Learn That Nature Is The Boss...

Mother Nature usually does things her way!

If you live in a rural area, you already know this little fact! If you are contemplating a move to the country, there are a few things that you need to think about, if you haven't already.

Any place rural, and a LOT of places in the city, are home to a wide variety of bugs. I mean, bugs in abundance! Some are big, some are small, but all exist in really large numbers, believe me!

Most people that camp out have experienced the fun such as ants in the food supply, crawling critters in the sleeping bags and down shirt collars, flying bugs such as June bugs that somehow end up in the frying pan along with the fish or potatoes, that sort of thing. Go ahead and eat them...won't hurt ya at all, especially fried.

One of the most effective fish baits you can find, are the bugs that live next to a stream or creek. The fish are already familiar with them as a food source, and like I said, they usually exist in abundance.

In the city, most folks deal with primarily two kinds of bugs. Spiders and roaches! Roaches, especially in moist areas, will seemingly live forever! On the coast, we have what we call "tree roaches " or "water bugs", but no matter what the name it still looks like a house hold roach on steroids! You could make a decent B Horror movie with these bugs, and I believe that some folks have already done that many times!

The other bug common to the city is the spider, which comes in every shade and size you could possibly imagine! Big ones, small ones, poisonous ones, non-poisonous ones, fast ones, slow ones...the city pretty much has them all. I could learn to get along with most of the out of sight spiders except for one thing. The WEBS...!

One thing that will break your concentration for sure is to be walking somewhere and run into a spider web across the face! I have seen grown men act as though they were under attack by mutant zombies, as they attempt to wipe away the webs across their mouth and nose! They slap at the air like swatting at a fly, knowing full well that the spider is tucked away in a corner somewhere, just waiting for you to finish destroying his carefully built web so that he can go back and rebuild it. And he will rebuild it, probably in the same spot where you ran into it the last time! And you will likely find yourself walking into it again! Trust me on this!

The biggest problem for me and spider webs, is that some of them are really, really small! Guess they are trying to catch really small insects, I don't know. They hang down from the ceiling, sometimes right in the middle of the room, and often you just flat can't see them to avoid them, no matter how hard you try!

Webs are very effective at what they do. They catch a lot of little flying critters that might have otherwise found their way into the frying pan with the fish and potatoes, or might have been found in your morning coffee cup, doing the back stroke. On the downside, they also attract and hold onto a lot of dust and cat hair...which makes it a slight problem for my situation.

I will give the spider one thing. Many of the spider webs I find outside are really pretty! Especially when the early morning dew glistens on them. They sparkle like a collection of small diamonds in the sunlight! Their designs and symmetry are a wonder to behold, and can be very beautiful to look at...considering how ugly their makers are!

Spiders are definitely ugly! I don't think I have ever seen a pretty spider...and I've seen a LOT of them! I'll even go so far as to say that my ex-mother in law was not as ugly...at least on the outside! However, that's stretching things a bit, I know!

The main point is that city or country, especially in the country...Mother Nature has scattered a lot of really fascinating creatures. Some are things of beauty and wonder, while others are just about as ugly as you would want to see. That being said, we must keep in mind that Mother Nature put them here and that they all have some purpose, even the ugly ones! Don't believe me...? Take a good look at some of the folks around you sometimes! Better yet, take a good look in the bathroom mirror under a fluorescent light. Kinda makes you rethink the whole ugly and beautiful thing, doesn't it?

Now, having said all that...what say we grab a fresh cup of coffee and sit at the patio table, my friend! We can sit and watch as Mother Nature does her thing!

Now That Was Fun...!

I've heard the expression "a bug up his butt" and "ants in his pants", but I have to admit that I never had a full understanding of these two saying until Friday!

I always thought that the first saying had to do with someone being upset! You know, being impatient to get things going, maybe just a little angry...

And the second saying I always believed to be referring to someone that couldn't sit still, always in a hurry. Does that sound about right to you?

Well, maybe Friday was a day for omens and such! Here's what happened. I was sitting at the computer when I noticed a sharp little sticking on my leg, like a grass burr. Almost like a pin prick. Thinking that maybe one of the cats had brought in a grass burr on their fur, and that maybe it had gotten transferred to my pant leg, I got up and felt the back of my jeans but felt nothing.

Sitting back down, I was there for just a minute when I felt it again, only lower on my leg. As I stood up again, it became much sharper and seemed to be moving...so I dropped my jeans and looked, nothing!

Just as I was pulling up my jeans again, I was again attacked by this sensation! Now, in a near panic state, I came out of my jeans quicker than if they had been on fire! At least, what I imagined I would do if my pants were on fire as I have yet to experience that!

The minute I jerked my pants off, a big, fat, fast crawling June Bug fell out of the pant leg! Now, I have no idea how that rascal got got in my pants, but I have to admit that my knowledge of just how tough those creatures are was greatly expanded !

Evidently, I had been sitting on him and instead of being squashed, he was just trying to crawl away! Trouble is, these bugs have some wicked little stickers on their feet! That's what I was feeling.

Anyway, it got my attention! Got the old juices flowing, ya know? Just reminded me that nature has a way of working things out for all of her creatures most of the time...from the lowly June Bug, all the way to the big, dumb two legged kind like me. The message She was giving me? Pay attention ! Pay attention to everything! All the time!

Oh, and one more message...practise taking off my pants in a hurry! Message received, loud and clear!

Now, let's get a fresh cup of coffee, my friend!