fritz

While you all have it correct that in many situations the ragtag look works, but ain't it a sad state of affairs when we have to resort to that? At least you won't get charged with discrimination when you dress up like them! As for me, I always like to dress for the occasion (which may include a tux, or camo of some sort). Depends on the situation. But I never got the idea of dressing like a drug addict. Maybe some of those we see around us that look like that are really "undercover "? fritz

Tony, It bled out pretty good, and I washed it down good with soap and water, then alcohol. Been keeping an antibiotic ointment on it and keeping it clean. Mrs fritz isn't too concerned about it, just wish I knew what went in there. At least it ain't as painful as your fracture. I'm probably not getting as many wounds as I used to as a kid. But at my age, they seem to heal slower. fritz

In summation, let me just add that NO wasn't called The Big Easy for nothing! fritz

Here's an old homemade buffer posted before the blackout occured----- This one needs new wheels. The motor is just a 1/3 hp motor from an old gasoline pump. I rigged a handle onto the linkage that went to the starting lever. fritz

I can add something to the post about not wearing short sleeves to a rifle match--never wear short pants while hauling hay bales. Yesterday morning (I should have checked my horoscope first) I had some hay ready to bale. I was intending to use the tractor with AC and the round baler, but the damned hydraulic clutch went out on it. So I went to plan B and went over to hook up my square baler on a smaller tractor. The baler had a flat tire, no big deal, but after getting that fixed, it was looking more like rain. They had just put in the prediction of 60% rain the night before. I was in a hurry to get started, so just wore the short pants I had on for the AC tractor. Then immediately after getting it baled, mrs fritz brought the trailer out and we started hauling it up. As I was bucking a bale onto the trailer with my knee, I felt something jab into my kneecap. I still don't know what it was, maybe the pigtail of wire that lays on the edge of the bales. I didn't see a thorn, and it went in deep. I finished that load and then picked up another. Since I was out of trailers now, I left the rest of the hay in the field. But now that damned knee is stiffening up on me and I'll be walking with a "gimp" for a few days. I found some pain pills left over from the snake bite (maybe the same as the ones Tony mentioned) and that helped. Gave me good reason to lay around and watch a couple college games. How about those Longhorns! They had another one of their cliffhangers, this time with Ohio State (whom they had never played). Now I'll have a good excuse to waste a little time at the computer (as if I needed it). fritz

Yeah, it's true. But the newspaper got it wrong when they stated that this was the first time since 1846 that Mexican troops entered the US. Don't they remember Pancho Villa and his raid on Columbus, NM? But these are unarmed troops. They are going to help the situation. Mexico has sent their troops into other countries to help out in disasters, but this is the first time for them to send them to the US for this. Reckon old Fox is trying to send a message (or a plea bargain)? When he cleans up the mess Katrina caused, he can reroute the troops to Goliad county Texas to take care of his own Mexicans over her (illegally by the way). This first contingent is to San Antonio where many refugees are right now. In the article, it was mentioned that San Antonio is probably the largest Mexican populated city in America. At least they got that one right! fritz

That one about the rope snake reminded me of my days (nights really) as a weldor at a Houston machine shop. We built, and rebuilt, mud pumps for the oil field. The plant was divided between a welding shop and a machine shop. They machined some pretty thick steel for the pumps. And the metal would come off the lathe in long snake-like coils. We had a punchy type of foreman for the night shift. I don't know if it was from boxing or just wine. But he was scared of snakes. We would place a coil of that shaving between his legs while he had his hood down welding. When he flipped the hood up to change rods, he saw the "snake" and jumped out of his shoes! The funny thing was that the same trick would work again later. We had a lot of fun with that fellow, and since we all knew he would sneake out to his car to hit the bottle ever so often, we had the helper go down to the corner liquor store to get a flask for us. We all chipped in enough so he could get him one too. The foreman never said anything about it. How could he? BTW, I got another snake today. This one was Mo-Coed, crimped and conditioned all in one pass through the rolls of my hay cutter. That felt good, even though it was only a prairie runner. Hell, we got all kinds here. We don't discriminate! fritz

This kind of thing (what Tony said) is exactly what mrs fritz told me about in her experiences with emergency management in Texas. Recently the Homeland Security people sponsored (paid for) a 3 day seminar at the UT Health Sciences Center in San Antonio. They sent out letters, hand delivered many, in order to entice people however remotely involved with emergency preparedness to attend. They literally begged people from all over the state to attend. There were about 40 people (mrs fritz included) who showed up. Pathetic! Yeah, emergency preparedness planning is not on the top priority of too many people. Especially so, I guess, in La. The 40 people who did attend were mostly nurses like mrs fritz, from state health agencies. The mayor and governor were not there. They were invited, though. fritz

