Must be summer time (or as we call it here in the Old Pueblo, "Simmer time").

One of our local creepy crawlies. Palo Verde Root Borer. You can HEAR these guys crawling across the yard!

They emerge from their burrows when the summer rains occur to mate.





Yup, those pincers are functional. They'll leave a impression on a wooden pencil.

Oh, did I mention they can fly? I took a hit right in the middle of my forehead while riding at about 45 MPH. Left a welt for a week and made me go back to wearing a helmet.

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“Whatever story you're telling, it will be more interesting if, at the end you add, "and then everything burst into flames.”
― Brian P. Cleary, You Oughta Know By Now