Archive for September, 2010

Living as we do at the edge of the forest, we share space with many wild creatures, large and small. Many are familiar: the deer and jack rabbits that browse on the hill, the frogs that call from the gutter downspouts, the hummingbirds that argue over nectar-filled flowers. Occasionally, we make a new acquaintance. This week it was a large dragonfly, noticeable for a long white tail and four dark wings that wave like flags.  A little research identified it as an adult male Common Whitetail (Libellula lydia). Its diet is mosquitoes and other flying insects.  An excellent neighbor to have around.

I’ve just posted a piece  on the Mendocino Coast Writers Conference blog about working with my editor, Andrew Todhunter, on revisions to my memoir about my sister Evelyn. The draft is finished, and out once again for comments. It’s always so valuable to see one’s work through another’s eyes.

Now I’ll need to write an epilogue. Just this week we learned that the New Zealand Geographical Board has assigned the name Stokes Peak, in Evelyn’s honor, to a peak in the Kaimai Range, between Tauranga (where she was born) and the Waikato (where she lived and worked). An impressive end to the story.