Celebrating the ordinary
I have no desire to travel to the moon. However, I thoroughly enjoy watching its phases with my feet planted firmly on the earth. This was my view of the eclipse this morning – October 8, 2014 at 6:45 a.m. Eastern time.
It was a total eclipse about ten minutes later, but by then it had disappeared over our neighbors’ house.
The concept of the earth passing between the sun and the moon, and me being able to see the earth’s shadow, is almost more than I can grasp. However, I was glad for clear skies, pleasant weather, and a chance to observe another special celestial event.
My mother, who died nineteen years ago today, enjoyed watching the night sky and would have appreciated this sight. I’m very grateful that she shared her love of nature with me; it’s been a big influence in my life.
We’ve been seeing Monarchs quite frequently in the backyard, and have often seen 2-4 at the same time. According to a recent survey by the Lexington Chapter of Wild Ones, others in this area are also seeing them.
In addition to adult butterflies, 13 of the 50 survey respondents have also found eggs and caterpillars on their milkweed plants. Butterfly eggs are quite small and are usually on the underside of leaves. The easiest way to find them is to see a butterfly laying an egg as I did in the spring of 2006. Note the tiny egg on the tip of the monarch’s abdomen as well as the egg on a leaf in the background.
Our Joe-Pye Weed (Eupatorium fistulosum) is at peak bloom and reminds me of a giant bouquet.
I got ‘bubble fever’ after our recent rain showers and learned once again how unpredictable bubbles can be. They often move too fast or burst too quickly for me to photograph them. However, this one on butterfly milkweed (Asclepias tuberosa) cooperated quite nicely.
