Drowsy, downy, solitary bee

Picture of bee taken at the height of summer -- when bees ARE busy

I must have swept against its rest, among sunflowers by the way,

For a solitary, sleepy, snoozing un-busy bee clung to my leg,

Sprawled over my knee. Pollen clung to her legs, antennae,

And fuzzy body spritzed by dew.

It must have been a good party in the sunflowers,

Leaving her drowsing in the cold morning –

Her clear wings, pearlescent, periwinkle,

Drawn up against the chilly air.

As she stirred, I gently picked a leaf

And held it under one foot until she stepped away from

The strangeness of cotton fabric — one leg, two leg, three leg –

So I could leave her drowsing

In a stand of half-furled chrysanthemums.

– (C) rjn 9/3/2009

Trees on a stormy day

Trees on a stormy day

Originally uploaded by rjknits

This whole week has felt like this photo. Gloomy, filled with overcast skies, and then rain. It’s reminded me of when I lived next to a creek and as I would drive home at night during heavy spring rains, frogs jumped on my windshield and then jumped into the dark fields nearby.

My environment isn’t that rustic now, but I have the excitement of avoiding pedestrians who are darting back and forth on the yellow line in the middle of 4-lane highways. In pitch blackness, it’s a challenge.

These days I’m fascinated how light catches the bare trees and outlines the bark so you can see it from a vast distance. Sadly, I’m normally without camera when this happens. Just as I was without a camera when I saw a double rainbow and 3 turkey vultures serenely flying over a parking garage in a suburb of DC on Tuesday night. And then the skies opened up and there was golf sized hail on my windshield (but no frogs or pedestrians, thank heaven)!

“H” Is for “Herbs”

Bees like catmint too

The southern and western sides of the yard yield amazing herb plants — shrubs of rosemary, fresh sage, many different varieties of mint taking over the yard, thyme for omelets, catmint for the cats, and oregano. They’re mixed in with flowers, so it’s a beautiful, decorative accent, as well as providing lots of good scents and good cooking opportunities. The Gardener really loves flower gardening, and I’m really happy that’s the hobby chosen since I enjoy looking at flowers.

Different varieties of mint grow by the back door

“H” is also for “hedge”. I live in a house with a garden that other people might be envious of, if they could see beyond the giant crynoid hedge-o-doom in the front. Everything’s populating that hedge, and I dream about razing the whole thing down to the ground. But unfortunately (or fortunately) the hedge provides an ecosystem that shelters the yard from high winds, the birds from predators, and the butterflies from high winds and rainstorms. I’m a softie, fueled by amazing levels of apathy. I think it’s also keeping the hill/old creek bed from dropping onto the sidewalk. I know for certain it’s hiding a particularly hideous wire fence.

Prettyboy Reservoir

The reservoir lies behind a screen of dark trees and leaves,

As though hiding behind a Moroccan screen.

Her polished surface holds the turquoise blue and pink

Of summer’s sunset, reflecting the sky’s blushes like

A handmaid’s mirror. The air smells of moss, ferns,

And trees. In the sky hangs the protracted vibrato

Of crickets and katydids and the whoosh of batwing.

–(Copyright): rjn, 08/18/2008