Fan Geography

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Originally posted by Jay J. Foraker@Aug 4 2005, 12:17 PM
Yep, when I was younger, the heat didn't seem to bother me like it does now. There must be something about aging making us vulnerable to the heat. Back in the days of the pioneers, the average life expectancy was much lower than it is today, so maybe the general youthfulness of those hardy people got them through this heat.
I noticed that little front that came down last week did drop some temps by about, what, five or ten degrees for a day or so to North Texas, depending on where in Texas it affected. However, when it stalled right about on top of San Antonio, it just kicked up some scattered showers with very little temperature change. And now it is gone, so, too, are the lower? temps and rain.

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Doesn't this just make you drool, Jay? :lol:

Hello All We sure do have a mild enjoyable climate here. Please don't tell anyone its getting a little crowded. It does rain some but you should see what that does for trees. If he ever wanted a change of scenery from the giant sequoias south of 49 Paul Bunyon would have loved it here. I have seen trees that make you just stop and look at them. and we are second only to Ireland for the green. Not to brag but we are lucky for geography variety and climate ( at least in my opinion) Stumpy when I read your description of heat I remember crossing Death valley with my family in the 60's. We copied a locals trick and bought a canvas water bag that we hung on the front bumper. Somehow the speed of the air and condensation combined to cool the water in the bag. We were sceptical at first but there were more then a few folks doing it and it worked. Did you or anyone else ever see or try that and do you know how it worked? Good luck with your heat situation. Kilo

hi kilo

we too use this system for cooling water down in our out back, how it works is that the flow of air (from the car traveling at speeds) going over the bag with the evaperation factor causes the water to get cool ( this system also works with milk). have used it well i should say that my dad used it as he was the one driving and the water was lovely to drink on a hot day, if you were traveling far we would use two to three bags tied this way to the front of the car that way we also had water for the radiator. have you ever tried the egg in the radiator to seal a leak this works for a short time if you travel slowly and carefully till you get to a petrol station or to a bush machanic to get it fixed up better for the trip home.

cheers smokey

Hello All and Hello Smokey
I have not tried the egg in rad trick but its good to put that idea in memory for possible future use. I do recall being a ways out in the bush on a logging road and developing a leak in the gasket of my water pump. As I sat there contemplating a long walk with a few friends an old timer came by. He solved my problem by cutting a gasket out of the corrugated paper that holds a light bulb in place in its sleeve. That worked so well that I never replaced it and sold the truck years later with it still in there. That fellow always kept a few items in his truck for breakdowns. i used to do that as well but now don't carry much more then a first aid kit compass matches gloves and umbrella and a blanket. Somewhere along the road of life ,family work even age and energy levels have contributed to me not heading out exploring the endless backroads. The price of gas hasn't gone down either. The provincial Federal and even local Transit authorities put a lot of taxes on our gas. I worked at a station when I was in high school in 70,s and I remember gas was 50 cents a gallon. Minimum wage was $2.10/hour. Now Min wage is $8.20 up 4 times and gas ranges in the $4 to $5 a gallon a ten fold increase. Well its good to reflect on the past. Just like reading these posts has rekindled my enjoyment of John Wayne Movies, talking about road trips might just push back into the saddle. I have always wanted to explore the East Coast of Canada and 47 years on the west Coast later I'm still wishing. Could be next summer I will go with my Wife and do just that. Right now I have to do the youngest ones paper route as Mom and kids are upcountry for a family birthday of an octogenarian Uncle. Then its off to the afternoon shift at work. Kilo

Back in the sixties I met an old goldminer who lived up in the Sierra Nevada Mountains, in what is called Gold Country. He lived in a little rock cabin on the Middle Fork of the Feather River, 10 miles from any running water (excluding the river) or electricity. He had an old, broken-down International truck that he used to go into town once a week. Painted on the side of his cabin was a sign that read "Have a heart fellas, it costs money to fix this cabin." That was his security system . He used to carry a bar of Fels Naptha soap in the glove box of his truck and he told me that if you ever crack your block on a rock, where the oil is leaking out, the bar of Fels Naptha could be used to seal the leak by jamming it into the crack. For many years while driving in the Sierras, I would carry a bar of that soap, but luckily never had to use it.

