Blue sky with cotton shreds

But clouds are massing on the Southern horizon.  A black swallowtail flitted from rue to parsley.  The wren has learned to fly directly through the hole into its house.  Dragonflies and wasps are buzzing everywhere.  Titmice were on the feeder early.  Finches followed. 

A cicada landed on the trunk of the new maple but the camera refused to believe I wanted to focus there.  A hummingbird flitted everywhere but the feeder. A black saddlebags zoomed against the blue sky.  Skimmers and pondhawks perched.  Skinks scurried in the heat. 

Brooks came and removed the dead limbs from the oak as well as the fallen sweet gum limb.  I rescued a tiny tortoise beetle from the pool - it looks like it has a transparent dome over it.  Just as I reached for the camera, it flew away.  An egret preened on the dock, using toes as well as beak, and fluffing out its wings - I saw dust fly.  The house wren sang and sang and posed very nicely on its house perch.  Later when I came in, a Carolina wren came to the feeder.