Vernal Pooling

Well, I took the day off to do something I like to do but sure must seem stupid; I went out to a couple of wooded areas to look at some vernal pools. Yep, I know; goofball. I would never ask anyone to go with me on some expedition that must seem idiotic.

Vernal pools are small, shallow ponds that hold water part of the year but generally go dry in mid to late summer. The particular characteristic has to be established. It can't be a one-time wet area; the result of an unusually rainy spring. They are important to the ecosystem and are full of biodiversity.

I drove out to a place known to have a couple vernal pools. I put on my dumb-looking boots, rubber gloves and walked out to see what I could find. This time of the year there are interesting things to uncover at a vernal pool. There are various kinds of amphibian eggs such as assortment of species of salamander, toad, frog and turtle. There are also interesting and rare invertebrates that are found nowhere else but within vernal pools. Unfortunately, vernal pools are also a prime property for mosquitoes, which begin developing in the early spring.

I became excited because I think I spotted the small, jelly-like egg mass soon to be jefferson salamander larvae. It's been a while since I've seen jefferson salamander eggs, so I'm not 100% sure what I was looking at. The jefferson salamander usually lays fewer eggs than the spotted salamander or something like a wood frog. Still, not 100% sure.

Anyway, I'm home now, messing around on the internet, and savoring a small glass of bourbon, bourbon purchased by someone else, for someone else, but drinkable by me.



     

It Was Obvious To Me

I'm not exactly an old lady, but some of my coworkers are actually younger than me. Some younger by about a decade, which is kind of scary when I stop and think about it.

Two of them work together in the same general area. I would be surprised if either has yet reached 20. One, Neal, is male, the other, Kayla, is female. Both are nice people but neither is exactly a social butterfly. Kayla is a little better socially than Neal but still, she is not exactly at ease with other people, especially guys. One thing that I find rather amusing as I have looked on from afar is this attraction they have for each other. To me it is pretty obvious, but apparently not to everyone.

Tuesday something got into me and I asked Neal if I could ask him a slightly personal question. He nodded, albeit a bit reluctantly. I then asked if he had gone out with Kayla yet. I figured he hadn't but I wasn't sure. It was a legitimate question, well, sort of. Anyway, Neal immediately became self-conscious then quickly shook his head. He bashfully told me that he liked Kayla but he thought sure that he'd get turned down. He said that he had kind of assumed that Kayla just wanted to be friends.

I can't remember if I actually giggled or not. Maybe I just got close to a giggle and kept it in. I informed Neal that he definitely would not get turned down. Neal looked at me as if I were nuts. He then, almost defiantly, questioned how I could be so sure.

I have asked, and received relationship advice in my life but I'm not thrilled with the idea of giving it. Nevertheless, I smiled and asked Neal if he had ever noticed how close Kayla stands to him when she is talking to him. He looked confused and shook his head. I told him that she stands about a half step closer than what would be normal. It is not a "just friends" distance, I said. I then informed Neal that when she speaks to him her voice is just a little softer than when she speaks to other people. I told Neal that the quiet voice comes from a bit of emotion leaking into her speech. Finally, I asked Neal if he ever noticed how she will go out of her way to make needless conversation with him. For a few seconds Neal gave me this blank stare before finally stating once again that he was pretty sure that Kayla just wanted to be friends. I told Neal that I am not an expert, and I can't read minds, but that I was 99% sure he was wrong.

Well I'll be honest; if I had been wrong I probably would not have written this blog entry. And if I had been wrong, Neal would not be sharing a pizza with Kayla in about an hour.

No Ordinary Patriots

I was at Terry's, my boyfriend, apartment yesterday evening. Since I carry nothing more than a cheap cellphone, I asked Terry if I could jump on his PC while he ran out to get our pizza. I had heard there was a snowy owl spotted in eastern Massachusetts and I wanted to get online to find out if it was true (it was). While I was on his computer, I saw a desktop folder that was labeled "Patriots". I clicked on the folder to find out what was inside. We live in New England so maybe he had some past New England Patriots listed. Well, what was inside this "Patriots" folder was probably something like 500 nude female photos and assorted short porn videos, porn videos if their names were any indication. One thing for sure; neither the photos nor the videos were of any Patriots I was familiar with. Of course I knew that I had uncovered Terry's porn stash.

My first reaction was surprise. I was not shocked, but I was surprised. It is possible that the source of my surprised came mostly by the fact that I had happened upon porn, and not that I had found specifically Terry's porn.  It is possible, after all, I was expecting to see football players such as Tedy Bruschi and Kevin Faulk in Patriot uniforms.

I do not live under a rock, at least I haven't lived under a rock in a long time. I know that as a rule, guys like porn. I've read where men more than women are "sight" oriented when it comes to sexual arousal. Philosophically speaking, this is not the fault of guys. It is the doing of mother nature. Anyway, the point I'm trying to make is; I did not get angry. I was probably disappointed for a minute or two but that did not last long because after a moment of thought, I concluded that I had no reason to be disappointed. As I said, Terry is basically following his human instincts. And it isn't like I am completely immune to porn myself. The sight of a good-looking guy can raise my pulse a few beats, even if it's just a photo.

Anyway, I did not and will not mention to Terry that I found his digital porn inventory. Terry may find many girls sexually attractive, but there is only one that he attends to personally. And I won't ask for anything more. Terry will never learn that I know of the porn. Besides, I've kept some secrets from him too. One of them is the existence of this blog.