Wednesday, September 13, 2017

Wednesday Vignette: Full moon over the Los Angeles Harbor

Last week, on September 5th, I caught sight of the full moon hanging low over the Los Angeles Harbor just after twilight's end.  Usually, any photos I take of the harbor at night are blurry at best.  But I thought this photo put the harbor in a particularly nice light.  (Pun intended.)  I'm presenting this as my Wednesday Vignette.  Visit Anna of Flutter & Hum to see what her camera caught this week and to find images shared by others.



I also took a couple shots of my cat this week that made me laugh, although the source of my amusement requires explanation.

Has Pipig been given a "time out" for some transgression?

Or is this simply an example of the usual feline narcolepsy?


Neither of those theories explain Pipig's behavior.  As it turns out, she was intently focused on a very narrow space at the bottom of the door, a spot about a quarter of an inch wide and less than an inch tall, where the weather-stripping running the length of the door stopped short of the threshold.  For over a week, my husband and I'd been perplexed about how teeny-tiny baby lizards were getting into the house.  Pipig is usually my husband's favorite scapegoat when something goes awry in the house but even he didn't think she was bringing in the tiny lizards.  Her behavior at the door provided the final clue.  As my husband searched for a temporary solution to stop the small lizards from entering through the gap, Pipig stood watch.  However, she eventually got bored and left her station, leaving us to chase down one more baby lizard before the hole was patched.

Frustrated house-loving lizards continue to hang out by the front door.

This is an adult lizard, approximately 3 or 4 times the size of the invading baby lizards.  Of course, the larger lizards do have another way into the house.  It they're foolish and enter Pipig's screened porch, she'll catch them and bring them in to lay at my feet, as she did yesterday.  Catching that one took my husband and I a good half hour and required moving several pieces of furniture.  He was relocated to the back slope, far from Pipig and her porch.


All material © 2012-2017 by Kris Peterson for Late to the Garden Party

16 comments:

  1. Ha! I don't know which I like more, the beautiful harbor shot or focused Pipig.

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  2. Love the shots of the guard cat! *She* knew how they were getting inside. Beautiful picture of the harbor with the full moon too.

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    1. Too bad Pipig can't speak but I suppose I'm equally at fault for not learning cat-speak.

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  3. What a stunning full moon shot! Pipig deserves a reward for her detective skills.

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    1. Pipig is already a very spoiled cat - and then there is the fact that she also brings in lizards...

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  4. "The moon over Los Angeles" makes me think of an old movie or something. Ha! Pipig, alternately helpful, pointing out the baby lizards' entry point, and "helpful" bringing the adults in for you to enjoy. No doubt she looks on pityingly as her humans bumble about trying to catch the prey she has brought to hone their utterly inferior hunting skills. She just hates to see you struggle so when you could be self-sufficient.

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    1. She was very proud of herself when she brought that last lizard in, announcing her arrival so I could appreciate her achievement. At least she didn't eat it - she did that once and the result wasn't pretty. I thought it was dead but, as I tried to move her away from it, it woke up and took off. With the amount of practice my husband and I've had catching them, you would think we'd be better at it by now...

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  5. Love the shot of the harbor, but I also got such a kick out of your lizard stories. Good thing you have Pipig. She'll keep them at bay! :)

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    1. With Pipig, I think it's all about the chase. Interesting that the baby lizards knew well enough to stay out when she was guarding their entrance but the foolish adult lizards trespass on her turf.

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  6. Haha - catch and release! ;) At least she found the inlet for you and the patch will stop the heat from seeping into the house. ;)
    Love the moon over the harbor - nice pic!

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    1. She did eat a lizard once - it really wasn't pleasant for either of us so I'm glad she hasn't repeated that behavior!

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  7. We have baby alligator lizards finding their way inside all the time and Lucy is right on top of this. So far there has been only one fatality and several lost tails.

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    1. Unfortunately, we killed one while trying to rescue it. As best as I can recall, Pipig has only killed the one she ate - and promptly threw back up. However, several of Pipig's catches have also lost tails. All ours are western fence lizards.

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  8. The tiny ones are out and about here too. They are the cutest little things, aren't they?

    Enjoy this heavenly cool weather! Perfect for moving 3 yards of topsoil. :)

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    1. They're cute as long as they stay out of the house, HB! Two of the 3 cubic yards of soil (plus another 800+ lbs of stone) are now in place. Now I just have 1 cubic yard to move and lots to plant!

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