I don't know if they still use it, but at one time they had a big powerful vacuum machine that would literally suck a prairie dog out of his hole. He went through a hose large enough for him to pass through, into a big tank. When the tank was full, they released them someplace else (probably on another rancher's land! I saw a fellow break a leg when he got thrown off his horse here in S. Texas. We don't have prairie dogs, just gophers. The dog are much worse, and they have to be controlled somehow. I'm all for hunting them, and killing as many as possible. But making videos just for the shock effect, seem to be out of place. Maybe an educational film on control of prairie dogs, by shooting or trapping, is in order. fritz

Tony, Check the signs closely and see if there is a "Printed in China" written on them somewhere! They have everything else either made in China or printed in China, so it's probably there. Also check the spelling closely. The Chinese printed instruction manuals often contain many typos. fritz

Tony, That is just something I dreamed up while in bed. My best ideas come while in bed. I could change a few things/add a few things, but I'll stick with the first draft. Perhaps the little ditty should read "The Unplanned Child". And I could have easily gotten it up to 250 words. But we all get the idea. There is enough blame for everyone, and it starts in the local administration. fritz

Once upon a time there was an irresponsible couple. They were Mr. and Mrs. New Orleans. Theirs was a marriage of convenience, and they had two children. They were called "The Saints" and "Conventions". The two children brought their parents much joy (and money) and were convenient for them. The parents put much planning into the futures of these two children, and built nice rooms for them and the guests that came to visit. Then, as sometimes happens, a third child was born. They named her "Katrina". She was an unwanted child, and no planning was made for her future. After all, she was an unwanted child and cost her parents much misery (and money). She was told to just sleep in the rooms of the other two children, for she was inconvenient for them. An unwanted child. And in the end, the parents blamed Katrina for all the bad things she brought into their marriage of convenience. She was, after all, an unwanted child. fritz

This being bitten once has given me the willies everytime I see a snake now. This morning I saw a cardinal (the bird) in the yard, so I decided to fill the bird feeder. I took it down from the tree and set it on the ground and removed the lid. Inside was a snake coiled up. By now it don't make any difference what kind of snake it was, the only good snake is a dead snake. This one was just a common grass snake, but he got the same treatment as Mr. copperhead. I did wound the feeder a bit, but not seriously. I hung him on the fence, and this afternoon we got a quarter inch of rain. Who says that's an old wife's tale? fritz

That pretty well sums it up. As to the mayor passing the blame to the president and governor while he was on Air Force One (as has been televised) I can only add that the mayor was indeed ignoring his shortcomings in this event. But I don't believe you will hear him say that. Far easier to pass the blame to white folks. And that's what this is all coming down to! fritz

This list of emergency essentials (and the basic fact of being prepered) is something that obviously eluded most of the residents of NO. May I just add one more thing---being prepared and knowledgeable about your vulnerability. The main thing so many ignorned in NO. fritz

While we are talking about words not in the dictionary--what the hell is a "blog"? Maybe it's in the latest Webster. fritz

As soon as I can get mrs fritz to retrieve the complete list from her office, I'll post it. But a flashlight (maybe one of the new shake-it-and-light) and a battery radio (maybe one of the crank types). Also get a list of all your family's prescriptions to keep handy. Later, fritz

Tony, Have you been to the Harbor Freight store in Austin? I was there twice last weekend, like a kid in a candy store! I doubt if they would have the cutters you wanted, but they do have a huge inventory of tools, and had a sale going on. That is why I went back again before heading for home. The credit card bill will be big this month, but then I haven't bought a Mauser in awhile (cause there ain't no bargains anymore!) so now it's time for tools. I bought a laser level, never can tell when it may come in handy. And I could not find a 5/8" drill bit here cheaper than $20, I bought a Silver & Deming set of six or so large bits for $30. Already used the 5/8" several times and it is sharp. I know what you mean about the Home Depot in Austin, at least the one where I went (near Mopac). Not for me. I enjoyed the big WalMart open 24 hours in the Lake Creek Parkway area. I got there around 8 AM on Sunday morning and basically had the store to myself. They sold me more stuff that way. Even bought me a new driver, then got bit by the snake right after getting home. Now it will be a month before I can swing a golf club properly again. Well, it's a good excuse to get out of a big tournament next weekend that I would probably lose anyway. The club manager at my course has a bar stool reserved for me. He took a club shaft and riveted a small piece of plywood to the top of it, then taped it to the chair. It's for keeping my arm elevated on. There was a piece of duct tape on the side, and when I asked what it was for, I was told that it was for putting on my mouth! How 'bout that? I think I will drive mrs fritz's cat nuts with the laser. While she's not home, of course. fritz

