Tag: #Friday Fun

Flower power

· 3 Comments ·

Artificial sunflowers are probably the only flowers that will survive a dashboard. But if flowers have to be artificial I prefer something like this:

Linked to Friday Fun: Artificial.

Wanna ride?

· 1 Comment ·

In a mystical magic tour bus?

(I like the bus and the pictures it conjures up in me but just in case you are wondering: the bus belongs to a volunteer organisation of the protestant church in Germany helping young people in need.)

Linked to Friday Fun: Mystical.

No man is an island

· 3 Comments ·

A couple of month back we were alerted by fire brigade sirens and fire engines speeding past the wall surrounding our property.

A house a couple of streets away was burning and we could observe the fire fighters in full action. They extinguished the fire and continued for a long while to douse the building to ensure that the fire would not restart.

One fire engine and its crew stayed for several hours to make sure that everything was safe.

The men and women are volunteers. The statement on the truck reads:

“Our leisure time for your security.“

If the past months have taught me anything it is that my security does not exist in isolation. This holds true relating to the overall fabric of society and to the simple fact of somebody wearing a face mask to protect me.

Linked to Friday Fun: Security.

Ladybird

· 8 Comments ·

Neither a lady, nor a bird.

Not even a lady bug as I have just learned that coccinellidae are not considered true bugs (hemiptera).

A whole loveliness (yes, that’s the collective noun for lady beetles). Properly fitting for an insect that in German alone has (according to Wikipedia) 1500 different regional names. The most common one is Marienkäfer which ties in with the English lady bug as the lady referenced is the Virgin Mary. The one I am most familiar with is Herrgottskäfer (apparently a protestant way to omit mentioning Mary by calling it Lord’s beetle). Himmelskäfer (heaven’s beetle) has the same explanation. Sometimes they are very plainly known as Junikäfer (June bugs) and thus prone to be mixed up with other beetles. The most prosaic is Lausfresser (aphid eater) yet it describes its helpfulness for gardeners. The one I like best is Flimmflämmke just for the sound of it (pronounced something like flim-flem-ka) and possibly has to do with its flame red colour.

What other names of ladybirds are known in English? Do you have them in Australia?

Linked to Friday Fun: Another.