Tuesday, April 20, 2010

The Complex

Just a shot of what I've gotten done so far to the It'll Du complex. Looks like now that I've had a day old shower at the BBMI I'll start cleaning up the dungeon to make room for Dale & Rhonda's air mattress in here so they won't have to put up their tent this trip. Now that I don't need heat in here the heater and cooker can go out side while they are here and with some more cleaning and moving stuff to the back there should be room.

Note the A-frame is no longer part of the shower. I'm thinking about using it and two more of the poles to construct a pyramid of some sort. Perhaps a guest house that should stand up to the high wind and elements. Might even try it out myself for a while once I get it done. That may be a while though. It will likely be all metal and stucco construction.

Yesterday as I was driving back from Study Butte I saw something dart out from under the dash and then noticed a tail curled up and sticking out from behind the shifter housing. It was really quiet a stimulating experience since it happened so fast I couldn't tell what it was. I leaned forward to see and it was a Kangaroo Rat as far as I could tell. I was going to reach down and try to grab the tail and fling it out the window, but before I had th chance it darted back up under the dash. I was too close to the dungeon to turn around and go back to SB for a mouse trap or poison so headed down to the legion to see if they had a trap I could borrow. They did so it will be in the falcon today.

Now before any of you Monk types start raising hell I don't  want to hear it! Rodents are real bad about gnawing on the insulation of electrical wiring and I can't be putting up with that! Also where there are rodents there are usually snakes sniffing them out and looking for them. I SURE don't want that! I've known some women in my life that would have bailed out of the car going 65 miles per hour just because of the sight of a rodent. I might do the same if it were a rattler. Lets call this self defense and be done with it.
 The Dirty Deed is done! (at least the bated trap is in place.) I noticed some insulation has fell out from under the dash so the little SOBz are already being destructive. Not only in the car, but outside to. Note the last picture I added where they have completely gnawed the bottom out of a bag of charcoal by the container. Evidently seeds aren't all they eat. Looks like they like paper to? I do know they like insulation to build nests out of. Next trip to town I'll also be getting some poison to! Guess I need to get some Rat Shot for the pellet gun to. Should come in handy for them and snakes to. I hear that one person here found 4 baby Mojave rattlers on their property and those are the deadly ones. See the link below the picture where that picture came from. According to one source (Just Me) an EMS person said to keep a spare bullet around for yourself in case of being bitten by one because you'd be dead before you could get to Alpine and the death would not be a good one.
Mojave Rattler

21 comments:

  1. I laughed at your latest post. I say bait the trap and get the little rascal before he chews your wires. Mice/rats=snakes looking for dinner.

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  2. That was quit a story, got a good laugh out of it. I had a friend that was stranded miles from nowhere because of rodents chewing the electrical wiring of his vehicle.

    I took this week and came down to see what Terlinqua and Study Butte were like, since I follow yours and John's blogs. I like it. I am staying at BJ,s RV Park and ate at the Starlight last night. Great place.

    Did Ben make it here? He hasn't updated his blog since he left for here.

    Keep up the good work.

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  3. wilkinson4success, Haven't checked the trap in the last 30 minutes so don't know if I've got it yet or it went back to its burrow? A trap and poison is going to become standard equipment in the falcon though.

    Dizzy-Dick, If Ben drives a black Toyota then he made it and was there about an hour ago. Maybe BB hasn't bothered to put up his Hughesnet dish yet and I'm pretty sure there is no free WiFi around there. Or maybe Ben has been keeping him busy?

    BTW... if you get out this way feel free to stop by.

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  4. Nope, you sure don't want critters in the falcon, that sure could turn nasty in a hurry. Looking forward to getting back out that way, I'm bringing toys with me too.

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  5. Hate your blog today, and hate the pictures.

    *I'm a freaking, bail-outer girl*

    Well, I guess those top two pictures will doo.

    Give me something better tomorrow, okay?

    *smile*

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  6. Dale, looking forward to your visit. Wish you'll could stay longer. Also looking forward to meeting Pepper and trying to bond. Guess I need to set up a fake fence for her to jump so she will feel at home?

    MC, I took 14 pictures of the unicorns that hang out around here and they just won't come out for some reason. Its sort of like they aren't really there. I hear they run snakes and rodents off to. They shoot pretty good pool because of that natural pool cue on the head yo know.

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  7. Thanks for the invite, I really apprectiate it. However, I am pretty much stuck here with four dogs and a wife. A couple of the dogs don't get along and my wife doesn't like being left alone with them and the RV park does not allow un-attended critters. Anyway, don't know where you are located.

    I will defenitely be back and would like to meet you. Will check in with a real estate agent if I can find one. Can you recomend anyone? If so, let me know where to find them. This is my first trip down this way and I really like it here.

    Have a great week and enjoy your company.

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  8. Dizzy-Dick, I don't know any real estate agents down here so can't help you there. There's a lot to love about this place and a lot to hate about it to. I guess for most of the people that stay full time there's enough love to outweigh the hate part?

    Dale, what time do you figure you'll will get here tomorrow?

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  9. Glad you got your critter. I know what you are saying about the love/hate relationship with an area. I used to love my little 12 acres in Cut-N-Shoot, TX with my lake/swamp, critters of all kinds, and trees everywhere. That is until it got too crowded around there and the noise became unbareable. I am 67 years old and if I am going to make a new start somewhere else, I must do it soon. I always liked the desert, and this area is beautiful.

    Where is the Grub Shack? I thought it would be near Study Butte/Terlinqua are, but haven't seen it. Guess I am in the wrong area.

    Have a good day,

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  10. Dennis, that would have been very exciting if I were in the car when it happened. Matter of fact it would have been so exciting that I'd have needed a change of underwear. ;)

    Dizzy-Dick, the GS is almost exactly 15 miles north on 118 from the BBMI. I live 3 miles north of that. I guess no matter where you live there will be some drawbacks. I was going to buy some land in east Texas through the Texas Veterans Land Board, but the damn chiggers are bad there. Pretty country though. Someone out bid me on that and I'm sort of glad they did.

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  11. David, you're not planning far enough ahead. Put the shovel in the car to clean up behind the unicorn, that's there to spear the snake, after the snake eats the rat.

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  12. I think I'll just start wearing snake boots in the car.

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  13. I'm with MC...I did not like your post either, ran chills up my spine. I have dial-up internet (I know it's a bummer) so when that last picture popped up I let out a scream!!

    I am a bail out girl but not at 65 miles an hour (except maybe for a snake). But you can be sure my screams would have been heard all the way to Alpine.

    I love the Big Bend area would like to buy me some land there. However the only drawback is that I am deadly afraid of snakes :-(

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  14. MsB, hate to tell you this, but the same kind of snakes are around Del Rio. Matter of fact with that lake down there you also have the snakes that hang out around water to. If you buy land in Texas there will be snakes to contend with. :(

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  15. You know, I was born and raised in Texas, and have lived all over this grand state ... and, thankfully, I have never personally encountered one mean snake on my journey.

    I hope that the marvelous protection I've been granted never, ever goes away.

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  16. I've seen my share of snakes, but used to run through the areas something like this as a kid and even younger adult life and never got bit. Didn't see many of them then. Where you usually see a lot of rattle snakes is when the weather is cooling off in the fall or in the spring when they get out in the open (especially black top roads to absorb the warmth.) There are remote parts of Texas that you'd be hard pressed not to see quiet a few on the road per mile. If you watch for them you shouldn't have a problem. I usually tromp as I'm walking around here so they will feel the vibration and move on.

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