Cloud (not quite homunculus)

I really want to call this a homunculus cloud, but it doesn't quite work.

a very small neighbor

I found this geometer moth larva (a.k.a. inchworm, family Geometridae) on a piece of monofilament line in our garden.


Apparently, what makes an inchworm move the way it does is that it has only two or three pairs of legs at each end and none in the middle. Here are the top two pairs grasping the fishing line.

The second pair again, another view:

The bottom three pairs.
Who knew? Tiny beauty abounds.

Longest day; last hour

6/20 @ 9:25

Evan Raskin's Ida(p)ho(to) blog

Evan Raskin is out in Idaho this summer doing research as a part of his job at Duke, and he has a terrific photo blog that shows what he's up to. Check it out here.

Bobby's 360s

This is part of Bobby Decola's collection of Subaru 360s (except the angular green thing, which is some early electric car). He has a few that run and keeps these for parts. The 360 was made from 1958-1971. It's named after the size of its two-cylinder engine (358cc), which is a two-stroke like a chainsaw, so it requires gas/oil mix. Only 10,000 were exported to the U.S. They weigh less than 1,000 pounds, and they make a Fiat 500 look big. Needless to say, Consumer Reports did not approve.

What did you expect?

It would appear that Joe Hollis lives at the end of the rainbow.
Is anyone surprised?

Hardware hooligans on the loose

Botany Bay Preserve at Edisto Island

We found something new at Edisto this year. Recently, the SC Department of Natural Resources opened Botany Bay, a former plantation on the island, for educational and low impact recreational activities. Botany Bay Road is on the left as you drive toward the beach, 8.5 miles past the bridge onto the island.
At the end of the road, there's a kiosk where you get a hang tag and a map of the 4630 acres of marshes, fields, woods, ponds, beaches, and remains of buildings. A bird list is also available. Only a few of the original buildings are still standing, but this gardener's shed is remarkably intact.

There's a path down to a beautiful beach-- which shows how the sands shift in the absence of human engineering.