYM5CElWU1zrpDcDSFTKB_sAbhLYYvTi7Bdb3xm9QuvFR674asMMYu5r5k30j3GWnMnQhWXFhWSqqZpfFFpYjgZfpdilEJmcta9naVx6mYl1Z-VEwqh3QQLcf2N6NSdCixL4i5_k6g/s1600-h/IMGP0906.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjytlYM5CElWU1zrpDcDSFTKB_sAbhLYYvTi7Bdb3xm9QuvFR674asMMYu5r5k30j3GWnMnQhWXFhWSqqZpfFFpYjgZfpdilEJmcta9naVx6mYl1Z-VEwqh3QQLcf2N6NSdCixL4i5_k6g/s400/IMGP0906.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214485876467330466" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNwo46VLIqOP4h3CLZZIOxoL0LNuRrPtPyOuYoJ49SRIA52fpO_DQXeO7Kg0Kll-47J4sj__KViWWIiUxMA6c5gK1xX3L6sEtHgLT_7QZ9KYkTdFDB3vS7Oc2P4qxddBr3fPdvpHun99I/s1600-h/IMGP0914.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNwo46VLIqOP4h3CLZZIOxoL0LNuRrPtPyOuYoJ49SRIA52fpO_DQXeO7Kg0Kll-47J4sj__KViWWIiUxMA6c5gK1xX3L6sEtHgLT_7QZ9KYkTdFDB3vS7Oc2P4qxddBr3fPdvpHun99I/s400/IMGP0914.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214485878066433314" border="0" /></a><br /><br />Today was spent mostly making a dress; I bought the fabric last fall. It looked considerably darker and warmer in the store's lighting than it did once I got it home, much to my disappointment. I'm not really a fan of pink. But, I had it laying around, and that was annoying me, so I made a rather spur-of-the-moment, experimental dress. The dart up the back (not illustrated here, sorry) was only a partial success; it made the dress fall as I wanted it to, but it puckers a bit. The darts at the hips, though, I love. Will definitely be making other things with those.<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQP2Z597BjpGRM8X5wK_usqt9V7gGUHHScklqVQ5gDKSeukCzI488k13PL8xYarrL6pXnN_2jhpVnbG809WS7CWx_329AaUUL7wkG9jeEZzTjwjx6kiZxRUe92aPoEQi88_nEMESF4F44/s1600-h/pinkdress1.gif"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQP2Z597BjpGRM8X5wK_usqt9V7gGUHHScklqVQ5gDKSeukCzI488k13PL8xYarrL6pXnN_2jhpVnbG809WS7CWx_329AaUUL7wkG9jeEZzTjwjx6kiZxRUe92aPoEQi88_nEMESF4F44/s400/pinkdress1.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214489406657581314" border="0" /></a>(Yes, I really am that pale. No, I am not dead, undead, or any variation thereof.)<br /><br />And then I went outside (in the dress, as you can see), and picked some strawberries and took a couple not-really-worth-posting bug pictures, and found a milkweed borer! In my yard! I was excited - until it fell off the plant and lay there on the ground looking sorta half-dead. I picked it up and generally fussed at it and eventually it stopped playing dead and walked around on my hand for a little, but it seemed to be having genuine troubles - fell from fingertip to palm once, and had to try repeatedly to get its wings open and take off. I don't know if it was merely weak, maybe from traveling from wherever-it-came-from to my yard, or whether it stopped on the way and sampled something chemically treated. I hope not the latter.<br /><br />. . and something is eating my brussel sprouts, and not hanging around to be photographed. If an insect is going to chew on my edibles, it should at least do me the courtesy of posing nicely. I'm not amused by things that eat my stuff and then <span style="font-style: italic;">hide, </span>leaving me with neither pictures nor dinner. I want one or the other.<br /><br />(I'm not pondering the possibility that the milkweed borer was clumsy because it was so stuffed after gorging itself on my brussel sprouts. It was too cute to be so rude.)<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3cRxZWbeNKGE02c4htRSgGfcZwMs4u09_0Tbif6eGPwZZdZ5EYg265ztBwQ61RniU7kUTI1fcLxCsc5IRGrRlNoUT-zOkmkHnME6gjG71Paap4h3PLaTDkMkG-8amhJJoH2gtzyqEc0A/s1600-h/IMGP1060.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3cRxZWbeNKGE02c4htRSgGfcZwMs4u09_0Tbif6eGPwZZdZ5EYg265ztBwQ61RniU7kUTI1fcLxCsc5IRGrRlNoUT-zOkmkHnME6gjG71Paap4h3PLaTDkMkG-8amhJJoH2gtzyqEc0A/s400/IMGP1060.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5214490080991586306" border="0" /></a>Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-67119528464679508622008-06-16T21:13:00.000-07:002008-06-16T21:22:41.702-07:00Okay, <span style="font-style: italic;">next </span>post, dueling spiders. This post - this guy: <a href="http://www.beautifulbugs.com/beautifulbugs/allstar.htm">http://www.beautifulbugs.com/beautifulbugs/allstar.htm</a><br /><br />. . I need a better camera. Not that I don't love my present camera - a Pentax Optio S7 - it has served me very, very well, especially considering how economical it was to purchase and how compact it is to carry. I am not complaining, at all. It just . . can't really do what that guy's doing. And I have worked with an SLR before, but they're clunky and awkward and not conducive to being contorted at right angles to the ground under a bush while balanced on a wobbling rock, which is how I tend to take a lot of pictures. They're <span style="font-style: italic;">heavy, </span>which puts them in increased danger of dropping, and also bulky, making them awkward for getting into tight little spaces.