100 Days of Summer - Day 4

Look at this great shot my friend Laurie has posted. (Click on the words great shot). Isn't it just adorable? Underneath the photo, she poses the question "Have you ever seen eyes like these staring you down in a poolside tease?"

Well, I'd like to know if you've ever seen one of these?

I hadn't until one scurried across the bicycle path in front of me and my husband one Sunday afternoon. It was BIG. We stopped to get a closer look, and as luck would have it I had my camera along. As I was snapping this picture, two bikers were approaching from the opposite direction. And I knew them.

One was my friend Ute and her boyfriend Hans. I waved them down. They told us this is called a Maulwurfsgrille in German. In English it would be called a mole cricket. This is not an insect you want to have in your garden. Why? Just take a look at those front legs. They are highly modified for digging. They tunnel rapidly beneath the soil and make trails of pushed-up dirt like that of a mole, only smaller.  (Hence, the name mole cricket.) And apparently they will munch on your plants and vegetables at the roots, causing extensive damage. 

On the soil surface they can run very rapidly. I think if some of my friends came across one of these, they'd be the ones scurrying.

Red at night

Red sky at night, sailor's delight...

This is a picture of the evening sky over our neighborhood. I wish this picture had been taken last night instead of last month. Perhaps the weather would have been better today.

Red sky at night, sailor's delight.
     Red in the morning, sailors take warning.

It wasn't red last night. Nor was it a red sky this morning. But there was a warning.

We were outside working in the garden. My husband said the clouds were changing. Then I told him to stop and listen. "Do you hear that?" I asked. But he couldn't hear anything. No wind. No thunder. Then I said, "We missed the warning. All afternoon the birds have been singing away and now? Silence. A storm is definitely coming."

We put the mower away, cleaned up the garden tools, and went inside. TWO minutes later, it began. The sky became very dark and the clouds let loose. Not only did it rain cats and dogs, but large balls of hail were bouncing all over, off the roof and the driveway. Then as suddenly as it came, the storm left. The sun shone again. Fluffy white clouds floated in a cerulean sky. It was as if nothing every happened...until one spied the broken flowers and the almost coin-size holes in the leaves of our zucchini plant. Sometimes Mother Nature is not my friend.

Smile! You're on candid camera.

For 100 Days of Summer project:
Day 2

Only a 15 minute drive from where I live there is an place with alpacas. Some of them, as they age, have a very prominent underbite. Some lose their teeth. This one look directly at the camera. With his protruding teeth, it looks like he is smiling.

For some reason it reminded me of watching Candid Camera as a child. "Smile! You're on candid camera."

100 Days of Summer - Day 1

Paint the Town Red

This photo was taken at the Fasching parade in Althütte. Hundrends of people take part. There were many witches but also ducks and clowns and such. Since the area Rems-Murr-Kreis has many wineries, it was not surprising to see a group of giant red grape faces. This one willingly posed for a photo.

I'm joining in 100 Days of Summer

I've been invited by Dorothee Lang to take part in 100 Days of Summer. Dorothee, who is the editor of Blue Print Review and organizer of the Language/Place blog carnival, has taken part before and shared some of her beautiful photographs. Thanks for thinking of me, Dorothee.

Steve Veilleux is actually the organizer of 100 Days of Summer. His description of the project is as follows: 100 Days of Summer provides its members with the opportunity to share their creative work within the intense framework of providing one artistic submission per day for 100 days. Officially, we are beginning on July 5th and expect the program to run through October 15 or so.

JULY 5th! That is today (and I just noticed the invitation about a half hour ago). 

Since I write about language and post links to my published works on my Lind-guistics blog, I thought I'd use this blog for my 100 posts. The posts will most likely be photographs, often with a description, short story, or thought listed below the photo.

Though we can post whatever we wish, there are some suggested themes which are offered each week. All the themes come from expressions. This week's expressions are "paint the town red" and "out like a light". I'm going to search my photo files and I'll be back as soon as I can with a new post. I remember a photo from Spring that is very, very red.

Wednesday Hodgepodge- June 27, 2012

Wednesday Hodgepodge- June 27, 2012

Thank you JOYCE for being a gracious host!

1. What do the words 'freedom' and 'liberty' mean to you? Does your mind go more in the direction of not being persecuted or discriminated against or does it head in the direction of doing what you please?

 

I think people take the freedom and liberty thing too far. When our founding fathers spoke of freedom and life, of liberty and the pursuit of happiness, they certainly weren't saying we could do whatever we wanted. And I don't interpret it that way either. They wanted to be independent, to break free from the British government and set their own laws and system. That system is constantly changing. Sometimes for the better. Sometimes the worse. Of course, which way depends on your viewpoint in each matter and I don't want to get into any political debates here. But one thing I do know is that whether we like the rules or not, we need to follow them. Nothing functions without rules, whether that be countries, businesses, schools. Even families need to make rules.  Outside those rules, our acts are somewhat subjective. On a personal level, if people do things I don't agree with but they aren't hurting anyone, then I overlook it. If they do things that put people in danger or cause trouble, then I certainly don't condone it. And when people use "I live in a free country" as an arguement for their poor behavior or manners, I think badly of them.

Okay...that was actually more than I wanted to say on that subject.

2. Nathan's sponsors a hot dog eating contest every 4th of July. Last year over 40,000 people attended the event and almost 2 million watched it on TV. The winner ate over 60 hot dogs and buns in 10 minutes. How do you like your hot dogs? 

I don't eat hot dogs. But let's say I did. Then it would need to be grilled so that it's crispy. Then it would need to be smothered with mustard and onions. 

