Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Fun Fact

Fun Fact!

According to William Bradford's book of Plymouth Plantation: 1620 - 1647, turkey was on the menu at the first Thanksgiving.

Find the Critter



Can you find the critter in the above picture?

Sunday, November 22, 2009

The Fat Lady Has Sung!!


Finally, lawn mowing/lawn care season is officially over for 2009!!

I spent yesterday putting my dads yard to bed for the winter; cleaned the gutters, raked and blew leaves (and cussed at then too), cut and bagged the grass and leaves, and finished by putting a winterizer fertilizer down. Of course the latter is SO counter productive in term wanting to cut the lawn less - what was I thinking...

Here are the mowing numbers for 2009:
  • My dads lawn = 16 cuttings
  • A clients lawn = 14 cuttings
  • Our lawn = 29 cuttings

All my lawn care equipment has also been put up for the winter - I'm one for the season!

Monday, November 16, 2009

Little Pecker Heads...



Care to take a guess at what caused the damage on the side of this house?

You might not be too surprised to learn what caused this but you might be when you hear the reason why!

Woodpeckers - woodpeckers are to blame. Yup, them cute little pecker-head-sum-bitches.

My first thought was that they were after something to eat; something like termites or ants or some other little insect, however, that's not the case.

The home owner made several calls in an effort to determine what caused this and why. One was to the local animal control officer, one was to an exterminator and one to Audubon.

It was Audubon that told her the reason was not to find food but rather an attempt to build a nest site. If you look close enough you'll notice that each hole was made directly under the over-hang of the shingle above, which is an indication of their intent - nest building versus feeding.

Interesting stuff!

Friday, November 13, 2009

Senior Health Care Solution

So you’re a senior citizen and the government says no health care for you, what do you do?

Our plan gives anyone 65 years or older a gun and 4 bullets. Your are allowed to shoot 2 senators and 2 representatives.

Of Course, this means you will be sent to prison.

There you will get 3 meals a day, a roof over your head, and all the health care you need! New teeth, no problem. Need glasses, great. New hip, knees, kidney, lungs, heart? All covered.

And who will be paying for all of this? The same government that just told you that you are too old for health care. Plus, because you are a prisoner, you don’t have to pay any income taxes anymore.

IS THIS A GREAT COUNTRY OR WHAT?!

Mark Your Calendar...


Sunday, November 15 has been nominated as "Steve Irwin Day" by the Australia Zoo in Queensland.

Also, an Australian scientist has paid an unusual tribute to the late conservation star Steve Irwin by naming a rare species of snail "crikey steveirwini".

"It was the khaki colour that immediately drew the connection to the late Crocodile Hunter."

To read more - Crikey steveirwini! Snail honour for late Aussie star

Thursday, November 12, 2009

Bones

and I'm not talking about the Fox TV show Bones but real bones!

What you're looking at is or was a shrew (rodent).

We found this particular dude, dead and floating in our pool during the early summer. Of course at that time he looked different - well, like a shrew would normally look only wet and dead, again, because he was in the pool. Are you following all this?!

Well, Emilie was in charge of his removal and she did a super job. She got the skimmer and scooped him out in one nice, fluid motion. However, her attempt at launching this dude over the fence fell short and he landed on the second rail of the stockade fence - which is exactly where he's remained and still remains today, only no longer wet and missing his epidermis. An indefinate science project of sorts.

Stop by an see him if you're in the neighborhood.

Wednesday, November 04, 2009

Calling in the BIG Guns - UPDATE

Here is an update on our Muscovy ducks, as you can see they've grown...

If you recall we "adopted" three ducklings. The number three was chosen in an effort to increase our odds of having one male and one female. Of course we ended up with two males and one female. Since keeping two males is out of the question, one of the males has since been re-homed, which also saves on feed and boy can these quackers eat! So, we're down to a strikingly handsome pair (the female is the one sporting the black cap) - we've accomplished our intended goal.

We also purchased a used 5' wide x 5' deep x 5' tall chain link dog kennel that we're using to house these guys. It's working just fine for us and the duckies seem to enjoy it too. Since Muscovies are notorious fliers and escape artists I'll need to clip their wings soon otherwise the kennel investment will be for not. They'll always come home, but I'm sure our neighbors wouldn't appreciate their visits. This should be done twice a year and only needs to be performed on one wing. All I need to do it cut the flight feathers in half - like a haircut of sorts with no pain or discomfort to the animal.

Plan B is in full swing! Think Spring...

Fun Fact

Fun Fact!

The term "granola bar" was first recognized in the late nineteenth century as a term for foods made up of whole grain products that are baked until crispy.

Identify It

What bird did this feather come from?