...is to let the little ones alone. Let them get to know you, too, if you have the time to be in the woods.
Wednesday, December 2, 2020
Brassman Bart: The Cubanola Glide, by Harry VonTilzer
Here's another great one by Good Old Brother Ben, aka Brassman Bart!
Tuesday, December 1, 2020
I'm Back
I've been in St. Louis with Lisa at Veterinary Specialty Services. She has a bad infection in her right foreleg and is undergoing IV therapy. It appears she is recovering now, and she will have a CT Scan tomorrow to see if there is something in her leg/foot. A holiday weekend during Covid restrictions is a bad time to have a sick dog, but they are taking care of her.
Saturday, November 28, 2020
Friday, November 27, 2020
Thursday, November 26, 2020
Christmas In Prison, John Prine
"Sweeter than saccharin at a drugstore sale." We miss you, John Prine.
Just In Time For Thanksgiving! Our Pumpkin Patch Escapade!
Just in time for Thanksgiving, we broke open some pumpkins and Susan has been cooking them. A pie went into the oven tonight! Watch the slide and video show to see the results of Susan's pumpkin patch. Pumpkin Pie recipe is at the end of the video!
Alternate title and description! My Wife Planted A Pumpkin; You Won't Believe What Happens Next!
Brassman Bart: Hosts Of Freedom by Iowan Karl King
The Brass Man's notes: Hello! This week's music is a number written by Iowa's own Karl King, “Hosts of Freedom”. Originally published in 1920, this music is 100 years old this year, and is public domain. The town band I played in when I was a teenager always played this number every summer, and when you listen, it may sound familiar, especially if you have ever played in a small town band in Iowa. The music is available as a free download on bandmusicpdf.org, and is very nice to listen to. All parts in this video are performed by me, and I hope you enjoy. Please like, please share, and please subscribe. Thank you. Brassman Bart
Wednesday, November 4, 2020
Wednesday, October 28, 2020
Time To Gather....
...your hedgeapples! Supposedly, they repel spiders. I don't know about that. If you are wanting to grow Osage-orange for bow making, let the apples soften up, and break them up in a bucket of water. Sow the seeds in rows you have worked up and stand back. You want them to come up thick to force straight growth, then thin to get diameter growth.
Brass Man Bart: K-K-K-Katy!
Brother Ben knocks out a great one for our listening pleasure. Everybody loves this song!
Monday, October 26, 2020
Wednesday, October 7, 2020
Tuesday, October 6, 2020
Bug, October 5, 2020
On a cold, wet February night in 2004, I had to go to my office after hours, and Susan rode along. On the side of the road I saw a couple of eyes in the weeds and stopped, backed up and shined the headlights to discover a very wet kitten. I hopped out to pick it up, and it ran, so I had a brief chase in the mud running it down. As we continued to the office, Susan said, "This cat has a broken leg." That was a downer, but Susan tried to make it better by telling me she would take the cat to the vet in the morning so I wouldn't have to kill it. When I got home from work the next day we still had a cat, and it was wearing a cast! Susan related that the vet looked it over and said, " I believe I can fix this cat! The poor thing sure took a tumble." Took a tumble? We had to name her Bug after hearing that. She still likes to sit with her broken leg out; kind of like Chester on Gunsmoke.
Bug passed away last night. Sixteen years seems too short a life for a good little friend like Bug.
Thursday, October 1, 2020
Thursday, September 24, 2020
"I Will Send Hornets Before You"
That little quote from Exodus has been a favorite for many years. It happened. Our burglars came back, and examined the Weber Grill sitting outside the garage. It held a secret, and the heinous perpetrators got a nasty surprise.
Roll That Beautiful Bean Footage!
Susan rode along for a couple of rounds with our farmer today. That was a huge thrill! One more 40 to go.
Wednesday, September 23, 2020
Thursday, September 17, 2020
Got Milkweed?
One of the commenters on our Monarch Butterfly post mentioned that there might be readers out there who don't know milkweed. It's so common to us that I didn't even think about that, so we are correcting that right now. I even found a couple more caterpillars this morning. It's a thrill.
Monday, September 14, 2020
Don't Mow Those Milkweeds!
