Vote Belarus!

Rain and moths don't mix. So the trap is tucked away 'til the weather settles down. The rainshield is brilliantly effective at protecting the bulb (and therefore my wallet) but it doesn't stop water getting into the bowl and that would mean death by drowning for at least some moths. Never fear, however. The subject of entomology is seldom out of the news. Normally it's a case of scaremongering articles about species extinction, but last night was the turn of the Wonderful Butterfly Dresses of Belarus.


Much-flagged in advance, their appearance in the Eurovision Song Contest was brief, but then so is the life of a butterfly. They 'hatched' on the girls at the end much as the wings unfold from a broken-open chrysalis (an experience which everyone should see at least once in their lifetime), and they were lovely. They didn't however save Belarus from coming second to last in an epic which Germany deservedly won. Guess who came last, if you don't already know. Yes, the good old UK. I am not a very good judge of these things, but I had the impression that our guy couldn't even sing, although Penny, who is an outstanding member of Horsforth Choral Society says: "A lot of them can't sing, so that isn't anything unusual." (She also says with characteristic kindness that it must be very difficult in front of an audience of 18,000 people, which the HCS seldom attracts).
A footnote to butterfly-themed clothing, and another guessing game: who wore a butterfly waistcoat at his older son's wedding last year? Yes, ME! I would really have liked a Belarus-style jacket but it isn't done to attract too much attention from the bride and groom, and I was very satisfied with the handiwork of Stitchy-Witchy, the finest seamstress in Shipley (49 Bradford Road, Shipley, West Yorks BD18 3DS). Here it is, and if you click on the pic you can observe details such as the spindly body (the butterfly's, not mine) and - if you look very carefully - the sewn antennae.