Ignore (EOM)

[Ron61]

Steve,

There are a lot of gravel yards around here and I am about ready to add another one. Some places grass just will not grow and in others it grows like mad. But the state encourages low maintenance lawns, read that as non watered ones, due to the demand for water.
If I had know that you were going to be passing down the coast, I would have driven over and met you. The drive from here to the coast isn't to bad, just a long winding stage coach route over the mountains. You drive 50 miles to actually go about 30. But if there isn't any traffic and no road work, it is a nice drive.
As for the freeway bushes they used to have here they had to cut them all down. They finally stumbled onto the fact that Cal Trans had been watering and taking care of almost 5 miles of Marijuna that some of these people had put in with the Olendars. Ignore the bad spelling. So they solved the problem by ripping out miles of the bushes between the North and South bound lanes.

Ron

[Ron61]

This is for Kristen/CG/RB,

Those Blondes Again

Homer, a handsome dude, walked into a sports bar around 9:58 PM. He sat down next to this blonde at the bar and stared up at the TV. The 10:00 news was on. The news crew was covering a story of a man on a ledge of a large building preparing to jump.

The blonde looked at Homer and said, "Do you think he'll jump?"

Homer says,"You know, I bet he'll jump."

The blonde replied, "Well, I bet he won't."

Homer placed $20 on the bar and said, "You're on!"

Just as the blonde placed her money on the bar, the guy did a swan dive off of the building, falling to his death.

The blonde was very upset and handed her $20 to Homer, saying, "Fair's fair. Here's your money."

Homer replied, "I can't take your money, I saw this earlier on the 5 o'clock news and knew he would jump."

The blonde replies, "I did too; but I didn't think he'd do it
again."

Homer took the money.......

Ron

[4RE KLR]

Ron,

Thats funny.........

I did notice the oleanders along the road. I told my wife Texas should do the same, Maryjane aside of corse. They are all in bloom now and look nice.

It is really too bad I did not take better notice of how close you are to where we were. I would liked to have met you.

[Ron61]

Steve,

We will get to meet one of these days. I just got up about 45 minutes ago and is is still raining lightly here. Rained quite a bit yesterday, so this wek hasn't been very nice to be outside. Been doing some house cleaning. If I keep this up I will have to buy a dress for crying out loud.
By the way, I am down loading some of your pictures as we sent all we had back to an aunt and their house burned so I have none of my stuff left from my youth. Hope that is ok with you. I remember one of me by the General Sherman when I was about 14 and I think I almost came up to the bottom of the bark.

Ron

[4RE KLR]

It is amazing. The bark is two feet thick.

There was a bad storm chasing us across the desert but did not make town.

That road across death valley is a nightmare. I wonder just how many people get killed there in a given month. The speed limit is 65 we were traveling at 85 and we were passed 1,783 on that one road. These people were flying. One car cane by so fast it was "lifting" I had heard about that but never seen it. A few minuites later we saw flashing lights. The road is so long and uphill that we watched the chase for twenty mins before they stopped moving. When we got to the "wreck" the same little "lifting" car had crossed the median, flipped several times and hit two on coming cars. The police were the only ones there. They were looking to the air for H-vac (helocopter). It was bad.

We were on the other side but i'll bet traffic stopped for two to three hours, at least!

[4RE KLR]

Mike,

Now that school is out what are you going to do with yourself?

[trularin]

He will be running around with girls, dreaming of cobras and slinging nails.

What a life.

That or Ron will have him over for the summer to cut the lawn every two days. I sure am glad I mow over three acres, I only do it "every-so-often"

[Ron61]

Steve,

They have driven that way across the Death Valley highway for as long as I can remember. At least you saw a CHP. I never saw one the times I drove across there and I drove as fast as I dared in my old car. And they passed me like I was on the Autobon in the slow lane. I have had the front end get light, but my worst scare came in a 1965 Ford Galaxie 500XL that I had bought new and only had about 6 months. Never drive over 110 with the windows down. The air actually sucked the headliner and the steel bows that held it right down and all I heard was a big WHOOM and everything went black. I knew there were no more cars around me so I started braking just as much as I could without locking them up. After I got stopped, and pulled that mass of headliner our of my face, I got out, waited a few minutes until I was sure I could drive and took the car to Ford. I told them I was driving along and everything came down. Those steel rods that went across the top to hold the liner were actually bent and had to be replaced.

Tru,

I need Mike for cutting rose bushes now. It has rained here the last two days and I will need to mow when it dries up again. I am thinking of going to the California low maintenance lawns like Steve saw on his trip. No mowing with them.

