Nature study

Lookee what crawled up out of the pond.

I was going to name him Yertle, but then I remembered....well, the truth is I needed a little review....that Yertle wasn't so nice. So I'll have to come up a new name, but I don't think there's any hurry since he's 100% rock and rocks aren't going anywhere.

Although, there is a chance he'll wander away, or, even worse, follow someone home. I'm pretty sure he'll hang around though as he's very fond of my guacamole.

Mr. Gadget and I have done very little for the past few days except warm our lounge chairs on the back patio. We've gotten up a few times to observe the construction progress on our next-door neighbor Dolly's cactus garden.

It looks like a nice habitat for a turtle, so I hope "not Yertle" doesn't decide to take a hike. I was puzzled by these big cactus leaves stuck in the ground.

But I was assured they would take root and grow bigger. We shall see. Seems like a real stretch. Those big thorns will certainly keep stray dogs away and may even deter the midnight skunk. I can only hope Dolly's grandkids behave.

So earlier today I advertised more stuff on Craig's List. I had some cast iron cookware that was old and, shall we say, well-seasoned. I offered it for free as I usually do with most everything I'm willing to discard. In very short order I had over 30 hits.

I always enjoy reading the responses because sometimes one will tickle my funny bone and that's usually enough to make them the lucky winner. Someone offered me a dozen fresh, free-range chicken eggs if only they could have the pots. Another said they would love to have the cookware and promised to cherish them like I had.

In the end, I gave them to a lady who lived nearby. She said she could come right over. I like that in a transaction. By just after noon the pots were gone, the morning fog was lifting, and my lounge chair was in the full sun.