i saw my first lightning bug aka firefly last night. i mean that. my FIRST. i've only ever seen them in cartoons.
maybe. maybe... in film.
but NEVER in the world. until. last night.
we were talking to some of our neighbors and our dogs were talking to their dogs and they were tellling us about the free blues nights, WOOFSTOCK, and "clubs that will make you feel like yr back in san francisco" [i think that means GAY. does it? i don't know. i think they get it that we are ... that way].... when suddenly it seemed to me that a spark flew out of this woman's eyeball in slow motion. a cold spark. and i gasped out loud. and maggie started to laugh at me & the woman looked concerned-perplexed and maggie says :
it's her first lightning bug. she's from california.
and that explained everything to everyone.
i have to say....
they are my favorite bugs.
out of all the new bugs and new bug concerns i now have here in NC.... lightning bugs are the BEST.
[i have over 20 mosquito bites i'm sure. and tony was telling us last night about ticks. do you know how TERRIFIED of ticks i am? i am. and what tony told me DID NOT HELP. they like dark, sweaty places.... o god! *what* isn't sweaty right now???? you step outside for 10 minutes and DO NOTHING... and
ONE: yr sweating
TWO: yr being attacked by a fleet of mosquitos
THREE: looking at the most beautiful landscape in the world.
****
we are going to our first poetry reading here on Saturday. all i know about it is that it is a Mixtape reading and Evie Shockley will be there. reading. and we get to meet Ken Rumble. and we get to see Chris Vitielo. and we get to find out if there are any other woman poets here or if it is just us.
****
i can't wait to read & write again.
and get a job. we need money.
somebody give me a job.
and somebody buy minor/american 1.1.!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
10 comments:
yay for Californians out in the world!
i didn't see a lightning bug until i was twenty four and in Central Park, right near the Tina Turner playground. his finger-flick drew light traces on the air. then we had gay, gay sex in the bushes.
the only job i know that's even vaguely in your area is still across another state.
can i buy minor american COD?
perhaps you could be an umpire
ooh... an umpire... that would be great!
i like yr lightning bug story better than mine.
also... you CAN buy a minor american from Elise Ficarra. she works at the Poetry Center. i think you know her? if not... i can arrange a meeting! thanks judy!
I saw MY first lightning bug in Carrboro, and yes, what a revelation!
I didn't see them again till last summer in Des Moines, and now this summer in Overland Park, KS. They are endlessly thrilling. So are the bunnies.
wait. do we have bunnies, too?
i have never seen a lightening bug.
i feel like you're on a weird extended vacation but you took all your stuff with you. this living with dogs and bugs in north carolina is very weird, katie
we feel like we're permanently camping. maggie just found a big ole june bug in the house. there are also flying and not-flying roaches. and, again, ticks. and also crickets that seem to be seriffed. accented. what else... i swear i saw a dragonfly hitching a ride on a neon green caterpillar today. and the june bug [which is probably one word] got away and lindsey told us they bite. which. i don't need any more of this biting business. o...
a mosquito attacked MY FACE in the bathroom. wtf mosquito? rude. i slapped my own face to kill it dead.
and bear dog is just... freaking out. the poor guy. puking, the runs, hiding under the bed. but percy... he is just fine.
anyway. if this were only a vacation i'd GO HOME. drop the dogs off with elise. and come back with hotel reservations. hehe.
i do like it here, though. a lot.
like... we ran three errands and it took 1/3 of the time it used to take to run those same errands. you know?
that's cool.
and i found the street with all the people on it. thanks to tony. eden. casey. lindsey. and even maggie knew but she didn't tell me.
Hi Kate,
Congratualtions on arriving in NC.
I saw my first firefly at the age of 6 when we were on our way to Minnesota to see my Grandm's old house (which it turned out, burned down the previous year).
NC doesn't have all the cool bugs. In the Sierras when I was a kid there were beetles as big as your fist.
About ticks: As long as you take your dog with you, you don't have to worry about getting ticks--he'll get them first.
I was a lightning bug for halloween one year. I made my butt light up with glowsticks.
Post a Comment