All around where I live used to be a big family owned farm, until a while ago people began to break up the properties and build small houses in what was a local housing boom for a time.

Ten or twelve years ago, I could walk out in the middle of my backyard and take a DUMP if I wanted to - nobody around to see!

It's still a bit thin on populace, but not what it once was. In the meantime - all the wild critters are mostly still around here!!! Nobody told them suburbia was coming.


all you need to know is how to make a catching stick. Use any stick or broomhandle 6 foot long or so.

Tie a piece of light rope or string to the far end, then make a slip-knot in it at the far end.

You want a rope anchored at the other end of a stick, with a loop of line controlled by the tag end coming back to your hand.

Pulling the free end closes the loop around the snake or whatever critters head & neck

 

it isn't just the south where you have to worry about snakes - we had a ranch in Colorado in 2000 - bought it and moved in happily in winter, but then summer arrived. 48 rattlers within twenty feet of the stoop in a little over a month - they were the ones I shot. Got another 15 inside the barn, and two inside the basement of the house. We sold that place in August 2000 because that many snakes is too many. During the January we couldn't get in the barn because of the bear that had moved in to the feed room. Didn't want to shoot that old guy so we left him to it. Then raccoons stripped the dairy. We didn't have much luck with that place at all. But, we left because of the snakes.
We lived in Oakland, TN for four years, and didn't see one snake the whole time. Plenty of lizards, a few armadillos, and more squirrels than anyone would want, but no snakes. The freakiest critters there were the bright red spiders, with black stripes on their butt.

 

It looks like an easy day - I woke with my left upper so jacked from sleeping on it badly (I guess) I'd be out of commission even if the rain didn't re-saturate everything again. It's bound to be good for the recent sprouts though.

 

48 RATTLERS!!!!! Theo... i have seen a TOTAL of 5 snakes (alive) my WHOLE life! 1 in Vermont, 1 in ALABAMA, and 3 in ILLINOIS (of which I have lived my whole life). There just aren't really any in Central IL. And what snakes are here are grass snakes. I have land in ALABAMA in the mountains/forest and I cringe every time I have to walk thru the grass over 1' tall! I just know there is a snake waiting for me.

=The GReat

 

That's the most stupidest thing.... "Sleeping Wrong". It happens to me all the time. I don't know if its the bed and we need to buy a new one or what. I mean how can you "Sleep Wrong"? If it was such a bad sleep/angle, shouldnt' our bodies have woken us up? I feel your pain Dutch and hope you recoup. Enjoy the day off.... God said to rest on the Sabbath.... unless the Ox was stuck in the ditch....

-The Great

 

I do things like read in bed, with my head held up by the palm of one hand and the forearm - ya know? Which hurts after too long.

Worse if I fall asleep while reading...

I KNOW ABOUT THAT, and I still do! So what hope is there for me?

I dunno what did THIS tho... Aspercreme finally got to it, so all is good

These days I figure if I can sleep, I'm doing it right. Too many rained out events, if anything I should be well rested!

Mmm, Woola says hello to everyone. She just woke up and crawled out of the carburetor box she likes to curl up in

 

There are two nests of non-venomous snakes here on our land - one nest under the well house and another under the fir trees, they ain't friendly but they keep out of the way. I really do not like snakes..

I am forever hurting myself, sleeping. I get pains in my neck and shoulders, just from sleeping wrong. I can only stay in bed for six hours; any longer I am in agony.

 

Whatever you do - if they are NOT venomous, KEEP THEM HAPPY TO BE AROUND. My reasoning is this:
The best rodent control in a garden is accomplished by native means. A Gopher Snake is named it for a reason - and it costs little or nothing to operate.

A local snake population of a non-venomous variety will raise the total snake population to a level that may not (hopefully) be comfortable to a 'hunter' type of a snake

The presence of snakes indicates rare travel by other animals of the twin legged variety, particularly 'uninviteds'

One very good thing a "Capture Stick" is used for is to identify the specie of snake. What HAVE you got there?
If it has round eyes, let it go.
If it has diamond eyes - it's time to find out fer sho!!! (possibly also finding the nest)

Right here is a thing that worries me about Tennessee:
In TN, it is illegal to kill several varieties of POISONOUS SNAKES(!) including Rattlesnakes (Pit Vipers)
Because the local populations are considered to be endangered...
(WELL DANG STRAIGHT! MEATHEADS... WE been TRYING TO ENDANGER 'EM FOR DECADES!!!)

