I was in Dayton a few weeks ago and saw these back-in parking spaces. I’ve seen pull-through spaces around the courthouse square in Newark, Ohio before (and in other towns), but never ones where you back into them. Are these common?
I can see where they allow more parking than parallel spaces. They probably don’t cause any more traffic backups than parallel spaces do when people are maneuvering their cars into them, either.
Spiders are cool. Take the crab spiders of Ohio, for instance (Thomisidae). They’re intriguing little guys. They’re not web weavers, these spiders. They’re passive hunters, masters of disguise. Stealthy little critters, they change color similar to chameleon lizards and blend in with their surroundings, then lie still and wait their prey to scuttle or alight nearby.
Then, when their meal is within striking distance, they pounce! They can take down prey several times larger than themselves, big insects like bees and wasps are common snacks.
A little while ago, I glanced down at the Fiberglas table next to me in the gazebo and spied a crab spider hanging on the side. Seeing how it was sporting its yellow camouflage to match it, I had to laugh. I suppose she might have found a meal there, but I still shuffled her onto a piece of paper and deposited her in the mulch by the plants. You can see her better there.
The pictures were taken with my camera phone, so they’re not very good quality. I haven’t identified which specific crab spider this is, and likely won’t. I just wanted to grab some quick pictures of the spider to share.
Here’s another photo I took of one some time ago. This one was hiding beneath the bloom on one of my coneflowers (echinacea purpurea).
I love spiders, as long as they’re not crawling on me.
Until I was looking at the local weather radar just now to glimpse the thunderstorm heading through our area, I never knew there was a Bacon, Ohio.
BACON.
With a name like Bacon, it has to be good.
How awesome is that? With a name like Bacon, it has to be a nice town. It’s a tiny town on 541, in between Coshocton and Plainfield. It’s a place so small, there’s not even a Wikipedia entry for it.
I must go there.
On another note, I thought it amusing to read this headline on the Newark Advocate’s website this morning: Severe weather training canceled for weather reasons.
Oh, how I love good headlines like that!
The sunset is gorgeous and the music is terrific.
We’be known Jayme since she was three years old. It’s hard to believe she’s fourteen! Howie and her dad met in college. Stella likes her and will relax in her lap.
Stella’s been a people magnet all night. She’s lying down now, just checking out all the people. When kids come by, her tail really gets going!
