Blotch & Opera

Willow leaf 'blotch miner', an insect that strips the chlorophyll from willow leaves, has blazed through my neighborhood. I live in a very willow-y area on Farmer's Loop, and my yard is populated with Birch, Aspen, and tons of willow trees. This time of year it's normally a very lush and leafy green but the bugs have made all the willow leaves brown. The trees don't die, unless they get hit by repeated outbreaks, so that's good news. I've only been here two summers, but it's my Grandparent's house and I don't remember seeing this in the years they summered here.

Here's a few pictures, you can see the color difference in the trees.

Change of subject - I saw the Opera last week. Opera Fairbanks did a semi-staged production of "Tosca" and it was great. Some incredible talent from the Metropolitan Opera alongside some of our very talented locals. It was a treat, and I happened to have a date who appreciates classical music. He's also a dog person, is a perfectly pragmatic complement to my emotional side, and he cooks. I may have to marry him.

I have a huge range of music tastes, but my mood dictates opera at times - I had it on in the car the other night and my youngest son gave me a look. "Mom," -the look- "is that OPERA". He'll find a place for it in his life at some point - he's been brought up with classical music interspersed with all the other genres I like. He just picked up on the funk first. He's always had rhythm.

I love duets, voices rising and falling over each other, I particularly like male voices, I guess because some of the female voices can be shrill or too overbearing. But the more I explore the more voices I find that appeal to me. Sunday morning is opera time. Coffee, sun on the deck, leaves blowing, open windows, airy light house, a beautiful duet of intermingling voices weaving in and out - that's my idea of a relaxing morning.

Pavarotti - Recondita Armonia (from "Tosca", Puccini) (sit through the introductory 40 seconds of applause, c'mon, it's Pavarotti)- The guy who did this at the Opera Fairbanks production, Mathew Edwardsen, sang it beautifully.