rejectomorph (flying_blind) wrote,
rejectomorph
flying_blind

Chirp

The night turned starless after midnight when the clouds thickened again. By then the waxing crescent moon was gone, but earlier its light had played across the drifting cirrus in the west. I always enjoy watching that serene spectacle, and it's especially nice in late spring when it is accompanied by the soft, rhythmic chirping of crickets. The cricket population is large this year, and their individual sounds all blend together, except for the few nearby.

There's one in the flower bed near the hose bib who dominates the music. I'm thinking of giving him a name. He likes to make triple chirps separated by a very brief pause, creating the impression that the whole chorus is playing in something very like 3/4 time, so I might call him Johann. Johann must be a very horny cricket. He does the calling chirp (the one the males use to attract females) night after night, starting before sunset and continuing almost until dawn. I've yet to hear him chirp the softer courting song, which crickets play only when a female is near. He obviously has not yet gotten lucky.

I'm wondering if Johann is descended from the cricket who survived in the woodpile across the street clear through last winter, singing loudly every time the weather got a bit warmer, only to finally fall silent forever during the icy period that arrived early in April. I never named that cricket. I also don't know if he ever managed to attract a female during those long winter nights. If he had, I probably wouldn't have heard his quiet courting song at such a distance. Johann is right outside my living room window, so there's a good chance I'd be able to hear even his very soft songs.

Heh. How dull is my life? I'm sitting around waiting for some aural cricket porn! Oh, I need sleep. Looks as though we'll have another cloudy day.
Subscribe

  • 52/60-61: Things Fall Apart

    Getting lost in time again, distracted and muddled, and realized I never wrote about Monday. I had been unable to have groceries fetched before the…

  • 52/59: Sizzle, no Steak

    So Sunday brought some rain, and now and then some wind, and for me some sleep again. No one was about, or I saw none, and after all the hours no…

  • 52/58: Norm!

    Friday was devoured, leaving no trace. Thursday night I slept surprisingly well, and when morning came I was repeatedly lured back to sleep by the…

  • Post a new comment

    Error

    default userpic

    Your reply will be screened

    Your IP address will be recorded 

    When you submit the form an invisible reCAPTCHA check will be performed.
    You must follow the Privacy Policy and Google Terms of use.
  • 1 comment