War and Peace

Well, I was able to photograph and identify two or three new butterflies/moths today. In fact, one of them was going to be my picture of the day. What I suspicioned to be a hummingbird moth (or a figment of my imagination) was proved today to be the former (yay! Though the 'figment' column remains alarmingly long in other respects.).

It was a Snowberry Clearwing Moth, which looks a bit like a huge bumblebee color-wise, but flies and moves uncannily like a hummingbird. It's quite large, a little under two inches, I'd guess. One of those little creatures I never knew existed before, that evokes that "What an amazing world we live in" realization. Here it is: http://www.pbase.com/image/33189517

The second butterfly was a Pearl Crescent, a tiny little butterfly that I believe is quite common, but I think is very beautiful: http://www.pbase.com/image/33189511

So. That's that.
~-~-~-~-~-~-~-~
Then along came something that made today -- well, "Today".
There's a story involved behind this picture. (Don't say I didn't warn you. The title should give away the length of the story.)

This afternoon I trudged out to the mow the yard and warily look over the jungle which is the vegetable garden. We have had rain for three days straight and today turned out to be utterly gorgeous -- in the 70's, no humidity, and beautiful white clouds in a blue sky that went on forever.

I had made my first loop around the back yard with the tractor and then went and mowed a bit in the front. When I returned for my second pass in the back yard, I saw something sitting in the grass where I was certain there had been nothing before.
Now, the relationship with the neighbor to our north has been a bit trying at times.
For a while their large, aggressive dogs were allowed to roam the neighborhood freely, sans Pooper Scooper, if you know what I mean.
Then came the dirtbikes that roared for hours on end.
For about a year now it has been quieter, the dogs have only been let out on stakes, and the dirtbikes have been put away. Still, our friendliness has pretty much remained at an "I'm content to ignore you." level.
So today my first reaction when I saw this bag sitting there was, sadly, "Oh, crap. Now what?" I really expected garbage, or something unpleasant. I drove over and looked down warily.
A bag. Full of peaches.
There was a note, simply stating that the peaches were from their orchard and organically grown, and to please enjoy them.

Do you ever have one of those weeks where a simple kindness completely unnerves you?
I actually had tears in my eyes (I'm cranky, but I'm pretty sappy, too.)

Now I have something to throw at his dogs if they come in my yard.
(Kidding! Kidding!) You really must learn when I'm joking, you know.
I washed and ate one tonight before supper, and it was delicious.

This kind gesture actually gave me the energy to go out and get some mums to plant in the front like I'd been meaning to for ages.
The mum in the picture is from one I was planting this evening, where a stem was broken.
The color of it in relation to the peaches is coincidental.
~ Or is it? ~