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friendbot2000 posted:I was actually considering doing what you are doing right now with my eventual 5-acre piece of dreamland. Until I have sufficient funds I would at most build a garage to store tools/be a work shed/keep my car out of the elements and borrow my parents RV to live in while I worked the property before actually building my dream house (Simple, small 2-3 bedroom house. I am not about that flashy McMansion bullshit). Good luck with it  starting bit by bit is an excellent way to figure out where and how things should be done.I don't need any planning permission for things under a particular size- I could put up a series of modest barns, have a field of polytunnels and have a dozen caravans on site, provided I wasn't living in them or breaching other regulations/bylaws. friendbot2000 posted:Do you have a plan where you are going to have your house? Can you take pictures and draw us a sketch? Beyond what I already said about placement in thread I'm going to remain subtle about exactly where, but to be honest a picture of where wouldn't be very illuminating for you other than "wow there are trees here" though I will tease by saying both potential locations have already been seen in pictures on here... kinda friendbot2000 posted:What is your topsoil like? I live in Virginia so we have a lot of red clay. I am probably going to have to mulch over everything in sight before I start working the land good and proper. The bulk of the land used to be two wheat fields, and where they used to be is very noticeable in terms of topsoil- it's nice, rich and fairly deep before it hits heavier clay, much less prone to cracking with heat. Once past that, the clay is thick and rich, with a fair few small inclusions of sand and gravel. The woodland soil is alright quality but much thinner before heavy clay and quite rootbound. friendbot2000 posted:This may be too personal and feel free to not answer, but what do you, your wife, and your cat do for work? Especially your cat. Do you have jobs that let you work remotely? I do a variety of smaller bits- I used to be a mental health worker but a few stressful events and my own mental heath struggles ended that, I then worked as a civil servant for awhile but office work made me bored and horribly unfit. All through that I was doing occasional bits of work through friends to do with electrical installation- house rewires, alarm/cctv installs and I continued doing bits of that, and sometimes IT hardware based work building/upgrading computers and a few times now some other work doing brushcutting/land clearance work. I could work more (my bank account would love me more), but my mental health would go downhill over time and I have really come to appreciate being around lots for the kids development. My wife worked in a record shop for many years, and now does various crafty bits to order like custom papercutting and crochet work inbetween housework/childcare and garden stuff. The cat is in management and hence doesn't answer to me spookygonk posted:What? It's somewhat of a long running in-joke with my wife (to have dozens of random buildings all with a function), but as it happens the stargazing there is really good for the location- i.e bad compared with darkfield but very good for the general area I'm in- I would have to drive for an hour or two for better. Back before I had responsibilities I studied astronomy and planetary science, and I would love a little observatory dome down there some day Nice piece of fish posted:Yeah this guy? https://www.mirror.co.uk/news/uk-news/farmer-who-built-castle-hidden-7658785 Aye, he was doing precisely what the council didn't want, in a way that tried to flaunt loopholes badly, embarassed them and hence motivated them to get it pulled down- textbook behaviour to avoid. And yes, again and again and again- if you want to do anything with land then get advice from certified professionals because its a legal minefield and a lot of the advice on the internet is horrifically bad. Tomarse posted:Thanks for the long answer and apologies for the derail. My post wasn't supposed to be negative - You have clearly done your homework. I hadn't realised that it was still classified as farmland - that definitely looks to make it much easier. No need at all for apologies- not only is it an interesting derail to me, I would much prefer people question any of the things I do/say so I can find problems now rather than later- I'm no woodland or farming expert at all and most of what I have learned was through loving up- questions and thinking is always cheaper than that. xcheopis posted:Cats! Bees! For the kiwi, when it's 2 or 3 years old, the new trees could potentially make fruit next year- if I kept them carefully tended at home. Planted at the field I would probably expect a few years before much fruit appears- any hint of drought etc and young trees will focus on putting down better roots to survive with rather than produce fruit. *edit* Jaded Burnout posted:did you turn in your quest for 8 cow butts while you were at it? Gotta love the grind, I just wish I got more XP for muscle pain and muddy clothes DesperateDan fucked around with this message at 12:27 on Sep 10, 2018 |
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Sep 10, 2018 12:20
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DesperateDan posted:It's somewhat of a long running in-joke with my wife (to have dozens of random buildings all with a function), but as it happens the stargazing there is really good for the location- i.e bad compared with darkfield but very good for the general area I'm in- I would have to drive for an hour or two for better. Back before I had responsibilities I studied astronomy and planetary science, and I would love a little observatory dome down there some day I keep chickens (ex-batts) to help with keeping my mind in the happy place.
