The smoky skies from the Canadian wildfires had kept Rudi and I off The Urban Porch ™ and sequestered inside for a number of days. Once they cleared, we were especially eager to get out and about.

At first, with the relief of breathable skies, I planted myself right back out and into my porch chair, watching the ever-entertaining show go by. But lately I’ve been wandering afield a bit. Up first was the search for the Bobolinks, one of many on my favorite bird list. Wearing a bright cap of yellow, with flashes of white and black on wings and back (that’s the males) and a twinkly, melodic song, they swoop delightfully across grassy fields during their courting season. This year I was hoping to catch their return again.

Much to my disappointment, for some reason there was not one Bobolink to be seen. The field was blowing with beautiful waving grasses, the season was correct. It appeared to be the ideal situation to see them. Perhaps the smoke had set their schedules back a bit? Or maybe I had arrived too late for the event.

It was a gorgeous day with dramatic clouds. The wind blew sweet with the scent of clover, grasses, and something floral I could not identify.

Milkweed was just starting to come up. Birdsfoot trefoil was blooming.

Pipevine Swallowtails flitted about, barely alighting long enough to be appreciated.

There were a number of Red-winged Blackbirds in the vicinity. One put on an entertaining display, fluffing out his wings to show off bright epaulets.

At the last moment before leaving the field, suddenly a Bobolink, and then another, could be heard somewhere deep in the grasses, one in a tree. They weren’t doing their courtship dance – they must have already been nesting. It’s nice to know they have returned again this year.

On another day, my brother and his wife visited for a few hours. They like to go to antique shops, flea markets and garage sales – they call it “picking” – and greatly enjoy finding old things and then working on restoring them together. It is their mutual hobby, just done for themselves. There is something sort of endearing and enviable about that, and about them. I have joked in the past that at times their property looks a little like an antique miniature golf course! So I took them to a few places where they might discover small treasures and projects to do.

They did find some things that excited them….. along with the sobering discovery that many of the fun finds from “back-in-the-day” now have ridiculously jacked-up price tags attached to them. And I do mean ridiculous. Almost rudely ridiculous. I used to enjoy these places myself. Nowadays I mostly just look – the stuff inside this house is like a flea market in itself and I really don’t need any more of it. It’s also pretty amazing (and a bit disconcerting) to find that a lot of these things considered “old fashioned”, “antique” and “vintage” are the very things you grew up with. You see something and it triggers all sorts of memories. Then you almost want to get it back. Nostalgia is certainly a powerful hook.

They also keep bees for a hobby. It is not lost on me that the two of them are much like busy worker bees themselves. I would have sat around and hung out on the porch with them for a bit, but they were all very Go-Go-Go.

Because I spent the day with them, I missed the annual Gemini Party with friends who celebrate their Gemini birthdays together at their riverside bass hole. This is a different, younger, and more eclectic mix of people than the group I’ve been seeing annually for over thirty years (see Same Time Next Year). I didn’t realize until looking at some old photos that I’ve been attending this event for about nine years…. some of the people I only see once a year when they are there. It has been lovely to reconnect with those I know and like, keeping a thread of association over time. There is something about the continuity, the rhythm of consistency and the rites of a season. I guess this has become one of those things. But I did stop by the following day to put my feet in the water and catch up with a few stragglers who had stayed overnight.

While having a quiet walk and talk along the river with my friend who hosted the event, we came upon a couple sitting not far from the water, having themselves a picnic. They were cooking up a pile of crayfish (or crawfish, if that’s your word) that they had caught among the rocks.

Talk about nostalgia; catching crayfish brings me back to a very old place, being maybe seven or eight years old, riding my bicycle alone to “the brook” and finding crayfish there; catching them, studying them, and then letting them go. There is also the disturbing saga of my children’s crayfish that I wrote about a few years back (see Crayfish/Karma). The picnickers offered us a taste of their cooked catch directly from their smoke-blackened fingers. My friend scrunched up her nose and politely demurred, but of course, I ate some. There may be no correlation, but the following day I was sick as a dog. Perhaps it was some sort of crayfish revenge…..

On the subject of wild food, I was walking the dog yesterday when I came across a mulberry tree in full fruit, dropping berries everywhere. With excitement, I went back today to gather some.

While doing so, I met a new neighbor who just moved in next to the tree. Maybe it was her tree….she didn’t seem to mind. (Did they wonder, who is this woman in a lady-bug skirt and crazy-white hair, with hands, face and arms stained purple? Quite the sight, I’m sure). The mulberries are so sweet……I put a few in plain yogurt to add bursts of juicy flavor.

Returning to life as viewed from the porch, last night I saw the first sparkles of fireflies – actually only two random ones blinking – signaling to each other, heralding the beginning of their magical summer display.

Along with the fireflies have come the mosquitos. While standing on the sidewalk at dusk, chatting with a few more new neighbors (we have LOTS of new neighbors on this street suddenly!) we all began swatting ourselves and each other at the sudden onslaught. Do they seem bigger and more aggressive this year? This may limit the hours out on the porch. My herbal repellant concoctions do not seem to be cutting it. I have reluctantly resorted to buying the commercial mosquito spray in order to hold claim to my territory.

Off the porch and on the block, a group of neighbors all got together and went to the annual UFO festival held not far from here, in a town famous for numerous sightings over the years. Having actually already had my own UFO experience (see A Triangle of Lights in the Sky), I begged off that expedition and took advantage of a Saturday in the house alone. By the time they headed out on their excursion, the initially enthusiastic party of eleven had whittled down to seven, but the report is that it was a fun event, with vendors, lectures, and the crowd coming dressed up in full alien attire.

We are just a few days away from Summer Solstice, marking where summer officially begins. There is a light rain happening at the moment. They say if the winds change, we might have smoky skies here again. Given that, I will probably plan to be outside as much as possible now.

Although I am craving an eggroll, I think I’ll head downstairs and throw together some broccoli-themed quick dinner. Pasta with chili/onion crisp, olive oil, parmesan and broccoli on top. With mulberries and cream for dessert.

Armed with my super duper bug repellent, I plan to be back on the porch for observation and contemplation this week.

~*~