bird skull, a letter, and more than you ever wanted to know about septic system drain fields

You might remember that I found a dead white wing dove in the front yard during one of our hard freezes and as I usually do when I find a dead bird I cut it’s head off and stick it in a fire ant mound. It didn’t come out completely clean and white mainly because I took it out too soon but also because it wasn’t the right time of year. It was wet and cold and the ants were deep underground fasting I suppose. I even tried three different ant mounds and thought I had lost it after the second. when I dug it out of the first one it wasn’t much changed so I put it in a mound that got more sun. That was when I thought a critter had gotten it when I dug it out, better but still icky, intending to get it later in the day and didn’t remember until the next morning and couldn’t find it. The day after that I looked again and it was in plain sight so I put it in a third ant mound. When I dug it out of that it was much cleaner but still had stuff in the skull but I feared losing it for good and brought it in. I’ve worked on it two times with little stiff paint brushes, a piece of wire, and some very pointy tweezers after soaking it and I guess it’s as clean as it’s going to get. 

I’ve got it on the shelf and put it between the cardinal and the mockingbird.

We got a letter from the state about our architectural etched and carved glass studio from which we retired at the end of 2017. We continued selling the cast glass at our annual open house with our other glass artist friends but that stopped after 2020 because of covid and the last time we had any opportunity to sell directly to the public was 2021 when we shared a booth with our friends at the Height’s Artisan Market and although I continued to send work to the gallery I was not responsible for sales tax on those sales. So, the letter. The state is revoking our sales tax permit as a result of zero total sales, zero taxable sales, and zero taxable purchases for the last two years. We no longer will have a business from which we must collect and remit sales tax or for which we can be tax exempt for certain purchases. 

Tuesday I went to empty the kitchen scraps container on what I euphemistically call my ‘compost pile’, more aptly a forage pile for the local wildlife; I never dig any compost or dirt out of it because it’s full of ants. Anyway it’s at the very back of the property and on my way there I came upon a wet spot in the big backyard with several small puddles of water where there should not be especially since it hasn't rained for weeks. This does not bode well. Being out in the county as we are we’re on a septic system, one of the older ones. Our system has three tanks buried in the little backyard. The sinks, the showers, and the toilets drain into the first tank which drains into the second tank which drains into the third tank with a line that pumps the water into the drain field. The drain field is a series of perforated pipes every 3' buried under the back half of the property. I don’t know how deep but I’ve never encountered one while digging back there (turns out the lines are 12" deep). You’re not supposed to put anything on top of the drain field, like buildings mostly, because if something goes wrong it has to be dug up but I figured flower beds wouldn’t matter. So, apparently based on the location of this wet spot it’s the line from the third tank to the drain field that has sprung a leak. So now I have to dig around in that area and find the problem. Hopefully it’s something Rocky can deal with.

Wednesday after digging and cutting tree roots I exposed 30” of pipe. Haven’t found any obvious cracks or leaks. I was starting to hit drier dirt on the left but the surface of the ground on the right is still wet for about 20”. Ideally I’d like to be able to watch when the pump goes on and see where the water is coming from but that will just be lucky timing.

Later…I encountered Rocky on the street while I was walking the dog. He’s got a couple of days before starting his next job so he’s coming with his helper Friday morning.

Thursday…I showered in the morning and as I was leaving for SHARE I checked the hole. It was filled with water.

Later…More digging in the afternoon. I’ve now exposed 6’ of pipe with no obvious cracks or leaks.

Friday…Rocky and his two guys showed up and we put a hose in the access port of the third tank until the pump was activated so they could see where the water was coming from. It started seeping out from underground under the drain field pipe in the middle so now they’re digging up that line and bailing out all the water. So far haven’t found the leak yet.

A little later…They found the leak, a hole in the bottom of the field line about 4’ back. So now they’re digging more around that spot to give Rocky room the get in there and cut out the small section and reconnect the line with a collar.

Later still…Well, fuck. Rocky cut out a section of pipe to show me the hole and that was not the leak, that was the first perfectly drilled perforation in that field line which means that there probably isn’t a leak but a clog somewhere in that line. 

