fritz

The four candidates for governor had a televised debate tonight, and it won't be nominated for an Emmy (maybe an enema). Pretty boring for an election that means a lot to Texans. The four clowns did their best to put on a circus (with four rings). Perry was asked about his corridor, and he did a real Texas two-step on that one. The silver tongued zopilote actually said he was helping farmers (they just don't know it yet!). I guess he feels we are that stupid, or that gullible. If I had to go by just that debate, I'd vote for the democrat, Bell. He actually said something of merit, and said it in a truthful sounding way. That's more than I can say for the other three. So, it remains the same for me---anybody but Perry! fritz

It's just me and the dogs here until Monday. I have to cook for myself or do without. But I have the house all to myself. Mrs fritz went to Austin to babysit while the kids went to somewhere in the Carolinas. I wonder what they would do without grandmas. But she enjoys it, and I have to stay here and work. It's hay baling time again, but not as good as I'd like. At this stage of the year, I'll take anything that can fill a bale. fritz

It was laquered steel cases he used. Probably corrosive too. My friend, the gunsmith, has a new Springfield op rod on order for it. $96 plus shipping. The old op rod did indeed have a piece worn out of it. Since the rest of the rifle is so nice, it is still not a bad deal. fritz

" Historically, a third party has about as much chance of winning a presidential election as the Texans do a superbowl. Come the next election, I'll be voting Republican on the national, state, and probably local levels. And for the Kinkster for governor. " You may be right, but do you really think a third party can win on the state level? Sure, Ron Paul got elected as an independent. But Kinky? He's like a fourth party. The odds go up on that. I really don't give a schitt who gets elected in November, as long as it ain't RICK PERRY! fritz

Thanks DT, The fellow who sold me my Garand told me today said that it is indeed a high wear area, and expensive. He said he would probably cannibalize one from his and get the fellow going again, then order one. I also suspect my friend was using hot ammo. Here's a pic of what he said he had been using, can you identify it---- fritz

Yes, today is the 42nd anniversity of me and mrs fritz hitching the wagon up together. It has been a long and enjoyable ride (with a few bumps along the way). And I forgot it! Turns out, she did too. Until about 5 PM when I get a call on my cell phone (while sitting at the bar) telling me it is. Whoa! How to do a little side-step on this one? Well, it's too late for flowers, and by now the cat is out of the sack. Face the music. Take it like a man, get down on my knees and beg for forgiveness. That and take her out to the fanciest place in town for dinner (or supper as we call it down here). Problem is, we don't have no such fancy place here in our small town (and by now I am too loaded to drive 40 miles to the nearest one). Well, there is this popular place that is basically a pizza parlor, but they serve other meals as well. And tonight there were oysters on the menu (those are aphrodisiac, you know). So we order them. A few minutes later the waitress says they are out of oysters. So we order catfish and hushpuppies. Well, about 45 minutes later she returns and says that they now have oysters and they are cooked. So we go back to oysters. Turns out I should have stuck with the catfish. I didn't realize that this was basically an Italian joint, and they use lots of garlic on everything. Let me tell you, garlic ruins oysters! Just about anything ruins oysters, they taste best raw (but I understand the pollution scare) and are best just deep-fried and served with NO catsup or especially no garlic! Well, so much for the "international" approach of this joint. They should stick to pizza. But there were patrons in the place that gave it a bit of "international" flair. There were Mexicans as thick as fleas on a camel, and blacks with corn-rows and bling. Only thing missing was Osama himself. The Muslims are really outnumbered down here. Anybody know what they eat? If so, don't tell the Italian joint or they might just try to add it to the menu (and screw it up also). fritz

"Only thing I worry about is all the new townies that are flooding in here from other states that will be voting for the first time." Yes, I am afraid of that also. And these voters will probably not know (or give a damn) about Rick's plan to take a lot of land by eminent domain. There is something to be said about an informed electorate. I am also afraid of the ones who always vote a straight ticket. Texas has been republican for some time now, and some will continue to vote status quo, because this landgrabbing toll road will not take their land (if they even own any). A few misguided souls may even listen to the NRA and vote for the puppet that THEY endorse! Yes, the state is in bad shape, not only financially but morally. It seems that the days of the smoke-filled back rooms are not yet gone from Texas politics! God help us. fritz

