Random Thoughts Deserving No Thread Of Their Own 3

[Bear Up North]

Good morning and happy new year to all friends and foes. I proudly pry open another can of RANDOMS, version 2008. In keeping with the random nature I post this snippet.....

Years ago my friend (Fred) and this Bear decided to dribble basketballs from our home in the Point Place neighborhood of Toledo (north side) to Detroit. A distance of about 55 miles.

We made it as far as Monroe, MI.....about 18 miles.

Why?

Who the hexx knows.

How's that for totally random?



Planner Note: The above story incorporated topics near and dear to the hearts of plannerfolk.....geographical references, questionable activities, sports, friendship, nostalgia.

Welcome to 2008.

Random Bear

[mgk920]

I'm the first to add his random thoughts to thread #3!!!

YEEEEEHAAAA!!!

Whatta year it is already - sunny and the Badgers are playing!



Mike

[kjel]

To borrow a line from donk and others....

My liver hurts It didn't help that the furnace kept blowing cold air off and on in the wee hours of the morning either.

[dandy_warhol]

Rawhide!
compressed rawhide bones are a godsend. not only do they keep doggy busy for a good chunk of time, but i'm also treated to a nice parade before doggy gets down to business.

Steel Drum Random
we went to First Night last night and one of the acts was the local high school's steel drum band. how cool is that? i would've loved to learn to play the steel drum. i suppose i could still learn how to play but who knows what different direction my life could've taken had i learned the steel drums earlier in life. *imagines playing drums at resort on Trinidad*

Boids
i bought bird feeder as an X-mas gift for the house. so far there has been a very meager showing of birds. however, i noticed that two houses down always has birds at their feeder. is it wrong to poach birds from my neighbor's feeder? i suppose i could go with premium birdseed but that could get expensive. any tips?

[Veloise]

...
Steel Drum Random
we went to First Night last night and one of the acts was the local high school's steel drum band. how cool is that? ...

Where is your First Night city?

[wants to start the equivalent in GR, newly motivated by driving 2 hours to attend a contra dance in Ann Arbor, and then a winter storm required 2 hours to drive only halfway home]

[giff57]

Boids
i bought bird feeder as an X-mas gift for the house. so far there has been a very meager showing of birds. however, i noticed that two houses down always has birds at their feeder. is it wrong to poach birds from my neighbor's feeder? i suppose i could go with premium birdseed but that could get expensive. any tips?

1. It will take a while for your feeder to be added to the regular route

2. Different birds prefer different foods and feeder types. So if the neighbor has a better variety, they will have more birds.

3. The secret is open water, a heated bird bath will draw many birds.

[noottamevas]

Boids
i bought bird feeder as an X-mas gift for the house. so far there has been a very meager showing of birds. however, i noticed that two houses down always has birds at their feeder. is it wrong to poach birds from my neighbor's feeder? i suppose i could go with premium birdseed but that could get expensive. any tips?

In time the birds will learn where your feeder is. Then you will be filling it twice a day. The longer it is up and full, the more different kinds of birds you will see. Keep a bird book close by and a digital camera handy.

Squirrels can empty a feeder in no time. But the cats love them

[dandy_warhol]

1. It will take a while for your feeder to be added to the regular route

2. Different birds prefer different foods and feeder types. So if the neighbor has a better variety, they will have more birds.

3. The secret is open water, a heated bird bath will draw many birds.

wah! i have no patience. i bought the generic tube feeder that is supposed to be good for chickadees, sparrows, titmouse, junkos, etc. i got the birdseed from the Agway and it claimed to be the local mix for local birds. a heated bird bath would be nice. my dad just got my mom one for her b-day. i'm not sure i have any outlets near where one would go in my yard. i 'll have to investigate.

In time the birds will learn where your feeder is. Then you will be filling it twice a day. The longer it is up and full, the more different kinds of birds you will see. Keep a bird book close by and a digital camera handy.

