{"id":21587,"date":"2026-08-15T20:06:56","date_gmt":"2026-08-16T00:06:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/?p=21587"},"modified":"2026-08-20T08:24:33","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T12:24:33","slug":"journal-of-the-week-128","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/?p=21587","title":{"rendered":"Journal of the Week"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>8\/14\/2026 Friday<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Cicadas <\/strong>sound is heard some of <strong>these days<\/strong>. <strong>Last one heard was around 2021<\/strong> which was rather heavy. And here's AI's answer:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">In South Amboy, New Jersey, annual cicada season begins in early July and lasts through mid-September. Periodical 17-year cicadas also emerge in mass broods during May and June when local soil temperatures reach 64 degrees, though massive multi-week periodical invasions occur only on their specific multi-year cycles. [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cicadamania.com\/cicadas\/a-short-cicada-summer-in-central-new-jersey\/\">1<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.northjersey.com\/story\/news\/environment\/2025\/03\/12\/cicadas-nj-when-brood-xiv-emerges-spring-2025\/82223971007\/\">2<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.app.com\/story\/news\/local\/new-jersey\/2025\/03\/18\/cicadas-2025-atlantic-camden-ocean-county-new-jersey\/82491990007\/\">3<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/reel\/DVMev-2ksHA\/?hl=en\">4<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Annual Cicadas<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Timing:<\/strong> Early July through September.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Behavior:<\/strong> Hear them buzz in trees during hot summer afternoons and days.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Lifespan:<\/strong> Small numbers appear every single year. [<a href=\"https:\/\/yardandgarden.extension.iastate.edu\/article\/2008\/7-30\/cicada.html\">1<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cicadamania.com\/cicadas\/category\/life-cycle\/annual\/\">2<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cicadamania.com\/cicadas\/a-short-cicada-summer-in-central-new-jersey\/\">3<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.northjersey.com\/story\/news\/environment\/2025\/03\/12\/cicadas-nj-when-brood-xiv-emerges-spring-2025\/82223971007\/\">4<\/a>]<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Periodical Cicadas<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Timing:<\/strong> Mid-May through June (when soil hits 64\u00b0F).<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Behavior:<\/strong> Billions emerge together to sing loudly and mate over a 4 to 6 week window.<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>Cycle:<\/strong> Controlled by long 17-year subterranean growth cycles. You can track active local sightings or log finds using community tools like <a href=\"https:\/\/cicadasafari.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Cicada Safari<\/a>. [<a href=\"https:\/\/nypost.com\/2025\/03\/15\/us-news\/billions-of-noisy-cicadas-will-emerge-in-parts-of-new-york-new-jersey-this-spring-experts\/\">1<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/townofsandwichma\/videos\/cicada-season-is-coming-brood-xiv-cicadas-are-emerging-in-2025-a-rare-event-that\/1442497410073782\/\">2<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/newjersey.news12.com\/brood-14-cicadas-to-emerge-in-new-jersey-this-spring-for-first-time-in-17-years\">3<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/cicadasafari.org\/\">4<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.app.com\/story\/news\/local\/new-jersey\/2025\/03\/18\/cicadas-2025-atlantic-camden-ocean-county-new-jersey\/82491990007\/\">5<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.northjersey.com\/story\/news\/environment\/2025\/03\/12\/cicadas-nj-when-brood-xiv-emerges-spring-2025\/82223971007\/\">6<\/a>]<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Your memory is spot on. The massive swarm you remember from <strong>2021 was <u><strong>Brood X<\/strong><\/u><\/strong> (the Great Eastern Brood), which blanketed parts of New Jersey. [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/ProfessorDoubter\/posts\/cicadas-in-nj-go-outside-around-8-pm-to-see-them-crawling-out-of-the-grass-and-i\/1603779051630951\/\">1<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pbs.org\/video\/brood-x-cicadas-1622477108\/\">2<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">You are completely correct that 17 years haven't passed since then. What you are hearing right now are <strong>annual cicadas<\/strong>. [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.farmersalmanac.com\/attack-of-the-cicadas-2026-map-faq-and-tips\">1<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.njspotlightnews.org\/video\/brood-x-cicadas-emerge-around-nj-after-17-years-under-ground\/\">2<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Annual vs. Periodical Cicadas<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\">\n<li><strong>Every Single Summer:<\/strong> Unlike the periodical broods that wait 13 or 17 years underground, annual cicadas emerge <strong>every July through September<\/strong>. They are the background buzz you hear on hot August afternoons. [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.farmersalmanac.com\/attack-of-the-cicadas-2026-map-faq-and-tips\">1<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pjstar.com\/story\/news\/state\/2024\/05\/07\/how-long-will-cicadas-last-facts-about-cicadas-life-cycle\/73556994007\/\">2<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/pbswisconsin.org\/watch\/wisconsin-gardener\/wisconsin-gardener-cicada-killer-giant-wasps\/\">3<\/a>]<\/li>\n\n\n\n<li><strong>The \"Straggler\" Phenomenon:<\/strong> Interestingly, if you happen to see a periodical cicada with distinctive red eyes right now, it is likely a <strong><u><strong>4-year straggler<\/strong><\/u><\/strong>. Periodical cicadas possess internal biological clocks that sometimes misfire, causing small numbers to emerge 4 years early. In fact, researchers tracking data on <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cicadamania.com\/cicadas\/category\/broods\/brood-ii\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Cicada Mania<\/a> noted early \"stragglers\" from Brood II appearing across Middlesex County towns like Edison and