Remembering Memorial Day

Memorial Day is more than a day off from school and work. It is more than a picnic with family. It is more than a parade.

Both Tommy and Jordan march in the Mansfield Memorial Day parade. Jordan as a Brownie, and the boy as a T-Baller. As proud as I'm to watch them march by, I get a strong sense of patriotic pride when the few veterans march by. You could say, I get goose bumps.

Recently I read that, "Approximately 850 American World War-II veterans die every day."
It is very likely the WW-II veteran will become extinct in my lifetime.

Something everyone should think about.
That elderly man, in line at the donut shop that fumbles with his change purse as he pays for his daily newspaper and coffee. He might have stormed the beaches of Normandy, and he might have witnessed his buddy's body ripped apart by enemy machine gun fire. Maybe he nearly froze during the Battle of the Bulge. Maybe his ship was torpedoed, or hit by enemy fighter planes. He might have been hit by enemy fire and thought of family when he thought he was going to die so far away from home. He might have been forced to kill enemy soldiers, or be killed. He might be a HERO.

How about that old women driving slow down the road, and you are behind her. Did she serve as a Army nurse during WW-II. Did she witness the horrors that war can do to a human body. Did she hold the hand of a young boy as he cried for his mom and took his last breath.

We are surrounded by heroes from WW-II, Korea, Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan, and we don't know it.

I believe everyone should be required to watch movies on Memorial Day. Saving Private Ryan, The Pacific, Band Of Brothers. And understand, these men and women could be the person standing next to you.

To all current members and veterans of the Army, Marine, Air Force, Coast Guard, Merchant Marine, Fireman, Police, and Army Nurse Lieutenant Gladys Finch and Army Corporal Albert Baker.

We give thanks to you this Memorial Day.

99.5 Degrees-Give or Take 20

Out of 34 Guinea Fowl eggs, only 2 hatched. I have never experienced such a low percentage. The optimum temperature is 99.5 degrees Fahrenheit.

Part way through this hatch I lost all confidence with my thermometers. How can I have so many thermometers, and every one register a different reading. This was very frustrating. I ran around town attempting to locate a thermometer I could trust. I thought I found one at the local feed store, it was made for incubators. The problem with this one, the directions told me to calibrate it to a thermometer I knew was correct. I also went into one store, I lined up all the thermometers, and they all had different readings, some off by over 10 degrees.

This was so frustrating, I am starting to hyperventilate as I write this.

I have another 12 Guinea eggs and 6 Goose eggs in the incubator, and I am hoping for the best. Meanwhile, I will search for the perfect, affordable thermometer. I doubt Jeanne will let me mortgage the house for one.

Always Watching

The Tree Swallow is an awesome little jet fighter,and the male will defend a relatively large territory around the nest box. I have seen this little spit fire dive bomb cats and is said to be one of the most aggressive swallows. Here on the homestead they eagerly use artificial nest boxes, and they are often seen carrying goose or duck feathers back to their nest.

You will always know if a pair of Tree Swallows moved into your nest box. They always pop their little heads out , and watch your every move.
Maybe just being curious, or maybe they are planning their next sortie, and you are the target.

Fad In - Fad Out

The homestead has been infected by the Silly Bandz Bracelet Craze.

I should know better, when Jordan comes to me with that sweet, injured puppy dog, loving attitude, instead of the " I know I'm 8 years old, but I will be 16 soon, stop talking to me you big goober, approach", and she asked me for $5, how could I resist. I even spent part of my day driving around looking for these expensive rubber bands, all because of that look she gives me.
I spent $4.99 for 24 rubber bands, multiplied by 2, because the boy is also into them.
At Staples®, you can get 460 Economy Rubber Bands for $1.99. That's a 1/4 pound of rubber bands. Or go for the 1-lb bag and you have, 2,360 bands. I know if I tried to explain that to the kids, I would receive that, "your a goober" look.

I know when I was a student in the 60s, at Vernon Elementary School, we collected baseball cards, And I did not even like baseball. We would walk across Rt30 to The Charrest Esso Station and buy a pack for a nickle. On the play ground we would gamble with others to try and win their cards away from them. We had games like, pitching/flipping, which could be compared to pitching pennies against a wall. The big games were colors, or teams. This was were you would turn over cards onto a pile, and who ever matched colors or the teams, depending on what you were playing, would win the pile.
I always did good on the play ground, but at home I would lose them to my older brother. He convinced me I was unable to see true colors and I had a form of colorblindness, I now know Magenta and Green are not the same. I lost thousands, if not millions of cards to him. I heard he may trade them for a beach house when he retires.

