FEED ME ... BUT MAKE IT HEALTHY FOOD

Now that Fall has arrived & the promise of cooler weather, I'll probably be spending more time inside.  The days will be getting shorter, the temperatures dropping, along with (hopefully) wetter weather conditions, as rain we need badly.  All tend to be inducements to keeping me inside.

One of the major drawbacks to a life indoors is the lack of exercise.  I need it.  The absence of being outdoors -- where at home I am working outside; walking & hauling -- leads to extra pounds on the "waste-line".  AKA -- "Love Handles".

To combat the poorer personal habits, I make the effort to include daily walking -- 2.5 miles -- along with some free weights & sit-ups.  Also, my membership to the North Little Rock Athletic Club has proved to be a lot of fun & very beneficial to me through the past Spring & Summer.  I am counting -- hopefully -- my attendance at the club will be as helpful this Fall/Winter.

Of course, one of the biggest causes for gaining weight is the food intake.  For me, the problem is that I am a poor "planner" of meals & tend to look for food in the pantry/refrigerator when I am hungry, not at specific times.  Also, I want to eat ... right away ... when I am hungry.  No time for waiting on preparing a meal.

There is also the fact I have a deadly sweet tooth.  It's best not to have sugary sweets in the house.  After all, if one cookie tastes good, why not the whole package ??  [I've done it.  I'm not proud, but then, a package of Keebler Fudge Sticks does seem rather small.  I can do those cookies in one or two bites. (I try not to even look at them on the grocery store shelf.)]

So ... one of the ways I satisfy myself & at the same eat "healthy", is to fix food I like, when I feel like doing the "fixing", & keep "leftovers" for additional meals.  Today -- since it was raining & football was on TV ... GO RAIDERS !!! -- I fixed two quiches.  One gets to be the "leftovers" & the other is sectioned & put in the freezer, for later easy thawing -- & quick eating -- via the microwave.

 I made these today with broccoli, onion, & red bell pepper along with turkey sausage.

 The finished product.  I had two slices -- with hot sauce -- for my dinner tonight.  Delicious.

The older I get, it is easier to realize my weaknesses when it comes to food I like.  I also know my poor eating habits.  It's a constant battle, of which some I win & some I loose.

I sure wish those Keebler Elves where here tonight. Well ... maybe not.

BROWN IS THE COLOR OF DEATH

It's absolutely a B-E-A-utiful day today in Central Arkansas.  Cool temperatures.  Not a cloud in the bright blue sky.  Not a breeze blowing.  And ... not a bit of effort on my part to get my butt out the door & do some work outside.  I've spent too much time today doing what I am doing right now; playing on the computer.

Oh, I did go outside for awhile, just to look around a bit.  We had some rain late yesterday, which is probably one of the reasons everything is looking clean, fresh & crisp right now. 

So as not to feel too guilty at my lazy, do-nothing attitude, I did take on one chore, just so I would know I did SOMETHING while I walked around outside: I sprayed the wasps which make an effort to nest in a hole in the support for my mail box. It's an on-going battle.

 The dead wasps -- for now ... as they always seem to come back.  It must be a prime, "in demand" location for wasps -- joined the ranks of some of the other "death" making itself known on my property.  Death always seems to be the color brown.  One example can be slightly seen in the far, upper right corner of the above photo.

For some reason, perhaps the hot, dry Summer which has just left us -- today is the first day of Fall --  the Japanese Black Pine at the end of my property decided a few weeks ago this would be a fine time to turn brown & die.  So it did.  The other pine tree -- same species, in the extreme left in the above photo -- seems to be doing just fine. ["Seems" is a key word.  Ya never know with trees.]

 Next time I have my chain saw out -- something I never look forward to -- the brown/dead pine tree will be cut up & hauled to the back lot to be burned.  Then, I will have to decide if I want to plant something else in place of the Japanese Black Pine. I don't have any ideas right now.

 The REAL problem tree is going to be the LARGE Willow tree which also decided to pass away this Summer over in my South yard.  This is a BIG tree, which had been slowly going down-hill for the past few years.  This year was "it" for the tree.

Because of the size of the tree (huge) & the size of my chain saw (small), along with my confidence in felling large trees (non-existent), I'll probably need to have an expert/professional come & get the tree on the ground.

Just so all the "death" appearing ion my land is spread out evenly & sorted by size & species, some of the larger bamboo decided not to be out-done.  In the above photo, there are several clums visible in the  center of the grove, which are in stages of either turning brown, or, have already shed their leaves.  All of them need to be cut down & burned.  All are dead.

Yes, today as been a beautiful day.  Just a perfect one for tackling some of the "projects" I am facing, as outlined above.  Too bad I felt really retired today & decided to observe the highlights of the day, rather than live them.  After all ... everything will still be dead -- & brown -- tomorrow.

