Chit Chat in VOLTVILLE Thread #2 :)

[rave]

Brrr. Can't even imagine what 5 degrees feels like. I think maybe 37's the lowest I've gone. How about one of these?

My car has heated seats. When I first turned it on for my mom, she said "It's really nice, but I feel like I just peed in my pants."
Hi!

Nice! I like it! Looks like it plugs into a cigarette lighter though. Mine was never hooked up. That's fixable though.

I slap on one of those heat patches for sore muscles on each bun and hit the door.

Genius! Why the heck didn't I think of that? Good to see you, Wuzz.

*snipped for brevity - sorry*


First, he read about Manneken Pis. He seemed interested and I told him that the stuff I was going to have him read was adult stuff, straight from Wikipedia, not reworded so it was simpler for kids. I thought he could do it, though some words might be hard. And he did! Yes, he didn't know some words, but that's always the case. And he was attentive when I explained. So that idea worked! Now, what do I think up that's outrageous enough to hold his attention on Saturday? Any suggestions?

Oooh - oooh!! I got this one! How 'bout zombie ants? They really do exist:



There are quite a few links that explain this phenomenon. Here are a few:

Ophiocordyceps unilateralis - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Absurd Creature of the Week: The Zombie Ant and the Fungus That Controls Its Mind - Wired Science
Zombie Ants Controlled by Fungus | LiveScience

Morning Volties. Still in the tight grip of winter here, it's 6° and snowing. Still waiting for a significant melt, when it does come, it's gonna be a messy one, lol. I've been hearing of lots of water lines bursting, not just in houses, in the lines running underground from the mains, and some mains too! The frost line is deeper this year, lots of people are without water and it could take weeks to get everything fixed.

I twisted my back lugging a 50lb bag of birdseed up to the house, so I've been taking it easy the past few days. This getting old stuff.....sigh, but it still beats the alternative by a mile. Have a great day folks!

Been there, done that. I've learned to slide things rather than lift. Those huge bags of bird seed are a bear, and I have to handle quite a few of them. Hope your back feels better soon.

Once again, it's time to say good night. Thinking of spring, I decided on this photo of a newborn fawn and its mom that were in my yard one morning.

Awwww!!

Looks like parts of the country are going to get some more snow!!!!

Right now it is 38 degrees and looking like rain. I can only hope we get some more. Wet and cool. Really, I like it.

I think I'll work outside today on the goat pen, the horse pens, the compost piles and the greenhouse. That's probably enough projects for one day I'm hoping to get ahold of some neighbors and go visiting. We'll see if anyone is going to be home.

There's a heckuva storm system bearing down on almost all of us. The Weather Channel calls this one Winter Storm Titan. It's inundating California with rain to the point where a couple of towns have mandatory evacuations in fear of mudslides. By the time it reaches me, it'll be sleet and freezing rain, then tons of snow. The weather predictions are generally saying that we could get a foot or more precipitation - mostly in the form of snow. Argh!!

 

[SandySu]

Thanks for the zombie ants links, Rave. I'll have to do a lesson on them.

Maybe not so interesting and offbeat, I'm going to do a lesson on St. Patrick's Day, complete with shamrocks, leprechauns, druids, and snakes. I figure that is timely, even if not as interesting as zombie ants. But that'll definitely be on a future agenda.

As for snowstorms, maybe this big one coming will be what I call the last hurrah snowstorm. We often get our biggest snowfall in March, and then spring starts happening. One can hope, anyway.

 

[Renolizzie]

It always seems ironic that you want rain and Terry has too much of it. Don't you wish she could share her excess moisture?

Yes I do. If we had even 12 inches of precip a year, we would be greener around here.

 

[Renolizzie]

There's another world heard from....hi Raven.

Zombie ants...the natural world is a crazy and amazing place.

I know, slapping on heat patches is a fantastic idea. How does Zero come up with this ideas? Plus, I really chuckled when I read that suggestion!

Sounds like a big storm.

 

[rave]

Hiya Lizzie! Give the horsies a scratch behind the ears for me.

 

[Renolizzie]

It is raining steadily out there. At first, I kept moving raspberry plants and checking the front irrigation line, then I decided to head towards the house and put my drip system stuff where it would stay dry.

I decided I could take out the compost and empty my first wheel barrow load of goat pen duff. So, I did that and turned the compost pile a bit. I finally decided enough is enough, time to restart the woodstove and hang out while I listen to the rain.

 

[cindycated]

I twisted my back lugging a 50lb bag of birdseed up to the house, so I've been taking it easy the past few days. This getting old stuff.....sigh, but it still beats the alternative by a mile. Have a great day folks!

"Lift with your legs, not with your back, and don't twist!"


...wow. I guess OSHA was right. Feel better, Q. Maybe you can just lay out on your driveway and ice your back!

 

[Qew]

"Lift with your legs, not with your back, and don't twist!"


...wow. I guess OSHA was right. Feel better, Q. Maybe you can just lay out on your driveway and ice your back!

LOL! I did lift with my legs! Someplace between the driveway and walking up the incline to the house, the bag kind of shifted. Dang birds, and squirrels, and deer, they all come expecting the goods. Normally Mr. Q would bring something like that in for me, but he wasn't around and I wanted to get it done. It is much better today, thanks.

If I were to lay out on the driveway, I would soon be part of it, it's sooooo cold!

