Folklore or Fact

Yesterday morning I looked across the valley at the grey skies.  Overhead, clouds were moving quickly and the air felt heavy. The valley was covered in a fine mist.

The cows - most of them before I ran for my camera - were lying in the field across the county road. English folklore has long insisted that cows lying in a field indicated that it was going to rain. Sure enough, it did rain - but just a bit. Not the deluge I was hoping for.

But curious as ever, I had to check it out - where else but Wikipedia? So according to researchers at the University of Arizona (I think ) cows prefer to lie down when it's cold but stand when it's hot. The researchers reasoned that standing allows their body heat to dissipate more easily if they're standing. They appear to lie down when the air pressure lowers which often is accompanied by lower temperatures as well as storms and rain.
 
Learn something new every day!

And I got some spectacular photos because of the little bit of rain.

I thought this rose looked as if it was studded with diamonds when I saw the photograph - the tiny drops of water caught by the flash of the camera...didn't see them with the naked eye.
And once again, Gaia gave me a beautiful sunset before it clouded over again. May you have similar gifts come your way today.