A FIREFLY'S UNREQUITED LOVE

 A while back, Rian  at Older but Better...? received what I thought was a cool gift for Mother's day.  So cool, I had to get one of my own which I found at Amazon.  Thanks Rian, I love mine.

Crystal hummers in daylight, blinking change of color at night.

So I put up the little mobile and waited.  Oddly the first day while they were still colorless, I had a few of my local hummers visit to harass the mobile.  Not sure if they were challenging the newcomers or if mating was on their minds. But when they got no response, they just seemed to ignore it. 

We have had a lot of rain lately so it took a while for full sun to charge the little birds' batteries but finally one night, I got to enjoy the show. At first I was mesmerized by the display but then I noticed the rest of the yard was putting on a show. 

Dancing in the shadows were the first fireflies (also known as lightning bugs) I had

seen this season. I was enjoying that show also when I noticed something strange.

On top of the bracket where the solar lights were hanging came a solitary and brief glow. Took a minute when I realized it was a firefly, sending its signal.  Males usually snap off several flashes to declare their specific species while the females remain calm and just respond with one flash.  Presumably a signal to  declare  "here I am and I'm willing."  Kind of the "swipe right" of the insect world.

So there was most likely a female on that post but who was she flashing? Was it the yard full of singles or was she fascinated by that really big firefly at the top of the chain and his blue white flashing light. 

I could not believe it but she kept up her solitary, intermittent flashing for about 20 minutes, then she quit. Being as they are small and it was dark, I have no end to this story. Only a feeling that the poor female did not make a match that night, at least not with the fake hummer and none of the flashing males came close. Sigh.

It dawned on me that the firefly show was the first I had seen in a long time. Sadly humans are contributing to the firefly's decline.  Light pollution, destroyed habitats and harvesting are all leading to the decrease in the number. When their habitat is overtaken, they do not relocate, they just disappear. 

I think most of us can relate to the fun as a child of chasing fireflies.  I hate to think of that as no longer being a childhood thrill. 

Do fireflies still light up your nights?

UNEXPECTED HELPER

 I want to thank everyone for your advice on my last post on how to keep Callie from eating rabbit truffles (also known as poop).  I was just about resigned to having to muzzle her those times when she is on her own. Then I got an unexpected helper.

A several posts ago I mentioned how the fireflies liked to flirt with my solar hummingbird mobile. It has become habit when I turn off the inside lights at night to spend a little time watching the action of the fireflies. They are still enamored with the blinking lights. I was enjoying the show when something made me stop smiling.

On the ground under a tree, something was staring back at me.  At first I thought it was a fairly large dog and I wondered how he had gotten inside my fence.  Then the "dog" flew over the top of my house. Yikes.

I mean it took off with an at least 6 foot wing span. I was stunned till I remember a visitor I had several years ago.  Seems I had just gone eye to eye with a Great Horned Owl once again. What made me think it was a dog was its size and the ear tufts they are famous for.

                  Photo from Wikipedia

These are purely awesome creatures. They stand around two feet tall and are fierce predators.  I did a quick search and found one of their favorite foods is rabbit.  He was evidently aware of my abundant supply and had come for dinner. 

Now I am not wishing that he slaughter those pooping bunnies but if he puts enough fear in them to make them move away to safer grounds---far from my property--- my truffle problem is over.  I can live with that. 

So once again, Nature has come to my rescue. 

Have you ever seen a Great Horned Owl?

COMPULSIVE BEHAVIOR

When I am honest, I will admit to compulsive behavior as evidenced by my former 3 pack a day cigarette habit and that I am a recovering alcoholic. While both are former conditions from 35 years ago, they show I possess an addictive personality.

My main problem is that too often for me, one of anything is never enough. This also holds true for possessions. If I find a blouse, purse, shoes or jeans I like, I will get the same style in several colors.

If I use a product regularly, I always get two so that when I get down to one, I will buy a replacement. I must have a fear of running out. Till now, I have been weird but manageable.

I went round the bend recently when I spent an innocent $3 at a Dollar store.  I saw a pack of battery candles--- 3 for $3.  Thinking they might be neat back up lighting should power go out, I dug out three singles and went home with my prize.

Well they looked so good that I got two more packages. Never know how long something so cheap will last and it wouldn't hurt to have spares. The light on them is very dim but would let me navigate in the dark should the power go out.

A normal person would stop there but I became candle obsessed. I just loved the glow.The battery ones looked cool in the windows but I didn't want to keep buying batteries so I invested in some plug in types from the Internet that had solar sensors that turn off and on automatically at dawn and dusk. Just slightly more expensive but still really quite cheap. They would work for everyday and the original battery types were relegated to power outage status and decoration.

Well the electric ones are much brighter. I can almost read by them.  They do work as advertised though are very light weight so they need to be secured. It really gives the outside of my house a welcoming look. Hope burglars are not inspired by the invitation.

Minnie will not allow me to decorate for Christmas as she is convinced any decoration is her toy and I don't dare to even think "tree".  So I was delighted when I saw some cute little Christmas tea lights at Walmart that are also battery powered and could be put out of her reach.

Yes that is a lava lamp in the middle. A remnant from my hippy wanna be days. 

So, I got a few packs of 4 at $2.98 per pack. They really did make my house look a bit Christmassy but did I stop there?? Nope. I found some, also at Walmart, that are real wax, battery powered, pillar candles that operate via remote control.

Wow, what a feeling of power. Press a button and there is soft light. Can you imagine if I had a remote controlled fireplace? I may be compulsive but I am easily amused.  So I got two of those in sets of three. They even smell great if you like vanilla. The remote is such fun and just magical.

Finally, I reached saturation point at 28 candles of various sizes occupying my home.  Yikes. When all my treasures are lit at once, this tiny house really looks like a Catholic church and I am not even Catholic.  Only with these candles, I am praying for a power outage, not healings.
  

This area kind of looks like a bank of prayer candles. That is my Himalayan salt lamp in the center.  

However, if anyone is in real need, I will happily light one of my spares for you along with my prayers. Not sure God is into artificial candles but the prayers should still reach.

You know what is odd? The 7 watt bulbs put out zero heat (you can easily touch them after burning all night) but my place gets physically warmer when they are lit.  Is there such a thing as placebo heating?

Confession over.

Do you have a compulsion that you care to admit to so I will feel just a wee bit better?