Bad Day at Block Rock - errrr - Make it Bad Year.

[JRobyn]

I've told it somewhere on TBN before; no idea where...

We came close to buying a lakefront house one time on Lake Lanier north of Atlanta. Beautiful traditional 2-story with full basement. Everything was just about perfect, especially the surprisingly low price.

On some whim, I decided to have a look up in the attic. There was only a few leftover shreds of fiberglass insulation left! EVERY visible wire had the outer jacket completely chewed off. Every bit of the white neutral wire insulation was chewed off. Every few inches on the black hot wire you could plainly see rodent bite marks through the jacket. Most of these had a small arc burn.

I noticed an unusual light over in the corner of the attic and went to investigate - the original roofer had punched out two holes in the chimney cap, one for the fireplace, and evidently one for the furnace/water heater flue. But the house had electric hot water and a heat pump. That 10" hole in the roof had been there for roughly 15 years since the house was built. Squirrels considered the house their Taj Mahal. They had also chewed their way down through the walls, all the way to the basement. I considered it a TOTAL loss. It is quite a miracle that it had not burned down.

 

[crash325]

I hope you folks are staying warm & Santa brought you nice toys.

When i first moved here, there was a mouse hole in the front yard. I ran water in it and mashed them as they came out. There was not a hint of rodent damage any where. The problems started about 2 years ago. Currently I may have them under control. No visible sings of any activity.

Just the squirrels in the front & back yard. Maybe they contribute, but don't think so. They just dig holes & steal bird seeds.

Much more later -Will fill in a few blanks.

Jim

 

[teg]

I hope you folks are staying warm & Santa brought you nice toys.

Santa brought me lumps of coal ...which is keeping me nice and warm!

 

[Doofy]

Santa brought me lumps of coal ...which is keeping me nice and warm!

Wish I had some nice lumps of coal. We had a coal stove back in the 80s and enjoyed the steady heat and longevity of the burn. I did lose my eyebrows several times, due to my impatience in stoking the fire. Haha

 

[crash325]

Merry miserable new year.

Life is great,
Jim

 

[Ken]

Jim I noticed you had the highest temp with 70+ degrees.
What is so miserable for the year.
Breathing and the Sun still rises in the East .
Getting a few coins for retirement. Remember your friend that traveled for a year with same dime in pocket.
Have a place to call home . Better than a card board box under the bridge some where.

ken

 

[crash325]

Jim I noticed you had the highest temp with 70+ degrees.
What is so miserable for the year.
Breathing and the Sun still rises in the East .
Getting a few coins for retirement. Remember your friend that traveled for a year with same dime in pocket.
Have a place to call home . Better than a card board box under the bridge some where.

ken

Well life goes on & on.
I have figured out the difference between melon an coley, and unhappy & depressed.
Colie is when you just don't care. Unhappy is when you could care less. Depressed is when you really don't a damm. Still have some mood swings just not as bad.

Getting old & grouchy.
Turned on the news. Commentator was a speed talker. Congress man was worse. Whole paragraph, take a breath & go again.
Lest favorite commercials. Nuta system, my pillow is right up there. Flex seal is close behind. With lots of others than make me flip away or turn off TV. Buy 1 & get 1 free. Yea right your going to get something free. Of course there is free shipping.

Mad at mutts, screwed 1/2" plywood over dog door. It is working so far. Keeping gate closed. Pickles, took about 3 hours to come in. Dog can go out as well if he wants to. Bobby will stay in, she is not int escape.

Left the house with about $7 & came home with $3. Of course I had to borrow a few $$$. Sack of bird seeds. ( one of my favorite things is watching the quail. Throw out seeds & 20 or 30 come running. There are lots of little birds that I feed on the ramp railing. Seeds sunflower seeds, suit cake. Even the wood pecker is fun to watch. Wish I liked to eat as much. Beer, cigars & birds sure out weight that.

Came home with food, deviled eggs, shrimp & fish caught at rocky Point Mexico. Should have ask Henry how to fix the fish & shrimp. On line says not to over cook them.

Lots of little & larger things to make life less than pleasant. Decide to make tractor go. Jury rig the wiring & battery is dead. Have a real long heavy extension cord, lots of it still on the reel it came on. Plug it up & off I go. Oh crap its broken, not 1 but 2 places. Cut out a 6/ 8' section..

Time to have a beer or 2 & think about it & life in general. + plus a little cigar or 2. Think I have enough beer & cigars to last until pay day.

Really need to get things done while the weather is spring like. Next week highs will be in the 60's (67)

Time to go out & cook some spam, have a beer & contemplate life some more.. Already up to 55.

More later,
Jim

 

[Ken]

Jim Thought you were Depressed or some similar condition . Maybe need to take a slow trip to the Mountains and soak the feet in the Blue River. get a case of Spam can of beans biscuit mix frying pan some lard and enjoy the living you grew up with
Maybe rent a horse for couple of weeks . travel the trails knew 1/2 century ago.
When you get back will be clear headed .Blue eyed and ready to tackle the world all over again. maybe not ready to wrestle a lion .

today it is above freezing for the past week. by time get shop warm enough to remove coat it is time to go back into the house.

Wife going to have Retina surgery again . makes 3rd on same eye and once already on other.
so again cook house cleaner and what ever needs to be done.

cheer up it could be worse.
ken

 

[crash325]

Jim Thought you were Depressed or some similar condition . Maybe need to take a slow trip to the Mountains and soak the feet in the Blue River. get a case of Spam can of beans biscuit mix frying pan some lard and enjoy the living you grew up with
Maybe rent a horse for couple of weeks . travel the trails knew 1/2 century ago.
When you get back will be clear headed .Blue eyed and ready to tackle the world all over again. maybe not ready to wrestle a lion .

today it is above freezing for the past week. by time get shop warm enough to remove coat it is time to go back into the house.

Wife going to have Retina surgery again . makes 3rd on same eye and once already on other.
so again cook house cleaner and what ever needs to be done.

cheer up it could be worse.
ken

It sounds like a good idea. But so much has changed it would probably depress me. Lagers destroyed much of things, cutting stuip roads, causing lots of erosion & & polluting the small streams. Then the Forrest service tried to erase the fact that man had ever been there. I would wind up with a major depression.

Here is something similar what happened to me several years ago. It was a flesh eating bacteria, different name that i could not even pronounce. Dr told me 1 more day & would have died. Think it was a spider bite, but??

Texas woman dies from flesh-eating bacteria after raw oysters banquet

Texas woman dies from flesh-eating bacteria after raw oysters banquet | Fox News

Did splice cable today & battery in tractor is charging. Hard not to test it see if it is working. did go feel the charger & it was warm.

More later,
Jim

 

[crash325]

Life goes on, & on

Mood swings, they are down to what I consider normal.

Not broke, have 17 cents in the bank. Just don't know where to sp0end all that $$

May have peed off the liberals on TBN, with a picture I posted. OH well

there is a thread on TBN that folks are talking about boots & stetsons. Real cowboys Did not wear boots with walking heals & never kept their pants legs tucked in.Object of boots with a high top was to keep brush out.

In the old days ( well not that Old) men & cowboys took their hat off as they went indoors.

Me on a mule -

A real cowboy - - - :laughing:

Have plenty of beer & wood tips (I hope) :thumbsup:

More later,
Jim