Our drain field consists of 12 field lines 70’ long with an 1/8” hole on the bottom of the pipe every 12”. Small roots can grow into those holes and grow until it’s a mass of roots. So now it becomes a much bigger problem of how to find the clog and how far down it is. One of Rocky’s sons is a plumber so he’s going to borrow Gunnar’s motorized snake and see if they can find the clog that way and determine where to dig. So that’s where we are now. Hopefully it’s not too far down the line.

 

yesterday

The new neighbors (correction, not the new neighbors but hired workers either by the new owners or Montreal) were at the house yesterday, not moving in but working on the house scraping the exterior doors and the trim around the windows. It was in the 50s yesterday and sunny so they had the doors open and the curtains on the windows (or shades) drawn. That is the first time since we have been here that I’ve seen the curtains drawn in that house. Many years Montreal was not here, traveling for work or up north visiting his wife and son but even when he has been in residence the curtains were never open. I’ve always been curious about the inside of that house, not that I can see anything now. And today they’re back working inside lots of banging and sanding noises as it’s overcast and not quite as warm.

I started pulling out the dead cosmos, clearing the ones in the day lily bed. I don’t think I’m going to let them grow there again since they’re plentiful in the flower bed on the east side which I haven’t begun to clear. I’ll leave them a little longer since the seeds provide food for birds in the winter.

I found a dead white wing dove in the front yard. It didn’t look damaged as if Cat had gotten it so I figured it must have frozen. You might remember I have a small collection of bird skulls on my buffet. 

l to r: seabird from Scotland, seabird from Galveston (those two found), bluejay, cardinal, mockingbird, wren, house finch, warbler

I don’t have the wren skull anymore. A mouse pushed it off onto the floor and Marc stepped on it when he sat down at the table. (If you are squeamish, you might want to jump to the next paragraph.) When I find a dead bird I cut off its head and nestle it in a fire ant bed for them to clean it up for me. And so I did with the white wing dove and then I disposed of the body by flinging it into the wild space at the back of the property, food for insects and night creatures. When I told Marc he said I hope it didn’t die from bird flu. Erk. Well, I did wash my hands when I came in. When it’s clean I’ll add it to the row.

Also yesterday I had a nose bleed and it would not stop! Took about 3 hours before it finally stopped. Damn blood thinner. I’ll be so glad when I am finally off this one. Today I’m afraid to blow my nose for fear it will start up again.

And I worked on the painting. I think I’m through for now with the stigma part of the pistil (the female parts) of the zucchini flower. Now on to the rest of the pistil and the surrounding petals.

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The following is from Heather Cox Richardson’s Jan. 8 newsletter. The Republican MAGAt representatives are compiling their wish list of bills that implement their Project 2025 and one of them is this gem urging Congress to support a consortium of antiabortion doctors for women because, as the bill says, “health care should emphasize the whole woman, including her physical, mental, and spiritual wellness…health care for women should also address the needs of men, families, and communities.” Emphasis mine. Women’s healthcare shouldn’t be just about women, it should support the needs of men. Hey Christian nationalist MAGAts, you can stick your patriarchy where the sun don't shine. They care so much about women and families that they would rather pregnant women bleed out or die from sepsis leaving their other children motherless than get the life saving abortion they need.

And then there’s this…Where do you think the California republican legislators are? If you said California providing help and leadership you would wrong. They’re in Florida at Mar A Lago kissing Trump’s ass while he lies and casts blame for the fires. 

No solutions offered of course, just lies and blame. You know who we're getting help from? Canada and Mexico, our allies that Trump is threatening with economic disaster.

good food, color charts, stupidity

Buddha in the garden.

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Well, damn. No picture of my salad, no picture of the food laden table. Everything was so good…chicken and dumplings, enchilada casserole, clusters of green beans with bacon wrapped around the middle looking like miniature sheaves, corn and rice casserole, fresh fruit, my salad, deviled eggs, and more and that doesn’t even cover the desserts. And it was nice to have all the volunteers there, most all, a few were absent; the Monday group that deals with donations and other stuff but not open to the public and the Thursday group. As usual a prayer preceded the eating. I just stand there quietly and politely without bowing my head. I have no issue with the wishes for good health and being grateful for community and the good things in your life but the submissive appealing to the big daddy in the sky for granting those things or giving him credit for the same is where we part ways. 

