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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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Our Cooper’s hawk was back on the deck railing yesterday and this time he was in full hunting mode.
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The dreaded red squirrel pair were spotted and my fingers were crossed.
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If anyone can rid me of that menace, it’s the hawk.
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On high alert, scouting the bushes where they were hiding.
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The hawk sat there, patiently waiting for movement.
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And then, a strike!
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That sadly came up empty.
Hawk – 0.
Red squirrel demons – 1.
🥺
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Woodpeckers that is.
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There was a nice pileated at our suet nugget feeder out back …
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And another on our choke cherry tree out front at the same time.
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It’s rare enough to see one of these large beauties on the property… no less two.
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Like I say..
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It was a banner day for peckers.
😉
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Our Coopers Hawk is back..
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And has staked out the bird feeding station.
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His Lordship kept a close watch.
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As did I…
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💕
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Our Coopers Hawk returned yesterday and hung out for almost an hour, which is quite unusual.
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His Lordship was fascinated and kept a close eye on the visitor this time.
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I’m not sure what held this beautiful guy’s attention for so long… but I’m not complaining.
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I enjoyed watching him almost as much as Dudley.
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💕
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I spied someone on the deck railing recently, and as you can see… the royal feline was clueless.
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The someone was a juvenile Coopers Hawk.
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There’s good hunting under our bird feeders and this beauty was seriously interested.
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After ten minutes of me taking pictures and saying hey, there’s a big bird outside…
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His Lordship caught on.
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Hullo gawgeous!
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Raptors are fascinating creatures.
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And seeing one this close is a special experience.
❤️
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River's world..... 