"....IT'S BUBBLE UP......UP!......NOT BUBBLE UBB! It's a soft drink and a durn good one....BUBBLE UP!" Sorry to burst your "bubble", but it IS "bubble ubb". And I don't need snopes to arrive at that one. Merle should know what he was singing about, not quite sure I know but it appears to be about the dust bowl and the Great Depression. But when the GOP wins big in the next election, we will all have lots of that bubbly drink. And rainbow stew from GW's silver spoon. I am salivating already. fritz

Pardon me if this is the wrong place to ask this, but a fellow brought me an otherwise pristine Garand with the op rod jumped off the bolt. It had a spent shell in the chamber. I cleared the action, after getting the op rod aligned with the bolt again. But there appears to be wear in the slot where the two mate up. I compared it to mine, and there is a noticable "bell" in the slot of the op rod. Is this a common wear point? I have to confess that I am new to the Garand rifle. I have only had mine for a few months, and it is good and tight. Is a new op rod in order? Or is there a way to fix this without replacing it? I will replace the op rod, unless someone says it ain't necessary. Thanks, fritz

OK, Karl Here's to cats. Regardless of that rainbow stew--- Subject: Smart Cat A man absolutely hated his wife's cat and decided to get rid of him one day by driving him 20 blocks from his home and leaving him at the park. As he was getting home, the cat was walking up the driveway. The next day he decided to drive the cat 40 blocks away. He put the beast out and headed home. Driving back up his driveway, there was the cat! He kept taking the cat further and further and the cat would always beat him home. At last he decided to drive a few miles away, turn right, then left, past the bridge, then right again and another right until he reached what he thought was a safe distance from his home and left the cat there. Hours later the man calls home to his wife: "Jen, is the cat there?" "Yes", the wife answers, "why do you ask?" Frustrated, the man answered, "Put that son of a on the phone, I'm lost and need directions!" fritz

There's a big, brown cloud in the city, And the countryside's a sin. An' the price of life is too high to give up, Gotta come down again. When the world wide war is over and done, And the dream of peace comes true. We'll all be drinkin' free bubble-ubb, Eatin' that rainbow stew. When they find out how to burn water, And the gasoline car is gone. When an airplane flies without any fuel, And the satellite heats our home. One of these days when the air clears up, And the sun comes shinin' through. We'll all be drinkin' free bubble-ubb, An' eatin' that rainbow stew. Eatin' rainbow stew in a silver spoon, Underneath that sky of blue. All be drinkin' free bubble-ubb, An' eatin' that rainbow stew. Instrumental break. You don't have to get high to get happy, Just think about what's in store. When people start doin' what they oughta be doin', Then they won't be booin' no more. When a President goes through the White House door, An' does what he says he'll do. We'll all be drinkin' free bubble-ubb, Eatin' that rainbow stew. Eatin' rainbow stew in a silver spoon, Underneath that sky of blue. We'll all be drinkin' that free bubble-ubb, Eatin' some rainbow stew. Eatin' rainbow stew in a silver spoon, Underneath that sky of blue. All be drinkin' that free bubble-ubb, Eatin' rainbow stew. (Merle Haggard) I am salivating already, Karl. I raise my glass of bubble-ubb, and GW has the silver spoon. Man, that stew taste good! Wonder if this fellow has the silver spoon? Only bad thing about rainbow stew--there ain't no meat in it! Not even chicken! Oh, just vote for the War Party, and we'll all be eatin' that rainbow stew in a GOLD spoon! Would we lie to you? fritz

Just as planned, there was a lot of news coverage on the protest at Gonzales. I believe that even Ms. Strayhorn was upped by the fellow from Grimes County, who brought a cup of his soil quite aways. He gave the usual speech of saying that this was the only land he was giving to Perry, then corrected himself and said, "No, I believe I will take this soil back to Grimes County, and let Rick Perry COME AND TAKE IT! I love it. And I hope I can recite my own speech on election night---"Poor Rick, he can't help it. He just wanted a highway. Well, he got one but it was a one way street out of Austin and politics"! If Rick gets re-elected, a lot of Texans will be looking for that rainbow stew. Problem is, Rick don't know how to make stew-- he gets his from a big expensive restaurant in Austin. Whether or not he uses a silver spoon, I don't know. Maybe snopes knows (or the shadow). fritz