Actually, here’s what’s left of my salad moved into a much smaller bowl. I didn’t bring home very much.

I haven’t started on my painting yet but I have been working on getting the last box of paints my friend sent me added to the color chart…a rectangle with straight pigment on dry paper and one with diluted pigment on wet paper. It helps me choose what colors to use in a painting. This last box, the pigments are very strong, dense.

This was the first chart I made of the three small tins. I need to redo it with the larger format.

I looked out the back door the other morning to see half a dozen or so inca doves all fluffed up on the little patio right outside the door in plain sight. I snuck away to get my phone/camera but when I looked again they had moved to the left among the pots there so they’re a little obscured.

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News is that the man who shot and killed the CEO of UnitedHealthcare has been arrested. I can only surmise that he wanted to be caught and arrested. They found the gun, the suppressor, the fake ID, the clothing, and a 3 page ‘manifesto’ on his person when approached and arrested, well maybe not the clothing but they did recover that also. Clearly the man has never watched a crime show. The first thing he should have done was dispose of the weapon, ID, and clothing and for all the gods’s sakes don’t carry around a 3 page manifesto. If I have learned nothing from watching General Hospital it’s how to dismantle and dispose of a gun after a shooting. So how did health insurance companies react to the killing of a CEO? Did they send out orders to stop denying tests, procedures, and care recommended by doctors? Oh, hell no, they beefed up security around their board members.

And last from the Department of  Disconnect, Vivek Ramaswamy and Elon Musk are going around spouting about the ‘deep state’ in government, the unelected bureaucrats running this country into the ground, and how they are going to purge the government. They seem to have completely missed that fact that they are themselves unelected bureaucrats.

 

definitely spring and a pissed off cat

Some nest building going on.

Yesterday was my other busy day at SHARE. It was a food delivery day from the regional food bank and we were short four or five regular volunteers, two from the food order filling where I work and then the Elders, who work in the back with us, didn’t show up either. I usually have help restocking while I’m filling baskets and the guys put the baskets back on the rack but yesterday I had to do both those things as well as keep up with the empty baskets. I think we had 28 or 29 food orders yesterday. 

It’s always a surprise what the food bank sends us besides what Jan orders or if we get everything Jan ordered. This week we got an assortment of fresh produce and four of those huge cartons, approximately 4’ x 4’ x 4’, filled with small appliances and general house goods. I don’t know what all was in them as I was so busy I didn’t even think about taking a picture but they were filled to overflowing. Jan thought she was ordering some smaller crates of appliances for $7 each. We got those big ones for the same price. All that stuff eventually goes out on the floor for people to choose from though I’m unsure how often a client can pick something. There are quantity limits and limits on how often a client can avail themselves of everything from food to clothing to small appliances and other home goods to personal hygiene to financial assistance to miscellaneous stuff that gets donated. You can’t show up every week and get a full complement of what we offer. The only thing we cannot refuse is a request for food, however, if someone hasn’t waited the two or three months necessary for the full complement of food we offer then they get what is called the USDA box, a short basic list mandated by the government.

Wednesday when I went to feed the half wild kittens I got out one of the carriers and put a small dish of food in there, fed them all and snatched up the gray tabby while he was distracted by eating, put him in the carrier and closed the door. All seemed fine, he continued to eat until I picked up the carrier. OMG! it was like holding a hurricane in a box. He was thrashing around so forcefully that the carrier was jumping all around while I carried it to the car and then he squalled all the way to the vet and as they were carrying him to the back. When I picked him up Thursday afternoon, squalling all the way home, and let him out he ran up to each of his brothers and rubbed faces. He was glad to be back. Surprisingly enough, he let me pick him up and cuddle him a bit when I fed them today.

There is nothing worth taking a picture of except for this, my little dwarf redbud tree opening some flowers.

And nothing else to write about except politics and republicans who show us at every turn that they don’t have an ounce of integrity between the lot of them. Can’t come up with any evidence of wrongdoing, nothing to indict the president on so instead the republican special prosecutor investigating government documents found in Biden’s old office used his report to smear Biden, painting him as a memory impaired doddering old geezer who couldn’t even remember when his son died. And yet they fully support a man who daily shows us that he is a memory impaired doddering old geezer who constantly confuses one person for another or what happened under which president, who can’t even complete a sentence and garbles words and who is under indictment in three criminal cases. Go figure.

