2.13.2014

serendipity

noun \ˌser-ən-ˈdi-pə-tē\
: luck that takes the form of finding valuable or pleasant things that are not looked for

A wonderful word don't you think?!  And so it happened last September.  Yeah, I know a wee bit behind on posting.  As if this is a surprise to anyone, right?

Anyway, it was at the Yellow Daisy Art Festival that she discovered that rare moment of serendipity.  Fleeting and rare, they are always a thrill. 

As she was loading her purchases into the back of the vehicle and cramming them in (specifically the curly willow) to make them fit she noticed....


...a wonderfully built cocoon!  Nothing like anything she had ever seen before.  So much time had been taken by some little critter to build a purrfectly camouflaged winter home that even she missed it until it was in her face. Literally.

So delicate, she was now a little more careful with the cramming of the curly willow branches into said car.  And hard to believe as it is, the little guy made it home intact and still attached to the branch.


When she got home she couldn't wait to share this moment of elation with me.  As I listened to her, I pondered two things.

One, how the heck did she know what gender this cocoon-bound thing was? Er....never mind, I don't want to know.

So I moved onto the second pondering, and more important, what would emerge?!  I mean look at the construction with the little pieces attached to the outside!  Are those little pieces of lavender?  Did he attach them as he made his cocoon or before?  Lavender! It brings to mind the smells of summer!


Many a night I fell asleep and dreamed of a grand butterfly emerging.  Perhaps a Royal Lavender Crested butterfly!  Oh wouldn't that be most glorious?!?!  I could almost taste it! The lavender that is.  Not the butterfly. Just kidding. Maybe.


But wait! I could keep him as a pet and charge admission to those who wanted to see him up close and personal.  I'd probably be so rich I would have to buy acreage to plant all the catnip seeds I could buy with the bags and bags of money!!!!

Months went by and the branches sat in the studio still tied together so as not to disturb the little snoozing fellow for fear it would simply fall right off.  And me? I keep dreaming of the Royal Lavender Crested butterfly and fields of catnip.


Two days ago, Grammie came over and finally she remembered to ask if they could look up the info to determine the species of this glorious wonder. (It only took her five months to remember to ask Grammie, who has this kind of information readily available in books.)

Later that evening, with information in hand, she returned home to share the news with me.  My cherished little guy....

was a......

bagworm!

A BAGWORM?!?!  


The horror!  I have provided shelter and protection to a BAGWORM!?!  The absolute H O R R O R! 

I should have let my bratty sister, Matilda,  have it. 


Grammie suggested that she put it in a jar.  Just in case it, (not a he anymore) overwintered.  The information said, they are VERY good at overwintering.  Of course it is in the house, would it know that it's still winter and not time to hatch?

Purrhaps, it knows it snowed here yesterday.  Eight and a half inches. We very seldom get snow. I am not allowed to venture outside even though it is melting. I am bored. 

The bagworm is not in a jar yet. Tomorrow she says, it will go in a jar. Right now though, it is unprotected.  

Are you aware that it is not nice to ruin a cat's glorious plans of catnip fields and lavender butterflies?  Well, I'm here to tell you, it is not nice at all!

May she sleep soundly tonight and never hear that which goes bump, for I shall not remain bored or humiliated for long..... 

.... a bagworm? hmpfh!








14 comments:

oldgreymare said...

oh dear..but what IS a bagworm?

NanaDiana said...

LOL- OMG- Poor Romeo- visions of grandeur going right out the window. I guess if you put a BAG worm in a jar...would you put a JAR worm in a BAG? Hysterical!

I am so glad that SHE went to all the trouble to SAVE a bagworm. If she does that for HIM imagine how good care she must take of you....and you can count on that! xo Diana

Anonymous said...

