We're beginning to get an increasing amount of rain, so maybe, just maybe—said almost praying... no, genuinely praying...—the long nightmare and day-mare of drought is easing. Tonight, with the showers turning to a foggy mist, I headed outside to check the lights and leaves for the presence of amphibians, and while I didn't spot any tree frogs or peepers inching their way up the shingles, I did notice a Red-backed Salamander heading skyward on the siding by the basement door. The arboreal frogs seem to enjoy getting close to the lights, either, I'm guessing, for the warmth or to take advantage of their ability to lure in insects that make for easy eating. But I'm not sure about the Red-backed's attraction to climbing. Maybe, like the archetypical mountaineer, it was climbing because, as they say, it's there. I know the feeling.