TIME TO BRING THE TORTOISES INSIDE

I admit, I am a true procrastinator.  I will always put off any job or project as long as I have something more inviting or attractive on my "To Do List".  It's the reason the downed tree in the side yard is still only half cut up & removed.  "Never put off until tomorrow ... what you can put off until the day after tomorrow".  (Or ... longer.)

Despite my laziness, the first hints of cooler weather this month do have me aborting my philosophy of inactivity, & making sure to attend to returning my tortoises from their outdoor enclosure, back inside to their Winter/cold weather home.  I don't want these valuable treasures to get a cold -- or worse -- pneumonia from being subjected to temperatures not to their liking (which can be a slow, disturbing death for cold-blooded reptiles).

I have already moved all four tortoises inside.  In fact, this indoor Winter season they will all be sharing a new, much larger home -- mainly due to their continued growth & expanding shell size -- which should benefit them as far as comfort & room, until it is time for them to go outside again next Spring.

Below is a brief description of the steps involved in getting the tortoises moved into their new home.

I purchased a new "cattle tank", one which had a listed measurement of 6 foot x 2 foot x 1 foot tall.  I took a tape measure with me to Tractor Supply, since the space I had for the new tortoise home was exactly six foot long.  I was concerned that there would be too tight a fit if the listed dimensions of the cattle tank were also exactly six foot.  There might not be any "wiggle room" for fitting the tub into the allotted space.

Not to worry.  The "six foot" cattle tank only measures 69 inches.  Plenty of space left to fit the tank onto the shelf.  [I guess those listed measurements constitute "false advertising".  But, the shorted length works just right for my needs.]

The above photo shows the new tank, on the shelf, under the florescent light.

 It's getting crowed in the ... "Turtle & Tortoise Compound".  The new tortoise enclosure is in the back, beyond the turtle "ponds".

 Above:  a close up of the empty tank & the overhanging light fixture.

 I also cut several pieces of wood to form both a shelf -- for placing some plants currently still outdoors, which will also have to come inside for the Winter -- & as a "shelter" where the tortoises can retreat to find a darker, calmer spot, in which to meet their needs of a place to conceal themselves, as they would do in nature.

 Another view of the "hiding area" & the shelf.

Next, I added about two inches of cypress mulch.  This is a good "bedding" which provides footing for the tortoises, holds moisture -- since these are "tropical" tortoises -- as well as being easy to clean & replace as soiled by the tortoises.

 Now ... just add the tortoises -- above -- & plug the light into the timer & everything is on "go".  [Above are the Black Mountain Tortoises.]

Here is a photo of one of the Red Footed Tortoises inspecting the covered area of it's new home.

The tortoises are inside & that's one job off my "To Do List".  Next.

DEATH BY THE DOZENS. ACTUALLY ... THOUSANDS !!

In the life of this blog, I have written several postings on my annual attendance at the National Reptile Breeders Expo in Florida each August. I have often highlighted the vast quantities of snakes, lizards & turtles featured each year at the Expo by companies & individuals selling the results of their captive propagation efforts.  Still, there is much more to see, buy & appreciate at the show each year.

The Expo features many dealers selling foods designed for feeding & raising the reptiles so many of us are drawn to the Expo to see & buy.  With my main interest being turtles & tortoises, I have been pleased through the years at the introduction of many prepared diets dedicated strictly for both turtles & tortoises.  In my personal collection, probably more than 75% of the food I provide to my turtles is from commercial sources.

There are also dealers at the Expo with insects for reptile food.  Crickets -- once just a main stay of the weekend fisherman -- are now heavily promoted by several major cricket breeders/sellers at the Expo each year. These same dealers also offer mealworms, "superworms" (like a mealworm on steroids), fruit flies & even silkworms.  All gourmet foods when it comes to reptiles.

Now when it comes to snakes -- time for some people reading this to start cringing -- just about all the snakes sold in the reptile trade & those featured at the Expo, do not eat insects or prepared foods.  The "slither group", such as Kingsnakes, Pythons & Boas, all eat MEAT ... mostly in the form of mice & rats. [I'm purposely going to avoid any mention of rabbits & chickens as food, although they are often used as food items for "big" snakes.]

If someone owns one of the above mentioned species of snakes, then they are feeding either mice or rats to their snakes, depending on the snakes size & the size of it's prey. [A snake -- if you haven't watched enough of the National Geographic Channel on television -- swallows it's food whole, having to "unlock" it's jaws to swallow it's food.  Food "too big" ... doesn't work for the snake.]

