Cat on a Walkabout

First, thank you all so very much for all your kind words about the return of Charlie.  He is still sleeping a lot and seems a little more wary of Jax, but otherwise he is our affectionate boy.  And there aren't the right words for me to describe how happy we are that he is home.

Meanwhile, there are other "cats" in the garden, including my first Hickory Tussock Moth cat of the year.  I've always liked these fuzzy little creatures.  This one was pretty far (100 feet?) from the nearest hickory tree and was clearly doing his walkabout preparatory to pupating.  He looks a bit beat up, missing his front "horns".  He will spin his cocoon in a protected spot using the hairs from his body to cover the cocoon.  The fine hairs on tussock moth cats can cause a mild allergic reaction in some people, as the hairs are barbed and can penetrate the skin.  That said, I've handled many of these and never had an issue.  In general, however, it is a good idea not to handle fuzzy caterpillars.

I also found my first ever White Micrathena (spiny orb-weaver) in the garden.  I'll put a shot in Extra.  This spider is barely 1/6 of an inch long so really hard to see.  I hope to get a better shot of it, one showing its white back.  We'll see.

Had a nice long FT chat with my parents this morning.  They have been doing a lot of "adventure lab" geo caches lately which have taken them all over the surrounding area.  I'm so glad that neither of them has had any lingering effects from Covid.  

Jax has been pretty mellow today, contented to snooze on the sofa or on the deck when I'm outside.  We'll pay for this later.  

Hubs and I had a wonderful dinner last night - ended up with T-bone steaks instead of filets, which were delicious.  Hubs grilled them to juicy perfection and made roasted caramelized sweet potatoes and fresh sautéed local corn.  And a lovely bottle of Stag's Leap Cabernet.  The steaks were way too big to finish so some some will be incorporated into a steak salad tonight.  For a weekend that started out with so much fear and worry, it is turning into a perfect long weekend now.

Dark with raspberry today - a delicious hit of tart flavor surrounded by luscious dark chocolate.

xo
Debbi