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Sep 10, 2018 15:49
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Busy week so sadly I haven't been down, but scheduled for sunday morning for either another dig or some wildlife habitat creation. Did manage another jam batch, and the home veggie patch continues apace- should be pulling some of the larger radishes up next week- barely seems like yesterday they got sown.spookygonk posted:That is a great idea, hats off to you. If/when I'm living down there, I have plans for chickens in a moveable run that I can cycle over the veg patches I'm not using that year- I like chickens almost as much as I like fresh free range eggs. Well done on the ex battery stuff too- my parents in law have had a few before the current breeds
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Sep 15, 2018 10:34
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DesperateDan posted:Well done on the ex battery stuff too- my parents in law have had a few before the current breeds Thanks. We picked up two more last Saturday and I'm posting about their progress over in the Chicken Thread
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Sep 15, 2018 13:43
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spookygonk posted:Thanks. We picked up two more last Saturday and I'm posting about their progress over in the Chicken Thread I love them! It's amazing how fast they start to look happier  the herpetology hilton/lizard luxor    Back to scavenging wasteland industrial estates and rolling farmtracks blasting some smooth and funky tunes courtesy of Jayda G.  The haul was good though- more pallets, some nice sturdy posts and some tile- wish I had more room in the car. Carpentry day soon- I got some plans and some more stuff to bring- gonna set up some home comforts.          The rounds. Gratuitous image splurge. Lots (and lots and lots) of bees and lots of grazed grass- saw two deer run off without paying the bill- bloody freeloaders. Also saw woodpeckers, buzzards and all sorts.  This little buddy was all "hippetty hoppetty get offa mah propahtay" the dangerous looking fiend had some friends closing in on me so I backed off- glad to see some of the habitats I already set up flourishing.     'Aight we got some fuckin' work to do so on with it. Rocks were laid down in a square and stomped into the mud and then more were laid and more were stomped. Then some more. Eventually the stones stopped squelching and started crunching so then I added more anyway. It ate stone.   3 layer weed proof sheeting goes on top- this will let water drain away, and the stone underneath means it shouldn't ever get swamped out.    Then a cairn is built with some broken tile and mugs and stone on the inside.       The clay mud is on most of the cracks and acting as mortar for the upper 2/3rds- will hopefully let some warmth collect. It needs some more work- I forgot to bring the big slab I wanted for the roof but this might serve for version one- I have stone for another.    Time to tidy- the cage isnt a new addition- it has been at the edge of the property for ages serving as a rubbish dump- it can serve far better purposes and the rubbish dump got bagged and put in the quattro. Lots of crap, big pain to get cage shifted through path not wide enough blah blah blah it's in place now and where it was looks like nice woodland again without a cage with some stuff dumped in it, and I get something to play with.  This pigeon decoy was left up for years and the crows and magpies pecked at its head until they were sure it wasnt dead. I might have shot it once too who knows maybe  it will continue to watch over the area but the others lost for years in a tarp in a bag in some junk are now tucked safely away. As are a few useful bits of metal  The water vat needs moving to a prepared area, and I have a vague plan for water collection- if I want good crops I need more infrastructure for water, this is a nice chunk of storage if utilised rather than ignored in a bush.  This spider (and plenty others) guarded it- big enough to rustle the tarp it was in, and I'm sure it chittered at me.  Another good days work  I return to the homefront to check my veg patch before my showerbeer and the spuds are in bloom..  Whats that? You need a fuss and to ride my shoulders round the garden after having a wrassle in the dirtpile?    Of fukken course you adorable ginger shitebag!   Radishes, ravishing.   Carrots.. carroting away next to the onions there  The showerbeer. Will spare you further pictures, but it had some friends along for the ride and a drat good time was had by all. Hope that was fun- hoping for a day or two during the week to crack on and get some more poo poo done.
