The dominant life form in my garden too. A "milkweed bug".

http://www.arizonensis.org/sonoran/fieldguide/arthropoda/lygeaus_kalmii.html

They don't seem to do much harm, although they do gather on damaged tomatoes where they are drinking the juice and having sex. They might be responsible for some puncture wounds to my okra.

Ah, my curiosity is at last assuaged! Glad you could ID it. The link is interesting too. It doesn't seem to bode well that it is becoming a "dominant life form." I see them on porch and patio, though not in great numbers there. Landlady has a huge stand of oleander hedge. I may be misconstruing but I've seen the little milkweed bug in cozy association with the fallen dried-up blossoms. There must be something there it uses as food source, possibly a seed. Further searches yielded some more interesting sites:

http://insected.arizona.edu/milkinfo.htm

http://themarvelousinnature.wordpress.com/2010/04/05/tay-meadows-tidbit-small-milkweed-bug/

Again, thank you.