Goodbyes

As of mid-afternoon, everybody is gone. Even the last two tadpoles, who joined their buddy who moved to the neighbors' fish pond a couple of days ago.

As of this morning, we had a two-legger (above) and a four-legger (below).

The two legger was carried by OmegaMom in a small gelato dish to the pond; the granddotter carried the nearing froghood critter in her hands. figuring that he was almost ready for the open air.

Goodbye, tadpoles! Enjoy your new lives as frogs. Meet your cousin or brother or sis (below), photographed by our neighbor, who reported that the little spider had attached a guideline to the froglet's nose. Neighbor wondered how long the spider lasted after that foolish maneuver.

A few hours later, the dotter and granddotter were packed and in the rental car on their way to Sky Harbor and thence Alaska. It's lonely here, with just me and the Max cat, but I had a wonderful three weeks with all my family.

Links: Steve Lummer posted an interesting, behind-the-scenes angle on the July 4th fireworks, while Touch Wind travelled to Patagonia where even the pizza parlor featured cool metal figures (scroll down -- there are six separate posts in the series). Then there's The Modulator with the July 10 Friday Ark, featuring a long list of recent critter posts.

Ornamental frogs & toads

Our weather has been weird this week -- the Central Highlands have been damp, covered by clouds for more than three days. In May. May is the month you expect the hot winds and the sun dry everything to a crisp. It's made me feel like Al Capp's Joe Btfsplk, whose life was forever under a small private cloud. All of which might explain why the subject of frogs came up when I considered a subject for tonight's post -- frogs like the kind of weather we've been having. (So do toads.)

For starters, you were probably not aware that there is indeed an Arizona State Frog -- it is the Arizona tree frog, who beat out the spadefoot toad (above) 11,866 to a mere 3,486 in a vote of school children. I think that's a freaking shame, as the spadefoot guy is a lot more interesting and deserving for his perseverance. Besides, he's a desert critter. Guess the tree frog is a lot prettier (below). More to the point, the spadefoot guy in that picture is the only amphibian I've ever seen in the Prescott area. Our state frog lives up above the rim where, at least, I've seen a tank or two lined with bull frogs.

Being as how we have few frogs or toads hereabouts, I'm surprised at how many amphib themed items I've found to photograph in my local meanderings. For example, above is one of my favorite modern stained glass windows and, below, a neighbor's fine Tshirt.

Froggy items for the garden abound, whether you're going upscale at Tuesday Morning or shopping at WalMart.

This fine fellow decorates a corner of my niece's front porch. The frog king rules a yard a few doors down the street.

Some frogs would be lost among all those plants in a garden and are meant for the knickknack shelf.

Mexico is source for the more colorful indoor frogs (above, below). A very dear friend spent several summers in Mexico (Acatlan) working with a local artisan producing large ceramic toads for the tourista trade, an experience she described in her thesis and book.

I am quite taken with friend Patty's leap frogs, but the handsome fellow below means the most to me -- he was made by my Mom many years ago when she took up ceramics. As you can see, everybody loves frogs! I love both frogs and toads, having known more toads than frogs in my lifetime, probably because toads show up at lighted porches to chow down on the insects that head for the light.

Links: Interesting -- DaveG just linked to my post about Quonset Huts here in Prescott; in addition to a fistful of blogs, he maintains a page devoted to all you ever wanted to know about those versatile, semi-tubular structures. And, I hate to admit it, my frogs are but nothing compared to the Genuine R.E.D. Griffin in a streetscape down in Tucson. I want it so very badly.

Flags for the Current Season

Brrr! That's the message of this seasonal flag I caught when walking the neighborhood this afternoon. Its setting, among the pines, is appropriate to the frosty mood. Looks very Kinkade-ish on closer inspection.

The local proprietors of the local JBs also make a point of changing banners to suit the season and/or holiday. Reminds me of the house over on Park Avenue that has lights and other yard decor for major holidays.

I've no idea just what this grand frog symbolizes. I don't think the Chinese have a Year of the Frog--besides, it was supposed to be the Year of the Pig across the Pacific. Perhaps the frog is an appeal for more moisture. With suction pads like those, he must be a tree frog of some sort. He's green like the tree frogs I recall from Florida -- but they weren't as fat as this guy. Believe it or not, there are two species of tree frog in Arizona, one of which is the official State Amphibian, beating out the spadefoot toad! (Getting back to the original subject, here is a site with flags and banners for every occasion or fancy.)