You probably know that Monarch Butterflies are in trouble. Monarchs need milkweeds to reproduce successfully, and there just aren't enough of them. The researchers don't seem to know why, and I think this problem began with genetically modified beans that tolerate glyphosate herbicide. You don't see any milkweeds in bean fields like you used to. Monarchs prefer to lay their eggs on milkweeds far from the edge, so the roadside milkweeds are not preferred, but that is what they are using at our place. Leave 'em be. You can mow those areas after frost when the little critters have moved on.
Wednesday, September 9, 2020
Brass Man Bart: Excelsior Gallop
Brother Ben has run off to the circus. I feel just like I'm under the Big Top!
Barberchair In Minnesota News
Regular blog readers here know that I am always pushing proper falling techniques. Failure to make a plan for dropping trees makes every one you drop an accident, and sooner or later that will catch up with you. This tree was cut from the tensioned side until it split lengthwise, gained elevation, and fell on the operator. He paid a horrible price, being trapped for four days before he was rescued. Here is the link to the report:Chainsaw Accident
KARE 11 posted a video on their news site:
I think it is worth noting that the fire department personnel took two hours to free the man from the tree. Moving a tree off of someone is not a simple thing, and I doubt that the firemen have had training in special chainsaw techniques. Study the Chainsaw Safety Rules on this blog, and click on the Chainsaw label to access all of our posts about chainsaws and dropping trees.
Lift A Log Video:
Sunday, September 6, 2020
Wednesday, September 2, 2020
Meet Sunka!
Sunka is a 15 year old Schipperke male who has outlived two owners. He has been in a private kennel for two months since he became homeless, and now that Betty Boop has been adopted we had room to take Sunka in. It is difficult to find a home for a 15 year old dog, so he will probably be a permanent foster for us. He is a perfect little gentleman, but he is deaf and mostly blind. He navigates around the dog yard very well and is enjoying life here already. The other dogs are being kind to him, even energetic Sisko. Many Thank Yous to all who have donated to Midwest Schipperke Rescue! Your generous donations provide healthcare for Sunka and other lifers in the Midwest family.
Sunday, August 30, 2020
Digging, Always Digging
Do you ever wonder about which tools were invented first? I've thought for years that the hammer would be first, but there is also a good chance it was the shovel. Pick up a stick and you can use it to reach, to push, or to dig. Deuteronomy 23:13 tells us to carry a stick so we can clean up after ourselves. We never get done digging, until we're really done, and then somebody else gets to dig for us. Anyhow, the dogs are liking their stepping stones, and they will give us a safe path to clean the dog yard when it rains.
Back To The Old Grind!
Saturday, August 22, 2020
Emerald Ash Borer In The Local News: My 15 Seconds Of Fame!
John Ross of WSIL TV 3 called yesterday and then came right out to do a brief interview and look at emerald ash borer damage to trees. We got lucky and found some really good galleries for the camera.
https://wsiltv.com/2020/08/21/the-u-s-forest-service-is-sniffing-out-emerald-ash-borers/
Friday, August 21, 2020
Roaring Twenties Music: Whispering by Paul Whiteman
Paul Whiteman and his orchestra recorded Whispering on August 23, 1920. It went to Number 1 for eleven weeks, and stayed on the charts for twenty weeks, selling more than two million copies. It is one of the songs that made the Twenties roar.
Tuesday, August 18, 2020
Monday, August 17, 2020
Tuesday Torque: Revisiting The Debut Of The 8 HP Bessemer
Four years ago this fall, our friend Gary Bahre made this old basket case run. It was just a very poor parts kit when he got it, and it is really fixed up well now, and could go back to work if Gary had a mind to do that. History of this engine: Found on a farm in Lawrence County Kentucky in 1976, brought to Illinois in 1980, this engine held a mailbox by the side of the road from 1992 until 2014. Gary Bahre took it on as a project and has made a basket case run again. During this engine's working years it powered a sorghum press at Martha, Kentucky. It had water in it during a freeze, and the water jacket was broken. When we bought it there was a big, ugly brazing job holding the water jacket together. Gary Bahre cleaned that up so it hardly shows now. The farmer continued to use this engine until the rod broke; we guess sometime during the 1920's. It sat outside and rusted until I saw it in 1976 as I was going to a timber marking job at Martha. My wife and I went there after work, bought it from the son of the man who originally purchased and ran it, and we loaded it in the back of our AMC Rebel station wagon.
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