jean-luc and nicole asked if we wanted to see some wild carnations, which are increasingly rare in this part of the world. of course we said “of course.” at 9 PM when they usually take their dogs for a walk, we tagged along down a gravel road north out of our village into the rolling hills of patchwork vineyards, and soon enough, the meandering roadside was dotted with surprisingly delicate sprays of tiny pink and white wild carnations.  according to jean-luc the wild carnation are shaped deep and narrow in order to withstand the daytime heat. as i set up quickly to try and get of photo of the carnations in the waning daylight, i was taken aback by this cheeky little fellow, a conehead mantis I would later discover, who popped out from behind the flower’s receptacle and threatened me with his (proportionally) huge, Popeye forearms.

mantis on a wild carnation; probably an immature conehead mantis (empusa pennata)

autignac, france

we like things we are good at. pattern recognition, decision making, and sorting are all skills that humans are inherently good at. i guess that explains why we are all so addicted to beachcombing.  as such,  an evening of gathering and a morning of sorting was pretty darn close to bliss for this human animal.

a collection of mediterranean shells, rocks, and sea glass

séte, france

jean-luc brought me this. he wanted to make sure i saw it. for “le blog”. honestly, no one outside my family has so thoroughly internalized STILL blog as jean-luc has. i think the french concept of terroir is so ingrained here, that STILL is an obvious and unexceptional expression of it.  of course you highlight your natural surroundings. mais evidemment, mah-ree zho.

chestnut tree branch with male fruit (and one snail)

autignac, france

after a month of tearing us to shreds, when it wasn’t puncturing our fingers with spines and thorns, the garrigue still manages to leave us feeling a sort of sentimental fondness. it’s prickly and almost impossible to navigate, and we still keep coming back to it. sort of like family.

un assemblage mediterranéen

autignac et sa garrigue

these little lavender-colored wildflowers are dotting our roadsides this week. i am waiting to catch jean-luc next door to find out what their name is. he’ll know. i will probably also find out about several related wildflowers, and which ones are edible and which are not, and possibly even that a very nice tisane or liqueur can be made from them. it will be a very enjoyable half an hour.

roadside wildflowers: scabiosa maritime

autignac, france