Ron

[hey,littlecobra]

bye, bye!

ya'll be good.

Steve, you ought to be heading to Tulsa, too!

Trailer is all set up and looking good.
Kristen

[4RE KLR]

Kristen,

We just got back from a 5,885 mile trip. I need some rest from driving.

Be safe and have a good trip. Tulsa is fun with Gary Morris there. He is a hoot to be around.


Ron,
Those rock yards looked real nice. I told my wife we need one here as well. I tell you what we spent the most time up along the Oregon coastline. Now THATS is where I want to live. The ocean on one side and three hundred foot tall trees on the other. If anyone does not believe in God, Go and have a look at those trees.

[Ron61]

Steve,

The Oregon coast line has some beautiful country. My best friend's wife is from up in Oregon and they go over to the coast every year for a week or so. They put their trailer at a camp in Cresent City just South of the Oregon border and North of Redwoods National Park. I have driven highway 101 from Santa Barbara to Washington and it is a really scenic route.
Darn, talk about weird weather. It was raining and cold 2 hours ago and now it is sunny and 80 degrees and humid as it was when I had to go to Georgia. I am to old for these radical weather changes every 12 hours.

We seem to have lost Lil Mike. I wonder if he blew his computer up yesterday trying to fix the CD drive. I haven't seen him logged on at all today. Oh, well, he needed a new computer anyway.

Ron

[blykins]

Nah....he's probably playing kissy face somewhere....it's summer time and he's a teenager....ah...memories...

[flipper35]

Anyone now if those pheremone baited mosquito traps work indoors? Somehow we are being invaded by them. We have been running the A/C for weeks so they aren't coming in through the windows or screen doors. The tub in the second bathroom doesn't get used much, but we had poured bleach down the drain and plugged it so I don't think they were breeding there.

[4RE KLR]

Brent,
Yes they do work, very well. You will need to do some research before you buy though. It is my understanding that one brand, and I am sorry I can't think of the name now, puts off a toxic to humans scent.

You should call a good exterminator to spray around your home. Run water through your plumbing for @ 10 mins in each line. Do not leave bleach in the lines for extended periods of time as it will eat you pipes up! yes even the plastic ones. If you have a septic sytem call your service man for a safe treatment. It is realitively cheap at about $45.00 including the service charge.

Some exterminators now have entire yard systems that work very very well. They are about $2,500.00 installed for yards up to an acre. I know that sounds expensive but you WILL NOT have ANY mosquitoes at all. They garruntee (sp) that

Look up ABC pest and lawn if they have it in your area. If not call them and get them to design a yard system for you and install it yourself or have a local plumber or sprinkler system guy do it for you. They are very easy to install and if you do it yourself you will save about 60% of the tatal cost.

Good luck. Remember a mosquite can't live without water. Check your dog food bowls and other places in your yard for small pools of water. A dog bowl of water can breed hundreds of thousands and could also give your pets heartworms.


www.abcpest.com

[flipper35]

The county is coming to spray the outside, since everyone in the neighborhood gets water from canals to feed cisterns they take care of that stuff. The bleach was in for a while but ran a bunch of hot water through to rinse everything out of the trap. Side note: My office managers parents own the local Roto-Rooter and said bleach is the best thing to use on a clog as it isn't nearly as bad for the pipes.

The one I was looking at is for indoor use for months at a time, you just have to refill the trap with water and bait as it evaporates. Has the pheremone bait and a detergent to release the surface tension so the little buggers drown when they get in it. I figured they would be better than constantly spraying pesticide in a can everyday. We had a very wet winter compared to normal. I just want to know where the things are breeding in the house.

I think we are due to have the septic system looked at anyway, but do they breed in the septic tank and come up through the drains?

[4RE KLR]

Yes, If you have a septic system there is your cuprit. They not only breed but thrive.

However the only way into the house is for a trap to be dry. Run water through all your sinks and toilets and keep the traps full of fresh water. Don't forget the laundry drain. They can still get up and out through the vents on the roof but that will keep them outside of the house. Some homes have an in wall vent that will vent into and between the walls. This would be a common situation if you have a sink that would be in front of an island or a serving bar usually in the kitchen. You will also want to look (if you have one) at the built in ice maker. The stand alone ice makers require (most of them) a drain behind them at the floor level. This is a straight raceway to the septic system. Just be sure you have some water in the drain. If you can't get to it just open the door and pour in some water into the ice holding bin and it will find the drain. I am not talking about the ice maker in your frig. These types of ice makers are usually found in a game room or a wet bar area. Our is in the garage. But I wanted it there and not in the house.

