Bee and his shadow

Two anagallis arvensis, or scarlet pimpernel to you and me.  On the formerly landscaped area in our back yard, I'm pulling the spiny thorny wild things and anything that sticks up, in favor of low ground cover like this, as well as yellow wood sorrel and speedwell.

The wrong 3rd out

So anyway, I learned something, specifically about Official Baseball Rule 5.09(c).  One out, runners on 2nd and 3rd.  Batter lines to the 1st baseman (2 outs) and throws to 3rd to try to get the 3rd out.  

The throw was offline and the 3rd baseman had to take a step or two off the base to catch it.  While that was happening, the runner on 3rd crossed home plate.  

Then the 3rd baseman got up and tagged the man in front of him (3rd out) and then touched 3rd base, because the guy there left early.  And that's where the "Fourth Out" part of 5.09(c) came in.

Tickenest commented:  ...Stepping on third before tagging R2 would have prevented the run from scoring, because touching the base before tagging the runner makes it unmistakable that the fielder is appealing R3 because that's how you retire R3 in this situation. By tagging R2 first and then touching the base, the fielder does not demonstrate that he is intentionally appealing R3.

Really? Really.

Yes, of course they did.

A long, long trip to the big leagues

Mark Appel, pitching against the Scranton-Wilkes Barre Railriders, June 8, 2017.  

In red on his glove is the Bible verse Romans 12:2 -- "Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind."

Nearly a decade after being the #1 draft pick in MLB, Mark Appel is going to the majors.

 

Still more flowers

Every summer, we can count on some uneaten bird seed to take root under the shepherd's hook where the feeders hang during the winter.  This won't grow as high as some sunflower plants, but it should produce a good deal of seed.
 

What is it?

It's growing in the space that used to be a vegetable garden, and which now plays host to whatever can get its roots established.  That includes naturally-occurring weeds and grains that sprout from uneaten bird seed.  I don't think this is related to either of those, though.  Time to call on Google Images.

Later: OK, everyone who had Solanum rostratum may come pick up your prize,  namely:  my eternal admiration.  Now, how about that insect perched on top of it?

"Specialization is for insects."

This whole thing started a couple of nights ago, when I sat down on my rocker-recliner and found that the first half of that description no longer applied.  

I turned over the chair and saw only powdered padding and copious amounts of cat hair.  Remembering that I'd found a chair repairman a few years ago, I dug out the man's business card and prepared for another unexpected hundred-dollar expense.

But last night, I looked again with a brighter light and saw a bar crossing the front of the chair.  At one end, a bolt and nut held some mechanism in place.  At the other end was a hole where a similar bolt and nut belonged.  The two pieces of the broken bolt lay under the half-connected mechanism.

So I decided to go to the nearby hardware store and pick up a replacement bolt, and use the nut from the broken old one.  It looked doable, in other words.

This morning, I worked until 11:45 and came downstairs to find this half-grown rabbit outside our front door, enjoying the clover.

Driving to the hardware store, I looked across the road at an intersection and saw more suburban wildlife.

These wildflowers were growing along the gravel road across the intersection.

I'll have to use Google Images or some app to identify this likely common wildflower.

Edit:  Google Lens produces a number of results, and after looking at them my guess is that it's Scentless Chamomile.  

At the hardware store, there was a staff member in the small hardware section, and he quickly identified the type and size of bolt I was looking for.  I bought two, because if one of them had broken, the other was liable to as well.

Back home, there was a bit of work getting the carriage bolt to stay in place while I ratcheted the nut tightly.  But in a couple of minutes, I flipped the chair back upright, sat down on it, and rocked once more.  

So, it's fixed and it cost 27 cents.  An unexpected 27-cent expense is OK; I can handle that.  Besides, I got to see some wildlife and I'm going to learn more about wildflowers.  See why I'm filing this under "accomplishments"?