Mostly venting here

I've been in a funk the last couple of days. Various reasons, I guess. Right now one of our rent houses became vacant and we're having to deal with that. Here's after I already hauled a ton of stuff out. It was really trashed and after I got to town from watering at CMO yesterday, I worked until midnight trying to deal with the stuff. Otherwise my husband throws everything away. I gave a bunch of it away via a local Facebook group. Especially the furniture.

 Then I got stacks of clothing sorted and loaded for the thrift shop, only to find they were so overflowing they couldn't take more at this time. So it depresses me to see what a wasteful, consumeristic society we live in. And as usual, I'll have to scrub the floors with ajax and scouring pads and scrapers. My shoulder is so bad I don't know how I'll manage to do that. Not all at one time for sure. But it has to wait until Hugh finishes repairs and painting. Gonna try to hire some help if I can find anyone.

Not getting rain at CMO yet is stressful too. Had it not been for that little over half an inch almost 6 weeks ago, CMO would already be history. So I have to mentally prepare myself for that eventuality.

My son and his family are coming to CMO for a visit next week and it bothers me that things they rely on don't work there. Like the pressure pump to the house, for example. And his pickup AC doesn't work so it could be a hot ordeal. I need to get the pressure (booster) pump fixed but the valve between it and the tank won't close off the water. I don't want to chance losing my 3,000 gallons of well water, but I guess I'll figure out something. For me it isn't a problem. The faucets trickle with gravity feed, but with company it's a whole other story.

Sometime within the last several days I walked outside to our ponds and saw these Eastern Amberwings mating in the air
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Immediately afterwards the female starting laying eggs (ovipositing) while the male hovered nearby. Notice on the photos of her ovipositing there seems to be a string hanging from her. That must be part of the process. I find that interesting.

Not visible to my naked eye.  Too bad I don't take better photos. Most of the photos from that event show that line in one form or another. These were just two examples.

Since I don't plan to do any more venting posts, I want to get a few of my pet peeves off my chest while I'm at it.

1. Wastefulness, of course.

2. Abuse of language. Young people think everything they hear is normal language. And for them it is. It's the only language they've heard all their short little lives. But language is a changing thing and at my age, I've watched it change. Big time. I'm fine with the new additions, computer jargon, and vernacular, like "Duh!" I'm even OK with texting shorthand. But mispronouncing words until the mispronunciations become the correct way, grates on me. For example, "length" is fast becoming "lenth."  And "didn't" is being replaced with "did-dunt." Guess I've lived too long. 

3. I swear, every NPR interview, regardless of the question, the first word of the answer is "so.."

4. And uptalk (that every-growing tendency to end statements with upward inflections to make them sound like questions) is the mode of the day, like it or not. Not. Here's an interesting article on that subject.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/caveman-logic/201010/the-uptalk-epidemic

OK, enough of that. I feel better already. 😉

Tanks should fill up soon!

Another disappointing day

Note to self: Never go to Balmorhea on a summer weekend. State park was closed due to being full.

I had really been looking forward to oding the cienega there. From there I went to the Sandia Wetlands. Had that place all to myself. No water, no people, no odes....

Ah, well, think of all the energy I saved. There was some water in the canal adjacent to the wetlands where I photographed a Common Pondhawk feasting on a common damselfly.

Also there were a couple of Eastern Ringtails. I think that second one looks different because of the lighting, but I'll find out from the experts.

And a female Widow Skimmer.

Even the canal in downtown Balmorhea was crowded with people. I'd never seen people there in the water before.

Next I decided to go out to Lake Balmorhea and look in the tall grasses below the dam. I doused myself liberally with DEET. When I got to the lake it was packed with people. Determined to get some fun oding in somewhere, I went to the office to pay the fee. After all, the people were in the lake and on the edge of the lake, but they wouldn't be in the swamp below the dam, I reasoned. However, a sign on the office door had a bunch of new rules and warnings, so I decided to just cut my losses and head home. It mentioned several roads being closed due to vandalism and theft, stated no parking on the dam, etc.  Parking on the dam was about the only way I could access where I wanted to go. So, I left without paying the entrance fee.

Lately oding has been difficult. Shafter has new keep out signs and no water. Madera Canyon, no water. Marathon, chiggers. Lajitas and Bishop Wetlands are decent, but mostly the same old species I always get. It may pick up later in the summer. Thinking seriously about going to Fort Clark Springs or somewhere once my CMO tanks get filled up to where I dare to venture farther afield.

UPDATE: Experts said that  second "Eastern Ringtail" is actually a Sulphur-tipped Clubtail, which is a lifer for me even though it's a common species. Glad I finally got it even if I didn't know it at the time. Totally redeemed my day!

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Chigger misery

On June 26th I went to Marathon looking for odes and butterflies. Thereafter my legs had a dozen or so bites on them. In denial, since I've never had chigger bites in my beloved backyard (aka Big Bend country), I tried to convince myself it was spider bites, kissing bugs, or something else. So when I went back to Marathon on July 4th and got a bunch more bites the next day, I had to face the reality. I hate not being able to frolic around in my home territory without DEETing myself up. The backs of my knees are the worst. (Didn't realized how wrinkled I've become until I took this photo behind my knee. Pretty gross if I do say so myself.) Not mosquitoes. I always wear long pants and besides I don't react at all to mosquito bites.

Since I'll turn 77 this month, and since today is 7-7-17, and since I think 7s are my lucky number, I'm waiting for something exciting to happen today. Nothing yet. 😃 My myxoid cyst came back after being gone for a week, and I borrowed a Neti pot to treat my sinus infection. But I'm in pretty good shape for the shape I'm in.