 

a busy day and a mystery

yesterday’s sky

Tuesdays and Thursdays are my busiest days. This was my day yesterday…got up, fed the cat, took my meds, checked my email, did my yoga, read blogs, fixed breakfast, cleaned up after breakfast, took the dog outside while I emptied the kitchen scrap container on the compost pile, picked up some small branches, pulled up a cabbage, took a box to the post office, did the week’s grocery shopping, put away said groceries and then it was time for lunch, after lunch walked the dog who wanted a long walk, fed the kittens, browsed social media, fed the dog, started preparing dinner, sat down for 20 minutes, finished fixing dinner, cleaned up after dinner, took my meds, closed up the garage, let the dog out one more time, cleaned the cat litter box, brushed my teeth, and finally sat down for what remained of the day before I went to bed at 10.

We watched the first two episodes of the streaming show Mr. and Mrs. Smith (don’t remember which service it’s on). It is completely different from the movie of the same title and we’re not really sure if we’re going to watch more of it.

Yesterday when I was out in the yard I found this peculiar thing laying on the ground right in the middle of one of the pathways around the magnolia tree, which is about 8’ from the corner of the attached garage, clean as a whistle and with the filament intact. 

Where the fuck did this come from and how did it even get here? Granted it was very windy Monday but I can’t imagine how the wind could have blown it from wherever to where I found it. I did an image search and it’s a mini light bulb (obviously), 1 3/8” tall, +/- 12v +/- 5w used in automotive, sewing machines, vacuums, etc. I have never seen a lightbulb like this before. Checked both vehicles but nothing missing. I don’t have a light on my vacuum cleaner and the one in my sewing machine is much larger. Ah, the mysteries of the universe.

A friend of my daughter’s sent her a free box from HelloFresh, one of those outfits that send you all the ingredients for a meal and all you have to do is cook it. The free box contains three meals for two people. In order to get your free box you have to register and when you register you have the option of sending a free box (free except for $4.99 shipping charge) to someone else and she sent one to me. So yesterday, I registered and Marc and I selected our three meals due to arrive Saturday. Nowhere on the site while you are signing up for the free box did it say that this service would automatically send another box every week (you are able to pick different meals) for a total of $70 a week unless you went online and canceled (or if it did, I didn’t see it). The follow up welcome email had a little asterisk and at the bottom explained this part of the service. $70 a week for three meals for two people is nearly 75% of my weekly grocery bill so I’ll be canceling after we receive our box. If we’re going to spend that much per meal (and quite a few of the meals had additional charges so the price per meal increased sometimes by a little and sometimes by a lot) we’d rather go to a restaurant where we won’t have to cook it or clean up after it.

There’s been a huge flock of starlings in the neighborhood all week and they are loud. I’m in the house and I can hear them.

This afternoon when I go over to feed the kittens, the little gray tabby is getting scooped up to pet and cuddle and then shoved in the cat carrier and taken to the vet where he will be neutered tomorrow. I’m only going to do one every few weeks to give myself time to re-earn their trust. I think they might be a little wary after this afternoon.

Ten petal anemone are in full bloom

even the occasional pink and purple version.

trees and ants and meds

A couple of the commenters on my last post offered suggestions on watering my pecan trees and they both had one thing in common, placing the source of water at the bottom of the trunk. The problem with that, according to the certified arborist that spoke at one of the EarthLabs, is that there aren't any feeder roots at the base of the tree, just the big artery roots. The small feeder roots are spread out under the canopy and only in the top 15” - 18” of ground.

Using a search engine to further clarify, one site says the critical watering zone is two thirds of the height of the tree away from the trunk with a soaker hose spread around the tree or a sprinkler or just letting the water run or a 5 gallon bucket with holes in the bottom for small newly planted trees.

I looked at several sites and they all say basically the same. I use either a sprinkler on low that throws a circle of water out about 4' or 5' in diameter but not up in the air or just turn the hose on low flow and let it run under the canopy, usually about 10' – 15' away from the trunk, which is what I'm doing this Sunday morning because I only have one sprinkler and I'm using it elsewhere. The birds, btw, are loving the sprinkler. They dart in and out of the spray, hang out on whatever plant or shrub.

