Another Six at $10.80 Plus Tax

Jiminy Crickets. You cannot go outside here at night without running into a rattlesnake. Tonight Rick shot another six, three adults and three babies. All of them were by the fueling shaft which is next to the missile silo. There is a concrete pad around the fueling shaft that has lifted and cracked. The snakes can go under one side of the pad and come out the other end, so the ground has been tunneled underneath the concrete. We discovered this by pouring a little gasoline down one crack, wait a bit and a snake would come out of a different crack. Anyhoodles, we are up to 19 for the year and 15 were shot in the last four days.

Hobo showed up this morning and was Static Cling Boy. He couldn't sit close enough to me and I couldn't pet him enough. Tonight when Rick was firing his .45, Hobo just dived into his Igloo dog house, or snow globe as Katie likes to call it.

Rick had to pick up some bird shot for his .45 today. The old plastic case had a price sticker of $3.99. When Rick purchased a new 10-pk today, it was $17.95. Will this run on ammo ever stop? Probably not until President Obama is out of the White House and this country is a little more stable. There are a lot of people out there that believe that the government is buying up ammunition to keep it out of the citizens' hands.  They claim that since the government cannot take our guns away via strict gun laws, they'll take our ammo away instead, so everyone is stockpiling and the prices have skyrocketed. It is to the point that even if you have the money, good luck find the product. When I was checking online for the bird shot, the online stores were sold out of it and didn't expect any in until January 2014. We are living in scary times. If you really want to scare the heck out of yourself, watch the movie 2016. It is a documentary about President Obama and his global view. It's scary because it explains why this President has done what he has.

On that cheery note, I bid you adieu. I'll keep you updated on the rattlesnake count. Rick just went to walk Cody, so I could be updating you in 10 minutes!

Add Two More

Rick took Cody for his last walk of the day and he ran into two more baby rattlesnakes. That makes the total for the day six and nine in three days. Rick actually said to me that he was tired of shooting rattlesnakes. Now those are words I thought I'd never hear come out of his mouth!

Up Seven in Three Days

If you pay attention to the rattlesnake count on the right rail of this blog, you will note that it has made a significant jump.

Saturday, Rick found an adult rattlesnake in the Quonset Hut which he dutifully shot. Sunday, Rick found two more in the Quonset Hut. Both snakes were in the same spot but not at the same time. Tonight Hobo, our Pyrenees, was outside and barking like a madman. Rick flicked on the porch light and looked out the window on the front door. Hobo was barking at a baby rattlesnake that was at the bottom of our front steps. Because it is a warm night; because it's that time of the year when the rattlesnakes move around and because when there is one baby there are usually more, Rick took a walk around the missile base with his .45. He found another baby underneath the Hummer and a third baby by the burn pit. I had to move the Hummer out of the way before Rick could shoot it and I opted to climb in via the passenger door since the snake was closer to the driver's door. Of course Rick shot them all, but having been lightweight snakes, they got some air when the bullets hit them. Rick had to search around the front yard for the body of the one that was at the foot of the front steps. The snake flew a good 15'.

Tonight is garbage night and Rick needed to get the garbage can up to the road. We usually use the golf cart to haul it, but he had already stored the golf cart in the Quonset Hut because of impending rain. He couldn't hold a flashlight, look for rattlesnakes and pull the garbage can all at the same time, so he asked that I accompany him. We didn't see any rattlers in our very long driveway; however, when we got back to the parking area, there was an adult rattler heading in the direction of the Hummer. He's dead now too. Now if my ciphering is right, that is seven snakes in three days.

Once I know that the rattlesnakes are moving--they are searching for a winter den--I get pretty anxious when I am outside. I get so obsessed with constantly watching the ground that I have caught myself checking were I walk in the house. Now the chance that a rattler would get in the house is almost nonexistent, but it is a hard habit for me to turn off when I get inside or out of rattlesnake country. Case in point is that when I visit my mom and dad, where there are no venomous snakes, I still find myself looking for those diamond backs in the grass, crevices or under rocks. Anyway Rick feels pretty good and has counted the night as productive. On the not-so-triumphant side, Hobo is terrified of loud noises, so whenever he hears gunshots, he heads for the hills even if the shots are coming from dove hunters a mile away. Tonight I bet he just about pooped his pants when Rick shot the snake and he was only about 20' away. Most likely Hobo is hiding in the cotton field right now and when he doesn't hear a gunshot for a while he will come home. I am worried about him roaming around out there with the moving rattlesnakes. All I can do is every so often go out on the front steps and call for him. But because I'm in my anxious-about-rattlesnakes mind set, every so often is approximately every five minutes.

That's the rattlesnake update on the countdown. Excuse me while I go step out on the front steps. Ciao.