One interesting theory that he had (inherited from another old gold miner forty years before) was "There are three things you don't show someone - your guns, your gold, or your gal." :lol: This fellow was certainly an interesting one to talk to and had many tales to tell.

Chester

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Originally posted by kilo 6@Aug 8 2005, 04:24 AM
Hello All
Is there a way to review a list of members by Geography ( location ) If not no complaints I like the the many features this board has, just wondering how many Canadians how many from my Province , City? Kilo

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I know there's at least one more from BC. Believe In Harm's Way is from there.

Hi kilo 6,
It's all a matter of choice,of individual members,
but I can never understand, why new members,
can't at least post there location!
stumpy is correct about In Harms Way,
being in Alberta,Canada.

hi kilo

i have seen just that very thing used in the out back as well, heard of a bloke who used to carry around a ruddy lump of tree in his ute when asked why he used to say that if his brakes failed he could use it for a braking system or if he broke a axel he could wire it to the axle and it would get him as far as he needed to go.

the true bush machanic are our black fellas they can get a worn out car up and running again and run it into the ground so that all it is good for is scrap they can work miracles with lumps of wood and wire.

chester the best defence for stopping your car from getting stolen or house broken into is to have a pet carpet snake, knew a fella when i live in outback north QLD who had a carpet snake in his car all of us who lived in and around the little town new he had it in his car but some city slickers came into town and saw his car sitting there unlocked and thought that they would help themselves to it well when they started it up the snake climbed up the back of the drivers seat and rested its head on this numnuts shoulder he froze on the spot while we all looked on watching and the local copper came over and nabbed them for trying to get the car what a squeal

cheers smokey

Quote

Originally posted by smokey@Aug 8 2005, 09:44 AM
chester the best defence for stopping your car from getting stolen or house broken into is to have a pet carpet snake, knew a fella when i live in outback north QLD who had a carpet snake in his car all of us who lived in and around the little town new he had it in his car but some city slickers came into town and saw his car sitting there unlocked and thought that they would help themselves to it well when they started it up the snake climbed up the back of the drivers seat and rested its head on this numnuts shoulder he froze on the spot while we all looked on watching and the local copper came over and nabbed them for trying to get the car what a squeal

That sounds similar to my youngest son's choice of pets. He used to have a pet python about 12 feet long. Said he was at a shopping mall one day with the snake in his pickup truck. He went into the mall to do some shopping. When he came out there was a big crowd around his truck. The snake had wrapped itself around the steering wheel. But he said he never worried about anybody stealing his truck with that snake in it.

Texas being a whole other country in itself (which it was for 8 or 9 years before it became a state), we have our own little contingent of members, Stumpy, Ringo and myself (there may be others that I'm not aware of, so forgive if you're not mentioned).
Cheers - Jay

Texas aint a state, were still a Country

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Texas aint a state, were still a Country

Yeah, and it snows 8 months out of the year up here in Minnesota!!! :lol: :lol:

stumpy

he picked a fine pet there i myself dont have a liking for them as i grew up where there were more venomous ones than anything else as children there was a plague of them and when we played out in the yard we used to watch each others backs. we went to school one day and came home to 3 sides of a trailer filled with dead ones ( we lived on a pineapple farm) and these where only the ones caught near the house.

does he still keep them as pets

hooroo smokey

ps the snakes were redbellied blacks, eastern browns, green bellied blacks, and one other but i cant remember what one it was but it was long and skinny, it was mainly the blacks that we had near the house as the shed was near by and they were after the rats and mice which were in plague as well

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Originally posted by smokey@Aug 9 2005, 10:55 AM
stumpy

he picked a fine pet there i myself dont have a liking for them as i grew up where there were more venomous ones than anything else as children there was a plague of them and when we played out in the yard we used to watch each others backs. we went to school one day and came home to 3 sides of a trailer filled with dead ones ( we lived on a pineapple farm) and these where only the ones caught near the house.

