Monthly Archives: August 2010
Tree rat relocation plan a success!
Posted by doggonedmysteries
DH relocated the tree rat today. It was not a happy camper when he found it in the have-a-heart trap. I think it’ll be happier where it is. I know I will be. We left the trap set up just in case there are more tree rats eyeing my tomatoes.
He took the squirrel over to the large wooded area near his mother’s house and set it free. He said it shot out of the cage and up the nearest tree. There, at a safe distance, it scolded him. I’m sure it had a few choice words for him after riding in the back of the pick up. I don’t like riding in the pick up.
I told DH he’d better hope it’s only squirrels that he catches. We have had skunks and opossums around here. We caught a skunk in the trap once. DH crept up to the cage and put a black trash bag over it. Then he ever so gently lifted the cage and carried it to his truck. When he got to the skunk’s destination, he lifted the cage and carried it across a field, set it down, somehow he managed to open it and remove the bag before running to his truck. Once the skunk cleared the area, he retrieved the cage. Lucky man didn’t come home stinking like a skunk…
Posted in my garden
Tags: Animal, Author, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Craft of writing, Dead, Disability, Doggoned, Family, Fiction, Gardening, Gardens, Home, Humor, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Opossum, Rat, Skunk, Squirrel, Tree, Writer, Writing
Miss Patty hides
Posted by doggonedmysteries
We crate the pups when we aren’t here to supervise during the day. They enjoy getting into things too much to leave them to their own devices. Today I thought Mr. Houdini dog taught baby sister Patty how to open her crate door. It wasn’t so. It seems that DH hadn’t latched her door properly.
DH had gone upstairs for a nap while I was outside working in the gardens. He’d crated the dogs. When I came in Gavin was snoozing in his crate but Patty was nowhere to be found. Then I heard her thunder down the stairs. She zoomed around the corner at the bottom of the steps and about jumped out of her skin to see me standing there.
She dove into her crate and hid in the back. Her guilt was so palpable I thought I’d better go see what she’d been doing upstairs. She hadn’t touched anything in the bathroom. DH had his room’s door closed. The laundry basket waiting to have clothes unloaded had the back room door blocked. That left the bedroom.
Oh yeah, she’d been in there. She had used the bed for a trampoline. Pillows were scattered, some on the floor, and the bedspread was askew.
Posted in Dog related, Writer, Writing
Tags: Author, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Craft of writing, Dead, Disability, Dog, Dog humor, Doggoned, Dogs, Family, Fiction, Home, Humor, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Pet humor, Pets, Recreation, Rescue Dogs, Stairway, Writer, Writing
Hey, Squirrel there’s a contract out on youse
Posted by doggonedmysteries
If you can climb trees and aren’t squeamish about taking out a few squirrels, have I got a job for you. The squirrel pulled a daylight raid on the tomatoes and dared, DARED to nibble on some of my heirloom tomatoes. It didn’t pull them from the vine. No, it chewed a bit here on one and a bit there on another.
I picked all the ripe and almost ripe tomatoes I could find. Later, the danged tree rat left a half eaten half green tomato right where it knew I’d walk just to show me it could get at them any time. I think it’s teaching its children to go after my tomatoes too.
I guess I need to take out a contract on the tree rat and family.
“Hello, is Mr. R. T. Hawk?”
“Yeah, that’s me.”
“I need to hire you. I’m having this problem with a squirrel.”
“It’s just the one?”
“Well, not exactly. I think there’s a nest of them.”
“Hmmm, young tree rats are quite tasty…um…er…I mean, I’ll do the job for you on the cheap.”
“Thank you. I hope you can do it before all my tomatoes are gone.”
“No problem.”
Posted in Food, my garden, Writer, Writing
Tags: Author, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Craft of writing, Dead, Disability, Doggoned, Family, Fiction, Food, Gardening, Gardens, Home, Humor, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Writer, Writing
Much needed rain
Posted by doggonedmysteries
We’ve had a few days of rain and we are happy. With all the hot weather, the ground was so dry the grass was beginning to die. Of course, I’ve kept the veggie garden well watered and I’ve watered the flower gardens enough to keep them from dying.
I’m certain that three of the cantaloupes are not going to ripen they seem to have stopped progressing. However, there’s a fourth that is growing like crazy it doubled in size over the last two days. We might even have more sugar baby watermelons by the fall since the vines have suddenly taken off again.