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Sep 16, 2018 20:17
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Sep 16, 2018 21:43
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I like this thread so much.
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Sep 17, 2018 03:38
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Now that the paywall is down I'm sharing this with my non-SA friends because I'm convinced this is the most wholesome thread ever to be put on the forums
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Sep 17, 2018 04:07
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Just a fyi - might want to use the "l" suffix instead of the "h" one for a lot of those massive image dumps, since you're posting enough images to cause incomplete loading. If you want to see the image in its full glory - on Windows anyway - you can just view image (open image in new tab in Chrome) and remove the last h/l before the ".jpg". The originals have resolution to spare.
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Sep 17, 2018 04:44
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endlessmonotony posted:Just a fyi - might want to use the "l" suffix instead of the "h" one for a lot of those massive image dumps, since you're posting enough images to cause incomplete loading. images are fine. DesperateDan, you done good. But what exactly besides a cairn are you doing there? You didn't stroke out or something did you? edit: i means besides the pond? I keep trying to figure out what all the "stone" is for, but this post only partially cleared that up. schmug fucked around with this message at 23:43 on Sep 18, 2018 |
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Sep 18, 2018 23:35
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Post title explains it - it's a lizard hotel.
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Sep 19, 2018 08:45
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Maugrim posted:Post title explains it - it's a lizard hotel. lol, ok.
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Sep 19, 2018 14:31
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xcheopis posted:I like this thread so much. Spaced God posted:Now that the paywall is down I'm sharing this with my non-SA friends because I'm convinced this is the most wholesome thread ever to be put on the forums Thankyou endlessmonotony posted:Just a fyi - might want to use the "l" suffix instead of the "h" one for a lot of those massive image dumps, since you're posting enough images to cause incomplete loading. I might for some of the future big imageposts ta very much schmug posted:But what exactly besides a cairn are you doing there? You didn't stroke out or something did you? What I stroke out and how is between me, the trees, a bush and a probably now traumatised squirrel  A few months back I shifted a pile of bricks with my son and we found lizards inside- as I wrecked that habitat I felt it my duty to recreate similar ones around the place- the larger bits of stone (and more once I haul it in) should provide 2 or 3 more little lizard hotels It already needs some work/improvement- lets have a peep shall we? Sloe Progress    Today really didn't go to plan- had meant to start earlier and bring some things I constructed at home but that can be a surprise for next time. After my plans and timetable and schedule all ate poo poo, I arrived and fed a catte.    The lizard hotel needs a new roof design- rather than spending time and effort to try and make a good seal between two bits I just need a bigger slab, it could also do with more clay being packed around it and I have a space-age upgrade planned too- another day.     After the rounds it was sloe picking time- the bird poop tells me that the birds are now eating them, and they feel super plump and ready so I need to get them now- 2 freezer bags filled with only one serious injury- thorns between finger and fingernail are enough to make me cry out loud   I'm pretty sure this might be rabbit poops and rabbit damage to grass. Never seen one over here, was told they wouldn't like the soil- while the prospect of keeping a population is tempting, the fluffy little hoppers could also murder my veg and fruit. The situation will be monitored for now but if needs be I know a good rabbit stew recipie.    After a brief and successful squirrel hunt, next up was checking rosehip- they certainly aren't ready yet, but I have a good prospective crop from a bunch of spots dotted around the acres. Hawse I didn't bother checking much- there's lots and the birds don't bother it until deep into winter.    Any guesses at how out of date this spam is?- working through some of my old secret doomsday stash. Wimped out on the expired beans, but next time I shan't because I later found the expired hot sauce bottles. Tasted as great as expired processed pork products can be!      Its a boring job that hurt my back after awhile but it needed to be done- the pallet and post supply has been given a good few slaps of wood treatment- I can start deciding what to build and how. That was it for the day- should be back later in the week for another go and a peek at the home garden.
