Saturday, September 26, 2009

All things bright and beautiful!

Elle and Fairy roses from the rose garden; Gerberas from an appreciative staff member; a sunny yellow face from the front garden~ all thumbnails are clickable for larger photos

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On Thursday, Tour de Rock visited our school for the seventh year in a row, just before heading on the next leg of their journey south. Here are some of them getting ready to ride into our gym to a throng of awaiting children to cheer them on.

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The Canadian Cancer Society Cops for Cancer Tour de Rock raises money for pediatric cancer research and programs for children with a history of cancer. The 24 member Tour de Rock cycles from one end of Vancouver Island to the other, over 15 days, covering 1,000 kilometres. There is a youtube video of Tour de Rock if you are interested.


As you may know by now, on Fridays, a few friends/colleagues and I spend some time relaxing after the work week. After having worked indoors when the weather has been so beautiful outdoors, it is heavenly to sit on the deck and enjoy the surroundings.


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I have been waiting for one of the red darters to land like the ones I saw last fall, and on Friday I was very fortunate!

I first spotted what I think is a caterpillar known as Yellow Bear, (Virginian Tiger Moth)--Arctiinae/Arctiini/Spilosoma virginica or Hairy, for short.

Yellow Bear caterpillars are densely coated with yellow or orange (occasionally even red or black) hairs and grow to approx 2 inches. Feeds on many plants including birch, maple, cabbage and corn and found throughout.

When Hairy (Caterpillar) met Sally (Red Darter) ~

Sally noticed Hairy's golden hair glistening in the sunlight ~


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Hairy, who'd always had a thing for red heads, noticed Sally's wings and her slender body sparkling in the sunlight ...


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Sally waited for Hairy to come and meet her ~





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Sally waited ...



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and waited


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and waited some more...
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Finally, she thought, "What the heck!" and flew to meet him ...

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However, when Sally arrived, not appearing too eager, Hairy paid no mind. Sally was downcast!



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How was she to know that Hairy was thinking, "It is so nice when you can sit with someone and not have to talk."




Leaving you with a sunset on the other side of the mountain ~

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7 comments:

  1. Lovely post and photos!
    Tour de Rock looks to be a really well supported, and worthwhile, cause.
    I've seen a few caterpillars lately but none in a mini-epic like this!
    You sure do get some great sunsets there!
    Take care, and have a good week. xx

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  2. The Fairy Rose is quite an unusual colour. I didn't know until recently, looking at various blogs, just how many different Sunflowers there are. All have that lovely brilliant yellow in common though.

    Love the story of Hairy and Sally - what an imagination :)

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  3. Thanks Flighty ~ yes, Tour de Rock is a great cause and increases the students awareness of all that's involved. Some of the children grow their hair and have their braids (plaits) cut off to make wigs for the children going through chemotherapy.
    Have you seen the move Harry Meets Sally? I like it...and also like Sleepless in Seattle.
    I drove to the other side of the mountain, and thought a sunset from a different perspective would be interesting. The weeks are whipping by, and work is busy but good.

    Hi John ~ The Fairy Rose is a lovely pink, and does look a bit out of place amidst the peachy coloured flowers I posted. The Fairy Rose flowers are quite small and grow in bunches. They make a nice little bouquet. It is nice to see all the different kinds of Sunflowers ~ they are so cheery.
    Glad you liked Hairy and Sally ;) Yes, my imagination is always creating something... stories and poems ~ The last quote I used in my blog was from the movie. Have you seen Harry Meets Sally?

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  4. Yes I have! They're both nice feel good films that I usually watch when they're shown on TV. xx

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  5. Glo, I laughed at your Harry and Sally story. Very nice.

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  6. Mmmm, what lovely colors are still gracing your garden. I love the clustering of those Fairy roses. Poor Sally. She had such high hopes. If only they could read each other's thought bubbles...

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  7. Hi Glo, thank you very much for visiting my blog and for your kind comments.

    What a lovely set of colourful blooms you have here, so cheerful! Hairy and Sally made me laugh, very imaginative and what a beautiful sunset photo, delightful!
    :)

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