does he still keep them as pets

hooroo smokey

ps the snakes were redbellied blacks, eastern browns, green bellied blacks, and one other but i cant remember what one it was but it was long and skinny, it was mainly the blacks that we had near the house as the shed was near by and they were after the rats and mice which were in plague as well

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I have a phobia about snakes, Smokey. Don't like 'em at all, even though I grew up in the country and we had all kinds of snakes, both venomous and non-venomous. I remember watching my grandpa, back in the forties, pick water moccasins (a venomous snake) up by the tail and snap their heads off like he was cracking a bullwhip. I wouldn't try that for a thousand dollars.

I used to gather eggs for my grandma from her hens. Several times I've stuck my hands into the hen's nest and there'd be a big bullsnake there. Makes me shiver just thinkin' about it, even though this happened about 60 years ago.

I know Australia has a lot of very venomous snakes (spiders too). Since my wife doesn't like spiders and I don't like snakes, we'd have a heck of a time living there.

No, my son finally got rid of that python, thank goodness. He used to come visit us and bring the snake. I'd stick them both in one of our back bedrooms and make sure the doors were closed when we went to bed. He was visiting one time while my wife was doing our laundry. Helga said while she was sorting the clothes for washing, she felt like something was watching her. She looked around and here was that big old snake eyeing her. (She's not as afraid of snakes as I am - still, to discover the snake watching her was an unsettling experience, she said.)

Well, here's a little snake story for you .

Chester

Hello All
Chester I read your storey and its proof that some urban myths may become reality. Smokey were the snakes on the trailer for their skins? Stumpy I take it the bull snake is non venomous , wasn't it a water moccasin that bit one of the cattle drive boys in " The Cowboys"? Kilo

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Originally posted by kilo 6@Aug 10 2005, 02:13 AM
Stumpy I take it the bull snake is non venomous , wasn't it a water moccasin that bit one of the cattle drive boys in " The Cowboys"?

Yes, bullsnakes are non-poisonous, kilo, though they can grow to a pretty good size. I've seen some that were 5 or 6 feet long and 2 to 3 inches in diameter.
Poisonous or not, they can give you a pretty good scare when you're a small boy about 8 or 9 years old and grab one unexpectedly.

I can't remember that particular scene in "The Cowboys". It seems to me there were scenes in "Lonesome Dove" where the cattle drovers were crossing a river and were bitten by water moccasins.

hi kilo

they were the bodies of the snakes we had 2 dogs and a cat and they were good snakers they got most of them and killed them the dogs did this by grabbing them behind their heads and shaking them till they broke their necks or they just ripped their guts out the cat did the same thing, if they cornered a snake and couldnt kill them one of them would sit and keep it trapped till one of my parents ( mainly my dad) who would then chop their heads off as they raised themselves up to strike. had one get into the house once dad was out so the cat kept it cornered till he came home then off with its head.

stumpy

i know that we have dangerous wild life down under but we live with them you just have to be careful, it also depends on where you are as to what is around you in the cities you dont seem to get too many snakes but they are around where i live we still have bushland nearby so we still have snakes, spiders well you can spray all you like but they are still around so you look under all of your outside chairs before you sit down to make sure that you have no wildlife living in your chairs

chester

when we were kids living in outback NQ we had outside dunnies you had to check for redback spiders and snakes before you went otherwise you could have ended up with a nasty suprise, well at least the snake did bite the bloke on the bum first otherwise it might not have surrvived :lol:

hooroo smokey

Hello All
Thanks Stumpy I think it was Lonesome Dove and I must say that was a good series in my opinion. I just watched " The Cowboys", this am and a boy Charlie dies when the herd gets riled and he is trampled in a little stampede. Smokey I think you had some pets that earned their dinner. Kilo

Hi,
I was born and still live in St.Petersburg for 39 years. I'm afraid that I'm the only russian here.
regards,
Senta