Monday, April 30, 2007
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Brown Anole
(click on the photo to enlarge)
Here is a photo of a Brown Anole that I took this afternoon. They are an invasive species, native to Cuba and the Bahamas. They outbreed our local Green Anoles (also known as Carolina Anoles). I will try to get a photo of one of our Green Anoles, but they are becoming few and far between.
This is a fairly new species here. As recently as two years ago I did not see any, and now they are the predominate lizard species in our yard.
We see skinks in the yard, too, but they occupy a different niche than the anoles.
Summer is back in Houston
The above is the chart from a local weather station (you can see it live here. It is about six blocks from our house). If you click to enlarge it, you will see that it is about 86 degrees F here in Houston as I type this.
The wonderful news is that summer is back. I hope that it is a long one. I love the summers here.
Hot, humid, and long. That is what we like about Houston summers.
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Monday, April 23, 2007
Three great videos from our local Science correspondent
This is a blog from the Houston Chronicle science writer:
SciGuy: Weird science (and three very cool videos)
SciGuy: Weird science (and three very cool videos)
Thursday, April 19, 2007
Monday, April 16, 2007
Bummer for the baby
Taser used on dad leaving hospital with baby | Chron.com - Houston Chronicle
On a side note: Who knew that the past tense of To Taser is "Tased"?
On a side note: Who knew that the past tense of To Taser is "Tased"?
Friday, April 13, 2007
Daniel Bernard Roumain
We went to see Daniel Bernard Roumain tonight. It was quite the event. That lad has some hair bones! I tell you what.
Monday, April 09, 2007
Saturday, April 07, 2007
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Death in the early evening.
I got home last night to a quiet house. The animals are still being locked up in our bedroom/closet/bathroom area because of work being done in other rooms (more bookshelves mostly). So walking it there was not that usual frenzy of cats begging for dog, the dog wanting to go out and the general cacophony of being welcomed home.
I jumped upstairs to let everyone out, put some wet cat food on the counter, and poured myself a glass of cheap (but delicious!) red wine from Chile (Los Vascos Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon) and walked outside to get the mail.
That is a dramatic event with the dog. She LOVES getting the mail. It is one of our three routines (Policing the yard, Last Rounds, and Getting the Mail) that keeps her on her toes. She cries by the door and runs to the fence as I check to see if anything interesting has arrived.
As usual, nothing had. But many of our flowers are now in bloom (Bottle Brush, Roses, Oleander) so we walked to the back yard.
That is when it happened.
A squirrel had the misfortune to fall off the wall surrounding our back yard just as we passed by. Blaze, in her hyperactive state, leapt on it.
The poor squirrel. It tried and tried to get away. Let me just say that its end was swift and painless. (Well, I hope it was painless. It was certainly swift). I had to physically restrain Blaze from doing more to the poor lifeless little gray body as she was dancing through the rosemary. At least she caught the thing while I was nearby, so she didn’t have time to eat it or to roll in it.
After a proper burial, and a proper squirrel eulogy, I finally had time to finish the wine.
It is so sad to be a squirrel in the city.
I jumped upstairs to let everyone out, put some wet cat food on the counter, and poured myself a glass of cheap (but delicious!) red wine from Chile (Los Vascos Reserve Cabernet Sauvignon) and walked outside to get the mail.
That is a dramatic event with the dog. She LOVES getting the mail. It is one of our three routines (Policing the yard, Last Rounds, and Getting the Mail) that keeps her on her toes. She cries by the door and runs to the fence as I check to see if anything interesting has arrived.
As usual, nothing had. But many of our flowers are now in bloom (Bottle Brush, Roses, Oleander) so we walked to the back yard.
That is when it happened.
A squirrel had the misfortune to fall off the wall surrounding our back yard just as we passed by. Blaze, in her hyperactive state, leapt on it.
The poor squirrel. It tried and tried to get away. Let me just say that its end was swift and painless. (Well, I hope it was painless. It was certainly swift). I had to physically restrain Blaze from doing more to the poor lifeless little gray body as she was dancing through the rosemary. At least she caught the thing while I was nearby, so she didn’t have time to eat it or to roll in it.
After a proper burial, and a proper squirrel eulogy, I finally had time to finish the wine.
It is so sad to be a squirrel in the city.
Wednesday, April 04, 2007
Monday, April 02, 2007
Glycerin Spill in Houston
10 Tons Of Glycerin Spills Onto Roadway - Yahoo! News
This is why are roads are so nice and smooth here.
This is why are roads are so nice and smooth here.