The Difference Between Houston and Austin

Several years ago, Dear Sister gave my wife and myself a toad house as a gift. If you've never seen one, a toad house is a usually-ceramic little item that you put outside to provide shelter for the resident garden amphibian - it essentially makes a comfy and decorative little cave.


We get the occassional toad aroud here, but I hadn't seen one in the house for quite some time. My wife decided to move it to a different spot near the front pond. When she picked it up however, it was indeed occupied.

This clearly summarizes the difference between Austin and Houston. Our toads have more legs.

The local tarantulas, Aphenopelma hentzi, are, by the way, completely harmless. They are actually kind of cute - I have heard them referred to as "South Austin Chipmunks" by more than one person. I had been concerned that I hadn't seen any active spider burrows in my back 40 this year - but why dig when there's an open house for the taking? I need to buy some more toad houses.