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Ticks Don't Stop Biting In Winter

 

A few weeks ago a tick attached itself to this dog's paw during a trail hike at Point Au Roche State Park.  The day was fairly cool so someone might assume ticks were asleep during the colder weather.  But if the temps rise above 40F and there is no snow on the ground ticks are on the move again, lying in wait for a victim.  A second tick was found later on the dog, hiding under its fur, swollen from feeding.  Besides Lyme disease ticks can infect humans with other bacteria, viruses or parasites.  So don't stop checking during cooler weather.

 

New Record: Six Dirty Diapers

 

 

Another phone call to the city building inspector.

 

Hitchhikers

 

 

Hitchhikers

By Luke T. Bush

Before winterkill destroyed them I brought home some snapdragon flowers.  I discovered with my macro lens a few aphids came along.  Interesting to observe but I had to end my photographic study because they were multiplying. 

And Honeydew, Too

 

Pig Doesn't Learn

 

PLATTSBURGH CITY -  11/20/25

I found another dirty diaper today hanging in a Verdantique Park tree.  Someone in the building is tossing used diapers out the window.  A call to the Building Inspector had diapers removed yesterday but the pig behind this is too ignorant to stop.  Another call to the Building Inspector.

 

Cleanup

 

 

PLATTSBURGH CITY, NY  11/18/25

After a phone call to the city Building Inspector's Office dirty diapers were removed from Verdantique Park.  If you see a problem on city property, sidewalks or parks, report it to (518) 563-7707. 

Not An Xmas Ornament

 

Sleeping Snookums

 

Bursting Life

 

PPL Cryptid Convention

 

Patterns

 

Hiya

 

Faith

 

Whoo Is Staring At You?

 

Halloween Boo-sters Take 2

 

Wrecked Wall Garden

 

Someone had some "fun" tearing up the stakes and cords holding up the tomato plants growing in the wall garden on lower Court Street.  I tried fixing the problem but all I could do was move the plants from hanging over the ledge, dropping tomatoes on the sidewalk.  This is why Plattsburgh City can't have nice things.

 

Halloween Boo-sters

 

Polychromatic Curl

 

Yummy! French Fries

 

Floral

 

Glory

 

Street Art

 

Room For An Octopus To Grow

 

 PLATTSBURGH CITY, NY  9/17/25

(C) 2025  Luke T. Bush

It was time to move on.

The Plattsburgh Public Library basement is home to its children's room.  Plenty of space for all sorts of displays except one -- a large potted tree that had become too tall.  So now it resides on the first floor of the library with higher ceilings.  The attached sign explains that it is an octopus tree that grows in the rainforests of Australia, New Guinea, and Java.

According to Googled sources the tree's stems resemble the arms of an octopus radiating out from its leaves, growing up to 3 feet long. Other names for this plant are the Australian Umbrella Tree and the Queensland Umbrella tree, also referring to its radiating stem structure.  Flowers and fruit clusters grow along each stem.

The tree can grow over 55 feet tall.  Maybe the first floor ceiling can be raised. 

Chrome View

 

Click on image to enlarge.

 

Golden Cradle

 

Glaring BEM

 

Sweating The Details

 

Susan's Black Eye

 

Stake Dinner

 

 

 

 © 2025 Luke T. Bush

Calling it an ambush bug becomes an obvious choice when you see it capturing its prey, a quick unexpected strike.  It uses camouflage to be undetectable, for example, a yellow ambush bug sitting on a yellow flower petal.  The predator holds the victim  -- in this case a bee -- with its claws and then drives its proboscis into its victim, first pumping paralyzing toxins.  Then the ambush bug liquefies the victim's interior, injecting digestive enzymes.  For its third act it uses its proboscis to suck out its prepared meal.

Cruel nature in a tiny world.

Ambush Bug Sitting On A Black-Eyed Susan

 

Action Taken With Rabid Bat In Plattsburgh City

 

 PLATTSBURGH CITY, NY - 8/29/25

In a previous post I discussed an incident with a dead bat found at the Plattsburgh Public Library ( https://writog.blogspot.com/2025/08/rabies-and-dead-bat.html .)  The bat had been hanging on a wall for a few days before it dropped dead on a ledge.  The Clinton County Health Department was contacted.  It told the library to dispose of the bat: there was no reason to test the carcass for rabies because the bat hadn't bitten anyone (or so it had assumed.)

The health department has published a media release reporting a city resident found a bat acting strangely in his front yard ( https://health.clintoncountyny.gov/BulletinsPress/PR08282025.pdf .)  The bat was removed and was sent out for testing. On 8/27/25 the CCHD was informed that the rabies test was positive.

The news release warns: "A person can be bitten by a bat or exposed to its saliva and not know it. Bats have small sharp teeth, which may not leave a visible bite mark, and a bite from a bat during the night may not awaken a sleeping person."

Good to see action being taken with this incident.  But the question remains: was the dead bat at the library also rabid?  Why wasn't it tested?  Any suspicious or dead bats should be tested to see how far rabies is spreading in the region.

 

Rabies And A Dead Bat

 

© 2025 Luke T. Bush

PLATTSBURGH CITY, NY

Years ago a friend found a dead bat in his driveway.  He called the health department and thought someone would pick it up to test it for rabies.  He was told no testing was needed, he should dispose the carcass himself.

