IN THE GLOAMING

Some sunsets sizzle. They're probably the ones we remember most. Or best. (Flathead Lake, Montana)

(Mobile, Alabama)

And some sunsets are polite, but a little on the blah side. (San Diego, CA)

Some are just "everyday" sunsets, warm and welcoming, but most likely taken for granted. (Refugio Beach, CA)

Then there are the twilight "sunsets" -- supernatural and just as unforgettable. (Eastern Sierra, CA)

(White Mountains and Owens Valley, CA turning pink at twilight)

HERE'S LOOKIN' AT YA, KID

I hope you're having a Happy Hump Day!

I CAN SMELL IT FROM HERE!

There are certain people in my family of gardeners who just look at dirt and something marvelous grows.

So here's a bit of beauty from my cousin's garden; I hope it will brighten your Tuesday.

SAND ABSTRACTS

When you look closely, Mother Nature doesn't have to try too hard to please the eye.

Or energize the being and replenish the soul.

HEAT & PRICKLIES

Ubiquitous heat-loving, summer flowers in the high desert of the Eastern Sierras, these Prickly Poppies are a close relative of the taller, rangy Matilija Poppies. There's almost no difference between their large, delicate crepe-paper flowers, but Pricklies have spines on their stems, and Matilijas have a heavenly, spicy fragrance.

Pricklies contain alkaloid properties that are poisonous to cattle, but they had many medicinal uses for Mexican and American natives. For example, when smoked, Pricklies produce a euphoric, sedative effect for about thirty minutes and were used as an anesthetic during surgery and to treat inflammation, fevers and warts.

Me? I just love to look at them!

BUGGED

As some of you know, Mark and Darice Dixons' website http://Wildflowerswest.org is often my go-to reference for the final answer in identifying my own wildflower discoveries. Their research is thorough, the photographs are stunning, the details are fascinating and the comments are lighthearted and entertaining. Theirs is so obviously a labor of love.

The Dixons have been experimenting with some slide show software for their bug photos that is now ready for prime time. Be prepared to be blown away at the beauty, detail and variety of the insect subjects.

http://wildflowerswest.org/wildflowerswest/thepollinators.htm

Enjoy!

Trivia:

The Phylum Arthropoda is the most numerous of all living organisms, containing more insect species than plants and animals combined, and 40% to 50% of those insect species are beetles. Did you know that Arachnid (containing spiders and mites) is not an Order, but is a Class in a Subphylum all its own? Of course you did!! And that Daddy Longlegs belong to the Arachnid Class but are not spiders? Well, now you do!!

And wonder of wonders, did you know that Lobsters and Crabs are insects?! Or that wars have been fought and empires established over the simple Silk Worm? Millipedes are scavengers, and some of them secrete cyanide to protect themselves when threatened. And, you probably already know that when you are bitten by a mosquito, it was a female mosquito that raised that welt.

For a fun excursion into the insect world, this website will introduce you to the varied insect Classes, Orders and Species, their physical make up, how their different body parts function, how they are different and how they are similar to one another.

http://biology.clc.uc.edu/courses/bio106/arthrpod.htm

Have fun exploring, and I hope the next time you see a bug, you will recognize and appreciate it for its beauty and complexity. (Flies and fleas excepted!!!!)

FLUTTERBYS

I have tried and tried, without success to identify this sweet butterfly. While it looks very much like the endangered Karner Blue, the habitat is all wrong. These little guys were found flitting through the air in the Eastern Sierras in mid-July at about 7,000' elevation.

They were such fun to watch but difficult to photograph because they were seldom still for more than a millisecond! At rest, they blended in with the earth at my feet. No sooner would I get the camera focused, they would take off again, just a flash of blue fluttering out of range.