I can't forget my all time favorite, The Rat Fink. These little tokens came in many colors and we got them from gum ball machines. To this day I am hooked on the Little Rat Finks. Occasionally I regress back to my childhood and go onto ebay and look at the Rat Finks. I once saw a nice collection of 9 different color finks, sell for $400.( no honey, I did not bid)

The kids understand our rules about the Silly Bandz, You can wear a few at a time to school, "but" if they become a issue at school, they become a issue at home.

And if I should ever win the Powerball, I will commission two, twenty foot, solid plastic purple Rat Finks, one for my field, and one for the lot I will buy next to my brothers house.

Hoping For A Visit

According to the Connecticut DEP, between May 25, 2009 to May 25, 2010, they have received 2767 reported Black Bear sightings. Fifteen of those came from Tolland over the past few days.

Jeanne thinks I am nuts, (she may be correct) I hope this bear decides to float down the river for a visit. I would be thrilled to see a bear here. I believe it is only a matter of time before a bear or moose wander through, following the river.

I have had the good fortune of encountering both awesome animals in the past. I treasure those memories.

On one of my canoe trips along the Allagash with my first dog Max. I awoke one night to a very soft growl coming from Max. I peeked out of the tent, and the full moon illuminated a very large Bull Moose walking 5' from my tent. I was very thankful Max knew not to bark. I am only guessing, but I would think getting trampled by a monster moose would have put a damper on the trip

My most memorable bear encounter came while backpacking the High Sierra Trail in California.
After hiking 17 miles into the mountains, I was heating up some supper, resting my unprepared, blistered feet, when a bear lumbered into my camp, and decided he wanted to share my supper. At first, I sat and enjoyed my meal while watching Yogi attempt to intimidate a free meal from me. It all was somewhat cute, until he came in close enough that when I stood up he grabbed the sleeping pad I was sitting on and wildly shook it. A spoon banging my cook pan was all it took to shoo him away. When I climbed into my sleeping bag , I could hear him circle my tent all night long, but I was so tired, I thought, go ahead and eat me, I'm gong to sleep.
Thankfully this was a Black Bear. If it had been a Grizzly, I probably would still be wearing diapers.

For a very long time Jordan has had nightmares about bears, so we don't talk about the bear in the area, but if we do get to see him, I hope she will appreciate the experience.
Just knowing that the boy is armed and ready to defend the family, is very soothing.

My Tree Huggers

Many years ago, someone pushed a shovel into the ground,and took the time to plant some Black Spruce seedlings. Did he imagine, the beautiful grove of trees that 50 years of time would produce?

Unfortunately, sometimes a hard choice has to be made. In the front of the house is a mammoth, 100' Black Spruce that will die by the saw. This tree is huge and in the winter, it is absolutely stunning with its coating of fresh snow. The issue, it is 2 trees joined at the base, and the larger tree is learning towards the house. If this tree was to come down, it would cut the house in half and could kill anyone in its path. I wish it wasn't so.

I contacted a couple of tree experts to obtain a quote to take this tree down, the quotes ranged from $800-$1400. Then Willie mentioned it may not be my tree. I never thought about it belonging to the town, but he was correct. As a matter of fact, I believe I could have gotten in trouble if I cut down a town tree without permission.

I called the Public Works Dept, and Mark Kiefar, Superintendent of Public Works, promptly came out to look at the tree. Mark looked at the tree, and decided to get the opinions of Tim Veillette, Project Engineer with the Town Of Mansfield, and also he consulted an Arborist.It was decided, it should come down.

It is sad to see such a magnificent tree fall. This was not a easy decision, It was a beutiful tree, and it would be very costly for the town to take down. I admit while watching the tree come down, I thought, "did I make a major mistake?"

Les and Jeff from Tennett Tree Service took the tree down. These guys not only have the tools to do a complex, dangerous project like this, but Jeff's skill working in the bucket, 70' up in the air was amazing. That kind of experience does not happen overnight. To say I was impressed would be an understatement.

A crew from the town was here with dump trucks and a large bucket loader to haul away the 12' sections of logs. They worked hard and cut several hours off the estimated time it would take to complete the project.
These guys plow our streets in the winter, and I mentioned what a great job they do down here. They were a good group of guys. I was only a little insulted when they would not let me drive the bucket loader!

After the tree was down, and I inspected the stump that remained, my doubt was gone. Where the 2 trees joined, was a deep and long vein of mushy rot. Maybe not today, or this year, but this tree would have separated, and the results could have been devastating.

Now my only regret is, I could not convince Jeanne, this was a worthwhile reason to let the boy stay home from school.