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Sep 19, 2018 19:05
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DesperateDan posted:
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Sep 19, 2018 22:46
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my bloody lavender again  Rolling again! scored a pallet beforehand but it stayed in the car for a mystery secret project.  Greeted expectantly  The treats get laid down and kitty moves in like the viet cong on a hamlet full of inexperienced and unsuspecting g.i's  And then we can move ahead  Oh wait today is a stalk the human day, okay bud. Kept appearing at a distance the whole day.       The rounds were...  the rounds were finding out some goddamn unethical monstrous beast of the wilds has been turfing up my loving rockery again!  And other bits dug up too!  I deployed myself to a bush for awhile but nothing was forthcoming- I need to bring camo and be prepared to sit for an hour or two in hiding- or rig up a camera maybe. Some squirrel were less cautious than our new digging friends- two clean kills.  Might get a raspberry or two! Very late fruiting variety or it's off kilter or both.  Cass is very happy amongst some logs drying in the caravan  So then I hauled some stone over to the lavender and fixed things up a bit there. Needs a cut around and some more large stone- there's always next time.    Then an hour or so of clearing blackthorn and other related bits back- its hard to get a good progress shot, lots was chopped and hauled and now this side of the pond can continue to get opened up a bit.    Then I needed to get back to shopping/school run bits, before coming home to check the garden out. Radishes have been nice- not too hot but a good flavour- carrots won't be ready for another week or three yet. Tomatoes are on the final fruits- most are splitting in the cold mornings now.  Hicks was back to the vets recently- his kidney problem is confirmed as terminal. We have some specialist food bought in which should help him, but it's just delaying the inevitable- for now he's happy and unaware and we might get a few more months like this before it starts to affect him much.  It's loving me up pretty badly at times, but there's no shortcuts for grief. If hurting like this is the price I pay for having had that adorable little poo poo in my life, no matter how bad it hurts, it was a bargain. Should be back down there on the weekend if I'm not throwing a crankshaft position sensor into the car, and if I am I will probably post that anyway. DesperateDan fucked around with this message at 20:10 on Sep 27, 2018 |
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Sep 27, 2018 20:06
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Sending hugs your way for Hicks. He's got a good catdad 
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Sep 27, 2018 22:41
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DesperateDan posted:It's loving me up pretty badly at times, but there's no shortcuts for grief. If hurting like this is the price I pay for having had that adorable little poo poo in my life, no matter how bad it hurts, it was a bargain. Kidney problems are pretty common in cats, special food and IV fluids sometimes don't really help, and sometimes give them years more. There's a lot of cat threads with way too much knowledge about cat pee - I'd recommend the YOSPOS one.
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Sep 27, 2018 23:22
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Coming out of lurking to send well wishes to Hicks. I hope he sticks around for many more idyllic frolics through the garden to spite your vet.
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Sep 27, 2018 23:32
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Poor Hicks. At least he's had a great life with you which is about the best a cat can hope for, I think. Here's to making the rest of his time as happy and long as possible. Thank you for the update on the plot as well, looks wonderful and I wish you luck dealing with your critter issue. My go-to caliber for varmints is .222 Rem, can't recommend it enough.
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Sep 28, 2018 08:36
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Aw, poor Hicks. Kidney disease is common in elderly cats and can be controlled for a surprisingly long time. Even the terminal variety! But you have to be on it at once and be really strict with diet and meds. http://www.tinykittens.com/cases/mason An elderly feral with terminal kidney disease, still alive and doing well for himself! And, yes, the Catte thread is a good resource.
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Sep 28, 2018 14:00
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Poor Hicks. I hope he has many more years ahead of him.
