Nocturnal Respite

[rejectomorph]

In bright moonlight, the ponderosas look rimed, almost phosphorescent, lending a frosty feel to the mild night. While the clouds lasted, I listened for thunder in the mountains and watched for lightning flashes, but there were none. Once the clouds had cleared, the street was flooded with light which glinted from every shiny object- mailboxes, television antennae, the ceramic insulators atop the utility poles and the wires slung between them- sparks of silvery light everywhere. Such a sight almost makes up for California's lack of fireflies. The night cooled nicely, too, eventually becoming quite comfortable. The last few gardenias release little scent now, leaving the air smelling fresher than it has in weeks. But the house remained stuffy, so I spent as much time outdoors as I could. I wanted to enjoy it while it remained, because the coming nights will be sultry again. Without a few such breaks as these, I would find summer here unendurable.


Sometime yesterday, my spider returned, but it seems to have come home to die. I noticed a while ago that its legs are no longer extended, but folded under its body, so that it looks like no more than a dark speck on the wall. Nearby, a dead gnat is stuck in the web, uneaten. I wonder if a larger spider will come to eat both tiny cadavers? RIP, little arachnid.