I saw a butterfly flutter by!

Aren't butterflies just the coolest things? I mean, honestly, who doesn't like them? Evolution has brought us many lifeforms ranging from mosquitos (the Minnesota state bird) to grizzly bears, but butterflies are something truly special. Mother Nature was obviously showing off when she made them.

Her work certainly hasn't gone unnoticed. For thousands of years, butterflies have captivated people the world over. The ancient Egyptians depicted butterflies in their hieroglyphs. The Chinese believe that two butterflies flying together are a symbol of love. The Japanese see a butterfly as the personification of a person's soul, yet, strangely they see large groups of butterflies as a bad omen. In Greece, the word "butterfly" literally means "soul". In other ancient cultures, butterflies symbolized rebirth. And, most importantly, butterflies are the number one tattoo choice for women everywhere. (Years of painstaking scientific research of womens' midriffs has confirmed this.)

Now, I don't know too much about all of that. For me, butterflies are just damn cool to look at. Thus, it should come as no surprise that I love photographing them, too. After culling through all of my butterfly photos, I have selected my favorites and created a new Butterflies Gallery. Take a look and let me know what you think.

(Tomorrow, I leave for a two-week photo excusrion to Northern California. You'll have to find some way to survive without my riveting photoblog entries. I'll post some shots from the trip when I return. Until then, farewell.)