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Sep 28, 2018 18:25
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Thankyou very much all of you for your very kind words - he's had a great few days since my last post, and he's adjusting to the new food quite well given his fussy record- doing a bunch of reading at the moment and will adjust things as needed.Nice piece of fish posted:Thank you for the update on the plot as well, looks wonderful and I wish you luck dealing with your critter issue. My go-to caliber for varmints is .222 Rem, can't recommend it enough. I haven't shot .223 since I was an air cadet- fond memories but it's probably a bit overkill for what I need (*edit* just noted you said .222, still a bit much for me) - I expect its small and furry enough for air rifle work if even that's needed. If I had spare budget for it then a shotgun with a suppressor in .410 would be a really nice upgrade over the air rifle but I would have to get a gunsafe and a shotgun certificate etc sorted.rocking pallets  Handy hints for scavving the wastelands- be wary of rats (or worse) in old matresses and also there's normally poop somewhere and it's probably human    *theme from predator intensifies* Otherwise the theme of the day was massive attack- figuring out whether I prefer blue lines to mezzanine. Jury still out.  I lugged in the rock and the pallets bar another one taken home again for seekrit purposes. Thirsty, hunger inspiring work.  So this is a healthy rounded breakfast obviously!       I didn't do much picture taking today but I stood in some bushes a bit (I'm really good at that actually) and there were bees so this is like a bee special I guess  More digging bastard activity but no poops. Digging bastard.    Then as the pallets/plank were dry enough I slapped the normal treatment on them. I have a plan in mind for these There was a lot of waiting around for things to dry and it got spent wandering figuring out how to lay out the next few things- hoping to bust out one or two of my little secret projects for next time.  On the way home the car threw some codes- got me home just fine but this sensor needs tending to before I take the car out again- should get parts ordered tomorrow and it doesn't look too complex for my not-a-mechanic skills to fudge through with some swearing and lavicious application of antiseize compound- will keep you all updated. *edit* Will be thursday or friday before the part gets here from germany so that sucks but the alternatives were paying 3 times as much for the same bit and getting it tomorrow or getting a knockoff that might be fine or might frag the engine on a whim. DesperateDan fucked around with this message at 11:41 on Oct 1, 2018 |
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Sep 30, 2018 17:34
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the life and times of 058 905 161B  Now see here the title is about car parts but I'm kicking this off with some pasta sauce I made- good way to use lots of these homegrown tomatoes fast.   I used just about enough garlic for me, which means you can currently navigate to my house within about 5 miles by scent alone. drat fine sauce if you ask me   Hicks is eating the specialist food and continuing to be an excellent and happy kitty  Well then, the box from germany came, can't delay forever.    Despite it being a reasonably vital part, it's one of the easiest jobs I have done on this car- think it took me 25 minutes at most and a lot of that was spent standing around looking cool or pretending I had a clue what the other bits did. The part seems to be an original one, which means over the last 15 years/113K miles its seen big numbers of things. There's some fuses and bits I still need to sort but this sensor seems to fix it most of the time- I want to get on top of it before the MOT is due at the end of the month.   Even though the box said I was under-dressed for the job- I got a sensor to replace I don't need someone dissing my outfit what's this world coming to   All done and only one bit left over (thank gently caress for zip ties). Will need to run the car a bit to see if it's working well...  The engine was exploding in the right places at the right times, so a quick trip to the acres to do the rounds was definitely in order- it's been a week.  After I get my stuff unpacked this fuzzball will want their treat  Or maybe straight away  Yeah its a straight away day  Their accomplice just watched from the normal position.   My normal scav site was all cleared up but one of the great things about industrial estates is      It looks pleasant and sunny (and it was) but it was about 5C (~40F) at most so I was glad I had a shirt to layer up with and brought a coffee along.  The digging bastard has been pooping too. And digging more. That pooping, digging bastard. Hid in a bush again, but no sighting. Pricing up wildlife cameras- I must study it's habits in order to understand my opponent.  I should have put a net over these raspberries today and will do if I get chance to before they ripen and the birds get the fruit  Currant bushes starting to lose leaves- helped a few of them out by removing some weeds from around the edges- think I might make next years bush emplacements a bit girthier.   Glad to see the cold isn't bothering the bees much yet.  Lets be brave and go visit a hive and say hi to the bees at the entrance. Hello bees!  okay okay oh gently caress thats a lot of buzzing goodbye bees  I hinted at mystery projects before and things are taking a bit longer than expected but further works are taking place and I'm hopeful for the next week or two. If I can fit some of it in the car. Oh dear.  With not having the car for the last week a bunch of chores etc have stacked up but I'm still hoping to visit the acres during the week to get some work done and hopefully bring in the final supplies for building the bbq. The weather is going to close in on things over the next month or so but there's gonna be a short window for getting a few plants in the ground before frosts become an issue- soon enough the work will shift more to winter work though, and there's a lot of it to do. And I will take pictures. And post about it! DesperateDan fucked around with this message at 15:36 on Oct 7, 2018 |
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Oct 7, 2018 15:33
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First impression of those droppings was sheep, but deer seem a more likely candidate, unless I've misjudged the size - if they're tiny I'd guess wild rabbits?
