Alert Gazette readers will recall this post in which I recount a porcupine sighting in our neighborhood documented by someone other than myself. Debbie and I have not spotted a porcupine in the wild (other than roadkill), and it’s been kind of a disappointment. But that changed yesterday. We decided to try a new running… Continue reading A Porcupine of Our Own
The Three [Armadillo] Amigos
Alert Gazette readers will remember this video I posted about a year ago: That video documented a chance encounter with four young armadillos (and as the zoologists and/or Texans in the audience know perfectly well, the nine-banded armadillo mommy always gives birth to identical quadruplets) close to our house. Well, fast forward twelve months, and… Continue reading The Three [Armadillo] Amigos
Neighborhood Nature (Pt. 11) — The Invertebrate Edition
I hope you’re not tiring of these Neighborhood Nature posts, because I like doing them too much to stop. Or, really, I’ll stop when Nature does. Alert Gazette readers will recall that we’re wrangling a herd of black swallowtail caterpillars that have sprung to life in the parsley planted in a pot on our back… Continue reading Neighborhood Nature (Pt. 11) — The Invertebrate Edition
Neighborhood Nature (Pt.10)
I don’t know about where you are, but it’s pretty hot here at Casa Fire Ant. Temp on the left is inside the garage & on the right is outside next to a rock wall. Fortunately, the heat is not harshing our mellow too much as far as being able to enjoy some cool close… Continue reading Neighborhood Nature (Pt.10)
Dear Adobe: Your Ageism Is Showing
One of the minor annoyances of modern life is the insistence of every restaurant, hotel, retail store, physician, and service company of pleading for one’s feedback via an online survey following even the most inconsequential dealings. I tend to ignore most of them, but every now and then one comes across my inbox that’s intriguing… Continue reading Dear Adobe: Your Ageism Is Showing
Jim & Janis: A Scandalous Love Story
It was inevitable, Jim thought. It always turns out this way, and I never seem to learn. She came into his life unexpectedly, and he had no idea of her origins, nor, really, anything about her. But if he was being honest with himself, that mystery didn’t matter a whit to him. If he had… Continue reading Jim & Janis: A Scandalous Love Story
R.T.T.F.E.
I’m too lazy to type “Random Thursday — The Friday Edition”…or am I? It’s been a while since we’ve done a Wandering The Web post, so this will ultimately turn into one, but first — some local weather-related updates. Five days ago, as alert Gazette readers no doubt recall, I informed the world that Pecan… Continue reading R.T.T.F.E.
Camera Ciao
My DSLR died a week or so ago. Well, I guess that’s a little dramatic. In reality, it suffered a fatal injury. Uh, that’s not much better, is it? OK, what really happened is that one of the electronic contacts that lets the camera communicate with its Compact Flash Card — the medium on which… Continue reading Camera Ciao
Weather Frustration
This one is for my fellow citizens of Llano County who are getting fed up with this weather pattern. (You folks in Travis County can hold your tongues; we don’t want to hear it.)
Neighborhood Nature (Pt. 9)
Caution: Snake photos below! The alarm went off around 5:00 a.m. last Friday. It’s not an actual alarm; it’s just in my head. Go ahead and laugh; you’ll be old someday, too. I managed to stay in bed for another fifteen minutes, knowing that the coffee would be ready in the kitchen by then. We… Continue reading Neighborhood Nature (Pt. 9)