Beetles Wall Up

September 26th-30th

Beetles wall up. What exactly does this mean? Looking at this phrase, I am at somewhat of a loss as how to relate it to the natural world around me. Coming from Japan--a land known for its variety and volume of various sorts of insect life--I find the East Coast somewhat lacking in this department. I'm certainly not complaining, though.

It does make this week's journal entry somewhat difficult. I tried to keep an eye out for insect life on my walks around the neighborhood, but couldn't find much to speak of. I guess this means that, yes, insects are beginning to "wall up" and have either died, or are beginning to go into hibernation. Earlier this week on a rather warm day, I could have sworn I heard the cry of a cicada--even though it seemed completely too late in the season for it to be alive. Perhaps he was a late bloomer? This idea is plausible, though if true, I would feel bad for the poor guy as all his potential mates are no longer around.

I think that things are beginning to shift from that phase between the 'beginning of autumn' into a more 'true' feeling of autumn. Leaves have noticeably begun to turn, fall, and cover the ground. Green trees seem fewer, and more tinted in yellow. It is expected to cool down for a few days next week, and I think that this change in temperature will bring an even bigger change to my surroundings. I have to remember that I am quite north, and the seasons here change more rapidly than one would expect. Already the light has a quality to it that I would expect during sometime in late October of early November out in California. Nights are long here up in the north, and pretty soon I'll be like the beetles, all walled up in my little dorm room, looking out through my window at the greying skies.