The Alpine habitat is 13 yrs old and starting to be a real habitat. I think this is the first year Vermilion Flycatchers might be nesting successfully, first year of consistently hearing a Bell's Vireo, and heard my first Yellow-billed Cuckoo here yesterday. (I heard them in Marathon and Lajitas too, so must be a good year for them.) The lotuses are putting on a pretty good show this year too.

I don't expect to ever have nesting Yellow-breasted Chat's (like CMO does) because my husband mows. But it's better than no town habitat at all.

Lajitas a bust

Woke up at 4 AM and couldn't get back to sleep so arrived at Lajitas well before 8.

But I didn't have the golf course to myself for long. It got real busy. Never dreamed so many people would play golf there during the summertime. I didn't find any odes of interest and in a couple of hours I was tired.  I didn't save any of the ode photos I took, but it was good practice with my new camera, I guess.

What salvaged my day was a message from Tripp Davenport informing me that a photo he took at the oasis on Nov. 20, 2012 was of a California Spreadwing. He just now found it and got it ID'd. That's a first Texas record. (More recently there were some in Midland at Sibley Nature Center.) That month in 2012 I had the Varied Thrush there and lots of visitors. It's possible some of them also photographed the spreadwing. I had hoped I did too, but not. I have the similar Great Spreadwing there most of the time, so without the California being in my Texas damselfly guide I would never have thought to question it. I'm learning.  Here's Tripp's photo, posted with his permission. So thankful to him that he documented it.

Missed again

Three miles to the south of CMO they got nearly half an inch of rain yesterday evening. Just a sprinkle at CMO. I came down mid-afternoon today to do a light watering. Found this bat in shallow water inside a rain barrel. It was still alive when I fished it out.

While watering the oasis I came across this damselfly. Not sure what it is yet. Maybe a Pauite Dancer. That would be a new one for me, but it's probably just a Kiowa Dancer.

I'm disappointed I didn't take a better photo of it. Tomorrow I'm going early to Lajitas and see what odes are there.

Really proud of my son in Austin. He designed, built, and painted this sign at his computer sign and graphic company. (More about my son's business at http://adventuresignshop.com/adventure-sign-graphics/)

Another rainy rain-less day

Pouring again in Alpine, but not a cloud at CMO. Same old, same old. I went to Marathon early today before it could cloud up and rain. Wore myself out. The best species I would say was a Pahaska Skipper. I had one at the oasis this spring, so it's my second one, but this one is fresher looking.

Butterflies love the Buttonbush. I'm definitely going to get some of that going here at our ponds in Alpine. I feel remiss for not having done it long ago. I did plant some seeds and some plants I dug up a couple years ago, but this time I'm going to start them in pots first. The previous attempts didn't work. Gonna try cuttings this winter too.

Here are a couple of damselflies from today. The first is a Rambur's Forktail, and the second is a female Double-striped Bluet.

And here's a real cute caterpillar. No idea what kind.

Back to CMO to water tomorrow.

A bit of irony

Was having photo withdrawals, so determined to find something to photograph. Nothing here in Alpine, nothing at CMO. Won't go to the Post Park in Marathon because this is July 4th weekend when they're busy setting up for their big shindig, fire works, dance, etc. So decided to check out Madera Canyon at the Lawrence Woods Rest Area. A long trip for nothing. Threatening storms, lightning, thunder most of the way. Once there I didn't dare go beyond dashing distance to the car. Never saw it as dry there as today. Never got a glimpse of sun.

Admittedly, I didn't walk the whole length of the creek, but this is the first time I've never even seen a mud puddle in it. And it rained all around. And I got sprinkled on, but nothing ran.

Feral hogs are wreaking havoc at the rest area.

Although very little is blooming anywhere, here's a flower I saw at the rest area. Don't know what it is. I probably did once, but forgot.

Back in Alpine it poured rain, same as yesterday, and same as a few days before yesterday. Our lotuses are blooming somewhat.

Nothing at CMO, naturally. At least rain in the Big Bend should translate to rain at CMO eventually. 

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UPDATE: Dang, I just discovered the Post Park had its dance etc on the 1st. Guess I'll go there tomorrow.

Red Hot Pokers

In Alpine everyone enjoys admiring our Red Hot Pokers (tritoma), but until today I didn't know hummingbirds used them. I like them even better now.

Baby Elf Owl

I believe a baby Elf Owl left the nest about 11 days ago (see post of Jun 17) due to extremely hot weather. This may be the same one. If so, it's surviving, though I don't know how it can be. Not because the adults don't feed it, but it stood on the ground for hours today. Surely something will make lunch out of it.

I just went down long enough to water so couldn't really monitor it. It doesn't appear to be able to fly. It let me get closer than I should have been able to, like about six feet away. If I went closer it would hobble off a little ways farther.

Here's a butterfly that I photographed at Marathon's Post Park a few days ago. I think it's a Julia's Skipper, which would be my first from Brewster Co. I saw that species in East Texas last year.

All in a day's work

Went to the grocery store late this morning and immediately spotted a juvenile Black-chinned Hummingbird flying around inside the store. When I asked employees they said it had been flying around in there all morning. I couldn't stand not trying to rescue it, so raced home for some bird netting..... the kind we protect our fruit trees with. Back at the store, I observed the bird for about 30 minutes, noting that occasionally it rested briefly down low. The store's ceilings are very high.

A couple of times it perched near a leafy potted plant so I stationed myself there. The next time it exhaustedly perched there I rushed a big wad of the netting over it. It had perched on the rim of a vase and the net had pushed it into the vase. I put my hand over the top of the vase, carried it outside and released it. It all happened so fast that people in the store didn't know if I'd caught it or not. I reassured them I had. Just call me the hummingbird whisperer. LOL