21 Comments
Aug 21, 2023·edited Aug 21, 2023Liked by Merrill Markoe

"especially the vulnerable, are born with a permanent place on a carefully curated menu designed for someone else"

Wow. What beautiful-powerful-gutfelt turns of phrase you have. For some reason now I'm thinking of the old well-turned ankle .

As always, thank you. Your work makes things richer.

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Oh msg me with an address and I can send you some seeds this fall. They germinate pretty easily then you’ll have a never ending feed supply!

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Just came back from Ky I could have been your middle (wo)man! HS reunion find and yeah brought COVID back to AZ sooooo.... yeah it’s that kind of day

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Oh, Merrill. This is so hilarious and also so touching to me. You love these daggone caterpillars and butterflies. Of course you do! Right long with the baby squirrels and birdies you tend to and feed with such devotion.You are a kind spirit. Funny as hell. You just glimmer, my dear friend.

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You are so kind to me, MJH. I hope things are good there.

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Yes, good. 🌹♥️🌹

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I never would've allowed my teenage monarch b. caterpillar to have fluorescent antennae no matter how much she crawled. Of course technically she was living on a milkweed down the hill, indifferent to my rules. What an appetite she had.

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How awesome! I have a zillion milkweed plants everywhere in my gardens which are blooming like crazy and not a single freaking egg or caterpillar anywhere! It hurts my feelings! I do always have

Some dressed monarchs on the zinnias and Mexican sunflowers, but nary an egg, or anything in the in between stages.

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Well, this was worth every word!

My son, Beaudry (yes, a name ripe for attack, but sentimentally sourced from a little street not too far from Mr. Prieboy's old dwelling near downtown LA), is turning 15 today! Could this be the day he turns into a potato? He does spend an awful lot of time upstairs. Hmmm...

XOXOXO!!! This was AWESOME.

p.s. I can get you the milkweed goods.

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You are absolutely hilarious and can turn a phrase. We are still quoting from Bob.

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Thank you!

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Allow me to fwd advice I got from a friend who raises MANY monarchs each year:

DO. NOT. START. TAGGING. THEM.

It’s a disease she’s been afflicted with the last 20+ years. She’s released thousands with tiny stick-on license plates, to be tracked by MonarchWatch if found and reported.

I, like you, prefer to keep one manageable airBnB.

Congrats on your success.

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I’m jealous! I’ve lived in my home for 25 yrs. When we first moved in some milkweeds came up and we had monarch caterpillars! I was so excited! I left milkweed to grow ever since. Midwest is farm country. Chemical farm country. They kept getting less and less. The last one I saw was three years ago. It had a black cocoon. 🙁 I still have milkweed. I still look for them. I hope one day I see another, only healthy.

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Are your monarchs keeping their caterpillar birth names or did you give them new ones?

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I have seen a couple caterpillars around but they are hard to find when you're looking for them. This morning I saw one on the side of the house, in comma asana. When I returned in the afternoon, it was a pupa! Now I am in the midst of a feud with His Nibs over how to pronounce it--PEW-pah or POOH-Pah. Please help.

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It emerged this morning!

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Congratulations!

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Oh no Pamela! So sorry to hear you picked up COVID while here. It’s started back up again; a little nervous about 400+ of us here all together. Gotta dig up my masks. I know of 4 instances in the last 2 weeks. I wish the new COVID vaccine was formulated and out. I’m up to 6 total shots, need this new booster. Stay safe! Yes, you could have been the milkweed mule, I could have send plants, too! Where did you go to school?

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Sorry. 400 Bourbon Women here this week for a 4 day drinking, touring and networking conference in Louisville this week. I forgot I wasn’t posting on our conference attendee application!

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👏 👏 👏 and of course because ... Lou Reed

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Wow! Who knew?

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