Waiter, there's a fly on my head!

I was trying to sneak up on this Drone Fly as it posed nicely on a patch of yellow daisies, perfectly color coordinated.  And, just as I moved in for "the shot", the little turd flew over and landed on this rather faded garden critter.  Since I was already in position, I snapped a couple of shots and decided, once I had this one up on my screen, that it was actually perfect for the Silly Saturday Challenge.  Thanks to Admirer for hosting Silly Saturday.  


These large bee-mimics are actually flies in the Syrphidae family, same as hoverflies.  Scientific name (genus) is Eristalis but their common name is dronefly, presumably because of their resemblance to honeybee drones.  There are around 100 species within this genus, so they are probably familiar to most of you.  They fly late in the season here in our part of the world and are welcome in most gardens for their pollinating value.  Plus, they are rather handsome!

No butterflies today, but I did find one small wasp who was too cold to move (or bite me).  Little guy was well hidden in some late-blooming milkweed, but I spotted him and got a decent shot, HERE on Flickr

Hubs and I went for a nice walk - it was 50 F and sunny, so jackets were in order.  Very nice to stretch the legs and enjoy the remnants fo fall colors along the lake.  We then proceeded to destroy every bit of value we might have gotten from the walk by going to a local hot dog place for lunch.  This place opened 3 or 4 years ago and we keep saying we have to stop in one day and give it a try.  Well, we can now cross that off our list.  And I don't think we'll be making a return visit.  Maybe we're just not hog-dog people.  

Dinner tonight will some version of pasta with fresh roasted purple cauliflower from the local farm.  I'm thinking garlic, shallots, pine nuts and parmesan with orchietta...

Tomorrow I have to fast all day in preperation for Monday's colonoscopy.  And I will have to drink the first dose of noxious beverage around 4 tomorrow afternoon.  Not looking forward to that.  However, only a day of inconvenience and then it will be behind me.   Pun intended.  

Thanks for stopping by - hope today's blip made you laugh!

xo
Debbi