Canon is the best!

More macro-closeups. Caterpillars behind the cut.


The tiny claws amuse me. They look so much like cat claws. Only like cat claws X 10 -3

I’m really pleased with the focus level in this one. For some reason, the auto-focus on the macro has difficulty getting focused fully on the white worms, but does much better on the colored ones.

I love how wiggly the hairs are – it makes it look like he has bed-head.

A new, new camera

Well, the Vivitar that Chris got me for Early Christmas, took beautiful macros – but it has a freak battery that NOBODY, including Vivitar, had in stock.

So, it had to go back. I expressed my frustration to all the folks at Vivitar, Inc. Just this morning, actually, one of their phone monkeys called, telling me that they got my message – after I’d already talked to a live person, filed a complaint, and returned the merchandise.

Chris sent the Vivitar back, and got me a wonderful Canon A630. I have ordered some supplemental lenses and memory sticks, but the built-in macro on this one gets pretty great detail. I don’t have any kegos on hand to take comparison shots – but this is what it got from a moth:

cut for big close-up

Cruising

If you’ve read this blog for a while, you’ll know that my partner, Christopher, enjoys entering sweepstakes and contests.

One of his sweepstakes-entering friends recently won a cruise. A gay cruise. This one.

His friend couldn’t take the cruise, because of prior obligations. But – she transferred it to Chris! So now, Chris and I are going to be on a cruise of the Mexican Riviera, October 28 through November 4.

I found out later, that it’s the Lazy Bear Out to Sea 2006 Cruise. This went a long way toward soothing my concerns that it would be a bunch of circuit twinks. I’m sure there will still be lots of guys in much better shape, but I won’t be the only big guy with hair on his shoulders.

Neither of us have ever been on a cruise. I think we’re getting well-prepared in terms of paperwork, organizing, schedules, etc., – but I’d love more input if any of you have something to add! Suggestions, things you’ve learned, oh-my-god-they-never-mentioned kind of stuff.

And if any of you are going to be on the boat, drop me a note so I can look you up!

Too Many Kegos

A friend sent me eggs, and he sent WAY too many. I usually only raise 2 or 3 hundred at a time this late in the season, and I have well over a thousand hatchlings now. Probably close to two thousand. Some of my hatchling trays look like an anthill that somebody kicked.

If anybody would like to have some, I’m happy to give them away. As it is, I’m going to have to start killing off the extras in order to be able to keep them fed.

I have four different strains; two different whites, one with golden yellow cocoons, and one with peach cocoons. I’m in Dallas; I live in Farmers Branch, and work in Market Center.

They need mulberry leaf, but that’s it. The baby ones will need tender leaves. Mulberry is a common trash tree around here, and with a little scrounging it’s not too hard to locate a tree you can trim. If anybody wants more mature ones, they’re welcome to have a few of those, too, but it’s the babies that I’m trying to get rid of.