Squirrels can empty a feeder in no time. But the cats love them

wonderful pictures!! i'm kinda spoiled bird-wise because my parents have a wonderful array of birds. but i suppose that comes from having feeders there for the past 30 years! that's a good idea about the camera. thanks for the suggestion.

i like squirrels and we've had some squirrel visitors. part of the reason i got the feeders was so the kitties could have something to watch. two squirrels already decimated the birdseed wreath my mom got me for christmas. it was fun watching them swing from it.

[Mud Princess]

I'm glad to hear you bought yourself a bird feeder, dandy. I almost got you one as my Secret Santa gift, but I wasn't sure whether you would be interested in one.

We've been feeding birds for many years, and my hubbie got me a heated bird bath for Xmas last year. It's nice to have but probably not imperative.

What everyone else said is absolutely true -- it may take awhile for the birds to discover your feeding station. All the snowy weather you've had lately should help. You might want to get a 2nd bird feeder; if you have a tube feeder, consider a platform type feeder, or a suet hanger -- the variety will attract different kinds of birds.

[TOFB]

Good morning and happy new year to all friends and foes. I proudly pry open another can of RANDOMS, version 2008. In keeping with the random nature I post this snippet.....


Random Bear

I really wanted to post first but I couldn't connect when I got home from our NYE gig. With a snowy I-74, I wouldn't have beaten Bear anyway. I got home at 5:30 am.

Champagne Random I drank nothing but water during our gig until midnight, when somebody handed me a full bottle of bubbly. I drank it all in about 5 minutes. I do not like Champagne. Why?

[natski]

My liver hurts too. It is the 2nd over here, and it still hurts. I need another 10 hours of quality sleep.

But the Sydney New Years Fireworks are awesome!!! Happy New Year to All. I have no come uo with any resolutions yet... i will come up with something hopefully

[sisterceleste]

Still waiting for RJ and ZG to check in. Got a text message from ZG with lovely picture of the Napa Valley vineyards. Guess due to their alcohol consumption, they aren't able to post.

[dandy_warhol]

well only 14 hours into the new year and i think i've already taken a hammer to one of my two resolutions: nuture relationships.

lately the BF and i can't seem to have a conversation that doesn't turn into a fight.

can one be a hermit-ess with cats or does she just become a crazy cat lady?

[Veloise]

...can one be a hermit-ess with cats...?

[waves hello]

I drove two hours for a contra dance (led by my mentor, the best caller in the state if not most of the country) and >SURPRISE< an ex was there. He spoke first, and I almost replied, "oh, are we speaking again?" Other than that, the dance was great.

The snowy trip back up the unplowed highway (about 2-1/2 hours to get only halfway home) was Reminiscing City. There's other guys. And as Ann Landers used to state, "better to be alone than to wish that you were."

HTH

[kjel]

can one be a hermit-ess with cats or does she just become a crazy cat lady?

Yes I think so Although I don't have a kitty anymore Frankly, I have developed a very low tolerance for BS of any kind and am not interested in having any kind of relationship that devolves into disagreements/arguments on a regular basis. I'd rather be by myself thank you!

[SuperPenguin]

Lappy Random: As some of you may remember from last year's episode of this thread... ... I am dusting off the ol' laptop for my trip. Yeah, a trip quickly into the dumpster. With a whopping 10GB hard drive, and 128 MB of RAM -- it can barely get out of its own way. I opened up Windows Media Player, and that accounted for all of its computing power. I'll be off to Wally World, or maybe somewhere else, to price a new, cheap, but functional laptop. Unfortunately, I really DON'T want to cross into Vista territory yet, and it's darn near impossible to find a new system without it. Bleh.

Ex Random: I'm dense, I'll admit that much. Is it really a big taboo to want to remain at least civil with an ex? So many times, I see or hear stories where two ex's cross paths and it goes poorly, and I don't get that. Aside from the stalkerish crazy ex who tried to kill me, I don't imagine any instance when I'd be incapable of at least exchanging greetings. But is this even possible? Or have I just missed the chapter of the manual where it describes how to pretend the other person never existed?

