The Frenchies Aren’t Committing Suicide

“Jack Russell Terrier (12.72 years) and French Bulldog (4.53 years) had the longest and shortest life expectancy at age 0, respectively.”

Source >> https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-022-10341-6

The Space Between Their Ears

Life and Death in the Forest

It’s a bit cooler today, so I decided to drop just a few dead trees — nothing too big and just dropping, no sectioning.

I cut four, and this fifth tree, previously marked, was now down on its own. The face of the woodpecker hole broke away from the main body, exposing the detritus of an old nest.

Early Mushrooms Coming Up

We got two days of much-needed rain, and a few mushrooms popped up in the forest behind the house. Since I’m not eating them or serving them, I’ve not bothered to do “the full monty” on identification.

Spotted Lanternfly on the Deck

I saw my first Spotted Lanternfly survey team in the watershed above Frederick in 2021, and saw my first Spotted Lanternfly “in the wild” in 2023. Now they’re in the yard.

Originally from China and North Korea, these things have colonized far enough, feed on so many trees and plants, and have so few natural enemies, that they are certainly here to stay. They’re a real threat to local vineyards and orchards, but also to Ailanthus altissima (tree of heaven), Evodia danielii (Korean evodia), Parthenocissus quinquefolia (Virginia creeper), and Juglans mandshurica (Manchurian walnut). They can also feed on red and silver maple, and less often on oak, walnut, and poplar.

Making a Stump Den

I cut down a large tree earlier this summer that was hollow in the middle. It was a big hollow stump and I had an idea. I trimmed off the top at a slant (dust kicked up from the chainsaw is in the first picture), and then cut a narrow hole in the base for an animal to use as an entrance. I then shoveled out dirt and rotten wood from the hollow, cleaning it out through the new den entrance. I then marked, cut, and attached a thin plywood top, and painted it black for weather protection. Two logs were placed on each side of the entrance, forming an entrance pipe, which I roofed over with another stump, cut wood, and slabs of oak bark.  I then placed a small log perpendicular to the entrance, and covered the entire setup with branches cut from the tops of a wind-fall tree. I made sure the brush pile partially hid the entrance to give any inhabitant extra odds of moving in and out without attracting attention. I will bait the entrance and pipe a few times to let my forest denizens know it’s there, and then it’s a “wait and see” game.

I am at the absolute top of this knoll, and it’s very rocky under an inch or two of soil.  Though there are fox, raccoons, and possums around, they are denning about 300 feet lower in elevation, where old groundhog holes can be found. Will this artificial den attract an inhabitant? We’ll see, but I’d sure use it.

Something New In the Mulch

I was pitchforking some wood chips this evening with the goal of covering over the growing pile of shattered sunflower seeds under the bird feeders.  

Flipping over the wheelbarrow revealed two *large* Dark Fishing Spiders, as well as a Southern Black Widow.  I flicked the Fishing Spiders off and crushed the Black Widow — a killer of one of my dogs some years back.

After forking wood chips into the wheelbarrow, I noticed what looked like a smooth white stone. 

It wasn’t a stone, but a slightly leathery reptile egg. 

Unfortunately, while forking out the wood chips, I had ripped one side of the egg. 

I carefully rooted around in the mulch, but there was nothing. This was a single egg, and it was no longer viable.

Always curious, I opened up the egg on the porch and found a small snake and embryonic fluid inside. My guess is that this is a Black Rat Snake egg.

I will be more careful when checking a larger wood chip pile I have on the other side of the yard

A Serendipitous Bald Eagle

I was rolling down the road towards home from coffee, when I spotted this mature Bald Eagle in a tree close to the road.

I didn’t have my camera, but dark clouds told me that rain was imminent, so I hit the house, bounced out with the camera, and got back to the Eagle hoping it was still laid up in the tree. It was, and I squeezed off a half dozen shots before the eagle decided the guy with the camera was suspicious and the weather was clear enough to fly.