Check out the video below. "A Giant Falls"

A Giant Falls

1934

Before Google launched satellites so they could watch me sunbathing in my backyard, Connecticut had complete statewide aerial photos from 1934. Because the number of satellites sailing high overhead began to pile up over my backyard, and because of the risk of satellites colliding, I gave up sunbathing.

When I first viewed the 1934 photos of our homestead, I was surprised to see a baseball field across the street from us, next to the railroad tracks.
Also, the land had few trees and there were a number of houses along the river,and like the baseball field, they disappeared long ago.
Our house was not built for another 32 years, so a red star marks the spot.

Now I needed to know more about the baseball fields. I found a article online about The History of Windham Technical High School. A gentleman that attended the school in the 1950s recalled the athletic fields down in the Ridges section of Mansfield, across the railroad lines and adjacent to the Willimantic River. The fields, donated by the Trade School's first director, Otto Nyffler, were still in partial use during the 1950s.

The images from 1934 and 1965 are available online from the Connecticut State Library. Be careful, because their website can become addictive to history buffs.

Below are images from 1934 and 2006

A First For Me

Some days are phenomenal.
Today was one of them.

Any day that I see a animal that I have never seen, is a fantastic day. Today I can add a Worm Snake to my life list. I found this gem while turning over some soil in the garden, and it made my day!

The following is from a publication from the Connecticut Dept Of Environmental Protection, "Amphibians & Reptiles in Connecticut
A Checklist with Notes on Conservation Status, Identification, and Distribution"

This small, burrowing snake is a southern species, just entering southern New England and adjacent sections of New York. It is most widely distributed in the low-lying areas of Connecticut but specimens have been recorded from elevations up to 900 feet (Klemens, 1993). The principle threat to this species is suburban development that has been spreading across the low-lying portions of the state. This has resulted in the loss of large areas of habitat suitable for this species. Connecticut has a large number of documented locality records for this species when compared to the other states that share the worm snake's northeastern range limit. Worm snakes are rare in Massachusetts, Rhode Island, and southeastern New York, and are considered a species of conservation concern.

Considering the status of this snake in this region, We are very lucky to witness this beautiful creature. (Jeanne doesn't seem to agree)

Rose-breasted Grosbeak

The Connecticut Dept Of Environmental Protection (DEP), does not recommend feeding birds during the warm months of the year. This is do largely to the ever increasing bear population in the state.

Feeding birds year round opens up fantastic opportunities to view birds like the Rose-breasted Grosbeak. I read that the Rose-breasted Grosbeak usually keeps to the treetops, and only rarely can be seen on the ground. I'm not sure how true that is, because I see them everday at my feeding station. Summer is a great time to feed birds. You get to view migratory birds that would not be seen at a winter feeder.

And if a bear starts to eat your bird feeder? Enjoy it, don't fear it!

Custard Meets Terry's Turtles

Custard the Tortoise was invited to be “Mystery Guest” in Mrs. Terry’s kindergarten class, and I thought I would tag along.

The mystery quest is exactly that, the kids do not know who is coming in, and we kept it a secret from Tommy. When I showed up 5 minutes early I was sent to the Office so the kids would not see me. (That brought back memories from 45 years ago)

When I entered the room filled with Tommy’s classmates, I immediately made eye contact with Tommy, and for a brief moment it was just he and I. And in that brief moment I saw so much. The way the smile lit up his face, and I could clearly see in his eyes how happy he was to see me, and how much he loved me. I am not sure what happened, but for a half a second I felt a little blurry eyed. I cannot think of anything in this world that compares to the unconditional love from a child. Without anyone noticing I quickly regained my composer.

This was the second time Custard was a mystery quest in Mrs. Terry’s class. We were invited a couple years ago when Jordan was in Mrs. Terry’s class. I really enjoyed talking with the kids and answering all the questions about Custard. Having a large tortoise around is old news for Jordan and Tommy, but to many kids it is a first time experience. They were so cute raising their hands, and asking some great questions. I really enjoyed it.

During our visit, word spread around the school and soon Jordan appeared in Mrs. Terry’s class inviting Custard down to Mrs. Csere's 3rd grade class.

I know Tommy really enjoys seeing the different mystery quests that visit Mrs. Terry’s classroom. We hear about everything from drums to dogs, and Tommy came home and taught us how to behave around stray dogs.

Mrs. Terry’s kids are known as, “Terry’s Turtles" and I had a blast visiting with them, and how can you beat a thank you card like this.



PS
Jeanne insisted I post a picture of the wagon I built to haul Custard into school. I built it from scrap wood I had laying around, it cost me $0

WISTERIA, THE JURY IS OUT

I was first introduced to Wisteria 15-20 years ago. Friends had a beautiful specimen growing over their back deck, and I fell in love with this woody vine, with the showy grape like clusters of purple flowers. To me this is such a beautiful plant when it grows over a arbor or pergola.