What also doesn't work for feeding a snake in captivity, is to feed the snake a mouse or rat which is -- here we go -- ALIVE.  Too many times a live rodent has been offered to a snake by it's owner, only to have the tables turned on the snake, as the "food" becomes the victor, killing the snake, or at worst, inflicting sever cuts & damage to the snake.  As many of the snakes at the Expo are selling for hundreds of dollars, sometimes thousands of dollars, having the snake "damaged" -- if not dead -- is a poor "R.O.I".  ["Return on Investment"]

The way to safely feed snakes is to only feed DEAD rodents to the snakes.  This leads us to another industry which has been built up around the interest in reptiles/snakes; selling FROZEN, DEAD rats & mice.  [I'm sure those not-to-be-mentioned rabbits are in there too, but I'm avoiding that mental ambush for you readers.]

One of the dealers I spent some time visiting with at this years Expo is a company called Mice Direct.  They had as part of their display, five floor freezers filled with mice & rats.

The above is an idea of how -- in this example, mice -- are packaged & sold.  The right size for your average Ball Python or small Boa Constrictor.  Just thaw & feed.

Most snakes in captivity quickly learn to eat ... "pre-killed food".  [That's the politically correct term.]  A dead rodent, on the end of forceps is "bonked" on the nose of a snake, which then lashes out & grabs the mouse/rat & begins the process of eating the meal.  No fuss.  No mess.  No dead/damaged snake.

.

 For people breeding their snakes & needing to feed the resulting newborn baby snakes, then "pinky mice" are necessary.  "Pinkies" are the new-born, blind & hairless mice.  Thus the name. The above photo shows bags full of pinkies.

This is the fella I had a good time talking with.  I'm sorry I can't remember his name.  He was both interesting & informative on the subject of frozen rodents.  He estimated they had close to 100,000 frozen mice & rats at the show.

The above photo shows the various sizes of frozen rats.  Whatever the size of the snake to be fed, it is then "matched" to the corresponding appropriate sized rat. 

The National Reptile Breeders Expo is more than just reptiles. Frozen rodents were just another one of the featured displays & it was ... litterally ... "Death by the Dozens".

THE WEATHER IS HERE ... WISH YOU WERE BEAUTIFUL

I'm going to try to answer the hundreds of inquiries I've received, questioning the lack of recent posts on this blog & why I have not been more active in writing.  [Okay ... it was only two people.  Both wanting to know if I was "sick ??".  Guess they though they were in my Will.]

The answer is that it is just too hard to sit at a keyboard & type when the weather conditions in central Arkansas have been mostly "ideal". Think temperatures in the low to mid-80's in the daytime & low-60's at night.  Add to that no rain & light breezes each day, under blue, cloudless sky's.  Much too nice outdoors ... to stay indoors.

Having written the above paragraph, I have to acknowledge the terrible conditions not far from here; Texas & Oklahoma, with the destructive winds & fires. (Also in Southwest Arkansas.)  Then much of my old stomping grounds in the Northeast has been inundated with floods from Hurricane Katia & Tropical Storm Lee.  The people up there -- especially from Pennsylvania/New Jersey northward -- have not been able to catch a break. And it will take them a long time to recover & rebuild.

So, blessed with GREAT weather here, I finally tackled a problem of my own: the large tree laying in the South yard which came down in a late-Spring near-tornado.  Not only did the tree come crashing to the earth, but it took with it, two HUGE Bradford Pears & two mature Leyland Cypress trees.  The total definition of ... "a mess".

 Since the effects of the downed & damaged trees were not totally visible from the road, along with the fact that I have been known to procrastinate a bit -- "Never put off until tomorrow, what you can put off until the day after." -- most of the mess has been on the ground through out the Summer. [Another reason not to jump into the clean-up project -- too hot !!]

 With the cooler temperatures, along with the fact that the county "Burn Ban" was removed -- having been in effect part of the Summer, due to our own dry & dangerous conditions -- I was "motivated" to start attacking the mess laying in the side yard.

 Along with the large pieces of tree trunk to be cut up & moved, there were also the limbs of the smaller trees -- many laying under the bigger trees -- which made it necessary to clean-up/cut-up the small debris first, to make the footing safe for my limbs when attacking the large parts of the big trees.

 All of this project -- which is still "on going" -- is time consuming, but somewhat enjoyable.  Much of what is being "cleared", is hauled to the back lot & burned at the fire pit, as I load up the cart & haul it there.

 Many of the larger pieces of trees end up being "stored" in the back lot, for burning later in the Fall.

Looking at these photos & knowing what I still have to cut-up & haul away, it makes me realize why my back & legs are sore most of the time.  Still, I am glad I can take advantage of the nicer weather to get on with this clean-up & I never lose sight of the fact that friends West & Northeast of here, have had their homes, cars & way of life ... destroyed. 

I have it easy & have been blessed. But still:

"THE WEATHER IS HERE.  WISH YOU WERE BEAUTIFUL"  --Jimmy Buffett