Nutshell version: You hit it with the lawnmower.
Shame really - they can be pickled with jalapenos

 

I do this ALL the time with the ipad. I will be reading the news on it and wake up with a crick in my neck. Dumb

-THe Great

 

I know you guys might think this story is a fable, but my Dad has a friend in Eastern Kentucky and he had a problem with snakes coming onto his land. And when he would catch the snakes he would take them off his property, keeping them alive. From what he/we were told, that when the snakes were thrown off the property versus killed, they would communicate with the other snakes to stay off the property.

Now I don't know how much to believe that.... but what I do know is that he rarely ever sees any snakes on his property now. So perhaps it holds "some" water

-The Great

 

I see nothing wrong with the basic mechanism - the snakes taken away must have a means of communicating at least that "Go there, something is there that interferes"

Cheaper than building an apartment complex, too...

I have never been hit by a poisonous snake, I always advertise by making as much noise and ground shake as I can. Snakes mostly pick up vibrations in the ground, and will avoid "NOISE"

THEO: More about 'WOOLA'

https://www.ford-trucks.com/forums/s...&postcount=331

 

Well, Monday has arrived, and it's wet AGAIN. I'm trying not to complain, because it wasn't too long ago that we were in a drought.

The Car Rally WAS here in Chattanooga, but I was unable to attend. I did see a BUNCH of the cars out and about around town though, which is always cool.

I haven't seen any poisonous snakes on the estate, but I did run into a nice-sized grass snake the other day prowling around my vegetable garden. I was glad to see it, as we've had a minor infestation of chipmunks the past couple of years. They are cute, but they wreak havoc on a garden.

I have in the past killed a rattler while camping...fairly big one (about 4 feet long) that found the business end of a shovel. I was fortunate to have been carrying a shovel when happening upon it sitting under the back bumper of the truck...I guess enjoying the shade. In any event, I had just finished digging out the old ashes from the fire pit and was putting the shovel back in the truck when I heard the rattle. Looked down and jumped back about 10 yards in one leap. Pissed me off, so mr. snake had to go to sleep. I didn't want to sleep in the tent with such a bold one lurking around.

Hope everyone dries out and has a GREAT day!

 

My Grandpa in ALABAMA, used to always kills rattlers and he would sell them at the flea market. I think he got like $10 a piece for the skin. My cousin told me that you can still get $20-30 per skin depending on length.... but IDK if that is a good deal or not

-The Great

 

I will take no notice of any law that suggests I endanger myself of my family for the sake of an animal of any kind. IF I am threatened by any creature, I will defend myself, and this includes deadly force, then so be it. So they can take their protection of snake laws and put them where the sun don't shine. If the snake leaves me alone, by not appearing or rattling at me, and going away from me, it will live. If not it will die, but only the viper breeds - the other guys are quite welcome, like the nests of them here. I do not tolerate vipers.

 

They say rattler tastes like a cross between chicken and fish. Pickled Rattlesnake is popular some places, and can be found in quart jars.
They can also be milked of their venom - and the venom sold to make anti-venom. I think I'll leave that to someone else...


We got drenched today - and this is not speeding things along. I will never live anyplace again that does not have a concrete slab at least to USE for a driveway.

~That's my pool! I laid down two sheets of leftover 1/2 inch plywood to keep rocks out of my back, right at the garage door. MOSTLY so the front wheels of the cherry picker would roll.
A few years back, Dee and I were stripping a chassis over at his place when a set of J-stands fell over with him standing in the middle of the engine compartment. That comes from using stands on bare dirt.
I thought at first that it fell on one of his feet, and if it had - we'd have had to get it off of him before any aid could be rendered... Fortunately it missed, but the lesson didn't!

This is also why I look at how wide stands are when I shop for them, skinny stands are no good in these conditions

Oh well, I'll get to it. Probably during the hottest week of the year...