Yes the bleach is better for the pipes than draino, providing you do not leave it in there for long periods of time, please trust me on this one. Besides if you have a septic system you know you are not supposed to put large quantities of bleach in the drains as it kills the bacteria that keeps the septic working well. If you have allready put in large amounts of bleach go to the hardware store and get some "Rid-X" it cost about $7.00 and will help keep your sytem healthy.

Does you septic have an automatic cholinator? Those usually belong in the third tank of an areobic system, not in the first tank.

Another culprit could be your A/C evaporator coil. If it is in the attic go check it and see if it is full of water. Clean the drains on the bottom pans with bleach. Just pour it in the pan and let it set and it will kill the algie (sp) that stops up the drain. Yes run some hot to warm water when you are done. Also take the cover off of the unit. If your filter is by the unit it is very easy to get to. If not you should have four to six 1/4" srews you will need to remove. The coil should feel cool to the touch but not be soaking wet. Also the yellow insulation by it should not be wet at all. If it is contact a service man to inspect your system as it will soon fail if not tended to. A system check should run you about $75.00 -100.00 that should include up to two units. If you have a third or fourth expect a $35.00 for each one.

Hope that helps.

[Ron61]

Ah, fond memories of mosquitoes as big as house flies. Fortunately when they put the sewer system in several years ago and filled in all of the old septic tanks, the mosquitoes migrated SOUTH. I hardly ever have one at my house now.

Ron

[trularin]

We used to get them in the sump-pump tank when I was building the house. Do you have a ground water tank in the basement or crawl space??? They love those things as the water is stagnent for long periods of time.

How can you have mesq. in your house from the septic tank, that does not make sense. The septic system has to be a sealed system. If it wasn't you'd be sick all the time.

Just my opinion.

[4RE KLR]

The reason that is possible is because a septic system is not a closed system. If it was it would not work. The plumbing system of any building or house has to have a vent in order for the drains to work. That is how they originally get in. More than likely from the roof outside.

Once they are in they can take thier time and build a colony unnoticed. They usually make their way to the house through a dry drain. If all the darins have water in the p-traps they cannot get into the house easily but they can still get it.

Remember mosquitoes are looking for cool moist areas to lay more larve. They are most interested in reporduction, not food source. So they spend their short lives looking for a place tp reproduce.

If the septic is infected it is as simple as going outside and lifting the lid. If you have an infestation, you'll know it in a second or two. A qualified septic guy can tell you some cheap and easy remidies. I do not want to put that info here as there are so many different ways to solve this this that are good for one system while not so good for another type of system.

The mosquitoes can hatch inside the tank and come out through a vent on the roof. Then come straight down the side of your house and into the house by means of an expansion joint. Those are the small openings in the brick or stone on the bottom row of the brick. If you have sideing they simply come in under the laps. Once in the walls it is easy to get through the plug and switch openings on your walls. This is also how roaches get in.

Listen carefully............... DO NOT CLOSE UP THE EXPANSION JOINTS ON THE BRICK IN ANY WAY. If you do you will cause a future termite problem.

It is not that difficult to adversly affect their day. You can spray the house yourself or call an exterminator. Keep all outside water freshly changed every day, even the birdbaths. Don't let water stand anywhere in your yard. Keep chlorine in your septic system like your manual tells you to. Keep fresh water in all your plumbing pipep-traps.

The remidies are simple and you should be doing them anyway. There is nothing extra you should have to do to keep a healthy mosquitoe free home.

[flipper35]

Our septic system must be a little different than there in TX. There is no access hatch or lid to it, we would have to dig up the driveway and yard. The amount of bleach used would be the same as several loads of laundry. I hear Rid-X is good to put in anyway, I'll pick some up.

Our washer drains out under the yard into some drain tile, not into the septic system at all. That could be a place they are coming from, I'll make sure it is sealed.

Our A/C drain was checked a couple months ago before the heat wave and I'll check it again. It is near our back door and drains into my wifes flower garden but doesn't leave any standing water there as it gets absorbed quickly.

We have the drain in the bathtub in the second bathroom that doesn't get used often, but we have the drain plug in so nothing comes up there.

Our Cystern is open where the float is to regulate the water coming in from the canal, but that has a chlorinator and I think it is woking fine as it smells like chlorine and I have to check it every few weeks to make sure it has enough in it.

Ron, I turning the fans north so you can have our heat then.