Wood Phlox

Wild Wood Phlox has narrow deep-throated flowers that attract Swallowtail Butterflies, but it’s fairly deer resistant, so it’s a common flower where it can find enough water.  This was along the C&O Canal and was being visited by a Zebra Swallowtail.  Phlox looks a lot like Dames Rocket, which has only four flower petals.

We’re Getting Old Together

Biked 20 miles from Brunswick, Md to Harpers Ferry (a few miles of it on the Appalachian Trail near Weverton) and back with the dogs in panniers. 

It was about 90 degrees, and I felt it.  Wife was on an ebike, which seemed like the right idea by the end of the ride. Too hot for wildlife:  not a single turtle, heron, egret, snake, or wood duck seen.

Lost by Charles Bukowski

“they say that hell is crowded, yet,

when you’re in hell,

you always seem to be alone.

and you can’t tell anyone when you’re in hell

or they’ll think you’re crazy

and being crazy is being in hell

and being sane is hellish too.

those who escape hell, 

however,

never talk about 

it

and nothing much 

bothers them 

after 

that.

I mean, things like missing a meal,

going to jail, wrecking your car,

or even the idea of death itself.

when you ask them,

‘how are things?’

they’ll always answer, ‘fine, just fine…’

once you’ve been to hell and back,

that’s enough

it’s the greatest satisfaction known to man.

once you’ve been to hell and back,

you don’t look behind you when the floor creaks

and the sun is always up at midnight

and things like the eyes of mice

or an abandoned tire in a vacant lot

can make you smile

once you’ve been to hell and back.”

–Charles Bukowski, "Lost" from Burning in Water, Drowning in Flame (1974)

Peter Dinklage Reads a Letter About a Beaver

In 1997, the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality notified Stephen Tvedten that he was in violation of regulations because of two “unauthorized” dams built on his property, and gave him six weeks to remove them. Tvedten, it turns out, was an expert on pest control, and had written several books on eco-friendly ways to manage pests. Tvedten wrote a letter to the department in response, and the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality dropped its case.

The letter was selected for a Letters Live show in New York, read by Peter Dinklage.

This Is Why the Second Amendment Exists

When the Supreme Court says Trump, as President, can round up his opponents and have them shot, with no legal consequence, and can suppress votes and disenfranchise voters without consequence, the court is telling us that the only antidote to fascism left to us is bullets and bombs.

Strive To Be Less Gullible

Where Have You Gone, Joe DiMaggio?

I remember when the GOP was the party of small government fans who wanted to be left alone. Now it’s the party of big government busy-bodies, Christo-fascists, tax-dodging big tech billionaires killing small businesses, and Russian oligarchs.

How Do You Stop It, Right Now?

Comedian Bob Newhart has died at age 94.

One of my favorite skits of his was “Stop It”.

Which leads to the simple question that seems to flumox all “pure positive” dog trainers, which is:  How do you stop a behavior RIGHT NOW?

Walk That Hillbilly Nonsense Out the Door

The New York Times standards desk sent out a memo to reporters reminding them that JD Vance isn't actually from Appalachia, so please avoid suggesting that he's a "son of Appalachia."

Numbing Numbers

From Dogster comes this: 11 Puppy Mill Statistics:

▪️The UK has a population of 13.5 million pet dogs.

▪️Twice as many people are buying from social media compared to 5 years ago.

▪️Around 25% of dog owners admit to not researching dog breeders before buying.

▪️2.4 million dogs are sold each year on just three well-known marketplace websites.

▪️A third of puppies bought through social media originate from puppy mills.

▪️One in four puppies bought on social media gets sick or dies within a year.

▪️A third of buyers pay for their puppies before even seeing the dog.

▪️Around 25% of puppy buyers suspect the breeder they bought from was operating illegally.

▪️Breeders in the UK need to be licensed if their dogs produce more than three litters a year.