The squirrel has eluded capture but I’m not giving up hope yet. It may have been staying out of the rain. I wonder if I can find some peanuts this week to bait the trap. It’s been burying some in the yard so it might go for them.
We’re expecting scattered showers tomorrow. This has been nice not having to lug the watering can about for days. The only thing I’ve had to water is the planters on the front porch.
Posted in My blog, my garden, Weather related
Tags: Author, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Craft of writing, Dead, Disability, Doggoned, Family, Fiction, Gardening, Gardens, Home, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Writer, Writing
Not as blind as I thought
Posted by doggonedmysteries
Nothing like finding out that the problem you’ve had with seeing, is because your eyes have improved. Here I was expecting to have stronger glasses and I’m getting weaker ones. This is a first for me.
I was also shocked to learn that it’s been four years since I’ve had my eyes checked. I don’t know why, because I normally would go every two years. It could be because I ignored a reminder from them but I don’t remember.
The sticker price of all this was also a surprise and a big ouch. At least I’ll have new glasses. Two pair in fact. I started buying two pair at a time after breaking a pair and the only ones I had to wear until they fixed mine were far too weak. The headaches aren’t worth it.
Posted in Misc, My blog, Writer, Writing
Tags: Author, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Craft of writing, Dead, Disability, Doggoned, Family, Fiction, Home, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Writer, Writing
At war with tree rats
Posted by doggonedmysteries
Yesterday, my day began as all my days do with coffee, lots of coffee. My third cup I took outside to enjoy the cooler weather we’re having. That’s when I spotted one of my almost ripe Big Boy tomatoes on the ground. Someone had nibbled a good quarter of it and left it there for me to find. I was not happy. The tomato went into the compost bin.
There was no sign of the culprit who had raided my garden. However, I swear I heard giggling coming from the trees. Later, I went out to feed the fish and as I walked under the magnolia tree, a large, mostly green tomato almost beaned me in the head. It too had been nibbled. I looked up to see a squirrel sitting on an upper branch. His face covered with tomato juice from MY TOMATO.
Thus, the war with the tree rats has begun. I took the tomato from the compost bin and the one that had nearly whapped me in the head and baited a Have-a-Hart trap. All tree rats who enter the trap will find themselves relocated to the other side of town. My mother in law doesn’t have a garden.
Posted in Misc, My blog, Writer, Writing
Tags: Author, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Craft of writing, Dead, Doggoned, Family, Fiction, Gardening, Gardens, Home, Humor, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Writer, Writing
Friday Photos
Posted by doggonedmysteries
Posted in hobbies, My blog, my garden, Writer, Writing
Tags: Author, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Craft of writing, Dead, digital photography, digital photos, Disability, Doggoned, Family, Fiction, Gardening, Gardens, Home, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, photo, photograhy, Writer, Writing
Blind as a bat or forget the scratch coat please
Posted by doggonedmysteries
Since the first heat wave hit us this year, I’ve had trouble seeing. Sounds weird doesn’t it? There’s an easy explanation. When I bought my glasses, I had them put the scratch coat on them. Everyone knows how easy it is to scratch your glasses. Right? It was a big mistake. I’d rather have scratches.
You see I take after my father. I sweat. I sweat profusely. When I sweat, my glasses steam up. It seems that when they did that at least once the scratch coat warped and loosened. Then sweat got under it and left a line of discoloration right across the bifocal lens and up the inside quarter of the entire lens. It wasn’t a thin line either and got worse as time went on. I switched to my other pair of glasses.
We had another heat wave. Those glasses also had the scratch coating on them. The results were the same but not as bad as the other pair. However, it is bad enough that I have to struggle to read. EEKS! I love to read. I have to read to write. I’m going crazy with not being able to read.
My eye appointment is Saturday.
Posted in Misc, My blog, Writer, Writing
Tags: Author, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Craft of writing, Dead, Disability, Doggoned, Family, Fiction, Home, Humor, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Writer, Writing
Maybe one of these nights I’ll get some non-stop writing in
Posted by doggonedmysteries
Finding a quiet time to write isn’t easy around here. If I sit down to write when DH is taking his afternoon nap invariably both dogs decide it’s time to go out. It’d be nice if I could open the door and let them go out on their own but around here, it isn’t a wise thing to do.
Then there are phone calls and people dropping by. Therefore, I write late at night when the phone is quiet, no one drops by, and the dogs and DH are sound asleep…well, most of time they are. For quite a while, DH was having trouble sleeping and would wander down about an hour after I’d get started on whatever writing I planned to do. There’s no writing when DH wants to talk. It looks as though a new mattress has that problem solved for now.