My trees are mature, 25” - 35” diameters. Two of them are on either side of the septic drain field so I figure they are getting some water from that. The third does not and it seems to be the one that's dropping the most green pecans though the other two are as well. I've filled the 5 gallon bucket from the previous post to the rim and am starting on another.

Sunday the ants were on the kitchen counter when we got up, seemed to be ignoring the bait trap but by mid morning they were gone for the day at least. I located an area in the upper cabinet to seal and did that. Today, Monday they were back on the kitchen counter ignoring the bait trap so I followed their trail and dammit all to hell, they were coming in and out of the third prong hole from the outlet the coffee pot and grinder are plugged into, neither of which have that third prong. The little faces look dismayed do they not? 

How the fuck do I stop that up? I put a piece of tape over it. Speak no evil, especially ants.

Friday I spent a good deal of time on the phone trying to get meds straightened out. August 20 I renewed my two meds for the afib, sotolol and eliquis. A few days later I got an email that their pharmacist was holding up the eliquis and they had tried to reach my doctor to no avail but my other scrip was on it's way only they sent out the larger dose instead of the one I ordered. Three phone calls from me to the online pharmacy and one to my doctor's office and two return calls from his nurse who also called the online pharmacy and it was finally straightened out and the eliquis is on it's way. But while I had the nurse on the phone I told her I didn't think the lower dose of the sotolol the doctor put me on 3 months ago was doing the job, that I was having way more frequent and sometimes long breakthrough episodes. She told me to go back on the larger dose since I tolerated it well, that the doctor had lowered the dose because he thought I had complained about not having any energy (which I think he probably must have misunderstood something I said, maybe confusing motivation with energy, because he did say something about more energy), and I remember telling my husband when I got home that more energy was the last thing I needed. And then, of course, the heat dome came and sat on us and that was the end of any energy.

P.S. I'm trying to be better about replying to comments which you may or may not have noticed.

One last little observation. White wing doves, when they sit on a branch looking down, look like miniature vultures. 

yew tree, ants, birds, and a little art

If anyone thinks it's a good idea to build a deck under a mature yew tree that shades 90% of it, let me tell you it's a bad idea. It's not just that it sheds beaucoup skinny little leaves but it also drops thousands of blue berries with the pink gooey shit on them that then stick to the deck, the ones that don't get gummed up in the spaces between the deck boards that is along with the leaves. 

Add in the baby acorns that the overhanging oak has been dropping and it's a royal mess. The leaf blower isn't very effective on the berries because they are stuck to the deck. I love the deck. I love the yew tree, just don't like them together. I'm wondering if I can hang one of those shade wings somehow to catch the berries at least.

Sunday I got out there first thing and thoroughly watered the little backyard and then I pulled the garden cart across the street and emptied it on the burn pile. I've been needing to do that for weeks but it's always in the middle of the day when I think about it. I got as far as the edge of the shade the other day, about 20' from the street on my side, took one step into the sun and nope, no, not doing that now.

I'm trying to be a little more productive so Saturday I managed to get the lower half of the house vacuumed and today, half the upper house so far. Baby steps people. Plus I fixed blueberry pecan pancakes for breakfast this morning.

I did get the rest of the upper house vacuumed on Sunday and cleaned both toilets, yay me, but I am being plagued with fire ants...again. Not inside though, well almost not inside. First the last week some of the fire ants have resurfaced but not so you can see them in the grass that's a little high (we're not mowing because it's really not growing and provides shade for the roots, any grass or weeds in the sun is already brown and crunchy) where I stand when watering the flower beds and I keep inadvertently stepping right there not noticing until they are biting me!

Second, when I opened the garage yesterday morning to let the dog out and go (three guesses) water they had invaded the garage...under the mats, under the boxes of recyclables, a trail leading all the way across the garage. Hauled out all the boxes, flipped over the outside row of mats and went after them with the orange oil spray (it's sold as an air freshener but I use it as an ant killer). No sign of them today.

