OT Mean while...

[Larry Jaques]

On Sun, 20 Dec 2009 22:15:42 -0800, the infamous "LDosser" scrawled the following:

OK, Aqualung. You win. (Or are you "crosseyed Mary"?

--snip--

Aqualung Sitting on a park bench eyeing little girls with bad intent. Snot running down his nose greasy fingers smearing shabby clothes. Drying in the cold sun Watching as the frilly panties run. Feeling like a dead duck spitting out pieces of his broken luck.

Sun streaking cold an old man wandering lonely. Taking time the only way he knows. Leg hurting bad, as he bends to pick a dog-end he goes down to the bog and warms his feet.

Feeling alone the army's up the rode salvation à la mode and a cup of tea. Aqualung my friend don't start away uneasy you poor old sod, you see, it's only me. Do you still remember December's foggy freeze when the ice that clings on to your beard is screaming agony. And you snatch your rattling last breaths with deep-sea-diver sounds, and the flowers bloom like madness in the spring.

--snip--

-------------------------------------------- -- I'm in touch with my Inner Curmudgeon. -- ============================================

[Larry Blanchard]

Same thing in Louisville KY. Except the junk man had a mule instead of a horse. Getting to ride on the junk wagon and hold the reins was a big thrill for me when I was 7 or 8. Of course, just like the milk horse, the mule knew the route by heart. I don't remember how coal came, but ice also came by horse.

[Mark & Juanita]

I will grant you that, but remember, they are living *in* that stuff. You have the benefit of several thousand miles and an ocean to dilute it. The effects are going to be much more devastating that close in and concentrated.

[LDosser]

The Really neat part was still having blacksmiths and farriers. Helped shoe a Clydesdale when I was 15. Heavy footed critters.

[LDosser]

Well, there were the bombed out buildings to play in. And the dark winters. Did I mention it was uphill both ways ...

[LDosser]

No argument on that.

[Larry Jaques]

On Tue, 22 Dec 2009 02:50:40 -0800, the infamous "LDosser" scrawled the following:

OK, that makes it all worthwhile. I grew up on LRAFB in Little Rock, Arkansas USA. _All_ our nights were dark. That made our dark winters considerably darker, at least at night.

For play, we got to run through the DDT fogging truck output every week in the summers. Air Police with 8ga shotguns would blow away the larger nests of water moccasins and cottonmouths around the Base lake.

But my favorite childhood memory was shooting Roman Candles into the lake on the 4th of July. These were real flare-like fireworks which would shoot out a spray of colored sparks before the fiery ball shot out 75' over the lake to hiss into middle of the lake. Each RC had at least half a dozen colored flares, so each lasted several minutes. We had real cherry bombs and several types of real firecrackers back then, too. Everything is "safe and sane" nowadays, and no frackin' fun at all.

So, now tell me about the unexploded mortar rounds and 500 lb. bombs you played with (snd set off, of course) Over There!

-- REMEMBER: The sooner you fall behind, the more time you'll have to catch up!

[LDosser]

When we moved to the US (Toledo) we also had the DDT trucks weekly. Toledo was built on something the Native population knew as the Black Swamp. They went around it. Stupid white eyes Lived in it. Say, how big were the roaches at LRAFB? I did several months at Gunter AFB, Montgomery, AL.

[krw]

I've lived just up the road in the Auburn, AL area for a year and a half and haven't see a roach yet. The truck comes around once a week to spray for mosquitoes but they're certainly not as bad as they were in VT! The ants are just nuts here, though. Enought that I've declared chemical and biological war on them (would go nuclear if my wife had her wishes).

[LDosser]

Air Force bases seem to attract roaches. Lackland in San Antonio was just loaded with them. In your clothes, in the food, in the john, everywhere ...

[krw]

Wonder why? They didn't properly clean? Food unprotected? Trash? I haven't even seen the famous Palmetto Bettles. I have seen Armadillos, the South's version of a Wood Chuck, in the middle of the road.

[LDosser]

They liked the uniforms?

Think big.

Hear them called possum on the half shell.

[basilisk]

I live not far from one of the phorid wasp release sites, they are making a big difference in the fireant population, fewer and smaller mounds.

[Larry Jaques]

On Tue, 22 Dec 2009 14:28:28 -0800, the infamous "LDosser" scrawled the following:

I don't recall the roaches in AR, but those in Phoenix, when I walked across the street to get beer barefooted at 10pm, were large enough to grab a guy by the toe, toss them out of their way, and continue on down the sidewalk.

-- REMEMBER: The sooner you fall behind, the more time you'll have to catch up!

[krw]

None on Marine bases?

So I've heard.

Like I indicated, I think of them as armored Woodchucks.

Why did the chicken cross the road? To prove to the Woodchuck that it could be done.

[krw]

don't have fire ants, rather the really tiny "sugar" ants. In the spring, fall, and whenever it rains hard they come swarming inside the house. It wasn't so bad this fall, especially considering the rain, but we did have a couple of waves. When we bought the house the underside of the deck looked like it was moving.

[LDosser]

Don't like the color.