Beware the Ides! Part 2.

This series and title were inspired by a recent dialogue I had with a viewer of my blog about what constitutes beauty when it comes to flowers or other products of nature. Case in point, the top photo is of Spreading Dogbane which my correspondent thinks is ugly and which I think is beautiful. The title, taken from Shakespeare's julius Caesar, is a warning to all species that many humans consider ugly. Your days could be numbered! The word ugly, by the way, comes from a word meaning fear.
The worm photos were taken yesterday when the heavy rains the previous night resulted in hundreds of apparently dead earthworms spread all over the school's paved parking lot. By the time I left work, the pavement was nearly dry and virtually all the worms were gone. There was apparently enough life in them to crawl to the safety of the nearby lawn before they dried out. I was struggling the rest of the day with the urge to compare the original scene to the recent tsunami, for it seemed these worms were meeting an unfortunate end due to the heavy rains. I felt great empathy for the worms as well as for the people of Japan, but decided I couldn't risk having the point misunderstood. So, here we are with "Beware the Ideas," my personal celebration of beautiful plants and creatures that are underappreciated. The dandelion, by the way, will undoubtedly be sprayed with Roundup(R) soon. Sick!