Third, there were fire ants in my bed last night! Not many but what the fuck were they doing in my bed, how the fuck did they get in my freaking bed! Saw one when I was smoothing out the sheets (because laying on a wrinkle is like laying on a log) and killed it. Turned out the light and laid down and before I fell asleep I felt something crawling on my neck. Killed it and searched for more. Laid back down and one bit me on the back. Really!? Repeat and one bit me on the shoulder. Turned on the light, killed one crawling on the wall, pulled the bed away from the wall and killed three or four more traveling along the baseboard, examined the sheets and pillows, examined the whole room but didn't see anymore, laid there for another half hour with the light, looked around again and finally turned the light off and went to sleep without further mishap.

Sitting here in the mornings watching the birds at the bird feeder. Lots of pitched battles in the air. There's a flock of juvenile cardinals that hang out, 7, 8, of them. Hard to count. They're starting to get their adult coloring, the males looking downright mangy while they make the transition. The chickadees and titmice come and go with their kamikaze hits but there's another kind of little brown bird that won't tolerate others of its kind. Not sparrows I don't think, smaller heads, more slender bodies, maybe a vireo or pine siskin but I've never definitely identified either of those here.

I heard from the gallery after I sent the pictures and she's asking for this one

which is the companion piece for the one I sent in 2021. It's been hanging on my wall so once I pack it up I'll hang the three older magnolia pieces there.

As if the past 6 weeks or however long it's been hasn't bad enough, the next two weeks are going to be even hotter and still no rain.

 

back to the mundane

coral butterfly ginger

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If your reason for allowing or supporting this travesty is religion then try again. I do not accept any religious belief as proof of or permission to demonize this small group of people. Your invisible big daddy in the sky has no authority.

I wrote the above down hurriedly last night during dinner after I read something on one of the social media sites so I wouldn't forget that I wanted to write about it. I typed that up and thought to myself, OK, I think that's enough so I'll remember and then went back to the table and now the next day I can't remember what it was that made me get up and make a note. It was about trans people and the attack on their civil rights and healthcare but I don't remember specifically what the post was about.

I have been completely unmotivated since this horrid heat dome settled in and shows no intention of ever leaving. I don't watercolor, I don't draw, I don't sketch, I don't sew; I play games on my phone, read, or stream something on TV. Right now we're watching the second season of The Flight Attendant and Secret Invasion. I go out for an hour in the morning to water or attend to other tasks. The other day I got my clippers and brush/stump killer spray bottle and scoured the property for trees. I bet I cut down and treated 50 little trees...pecans, hackberrys, rain trees...anywhere from 6” to 3'. You'd think that I could just cut them at ground level and they would die but you would be wrong. Those little bastards will come back again and again and again. I don't care how many times you cut them to the ground.

Yesterday I repotted 5 things that were so root bound I couldn't water them enough, things I hope to give away because I already have plenty in the yard. This morning I pulled out the tomato plants and tossed them on the compost pile even though they were still making little tomatoes but the stink bugs had invaded and I haven't had the energy to fight them off for ping pong ball sized tomatoes.

Late spring, early summer every year the Mississippi kites migrate and summer over here. I saw one pair early on but no others since, and not even those again, until last week. There has been a pair that I would see and hear every morning when I was out but no sign of them today.

image via http://www.hiddennj.com/2013/06/lets-go-fly-mississippi-kite-feasting.html

Another thing that has been absent so far are paper wasps. Usually they're building nests all over the place but not a single one this summer. Where are the kites? Where are the wasps?

What I have seen is one of the resident red shouldered hawks on one of the bird baths and just now a pileated woodpecker on the tallow tree out my window. Neither stayed put long enough for me to get a bad photo on max zoom through the dirty glass in the door.

I mentioned I had started to see squirrels again and that the trees are holding onto their pecans and I went out one day and saw the ground under one of the trees littered with half chewed green pecans. I picked these up in about a 5' diameter circle, one day's damage. Fortunately, I haven't seen it repeated, hoping the peanuts and cracked corn I put out every day tempts them more.

I bought a new toy, uh, tool, a small battery operated chainsaw with a 4” cutting blade. It's good for cutting up to 3” diameter and I plan to use it on the wild grape vine and other things that the cord for the big electric chain saw won't reach to. Haven't used it yet because it's too fucking hot out there to do anything remotely resembling physical labor.

I'll end with the tall phlox.