Weather

[flatfloor]

Starlings arrived, one sign of spring I can do without. Birdshit all over the place. Fortunately they only stay about a month.

[Marge]

The dry spell is officially over. On the 144th day, PHX officially received 1.44" of rain. Out in our area we got just under three inches and snow in the Superstition Mountains behind the house!

We have been snowbound at the cabin as all roads were closed the last 48 hours. We got two feet of snow in about 30 hours. JB, Forest Lakes got almost three feet!

Somes pics of the Superstitions in PHX area and Shaka trying to plow through the snow at the cabin.

Marge

[doitright]

Hi Marge

Glad to see you finally got some precipitation.

Northern IL just got issued a tornado warning, then the power goes off. The lightning stops, the rain stops, and everything goes real calm and quiet.

I finally find my wireless card for my laptop, and now I'm back in business. Wouldn't want to go too long without being connected.

Alright, power back on!

[muskymike]

We got severe weather warnings, the snow has started. 8" to 12" by morning and then getting windy and drifting snow. Temps are supposta drop in the teens then in the single digits all next week. I love Wisconsin!!!

[Hamilton]

California weather is for noobies, i just wanted to say i love the ice fisherman
smiley Mike... haha thats cool bro

Today was a 90% chance of rain, and it did. Havent checked on tomorrow.
Spose i should considering the muddy drive ill be climbin in 4x to get to the house Its all good tho its been a dry year in cali and we need the rain.

[muskymike]

Just got dumped with 16" of the white stuff. Couldn't even drive anywhere cuz you couldn't see five feet in front of you!

[jjwq8]

April 4 was glorious in Southern MD. So nice we decided to bury MIL. 81 years of serene beauty.
You now have a very large piece of my heart.
Please cossett it with the respect and adoration you would reserve for one of your own.
This will likely be my last sojourn on these shores. Thanks for the hospitality and kindness that falls so easily to you.
For the record, do not commit your loved ones into the care of hospice services if they become terminal. Opt for Healthcare instead.We discovered that those hospice trained in end of life treatment are fundamentally driven by financial considerations rather than patient care and to that end apply end of life medications and protocols that speed the process first and comfort second.

[Bugman]

For the record, do not commit your loved ones into the care of hospice services if they become terminal.

Jeremy, Sorry about your MIL.

I'll have to disagree with your feelings about Hospice care. Maybe I had a different experience than you did. My first wife spent almost a year in a residential hospice facility and then we had to move her to a nursing home for the final six months. There was no comparison between the loving care at hospice and the "care" at the nursing home. Nuff said 'cause it still upsets me.

We've had some beautiful weather here in SC. Azaleas and dogwoods are coming into bloom. Mucho beautiful.

[Tool Guy - Kg]

Jeremy, sorry to hear your loss. We're thinking about you.



92 degrees in Florida today......and come home to a whopping 34.

[Marge]

Jeremy, we also offer condolences on the loss of your MIL.

Going to be 88 in PHX tomorrow and it is officially rattlesnake sighting season again! It is also Shaka swimming in the pool season.

Marge

[Mike2]

Talked to a guy yesterday at a building supply store up here. Said he just got back from a week of golfing in Phoenix. Was told at most every course he played that under no certain terms to go looking for a ball hit out of bounds. Snakes in the bushes 3 feet long.

That would sure get your attention. They really get that big down there Marge?

[Marge]

3 feet long? That's a teenager. We have personally seen rattlers, gophers and racers 4-6 feet plus. We stopped on the highway last year to move a semi dead gopher snake. Dave picked him up by the tail, held him head high and there was still about a foot on the ground! People were stopping 'cuz no one could believe it. I made sure our car was safe by guarding it...from the inside.

There is rattlesnake proofing training here for dogs too. Dogs are equipped with shock collars and led to cages filled with rattlers. Any interest results in a shock. After the dog calms down they are led into the desert to a hidden cage where they are exposed just to smell and sound. Most dogs avoid it by then. The whole process is less than 15 minutes. Shaka had her training over six years ago. She still won't go near a snake and avoids bushes that turn out to have one under it. I hope her old nose and ears stay sharp 'cuz her eyesight is failing now.

Marge

[Marge]

I didn't have these pics on the laptop last night. Here is a rattler (3') by the pool and our FD finest removing it, a bull snake climbing the fence by the pool equipment (those are 16" blocks) and a 7" centipede we found in the bedroom.

Marge

[jvcstone]

See what happens when you get a spot of rain out there in the desert---

Drives all the critters into town.

Had to shoot a rattler that was about as long as that gopher snake out side the kitchen door once. Snake and a kitten were doing their little dance, and normally I would have let it go. (snake wins most of the time). Had to interceed this time since it was such a mis match -- biggest darn rattler I've ever seen. Took it's head off with the .22 (night shot down the beam of a flash light btw ), and it's head end drug the ground when I held it up as high as I could reach. 14 rattles on the tail. Kitten was p***ed that I ruined it's fun, and the next day, the rancher I was renting from gave me what for for killing one of his pets. Seems like he kept a pit full of those snakes so he could turn a few loose in the barn when he had rat/ mouse problems. Me, I was just glad that I hadn't stepped on it when I went out to drain out the beer.

Real nice here today high's expected to be in the mid 70's. Nearly a hundred yesterday. Too hot for early April.
JVC

[Mike2]

Don't know how y'all can live down there with snakes and bugs like that.

Learning something new every day - shock aversion therapy training to snake-proof your dog. Sure makes sense.