Metuchen. [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cicadamania.com\/cicadas\/2026\/03\/\">1<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/bugoftheweek.com\/blog\/2026\/5\/11\/cicada-surprises-in-2026-straggling-periodical-cicadas-of-broods-ii-and-xxii-magicicada-spp\">2<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cicadamania.com\/cicadas\/notes-on-brood-ii-stragglers-in-new-jersey-2026\/\">3<\/a>]<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">If you want to help scientists map out exactly which bugs are waking up near South Amboy, you can snap a photo and log your sighting on the community-driven iNaturalist app. [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cicadamania.com\/cicadas\/2026\/03\/\">1<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Would you like to know how to <strong>tell the difference<\/strong> between an annual cicada and a periodical straggler by looking at them, or are you curious when the next <strong>massive official brood invasion<\/strong> is scheduled for our area? [<a href=\"https:\/\/www.cicadamania.com\/cicadas\/2026\/03\/\">1<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.cooperpest.com\/blog\/when-to-expect-cicadas\/\">2<\/a>]<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">U.S. vs. Europe economics: Europe is failing further and further away behind U.S. <strong><em>Get busy protect your failures (protecting laborers, etc.), and you won't have any success left<\/em><\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-4-3 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"\u6b27\u6d32\u4e3a\u4f55\u8d8a\u6765\u8d8a\u7a77\uff1f\u88ab\u7f8e\u56fd\u8d8a\u7529\u8d8a\u8fdc #\u8001\u5c24\u65f6\u8c08 #yypage\" width=\"640\" height=\"480\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/9FpgUy35eHs?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>8\/13\/2026 Thursday<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>Marriage Fraud<\/strong> for Green cards ($100,000 per application, $30,000 profit for willing American, referral gets $5,000) in Flushing &amp; Brooklyn for Chinese. 11 caught operating $10,000,000 business in the past 10 years. Though I am against marriage frauds, but I feel this solution from the federal entity inept judging from this era. <strong>I wonder if this ushers a time where same-sex marriages become super legal and prominent while international real marriages become frown upon or skeptically illegal<\/strong>:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-9-16 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"\u7ebd\u7ea6\u534e\u4eba\u7eff\u5361\u6b3a\u8bc8\u5927\u6848\u6536\u7f51\uff0c1000\u8d77\u5047\u7ed3\u5a5a\u88ab\u67e5 #\u8001\u5c24\u65f6\u8c08  #yypage\" width=\"540\" height=\"960\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/9WFHShs-HNw?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Skipping my usual MeRF Thursday Zoom Bible Study (no clue if they were even hosting, as usual) at 7pm, Nadia and I went to <strong>celebrate my birthday <\/strong>(without telling the waiters, who sang birthday songs at least at two tables during our visit) at <a href=\"https:\/\/maps.app.goo.gl\/pppXDxDUQozc1oMe7\">the Armory at Perth Amboy<\/a>, our first, and probably our last visit. Food was okay, but the gnats flying outside were rather annoying. I ordered Paelha Valenciana (lobster, clams, mussels, shrimp, scallops, chicken, pork and Portuguese Sausage in a saffron rice) $49 while Nadia ordered some fish with shrimps $39.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/thumbnails-photos.amazon.com\/v1\/thumbnail\/s1HAxee4Ri6fzvWOq3qbMA?viewBox=689%2C919&amp;ownerId=A3VXZQAA33O18B&amp;groupShareToken=9TiACuF9QgG89XWz54AyRQ.gv2jO5qySysKeH4808n8Tc\" alt=\"\"\/><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>8\/12\/2026 Wednesday<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">There was this hype of total <strong>solar eclipse in Spain<\/strong> on my birthday. I heard of it, didn't follow the news. But NASA does have some impressive information. Including a time-lapse <a href=\"https:\/\/svs.gsfc.nasa.gov\/5236\/\">map of the eclipses over the last 5000 years<\/a>. Update 8\/18\/2026: Veritasium explains it well:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"Total Solar Eclipse from 92,000 Feet\" width=\"640\" height=\"360\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/J1WoNuemKOg?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><strong>8\/10\/2026 Monday<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">I took a photo of our basement vent to the outside with a metal grate cover (often called an <strong>Fresh Air Inlet - FAI<\/strong> plate or vent cap). Sent it to Google AI for identification. It's an air vent for the House Trap, from old plumbing system. Fascinating how this prevents city sewer waste or smell coming back into the house. While modern plumbing eliminate this whole system due to most toilet fixtures already come with it's own P-Trap (U-bend under sink or toilet) coupled with rooftop vent trap, and <strong>backwater prevention valve<\/strong> to prevent backwater from sewer system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/thumbnails-photos.amazon.com\/v1\/thumbnail\/A-yW25MMQyG6f5JnVG00wA?viewBox=1347%2C1412&amp;ownerId=A3VXZQAA33O18B&amp;groupShareToken=ZQDtveEATRytbDTtXFK-nw.GD7RyStUIPWd8xnuU3hhoY\" alt=\"\"\/><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>8\/14\/2026 Friday Cicadas sound is heard some of these days. Last one heard was around 2021 which was rather heavy. And here's AI's answer: In South Amboy, New Jersey, annual cicada season begins in early July and lasts through mid-September. &hellip; <a href=\"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/?p=21587\">Continue reading <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[16,7],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-21587","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-astronomy","category-general"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21587","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=21587"}],"version-history":[{"count":13,"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21587\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":21676,"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/21587\/revisions\/21676"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=21587"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=21587"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/nycphantom.com\/journal\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=21587"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}