(no subject)

There are many markers of summer, but for me, one of the strongest in this area is the arrival of the catbirds. They've been here for several weeks now, filling out the ranks of the usual suspects, starlings and grackles, robins and sparrows, blue jays and cardinals, crows and morning doves.

I'm sitting outside enjoying the evening air, and there are a pair of red bellied woodpeckers sporting around in the tree on the corner. They seem to be having fun, and it's a pleasure to watch them.

ETA: Another marker of summer is the arrival of fireflies. I noticed ours a couple of nights ago, when I was out walking in the rain. There were several, high up in the trees. I was sitting out on the porch just now, watching the day fade (it's only just gone fully dark), and a few flew past. Lovely. :-)

uh huh...

I've been wondering since the alleged "scandal" concerning the Tea Party and the IRS first got legs why anyone was considering it scandalous that the IRS was investigating what appeared outwardly to be political groups to see if they really were, in fact, social groups involved in little or no political activity, as they claimed. Or if, perhaps, they were political groups seeking tax-exempt status to shield their income. But no one in the media seems to be doing anything but sucking on the "scandal" crack pipe. Because, of course, if there were no scandal, there would be no news story, and reporters might have to, you know, go out and find actual news to report on.

Seems like at least one other person is skeptical, and trying to blow some of the smoke away.

I'm sure it's a sign of my increasing age, but I look back and seem to remember there being more initiative, more gumption, and more willingness to seek out real wrongdoing in the national press of the 1970s and 1980s, which all seems to have gone by the wayside in exchange for 24/7 telegenic newsreaders with glitzy special effects and expensive suits. Maybe if they spent a little less on holograms and a little more on actual reporters, they might be able to do more than just read off the latest talking points delivered from American Crossroads.