Warm Night Ahead

[rejectomorph]

Today, the clouds have waited until evening to gather. I fear that they will hold in the day's heat. Their steely blue-gray rumples are pleasant to look at, though, and their presence could presage a delightful nocturnal thunder storm, with great, blinding flashes of lightning, and aural concussions rumbling through the deepened darkness which follows them. This potential has induced me not to turn on the lawn sprinklers this evening, even though I would have enjoyed the sound of them, and the cooling vapors they would have released. There's no point in watering the not-yet-fully-desiccated lawn if it is soon to be soaked by rain.

Before the clouds grew dense, the afternoon was placid, though uncomfortably warm, and was filled with the sound of bees. I continue to see an uncommonly large number of bumblebees this year, but the usually ubiquitous yellowjackets are rare. There have been more butterflies than in recent years as well, but most of the lepidopts I've seen have been white. I have no idea what has become of the monarchs and other colorful species.

Despite the clouds, I can see the slightly gibbous moon and, little more than its diameter distant, the bright pinpoint of light that is Jupiter. The sight will soon vanish under drifting clouds, though, so I'm going out to watch it while it's there.

Comments

[carbonunit.livejournal.com]

They say that Jupiter is visible in the day right now, if the sky is clear, and that its proximity to the moon makes it much easier to find. Venus is often bright enough to see during the day, and Mars was last year, but I never knew about Jupiter.

[rejectomorph]

It will be further from the moon this afternoon- rising a half hour or so ahead of it, I think. (I can't recall offhand how much later the waxing moon rises each day.) If I remember, I'll look for Jupiter before sunset.