However, Gavin has decided that he needs an extra out in the wee hours of the morning. Patty, hearing that he has gone out, wants a turn too. Out I schlep with the dogs.
Posted in Dog related, My blog, My books, Writer, Writing
Tags: Author, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Craft of writing, Dead, Disability, Doggoned, Dogs, Family, Fiction, Home, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Writer, Writing
In the garden with DH
Posted by doggonedmysteries
At dinner last night, I told DH that the large cantaloupe has suddenly begun to ripen. “Another day or two and we’ll have some for dessert,” I told him.
Despite the heat, DH came out later to join me in the garden. He climbed onto his mobility scooter and went to check out the melon patch. “That melon sure looks good. It’s much bigger than the other four.”
“I lifted it and it is hefty. I can almost taste it.” I walked alongside him, and pointed out to him which tomato plants were which—Beefsteak, Big Boys, and the heirlooms.
He drove over to the back porch and checked out the potted plum tomatoes. “Think I can pick a few of these for my Mom?”
“Those aren’t ripe enough. I already picked some for her they’re on the kitchen counter. Just the plum tomatoes and the Beefsteak mind you, don’t you dare take my heirlooms.”
“She likes the plum tomatoes the best.”
“Good, that means you can leave the Beefsteak too.”
He laughed. “You are bad.”
“Yeah, but can I help it that I love tomatoes?”
Posted in my garden, Writer, Writing
Tags: Author, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Craft of writing, Dead, Disability, Doggoned, Family, Fiction, Food, Gardening, Gardens, Home, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Writer, Writing
Some days other things take priority over writing
Posted by doggonedmysteries
I try to write every day. Some days I do more writing than other days. Today was one of those other days. The garden was screaming for a weeding and the weather was cool enough to do it comfortably. I couldn’t wait another day because we are expecting more humid and hot weather tomorrow that will last another week.
Then G came over and we roasted the Ancho and poblano peppers on the grill. We popped them into a plastic bag for fifteen minutes and all but two peeled easily. G went home with half the peppers for her freezer.
Yesterday, I picked two of the heirloom tomatoes and decided to make BLTs for dinner again. I’m so glad I did. Those tomatoes may be ugly looking but the flavor is marvelous. It was so good that as soon as I finished my dinner I ran the second tomato over to G. She had to taste it.
I got there in time for her to serve it with their dinner. Later she phoned to rave about it. I will plant them again next year. There are quite a few on the plant but they aren’t ripe yet. The Big Boy and Beefsteak tomatoes are also beginning to come in I picked two today. DH asked me if there were any plum tomatoes, he could take over to his mother. I brought in a whole basket full for him to choose from and took the rest to G.
Posted in My blog, My books, my garden, Weather related, Writer, Writing
Tags: Author, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Craft of writing, Dead, Disability, Family, Fiction, Food, Gardening, Gardens, Home, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Writer, Writing
Enjoying the fruits of my labor
Posted by doggonedmysteries
Today G and I will roast Poblano peppers on the grill. Then after we peel them, we’ll bag them for our freezers. I have a large basket full of them all from the one plant in a pot with two other types of peppers.
The cucumber vine expired yesterday. A darned shame, I’ll certainly miss the fresh cucumbers. I did have quite a few and gave away many. They made the best cucumber salad. I tried two recipes for the creamy cucumber salad I remembered from my childhood visits to the family farms. I was searching for one similar to one my Aunt B served. I loved that salad. Both recipes I tried were wonderful but the second one was very true to my memory. I’ll plant cucumbers again next year.
I now have five cantaloupes growing. One is huge and makes the ones I saw in the supermarket look like minis. I drool over it every day. I am dying for it to ripen. There’s one watermelon on the vines. I picked the other one too soon so I intend to ignore this one for a while.
The Big Boy and heirloom tomatoes are beginning to ripen. We had wonderful BLTs for dinner the other night using a Big Boy tomato that was the first to ripen. I picked two huge heirloom tomatoes yesterday.
Posted in My blog
Tags: Author, Bones, books, Books on writing, Bull Terriers, Care giving, Caregiver, Craft of writing, Dead, Disability, Doggoned, Family, Fiction, Food, Gardening, Gardens, Home, Life, Love, MS, Multiple Sclerosis, Murder, Mysteries, Mystery, Novel writing, Writer, Writing
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