<br /><br />'Course, that guy obviously worked all that out.<br /><br />But really, what I want is a point-and-shoot digital with an optical zoom that operates in macro mode, 12.1 megapixel or higher, and no ridiculous shutter lag (really, <span style="font-style: italic;">no </span>shutter lag. Shutter lag is <span style="font-style: italic;">bad </span>when taking pictures of things that may not be terribly amused at being photographed.) There are a few cameras out there that fit the bill in everything but responsiveness. I figure in a few years they'll have that worked out, and in the mean time I'll keep on with the camera I have.<br /><br />But *sigh*. <a href="http://www.beautifulbugs.com/beautifulbugs/allthebettertoseeyouwith.htm">Look at that.</a> Me <span style="font-style: italic;">wants. </span>Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-38256209642179535172008-06-16T20:36:00.001-07:002008-06-16T21:03:58.268-07:00As promised, bug pics from the past couple weeks:<br /><br />This is a newly-hatched baby preying mantis. I know it's knew-hatched, 'cause it was hanging out in the shrubbery by my front door along with about two dozen of its brothers and sisters. They were all climbing upwards, which is puzzling to me, considering they can't fly. They seem to be considerably more docile creatures at this age than they are when older - at least, this little guy (gal?) made no attempt to bite me.<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAxGq33fKAuj3clemSq0np_6L0Ll217VD7kbsgS4hp4RQUOJXIl-RYHrB28D8QLhAYXkxzmxR7QfJH0mypjv0cIrPT6ZzJkNHviSPKEwbNjuztjUn9Nih2bMhKXzIxNk_VkH9R-lnyrRg/s1600-h/IMGP0164.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAxGq33fKAuj3clemSq0np_6L0Ll217VD7kbsgS4hp4RQUOJXIl-RYHrB28D8QLhAYXkxzmxR7QfJH0mypjv0cIrPT6ZzJkNHviSPKEwbNjuztjUn9Nih2bMhKXzIxNk_VkH9R-lnyrRg/s400/IMGP0164.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5212690247199519266" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIEJWTjxW7jNCTvstW9updgmkdwHlT3pDHqMEE0yaHaPSYcbeIIOKzcFgX1EeQL65iB292W4sURN80q4K2vctu4C5_wLgSBjuYjbGxj-qmLKjkd8XSqLmtk3-_bn8dlqQ0lAUs-uGsTSs/s1600-h/IMGP0166.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIEJWTjxW7jNCTvstW9updgmkdwHlT3pDHqMEE0yaHaPSYcbeIIOKzcFgX1EeQL65iB292W4sURN80q4K2vctu4C5_wLgSBjuYjbGxj-qmLKjkd8XSqLmtk3-_bn8dlqQ0lAUs-uGsTSs/s400/IMGP0166.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5212690249723476754" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFPk4SBpzA7iORneN7lISr8Ce3f9vA1ORtN44eSCECeYjK9obG7fMJGTVtHX1Lp39GHcv8gvuEYDicr7_83rXSl_dgwFEfoSdPvvxEXNqJC13tgTilT_-g-fnYyCRUunJfdKp3B6dozXQ/s1600-h/IMGP0174.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjFPk4SBpzA7iORneN7lISr8Ce3f9vA1ORtN44eSCECeYjK9obG7fMJGTVtHX1Lp39GHcv8gvuEYDicr7_83rXSl_dgwFEfoSdPvvxEXNqJC13tgTilT_-g-fnYyCRUunJfdKp3B6dozXQ/s400/IMGP0174.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5212690255209082562" border="0" /></a><br />This is a juvenile Buffalo Leafhopper. Yes, it's from this planet. How can you possibly not think that's cool?<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqjszc-tC1TvrwkUtz82Nx_rVKmuZgNrcCA2hphs8opboi-0zfAOOrEtBWN2HK4oMH60y4RGyIRASsVw50O5y2oDS8mimJhkvsZtrj0enCHkd9NuOjlvtS9qdq2FcPmLA4ik6jyEBl2hs/s1600-h/IMGP0364.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhqjszc-tC1TvrwkUtz82Nx_rVKmuZgNrcCA2hphs8opboi-0zfAOOrEtBWN2HK4oMH60y4RGyIRASsVw50O5y2oDS8mimJhkvsZtrj0enCHkd9NuOjlvtS9qdq2FcPmLA4ik6jyEBl2hs/s400/IMGP0364.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5212691007740633330" border="0" /></a><br />It's waving! (Actually, I think it's saying, "Step off, enormous mammal-thing, or I keel you!")<br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4C3xITpQqC7og9lvddPd3QTIcNvNuyfkRgINkpBnUX15wCoiT0HLiyDfF8E26N3WxbTetHPLJJZsMTdRNcYZQVYx2zp8VNpBh1DEzGiekxMojDboCVHpFsS66BmVB-UxRT539735DTd4/s1600-h/IMGP0579.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj4C3xITpQqC7og9lvddPd3QTIcNvNuyfkRgINkpBnUX15wCoiT0HLiyDfF8E26N3WxbTetHPLJJZsMTdRNcYZQVYx2zp8VNpBh1DEzGiekxMojDboCVHpFsS66BmVB-UxRT539735DTd4/s400/IMGP0579.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5212691647808522434" border="0" /></a>(It's also reminding me that I have not posted the dueling spider series here. Next post: dueling spiders! With video!)<br /><br />It's really hard to pick out which photos to post here; sometimes there's one that's a stand-out in terms of being just the best picture I've taken all week, and sometimes there's a stand-out in terms of being one of the neater things I've ever seen and OMG y'all must see it too! (See above re: baby Buffalo Leafhopper).<br /><br />But anyway, I've decided the rest of this post should be devoted to milkweed borers. Because they're just <span style="font-style: italic;">cool.