Chips Ahoy vs Bacon

We have three bug lights outside that come on at night. The lights attracts bugs and when they land on the interior wire grids, they get electrocuted. Because we are buggy here in West Texas, Rick has to daily clean the dead bugs from the lights or we risk a fire starting in a light and spreading to the tree from which the light hangs. Rick uses one of his air compressors to blow the dead bugs out. The compressor is loud, so his hearing can be compromised afterward. Here is a typical conversation because of this compromised hearing.

Set up: I found a bag of Chips Ahoy in the pantry when Rick thought we were all out. I walk into the bedroom with the bag of Chips of Ahoy.

Me:  I had another bag hidden.
Rick: (Excited) You have a bag of bacon?
Me: (I hold up the bag of Chips Ahoy.) No, I said 'I had another bag hidden.'
Rick: (Disappointed) Aah, I wish you had a bag of bacon.

This is what we have to look forward to as we grow old and lose our hearing. At least we will laugh.

The Years Are Short

Time to play catch-up. Katie had her spring ballet recital in the middle of May. About a week before the recital she informed me that she didn't want to do ballet next Fall. My heart broke. She is so good at it and that is not just the bias opinion of her mother but also of her ballet teachers. Katie's reasoning is that she wants to try something that will stretch her muscles and she is getting bored with ballet. I explained to her that in the Fall she will move up to a new age division, but she wants to try gymnastics and she is well aware she cannot do three activities at one time. After the recital she started wavering when she saw the dance that the 7-8 year olds did. There were leaps and spins and extra fancy footwork. Her boredom with ballet has to do with the fact that she wants to be dancing like the "big girls". She wants the dramatic, but doesn't realize that she needs to work up to that. I really want her to stick with ballet for at least one or two more years because ballet is the basis of all dance. I might have found a solution. The local gymnastic clubs offers six-week summer courses that will allow Katie to try out gymnastics. I don't want to say "no" to it just for the sake of ballet. Who knows, she may be very good at it. But enough of the ballet drama, here are a few pictures.

This picture is actually from the dress rehearsal, the night before the recital. We were in the first floor ladies lounge at the Paramount.

This is from underneath the stage the night of the recital. The dancers cannot put their costumes on until they are backstage where there are no photo-op friendly backgrounds.

 Flash photography is not allowed during the performances so we got very few photos of Katie dancing that are not blurry messes. The above is one that is only partially blurry.

 Curtain call. Katie is the tallest ballerina in the front row with the aqua blue skirt.

 With her bouquet of flowers from her Momma and Daddy.

Being silly with "Uncle" Don and "Aunt" Gerri, our neighbors and good friends, who came to watch Katie perform.

 Katie outside the Paramount. Each year I have taken this picture with the marquee in the background.

 Another traditional picture, Katie on her Daddy's knee.

Family picture.

This week is the last week of school, so it has been busy. Tuesday was Katie's Field Day at school. Field Day is comprised of different stations of games on the football field in which each class partakes. We have been in the 90s and 100s with blazing sun but the day the kids have an outdoor event, it was overcast with gray thunderheads. Figures. Since pictures show what takes hundreds of words to explain, I'll go with pictures.

 Hula hooping

 Tug-of-war. Girls against boys. The boys won two out of three. They then mixed the teams up and Katie was in the front position. She dug her feet in and won't budge. Her team won.

 Sack race. She got some serious air and was pretty fast.

 This game involved a can with holes in the side that the kids had to pass to one another, over their heads and, oh, it was filled with water. Then the last person had to race to the forward coffee can and empty the water, if any was left, and start all over.

 The final event was a race where seven kids in the same grade race against each other. I wasn't at the finish line but I thought Katie came in third. She thought she came in second. Regardless they all got the same ribbon.

Wednesday morning was the Awards Ceremony for the Elementary School. Katie made the "A" Honor Roll with an all "A" average for the entire year and was in the 15 mile club, which means she walk/ran 15 miles on Wellness Wednesdays throughout the year. We are pretty proud of her. Of course pictures are included. 

 Sitting next to one of her best friends.

 Blowing kisses to Daddy

 Receiving her awards from her teacher Mrs. Henrich.

 Examining the awards

"Wait! I'm on a stage!" Kiss, kiss, pose, pose. I wanted to crawl under my seat with embarrassment. Only Katie. If she doesn't spend her life on stage, she will surely shrivel and dry up.

Which brings us to today, the last day of first grade.

I measured Katie the other day. She is 49.5" tall. Yes, she has broken the 4' mark. She is 4' 1.5" tall, thanks to Rick. And she is all legs, thanks to Rick. She has my tone and shape (shameless bragging), which I got from my mother, so the girl has gorgeous gams.

