Bugs!

We can't let the spring pass by without pausing to contemplate the entomological paradise that Nova Scotia is at this time of year. In other words, there are so many different kinds of annoying bugs, it is unreal.
There are the plain old short-lived blackflies, that bite like hell whenever the sun is shining, and then three weeks later they are gone. Just like that. But alongside them are the sneaky wood ticks, much faster and more wily than the lumbering scoottish sheep tick. Oh yes, you'll find them in your hair, belly button, between your toes, and even, ouch, on your nipple. First hand knowledge. Thankfully, they too are short lived and have bid us goodbye till next year.
Then there are the enormous stump-lifters, a large elongated beetle with great long scary looking antennae; appropriately named as you certainly know when they arrive as you feel a thud on the back, or head. They take a little more killing than even a tick, and supposedly give you a hell of a bite, though so far I've managed to calmly remove them (run screaming and flapping and jumping up and down upon the beast) before they have done any harm. And now we have the mosquito, who saunter out at closing time to spoil an otherwise perfect evening, and by day the poor horses are driven demented by horseflies, moose flies and deer flies, all different but equally irritating in their own special way.
Supposedly the bug season will soon calm down, and despite various lumps and bumps it hasn't been too bad given that I've spent most of the spring outdoors, not used repellent at all, and only had a bug suit on for the worst of the blackflies. And there are lots of interesting nice bugs too. Well maybe nice is not the right word to use. But interesting. Like I said, an entemologist's heaven...

Loons and Peepers

What a racket! It's like living in the middle of a rainforest here, at night, at the moment.

The Spring Peepers are little tree frogs with big gobs and bobbly toes and there's thoosands of them all chirping at the same time. You can hear them from inside your car as you drive the highway!

On top of that, we have loons on the lake and they have such a distinctive call.

We were sat on the deck the other night with a glass of home brewed wine, under the stars, drinking it all in...