August at III

We spent Saturday and Sunday at III (see his entry below). It was typical August weather and we did get some clearing done although it was really too humid to be doing much. We arrived Saturday morning, 8/20, and jumped right on to the hard jobs. Himself went to mowing and I went to town! I found a great thrift shop and checked out a couple of other shops in Bethany. I also filled the jeep with gas, which hurt, as I had to pay $2.57/gal. That is the most I have ever had to pay for gas in my entire life. I only record it here so that I can look back in 20 years and either say, "gee, we were still burning gas then?" or "wow! I have to pay $7.70/gal now -- that was cheap back in the olden days!" I wonder which it will be? Maybe we will be running our vehicles on soy bean oil in 2025???

While himself runs around playing commando or Rambo with the buzzing insects (we are ordering him a holster in which to carry his super-duper, wasp and hornet spray -- he's the fastest draw in the West!), I continue to make improvements. I carried a 1/2 ton of broken tile from the top of the drive to the wettest part of the driveway one weekend. Wait, to clarify, I dug them out of the brush, threw them into a trailer and carted them down the hill. No way could I have carried that much broken tile and be done already. Last weekend, I shoveled out the fire pit (2 trailer loads) and carted the ashes up to another place in the drive that has a low spot. Previously, I edged the sloping drive with cement block. I figure the blocks will allow water to run through but will hold the ashes that I have now carted up and dumped. Ashes are much easier to dig than the red, Missouri clay.

Now, to be fair, himself cooked gormet meals all weekend and maybe even washed the dishes. He also revved up the chain saw and cleared some more scrub and cut some trees. He sent me into the brush and tall grass (he really doesn't like the insects -- case you couldn't tell) to clear first year growth trees so he could mow that patch down. In addition to the cabin clearing being a fire break, by keeping it mowed we will cut down on the risk of ticks too.

So, all and all, we enjoy each and every weekend that we spend at III. We have so many plans for when it cools off, for Fall, that I don't suppose we can possibly get them all done. One project we do want to finish is to get the Shade Room up and roofed. That will make life simpler and more organized and we'll hang the hand tools in there and park the Mule and the lawn mowers there too. That will free up the front porch, now cluttered. The trails, too, are a priority for both of us. We can't wait to get some trails cut into the "deep" woods, down to the river. We disagree on which direction we need to go to get to the river -- but we will find it! And this fall we will walk in to where we want to eventually build our house and decide on the layout so that next summer we can get my barn (garage) built. We will probably put running water to it and have a stool and shower in a corner of the barn. Of course, that will mean a septic tank or leach field so there will be plenty to think about for next year. The planning is almost as much fun as the doing!

And so go our days at III . . . the other side

yellow jackets demise and other things

well, we went to Shag III last weekend 8/20/05 to complete my covert mission to search and destroy my terrorist yellow jacket nest. I waited till late afternoon to locate the nest, then marked it with spray paint so i could find it when it got dark.
about 8:30 I decided it was time, so donned my cammo gear, and my super flying insect killer that shoots a stream 50 feet, and headed out on my mission. I arrived at the nest at 8:32 P.M. and discovered a few of the yellow jackets we're on patrol. As they had not yet spotted me, i decided it was now or never. I let loose with one steady burst and totally doused the nest, walking toward it as I fired. One full can into the hole, then I ran like h___. Thats not heck, either.
I checked the next morning around 5:30 A.M. Did not see any activity, so let loose with another long burst directly into the hole. As of 11:30 A.M. there was no activity, so will assume the nest has been destroyed. I will keep my eye on it though. If i spot more, i will use gas on them this time.
I am getting my equipment gathered for a fall push on the 4-wheeler trails. I now have ammased 5, yes thats right, five chain saw blades, so when I start into the timber, I won't come out for awhile,
We have started pushing outwards from the driveway towards the timber line, clearing out small trees and scrubs and tall weeds. It will mean alot more mowing to keep it cleared, but this will be good to keep cleared for no better reason than a fire break if there ever happened to be a fire.
We seem to have cleared the herd of mice that were nesting inside and outside of the cabin. After putting about 20 boxes of d-con out, I have not seen any indications of mice in or around the cabin. I imagine when it gets colder they will be looking for a place to winter over, but they will only meet death. . . . himself

the battle goes on and on and on

We have come to find out that there will be a never ending supply of insects. Each type seems to have its own time of the year that it becomes a nuisance. I have battled the carpenter bees to a standstill, the ticks, I no longer just flick off. When i spot one crawling on me, I take a bic lighter and burn it off. I singe a few hairs, but why just flick the tick for him to attact later. I prefer to fry them. Now, the yellow jackets. I knew we had a nest, and i knew the general area where the nest was. I have never bothered them, nor provoked them in any way. However, they have attacked me for no reason. Just because I mowed over their nest is no reason, but they did. Now this nest is living on borrowed time. The next time we go down, I will wait till dark and mount a night attact. I will douse the nest with gasoline, then use some lighter fluid to make a trail from the gasoline, then i will ignite the nest. This will be a personnal attact as they have stung me several times. After 2 weeks, the stings still itch.
After visiting with my friend an co-worker Mr Ron M, I have finally convinced Nance to purchase some pressure treated lumber to use for the screen room instead of cedar trees. Although all the books and websites say cedar was used for fence posts, I will lean to the advice of Mr. Ron.
I am looking forward to this fall when the leaves have fallen and I can get started in ernest on my trails. There will be places for small bridges, and I am thinking that railroad ties my be the answer to bridge construction. There seem to be plenty around when I haven't had any use for them, but now that I do, well, we'll see.
All for now.
Boi