A Spider, Cicada and Water Play

I have an affinity for insect, bugs, arachnids...I can't help it...I like them. Maybe I should have been an entomologist. I find them absolutely fascinating and although I don't like being bitten or stung, I like to watch them. Several day ago I noticed that a spider had taken up residence on our window ledge in the bathroom. The spider was hiding behind a bit of decoration which it appeared was an anchor for the web. I watched the sweeping web a while. I decided to leave it alone and visit each day. If nothing else the web was great for gathering dust that would otherwise be landing on the window sill and I felt a little bit like I was rooting for the spider. A few days later it came time to clean the bathroom...hmm, what was I to do? I caught my little friend and sent her on some hydrangeas which I thought would be excellent web real estate and got to cleaning. I hadn't ever felt a web (on purpose) with my hand before. I had gotten plenty in the face, which is not as desirable, but I was curious. Here is my photo of my web exploration.

Then today my kids came running in, "mom, mom there's a cicada outside and it just came out of its skin, come look!"
I grabbed my camera and went out to see the cicada and was it ever a sight. We watched it for a while. He seemed a little bashful after I was finished photographing him as he went under the larger strands of grass and hid.

I know they are pests, destroy crops, create a mess, but they have a purpose too. If nothing else to fascinate people like me who are so entertained by six legs, huge eyes and veiny wings.



I had to share a couple pics of my kids on our last trip of the summer. That toe dipping starts out so innocent and then suddenly you are swimming fully clothed. For the whole story, you can read the end of a previous post here.