Trip Random: I leave tomorrow (or actually, later today). I'm ... um ... apprehensive. Very apprehensive. I won't say scared, but ... nervous. And apprehensive.

[ofos]

2008 is already good for me! Michigan won a bowl game, Lloyd Carr goes out with a win, the seniors finally find out what it's like to win a big one (even though it wasn't the Rose Bowl or Ohio State). Life is good. Go Blue!

[kjel]

Driving back to NJ today....not sure if I'm going to make it all the way today because I am tired. The furnace is on the fritz where I've been staying so I was blasted with cold air intermittently all night long. It's so cold outside too. I took I-81 down here but me thinks that the snow forecast for eastern PA and MD is going to force me up I-95 which is going to suck. Ah well.....18 more days of cold and then I am bound for equator land!

[JNA]

Called in sick - coughing, hacking and fever.

[Hceux]

Can a liver actually hurt?

I've not experienced this before.

[Maister]

Rawhide!
compressed rawhide bones are a godsend. not only do they keep doggy busy for a good chunk of time, but i'm also treated to a nice parade before doggy gets down to business.

Only other dog owners will 'get' this.

Not only do we get a parade, but our hund performs a presentation ceremony both before and after getting down to business. The ceremony is reminiscent of the Japanese tea ceremony where every motion is deep with symbolic significance and ultimately culminating in a moment of zen-like peace.... The hund will approach master with rawhide in mouth and will set it in master's lap. At that point the master is expected to gaze upon the rawhide bone reverently, noting its shape, weight, and condition. After handling the rawhide for the appropriate amount of time the bone is then returned to the expectant hund who then continues the parade for a short space and may then proceed to business. After a certain interval the hund must then get up and once again present master with the rawhide. Master must then appreciatively note the changes that have occurred since the last viewing and respectfully return said rawhide and repeat the ritual until nothingness is ultimately achieved. Dogs are such spiritual creatures.

On a different note, has anyone ever heard a cat burp audibly?

[graciela]

Boids
i bought bird feeder as an X-mas gift for the house. so far there has been a very meager showing of birds. however, i noticed that two houses down always has birds at their feeder. is it wrong to poach birds from my neighbor's feeder? i suppose i could go with premium birdseed but that could get expensive. any tips?

Feed Black Oil Sunflower Seeds. They are like crack for birds. The wild birdseed mix has never worked at my house. Now that we use BOSS, we usually have 15+ birds hanging around in the area around the feeder waiting their turn.

[Gedunker]

Feed Black Oil Sunflower Seeds. They are like crack for birds.

Yup, BOSS is indeed crack for boyds. We put out as much as a (dry) gallon a day in cold weather and we get cardinals, titmouse, martins, chickadees, sparrows, mourning doves (annoying birds, those -- they purposefully spill the seed everywhere), woodpeckers, blue jays and many more. We gave up on trying to defeat the squirrels and now just sprinkle seed right on the railing of the deck.

Beside the camera, d_w, I'd keep a bird book nearby as well as a pair of binoculars. Enjoy!

[Otis]

My fifth biggest PITA got a building permit for a house. A four-foot retaining wall is shown on his plans. Inspection shows a 15-foot retaining wall that his landcsapers put in. Posted a stop work order. He called. "Didn't know" he needed a building permit. He's moving up to 4th place.

[zman]

Beginning with my first post on the new Randomonium Thread, I will say this.

After a short (7 minute walk) commute to the new job this morning (cold at -3 degrees), I am now home on my lunch hour posting here and listening to some Neil Young.

This new gig is fun.

Today: Organizing plans and files, looking at stuff.
Tomorrow: Painting the new office
Friday: hopefully moving my desk in and getting a computer.

Gotta love the small towns!
___________________________________

We get some good bird seed from the local farm and ranch store. We get a great collection of LBBs (Little Brown Birds) and we have become a favorite spot for the birds in the community.