Sunday, August 24, 2008

Return of the Mantises ...

As I mentioned in passing a few days ago, we'd been catching glimpses of mantises in the garden, but today while he was weeding, Fernymoss discovered just what we've been waiting to see and managed to spend some up close and personal time with him and these photos give a good representation of the encounter (the shots of him scurrying off weren't the greatest, so I left them out). Here, he's clearly spotted Fernymoss and seems to be saying 'Hello there ... what are you doing in my territory?' Since we love having these guys around, we give them plenty of respect and space when we encounter them, and so far we have cohabited peacefully (and gratefully on our part).
I suppose one could debate the utility of having Praying Mantises in the garden, because they are voracious predator insects and will catch and eat anything they can feasibly ingest, and as such, they might also be preying upon some other beneficial insects. But overall, we're convinced that their presence is beneficial and most warmly welcomed in our garden, and we're glad they're here! Here, our little friend appears to be returning to what he was doing, but still keeping an eye on that huge creature pointing some strange object at him and moving menacingly too close ... let's keep an eye on this situation.
Finally, he has warmed up a bit to the situation and returns briefly to his business, before being hounded even further by Fernymoss, who took probably another 10 shots of him, before he really rejected posing and took off for other parts of the front bed. I'm sure, though, that we'll see more of him and his family around as we move into the late Summer and Fall season, when they were most predominant last year. And of course, all quality Mantis sightings and photo shoots will be appearing here!

Friday night, we finally caught up with a series I've been recording that the Logo network has just begun airing, Sordid Lives: The Series, and it appears to be every bit as promising as the 2000 film version of a play by Del Shores (that originated in Los Angeles), which chronicled the indeed sordid lives of a bizarre extended terminally trashy, family, friends, and enemies in a small Texas town. Yes, it's pretty high camp, but it's done so lovingly by those involved, it's hard to not be drawn into the absurd dramas of these people's lives... Like many of our favorites, it's not for everyone, but for those whose tastes venture into the realm of John Waters-esque trash comedies, this could really fit the bill. The movie version features the likes of Delta Burke, Beau Bridges, Bonnie Bedelia, Olivia Newton John (also in the series ... she must really need the work), as well as lesser known, but equally eccentric characters who make it all come together so hilariously. If that sounds up your alley, check out the links (Logo has extended clips of the series you can watch) and take a look. Very lightweight, but funny stuff they're doing.

Here's a quote by 'Brother Boy' from the original movie:

Brother Boy: Well I did it. I walked all the way down that hall with one less piece of female attire... that is, if you consider a wig attire.

7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hey there... thanks for the plug for the series... google alerts got me to your blog...

Just for the record, ONJ does NOT need the work. To do a series like ours on a small network, you have to love the material and have passion, because we all worked way below our fees :-) I adore the cast for that reason and am thrilled that the series is catching on and spreading to main stream audiences...

Best,

Del Shores

Iowa Victory Gardener said...

Hi Del,
What an honor that you'd comment here at my humble garden blog! Thanks very much... and btw, I was being somewhat snarky in my reference to ONJ (bad me), but good to know the straight (ahem) dish on that.

The love of the material and acting really shows, and it's admirable that such great actors will do a labor of love. You've got a great thing going here!

Can't wait for Logo to air the rest of the first 12 (hoping for more) episodes....

All our best to you and the 'gang.'

Anonymous said...

Del, Is the movie, Southern Baptist Sissies in production yet?
Also, will Delta Burke be in the movie???
Thanks and best wishes!

Gail said...

IVG, Hello! No praying mantis yet but I will continue to look for them!

How cool that you had a visit from TV land! Isn't the internet the best! Don't laugh but I emailed Ed Begley Jr when his Living With Ed show was on...I sent him a link about something that seemed up his alley. I did get a personal response, well from him or his assistant. Okay, you can laugh!

Gail

Annie in Austin said...

Well, IVG - guess "Big Brother Boy" was watching you, LOL.

No cable but if it ends up on NetFlix I'll have to check this series out. You had me at Bonnie Bedelia and Beau Bridges.

Annie at the Transplantable Rose

Iowa Victory Gardener said...

Hi Gail,
We've only started seeing them in the last few days, and they're pretty crafty about hiding out, so you may have seen some and not even have noticed because they really blend in well with the surroundings.

Yeah, very cool that a guy whose work I love actually stopped by ... definitely a first here! I loved that Ed Begley show, and it's too bad HGTV quit showing it (though reruns are on Planet Green I guess).

IVG

Iowa Victory Gardener said...

Hey Annie,
LOL, that's a good one! Touché!

Bedelia is in the series, but Beau was only in the movie and another actor plays his part. The movie certainly should be on Netflix, though you may be waiting a long while for the series on DVD, since it just recently started airing on Logo. Definitely recommend the film, and Delta Burke is a hoot, as is the rest of the cast.