Recently a bat was hanging around the public library during the daytime -- on a wall.  When contacted the animal control officer said there was nothing to worry about.  The bat would just fly away later.

The bat never took wing.  After a few days it fell off the wall, dead on the ledge.  The health department was contacted about the bat.  Once again they said there was no reason to pick it up and test it for rabies.  Such a test was only needed if someone was bit.  A library employee had to remove the carcass with a shovel.

One would think that all dead bats including the non-biters would be tested to keep track of how rabies was spreading throughout the region.  The other day a rabid bat was found south of here in Essex County.

But testing all bat carcasses: the official attitude is why bother?  Two words come to mind.  Lazy and shortsighted.

Bibliophiles Heaven

During Saturday as part of the downtown Arts Festival the Plattsburgh Public Library held an alfresco book sale to raise funds.  The set up on the corner of Oak and Brinkerhoff streets attracted many browsers and buyers.  At one table the library staff made friendship bracelets.

 

 

Sunspotters

Plattsburgh City, NY - Saturday 8/23/25

As part of the downtown Arts Festival local astronomer Ed Guenther set up his telescope with a solar filter.  Curious people could peer through the eyepiece and see sunspots.  Passing clouds and ice crystals high in the sky created tricky viewing conditions.

ED GUENTHER

 

The Crowd Goes Wild For Elise Stefanik

© 2025 Luke T. Bush

PLATTSBURGH CITY, NY - 8/18/25 

US Representative Elise Stefanik (right), an ardent President Donald Trump supporter, bathes in the "warm" reception from the large North Country crowd shouting their appreciation for her and her policies.  She appeared this morning at the Clinton County Government Center where the building was being named after the late John Zurlo who had served as county clerk.  The crowd response was so overwhelming she only spoke a few words before trying to fade into the background.  But the shouting of intense comments and slogans continued during the dedication.  The crowd was far from mealymouthed, a detail Elise will always cherish.

 

 

Bedtime Bat

 

 

Awww...

 

Stupidest Editorial In Journalistic History

 

 www.pressrepublican.com     11/22/24

"If we give Trump no chance, we enlist for four years of animated conflict."

Editorial: Our only hope — give Trump a chance

Donald J. Trump is going to be our new president, love him or hate him. To most Americans’ dismay and perhaps disdain, that latter pair seems to include just about everybody.

No one, no matter how old, seems to remember any president that inspired such adoration and such discord at the same time. It’s simply uncanny how extreme political observers are at the mention of his name. Ronald Reagan was known as the “Teflon president” because anything he did that was viewed as negative did not stick to him for long. Trump seems to have invented a new strain of Teflon. But, as we await next Jan. 20 and the beginning of his second term of office, all Americans — both pro-Trump and con — should treat the occasion as new, unknown and with a hopeful attitude.

Because of the past decade of Trump-dominated Republican politics, most people have made up their minds that he is the savior of our republic. He won the election overwhelmingly. It was not nearly as close as most people thought it would be.

Detractors were sure that he had enough negative baggage in his backpack to deter voters from returning him to office. This baggage included the Jan. 6 assault on the Capitol that, if he didn’t instigate it, as widely believed, he at least didn’t try to stop it; numerous courts finding his claim of 2020 election thievery unfounded; various findings of guilty to other charges, such as sexual indiscretion and falsifying business records in connection with a payoff to a porn star; and charges of violating a law on corporate record-keeping to reduce his tax obligation.

But, whereas his detractors believed these and other matters were enough to defeat him at the polls, his admirers paid them no heed. No matter what came up to soil his appeal, it didn’t. His appeal remained immune from harm. In fact, it may even have shone ever brighter.

So the United States faces another four years of a Trump presidency that could again devolve into bitterness and hatred among news readers and watchers.

Our only hope as a unified and prospering nation is to, as Democratic candidate Kamala Harris vowed to do, look forward, not back. Give President Trump a chance to win you over by the positive results of his policies. Try not to condemn him and those policies before they even take the floor.

Can his promised campaign against illegal immigration yield positive outcomes? Can his taxing plans wind up good for our economy and our wallets? Can his appointees, such as Elon Musk, spread the same success to all Americans that he derived for himself?

We don’t know yet. As hard as it may be, we ask opponents to disavow their contempt and first find out whether his efforts will prove viable.  It will be the only way for America to restore our look and feeling of unification and togetherness.

If we give Trump no chance, we enlist for four years of animated conflict.

Asshole

I was leaving the Plattsburgh Public Library when I noticed three large soda bottles on one of the front steps.

I took out my camera when this clown walked up and said I couldn’t photograph his litter or him. I told this mental case I could photograph anything in public view including litter or people. I told him it was the law and I would call the cops if there was a problem. I left without any photos. I wonder if he removed the bottles before someone tripped over them.

If he's so paranoid what about being recorded he should avoid all security cameras on the street and inside stores. This oversensitive bossy bunghole should find a cave and live in it, leaving photographers who are in the right alone.

 

This isn't the first time I've been hassled by some paranoid polyp.  One time I was challenged for taking a photo of a tree in front of someone's house. 

https://writog.blogspot.com/2007/10/google-this.html

 

 

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