Crane Flies

We've always called them 'mosquito hawks' but my supplemental brain, otherwise known as Google, informs me that they have absolutely nothing to do with mosquitoes nor do they eat them. Indeed, they apparently don't eat much of anything as they only live for about four days. These two, however, appear to be ensuring that there will always be more of them.

Henrietta hasn't been seen for a few days now, so we assume that she is sitting on her clutch of eggs. After a couple of weeks she will be sighted around the neighborhood with her brood in tow, but probably won't be looking in our doors again this year.

A young doe who was browsing in the swale between our house and the lot next door. Although I've heard tales of deer sailing over six foot fences to ravage gardens, they've always respected ours although they do regularly eat the roses on our bushes down by the street which are not protected by fencing.

The ground squirrel population which migrated down from the hills after the fires seems to have lessened although they have been replaced by gophers. And then there are the ubiquitous rats and mice. So far the rats seem to be banished from our house, and expensive process which hopefully won't have to be repeated any time soon as long as we keep up with a monthly abatement program.

And then there are the squirrels...there are only one or two of them and they are making quite a dent in the contents of the bird feeders, but we do enjoy watching their ingenious acrobatics.

I put in some time on my sashiko sampler but am forced to admit that I am becoming somewhat disaffected. I'm not quite ready to give up, but  I will soldier on with great difficulty until I find the right combination of thread and needle and a better way to achieve even stitches. The weather continues to improve and the outdoors are calling....