Cottonmouth Snakes

Cottonmouth - Author's Picture

I got a poor picture of a venomous northern cottonmouth (Agkistrodon piscivorus). I've seen a few too many this year, and I'm always on the lookout for them. I don't think they've ever chased me, but I have had them roll into a defensive position and "gape" at me. The "gape" is where they open their mouths and hope that you go away. The inside of the mouth is very white, thus, "cottonmouth." They're also called water moccasins. Oh, the time that one "gaped" at me, hoping I would run away? It happened when I was a teenager, and I ran away. Seriously, though, I was terrified.

Agkistrodon piscivorus

Technically, a cottonmouth is not "poisonous." The way it works, if you bite it and get sick, it's poisonous. If it bites you and you are envenomated, it is a venomous snake. So, a cottonmouth is a venomous snake. They're dangerous if you mess with one. Source: Meta via Snake Identification.

Agkistrodon piscivorus

Source: Meta via Texas Snake Identification.

Blue Jays

Blue Jay Feather - Author's Picture

The above picture was taken in June of 2025. I had been seeing a lot of blue jays in the yard. I saw bright blue birds and some that were not quite as colorful. I think the bright ones are male, and the less bright ones are female. They're very vocal creatures.

I'd been trying to see if I could find a feather. It's not too impressive, and I have found beautiful, perfect feathers in the past. Officially, the bird is called Cyanocitta cristata. There are four subspecies of them. Oh, I took the feather back outside and put it on the ground.

More sources about Blue Jays:

https://tpwd.texas.gov/huntwild/wild/species/bluejay/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Blue_jay

Blue Jay

Image by Nick on Pixabay.

Black-eyed Susan Flowers

Black-eyed Susan - Author's Picture

Black-eyed Susan - Author's Picture

I was raised to call these flowers and others similar to them "black-eyed Susan." The pictures were taken in June of 2025. According to various sources, the flower has been used in folk medicine and even to make dye. There are several varieties of them. It is the state flower of Maryland.

Sources: Wikipedia, Almanac.com, and Wildflowers of Texas by Geyata Ajilvsgi.

Rattlesnake Information

Rattlesnake Information

Rosy Maple Moth

Rosy Maple Moth - Author's Picture

This picture, taken in the spring of 2025, shows the Rosy Maple Moth, or Dryocampa rubicunda.

Muscadines Ripening

Muscadines

All of them haven't fully ripened, but many have. The name for this plant is Vitis rotundifolia. They are a kind of grape that you can find growing in the wild in areas of Texas.

The vines in the first picture belong to my in-law's. If they get enough, they're going to make jelly. I helped pick some the other day and kept three for myself to see how they tasted. Yes, I washed them thoroughly. They have a good taste.

The other day I had an unplanned visit to take my mom to the doctor. She saw her PCP but didn't have an appointment. They told her to come anyway, so that's what we did. It took forever after we got there.

First, it started thundering. It never rained, so that was okay. Then, mom saw the doctor. From there they sent her to labs, where she had bloodwork and a urine text. Then she went over to have an x-ray. After all that, she went back to the doctor. Then, she went to the in-building pharmacy to pick up prescriptions. Finally, we got to go home. After all was said and done, I had to take her car to the store to put gas in it. I was exhausted.

Back To The Grind

Petunia - Author's Picture

"The image shows a Wild Petunia, which is a common name for plants belonging to the genus Ruellia, particularly species like Ruellia humilis (Hairy Wild Petunia) or Ruellia caroliniensis (Carolina Wild Petunia)." Source: Google Image Search and AI.

I've been doing dishes, laundry, washing carpets, and making hummingbird food. Remember, it's 4 parts water to 1 part sugar. You don't need to buy it at the store, and the food that's dyed red is not recommended. It probably won't be long until the hummingbirds vanish until next year, but for now they're very active. Also, I fed the dogs and watched the neighbor saddle and ride her horse for a while.

It's August, which is generally a scorching time here in Texas. It has been unseasonable cool lately. I'm not ready for fall and winter weather. If I had the money, I'd move some place where it stays warm year around. It's supposed to warm up, tomorrow.

Invaded by Feral Pigs

Feral Pigs - Author's Picture

The picture shows a couple of feral pigs in front of our house. My wife took it. I spent some time last night watching movies and drawing out a map of Dobbs City on a piece of graphing paper. The extended holiday weekend is now over. Tomorrow it's back to the household grind.

After the above events, a friend of ours came to visit. He rode up on his 4-wheeler. All was well with him, but he would have to do without breakfast the next day. There was no food in the house, and he had no money. We gave him $5 to help him out - he said it was more than enough for his breakfast. I then had to make him take it. He didn't really want to.

