Ladybug Diner

  This afternoon, I headed out to pick the figs.  This is a twice daily chore as I try to "beat the birds".  No, I do not wallop the thrashers stealing the figs but I try hard to out race them to the ripe ones.  There are only a few more days that this comedy will take place as there are few figs left on the trees.   Between the birds and me, we have picked the trees clean.  After finishing this chore, it is my habit to walk through the garden to check for any remnant veggies.  It was there that a small red dot caught my eye and made me while away a good half hour.

  One of the garden boxes has a mishmash of plants. One volunteer tomato plant, six marigolds, one chrysanthemum, two mints, a few chives, a couple of purple basils and one struggling rose cutting are all growing there.  In the midst of all those leaves, a red dot scampered.  Aha!  A ladybug had found the mother lode of aphids and was a happy camper!  I watched as the ladybug raced around the leaves in search of aphids.  It would then chow down on its prey before starting anew.  The race was on!

  On closer inspection, there were many ants on the same plants.  At first, I assumed the ladybug was merely trying to outrun the ants but it kept coming back to run atop them again and again.  Then I realized that the symbiotic relationship between the ants and aphids was how the ladybug found its meal.  Ants literally "farm" aphids.  As the aphids suck the juices out of my plants, they excrete "honeydew" which the ants love.  The nectar rich resource is food for the ants.  In return, the ants protect the aphids.  (There have been cases known where ants will tote aphids with them if they have to move their nests.)  The ladybug, on the other hand, dines upon the aphids, themselves.  

  Usually, the ants and ladybugs tolerate each other and pretty much ignore one another.  Neither are predators to the other.  They both happen to be interested in the third insect..the aphid.  Personally, I would rather have the ladybugs than either the ants or aphids!  Chow down, Ladybug!

An Invasion of Cuteness....Or Foresight is a Lifesaver!

  After doing my chores today, I settled in at my desk to write the backstory for this October's clue hunt.  I figure it is never too early to get started so I did.  Actually, I have been working on ideas since this past November but getting them all down in story form took until today.  I was just happy to be making a bit of progress!  Things were going dandy until suddenly...kerplop!  Yep...kerplop!  A bug smacked my hand. Hmmm?  I picked up the critter and released it outside.  Alrighty then!  

  Living on a bayou, one gets accustomed to critters crawling about the place.  I have no qualms about snatching up a bug and letting it be free unless it is one of the more unsavory sort.  Those I smash...a quick and effective method of eradication.  At first glance, I thought this was a Ladybug so without second guessing myself, the bug went free.  I returned to my seat and started typing once again.  Kerplop.  Yep, another bug landed on me.  This one became entangled in the hair and let its smelly stench about it when I tried to free it. Ugh!  Another one went out the door.  This time, the foresight kicked in and I quickly covered my mug of grapefruit juice.  The coaster now became a lid!  No need in allowing the bugs a free swim lesson!  About four bugs later, my thoughtfulness paid off!  A critter landed smack dab on top of the coaster I was using as a lid!  Whew!  It was then that I realized that there was indeed a problem.  I was being invaded by the cutest critters even though I do believe I released a bunch of "False Ladybugs".  (And that may prove to be detrimental to my gardening!) Still, it was an invasion of cuteness!

  Seventeem bugs later, I decided that the vacuum cleaner would make the job easier.  Somehow, the critters must have overwintered in my walls and the warm sunshine brought them out in hoards.  A good many had the smarts to escape to freedom by going on the outside of the window screen but dozens upon dozens made their way inside through my open windows.  Outside, the Yellow-rumped Warblers were having a heyday!  Even the foul smell that the Ladybugs emit when threatened did not deter the birds.  Several of the warblers even hung around until after dark to snatch up any hapless bugs.  I only wish a couple of those birds would have ventured inside to do the job!  

A True Lady

  Mark and I were out back inspecting the plum trees when a tiny red dot caught my attention.  Scurrying about on the plum leaves was a pretty little Ladybug.  My first thought was...does it have an "M"?  I sure hoped this was a Ladybug and not an Asian Beetle.  I did not need more critters munching away on my plants.  Back a year or so ago, I searched for a telltale sign that would assure me as to which beetle was which.  I found that Asian Beetles have a whitish spot between their back and head.  On this splotch there is an "M" (or a "W" depending on which way you are looking at the beetle.  True Ladybugs do not bear this brand.  A quick check of Mrs. Bug's back made me breath a sigh of relief.  There was no letter at all!  This one was a true Ladybug.

  Ladybugs are not bugs at all but rather are beetles.  With that thought, perhaps we should call them Lady Beetles but, then again, not all are ladies, therefore, that would be erroneous as well.  Plus, since the name has been around for hundreds of years, I doubt too many folks would change anyway. The name came about during the Middle Ages.  Legend has it that a hoard of aphids were eating all the crops causing the farmers much dismay.  They prayed to the Virgin Mary to send help.  No sooner had they prayed than a swarm of beetles came and started eating the aphids.  These bright red beetles saved the crops and, thus, saved many farmers.  The grateful farmers, once again, prayed and thanked the Lady Mary for sending the beetles.  The Farmers named the beetles "Our Lady's Beetles" and over time the name was shortened to Ladybugs.  

  My little Ladybug went flying away as I was photographing her.  I suppose she was a bit camera shy but the beetle's action made me think of my grandmother.  When I was small she would point out Ladybugs on the flowers.  She would gingerly pick up one and say..

 "Ladybug, Ladybug, flyaway home!  

Your house is on fire and your children are gone, 

All except one and that's Little Ann, 

For she crept under the frying pan!"

