Distractions While Reading Outside

1.
The unexpected appearance of familiar companions.

2.
The mouth-watering smell of soup simmering, wafting through the kitchen door.

3.
The hummingbird that has taken up residence, reminding me of my deceased friend Betsy, who enjoyed them from this same summer vantage point.

4.

Missing Betsy.

Food for Thought

I
A Great Spreadwing's supper consists of many insects, including colorful beetles, and there are no leftovers.

II

For supper, I am eating beef vegetable soup, without consideration of the cattle on a feed lot or their slaughtering or their butchering or the ways in which the leftovers not suitable for human consumption might be used. I may not be able to eat it all.

III

Discover Life says this about Odonates:

Odonata have widely been objects of superstition. In Germany, odonata have had over 150 different names, including names that mean "devil's needle," "water witch," "goddess' horse," "devil's horse," and "snake killer." In England, names meaning "devil's darning needle" and "horse stinger" have been used. In Denmark, some names mean "devil's riding horse" and "goldsmith." A Swedish name means "hobgoblin fly"; long ago, the people in Sweden believed that goblins, elves and fairies lived in the woods and used dragonflies as twisting tools. Another Swedish name means "blind stinger," and comes from the belief that dragonflies can pick out your eyes or even sew them shut. Also, odonata have obviously been connected to females: "damselfly." The body shape of odonata have led them to earn names than mean "devil's steelyard" and such because they look like heavy tools. The myth is that the Devil uses them to weigh a persons soul, and when a dragonfly flies around your head, you should expect serious punishment

IV

Something to ponder: just who is the "devil's" instrument when it comes to eating?

What's New in the New Year

Soup!

Thanks to my niece-in-law J who gave a bowl to my nephew D before his performance in The Nutcracker. 

"What's that?" I asked.

"Thai Chicken Vegetable Soup," she answered.

"Did you make that?"

She told me the secret: Swanson's Thai Ginger Flavor Infused Broth.

Tonight, with the threat of severe cold and the promise of snow, I followed the directions and enjoyed my first bowl.

In this new year, I declare it a good thing. 

Now to try all the other recipes.

Thank heavens there are many many many days left in 2014!