run, rabbit, run

Gimli, New Iceland, Manitoba, on the shores of Lake Winnipeg

Today the weather forecast predicts one hundred degree temperatures for the second day in a row. August finally arrived, after an easly Summer that looked a lot like a southern California February. The bluebonnets and Indian paintbrush gave way to black-eyed susans, eryngia (a cool purple flower like a pineapple thistle), coreopsis (which looked like a tall, spindly sunflower) and local lantanna. The air is filled with butterflies, but there are fewer of the large swallowtails and monarchs which accompany this season, and a plethora of smaller species.

Our dog Beatrice loves it when I say "let's go outside!", because she enjoys having a spectator during her morning hunts through the lemon grass, native flowers and bushes of our small back yard. Yesterday the spectacle turned into suspense as a small bunny came running out from a bush to which Bea was giving her ministrations. Bunny ran. Bea gave chase. Our other dog, Teddy, joined in the fun. The bunny took a first run at an escape space in the fence gate, but thought better of it and sprang back into the bushes. Then the bunny made another pass and successfully escaped, leaving Beatrice in curious attention by the "too small for a small dog" bunny escape hatch. The whole affair last less than two minutes, but provided an adventure to be rememebered for days.

In other news, I love birdsong, masala dosas, and Donors Choose, in which one can directly fund indvidual projects needed by under-funded schools, such as musical instruments, chess sets and science projects, whether with a large, project-completing gift or a small "keep the ball moving" gift toward the teacher-defined individual goals.
I think that school inequality is a major issue for our country, and I trust direct action rather than bureaucracy as the better way to address the issue.