(+7 insets!)

This morning when I got up I was amazed to find that it wasn’t raining! For the past couple of weeks we’ve had so much rain that the nearby Rogue River has flooded in some places. Thankfully we are on high ground but that gives you an idea of how much water we’ve been getting in this area. We’ll have a respite until this evening and then the faucet will turn on again for another week. I have to say that it’s really nice to have a normal spring. It’s supposed to be like this instead of the years of drought that plagued us.

The poison oak rash that I got from my trek up the hill the other day is finally starting to calm down. However, I was exasperated to discover a patch on one of my knees! Is there no escape from this wretched stuff?! I forgot to bring my knee pads when I went up on the hill and I must have knelt on some poison oak, crushing it enough that the oil soaked through my pants and onto my knee. Ridiculous!

Poison oak is bad but there is something here which is much more dangerous: ticks that carry Lyme disease. In fact, the previous owner was bitten by a tick here and he contracted this awful malady. It's no laughing matter.

That's why, when I got back from my sojourn up the hillside, I entered the kitchen where Steve was starting our lunch and proceeded to fling my clothes everywhere! Once I was in the altogether, I turned slowly so Steve could check for ticks. After all, I knew better than to chance it. I'd been basically rolling around in the bushes, laying on the ground and brushing against all types of vegetation. The odds of having a tick on me were about as 100% as possible. And yep…GIVE THAT GIRL A KEWPIE DOLL. A disgusting, nasty, creepy tick was spotted on my calf and already trying to take hold, the confounded stinker! Steve yanked it off me and washed it down the sink while I ran upstairs to toss all my clothes in the hamper. They would be certainly covered with poison oak oils from the rampant budding growth all over the hillside.

Later that day I went to wash something in the kitchen sink and what did I find waving it's graspy-grippy legs at me with the hopes to continue its attempt to suck my blood? That icky thing had crawled all the way up out of the drain and up the side of the sink as if drowning in scalding water was nothing! Glaring at the nasty creature, I grabbed it and seethed, "Oh, so you want to play the Flat Game then? Ok, let's go!" Squishing it between thumbnail and the counter, the tick was soon two-dimensional and moved no more. "I win." This time when I washed it down the drain it STAYED. Foul creature.

And now, something beautiful! Today I'm featuring the gorgeous Mule Ear flower! This stunning perennial fills large areas of our hillside with thick clumps of 4-7" blossoms which rise out of large, fuzzy green leaves that are reminiscent of its namesake, a mule's ears. I was overjoyed to see that after the wildfire razed our hillside, these flowers have come back more plentiful than ever. They love direct sunlight so without the trees and bushes obscuring the sun, they have really taken off, hooray! I couldn't be happier with Mother Nature's excellent choice in landscaping. :) Along with the main image, I'm sharing three others as insets plus a bunch of archive images from the past. Aren't they just glorious?! I hope you enjoy the show.

My dear Pam, don't these flowers look a lot like your False Sunnies? What better, then, to look for than our favorite happy-go-lucky golden blossom?! I decided on one that is adorned with a Monarch feasting on its nectar! Such a perfect pair. Both so lovely. I envy you so much for getting pictures of these butterflies. I've only seen them laughing at me as they fly around me blowing raspberries before flying away. Rude. Well, some day I hope to add one to my collection of wild-caught butterfly images! (Yes, I do have some really nice pictures of them, but taking pictures of butterflies in a captive exhibit is not the same as being outside and getting a hot shot like you've gotten!) ALL MY BEST!! MANY HUGS!!!

Explored on 4/11/19, highest placement, #1.