That's the picture news for the last month or so. Since I started this post, I mailed in the check for gymnastics, so she'll be doing a gynmnastics this summer. Next Saturday she will be testing for her 2nd degree red belt in Tae Kwon Do. They had sign-up for Anson Youth Cheerleading and I was relieved that Katie didn't want to participate. It really was a bad experience and made me appreciate the outstanding coaching and instruction that she receives at Team Chip and Ballet Abilene. So as you see life moves along at Corinth West. A school year ends, new adventures begin. And all the time in the back of my mind I hear, "The days are long, but the years are short." How true, how true.

The Boys Are Back In Town

(My language is not the best or most proper in this post. If you are easily offended, toughen up!)

The boys are back in town and by "boys" I mean male or female rattlesnakes and by "back in town" I mean out of their winter hidey-holes.

Rick shot the first rattler of the year two days ago on Good Friday. Rick was heading down to the shop, which is the Quonset Hut, when he came upon a rattler stretched out across the road. For clarification sake we will call this snake Good Friday Bastard. Rick tried to run over Good Friday Bastard with the golf cart, but he coiled and then slithered into a culvert. The snake, not Rick. Rick rushed up to the house to grab his .45 and back to the shop to get a can of gasoline. He used the gas to flush the Good Friday Bastard out of the culvert and shortly after Rick dumped gas into the culvert Good Friday Bastard came sliding out only to have his head blown off.

Today, which is Easter, Rick was in the shop gathering the wood to make shelves for the kitchen in the missile base. He picked up a cardboard box and underneath it was a fingerling, a baby rattlesnake, whom for clarification sake we will call Little Bastard. Rick goes to the golf cart to get a shovel. He didn't want to shoot Little Bastard because Little Bastard was next to a can of gasoline. Of course when he returned to the shop equipped with a snake-killing shovel, Little Bastard was gone. After looking for him for twenty minutes, Rick hears the unmistakable vibration sound of an adult rattler. . .behind him. He turns and there is a big snake. When I say big, I mean it looked like he had just eaten or she was pregnant. For clarification we'll call this snake Fat Bastard. Fat Bastard also possessed a huge head, the kind that would have gotten him called names on the playground. Anyway, back to the golf cart Rick goes to get the .45. Since snakes can be little tricksters and escape out of the shop via the back or side, Rick decided to catch him exiting the shop. Rick went down the outside of the shop on the right side. Aha! Just as Rick thought, there was Fat Bastard trying to make a break for it! Rick expertly shot him so that his head only hung on by threads. Rick was pleased with himself. He out-maneuvered the sly snake. Then it was back into the shop to find the Little Bastard. Once there, holy crap!! There was Fat Bastard still in the same place. Well, who the hell was outside the shop?! Well, that must had been Medium Bastard! Not wanting to waste time figuring out who was who, Rick shot the real Fat Bastard in the head. Shortly thereafter, Rick found Little Bastard underneath the boards that he was gathering for shelving and about 6" from the before mentioned gas can. Because Rick is so spot on when he shoots, he shot Little Bastard and didn't blow up the shop. This weekend will forever be known as the Easter Weekend of  four bastards. To commemorate the start of staying-out-of-the-tall-grass, always-looking-where-you-step, and carrying-a-gun-every-single-time-you-go-outside season, or in short rattler season I have include pictures of the today's dead bastards for your viewing pleasure or to give you the heebie-jeebies.

From left to right: Medium Bastard, Little Bastard and Fat Bastard. Good Friday Bastard didn't get his picture taken.

Fat Bastard measured about 46" long if you account for the bends in his body. Rick couldn't get him in a straight line because by the time I came along with my camera, rigamortis was already setting in.

Fat Bastard and his big head. His head is at an angle here so you cannot see the full width. I bet he was a bully with all of the teasing he had to put up because of his mammoth head.

Bag o' snakes

Bringing You Up To Date

This post is composed of pictures that highlight moments from the last three months.

Rick, Katie and I drove over to Rick's parents in Florida to spend Christmas and New Year's. (Actually Rick drove and we rode.) We wanted to do a road trip just because we usually fly.

 Christmas Eve. Katie putting a smile on Rick's face.

Rick and Katie Christmas Eve

Katie's Christmas portrait

Katie and her Auntie Linda Christmas morning. Whatever they were talking about must have been fascinating.

Katie and her big Christmas present, a trampoline. Do you think she was excited?

One day, my mother-in-law Carol, Katie and I drove down to Weeki Wachee Springs to enjoy the state park. There were a so many peacocks running around the park.

Weeki Wachee Springs State Park is known for their mermaids. There is an underground theater where the mermaids put on a show about Ariel. It was such a cult classic, 1950's.

During the mermaid show, this big, ol' manatee came floating along.