  Now when you think about that rhyme, it does not seem to be a delightful little ditty to be singing to wee tots.  In reality, it is rather frightening.  Poor Little Ann!  In truth, most nursery rhymes were not too very pleasant.  Again, legend has it that this one started as a warning cry during the time when Catholics were prohibited from celebrating Mass over in England during the late 1500's to mid 1600's. Catholic priests took to holding Mass in open fields but were often executed for doing so.  The rhyme became a sort of warning when the authorities were near. One never knows just what is behind these rhymes we sing!  

  Still, I was happy to find the little Ladybug flitting about the fruit trees and I am in hopes that many more will be spied in the gardens soon. Where there is one, there has to be more!  And, perhaps, then more and more of the friendly little beetles instead of so many aphids!  So, Ladybug, do NOT flyaway home! Stay here!  

She's a lady!

Yep..she is a lady..maybe.  I really could not tell! They all look alike to me!...... As I stood looking out the window, I noticed a tiny bug between the glass and window screen.  Well, that is not good!  The poor little thing will die there!  The bug would crawl all the way up to the top of the screen and then fall to the bottom only to start the climb anew.  I knew the poor little thing would soon dehydrate so I opened the window and poked my finger in its path.  Sure enough, the little rascal crawled right up on my finger.   Carefully, the bug was transported out to the Jasmine vines.  There it would be free to go wherever it pleased and live happily ever after!  Back inside, I pulled the window down and was accosted by a handful of bugs!  What?  Why are these critters in my window?  I quickly tried to gather them all up and escort them out to the Jasmine vine as well.  Whew!  Hopefully, that was the end of the critter invasion for the day!  Not so..inside...more bugs!  The only good thing about this whole situation is that these were Ladybugs and not some dreaded termite, nasty roach or evil spider!  (Before  anyone gets their shorts in a wad about me calling spiders evil...I really do not dislike them at all.  I have just been bitten far too many times to welcome them in my house.)  Anyway, the Ladybugs really do not bother me other than the fact that they will dehydrate, die and leave their tiny carcasses on my window ledge.  Therefore, I try to catch them all and tote them outside.

The Ladybugs (both male and female go by that name) are wonderful bugs to having crawling about in the garden.  They eat aphids which are not so wonderful to have crawling about in the garden!  That is common knowledge but how they got their name may not be.  Of course, as with most things of this nature, we cannot be positive that the legend is true.  It might be total hogwash but at least it makes for a delightful tale!  It seems that back in the day..many, many years ago..(perhaps the Middle Ages!), aphids were devouring the crops.  The story says that the Catholic farmers prayed to the Virgin Mary for help!  Lo and behold..there came a new bug into the fields and this new bug was munching on the aphids!  Since the farmers had prayed to Mary, this bug was called the "Beetle from Our Lady". This name was shortened to Ladybeetle and eventually to Ladybug! Now, I cannot vouch for any part of the legend since (contrary to my kids) I was not around back in the Middle Ages but I do like the story!  And I do like Ladybugs regardless of how they got their names!  And I do like Ladybugs...I just wish they would stay outside!

Small Pleasures

Think big thoughts but relish small pleasures.~H. Jackson Brown, Jr.

This little quote from H. Jackson Brown, Jr. is an amazing bit of advice. We all need to occasionally look around us and just appreciate the little things that are often overlooked. Sometimes we become immune to everyday pleasures because our lives now are "giant-sized". Everything from our morning coffee to our toothpaste is touted to be bigger, better or more powerful. Nothing is touted to be small, mundane or passive. I have to say that here on the Bayou, I find a lot of pleasure in small things...the things that go unnoticed in the hurly-burly world in which we live. This morning, I awoke to the sound of birds singing. I laid there listening for a good twenty minutes as I tried to count just how many different birds were trying to wake me. They wanted their birdseed! I usually fill the feeders at about daybreak, but this morning, I was lazy! I was nearly a half-hour late and my birds decided it was high time for me to be up and at 'em. Their songs were the most beautiful that I have ever heard and well, this morning, they were all for me! (At least, I thought so!) Later in the day, I stained the back deck. This would not have been a most enjoyable job had it not been for a lone mockingbird that serenaded me for the entire time I worked. He would perch himself on a post that was within a few feet of where I painted and sing. Then a worm or bug would catch his eye and he would dart to the ground, snatch a bite to eat and fly back to the post to sing again. A small bird brought happiness just by doing what came naturally to him. He sang! He was happy, thus hearing him made me happy. A small pleasure to be relished.

Beside the deck, there is a sapling pear tree. It was here that I first spied the tiny yellow, polka-dot Ladybug. The tiny bug was like a little bit of sunshine skittering along the stems. Another smile! I reached out and my little friend had no qualms about running about on my hand! After making several rounds about the fingers, off to the arbor flew my little sunshiny friend. This was about one of the smallest things to bring huge pleasure that I have seen in a while. A tiny little creature bringing great big smiles!

While we are looking for small things that bring pleasure..we can't overlook some large things that bring happiness into our lives. As frustrating as she can be at times, Ezzy, the dog, can be about as smile-inducing as they come. Today, though, was one of those "oh, no you don't" days with her. If there was anything that she could possibly do that was aggravating, she found it today. But then..we all have our bad days..and just about the time I was ready to pull my hair out because of her behavior, she made me smile. Perhaps Ez, has these days to make me appreciate her "good" days!

So, in our busy, busy days of dreaming big..striving to achieve great things..lets not forget to relish a few little pleasures. Take a deep breath..smell the jasmine on the arbor..have a cup of tea while sitting on the refurbished deck..listen to the mockingbird tell you just how wonderful the day is..and thank the Good Lord for all the things that we often overlook.