I planted my wisteria about 2 years ago, at the site of our future pergola. This year was my first year that we had spectacular blooms.

Chinese wisteria was brought to the U.S. from China in 1816 as an ornamental planting.
Over the years I (oops) have helped friends plant Wisteria on their decks, and after a few years of growth, many have come to regret it.

It appears, that I may have had a affair with, and promoted a plant that has been reported invasive in at least 19 states, and challenge for several national parks in the south eastern US. In 2006, The USDA Forest Service named it weed of the week.

Like a Boa Constrictor, Chinese wisteria will wrap itself tightly around the trunks and branches of the host tree and cut bark, eventually girdling and killing it. It will dislodge a deck, and squeeze between gutters and the house, eventually pulling the gutters away from the house.

I can not decide, if I will eliminate mine, or enjoy it.


From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
OOPS or oops may mean:
An interjection on realizing that the person has made a mistake or slipped

Swamp Has A Story Part1

I really have no idea what to make of this.

In a previous posts, I wrote about Swamp the Swan, joining forces with a pair of Emblem Geese, to build a nest. The high water wiped out that nest and the geese rebuilt a nest under the back porch.
I transferred the 6 eggs to the incubator because the geese are a bit aggressive while guarding their nest, and Kopper refused to go out the back door.

Now the geese have laid more eggs and Swamp has joined them, helping to guard the nest and also sharing in the incubation duties. I have watched while Swamp carries in leaves and other nesting materials, and then takes a turn setting on the eggs. Last night the geese returned to the river, and Swamp took over the night shift.

I know many would say this is nothing more than simple animal instincts taking over. But if you allow yourself to imagine, maybe , just maybe, Swamp has feelings and a story. And the story might go something like the following.

A Swan was born on Eagleville Lake, and along with his brothers and sisters he enjoyed swimming on the lake with his parents following close behind, protecting them from any predators that would have them for lunch.

One day the little Swan ventured away from his parents and now was much to close to the swampy and dark shoreline. All of a sudden, a fox leaped out of the brush and grabbed the little Swan by the end of his wing. As the little Swan struggled to break free the fox bite down harder and bite off the end of the little Swan's wing. The little Swan swam for deeper water and the protection of his parents. But the little Swan had a serious injury that would affect the rest of his life.

At first the injury was hardly noticed. But as the little Swans grew, and they started to practice flapping their wings to prepare for their first flight, the little Swan would just go around in circles, and all the other Swans would laugh and make fun of the little swan's half wing. This always made the little Swan sad.

When the day came for a practice flight across the lake, the little Swan could only watch as all the other youngsters flapped their wings, became airborne and flew across the lake.

As the weather started to get colder all the swans, geese and ducks, prepared for their annual flight to open waters. The little Swan wondered what he would do?

It was a very cold Fall morning, and the little Swan's brothers, sisters, and parents lined up to take to the air. Once his family was airborne, his parents circled above waiting for the little Swan. Soon they could wait no more, and flew off and left little Swan all alone.

Everyday grew colder and the little Swan grew lonelier. He often wondered, what it would be like to have friends? Every night he was alone and scared. He thought about his family, and would welcome the other Swans laughing at him, if only he had a friend.

Part Two, coming soon.

Swamp Part2

Swamp has a unique relationship with 2 white geese. If Swamp had a story what would It be? I decided to take liberties with Swamp's story. Part1 was posted previously and here is part2 the conclusion.


As winter approached, food was extremely scarce, and ice was starting to form on the lake. The little Swan knew he had to leave, but go where?

Little Swan decided he would go with the flow, so one morning he started his long float trip down river. At first he thought this is such a easy way to travel, just let the river currents take you along for the ride. But when the darkness of the night came, this was very scary time. Little Swan never slept so close to the shore, he had always spent his nights in the middle of Eagleville Lake, far from the predators that patrol the shoreline. So now little Swan spent nights in the middle of the river, and always kept one eye open for danger.

Nights are lonely and days are spent searching for any tiny bit of food to eat. After floating slowly down the river for a couple of days, the little Swan came to a wide section of the river and noticed, ducks of all colors, and many lazy fat geese sunning themselves.
Little swam thought this must be a good place to be, no one looks hungry and everyone hangs out here.

Little Swan watched, as many of the ducks and geese would leave the safety of the water and walk up into the domain of he humans. After watching for a couple of days, little Swan decided he too would venture up into the world of humans and find out what all the ducks and geese do there.