Happy Labor Day Weekend

Walkingstick

"The image shows a walkingstick, also known as a stick insect or phasmid." (Google.) The one in the picture seems to have been attacked or something. It's missing limbs.

We took our usual trip to Walmart, but we haven't really done anything else this weekend. I did get a roast for supper (dinner).

It's been raining and surprisingly cool for August. I don't really care for cool or cold weather. I much prefer it when it's warm or even hot outside.

Happy Labor Day Weekend!

Journal, August 21

Eastern Tiger Swallowtail

I posted a picture of two butterflies previously. Here's another, single one. It's an Eastern Tiger Swallowtail.

Tonight, I had to take some trash up to the dumpster. Garbage goes into a rented dumpster. The dumpster is too far away to walk to it, so I have to carry it up there in the car. On the way back down the driveway, I saw my sister-in-law doing something beside her house. I stopped. She was pulling cattle panels out of the weeds. I helped her, and before long, we had dragged several panels out into more tall grass. We set them up and moved a young lady's horse into them so it could graze. That's probably the most interesting thing I've done all day, if not all week. The young lady is very nice and respectful, but she's bored, I think. I wish we could have invited her to dinner, though my sister-in-law had already fed her.

Eastern Tiger Swallowtails

Eastern Tiger Swallowtails

Google says the butterflies pictured are Eastern Tiger Swallowtails. I was walking in the back yard near the property line when one landed. I was trying to get a picture of it, and then a second one landed. I had been trying to get a picture of one of these for the past few weeks. Then got two in one.

Happy Birthday to H.P. Lovecraft (August 20, 1890)!

Well, we had the burgers at my father-in-law's cookout the other day, and we burnt the burgers. Those that were not burned were delicious, as were the hot dogs that were grilled along with them. My S-i-L and I sat outside on the back porch and started talking. We weren't paying attention, and the next thing you know, we had "burn-burgers" instead of hamburgers. We had chocolate cake for dessert, which was also good.

I met a fellow from Nepal a few days ago. He talked about how he'd seen Mt. Everest. He'd never been really close to it because it's dangerous. It's almost 50k to attempt to climb it, he said. I wish I had had more time to talk with him about it.

Differential Grasshopper

Differential Grasshopper - Author's Picture

The image shows a Differential Grasshopper (Melanoplus differentialis). I had a coffee pot in the house that failed, and I had to replace it. I took the old one outside and set it on top of the porch deep freezer. I went back inside, and when I came out, this guy was sitting there. They're a common sight this time of year.

This evening, hopefully, I'll get to go to my father-in-law's birthday party. Well, a birthday cookout. I've been wanting a hamburger. They'll be really good if he cooks them or if my sister-in-law does. "I'm looking forward to it. We're supposed to be there at 5, a little more than an hour away at the time of this writing.

For reasons I won't state, I started smoking again. Today, I'm restarting the nicotine patches that my doctor prescribed. I don't really like smoking, and the expense is just too much. I hope I can stick with it this time. Last time I quit for almost a whole year.

Journal, August 10

Common Five-lined Skink - Author's Picture

"The image shows a Common Five-lined Skink (Plestiodon fasciatus), a fast-moving lizard found across eastern North America. Diet and Reproduction: Their diet primarily consists of invertebrates like spiders, crickets, and beetles, but they may also eat small frogs or other lizards. Defense Mechanism: Five-lined skinks can shed their tails when threatened, a defense mechanism that allows them to escape while the detached tail distracts predators. The tail will regenerate over time, though its appearance may differ from the original." Source: Adapted from Google Image Search and AI. Read more.

On Friday, we went to Walmart, and we had to go back on Saturday as well. On the way out of town, we had to stop at Petco. You have to drive across a parking lot to get back out on the highway. To do so, you have to pass by a Taco Bell, which is also located on that parking lot. As we did, some fool shot out of the Taco Bell parking lot, and I had to slam on the brakes to avoid hitting her. I'm almost positive that she did it on purpose. Some people are either idiots or despicable. Don't brake check anyone. Don't be a fool. If I had hit her, I would have lost my car for good.

Mourning Cloak Butterfly

Mourning Cloak - Author's Picture

This guy sat beside me for about about 30 minutes. For a while I couldn't discover what kind it was, but it has since been identified as a mourning cloak, aka Nymphalis antiopa.

Mourning Cloak

Journal, July 12

Paper Wasp - Author's Picture

It did some storming the other day. Thunder was booming, and lightning hit something close by. I don't know what, but I do know that it scared me, and I almost left the place. It was the loudest I'd heard in a long time. The good news is that it's Texas, and the yard is already starting to dry up. I need to devote one entire day to yardwork.

This morning, I removed the dogs' water bucket from the kennel. I needed to clean it out. While I was reaching inside the kennel, our little Jack Russell mix ran through the door. I had to chase the old man and physically carry him back.