Diazinon, if you can still buy it, is good for fire ant control, and cheap too. Notice I said for control. We will never be able to eradicate the fire ant, just like brush, but we can control it. And it gets more expensive all the time. Too bad plain old gasoline poured down the nest doesn't work better, that is the cheapest chemical we can buy right now. But give the oil companies (and their puppets) enough time, and that will change. Right now, unleaded gasoline is the cheapest thing to clean a paintbrush with. I'm talking about real paint, not that crap made out of water. fritz

Like Jason in East Texas, we down here in the south have also had a lot of 90 degree days after a brief "cold" front comes through. Texas is like that, if you like the weather today, just wait till tomorrow---it won't last. It's supposed to work the other way also, but it seldom does. fritz

"In his latest commercial he states that the federal govt. wouldn't do anything about our border problem,so he took the matter in-to his own hands" Yeah, I saw the commercial of him walking the banks of the Rio Grande with a pot-bellied sheriff, making his spiel about border security. Can anybody tell me just what the hell he has done about it? I am eagerly awaiting the answer to that. I already understand the reason for the NRA to endorse him (although they should have kept the hell out of it because his opponents are not going to disarm us Texans). The NRA's reason is a single-issue position. Yeah, like Grandma or Kinky are going to take our guns away! Give me a break, idiots! Jerry, I believe you have hit the nail on the head when you said he is in it for the money. So now, not only is Rick Perry a slimey landgrabber, he is also a greedy slimey landgrabber! "COME AND TAKE IT" Rick! fritz

"The thing that worries my about the Phorid fly is the risk we run of upsetting the natural balance by killing all the ants here - both native and imported" The way I understand it is that the phorid fly only targets the fire ant. They have been in Brazil for years and never harmed the other ants. We have to do something because the fire ant has no other natural enemy. I would give up all the other ants (at the risk of putting exterminators out of business) to get rid of the fire ant. But I believe we can do it better with the phorid fly. At least it's a chance. But not in hot dry climates. Maybe East Texas would be a better place to test them. Any of you fellows over there willing to encourage the research on this? The reason for the test being done in Bee County is because a group of ranchers just got fed up with the status quo. Something has to be done. But it won't matter as much to us ranchers if Perry puts us out of business first with his beeg highway to nowhere. Let the fire ants make all the mounds they want on that "state owned" land! fritz

Any of you Texas boys and girls going to town tomorrow? If so, take a cup of your soil with you and deliver it to the courthouse---- "GONZALES - Protesters plan to bring cups of dirt to courthouses across the state Saturday in opposition to the proposed Trans-Texas Corridor. The dirt is to let Gov. Rick Perry know it's "the only land he's getting" from us, according to the Web site of Independent Texans, one of the sponsors of the event." Gonzales is just one of many towns that are planning this protest. Grandma Strayhorn will be there in Gonzales (the place where the first shot was fired in the Texas Independence fight). Let Perry hear this message---"COME & TAKE IT!" For the life of me, I cannot understand the man in his personal vendetta against Texas landowners. fritz

Yes, I'm surprised they haven't taken it off the market yet. It does work well, but is a bit expensive for large areas. We use it on the golf course (even though it isn't labeled for use on them). I remember that it came out many years ago, and you could smell the stuff in the store, right through the can. When I was farming yet, I bought up what I thought was a lifetime supply of a lot of the old products that worked well (and cost less). But you never can buy eniugh to last that long. I remember using a product (the name escapes me now) that worked very well on fire ants in young corn seedlings. It wasn't labeled for it, but it did the job on all kinds of soil insects. You treated the seed with it in the planter box. I also remember the Extension Service telling me that fire ants didn't eat on seedling corn, I must have some other insect doing the damage. When I showed the guy from A&M the ants in the row of damaged corn, he then put out a paper on fire ant damage in corn seedlings! And I knew that without having attended A&M! Sometimes you just have to work a bit to convince an Aggie that it ain't all in the book (yet). I just remembered the name of the granules--lindane. And it was already supposed to be banned when I used it. The feed store guy would go around back and sell me a few cans of it. The latest approach is the use of the phorid fly from Brazil. There was a story on Texas Parks & Wildlife TV recently of an experiment in Bee County, Tx (30 miles from me) using phorid flies released on mounds there. But due to the extremely hot and dry summer last year, few of the flies survived. It seems the climate in Brazil is much different than S. Texas. Anyway, the flies that did survive did a good job on the ants. We just need more flies, but they are hard to raise on a scale that would amount to a full scale assault on the fire ant. The fly lays an egg in the body of the ant, and when the larvae grows it works its way to the head of the ant. The ant dies and the head falls off. In about two weeks the larvae emerges from the skull as a new fly. What a way for an ant to die! fritz

