Blanket flowers

 

 

 

Poppies along the boardwalk.

 

And blue eyed grass.  (not really a grass)

 

Black-crested Titmouse

 

 

 

 

A little camera-shy.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Do we ever wonder if what we’re reading online is true?

 

 

Or if the people writing it are even real?

 

I just read that the number of “bots” on the internet has equaled the number of humans on the planet.  8 billion.  If that’s an overstatement, it won’t be for long.  Bots are increasing exponentially, and they don’t just produce content; they research, evaluate, make decisions, and act on them.  Not all bots are malicious, some perform useful functions like search engines, but they can also be used to manipulate.

 

Bots research data and churn out content so much faster than humans can.  If the purpose is for “clicks”, they can trigger anyone they want because they have the data to know exactly what works for any and every demographic.  Confirmation bias, tribal thinking, outrage loops?

 

Welcome to the rabbit hole.  At warp speed.

 

 

Hanging by a thread

 

 

 

It’s an inch worm.

 

The inch worm is a caterpillar that will eventually turn into a moth.

 

They will drop from a silk strand to blow in the wind to relocate or escape a predator.  If nothing exciting happens, they crawl back up that tiny thread, collecting it as they go and ingesting it so the materials can be reused.

 

 

 

I don’t know what this is

 

 

 

But I’m pretty sure it’s something.

 

We’ve always liked the front of our house

 

 

 

The bay windows, the little patio, the decorative chairs and table.

 

 

Then our neighbors went and upgraded theirs.

 

OMG.  That’s awesome!

 

They expanded the roof forward.  Now there’s enough room for the carport, and that wonderful deck.

 

It’s covered.  It’s on the north so it’s always shaded on hot days.  It’s big enough for some patio furniture and guests.

 

Perfect!

 

Funny thing

 

 

Judy’s A1C number, the long-term measure of blood sugar went up again, from 7 to 10.  (That’s not the funny part.)  It’s time to medicate so this doesn’t escalate to diabetes.  But the medicine, that’s the funny part.  Ozempic.  Originally designed to reduce blood sugar, it also happens to cause weight loss.  That’s the drug being advertised on TV now with celebrities touting how many pounds they’ve lost.  Reducing a dangerous level of blood sugar, that sounds fine.  Losing 60 or 80 pounds?  Not so much, starting at 125.  We expressed our concern.   We’re each at a healthy weight going into our most senior years.  We have a little cushion to help us stay ahead of frailty.  We settled on a micro-dose shot of 0.25 mg once a week.  (The weight loss champions are taking 2.0 mg per week.)  Judy has already lost a little bit of appetite and a couple pounds in the last two weeks.  It takes about 3 months for blood sugar changes to show up on the A1C test, but the daily blood sugar checks she does at home have her down about 100 points, so that’s positive.  We’ll keep an eye on the blood sugar, and the weight.