Due to so many trees hanging over that part of the roof, moss grew and fungi flourished. He cut the worst offender – a dead pine – and now he had to scrape moss and fungi from the shingles. He was afraid – there, I said it but he confronted his fear of heights and won.
That yellow rope you see ……. we tied it to the leg of one bed in one room and the other end to another bed in another room. Still, I held the rope in case he slipped so I’d be there to keep him from falling.
This morning, oh happy day, Charlie checked the mouse traps and found two – count them, two of the critters. One was dead and the other was only caught by one foot, so was struggling to get away. Needless to say I hightailed it outside so as to get away from them, especially the live one. I was on the front porch but could hear Charlie beat the mouse to death outside. I’m glad he learned something when he was a boy scout – besides looking studly in uniform and chasing girls.
But I digress.
The new traps seem to work better. Now we have to seal the entire foundation from the outside. Also we are waiting on an estimate to have the cellar foam-insulated. That will take care of any critter problem we’ve been having and save a bunch on heating bills.
This morning I saw a red crested woodpecker. I didn’t know it was a red crested woodpecker until Charlie told me. I just thought it was a beautiful and unusual looking bird. It landed on the big, old Manitoba Maple and pecked away at it for a moment or so. I don’t think it stayed there but it was wonderful seeing it. While all this is happening, I kept hearing a loud squawking sound, similar to what you’d hear in commercials for Costa Rica and such. It did sound like it came from a jungle. We’ll have to get used to all the various noises of nature.
Since the day we killed that skunk and Charlie threw it over in the woods next to our property, we’ve been smelling skunk. Gee, why do we still smell it? It’s disgusting. I feel bad for the neighbours. What should we have done? Would it have helped had we buried it? I’ll bet it wouldn’t have made a difference.
Yesterday I bought a couple of pots of mums to decorate for fall. I think it makes a statement that we care about our property. I’ve had a lot of compliments.
Oh, there is another mouse in the house. Do you think we could catch it? Three times Charlie set the traps. Three times the bastard ate the cheese and the peanut butter and left the trap undisturbed. So Charlie bought “better” mousetraps, set the bait. Nothing. He didn’t even come by to eat the cheese or peanut butter or whatever. The thought makes my skin crawl. I know this is country but it should be “clean” country, like in the movies. Right?
Also, Charlie hurt his knee. He twisted it while mowing the lawn and now he’s hobbling. Poor baby. He’ll have to take it easy for a while.
Today we went for a drive after lunch. We ended up at the nearest Indian Reservation and went into their arts and crafts store. Real great merchandise. Love it. I made friends with the owner and she promised to have some seeds for me. She had wonderful plant material including tobacco plants which are beautiful and smell real nice. Also Indian corn. I want all that growing, not just the stuff everyone else has – like mums, for instance.
So now we were watching 60 minutes and they’re talking about Afghanistan and increase of troops, etc. Made me sick. Why the hell can’t they just go home and leave people alone. How would they like to be invaded like that? I had great hopes for Obama. Now, he’s looking like all the rest.
The more vines and branches and trees are removed, the more we discover. For example, we found what was once a mini barn. Apparently, at some point the occupants of the house kept livestock – ducks, hens and goats. They were kept in this structure according to the locals and judging by the plastic containers we see, it was this way until recently. We already know there was electricity piped into the barn.
The vines are very thick – up to 4 inches in diameter. Charlie uses the chainsaw to cut them.
I love the mysteries of this property. I’m sure we will find many more interesting items the lower we go, the more we clear and the deeper we dig.