<br /></span><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9NfL3awejhHjQ9t_vBN6C4MWaG-3h6gB1OJQF-yFZykfJFBQEc_Mpq2XpCaUm-N7Y7jxs_TBHcZB4HeWBXeJZlFdMVEF0xL1WQCGG65Kyyy7XoWVBklxmeD0JrRRuTGqUOrCkyG94Pjc/s1600-h/IMGP0673.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9NfL3awejhHjQ9t_vBN6C4MWaG-3h6gB1OJQF-yFZykfJFBQEc_Mpq2XpCaUm-N7Y7jxs_TBHcZB4HeWBXeJZlFdMVEF0xL1WQCGG65Kyyy7XoWVBklxmeD0JrRRuTGqUOrCkyG94Pjc/s400/IMGP0673.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5212693482345976706" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTuz-mmuV5oI5olgDP1EdJ2bINtb0ev9T12oic-sI3l3LtzrlHYCJRQ0WolixSoOtRmGXeLEV5wETbNCnPlMWe2XWCjnSz1NR0xfNPMjBn4WWEI_jJMHvS-1O6OHJeP1vvHM3mkcYD4s0/s1600-h/IMGP0677.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjTuz-mmuV5oI5olgDP1EdJ2bINtb0ev9T12oic-sI3l3LtzrlHYCJRQ0WolixSoOtRmGXeLEV5wETbNCnPlMWe2XWCjnSz1NR0xfNPMjBn4WWEI_jJMHvS-1O6OHJeP1vvHM3mkcYD4s0/s400/IMGP0677.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5212693492224697298" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXwSRM0zQ84rMj3vYYpWLgGvJKiKAcCHFSGToAwgrdZMkgfhA4flfdVquZZpKXketLoZGtyJejPYKKvHsKe0X9hkNrNL7-9i47fqJcNfqFkW40utQ7GCvIlXgBQgVkjA1cm1fZjOTQtys/s1600-h/IMGP0690.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgXwSRM0zQ84rMj3vYYpWLgGvJKiKAcCHFSGToAwgrdZMkgfhA4flfdVquZZpKXketLoZGtyJejPYKKvHsKe0X9hkNrNL7-9i47fqJcNfqFkW40utQ7GCvIlXgBQgVkjA1cm1fZjOTQtys/s400/IMGP0690.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5212693493036298834" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCJQUHHPfNOBfVUcj8c3d-RD4FoHLDHCCR5TF7sUEFrINYf2_Gpfwx5JzIBhyRtkKbpjqsENaYAAjIYIMH9600mmATuvCzb6JBc5KZ7vEff8smVsjH8Nj6UkbPXSi36FVP_I4GZHr-dxw/s1600-h/IMGP0711.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiCJQUHHPfNOBfVUcj8c3d-RD4FoHLDHCCR5TF7sUEFrINYf2_Gpfwx5JzIBhyRtkKbpjqsENaYAAjIYIMH9600mmATuvCzb6JBc5KZ7vEff8smVsjH8Nj6UkbPXSi36FVP_I4GZHr-dxw/s400/IMGP0711.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5212693503394392882" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8n6ApoOiQMgTLz1jqL2JpUx-_gYUxNZTpFzsudgUm_PVDMQqGRsElAzSvyWVvME46_sWGKkKxSffdJ1FIuuwPm5h29LehBQwvcIJ9ZfOoW-0LKXxtKesxMm9hyphenhyphenvpUg4yJth9orkiaoDU/s1600-h/IMGP0727.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8n6ApoOiQMgTLz1jqL2JpUx-_gYUxNZTpFzsudgUm_PVDMQqGRsElAzSvyWVvME46_sWGKkKxSffdJ1FIuuwPm5h29LehBQwvcIJ9ZfOoW-0LKXxtKesxMm9hyphenhyphenvpUg4yJth9orkiaoDU/s400/IMGP0727.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5212693510542948770" border="0" /></a><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7QNAGhh63faJvuXKHT8xlENpS7LHVhVS4tBcFvrCfuTvmhV22xZVEeI06RPt44LbG0X9Jm-bP7JLDRneSj1rR61CLDh6yTbWKtcsUbpTmj4dCfNQRh7VuykhthElp7VBlQrWiRtYQwN0/s1600-h/IMGP0731.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg7QNAGhh63faJvuXKHT8xlENpS7LHVhVS4tBcFvrCfuTvmhV22xZVEeI06RPt44LbG0X9Jm-bP7JLDRneSj1rR61CLDh6yTbWKtcsUbpTmj4dCfNQRh7VuykhthElp7VBlQrWiRtYQwN0/s400/IMGP0731.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5212693972089384770" border="0" /></a><br /> . . I met a woman at the nature center, briefly, who pointed out a frog in the pond and insisted I take its picture (I did, though it was just sitting there being not terribly photogenic or disposed to creating a well-composed photograph). I then told her I was there to take pictures of bugs, and showed her a few bugs shots. She asked if I was going to be an entomologist. I said no, just a hobby, and wondered how old (or rather, how young) she thought I was. I know I don't look my age, but after having been mistaken for my sister's mother (she's only 8 years younger! I am <span style="font-style: italic;">not </span>old enough to have a child her age!), I thought that perhaps I finally looked too old to be asked what I want to be when I grow up. I don't even get carded at the movies very much anymore. <br /><br />I did, however, type "entomology degree" into Google this evening, just for the hell of it. I don't think it's for me . . there seems to be more emphasis on pest control than on appreciation of biodiversity, in the study of bugs. But maybe I could audit a class sometime? One that doesn't involve collecting. Maybe. If I get published and financially stable and all that fun stuff. At the least, I discovered there is in fact an entomology department at U of Penn (something I'd been wondering); I could look up graduate students and pester them when I have pictures of bugs I can't identify.Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-41233809624588544862008-06-15T20:48:00.000-07:002008-06-15T21:52:00.273-07:00You know that show 'Dirty Jobs'?. . well I should have been on it, this weekend. <br /><br />I think I've mentioned previously living at my parents' house. Well, eight years or so ago, my parents had an above-ground pool. I say "had" not because the pool went anywhere, but because it's no longer a pool. After not being opened or chemically treated for years on end, it's more of an above-ground <span style="font-style: italic;">pond. </span>Kind of zombie-of-pool. <br /><br />After many years of disagreement re: what to do with the pool that no one is using, last year I just decided heck, okay, so we're gonna have an above-ground pond, fine - and put some floating water-weeds in it. They took off and looked quite pretty, if bizarre in context, for the duration of last summer. <br /><br /> . . . this summer, the pretty little floating leafy things have largely been eaten alive by the rather virulent strain of algae that seems to have come with them. Whatever exists in actual ponds that keeps said algae under control? We apparently don't have any of those. And I'm getting eaten alive every time I venture into the back yard, by the mosquitoes. The mosquitoes were previously controlled nicely by the dragon-fly larva that also made the pool-pond home, but it seems that dragonflies don't think the three inch thick layer of vaguely greenish sludge on top of the water looks like a good place to raise a family. Who can blame them? But the mosquitoes, it seems, have no such standards (figures). <br /><br />So Wednesday, I went out to pick some strawberries, got four mosquito bites in ten minutes, and decided that's it, pool is coming down. <br /><br />So most of yesterday and today was spent draining the pool, which involved sticking big long piece of tubing into the aforementioned sludge, covering one end, hauling it over the side, and hoping the laws of physics decide to play nice and the water drains. My experience is that in a grudge match between the Algae of Doom and the laws of physics, algae wins. Either that or I've just pissed off some higher power that is amused by seeing me hanging over the side of the pool with my rear in the air sticking my arms elbow-deep into murky sludge, over and over and over again, in ninety degree weather. I looked like swamp thing and smelled like bog after about an hour. This took considerably longer than an hour.<br /><br />But, at the end of two days, the pool has about 10" of semi-liquid sludge left in the bottom and is otherwise drained. <span class="blsp-spelling-error" id="SPELLING_ERROR_0">Disassembly</span> should commence next weekend - though not Friday, when I'll be celebrating the summer Solstice. I refuse to celebrate the start of summer by wading through sludge. There is nothing remotely celebratory about pond slime, really. I suppose it could make one spiritual, though - you know, it could inspire prayer. <span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span>"Please let me <span style="font-weight: bold;">not</span> catch something bizarre and antibiotic-resistant from sticking my hands into this." <br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span></span>When I was not elbow-deep in sludge I was, of course, taking pictures of bugs. There will be a picture post later. <span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"><span style="font-style: italic;"></span></span><br /></span>Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-53797012569426758062008-06-11T20:06:00.000-07:002008-06-11T20:30:40.972-07:00Very occasionally, I do things other than take pictures of bugs, believe it or not!<br /><br />(Actually, I do things other than take pictures of bugs a lot, but you couldn't tell from this blog up until now, could you?)<br /><br />For example, I also sew. I splurged on fabric a bit this weekend - there were things that were on sale! And they were <span style="font-style: italic;">pretty. </span>The following garments resulted:<br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirDgAAPpeLY7BQ2_kTgnPSLHPp4tSNEEUTxxxFIOkVhJNbzOZgHRNDInzkIHXN3vAz_3nMlgzw4z8gEVUPdAnRau17qyafViHCtKLsdFtgvIrBWDsE911Ll8Ovd6Xw597pEbH3qVeCFL8/s1600-h/yellowdress1.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEirDgAAPpeLY7BQ2_kTgnPSLHPp4tSNEEUTxxxFIOkVhJNbzOZgHRNDInzkIHXN3vAz_3nMlgzw4z8gEVUPdAnRau17qyafViHCtKLsdFtgvIrBWDsE911Ll8Ovd6Xw597pEbH3qVeCFL8/s400/yellowdress1.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5210827374744038466" border="0" /></a>This was pretty simple to make, despite being partially lined, due to the wonders of bias tape. I have recently discovered that I love bias tape - they should make it in more colors, though.<br /><br />You can't tell from the picture, but that fabric has an all-over floral eyelet pattern (hence the need for lining). It's really pretty, and it's very fine, lightweight material, nicely cool and summery. You can really see where the lining ends in this picture, thanks to the back-lighting; it's not so obvious in more natural light. <br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCYD_JICZ_fkDv7-iQf_SC7GZt4TkTZTUwMBYBfNiE1uGa7Il4x9OptIvc6kXaZKi1X6lXR0LwJdB6d4thSiZI6vH97_vZtpeYhhCMF5Yg3zdaVPKI0K8oHL2o_8rwKOY1mZ9zBuQNOvA/s1600-h/linenskirt1a.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgCYD_JICZ_fkDv7-iQf_SC7GZt4TkTZTUwMBYBfNiE1uGa7Il4x9OptIvc6kXaZKi1X6lXR0LwJdB6d4thSiZI6vH97_vZtpeYhhCMF5Yg3zdaVPKI0K8oHL2o_8rwKOY1mZ9zBuQNOvA/s400/linenskirt1a.