Tag Archives: Caterpillar

Floating and Drifting

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I was at my dear friend and ex-colleague C.’s party last night which was a blast, I had a great time meeting lots of (new) people and talking to other ex-colleagues I hadn’t seen in a while. Some of them I hadn’t seen in three years: ever since I left for London. It was so good to talk to them again after such a long time, it made me realise how much I’ve missed having colleagues, especially these colleagues who were thrilled to see me!

It also made me realise something else, last night it seemed so much easier to connect with other people being there on my own in a room full of -mostly- strangers. I felt like a butterfly floating through the room from one conversation to another with different people without really having to make an effort. I remember the days where that was totally different and I wonder if it was because I was still in a ‘relationship‘ -at the time-…

Last night I realised I was starting to find myself again after being stuck in a situation that had made me become extremely self-conscious and insecure. That had left a deep crater at the surface and a roaring all-consuming fire underneath to break free from the chains and be ‘me’ again. Yesterday I was ‘me’, there was no pretending, no wallflower syndrome, just a total transparent honest ‘me’, the person I was before I got lost.

So besides having a great time and feel happy I can’t really explain what it was like to feel a certain kind of freedom again, to be in a situation where others acknowledge your presence and accept you as ‘a whole’. ‘A whole’ because that’s what I am, what I always should’ve been, what I was and what I’ve found again… And it feels great to see what kind of effect it has, not just on me but on others as well: it’s a much richer experience.

The caterpillar just became a butterfly again, now let me fly… fly… fly…

©Dana Helmig

Great! …

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I thought I’d left them behind when I left the country, but I guess I was mistaken… These creatures used to show up at the Vondelpark in Amsterdam each summer. It was just plain gross! And guess what…
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A potentially deadly caterpillar – whose bristles can trigger asthma and allergic reactions – has arrived in Britain from the Continent. Nests of oak processionary caterpillars have been spotted in dozens of trees in London over the last few weeks.
The discoveries have prompted fears that the species – normally found in the Mediterranean – has settled in the UK for good. They are covered in 63,000 poisonous hairs which can trigger allergic reactions and conjunctivitis if they are touched. Even if they are not handled, the bristles can break off and be carried in the air. If inhaled, they can trigger asthma. In extreme cases, they can even trigger anaphylactic shock.
Although spraying kills them, the caterpillars release thousands of hairs as they fall to the ground. The presence of these hairs – and the fact that the toxin in them can survive for up to a year – means the risks remain even after the caterpillars are destroyed. Last year, officials at Kew Gardens in West London were forced to use hairspray to stick the nests together before burning them with blowtorches.
The creatures first appeared in Britain last summer after they were brought into the country on trees imported from the Netherlands.
Watch a gross BBC movie here

Small but potentially deadly:
The hairs of Oak processionary caterpillars can trigger allergic reactions
© Daily Mail
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