So up the small hill he started to walk, and when he got to the top he peeked his long neck up over the top of the hill, and quickly learned why everyone liked it here. Out walked Santa Claus, at least it looked like Santa, and he was spreading food everywhere, buckets of corn, enough to feed everyone. This was it, little Swan decided he was going to join the feast, so he walked the rest of the way and now found himself farther from the river then he had ever traveled, and for some reason he was not afraid. When the funny looking creature with the white beard saw little Swan, he brought out a large bucket of corn and poured it in front of the little Swan and walked away. Little Swan knew he wanted to stay. That night on the river surrounded by all the ducks and geese, and with a very full belly, little Swan slept like a baby.

The following day, little Swan ventured up for a late breakfast, and when Santa spotted little Swan he came over with some corn, and poured some out for little swan. Then Santa disappeared into the house and when he reappeared he had with him a young boy, or maybe it was an elf. It was this little elf that gave the little swan his name. So from that day forward, little Swan was called “Swamp”.

All was great here at Swamp’s new home, until the 12 gray geese started to pick on him. They did not appreciate this overgrown duck with a busted wing eating their food, and they let Swamp know it. Every time Swamp would try to eat, they would gang up on the insecure swan and chase him away. The ducks welcomed Swamp with open wings and Swamp was happy for their friendship and companionship. Swamp doubted his decision to stay, because of the meanness of the geese. Then one day the Santa man saw what was going on and he came to Swamp with a bucket of corn, and so that Swamp could eat in peace, he stood between the mob of geese and Swamp. This act of kindness helped Swamp decide, He was home.

One day something snapped in Swamp. Maybe he saw his refection in the still water of the cove. He finally realized, what a beautiful, and big strong bird he was. Just because he was different, this was no reason to allow anyone to pick on him. The first time he stood up to all 12 geese, they were shocked, but now they would give this magnificent creature the respect he deserves and give him plenty of room.

Life was really good for Swamp, he had food, safety and some friends, but he did not have a family. Not until 2 White geese moved in. They almost looked like Swamp, but smaller. The best part was they wanted to be a friend to Swamp.

When the 2 white geese decided to raise a family, they asked the now mighty Swamp to be the "godfather" to their goslings. Swamp immediately started to help with the building of a nest and keeping a careful watch over his two best friends. There are very few creatures that would challenge a protective Swan, and while the mighty Swamp is around, he will keep his new family safe.

Swamp now had his own family.

Photo Stuff

Imagine; traveling thousands of miles by air, SUV, and on foot. hiking a jungle trail into a mountain cloud forest, guided by a local named Alex. Swearing a oath," that under the threat of a lifetime of giant spiders invading your dreams, and sleeping bag, you will never reveal this location that he has lead you to." You break out your 35mm Cannon AE-1 Program camera and start clicking away at a pair of the spectacular and elusive 'Resplendent Quetzal', nesting in a hollow tree high in this tropical mountain forest.
You pack up the 24 rolls of film you smuggled into the country and fly home. When the film returns from the processing lab, you get a sick feeling when you discover "you did not get the Quetzal shot."

I did not believe in, or support digital photography at first. I was in love with my 35mm camera and refused to think, 'like me, it was becoming obsolete.

Today, I'm passionately in love with the Digital Camera. You know instantly if you got the shot, and you can take hundreds and thousands of pictures with out the worry of the expense of processing the film.

One of the most valuable tools I use on the blog, is a photo editing program. Most, if not all the photos I post have been edited in someway. I use my photo editor to crop pictures, reduce resolution, and add text. The program has many options and is very easy to use. The best part of this program? it is free.

I included the link I used to download a "FREE" version of Photoscape. The link is located under Photo Stuff, on the left side of this blog.

And when my office is finally built, my Cannon AE-1 will have a place on the wall, right next to my swordfish bill, and 50,000 year buffalo jaw.

Entrepreneurial Spirit

While the boy and I sat on the river bank, waiting for a fish to bite. I am not sure how and why, but I came up with a brilliant new business venture. I believe this is a entrepreneurial masterpiece, and will turn into the next best franchising opportunity. I would EXPECT my family and friends to jump on this chance for "Financial Independence," and I will help you discover wealth beyond your dreams!!

Below is an add that I hope will appear soon in the Wall Street Journal, The New York Times, and other publications. ( please note: this is trademarked, copyrighted, and patented).

If you sign up before the add hits, I will guarantee you a substantial discount and a untouched market area.
Call Today, I have operators standing by!

For a limited time we are offering for sale some of the most unique Mosquitoes known. We have spent years in the swamp, cross breeding the common Mosquitoes with the fearsome Vampire Bat.
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