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5210827787597726386" border="0" /></a>What I Learned From Making This Skirt:<br />a.) Invisible zippers are an invention of the devil.<br />b.) Bias-cut linen is stretchier than you think.<br />c.) Invisible zippers are of Satan, seriously. <br />d.) Human beings are not symmetrical from front to back; it would be good to remember this when determining the length of front and back pieces of skirt. <br />e.) Invisible zippers? Pure evil. <br /><br /> . . . I did get the invisible zipper to work, after ripping out and re-stitching the lower-most portion of it <span style="font-style: italic;">three times, </span>use of a few presser feet (not the invisible-zipper-installing presser foot) in ways not intended by their manufacturers, re-cutting the waistband, and signing something in blood that I<a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG333SXV8nkJY8TdxFJsCkeFDATwcLb2XXia4_wc05NbREmYWYggxeKvQx-aWlHGRz-X_DayRYAaiuGME9OSJe9KpzwIAJgpNGyXDdzjiOx4T4r7YhaurDS9alm41gh015mRPpQSgi-t0/s1600-h/linenskirt1b.gif"><img style="margin: 0pt 10px 10px 0pt; float: left; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG333SXV8nkJY8TdxFJsCkeFDATwcLb2XXia4_wc05NbREmYWYggxeKvQx-aWlHGRz-X_DayRYAaiuGME9OSJe9KpzwIAJgpNGyXDdzjiOx4T4r7YhaurDS9alm41gh015mRPpQSgi-t0/s400/linenskirt1b.gif" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5210827793693297410" border="0" /></a> think may have involved giving away my firstborn. But the zipper now works! <br /><br /> . . nearly-circular hems are also a little bit evil, but really, compared to the invisible zippers, they're small potatoes. The hem issue was solved by immoderate application of bias tape (did I mention I love bias tape?). The bias tape, sadly, was no match for the evil of the zipper. It could do nothing where the zipper was<br />concerned.<br /><br />(But you can't see that zipper, can you? It's at the top of the center back. And it's all invisible and classy. But evil.) <br /><br />The shirt being worn in the skirt picture was store-bought, not made by me. I can take no credit for the pretty curtains, either, which were picked out (and hemmed) by my mother (aka the person who taught me to sew - though she likes to use patterns, and I generally don't.) The person wearing the garments is me, and the various green things you see in the background are my collection of African Violets.Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-85283247308400845202008-06-05T19:41:00.000-07:002008-06-05T20:58:28.719-07:00More bug pictures! I think this is going to turn into a photography blog for the duration of the summer. Other topics may be addressed, but mostly there will be bugs.<br /><br />. . . and I need a hand-held light thingie - like you can get to attach to an SLR? Except I have a point-and-shoot, which has no means to attach thingies. So, hand-held. And no, a flashlight would not work as well . . well, it could, if it were a particularly nice flashlight . . but generally speaking, flashlights produce concentric rings of yellow light. Not particularly conducive to the taking of well-lit pictures of nocturnal bugs. I'm just using the built-in flash at the moment, but even in "soft flash" mode it's really a little bright.<br /><br />So, pictures, some daytime (mostly from the nature center), some nighttime (mostly from my yard). I did hang around the nature center for maybe half an hour after dark once last year . . . technically a no-no . . but it made me a little nervous to be someplace I was not supposed to be, alone, after dark. Even in the name of art and all that.<br /><br /><div style="text-align: center;">(This picture came out highly cool, but I can't take complete credit for it, because the bug's upper left wing is broken. You can sorta see that if you look closely - that's why it was holding still and posing so well. Poor bug. If you're looking closely enough in general, you see more "imperfect" critters than you might expect - this guy was still clearly trying to figure out what to do with three wings, but you see critters short an appendage getting around fine. See below re: bug with malformed foot. There's something sorta sobering and yet hopeful about the idea that it's not just us whose lives sometimes suck, and yet have to carry on - the whole world is struggling just like that. And from what I can see, a bigger percentage than you'd think do okay.)<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFMDd8krUscWajPOGAT4w_PT-oj1Kq7XX8Z1Rmy51nrOnO0DvI0Z9PNnyV95o6O1jiYHoiRJ5jN2_NbIN0x1aN4U2kkJoQoP2FiTt3D9C0GAQReXe6jbO707aaPWoH5Ywr9mUFw2TIebU/s1600-h/IMGP9356.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFMDd8krUscWajPOGAT4w_PT-oj1Kq7XX8Z1Rmy51nrOnO0DvI0Z9PNnyV95o6O1jiYHoiRJ5jN2_NbIN0x1aN4U2kkJoQoP2FiTt3D9C0GAQReXe6jbO707aaPWoH5Ywr9mUFw2TIebU/s400/IMGP9356.