Katie and her Great Aunt Naomi playing Yahtzee. Katie is unbelievably lucky in dice. She has no problem throwing straights, six-of-a-kinds, full houses.

On the drive home we stopped at Battleship Park in Mobile, Alabama. In the harbor they have the USS Alabama which was in service in the Pacific during WWII. It is now a museum of sorts. You can tour the battleship at your leisure. I took oodles of pictures, but I won't overtax you with those. Rick commented that it reminded him of the missile base, and it really did to me also. Apparently our armed forces only have a few paint colors from which to choose and all branches have the same interior decorator.

Katie at one of the front gun positions. As a side note, the men that manned the gun posts did not sit on metal, folding chairs. They were there because earlier a ceremony took place on the battleship. Did you know that the main deck is a popular wedding spot? Also, I was surprised how many Japanese and Japanese-Americans were touring the battleship.

Also at Battleship Park, there is a submarine, the USS Drum. We were also able to tour the inside of the sub, but I didn't take any pictures of the inside. I was too busy gawking.

This scrape on Katie's arm is not like any other scrape. It is the first of many injuries that she received while riding her bike without training wheels. Rick had been working with Katie on riding her bike without the little white wheels, and it seemed to be slow going. Then one day he hung onto her shirt as she pedaled up the driveway. By the time they got to the gate, she was pedaling and staying up by herself. On her trip back down to the house, she was flying. Typical Katie. You cannot get Katie to do anything new until she thinks she's ready, be it potty training, learning the alphabet, or riding a two-wheeled bike. And when she is ready, she takes to it like she has been doing it her whole life.

The plastic bubbles on Katie's head are the type that you make yourself by smushing some plastic liquid on the end of a straw and blowing. As for the ladder that is the one that goes up to her loft bed. Other than that, I cannot explain this picture

Katie making a cake.

There's the short, pictorial version of the last three months. Now let's see if I can keep up on this blog.

Movie Viewing

One thing that Katie and Rick do is watch movies together, not Barbie or Disney movies, but alien movies and war movies. This past weekend they watched Battle for L.A. and Jarhead. They are not the most age appropriate movies for a six-year old and this is evidenced by the fact that Katie's new favorite quote is from Jarhead. She'll say, "Hey Daddy" or "Hey Mommy" to get our attention. Then she'll say, "Welcome to the suck!" Then she laughs and laughs. . . . and so does Rick. During Battle for L.A. Katie asked Rick why marines are allowed to swear and Rick told her it was because they are marines, so now if you ask Katie why marines are allowed to swear or do anything naughty, she says, "Because they're marines." Maybe I should activate parental controls on the TV for Katie. . . . and Rick.

If a picture is worth a thousand words than I am off the hook.

Over a month has past since my last post, so it is time for a new one. To update you would take oodles of time and numerous keystrokes. Therefore, I'll give you the abbreviated text version and rely on pictures to give you the details.

Katie danced in The Nutcracker as a Tiny Angel; was in Abilene's and Anson's Christmas parades with her cheerleading team; visited with Santa at the Mall; received another report card of straight A's; and is growing and learning.

Rick is finally on his well-deserved and much-needed, month-long vacation. We have had snow already this year, but the dusting was gone by noon. The weather has been cold for the last few weeks--30's to 40's in the morning. It gets warmer as the day goes, but the temperature just drops once the sun drops below the horizon. I've decorated for Christmas, but have not gone all out like usual. The Christmas spirit eludes me this year. I try to fake it for Katie's sake. My dad has cancer and his treatment options would possibly buy him more time, but nothing will eradicate the cancer. He has turned down the options available and has chosen at home hospice. Right now he is holding steady and doing well.

Below are a few pictures and I hope they are worth a thousand words.

Family Christmas Picture 2012

 Katie with some of her fellow cheerleaders waiting to board their float for the Abilene Christmas parade

Katie lost her first baby tooth Dec. 15, 2012. It's the gap on the bottom front. The gap on the top front has always been there!

 Katie at Santa's Wonderland at the Mall

 Katie's 2012 Santa Picture

Katie after she visited with Santa at the Mall. She got the Elf hat from one of Santa's elves.

As the holidays approach, my prayers go out to the families and the community of Newton, Connecticut. My wish for you is that the quiet peace of the season remains with you throughout the year. Merry Christmas.

Wordless Wednesday Post

This will be a Wordless Wednesday post. Perhaps later I will be wordy when I have the time.

 Hobo

 Hobo with Cody photo bombing.

 "We're going for a walk, going for a walk."

 Sunday, prior to Rick leaving for the airport. The stuffed animal is not mine. Kate made me hold hers. Really.

 Kate none too pleased about her Daddy going to the airport.

Hobo and Kate

Okay, maybe this needs to be called "Almost Wordless Wednesday".