Discovering The 4th Dimension In Iowa. The Art and Beauty Right Under Our Noses.

Cheryl finds a Living Luna Moth

 A few things have been up over the last few days,  and there is much to talk about.   BUt pictures are piling up on this computer...  and eventually,  they have to make it to the blog.   I did not want to wait forever.  ( Or until the snow flies!)   Because by then,  the pictures will not make much sense.    So this posting will be about the hidden world of beauty that lies right before us here in Iowa.

It's a little beat up, but alive!

At least how I see things.

Every now and then, a particular insect will catch our eye and we will simply have to take its picture and blog about it.   Butterflies are usually our specialty... but ever now and then we capture something truly rare or remarkable.   Behold!  The Luna Moth! 

Viceroy on Dogbane.  Find the beetle.

Can you see one?

Having never seen one in Michigan,  we have discovered several while living here in Iowa.  Usually,  we only discover a piece of a wing or husk of a body to show evidence of their existence.   Not much to write about.   We did find a living one once that had been hit by a car.   It was badly damaged and we did not have much for taking its picture.   But Cheryl discovered this one while running in the morning.   She was so excited, she scooped it up and ran one mile back home just so she could wake me and show it off.  Even this one has a damaged wing... and can not fly. ( They are so fragile...)  but after taking its picture, I released it in the yard.  It is no longer there, so hopefully it will have been able to mate and lay some eggs around here.

How about now?

Here's a little help.

While bike riding today in Muscatine,  I discovered a very large patch of Dogbane.    If you remember my infatuation with the Dogbane Beetle last time, I thought this might be a perfect opportunity to see one again.  And this time... be able to capture a picture with my own camera.  After chasing around a Viceroy,  I stumbled upon one! 

Let's get him in focus.

Hey!  Wait!

Off he goes...

He quickly disappeared and I frantically searched to see if there were more.   These guys did not seem to want to stand still for my picture.

Here's one.  Focus. focus. 

Before I could focus....  he flew away.   I did not even notice, but there was another beetle right in plain sight!   Can you find him?   Here's a little help...

That's better!

Let's get him away from the other plants. 

Feet covered in pollen.

He's kinda small.  Smaller than a Japanese Scarab.

So cool! 

Can you see my reflection in his carapace?  I'm wearing a red shirt and holding the camera. 

Finally,  I located one that was slightly more photogenic.   Basically, he stood still long enough for me to focus.  Even with me removing the leaf he was on,  I still struggled to fully focus on the beetle.   Perhaps it was the small size or the shiny carapace.  I tried to tilt him around so the other colors of the rainbow would be revealed.   I'm not fully sure,  but I think the red you see is My Reflection!   Isn't that cool?!

Try to show Cheryl.  She doesn't care.

But I do!   Totally Amazing. 

I snapped well over one hundred pictures of this little guy so I would be sure to have at least one good picture.   In the end,  I had many more than I could post on this blog, but dont have the hear to delete forever.   I tried to show Cheryl  the awesomeness,  but she did not seem as excited as I was.  Ah well... to each their own.

Summer Oyster Mushrooms. 

Gills attached to base. Kinda bitter.

I should note the Summer Oyster Mushrooms I cooked up several days ago.   I realized I had not show any pictures of the actual fresh ones I had gathered.   Again, the pictures have been on my laptop waiting for the occasion to be shown in the blog, but Cheryl's running gets in the way.   As it often does with many things.    Well,  here they are!   Summer Oyster mushrooms,  ready to be cooked up.

My overgrown Jungle Tomato vines.

They are thicker than the Stakes!

Leaving the insects and mushrooms,  I just wanted to blog a bit about my plants.   The hot humid weather seems to be doing a number on the tomatoes and the vines.   They have gone CRAZY!   I came home yesterday to find the Tomatoes has slumped over.  They had out grown their stakes and were laying on their sides.   I spent the day trimming and reinforcing the stakes so the tomatoes would stand up straight again.  Hard work in the sun and heat!   I now have a wall of Tomato vines next to the sidewalk.  They are taller and heavier than many of the stakes I used to prop the up.  I hope they do not get much larger or I will be forced to trim  even more! 

Single Cardinal Creeper Flower.  Three total so far. 

My vines are trucking along as well,  but I find it odd that all of them have not produces a single blossom yet.  Until today!   The smallest, lowest plant on the bunch has produced three flowers so far.  Maybe the other ones will begin as well.   I remember it seemed to take forever for the ones last year to produce.   Maybe the only flower when they have reached their "full potential".   Who knows.  I'm just hoping that the hummingbirds will discover them and enjoy.

Rally detailed Subaru.

Custom paint and detailing. 

And last.... another deviation from insects, fungi, and plants.    Behold!    A Rally Cross detailed Subaru.   This one caught my eye whole in Moline, Ill. The think I found most attractive?   That it was a Subaru Legacy!   I never knew anyone would mod out a Legacy.   Usually they Mod out Imprezas or Outbacks.  I simply wanted to capture this one and put it on the record.  I doubt I will be doing anything like that to Silver Bullet Subie...  but it is cool to think that they exist.

And it is a LEGACY!   Awesome!. 

Whew! That was a lot of junk to put in one posting.   IF you are still here,  thanks for hanging around.

I wonder what I can do to this one...

 With a little luck, I will be able to show off what we did today and yesterday and not have as long winded a response.   Usually, I let the pictures do the talking...  Yeah right!   I think the Blog is my creative outlet for my delusion of being a Writer...  Someday.   Thanks for stopping in.