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208599107959324578" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNOkdA8otlxYJtjfX_7WcYCj2jOJkrBvhP6qLmh3iL6t7MEoknrhV3JHtotLm0_vdq_0CrTx9H_KkcXLPv-h63Xy1kj1QU6A0wI-zvTdYXZSxjR3NWareWEgduoOfbgtxqC9xJOytGdt0/s1600-h/IMGP9369.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjNOkdA8otlxYJtjfX_7WcYCj2jOJkrBvhP6qLmh3iL6t7MEoknrhV3JHtotLm0_vdq_0CrTx9H_KkcXLPv-h63Xy1kj1QU6A0wI-zvTdYXZSxjR3NWareWEgduoOfbgtxqC9xJOytGdt0/s400/IMGP9369.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208599109113512338" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim1QIVF6DCGpvBFoPzPeEVJwYit3AQtNrmwr0rZqSeAT7WSA5kDCw4fyTQWvDaEqBPqIx7vBh_WGgQ3PSmpqJLGCCz0DQ9saw9koDo6PbmdzmLeP48hJXqBDnmjNRui2aRRsR33RJ6sTE/s1600-h/IMGP9374.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEim1QIVF6DCGpvBFoPzPeEVJwYit3AQtNrmwr0rZqSeAT7WSA5kDCw4fyTQWvDaEqBPqIx7vBh_WGgQ3PSmpqJLGCCz0DQ9saw9koDo6PbmdzmLeP48hJXqBDnmjNRui2aRRsR33RJ6sTE/s400/IMGP9374.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208599119689922098" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjAcYZtD7DK5bjrFu7x2ESkNMwxapVVvSB0f1KlXZvypsWi-RlLk4JLzshx5T2jxOBz4THshAkjO_vLU8voS22h8l213rWVFSw2NeZPmhwQbIU8NhNjTeFyuhFUQMaQh-0lIF5B6LOlV4/s1600-h/IMGP9405.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjAcYZtD7DK5bjrFu7x2ESkNMwxapVVvSB0f1KlXZvypsWi-RlLk4JLzshx5T2jxOBz4THshAkjO_vLU8voS22h8l213rWVFSw2NeZPmhwQbIU8NhNjTeFyuhFUQMaQh-0lIF5B6LOlV4/s400/IMGP9405.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208599125567384514" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3J9OV9OLTq0TTxVpVrTujUhJ1RX14FfSCR45Nw90M0P-O_GnbK3b272haL_Yy5LKqgJap853k74W3S_R7xjly_DtBX22Ny8WyXmbuPLVpMfYFvlc-numsDhVoJb28kWnd9VBHuzYr4HE/s1600-h/IMGP9262.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3J9OV9OLTq0TTxVpVrTujUhJ1RX14FfSCR45Nw90M0P-O_GnbK3b272haL_Yy5LKqgJap853k74W3S_R7xjly_DtBX22Ny8WyXmbuPLVpMfYFvlc-numsDhVoJb28kWnd9VBHuzYr4HE/s400/IMGP9262.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208595523179066914" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_S9QpHY_ip-qVkQpWXqu8jMLKdqZM4Ou97p_lWf04m5-r2Lmr3UzBf0KjjzuFea99abWfRgiRb0GqZePKup8YOS7MjHj-IbIB0FSamZK_qjBPu5epQVYLqpDQtfa5XaZbryCPGu9B66Q/s1600-h/IMGP9465.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_S9QpHY_ip-qVkQpWXqu8jMLKdqZM4Ou97p_lWf04m5-r2Lmr3UzBf0KjjzuFea99abWfRgiRb0GqZePKup8YOS7MjHj-IbIB0FSamZK_qjBPu5epQVYLqpDQtfa5XaZbryCPGu9B66Q/s400/IMGP9465.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208602166507351554" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiehPff1jpP5FKhDB_29xzJ-mrZU9okL4cUgiVnFcJw8uuIAF7fuX9NfHHZT1XSsCLupbG_jOEIFp2p3UkcbOojhh8vu_V5pXkFm-tW3mWWA8qijg88GjklziYevYDOGw_ByaGYbrr9IgM/s1600-h/IMGP9481.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiehPff1jpP5FKhDB_29xzJ-mrZU9okL4cUgiVnFcJw8uuIAF7fuX9NfHHZT1XSsCLupbG_jOEIFp2p3UkcbOojhh8vu_V5pXkFm-tW3mWWA8qijg88GjklziYevYDOGw_ByaGYbrr9IgM/s400/IMGP9481.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208602170026105714" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0sFzF6xOAfZG8u3J5-RB_JOBUjTHCjBLUTJmY-zzKwZNcug3P-OrAvmEmz6N-3w17GDfihic5dhLCDNjeT2rcQ5SflqYkLCEJrFaQ9tCcTMBg0KUXvEXxxZ-IHxoWatmP90D_lHa9vr4/s1600-h/IMGP9511.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0sFzF6xOAfZG8u3J5-RB_JOBUjTHCjBLUTJmY-zzKwZNcug3P-OrAvmEmz6N-3w17GDfihic5dhLCDNjeT2rcQ5SflqYkLCEJrFaQ9tCcTMBg0KUXvEXxxZ-IHxoWatmP90D_lHa9vr4/s400/IMGP9511.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208602174984788546" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWEtD51N0Tv6ATqBiLbTrN_n6BHqvzHr01jjxfHQ8XZwabQzcB4FmoR9Hikr2k-iXmx1IpRBCrC_RiBLAHe2O7DWMm8JIzgnMl3Og8coU5fBVXyKKrlmf7Zm99LcbeTN2Wz_pP-0FnZrE/s1600-h/IMGP9536.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgWEtD51N0Tv6ATqBiLbTrN_n6BHqvzHr01jjxfHQ8XZwabQzcB4FmoR9Hikr2k-iXmx1IpRBCrC_RiBLAHe2O7DWMm8JIzgnMl3Og8coU5fBVXyKKrlmf7Zm99LcbeTN2Wz_pP-0FnZrE/s400/IMGP9536.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208602181242653394" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">This little dude (or dudette, as the case may be - I'm not sure) wins the award for sheer awesome. I mean - striped antennae. There's no way you can go wrong with striped antennae. I really must find out what the heck he-or-she is.<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3D5jGuiQwwfmxLMBS-pl5MS1chATujB5kokhpi3bTko_ak2trzOhPC-SxTG2XjaQT9hWnJXliqWZSj9FmLq_FlmQE3DnzJQ63GXYH_LJaq9ZAxEjcpGXGDGVYRuhKrg_G8WPW80sOEf0/s1600-h/IMGP9572.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3D5jGuiQwwfmxLMBS-pl5MS1chATujB5kokhpi3bTko_ak2trzOhPC-SxTG2XjaQT9hWnJXliqWZSj9FmLq_FlmQE3DnzJQ63GXYH_LJaq9ZAxEjcpGXGDGVYRuhKrg_G8WPW80sOEf0/s400/IMGP9572.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208602185865956194" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiC2vPCowvT-7F4A2CMgJXUj1fbaZkyK9X4PmmYmlTag6gNEbKacMAupdTnDqIHf4H2_u6DEz3wfGyLDPiMOntGZaX6WAwjudM1Ru2xA0FwpHY55FYL1A2X5pmcteuqjSd-_lTX4JYmJOs/s1600-h/IMGP9605.