Scarlet Pimpernel

That's awful...really is a shit-show all around. I hope you got your kids out of there safely in all this. That sounds more on the administration than the drivers. Oh, and by the way, I forgive your French...especially if you had called it a "merde show"!!!

<HannibalLechter>Excellent...especially with fava beans and a nice chianti!</HannibalLechter>

Yeah I actually kind of miss the periodical cicadas too! But I also always liked the sound of the annual cicadas as well. Lots of flagging trees around here and small twigs/limbs that have fallen off. I guess the class of 2038 is off and running! On the topic of those mites, I got what I'm now convinced were a couple of those sometime around end of July and early August, on my neck and upper chest. They itched at least for awhile (though nothing overly horrible), and looked almost pox-like with a large red area around them. I was kind of worried but no more appeared and then I heard/read about the mites sometime later. They eventually disappeared, but damn, it took a LONG time (far longer than regular mosquito bites).

Hi all! Amazing clouds around sunset yesterday evening, after the storms. Some mammatus-like ones in there (BEWBZ in the SKY!!! )

And a hummingbird...

Tiger swallowtail butterfly...

Hi all! Sorry I've been gone for awhile...nothing bad, just a lot going on! Just thought I'd drop in for a few and catch up. Anyhow, here's a full rainbow yesterday evening, shortly after the storms went through.

I hope this wasn't you at your first job interview!!!

Congrats, H2O!!

Hey, why all the negativity and depression in here?? I mean, we got tons of cicadas this year, can't complain! We do cicadas well. And wind. And uncomfortable heat/humidity. And apparently earthquakes. But I guess we do suck at snow!

No fun playing softball in very hot weather for sure! I played on an alumni league for many years (a lot of fun!). There were a couple of times in mid July that we had Saturday double-headers when it was upper 90s to 100 or so, with full sun and no real clouds. Yuck. I play outfield, and took a bottle of water out there with me each inning. Unfortunately one of the teams we played had a lot of big hitters (and we sucked anyhow)...which meant those of us in the outfield were running a lot! At least we had a tent set up at the bench to stand under during our at-bats.

Hell, it's just a poor afternoon, period! Belching heat...bleahhhhh!

Same here, I've seen many trees with the tips of branches turning brown. If you look closely, you can actually see the notches along the branch where eggs were laid. Not sure which they "favored" for laying eggs, but I've seen the tree flagging on oaks, dogwoods, sweetgum, and maples in particular. Probably some others, too. And even some shrubs and bushes. Supposedly it's good for the trees, like a "natural pruning"...as long as it's not too young or small of a tree (which could cause serious damage, I've seen where people actually fastened a net around their small trees!). That, and apparently all the holes left in the ground from where they came out aerates the soil. I guess this current generation is now "back to nature"!!

Hahaha, I remember that whole meme with the lawn chair lying on the ground! Wasn't there one in 2010 as well, like very early in the morning? The 2011 quake was mid-day...I recall at work they sent people home so they could clear the building and make sure the structure was still OK.

I've got a friend who grew up in Philly and is still a big sports fan of all their teams. He remembers one football game where people were throwing ice balls onto the field, and another where the crowd booed Santa Claus. Though to be fair, from what he said, apparently Santa was flipping off the crowd!! Only in Philly?!?! Wait, what do you have against people named Eugene??

These are the cicadas that are saying at closing time: "Damn, I'm seriously buzzed and there are no more chicks around!!" So they turn to their friend and say, "I love you, man!! Try again in 17 years!!"

Well...beer does have a lot of water in it!!! So there's that!

@H2O's first babe mobile when he was in college...very big with the chicks! But they couldn't vote yet at that time! And I think this might have been his first NASCAR race that he attended!! ETA: Now, to be fair, I remember this race myself, it is quite famous!!

Haha! For some reason that made me think of the Peachtree Road Race (10K), which I ran a few times while I was at GA Tech. I was crazy enough to get my ass out of bed at 5AM on July 4, take the Marta up to Lenox Mall (where the start line was), and then proceed to run 10-km in heat and humidity. At least it was early though before the real heat of the day. And, since I lived right near Piedmont Park, the finish line was practically in my backyard. Which meant I could grab a few orange slices, get my coveted Peachtree T-Shirt, and walk home for a nap before eating a huge breakfast at the Majestic!!

Yeah, seeing a lot of tree flagging now. Good shot of all the notches on those sweetgum branches where eggs were laid.

Same here...little or no cicada songs. Occasionally I'll hear what sound like individual ones going, or small groups. But rather quiet. I see a few still wandering around (or flying) kind of aimlessly, the last stragglers I suppose.

Oh wait...I thought H2O meant now retiring after 50 cicada emergences...not 50 years!!! But seriously...congrats on that!

LOL!! Well, the rain the other day should help wash away some of the carcasses and shells at least! They do enrich and aerate the soil!

Yeah same here! It's almost like when a big HECS winds down, after a long time following its development and then all the observations as it occurs...then it's done. With the exception that we didn't have Ji canceling the event 100 times with every model run or complaining that 65 inches of ECMWF snow was taken away and he's only getting 25!! I was in this area for the 2004 emergence, which was pretty cool. However, this time I paid more attention to them than I did in 2004...looking for the holes and turrets, watching the emerging nymphs, noting the different songs, etc. I also got a lot of photos and some decent video. Like I've said before, I know some find them to be creepy/disgusting or annoying and loud...but personally I find their whole 17 year life cycle to be fascinating and kind of neat. I've always liked the sound of the summertime annual cicadas, but these are something pretty special in my opinion.

Definitely less sound now, but they are still kicking. They were relatively inactive with the rain all day Friday but came back some over the weekend most definitely. Today was a lot quieter. Cassinis seem to be the ones I hear most today, especially walking under certain trees...but also some faint "Phaaa-roooh" chorus too. Like others, I've seen a *lot* still flying around. Peak seems to have been Memorial Day through the first weekend or so of June, or there about. I'd say I've had a solid 3+ weeks of constant sound (outside those couple of cool, rainy days, though even then...), starting several days or so after I first noted them emerging in mid-May, on up to the present.