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Oct 7, 2018 18:08
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DesperateDan posted:And I will take pictures. And post about it! Please do, this is all great stuff and Hicks is a great cat.
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Oct 7, 2018 18:30
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Maugrim posted:First impression of those droppings was sheep, but deer seem a more likely candidate, unless I've misjudged the size - if they're tiny I'd guess wild rabbits? These? DesperateDan posted:
Doesn't seem to be enough damage for it to be wild boar, if that's even possible. And the poop's wrong. My guess would be roe deer, looks about right. Which would be a tasty option. It's probably not rabbit, doesn't look quite right. Although, with roe deer there should be tracks and hair for a definitive identification around close by or in some soft soil. E: Although, gardeners claim that roe deer won't touch lavender. Neither will rabbits, for that matter. The mystery deepens... or gardeners are full of poo poo. Nice piece of fish fucked around with this message at 14:48 on Oct 8, 2018 |
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Oct 7, 2018 20:12
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Thanks all- From spending some time looking at pictures of poop, it might be a baby roe deer- next time I will throw in something for scale but it was very small- pea to sweetcorn size. Normally the deer poops I see (we have roe and muntjac deer that I have seen, and apparently there are fallow deer too) are larger/more stuck together but it certainly looks like some of the pictures I'm looking at now- and it's too shiny/processed for rabbit or hare. Bit of an anticlimax but I'm kinda relieved too- deer are a known threat and easier to deal with. Wild boar were confirmed ~15-20 miles down the road as of about 2 years ago, it may well just be a matter of time for that, but not yet. My biggest suspect for the lavender digging right now is some badgers- apparently they like finding bugs living underneath weed proof sheeting- if that's the case I might try and partially secure a bunch of scraps of it somewhere for them to go hog wild with.
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Oct 9, 2018 11:23
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wearing in the boots a bit  A regular part of any school run is watching the kids suddenly remember they have homework due and another chunk of that is then providing tech support when the printers are being lovely which of course I delegate to the real dedicated professional...   It's a warm sunny day and I had the luck of getting to the acres just as the sun properly burned through the morning mist and it made for a lovely walk to do the rounds.   The last week or so has just been constantly appearing bullshit and/or lovely days mood and energy wise so I made myself set aside some time to just come down and make sure everything is still bolted down, shipshape and bristol fashion.     The ground is softening a bit again and digging efforts have been lessened- a few logs like the above have had the badgers at them for grubs and bugs. The pear tree pictured has lost almost all it's leaves but looks nice and healthy for next years growth- as do all apart from the newest cherry and newest plum- next spring will tell for sure.   The bees are making great use of the unseasonably good weather at least- they were all over the periwinkle and thistle and I grabbed some video of the hive- eventually once I get a few clips of stuff together I might throw something on youtube.   I could have brought down part of the new secret projects today but I was just straight up lazy and wanted to get in the car and get going. Pretty much finished on all 4 main parts of phase one  So today was just a nice walk and an unfortunate day to grab an acorn as a squirrel, but I'm gonna be back soon with either my first project or a pair of grape vines in a few days. Car part seems to have done the trick but I still have a list of maintenance to get done before the service and mot is due at the end of the month. DesperateDan fucked around with this message at 14:23 on Oct 16, 2018 |
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Oct 16, 2018 13:45
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What's the eta on the secret project?
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Oct 17, 2018 06:57
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Miftan posted:What's the eta on the secret project? Phase 1 alpha has 6 drill holes and 6 screws left but the boy wants to do them and he's busy prepping for his 9th birthday Phase two has some soldering left and moisture protection to sort but also needs a part bought online and a part stolen Phase 3 needs a few good days of weather to let the protective layers dry properly, and I keep revising the design needlessly as I find bits I'm leaning more to putting more plants in the ground while I have a short window to do so and my deck at home looks over-run by triffids...
