hey everybody! ITS THE 17th YEAR! THE YEAR OF THE CICADA IS COME! for some reason it reminds of bradbury. the magical feel of all those erie insects flying about everywhere just makes me think of him. maybe its like in "Dandelion Wine" when Tom starts taking the tempurature in "Spaulding" by counting cicadas. so, i wish you all for a happy cicada summer, and if you live near me "montgomery county, a county in maryland just north of Washington, D.C." WE ARE HIT THE HARDEST WITH THE CICADAS IN ALMOST THE WHOLE COUNTRY!

Speaking of Cicadas, a former "regular" poster here published:

BIG CICADAS. Gregory Miller. Gardenia Press, Milwaukee. 2003.

I got my copy on Amazon.com.

I've always wondered, how DO you pronounce the word cicada?

ci(as in sit)ca(as in cape)da(as in death).

Cool thanks! I don't think we have those here, but I read about them a long time ago. Fascinating!

Here is a link to learn more about them. Fascinating creatures!
Cheers, Translator
http://www.ummz.lsa.umich.edu/magicicada/Periodical/Index.html#What%20is%20a%20periodical%20cicada

grasstains, where do you live? Im curious. because where i live we say cicadas the same only the "da" part in the end is pronunced like "duh", not de like in "death"

I'm native Californian.

That's the way my American Heritage Dictionary had it pronounced. We don't pronounce Cicada out here, don't have em'as far as I know. I don't recall ever hearing the word uttered in my life. You may be right.

[This message has been edited by grasstains (edited 05-15-2004).]

It was on the news that they're overrunning certain regions this year, but all far from the west coast.

Does anyone know what a "Potato Bug" is? I haven't seen one in over 20 years, not since I left Southern California in 83'. I'm wondering if their population has drastically declined or if we just don't have them in Northern Ca.

I'm sure their real name isn't "Potato Bug" so for those who don't know what I'm talking about I'll do my best to describe the hideous looking creatures.

They look like giant Termites, about 3 inches long. They have blondish-biege and black stripes and an alien looking head. They don't really move very fast, can't jump, and I don't think they bite, but they sure do look scary. They were quite common when I was a kid and Southern Ca. isn't famous for growing potatos, so I don't know how they got their nickname.

Does anybody have any input?

Here's in interesting short article on Cicadas and their contribution to injuries to children:
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=571&ncid=751&e=1&u=/nm/20040514/hl_nm/health_cicadas_dc

grasstains:

ive never seen a real potato bug in my life, but ive heard of them. they get theyre name cuz when you touch them or scare them they roll up and look like a potato. theyre sort of fun that way.

Ettil- That sounds like the Roly-Poly, or sow bug. I saw on T.V. that researchers recently discovered Roly-Polys to be omnivores. They were previously believed to eat only decaying vegetation.

A couple months ago I saw a snail "sucking", I guess, on a smashed worm.

BEWARE! Carnivorous insects abound.

Try "POTATOBUGS.COM"

Take care
Patrick

Patrick:

Well, now you did it. Reminding me of the most ghastly bug I have ever seen. It always looked like a little child. Pictures don't do it justice. You have to actually see one for real. Perhaps its gestures and movements create this ''illusion''? of something creepy beyond creepy...