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Our buddy is back.
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And has taken over the bird feeding station.
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Needless to say the other birds disappeared quickly.
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As did the red menace which is a real shame.
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She’d make a tasty hawk nugget.
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This is a short boring video, but I did catch him flying off so there’s that.
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😊
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There it is…
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Our fully cocooned Polyphemus moth on a piece of stone siding on our not quite finished front porch.
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According to my research, it will hatch in two weeks.
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I’m really hoping it’s a male.
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Because that’s one bad *ss moth!
👍
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You knew this was coming, right?
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Yes, my husband bought the horse drawn carriage/buckboard/grocery delivery van.
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Whatever you want to call it, it’s old, it’s big and it’s cumbersome.
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He wheeled it behind the shed…
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And realizing no one would see it there…
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Moved it out in front of the barn.
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It’s in remarkably good shape, though the leather seat is quite cracked.
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Fully functionally as it can be… without an actual horse.
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And my husband gets a huge kick out of the tiny tailgate.
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So, yeah.
We own an antique horse drawn vehicle now.
🥴
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Polly is almost fully cocooned.
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And it looks like we won’t be able to move that piece of stone siding anytime soon .
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Why it picked that particular spot I don’t know, but now I feel responsible and will have to make sure it’s safe.
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The metamorphosis is pretty spectacular.
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And with a six inch wing span, it’s one of the largest we have in Maine.
Though I can’t say I envy it…
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Mother Nature can be harsh.
🥺
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More from our harborside stroll.
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The husband, strolling.
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It’s a lovely spot.
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And past the heady days of full summer tourist season, not too crowded.
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A lobster buoy tree.
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😊
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Husband, for scale.
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For a better feel, here’s a quick video…
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I’m tickled pink.
Or should I say green?
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Our visiting Polyphemus caterpillar has decided to build his (her?) cocoon on our front porch!
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The process has been fascinating to watch.
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In and out.
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Curling up and straightening out.
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I’m completely enthralled with Mother Nature.
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We’ve been having some beautiful weather lately so we headed for lunch at the coast.
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Hobbs Harborside in Wells to be precise. A large seafood restaurant with stellar views.
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Shame the food wasn’t as beautiful.
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I ordered a fried shrimp appetizer, which in most places is five or six lightly battered fresh jumbo shrimp. Here? There were probably 30 medium shrimp and they tasted frozen. Blech.
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The husband had lobster stew, which was basically a bowl of meat in a thin, milky broth. It was a lot of lobster, but at $24 per bowl it should be.
Our fish entrees were equally unappetizing and not close to photo worthy. Mine was so dry they had to comp the meal. As you can guess, we’re not in any hurry to rush back to that restaurant.
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But a stroll along the harbor is always worth the trip. That’s the shellfish laboratory.
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Wells is a southern Maine town…
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And with one of the longest stretches of sandy beach in the state, a very popular tourist destination.
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The harbor is on the opposite end and one we prefer.
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It’s a working harbor, with fisherman unloading their catch as well as sightseers.
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The flowering pots of mandevilla are a nice touch.
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And kayakers enjoy the calmer waters near the shore.
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Not sure what this is, but it’s fun.
😊
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Lord Dudley Mountcatten was fascinated by something on the front porch the other day.
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Upon further investigation….
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I discovered a Polyphemus caterpillar on a section of our stone siding.
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Strange creatures indeed.
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The close up photos are reminiscent of a Hollywood space alien.
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How cool is that!
It would be nice if he sticks around after his metamorphosis…
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With a six inch wingspan, he’ll be quite impressive.
😊
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Dusk in our backyard. Slightly pink sky…
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And a pair of foxes.
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We know they live in the woods behind our house, but haven’t seen both of them at the feeding station for quite a while.
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Such lovely creatures.
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💕
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I’m always up for trying a new brewery so we headed north to Auburn.
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Hop water?
No thank you.
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I suppose the empty tasting room should have been our first clue…
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But the beer list was interesting and we tried a flight.
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Of which we liked exactly none.
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With a giant cat sticker watching us, we tried two more…
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Sadly with the same result.
The beer was so flat, tasteless and uninteresting I ordered a watermelon gimlet instead.
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And though we won’t be back anytime soon for beer, they did make a delicious sandwich.
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Turkey and melted Brie, spinach and red onion, with rosemary and fig aioli on grilled ciabatta.
That alone was worth the visit.
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River's world..... 