In other news, I saw a fox this morning! I was staring out the window in my usual morning daze and saw the deer spook. I thought someone must be out in the woods, so I kept watching and out came the fox, strolling along the edge of the woods a few yards, then right back in. We hardly ever see them, and even if I had a decent camera it was over too soon, sigh.

 

[SandySu]

I did up a report on zombie ants for the boy I tutor. I hope it isn't too long and complicated. I reworded a lot to make it easier to read.

I thought the parasitic mind-control thing sounded familiar, so I looked in a book I read last summer, Parasite Rex, and there was another example involving ants, but this time, who controlled them was the lancet fluke, not a fungus. See Dicrocoelium dendriticum - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia and look at the part about their life cycle. The fluke makes the ant climb a blade of grass, hoping to be eaten by a grazing animal so the fluke can infect it. If nobody eats it, the ant climbs down and resumes normal activities till the next evening. Then it climbs up the grass again. Nature is pretty amazing.

Which brings me to something else I'll have to research. Even though it's still very cold, the snow is melting a little, especially right under trees. Why under trees more than elsewhere? Is it warmer there? What makes it warmer? The tree's roots that are close to the surface? Are tree roots actually warmer than the frozen ground around them?

 

[SandySu]

This seems to be the best answer to my tree question. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/04/12/science/12qna.html?_r=0

 

[Wuzznt Me]

Good to see you too Rave. And always better to be seen rather than viewed. Those patches really work well.

 

[SandySu]

Wow! The Internet is such an amazing thing! I just found out about this on a friend's Facebook page -- there's a photo of him in Watkins Glen in winter, close to here. In fact, I took a winter waterfall photo a couple of winters ago and posted it here a few nights ago. This guy poses in a pink tutu and nothing else in places all over the world. The photos are impressive!


http://www.thetutuproject.com/about/

 

[SandySu]

Good night, all. Thinking about the doe and fawn I showed you last night, here's a mother Canada goose and her babies.

 

[Renolizzie]

Good morning, peeps. Really chilly outside today at 34 degrees. Brrr. I really need to get online and order a few things like irrigation supplies but so far I've put it off. Maybe today I will make a list, check it twice and see if I can get that done.

Aren"t those geese babies cute>

 

[SandySu]

I just got back from the barn. The hoof trimmer came to do Penny's feet. That went well. Of course, I groomed Penny and changed her blanket. She is shedding a lot! I have horse hair all over me. Not just a hair or 2, but a coating. It's all over my car seat and sticks to everything I own, including the knapsack I use as a purse. Trying to get at least some hair off, I tried a Swiffer duster, and it worked pretty well.

What do you all use to get shedding animal hair off your clothes and everything else you own?

 

[SandySu]

I answered my own question: duct tape. I've heard of using masking tape, but all I have is duct tape, and that worked very well. It's tedious, but it does the job.

 

[Renolizzie]

I am trying tapatalk. The monitor on my computer died...I think. Computer acted goofy, finally the monitor said "no signal", then the monitor turned off and won't turn back off.

You need one of those clothes stickies rollers

Sent from my Venue 8 3830 using Tapatalk

 

[SandySu]

I am trying tapatalk. The monitor on my computer died...I think. Computer acted goofy, finally the monitor said "no signal", then the monitor turned off and won't turn back off.

You need one of those clothes stickies rollers

Sent from my Venue 8 3830 using Tapatalk

It looks like Tapatalk works. Didn't you just get that computer not long ago? The screen shouldn't have died already!

Yes, those rollers are basically wide masking tape, I think. What I did to approximate it was to make a loop of duct tape, stick a couple fingers inside the loop, and roll that. It worked, but now my trash can is filled with loops. It took a lot to get the hair off my sweatpants. I haven't even ventured to the car yet. It's so cold to sit in it and remove hairs.

I have lots of duct tape, so I'll probably go with that till I run out. Then maybe I'll get a roller.

 

[SandySu]

I tutored today. The girl read a couple poems about March. One was about making a kite, and she wants me to show them how to make one. I have no idea! She is really into arts and crafts.

One thing she mentioned again is making rock candy. That sounds doable. How it can be a reading lesson is reading and following the instructions.

I made a word search with half the boy's vocab words and half the girl's, 2 copies, so they could see who completed it first. The girl did. Then she went on to do 2 more word searches made just for her.

The boy read about druids. He didn't want to so his sister offered, but she really struggled, so soon the boy took over. Finally, I read it to them.The words were challenging for him, and he doesn't want to do stuff that he has to struggle with.

The girl read about Noah's Ark. That was hard for her, too. She asked what a flood was, and when I explained, I think she still didn't understand.

The boy did a crossword puzzle and another one where you follow the directions, which didn't come out right. I have to do it and see if it's the puzzle or the boy who messed up. When you download stuff from the Internet, sometimes there are mistakes. We've found them.

The boy left early and went upstairs. He didn't want to hang around for a Mad Libs, but the girl did, so she did one without her brother.

 

[tmcase]

I am trying tapatalk. The monitor on my computer died...I think. Computer acted goofy, finally the monitor said "no signal", then the monitor turned off and won't turn back off.

You need one of those clothes stickies rollers

Sent from my Venue 8 3830 using Tapatalk

Ooo! That's what happened to my monitor. It's probably the power supply. I had to get a new monitor.