Sickening Cicadas

Yesterday afternoon I had been standing under a cherry tree scanning up and down the block to see if any other neighbors would emerge from their homes to see why the power was out. It was a clear day, no thunder, no rumbles, yet the power switch had been shut off quickly and quietly. As I reached up to hold onto a branch my hand brushed something crunchy. I about jumped out of my skin when I saw a stream of alien-looking creature shells stuck to the branch.



After I fled inside and scrubbed my palm clean I ventured back out to see what the heck they were. I found a neighbor scratching her head also wondering why her air conditioner had cut off so called her over. She told me they were the skeletons of cicadas.



She also pointed to the holes in the ground and said that's where they emerge from.



My husband and I always thought those holes were underground yellowjack nests. Until I moved to Roanoke I never heard of cicadas. I'm not saying Brooklyn doesn't have them, although maybe they don't because they can't burrow through the concrete, but I am saying I don't remember hearing the loud, and I mean loud, and constant, and I mean constant, noise they make.

This is what a live cicada looks and sounds like...now multiply and raise the volume by 20 times. That's what I hear...every...single...summer...day.



And this is just wrong...



Ewwww...gross. Damn, you could put a leash on that thing. I hope that wasn't the kid's mother taping, and this is not a normal Tennessee toy.

Wild Roses

These roses have grown wild inside my euonymous shrubs. If I tried to take care of them they would be dead. Since I ignore them, they're thriving. Make sure you check out the last shot and look at the little fellow on top of the petal. I have no idea what type of insect that is, but he's sorta cute. Hope he's not hurting the roses.