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Oct 18, 2018 06:58
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Sounds exciting! Looking forward to seeing it when you're done.
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Oct 18, 2018 07:12
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Miftan posted:Sounds exciting! Looking forward to seeing it when you're done. Thanks My local homebase is closing down and selling the stock off cheap so I hit it pretty hard again today for stuff like special compost for some nice heather plants I grabbed from lidl, box hedging plants and other hardy evergreen border plants to grow a bit then clone lots, and shitloads of other bits I have needed like 2 nice big tubs of fence/shed treatment and lots of woodscrews. Sad to see it go but it made the budget cover a chunk more than normal- I'm gonna see if I can squeeze some more cash and go back for a bunch more wood and stone before it's all gone. Tomorrow I might get some time to work some more projects and sharpen up some things but time is always so short and the list of poo poo to do always getting longer
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Oct 18, 2018 19:02
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I had a chance to get down there today but it wouldn't have been for long and frankly I just wasn't feeling it. Unfortunately for me, I was in no mood for any of my shenanigans and so I got on with it anyway ratm keeps getting better as 2018 goes on, huh   The weather was really in full british mode- pleasant sunlight and stillness could be rain and enough breeze to make you feel it 2 minutes later. Nice, but I wish I had packed my big camo jacket- luckily I keep a few old band hoodies in strategic locations.   Been doing some more bargain hunting at the closing homebase, and a few bits came with me today.     Sloes almost all gone- had I followed the traditional wait till after the frosts I would have none. Hawse are turning a nice cherry red quite early too- almost time for them. The late raspberries are coming along nicely too! Forgot to net them too!     This heather was super rootbound and had to go in asap- it warranted a better job than it got, but with some good drainage and the right acidic/ericaceous soil mix its got a fair shot at things- I will sort some edging/more compost room for it another day.   That was then pretty much it for the day- I saw some muntjac deer on the way out but it's almost always when I least expect- they heard me rustle a bit reaching for my phone and bolted. Next time....   Also if I'm gonna tease these special projects constantly and not deliver I might at least show a little ankle   The car has been getting a bit of attention too- some fuses and other little bits I wanted sorted or checked. Hopefully she will scrape through another mot without needing anything.   This adorable little bastard continues to be a tip top kitty too, and both field cats were well, just being fed by the neighbor so no snaps.  I'm off to make some calls! DesperateDan fucked around with this message at 15:14 on Oct 26, 2018 |
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Oct 26, 2018 15:08
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if the chair fits, you must a' sits So before anything else happened, the car put it's rear end into a pass, which is a relief. Freshly serviced too, and looking in good health for its 15 years.   I had forgotten to put treats back in the car but after staring at me in a cute fashion from the bushes I went and found a few bits from the caravan.    So first up was dragging part of one of the projects down here, as well as some grape vines and some tins of butane for the stove.    Then I went to check on the heather and some digging bastard has been at it again because it was just loving gone. Maybe its 50% badgers and 50% deers but it's 100% bastards. Obviously the lavender has been molested again too because its a day ending in "y".   One of them I found over near the pond, which is filling slowly. While pretty beaten upon, they still had some green growth and didn't seem quite dead so I put them back in with a healthy blast of protective piss till I can get some stone on them.    Then I got on with the chair- awhile back I scavved some nice looking chairs, but they had a lovely design and what held up the slats had gone damp. Hence, my fat arse went right through it upon sitting much to the amusement of the kids. And yes, that brush is in poo poo state but it worked   So to rescue it we did a whole bunch of sawing and drilling on some pallet wood and this is the first finished one, which just about fit in the car. It's scrappy looking and heavy, but I can literally jump up and down on the fucker now. Hopefully the woodstain dries darker, but my 3 piece lounge seating arrangements have come along another step- its surprisingly comfy    Nice to see the bees making use of a little of the remaining sun- can't remember seeing any last visit.     Shocked to see the raspberries untouched by the beak of bird- I'm not the biggest raspberry fan but the one I ate was loving marvellous. Lots of these mushrooms too- though not really in patches, just spread all over the place.    And when I got back this little bastard wanted to play not much time at all today but hopefully I can get back later in the week with some more plants and get them in the ground- I'm tired of all this penny packet bullshit and I'm hoping to get down there for most of the day to make a dent on things- not long before its going to be too cold to plant more.
