outdoors

Rain

I relived a childhood memory today.

An unexpected storm rolled through this evening. The hubby and I watched it for a while from the open garage door. The wind whipping, rain falling hard, cold water falling on our feet, warm air at our backs from the heated car behind us.

When I was a kid, when the worst of the storm was past, I was allowed to go out and play in the remaining rain falling.

I did that today and it was grand.

The light was getting brighter and rain was slacking off, torrents of water were rushing down the street. Rain falling on my head and I went out in the street and splashed and danced and got all rained on. It was glorious.

My hair will still be damp when I go to bed but I will have the memory of having danced in the rain. And that is priceless.

An unscientific observation

First, a couple of poems.

The bright clouds

Go from sky blue to sunset pink

To vague gray smudges

As the sun sinks on the longest day.

Airplanes fly across,

Adding winged stitches to the sky.

Cicadas drone and fireflies glimmer

Adding accent

To summer beginning.

The heat has yet to come.

And

A chorus of katydids cranks up

Backed by the drone of cicadas.

Fireflies flicker and swoosh

On this longest day of the year,

Summer is here.

I’ve lost note of which years I wrote those but I have always loved watching the fireflies in my back yard. I’ve lived here 17 years.

I live in the middle of a large metropolitan area in Texas and I also live beside a heavily forested area with lots of wildlife in it. In that wildlife are countless mosquitoes. Last summer, there were cases of West Nile virus that were recorded in my city, one of them within a mile or so of my house. So, the city decided to spray for mosquitoes. I did not get notice of it happening on my street but I’m sure the wooded area was treated. I don’t know what poison they used but it affected more than mosquitoes.

For some reason, the only time we can sit outside without being swarmed by mosquitoes is the month of March. Well, this year we didn’t really get outside so didn’t notice the lack of mosquitoes until a few weeks ago, and then it was just noticing that we weren’t slapping bugs as much. They’re not as much of a nuisance in the daytime either and that’s when I’ve been being outside mostly.

Last Sunday evening, there was nothing but reruns on tv so we decided to sit outside for the evening. There were still very few mosquitoes. But then I noticed, there were also no fireflies. The backyard should have been a regular courtship blinkfest. There were NO blinks of light. Not. A. Single. One.

For the next few evenings, I looked for fireflies. Still no blinks. Nothing.

And then I realized I haven’t seen the little green lizards that usually are scampering around on the fence and porch roof. Now, I know my cat likes to catch and eat a few of them but the population has been able to keep up with his predation for every summer until now.

This can’t be coincidence that the mosquitoes, fireflies and lizards are all gone at once.

I also have a wren box on my front porch. Wrens eat bugs. Last summer, they raised four broods in that box. This year, they haven’t even moved in. I hear a wren fussing or calling once in a while but they just seem to be passing through.

Is being mosquito free worth the tradeoff? I would say no but I haven’t seen a friend or loved one go through West Nile virus. Zika was also recorded in this state last year. I would not wish microcephaly on anyone’s baby.

Then again, this is just one unscientific observation by one person in one backyard.