Other Stuff

A sunset & I have changed my theme.

Hello people. This sunset is from the other night.  We’ve had heat, we’ve had rain, and a coldish day while Sydney sweltered.

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I’ve changed my theme back to Twenty Fourteen, but ditched that nasty black sidebar. I found myself missing my ‘in-your-face’ photos, and still scrolling to the top of the post to click-through to comments, so I figured everyone else probably is used to doing that, too.

I’ve managed to add a few words to my novel. I know how it is to end, just having a few problems getting from A to B.

I’m still catching up on my other blog –  way behind on writing up my online learning experiences. A few of the classes have fizzled out, just not enough to hold my attention.

Back on the treadmill. I’m not doing much there, having a bit of bother with either numbness or pains in the feet and legs. Time to talk to the doc about it, I suppose. It’s happened before, years ago.

Aren’t these revolting things! Seen on my daily morning walk. I missed three or four days last week when Vika was sick. It was like having a baby – but without the nappy. She chewed on an old bone, I think, and ended up leaving little puddles of mess (from both ends) all over the lounge room, including the rugs! Talk about stink!

WP_20141031_011Are they ‘spit-fires’?

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26 thoughts on “A sunset & I have changed my theme.”

    • Hi Sue, they are bunched up caterpillars. My cousin Sue, below, confirms they are what we call spitfires. So, time to google … apparently we give this name to a couple of grubs, but I’ve just found out that these ones might actually be the larvae of a wasp! When disturbed it exudes a noxious substance from the mouth. Turns into a Sawfly (but is actually a non-stinging wasp). They look horrible.

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  2. Sue says:

    Spit fires – that is only a small bunch of them. Make sure you don’t get too close, have been told that if you get any in your eyes it will burn like hell. When the boys were little they used to poke at them with a stick, the trees outside their primary school were crawling with them. Horrible things.
    Poor Vika, I hope she is fully recovered.

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    • Sue says:

      I believe they are a “sawfly”, the grubs (caterpillar) come out of the ground and mass together, really creepy to see, looks like they are writhing around each other. They can decimate a young tree.

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    • Hello Sue, they are icky looking, just the one bunch though. Yes, Vika is fully recovered, took her awhile though. It’s happened before after chewing on an old found bone.

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      • Sue says:

        Glad she is recovered, it’s disgusting what dog’s will eat if they aren’t watched. Are you sure you don’t have sciatica, that can cause pinching and numbness in the feet. There are stretches you can do to ease it but it never really goes away. A “tens” device is very helpful as well, and you can wear it day and night. Forgot to say that the spit fires actually live in the ground and crawl up into the tree.

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        • I do get sciatica Sue, I didn’t know it could lead to numb feet though. I’ll check out treatment and exercises, thanks for that hint. The spitfire adult sawflys come up out of the ground, fly up the tree and lay their eggs which hatch out the caterpillars, which then come back down when fully grown to make cocoons and morph into adults. I can feel the theme of a fantasy horror story coming on! 😮

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    • Hello Barbara, these turn into a sawfly, a type of non-stinging wasp which looks like a cross between a moth and a cicada! I’ll do a follow post later as I’m quite intriqued.

      Congrats on your new story, I’ve had just a quick look at the email so far … I’ll trot along later and check out your blog. A new book made me remember that I still must get your other one for the grandchildren for Xmas. 🙂

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  6. I agree with Maggie — ewwwwwww, and I hope your numbness gets diagnosed and better very soon.

    But my “ewwwwww” is really what raroto wrote. What the hell is that?! (I did read the other comments so know … but still, “ewwwwwww, what the hell?!”

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    • These icky things are worth another post and more photos. 🙂 Between cousin Sue, M-R and google we have the answer.

      As to the numbness, Cindi, I had CTscans and tests years ago, which didn’t find the cause but excluded a lot. Still, I reckon it’s coming from my spine – now that it hasn’t as much fat cushioning it – I’m sure I was about the same weight last time, too!

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  10. Yuk to those caterpillars. Boo to numbness. Have you had blood tests for Vit B12 deficiency? You might need monthly injections. I have to take a daily supplement. Had to go for about a million blood tests to check what I needed. And as for stories, I always have to know what the ending is before I start. Then the hard part is starting. I haven’t written a story in a long time.

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    • There’s a lot going for outlining, that’s for sure. I was having regular B12 injections with my last doctor, even though my blood levels were in a normal range, but this one doesn’t seem keen until we discuss it properly – we had other stuff going on when I saw her last.

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