DesperateDan fucked around with this message at 16:14 on Nov 5, 2018 |
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Nov 5, 2018 16:12
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Cats! Bees! Digging bastards... Would putting up a wire cage help at all?
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Nov 9, 2018 02:42
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Unfortunately for me, the bastard of the week is Bartonella Henselae, i.e cat scratch fever. Between the symptoms and the antibiotics I'm now on, it's gonna be a little while before I'm fit- provided the antibiotics don't try and kill me again.xcheopis posted:Cats! It might, but I wanted to avoid doing it for everything I plant- I would have probably done better to pot them up till next summer and chuck them in the ground with much larger rootballs. When I next go down I will take hair clippings and a full bladder and hopefully ward them off long enough for the ground to solidify a bit more.
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Nov 11, 2018 09:24
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well that was stupid  Got worried about my spuds so enlisted a kid and got digging. poo poo idea because now I feel like I got hit by a bus but a few kilos of spud are out of the ground. Next year, I'm only doing containers for potatoes because I'm sure we didn't get them all- found some much deeper than I would have thought, and despite being careful a few got killed by fork/hoe.   I'm gonna take a leaf out of the drat cat's book and set myself up on the sofa now and try not to be stupid again for awhile. Might not look so cute but I try.
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Nov 11, 2018 13:55
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DesperateDan posted:
Hicks continues to be the best cat.
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Nov 11, 2018 16:33
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Hicks is great and I hope you are feeling better soon!
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Nov 18, 2018 18:56
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spookygonk posted:Hicks continues to be the best cat. xcheopis posted:Hicks is great and I hope you are feeling better soon! Thankyou against doctor's orders   This is part of every morning. Wake up and go to the toilet and thudthudthudthudthud down the hallway and some meows and hicks is climbing on me and/or the towel rail. And the bath. Sometimes the sink. Resistance is... pointless.  The chill was notable this morning- despite moving around, it took a bunch of layers to stay warm. The bush hat is retired, and the warm wooly beanie prevails.   Cat scratch disease symptoms going to continue for a month or two potentially, but now I'm off the antibiotics and not feeling so dizzy/out of it so I can drive again. The fatigue/arthritis symptoms are kicking the poo poo out of me right now, so I just came to do a few urgent things and do the rounds- I can't do much else.   The digging bastard has been busy again but my heather plants were untouched. The claw mark looks to me like a badger.  Found nearby was this attractive slipper- there has been some fly tipping on the side of the road, and random bits find their way in- I'm assuming badgers or foxes- I find allsorts around their runs.   Something ate the raspberries- I hope they were enjoyed. Pond is filling up more now, my excavations will soon disappear until next years drought.  The chair is looking good- the green got less vivid looking. But looks are one thing- it must be tested   A good commanding view while I ate my tasty, healthy and by now entirely unpredictable second breakfast in comfort and style.   My biggest worry was the grape vines I brought last time- I have lost some juvenile plants previously due to the cold, and achy and tired as I am, I don't want to dig suitable emplacements for them right now. But they must survive, so I added some recycled bamboo hoop and bagged em in fleece.   I only paid any attention to the instructions afterwards and it seems I put them on upside down, but I used enough paracord to keep em nice and secure.   When using paracord, melting the ends to seal it properly is essential- it can last years treated right.  Tucked em in behind the caravan and under some pallets/junk for even more protection from the elements.      Then I got the caravan a bit more ready for winter- replaced dehumifier units and put the heat reflective shield over the roof hatch- with that and the other insulation the caravan retains heat well. Theres some water ingress near the door again which needs sorting but not today.   On my way out our friend showed up for a treat- we spent awhile looking at a pigeon together. Bonding.   Before I left I tried sneaking up on my neighbors pond/lake for some duck shots but I was way too obvious and lacked food to tempt them into phone camera range. A bag of peas would be useful here.  That's it for now- I'm gonna fight the symptoms as best I can and maybe try and get down again in a few days time- least it's happening now when the weather is closing in, theres a lot I want to be doing come springtime.
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Nov 22, 2018 17:28
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