▪️One puppy farming gang was estimated to have made over £250,000 over 3 years.

▪️Unlicensed breeders face 6 months in prison if caught.

The Vanishing Germans

On July 17, 1917, during the third year of World War I, Britain's King George V orders the British royal family to dispense with the use of German titles and surnames, changing the surname of his own family, the decidedly Germanic Saxe-Coburg-Gotha, to Windsor. Pictured is George V dressing up his pug as Queen Victoria.

Walking Down to Feed the Deer

JD Vance and Hitler’s Ear

Exactly 80 years ago this week, there was an assassination attempt against Adolf Hitler by a fellow Nazi. His only injury was to his ear.

In other news, Trump has selected JD Vance as his running mate. Vance has said that Trump may be America’s Hitler. Not kidding.

The Right to Self Defense

Pennsylvania is an open-carry, “stand your ground” state, and the rapist and multi-count felon was threatening women, immigrants, children, generals.  

We have a right to guns, a right to carry, a right to bump stocks, and a right to defend ourselves. The bedwetters need to sit down.

That Most American of Stories

In Old Yeller, that most American of stories, young Travis has a yellow dog that catches rabies from a wolf.

His mother says “Old Yeller” has to be shot, and Travis takes the rifle from her, saying it’s his dog to shoot, which he does.

All this to say that yesterday’s “Trump shooter” has been officially identified by the FBI as Thomas Matthew Crooks, a 20-year-old from Bethel Park, Pennsylvania who was a registered Republican.

A Republican.  

Huh.

It’s not the first time a snake has died from its own poison. 

American Nazi Party founder George Lincoln Rockwell was shot and killed by John Patler, a fellow American Nazi Party member.

Trump, it should be noted, was not shot.  

The nick he got on his ear was from a bit of stray glass from a shattered teleprompter.

President Joe Biden and many fellow Democrats immediately expressed shock and concern for Trump’s health, and decried the violence.

Compare and contrast that to when Trump, his sons, fellow Republican politicians, and Fox News mocked the assassination attempt on Nancy Pelosi and her husband by a hammer-wielding Trump supporter.

Compare and contrast to Trump and Fox News’ lack of concern when armed Trump supporters tried to kidnap Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer.

Compare and contrast to Trump and Fox News’ support and encouragement for the mob attack (and police deaths) during the January 6th mob attack on the Capitol.

And what about Mike Pence? 

Tomorrow convicted rapist Trump will announce his new running mate.  

What happened to the last one?  

Well, on January 6th Trump was cheering on those bent on hanging him, so he wasn’t interested on being on the Trump ticket again.

Weird, huh?  

Mike Pence sure has a thin skin.

What If We Didn’t Need a Time Machine?

A Chaotic Geology

Albert Heim would have liked yesterday’s kayak paddle. Heim was a Swiss geologist with a particular interest in the folding and overthrust faults of the Swiss Alps.  He was also the savior of the Greater Swiss Mountain Dog.

I say he would have liked yesterday’s paddle because the chaotic geology of the area was plain to see along certain sections of the river.  Folds and overthrusts visible in abandon!

Fencing in the Good, and Fencing Out the Bad

For new visitors to this blog: Please read this before commenting as I do not waste too much time on folks who are too lazy to use the Google, who do not write in complete sentences, or who have clearly blown in from somewhere else to argue before reading.

Also, please note that this blog comes with a search engine in the right column. I am not sure why I should take the time to find information on this blog if you have not bothered to look for it yourself.

Finally, be advised that the world is a big place, and if what I write has put a wrinkle in the fabric of your universe, I am more than OK with you moving on. Seriously. I did not start this blog to meet you. If you take that line personally, see a psychiatrist.

No, nothing in particular prompts me to write this this morning. All is calm on this bend in the river. That said, I do like to set out the House Rules every once in a while, as I find it helps maintain order and keep the delusional, paranoid, stalkers, nutters, instant experts, fantasists, and fanatics at bay.