THE MIRACLE of METAMORPHOSIS.....

Early this magnificient sunday morning......

Come with me in my wild mediterranean garden to

meet these Beauties.....

Not only beautiful......but

sooo

" simpatici"...!!

My Butterflies just had fun and "played" for me

"Model"...!!

The head of a butterfly has the two antennae

which are long and skinny with little knobs at the ends.

They help the butterfly to smell and to balance..

The adult butterfly has two compound eyes,

each with lots of little

eyeballs grouped together....

The proboscis is coiled just below the head of a butterfly.

It is used like a straw to drink nectar.

The proboscis or tongue is tubular and hollow and allows a butterfly to suck

and feed the nectar from flowers.

When blood is pumped into the proboscis it uncurls

and behaves like a drinking straw...

All butterflies have four wings, a pair of large fore wings at the top

and a pair of hind wings below which are attached to the thorax

A Butterfly's body is covered with millions of soft

sensory hairs...

Their wings have veins running through them for support and for nourishment.

The wings are made up of thousands of tiny colorful scales

The uppersides and undersides of their wings

are usually entirely different colors...

Turn your garden into a butterfly paradise by trying some of the following suggestions:

Butterflies need warmth, shelter and nectar. There are several things you can do

to attract butterflies into your garden.

Different species of butterflies prefer different types of nectar.

The food plants that you choose will determine the types of butterflies

that will come to your garden...

Mmmhhhh....this "Drink" must be soo sweet....

Leave dandelions to grow in your garden as butterflies like dandelions.

Plant wild flowers for butterflies to visit...

Sunny spots are good for the plants as well as for the Butterflies...

Most butterflies have a short life (about a month)

so it must find a mate quickly to start the life cycle

of a butterfly all over again...

...spectacular view this morning from my window....

a little rain.....over there......and bright sun here....

Where are you...?

There are several butterflies that have longer lives (up to nine months).

For these butterflies, when winter arrives,

they will hibernate by finding a safe shelter in a shed,

in a house or behind a plant

(and go to sleep).....

Have a good look around your garden this summer

to see how many different butterflies you can spot....

Enjoy their beauty and remember to be very gentle

if you handle any as they are very fragile..!

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THINKING OF TUSCANY....

A house in Tuscany in splendid isolation,

bathed in glorious sunshine,

surrounded by

cypress trees

and with

green,

rolling countryside as far as the eye

can see, unbroken save for an

olive grove here or a

vineyard there...

....Can You see the little grey road on the left side....?

That's the road which leads to "our"

beach......

a five minute walk through a wood....

a pick-nick basket...

a swim suit....

When thinking of Italy, and particularly Tuscany,

….overlooking beautiful pastures with Tuscan fragrances wafting on the warm breeze.

Perhaps preceded by a gentle bicycle or horse ride

through vineyards and olive orchards,

ending with a slow meander

along a cypress-lined lane

to a rustic home

set on a hill…

Rustic natural stone wall..

.....Green Vineyards and the close Etruscan Coast...

Donoratico........."downtown"...!!

...a little shopping and a lot of
beach later on....!!!!!!!

..Have a happy and sunny Weekend!..

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HOT AIR FROM THE SAHARA DESERT......

Red-golden finest Sahara powder in the hot, humid air.......

The SCIROCCO arrived from the Sahara...!!!

The term Sirocco (sometimes also spelled Scirocco)

is an all-inclusive name given to hot and subsequently

humid southeast to southwest winds originating as hot,

dry desert-air over Northern Africa,

flowing northward into the southern Mediterranean basin.

Siroccos occur in advance of surface and upper level depressions

moving eastward across the southern Mediterranean Sea or northern Africa.

Rock Pigeon......on the village's fountain......drinking thirst-quenching fresh water....

...even the Rock Pigeons seem a little "lazy" to fly in this dusty air....

....enjoying the view....

Depending on where you are, the Sirocco is inhibiting substantially

different characteristics and has many different local names, too.

Along the northern African coast the hot air originates directly from the Sahara desert, producing hot, dry and dusty conditions.

As the air travels northward across the Mediterranean Sea,

the « Sirocco » picks up much moisture because of its high temperature,

and reaches southern Italy as Scirocco…

The hot humid wind causes overnight temperatures of 30°C and above,

while thermometer may well reach 40°C during daytime.

Let's take it easy though and enjoy a fun weekend on the beach......!!

Are you coming along....? Just grab the swimsuit...!

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...NOBILITY WITHOUT PRIDE...

Sheylah

Where in this wide world can man find nobility without pride,
Friendship without envy,
Or beauty without vanity?
Here, where grace is served with muscle
And strength by gentleness confined
He serves without servility; he has fought without enmity.
There is nothing so powerful, nothing less violent.
There is nothing so quick, nothing more patient.

Ronald Duncan, "The Horse," 1954

.....Wild white "Lilac"

The essential joy of being with horses is

that it brings us in contact with the rare elements of

grace, beauty, spirit, and fire.

Sharon Ralls Lemon

Ginestro

During the months of may and june, this deciduous scrub announces

the arrival of summer by producing

golden, almond-scented spikes of

peaflowers on wiry branches

all over.....

I wish You a golden, sunny and happy Sunday...!

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