3. If you were going to enter an eating contest what would be on the menu?

I love food. All kinds. Just about any vegetable, fruit, fish and seafood, meats, desserts. However, I like to savor the flavor of my food. Therefore, I'd never enter an eating contest. Food should be enjoyed (and preferably washed down with a nice wine) so an eating contest sort of defeats the purpose.  They'd have to offer an extremely good prize to even get my attention. And if I did take part, which is unlikely, it would probably be a major shock to my stomache. I don't need that.
 

4. Do you run your house more as a dictatorship or a democracy?

Things are discussed, and we try to be fair. However, we make it clear to our daughter when a decision is made, that is the way it is. There is no negotiating your way around things. Democracy doesn't mean you have the right to do whatever you want. That applies to family as well. Rules are rules. Breaking them has consequences.

5. Where was your favorite summer place when you were a kid?

My family didn't vacation, except for attending my father's work picnic at Hershey Park each summer. That was fun. I also enjoyed camping with my grandparents. Going in the woods. Hanging at the pool.  As long as there was something fun going on, I was happy. I'm not sure I could pick a favorite place.

6. Do you have a guest room? Would you want to stay there?

Yes, we do. My in-laws just spent 4 weeks in it. And I wouldn't mind staying there. It is as big as our own bedroom, has pretty curtains, and plenty of space for clothing. 

7. Next Wednesday America celebrates her independence. Do you have any special plans for the 4th of July? If you live outside the USA when and how does your country celebrate its own patriotic holiday?

Celebrate in Germany? Well, we celebrate the reunification of Germany and the Germans basically find any reason to celebrate throughout the whole year. Summer is the best. Every weekend there is a Fest. We are never bored. 

8. Insert your own random thought here.

Right now I am watching the EM (the European soccer championships). Germany  is playing Italy. We need to beat them to play in the final game. We have a strong team this year, but Italy is always a strong contender. Unfortunately, things aren't going well. It is almost the end of the first half and the score is 0:2.  Sigh. I hope the second half might turn things around.

Splash!"My Most Beautiful Thing"

Splash! Does that make you think about summer, diving into the pool? Waves hitting rocks? Kids in a bath tub? Today I am taking the splash. But guess what? There is no water needed.

Today I’m taking part in the My Most Beautiful Thing Blogsplash to celebrate beautiful things – inspired by Fiona Robyn’s new novel, The Most Beautiful Thing. Bloggers from all over the world are taking part and writing or posting pictures of their most beautiful things today. Find out more here and see everyone else’s blog posts here.


Trying to think of one thing is not easy. Other than the people in my life (which are the best and always at the top of the list), there really isn't anything tangible that I would consider my most beautiful thing. There are so many beautiful things each and every day--a cerulean sky filled with white fluffy clouds (though not much of that in my neck of the woods lately) or the warmth of the sunshine on my face (also not much of that recently). But if there isn't much sunshine, then there is time spent inside cooking brownies with my daughter or snuggling with my husband. There are rainbows and the scent of spring flowers after the rain. There is mail from old friends, bringing memories of earlier times to mind. That one beautiful thing, the thing that stands out, changes daily. Today it is this. My bleeding hearts have made an appearance.

          And Spring arose on the garden fair,
          Like the Spirit of Love felt everywhere;
          And each flower and herb on Earth's dark breast
          rose from the dreams of its wintry rest.
                      —Percy Bysshe Shelley


Perennial flowers are amazing. Year after year, even after harsh winters, they grace us by blooming again. Springtime. A time for new beginnings. For many people, the rebirth of Spring is inspirational. They compare those long months of winter, short days and chilling air (lot of snow depending where you live) to the rough times in life. The budding and eventual blossoming of flowers reminds them that we can all weather life's storms. For others, well...they just like to see or smell the pretty flowers. Such is the joy of a child in a Spring garden. A little girl might like the color of certain flowers, might enjoy picking them to give a lovely bouquet to her mother or someone else she loves. A child might appreciate a flower for its fragrance. I remember visiting my grandmother when her Lily of the Valley were in bloom. They lined the whole side of her house, all the way to the back porch. The scent of Lily of the Valley still takes me back to that old house, to memories of days spent there with her.

We had beautiful weather in March in my area of Germany. There were days it was so warm that people got their shorts and t-shirts out of storage. The trees and bushes began to bud. Our forsythia bush was in full bloom. Then April came and as is often the case, the weather became bleak and wet. So on a grey day like today, discovering that my bleeding heart plant had opened its buds, beautiful pink hearts hanging on the stems, made my day. A splash of color despite overcast skies. Also, the hearts remind me of all the people I love and those who love me. My husband. Daughter. Parents. Family. Friends. They mean the world to me. So these flowers are more than just flowers because they symbolize so many things.

That's my most beautiful thing today. Tomorrow it might be the kind act of a friend, a long walk with the hubby hand in hand, a giggle marathon with my daughter, the songs of birds as I wake in the morning or even just the taste of a really good cake. Anyone want to bake me a cake?

Who knows? Tomorrow it could be a lady bug like the one I found in my planter by the dining room window last Saturday. Isn't it adorable? It isn't often I find a  "reverse ladybug", one with red spots on a black body. I enjoyed its visit.

One thing is for certain, there will be something. There always is. No matter how good or bad a day is, I always try to single out one special event or thing to appreciate and be thankful for.

Is there anything you are thankful for today? Feel free to share in the comments section. I'd love to hear about your day. And as for tomorrow....I'll guess we'll just have to wait and see what comes our way. Though a bit of cake might be nice.