This is likely to be our last zinnia of the season. It just opened this week, but the weather has also turned noticeably cooler. It's 50º F (10º C) out there right now. Not a whole lot of zinnias left in our future for this calendar year!
We had a lot of rain yesterday and as a result I went nowhere. I barely even got off the couch. But it was great -- I got a chance to catch up on e-mail and everyone's blogs, and I finished my latest Newbery read. ("The Graveyard Book" by Neil Gaiman, which I really enjoyed.) I even cracked the first cover of my dreaded stack of New Yorkers, which I hope to work through today.
I love a rainy day. Any sense of pressure or obligation to be active just goes out the window. The dog didn't express even the remotest desire to go outside, at least more than was essential. I did manage to do two loads of laundry.
While lying on the couch in the afternoon, I felt something crawling on my head. I gently brushed it off and found this:
It's a ladybird (ladybug) larva. How on earth it got on me indoors is a complete mystery. I hadn't been outside for hours. Anyway, It seemed fine, so I took it out into the garden and put it on one of the sunflower plants, where I know there are aphids it can feast upon. It seems late in the year for a larva and I hope it has time to pupate into an adult before the really cold weather comes along.
Early in the morning -- before the heavy rain started -- I experimented more with the 360-degree camera I borrowed from work. Have I mentioned this yet? It takes 360-degree pictures and videos, and though I haven't yet figured out how to make the pictures work -- when I view them on my computer they're stretched flat, like a Mercator map -- the videos are easy enough. YouTube automatically converts them into the proper format.
Here's an example. When you view the video, you can use your cursor to drag the picture in any direction. Pretty cool, huh? The downside, of course, is that you're going to get an image of me holding the camera. I do have a monopod to allow the camera to stand on its own, but I couldn't get the remote app -- which would have allowed me to turn on the camera remotely rather than manually -- to work properly on my phone. Oh well. Anyway, it's a fun gadget, and maybe I'll experiment with it a bit more now that I know I can use the end result. Stay tuned!
Pretty cool. Olga looks very happy with a lot of tail wagging.
ReplyDeleteShe'd rather I play Kong than play with the camera!
DeleteI love it. Great to see animated-you, too. And clearly Olga doesn’t like the 360-degree camera any more than she likes the others.
ReplyDeleteYeah, she's fed up with me and photography, for sure!
DeleteI think your garden is perfect, just the kind of garden I would love if I had one. Mine is a postage stamp. lol
ReplyDeleteBriony
x
The foxes like it too!
DeleteThe 360 video clip is mind boggling... just like your blue sweatshirt: "United Nations/Nations Unite"? No bloody chance! You might as well be wearing a shirt that reads "Save the Dodo!"
ReplyDeleteIt actually says "United Nations/Nations Unies" (the second is the French name for the United Nations). I got that shirt while visiting the UN in 1995 and it has been positively indestructible. I've worn it for almost half my life!
DeleteThat's so clever! How on earth do these things work? I like finding ladybird larva and am always amazed how different they look from the final stage of a ladybird. Like little monsters. Have you ever seen a dragin fly larva? They live in ponds and eat tadpoles. They are terrifying looking and I am pleased they are only small!
ReplyDeleteI wonder if larval insects often look scary or disgusting so we'll stay away from them? Maybe it's a defense mechanism!
DeleteA great feature. I see Olga was suitably impressed (by turning her backside to the camera). After all, you could have been throwing her kong and not faffing about with the camera. :)
ReplyDeleteEXACTLY -- she runs out of patience quickly when I'm messing around with a camera!
DeleteI cannot fathom how that camera works. But it seems to work great!
ReplyDeleteI read that Neil Gaiman book and enjoyed it myself. I'm only about three NY'ers behind at the moment. This feels like success.
You're ahead of me -- I'm five behind, I think.
Deletelovely garden. you should post before and now pictures so we can see how you and Dave have transformed it since you moved in. we've been getting rain here to just about every day this past week. fortunately the thunder, lightning, and high wind was only the first two days.
ReplyDeleteI think I've linked to those posts in the past, showing the garden when we moved in. Just look at posts from late July 2014 and you'll see it. :)
DeleteYour zinnia is beautiful. What a fun camera! I've never seen one before. You have a lovely garden area. Wishing you a super day, hugs, Edna B.
ReplyDeleteIt IS a fun camera! It's about $300 to buy, I think, so I'm glad I can just borrow one. :)
DeleteThat camera is wild and crazy, and I love all the views. Your garden is beautiful and it is great to see. you and Olga there.
ReplyDeleteThe garden isn't as beautiful now -- it's past it's peak -- but at least you can really see how it's laid out all the way around.
DeleteLady bugs seem to end up in my house on a regular basis. They seem to be able to find openings that lets them enter.
ReplyDeleteApparently they come inside for winter, sometimes in problematic swarms! I've never had that happen, fortunately.
DeleteA day lying on the couch sounds like just the thing. Wonderfully indulgent and relaxing.
ReplyDeleteIt was fantastic. I need more exercise, though!
DeleteThat is cool and I like all of the views we get! Great to see you and Olga!
ReplyDeleteGlad you liked it!
DeleteWow, that camera is pretty cool! I loved seeing you and Olga wagging her tail and barking. And the garden looks so lush and green. That is a fun device.
ReplyDeleteI also love that first photo. That colorful and blurred background is perfect.
The depth-of-field in the first photo is actually a little too shallow. I should have tried to get more of the zinnia in focus. But oh well!
Deletegadgets are fun! Glad you could borrow before buying. When Erik was about nine - he filmed the entire transition of larvae to lady. Lucky timing.
ReplyDeleteOh, I'm not going to buy one. Too rich for my blood! Borrowing is enough. :)
DeleteI remember you telling me about that ladybug film. Do you still have it? You should put it on YouTube!
By far my favorite part of that 360 degree video was you and Olga. I love the amused affection in your expression when you looked over and saw her. I was moved by it actually. A moment of simple goodness.
ReplyDeleteShe always tries to steal the show. :)
DeleteWell that was fun! I know I was supposed to be admiring the garden, but I spent the whole time watching Olga! She is so cute.
ReplyDeleteA deer ravaged my moonflowers overnight. So much for our outside watchdogs who evidently slept through the entire feast. It rivaled your sunflower carnage. I was crushed.
Oh no! Well, at least it's the end of the season, right? So they probably would have died back anyway.
DeleteDown here they bloom late, so they were still in their full glory with dozens of blooms each night! At least the deer don't seem to like the seed pods. I'm already getting some for next year, which make it less irritating.
DeleteCool video ... ROOFF! Can you tell I watched Olga the whole time? To be fair, I watched again so I could take better advantage of the 360 rotation.
ReplyDeleteThat's the downside of the 360-Degree format. You can't see everything! You pretty much have to watch twice to get the full effect.
DeleteRain is the best excuse todo nothing.
ReplyDeleteWe haven't had a rainy day in a while, so I may have to think of anew reason for doing nothing.
It's sad that we need an excuse, isn't it?!
DeleteI think seeing you & Olga is the highlight of the video! Very cool!
ReplyDelete