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; 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display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjrKksr2oS4foNDEL9W12NIvS_aIDs1HjGp7RpkB8BZ_-r67Cp9hzWV6k4ASxCFwH8ZCmHo6BKMZ7wJSUUjvCNs3GnZFR6jDdoNYVNb0eguVFzCNbJygYSVmdlLU1U4V1XsHMB2MLWcI6g/s400/IMGP9625.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208606044350917506" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUvf_9_ceZhvO0xseH8ET9SgyrD6ND8_63nz6wqD4eiOQTVub5ZgNr69McOOy64fLzv-B53f3jocCnzxCRd8USaIqPRd_wWU9oBUb3mOO_vt6G9rcSTR9pZNMqMlCJmfTDQ82A4ZUDE84/s1600-h/IMGP9666.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhUvf_9_ceZhvO0xseH8ET9SgyrD6ND8_63nz6wqD4eiOQTVub5ZgNr69McOOy64fLzv-B53f3jocCnzxCRd8USaIqPRd_wWU9oBUb3mOO_vt6G9rcSTR9pZNMqMlCJmfTDQ82A4ZUDE84/s400/IMGP9666.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208606070847080130" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqzPEJKlLo8ejdhpkTS2UFotk0NOauoSMX2dp4fPmkqxBbA9vvEc43gptgnPHpaupXwqQsZDULP_UcnXHi-_zGePuBPhej6OGMWKJ0io19LSk35xkjowm-NoUMnLGcJZe5RNMpOjZMT04/s1600-h/IMGP9694.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgqzPEJKlLo8ejdhpkTS2UFotk0NOauoSMX2dp4fPmkqxBbA9vvEc43gptgnPHpaupXwqQsZDULP_UcnXHi-_zGePuBPhej6OGMWKJ0io19LSk35xkjowm-NoUMnLGcJZe5RNMpOjZMT04/s400/IMGP9694.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208608889792420050" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR9skVIRALR2u0Ls2nX6KLV3UisuXKKb8Gn2g1bYgkodBGwC44fZ7UGE0X5TA0F9tVSjq9qmdFDCk2d7dBanzaYp926sv7YpJgeUWVFVhj1M6k99L3pEkgeIbWkv000GeegfaRjzHayPY/s1600-h/IMGP9710.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiR9skVIRALR2u0Ls2nX6KLV3UisuXKKb8Gn2g1bYgkodBGwC44fZ7UGE0X5TA0F9tVSjq9qmdFDCk2d7dBanzaYp926sv7YpJgeUWVFVhj1M6k99L3pEkgeIbWkv000GeegfaRjzHayPY/s400/IMGP9710.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208608911612022274" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFEKsi0P452j_RBfhs8ZMy1WHnmuFmlTxdpIn2LDCdu16yzjIGM80QBZnZCTLm1bjDNx2GgKBgpUW4IA2XMVnqEJk8Lo7GyFkpZE3HvjgsW4egyoaiYje2XiA5BSGBYk4hOp2TynamLxc/s1600-h/IMGP9758.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFEKsi0P452j_RBfhs8ZMy1WHnmuFmlTxdpIn2LDCdu16yzjIGM80QBZnZCTLm1bjDNx2GgKBgpUW4IA2XMVnqEJk8Lo7GyFkpZE3HvjgsW4egyoaiYje2XiA5BSGBYk4hOp2TynamLxc/s400/IMGP9758.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208608933171152514" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">Look too long into the abyss . . .<br />(I suddenly want to make LOL - bugs. "Existentialist bug . . looks into abyss.")<br /></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYwuLpdh2BJaFjlYo5KFX1zMhouRFWiWEdYuRpsf5mjqr-u7xyvzlJ81B4kTJ3HOAHbDAfG-_UoWiMSbtlL_Mrsx_w_uRNEqA-iktB0sZYQMhnbOjF7EJfiTmYLWx8Bl1k8CwlqhV-yys/s1600-h/IMGP9759.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhYwuLpdh2BJaFjlYo5KFX1zMhouRFWiWEdYuRpsf5mjqr-u7xyvzlJ81B4kTJ3HOAHbDAfG-_UoWiMSbtlL_Mrsx_w_uRNEqA-iktB0sZYQMhnbOjF7EJfiTmYLWx8Bl1k8CwlqhV-yys/s400/IMGP9759.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208608956523848866" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;"><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguPI_6Mhc0bdVduS9QTzAIaveU9iYTuMPEs8V_WTAkxRF-bQOW380pR3PpJEgUJi8rLXg3uR3h0iKphyphenhyphen3KZ2TCbr5LuuRcMH2lynLg_5euHTy4B_VfGrulP8Ua-wdajES97XsmxlpMvbs/s1600-h/IMGP9766.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEguPI_6Mhc0bdVduS9QTzAIaveU9iYTuMPEs8V_WTAkxRF-bQOW380pR3PpJEgUJi8rLXg3uR3h0iKphyphenhyphen3KZ2TCbr5LuuRcMH2lynLg_5euHTy4B_VfGrulP8Ua-wdajES97XsmxlpMvbs/s400/IMGP9766.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208608973373835858" border="0" /></a><br /><div style="text-align: center;">This little guy (or gal) had a malformed right rear-most foot. See how it looks like all curly? It shouldn't; it should look like the left one. But, I didn't even realize this until I uploaded the pictures, because a.) bug was tiny, and b.) bug was moving completely normally. Used it just like the other foot. I find that sorta cool. Yay, little adversity-overcoming bug!<br /></div></div><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-ha6WGyFj12FlBGYAyiY1EqVPYPM2_vFy7TTxUvRMhuubQvRzUaA4mRrKTHfHuoOBdjXv6u3U4KLkEnHED3WqnugEa5WCM25s2PHQoWywkmX8gLMTOAPXwJdcc7W-CNBnYGmdHu0a374/s1600-h/IMGP9786.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj-ha6WGyFj12FlBGYAyiY1EqVPYPM2_vFy7TTxUvRMhuubQvRzUaA4mRrKTHfHuoOBdjXv6u3U4KLkEnHED3WqnugEa5WCM25s2PHQoWywkmX8gLMTOAPXwJdcc7W-CNBnYGmdHu0a374/s400/IMGP9786.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208610835211351714" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIHwwvknRL3KY-oFpAdJkXYQ1ZRIUGiYF9vr1LuuifZk9z2ZKa5TU-vGUvqdYRBO3r9XOSwcn_4c0bcJpJCK0k2A5NOMmprBrSu5n-CHXlBLwiPA1hMmVE3rzvFjCqTLpvjlxvlieTjo8/s1600-h/IMGP9814.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIHwwvknRL3KY-oFpAdJkXYQ1ZRIUGiYF9vr1LuuifZk9z2ZKa5TU-vGUvqdYRBO3r9XOSwcn_4c0bcJpJCK0k2A5NOMmprBrSu5n-CHXlBLwiPA1hMmVE3rzvFjCqTLpvjlxvlieTjo8/s400/IMGP9814.