Veronika Wild

Moon Jellyfish - an  Aurelia species.   Although I had never seen these before, they are apparently common in other parts of the world too. Those in the picture were photographed at the Red Sea, my cousin said she had encountered them in Italy  -Alexander Vasenin , CC BY-SA 3.0 , via Wikimedia Commons There must be a Jellyfish Convention going on in Tasmania. On the news a few nights ago there were warnings about "Blue Bottles" – Portuguese Man - O’ -War jellyfish, along the coast, especially in the north of the state. The next day was rather hot so I went to my favourite swimming spot, looked around and seeing no Blue Bottles, I jumped straight in. The weather was perfect, the sea was calm, but suddenly I found myself surrounded by jellyfish, though thankfully not Blue Bottles. These were what the locals call Moon Jellyfish an Aurelia species which are not supposed to be harmful, though some people may be allergic and they do have some cousins which aren’t so...

Old - fashioned flowers for my Valentine - Just loved the pinks in this  I’m a bit of a cynic when it comes to St. Valentine’s Day.   When I start to see red and pink merchandise appear in the shops, I am inclined to think it’s all about making those tills ring with a well applied dose of guilt. It must be about the only time hot pink negligees with cutouts met their sales targets. Spare a thought too for those poor Koreans who have to stump up with an appropriate treat for their loved ones, not just once or twice a year, but after the first week of a romance, the first month and each month thereafter. Not that expressing feelings for a loved one is without merit, but buying things certainly isn’t the only way to do it. An ex of mine wasn’t big on declarations of love, but might show it by saying, “ Honey, I fixed your car!”   I should have known that the romance was over when he stopped doing that. As I get older, I realise that true love isn’t about fancy dinners ...