Mrs fritz brought out something that many people today seem to be ignorant of. The Red Cross (and other emergency agencies) have been spreading the word for over 40 years----every family should have enough food, water, sanitary supplies, etc. for 36 to 48 hours after a disaster. That is a fact! This may not be the right place to post this, but I got the idea for it from one of the previous posters (about being prepared for a flood, etc). Mrs fritz remembers the Red Cross telling people this ever since she was a child. She continues today, as a nurse, to try to get people to believe this. It has happened before, and it WILL happen again. It is a damned shame that there are so many people in this country that think that the government HAS to help them immediately in any disaster. I guess that is why they never heeded the advise that the Red Cross (and other emergency agencies) have been preaching for over 40 years. While I'm on the subject, I find that in this particular disaster (due to the enormous size of it, I guess) it was wrong for the emergency preparedness people to house all the refugees in places like the Superdome and the Convention Center without having the necessary supplies like water, sanitary supplies, etc. in place. Cots are not as much a priority as the basics of food and water. The agencies in NO did not have this in place, and they are at fault for this lack of preparedness. There must have been some place where they could have stored these items in advance. I bet they will in the future. fritz

The nice thing with Tru-Oil is that after all those years, you can clean up the area and reapply some more. It should blend in just fine. Like was mentioned above, nothing lasts forever. Tru-Oil can be easily touched up. And I like to thin it with mineral spirits too. A lot of thin coats is better than a few heavy coats. The first coat should be the only heavy one. All the rest should be thin. fritz

Speaking of the Great Depression, my father was in the prime of his life--27 years old and working the land with mules. In a way he was better off than those who depended on a city job for food. Even during WW2 he was farming the land. But now with a tractor, and while there was gas rationing, he got coupons enough to buy the gas he needed for the tractor. It was a necessary occupation, and the government needed the food and fiber for our troops at war. But those days changed his life forever. He never wasted anything. In a way, I sometimes wish we could have had more leisure time. But we did what was necessary, not only for the family but for the country. He died before seeing the hard times come again. But he was always expecting it to happen again, and was prepared. How many people today are prepared? That is going to be the toughest thing for many people. They have allowed themselves to be vulnerable to this type of hardship, and are not prepared in any shape or form. When they lose that good paying job, what will they do? I read about the effect that the artificailly low interest rates set by Mr. Greenjeans has done to many people. They borrowed more and more, hell the government was just about giving the banks money to loan out. The banks could get money from Mr. Greenbacks cheaper than offering a decent rate for savings accounts. People took advantage of it (at the constant urging by the banks to borrow more and more). Now the day of reckoning is coming. The ability to repay even the low-interest loans is putting a strain on many people, so what is Mr. Green doing to "help"? Cut the interest rates even more! If Uncle Sam don't own you yet, it ain't because he is not trying. To "help" of course. Sometimes it's just better to not do anything and let the natural selection process work. Enough of this monkee business with the money supply. fritz

Where were the zoepilotes? A dead possum doesn't last long around here. We got the hungriest vultures in the country. If he was fresh, a real redneck might have picked him up for lunch! Never did like the things myself, too greasy. Bad on the cholesterol. fritz

Good idea on the sheep lawn mower. It could even fertilize the lawn at the same time. The local town does not have a strict ordnance on animals, but if you have a neighbor that does not like them, he may object. There was a little old lady who had a large lot and kept a cow for milk. Her neighbor complained to the city council about the cow mooing early in the morning. Seems he liked to sleep late. I would rather hear a cow moo or a rooster crow than a damned dog constantly yapping. My son moved to a nice neighborhood in north Austin with tall privacy fences around the large lot. But it seems his neighbor has a dog that gets the yapping fits all the time. Good fences do not necessarily make good neighbors, when the neighbor has a dog like that. I bet the neighbors would rather he get a sheep. At least they are a little quieter. And I would rather step in sheep turds than dog poop any day! fritz