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208610843992598914" border="0" /></a><br /><a onblur="try {parent.deselectBloggerImageGracefully();} catch(e) {}" href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF0p4sii4F6o3nq9KOULQquuc3530qAQSl0SvByNbJHbmHtxAFAkZ-Gl3AXgB3fX64BSxTTzA-EmUHISJuve1G16STmcwj7-stvEVM8sP0FX9ynlNrsklhnAQXbumTCDBIgKXP_6PYHSA/s1600-h/IMGP9823.JPG"><img style="margin: 0px auto 10px; display: block; text-align: center; cursor: pointer;" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjF0p4sii4F6o3nq9KOULQquuc3530qAQSl0SvByNbJHbmHtxAFAkZ-Gl3AXgB3fX64BSxTTzA-EmUHISJuve1G16STmcwj7-stvEVM8sP0FX9ynlNrsklhnAQXbumTCDBIgKXP_6PYHSA/s400/IMGP9823.JPG" alt="" id="BLOGGER_PHOTO_ID_5208610849486974370" border="0" /></a><br /><br />. . these are still all un-cropped. That policy may not last much longer, as some of them would really benefit from cropping.Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-9076703400870022234.post-37477399586722210612008-06-04T21:55:00.000-07:002008-06-04T22:22:59.827-07:00I told you that you should be frightened about this video thing, didn't I? Well, here you go . . video, taken last fall, of the spider by my garage. (This entry is NOT ARACHNOPHOBIC FRIENDLY.)<br /><br />I'd read that spiders groomed themselves like little bitty many-legged cats, but had never actually <span style="font-style: italic;">seen </span>this. Well, this particular spider, who I'd been trying to photograph all summer without much success (it built its web in front of the overhead light at the corner of the garage, which was awesome to look at but a bit much for my camera to handle), apparently got so accustomed to my harassing it that it felt comfortable letting me watch it clean up. And I had my camera. Sometimes life is cool like that.<br /><br />This was . . either the very last or second-to-last time I ever saw this spider; I suspect it left this world shortly thereafter, hopefully having left an egg sac somewhere . . not that the world is particularly lacking in this species of spider, I see tons of them around, but I grew fond of it over the course of the summer and I'd like to think it got to have a meaningful little spidey life and pass on its genetic code and all. (Also, I am presently doing that starving-artist thing and living with family, my younger sister hates spiders, and my dad would probably have killed the spider if my sister happened to see it and freak. I'm unsure of the odds of him telling me about it if that occurred, as I'd mentioned being fond of the spider, and he'd told me not to tell him where it was if that was the case, etc., etc. . . hopefully he didn't kill it. Hopefully it just died of naturally causes on account of it being fall.)<br /><br />Anyway, funny story, to do with baby-making spiders . . sometime around August I was outside in the evening trying to photograph this spider, when I see a smaller spidey of the same species trying to climb into its web. Now, I know that spiders will be cannibals given the opportunity and I'm a bleeding-heart sucker for creatures trying to win Darwin awards, so of course, I shoo the smaller spider away.<br /><br />Few nights later, it's back. I shoo it away again, noticing as I do so that "my" spider is behaving very oddly for a creature whose web is being invaded - it's not pouncing. Huh, I think.<br /><br />I'm unsure how many times this repeats - two or three at least, I think - before a little light bulb goes on over my head.<br /><br />. . . males are smaller than females.<br /><br />And suddenly the smaller spider's persistence, "my" spider's lack of aggressiveness, etc., made a great deal more sense. So I let them be, poor things - I'd been repeatedly ruining their romantic evening. (Of course, she may very well have eaten him afterwards, I'm unsure if this particular sort of spider does that - I know some of them do - but oh well, he was clearly willing.)<br /><br />So now that I've rambled at length about the life and times of the following spider . . . I present the spider, grooming itself like a little cat:<br /><br /><br /><span style="font-style: italic;"></span><br /><iframe allowfullscreen='allowfullscreen' webkitallowfullscreen='webkitallowfullscreen' mozallowfullscreen='mozallowfullscreen' width='320' height='266' src='https://www.blogger.com/video.g?token=AD6v5dzXxN2JeNp5mojDopOKMtZnhIieoEYMWALXB5Z7NxrqbOpZTAFliGpYrfYBZQVDj7YYQ7tSHdX7grblJjR6AA' class='b-hbp-video b-uploaded' frameborder='0'></iframe><br />(Sorry about the few seconds of blank blackness; the garage light went out. It's on a motion sensor; apparently moving spiders are not enough to keep it on, and I need to learn to wave my other arm around while keeping a video camera steady if I want to rely on said light.)Sonya L Volkhardthttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10752727682898368452noreply@blogger.com0