Today I carried some leftovers out of the house. I placed them just out of the yard so my raccoons could get to them easily. When I came back up on the porch, I attracted the attention of some paper wasps. They flew into the right side of my shorts, and I got stung three times. Although I don't like bothering any living thing, I looked for and found their nest. It was built on the stair railing.

I didn't have any wasp spray. What I did have was Dawn dishwashing soap. I mixed some up and blasted the wasps that were on the next. Then I removed the nest. All you have to do is mix just a bit, maybe two tablespoons of Dawn, into a sprayer or even a jar or old glass. Anything with a wide mouth will work. Dash it on the nest and your problem is solved. If the nest is higher up, of course, you're probably going to need some "real" wasp spray, the kind that shoots a great distance.

If you get stung by wasps, and if you don't have anything else, you can apply aerosol hairspray to your wound. Hairspray will remove the sting's pain very rapidly. The best thing you can do, however, it to get yourself a common essential oil: Lavender. The latter works on burns and stings.

Journal, July 9

Author's Picture

The mushroom in the image appears to be a species from the genus Amanita, possibly Amanita vaginata (also known as the sheathed amanita or cucumela). While many Amanita species are edible, including all in the sections Caesareae and Vaginatae, it's crucial to note that the genus also contains some of the world's deadliest mushrooms, such as the Death Cap (Amanita phalloides) and the Destroying Angel (Amanita virosa). Source: Google Image Search.

This post is also a random test update via email. I'm not necessarily anticipating that phone posts will be needed, but it's a possibility, and I need to cover all my bases. This post shall be updated again when I get to my PC.

Poke Salad

Poke Salad - Author's Picture

Phytolacca americana, or "poke salad," is a type of wild green found in the southern United States. It's now growing, and has been growing for some time (let's say mid-March) where I live. Poke salad is also called inkberry, among other names. The berries that it produces are a beautiful, dark purple color. I often wonder if they could be used as pigment by an artist.

Historically, the plant was used in alternative medicine. All parts of the plant are toxic. The leaves, which can be used as (human) food, must be carefully prepared. I once got very sick from eating poke salad.

Poke Salad

What is poke salad?

Journal, June 19

Turtle - Author's Picture

My wife told me that, yesterday, she went out onto the front porch. We have two benches and two chairs out there. I made one bench and the two chairs. There's a swing-type bench also, and that's where my wife usually sits. Anyway, she sat on the bench, looked left, and saw that she had just sat down next to a copperhead. She didn't get a picture. She was too busy getting away.

Yesterday, we lost our internet for about three hours. You don't realize how much you depend on it until it's gone. The picture of the turtle was taken in my front yard after a couple of days of heavy rain. I think the water had everything moving around.

Journal, June 4

Coons - Author's Picture

It's now June. March and April were hectic months. We practically lived at the hospital in Plano, Texas. We finally returned home with a do-it-yourself IV bag and frayed nerves. Now we're dealing with poor insurance and a local oncologist.

Hospitals can be a place of joy when a loved one is healed. But this is not always the case. I saw a young woman walking outside, crying her eyes out. I don't know what was wrong, but I felt bad for her.

I went to Burger King in Plano a few times. It wasn't as exotic as the Korean food I had, but I have always loved their double cheeseburgers. I remember when I first discovered them. It was in 1988 at Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland. I was about 18 or maybe 19 and in the army. As I recall, it was quite a long walk from the barracks to the restaurant.

Occasionally, I just had to get out of the hospital room for a while. I went down to a large lobby and watched Hellraiser 2 on my laptop. I got to enjoy a lightning show and a storm that was brewing outside. I also noticed that my laptop runs very slowly when it's on battery power. I usually keep it plugged up.

I met several interesting people. One of them was Frank, who was also in the lobby trying to get some sleep. He was from Ashdown, Arkansas. We talked for a while, and then I hushed so he could get some rest. His daughter was in the hospital. That happened on March 31st.

Crane Fly

Crane Fly

We have crane flies in Texas, and I grew up thinking they were "giant mosquitoes." These are crane flies. They look sketchy, but apparently, they're harmless. The photo and the following text came from Meta.

Hi...I'm not what you think I am.

I'm a crane fly - people often call me a "giant mosquito," and because of that, many end my life out of fear or disgust. But here's the truth: I don't bite. I don't suck blood. I'm completely harmless.

I don't want to hurt anyone. All I do is sip nectar and help with pollination - just doing my quiet part in the ecosystem.

Please...don't swat me just because I look scary. I'm not a vampire. I'm not a threat. I'm just a misunderstood insect, trying to live.

Now that you know me...maybe next time, let me be. Even the smallest lives deserve kindness. Source: Meta