Another..who knew???

Again, I have to ask..who knew? This time it is about centipedes. I was out working in the yard and turned over a rotted pine log to move it to the burn pile. Before burning anything, I always check it for toads, lizards, mice, etc. since I really do not want to burn them. This time, to my surprise, there was a mother centipede with a whole slew of eggs. She was wrapped tightly around this bundle of eggs as if to protect them. I have never seen this before, as matter of fact, I always assumed that centipedes were like most other bugs that would "lay 'em and leave 'em". This centipede was trying hard to hold onto these eggs so I very gently put the log back down on the ground. Now I know that I will probably regret this as I have been bitten by these vicious little monsters and they HURT! I mean really hurt! I just had the opportunity to rid my yard of about fifty of them at one time and I (stupidly) let them live. Geez, I am a sucker for babies..even baby centipedes!

I came in and decided to research centipede egg-laying just to make sure of what I had just seen. Sure enough, there is one type of the bug that does lay its eggs in rotted logs and she does curl around them to protect them. The mother even licks the eggs to free them from mold spores that would consume them. Such a good mother bug! Anyway..who knew? I did not! At least this log is way down the hill near the marsh and not near my house! Stay away, little bugs, stay away!

Sometimes, it is hard to let go of things from the past. A favorite dish, and old toy, pictures or even memories. This week, I have been cleaning cabinets and I must say, I am rather proud that I have been parting with things. I have several huge boxes of just "stuff" that was cluttering up my house for a number of years. I feel good about the orderly cabinets in my kitchen and have no qualms about parting with these items. One thing, I could not part with this week was not really an item but rather a quirky little action. Something that I (and probably you) did as a kid. Earlier this week, I noticed a dandelion had sprung up right outside my front door. Dandelions, as you well know, are not the most showy flowers. This one caught my eye, though, and I waited with anticipation until this morning! I went out and carefully picked my dandelion. It was gorgeous! I held it high in the air and..poof!..I blew! Seeds floated gently on the breeze like tiny little faeries. I was a kid again..standing there watching my seed faeries dancing on the wind. Sheer bliss. (Unless, of course, anyone saw me. Then I would have to start explaining the smile on my face and start defending my sanity!)