Hey Dude, just popped over to check on you and how your winter is going so far. We got about a foot and a half of snow with the storm from yesterday and this morning, and it is wicked windy. So windy it could blow the whiskers right off a cats face so it's not fit for man nor mostly beast outside. I hate late winters... more white stuff than you can shake your tail at and that will lag around till the end of time. Plus is delays Mom from buying any plants for the porch for me to eat, er sniff. I am partial, funny you should mention it, to eating her lavender... makes her totally crazy when I do cause' she wants it for something called sachets. Hey, what's a bagworm look like? Or for that matter, what do they do... are they tasty? Mom hates me to eat bugs... I keep trying to explain it's just a little extra protein but she still gets are ruffled!
Sorry you got white stuff down there too... at least yours will be gone pretty soon...
Well, I'm all pooped from this computer stuff so I'm off to catch a few Zzzz's before dinner.
Later Dude...
Raphael and his Mom

Linda @ A La Carte said...

A bagworm??? That just sounds gross. Charlie says he will come over and you can both 'take care of it' for HER!

Diane said...

I'm glad to hear that your staying inside, Romeo. It's too cold out there for beautiful creatures like yourself.

I had to look up bagworms and they don't look like very desirable bugs. The males are kind of pretty. Tell "her" that I read that 1,000!!!! larvae could come out of that. I think it's a beautiful little creation. (But not good for cats probably) Sorry about her and your disappointment. So good to hear from you anyway. Diane and Rascal(he's a dog but thinks he's a cat sometimes)

Diane said...

Oh, Romeo, and "her" I'm so sorry about your disappointment. It is a pretty creation. So good to hear from you and to hear that you're staying in the house and warm. Diane and my dog, Rascal, who sometimes thinks he's a cat like you.

Rustique Gal said...

Romeo dear, I understand your disappointment! I'd be dreaming of butterflies too. Now I'm dreaming of gardening, but the 2ish feet of snow is doing it's best to keep me out of the dirt. So I bought a few tiny succulents and planted them in a pretty bowl. I still have dirt under my fingernails! Spring is coming...
Hugs,
Sherry

Maureen said...

Oh too bad it wasn't a butterfly - I have never heard of a bagworm before. I fear I don't want to see what emerges...

Blessed Serendipity said...

Although it was not a beautiful butterfly as hoped, It was certainly serendipity for the bagworm indeed.

xo
Danielle

Unknown said...

Romeo,

How gross! I can't believe you had to be around that bagworm thing. Of course, my situation isn't much better. My mom as put me to work on her new blog as a stage cat! Can you believe it? From star to stage manager, how humiliating. Hope all is well with you.

Purrs and meows,

Kramer

Julia @ Vintage with Laces said...

Hello my sweet little furry friend, I'm sorry to hear that your dream of a gorgeous butterfly won't come true with that cocoon. You freaked me out quite a bit, telling that it's occupied by a bagworm. Please, please don't use the "W" word in my presence again. I'm friends with spiders, never scream when I see a mouse etc. but worms are my nightmare. I can deal with earthworms, every other worm I find just super nasty, icky, yucky, disgusting. Brrrrr. Still, I looked up your bagworm because I hadn't heard of it before. It's a moth. What a relieve. That makes it a small butterfly, just not a very pretty one. Soon it will be spring and you can go outside again and wait for some glorious butterflies to come by. They are no snacks though, o.k.?
Please say an affectionate "hi" to your Mom and tell her that I wish you and her a wonderful weekend!
Hugs,
Julia

Bohemian said...

Oh, hilarious... even tho' I have no idea what a Bagworm is?! Hopefully it does not emmerge ravenous... I mean, do they eat bags? *winks* But it does Create a most Beautiful and Elaborate Cocoon I must say, I've never seen one like that! Probably because I've never seen a Bagworm though... *Smiles*

Blessings from the Arizona Desert... Dawn... The Bohemian

Bohemian said...

I just HAD to look up Bag Worm to see what we were dealing with here... they don't seem to have a very good Rep... tell her to get the Jar, quickly! *LOL*

Dawn... The Bohemian

Debra Taylor said...

I love the word Serendipity too!!

Oh, it should not be embarrassing to have a bagworm - they must have a purpose too!


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