Enough of this with Clinton and politics! We have a bigger problem in this country (at least in the South) with the damned ants that have invaded us like the yankees did many years ago. I speak of the fire ant (and don't ask me to spell the latin name for it, we have another name for it down here, and it ain't latin). He is back with the recent rains we have had. Which goes to show that a drought has at least something going for it. I have a nest starting just outside the back door. Last night (for lack of anything better) I sprayed it with oven cleaner. Now, that is nasty stuff! But tonight, the ants just moved over to the side. So I sprayed them with flea killer. And pissed on the nest, just to make them angry (hey, it's my way of expressing myself to them). I suspect that tomorrow the ants will just move over a bit more. OK, time then to bring out the big guns. I doubt that my big game rifles would bother them, but maybe a shot of diazinon will. I doubt that you can even buy the stuff anymore, but I have some. I have some other stuff also, but I better keep my mouth shut on that. Forget Clinton, let's talk about what's trying to take this nation by subterranian action! You yankees just wait! They will be there before you realize it. The South will rise again! We have recruited the ants. fritz

Guest_drjerry1st_*. Welcome. A Turk Mauser is a good one to start with when going about sporterizing for the first time. So many of the other mausers have become more expensive (rarer) that it is fast becoming a limited selection for a starter project. Hell, if not for cheap military rifles to start with, I challenge folks here to say that they would have done so anyway. Maybe a few, but not the beginners. Not when you can buy a Mossberg from Academy for less than 300 clams. I'm not from Mississippi, but welcome to the sporterizing forum. fritz

Damned, she sure does look sexy in those mesh stockings! I wonder if she wears them for Bill? I guess they do serve a good purpose and hide the vericose veins. I'm going to order a bumper sticker from that site. Since I am on the board of directors of a Soil & Water Conservation District (which the republicans have cut the budget on) here is my sticker--- And in so doing, let me ask the so-called "conservatives" just what the hell are you conserving? The land comes first, you idiots! fritz

If you have to go to the ER, and there is a long line of people ahead of you, just put this badge on your shirt, jacket, etc. It works especially good in S. Texas to clear them out---- fritz

"I think that crap about bigger bullets not deflectig as much is hooey! Your supposed to have a clear shot, not shoot through brush. A brush gun is for navigating through brushy conditions not shooting brush!" I agree. When I miss, I don't blame the brush for getting in the way. I blame the deer for getting behind the brush. Now, if I had a . 50 caliber BMG I might think about taking a shot! fritz

OK, I was "Taken". Or is there more to it? Dial-up sucks. fritz

I saw on the news that portions of Missouri got floods. I remembered Jim telling of how dry he was and having a fire. I wonder if he got any of the rain. We got a bit here in S. Texas (most got more than me) and it brought out the hogs. It always does. When it rains, it roots. That's the motto of the feral hog, an enemy I am learning to understand more each day. I have learned his favored menu, and bait the trap with it. I have learned his time of activity (which is when I like to sleep). And I am slowly getting the upper hand on him. Yesterday, there were 5 in the trap. About 500 pounds of pork. It took a couple phone calls, but two guys showed up and shot them. Hell, I was generous---I let them shoot them. But I stood by with a pistol just in case. I can imagine they had a full day of skinning and butchering. But it was cool, a cold front had just blown in. Now, if the doves follow the north winds down to Texas maybe I can get some much needed shooting done. Hogs in a trap just don't compare to a fast flying dove. fritz