Gnats

As I walk around the neighborhood in the summer, I frequently encounter swarms of gnats.

I am usually carrying a long stick, and I perform a crazy gnat attack on the little buggers.  The neighbors must wonder what the crazy stick dance might mean.  I am fascinated by the patterns they make in the air, but it is not very pleasant to swallow a dozen of the flying hazards.

I am going to have to research what those little critters are up to when the weather is warm in the Midwest.

I owe them that before I encounter then in a few months.

Table scraps suitable for birds.

https://www.thespruce.com/kitchen-scraps-to-feed-birds-386571

Cool planetary science podcast - Cassini at Saturn: The Final Year

http://www.stitcher.com/s?eid=46588498&refid=asa

Pet people

I picked up 100 crickets for the turtles today,  In the aquaria near the crickets they had several varities of tiny koi.

My hope is that I will be able to buy a few at some point this summer to complement Silver, Bird & Stache.

And so, it begins

I am a fish fancier, both to watch and eat, as a matter of fact.  They are just fascinating!

Here are some of the many reasons I am fascinated with fish in general, and Koi in particular:

• You can eat them (but I wouldn't eat koi, because they are too pretty);
• they are slippery and fun;
• they come in many different colors;
• they can be as easy to keep as a goldfish (koi, not all fish);
• they love to be fed;
• their patterns are so varied that I could stare at them for hours; etc. 

I have a few miniature koi in my basement (no, not in the freezer.....), and of course I have named them based on their coloration.

There is Stache, who has a very pronounced black mustache feature.  Next there is Silver, who I think needs no further explanation.  And the last critter is Bird, since she (guessing of course) has the strongest black and orange coloring.  I am a proud Orioles fan.  I also love Jazz and saxophones, and one of my favourite artists is Charlie Parker, whose nickname was Bird.

I have much more to share about fish and ponds, but I am going to end here so that I can get some blog formatting done before I have to get back to REAL life.

Ciao!