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Everything posted by Spaulding Smails
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What are the existing conditions like? I'm three years into a similar situation. I had about 3 acres of open pasture with good soil with established native grasses. I also took out about 2 acres of THICK Cedars and that's been a process. This is the first year where that area is starting to take shape. Lots of manual work getting thistle, horseweed, croton, and sticker burrs out. Where native grasses were present, they're finally filling in those areas where Cedar was removed. In other areas that were absolutely barren, I had lots of luck with Austin Hydroseed. I think I spent about $5K and did a few different blends including their "Damaged Earth Mix". The first year I thought it was going to fail, but it's really taking shape now. They have both native grass mixes and wildflower mixes. Great customer service and I thought the pricing was fair. https://austinhydroseeding.com/ It seems like the wildflowers weren't the best this spring, but my front pasture is thick after recent rains. There's some verbena, antelope horn and Indian paintbrushes, and I'm getting a ton of Mexican hat popping up in recent weeks as well. It's so awesome to sip coffee on the front porch and watch rabbits and deer. We had two fawns that were bedded down in that pasture this spring as well. Definitely seeing mother nature do her thing.
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Whittlesey Landscape Supply is your best bet. They deliver or you can pick it up if you have a truck and/or trailer. South Austin location is near the airport on Dalton. https://www.989rock.com/
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CSB.. Did a week long San Fran trip with my wife in September 2004. Alcatraz, Golden Gate, Lombard, Coit Tower, a day trip to Napa, a day trip to Carmel, and of course a Giants game. I went online to search the Giants' schedule when we booked the flights and hotel. The last night we were there was the only home game after a long road trip. Bonds was chasing 700 HRs that year. I remember saying to my wife "Bonds is just enough of an asshole to wait to hit that home run at home. Let's see what we can do to get some tickets down the right field line and maybe catch a piece of history." Sure enough, there's tickets available in the RF arcade on StubHub. First row. BUT, they said "obstructed view" on StubHub. What?!?! How is that possible in freaking right field?!?! StubHub had just rolled out the "view from the seat" clickable link where you could see the vantage point before buying. I clicked on it... no issues. I guessed it was some sort of glitch, so I bought the tickets. Fast forward to September, and sure enough, he's sitting on 699 after that road trip. The area around the stadium is abuzz as we're walking up. I had a scalper looking to buy tickets offer me $500/ea for those right field seats. Nope. Got in early, enjoyed some garlic fries and a a cold beer, and walked to our seats. We quickly figured out why it said "obstructed view". RF foul pole is in the middle of the seat. Not next to it. Not in front of it. IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SEAT. As in, one of us was straddling the pole for 3+ hours. My wife is a trooper. She sat with the right field foul pole in her lap for 9 innings because I thought I may have a chance at catching history. This guy did a post as part of a series on terrible seats about how truly dreadful that seat is. Of course, Bonds goes hits #700 but goes oppo. So, at least I can say I've been at one of just four games where a 700th HR was hit.
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Love this thread!!! I haven't been to a ton, but the top 5 I've been to are: 1) Wrigley 2) Oracle 3) Camden 4) Coors 5) Target And honorable mention to Enron / Minute Maid / Daikin as an Astros homer.
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I've done several of these types of projects with my former business over the years. It can revolutionize the space, but costs can balloon pretty quickly depending on access, how much material you need to bring in and infrastructure / hardscape needs. I have a few landscape architects I can recommend, depending on budget. Feel free to shoot me a DM with details, and I can provide some contact info.
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Seventeen years ago, the morning that my wife was to be induced with our first child, she got up to get some water around 3 AM. I heard her walking back into the bedroom, and she calmly said "there's a snake in our kitchen". I was still half asleep, so I didn't take her seriously. She said, "A real, live snake is in our kitchen. Under the floor mat in front of the sink." Sure enough, about a 2' half-dead ribbon snake was shoved up under the crinkled floor mat, but still alive enough to be agitated. Evidently, our cat found it outside, decided it would make a fantastic gift, brought it in through the doggy door and shoved it under the mat for us. He was sitting proudly nearby, occasionally playing with it and excited that we were there to enjoy his gift. Not a copperhead, but definitely not what I had on my bingo card the day we were going to have our first child. My wife has her flaws like they all do, but she has no issues with critters.
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I'm 45 and can say the same. I've been hunting, fishing, hiking, playing golf, and pretty much living for the outdoors my entire life. I grew up in South Texas, I've lived in a very rural area for the last 20+ years, and I've owned a ranch in the Western Hill Country for the last decade. I've never once come upon a rattlesnake by myself. I've had employees find them in our warehouse. I've been hunting with buddies when they've spotted them. And, I've dispatched a few that others have come upon. But, I've never happened on one in the wild. Copperhead, Coral, and Cottonmouth... yes. All three many times. But, never a Rattler. I figure that means I'll catch one in the calf while dove hunting in the very near future.
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I switched homeowners and auto insurance from Farmers to Chubb in 2022. When I was getting everything set up, my agent was asking me a series of questions. How many miles driven, were the vehicles garage kept, etc. Then he asked "do you drive more than 10,000 miles per year in Harris County?" Before answering, I paused and asked him why that question was on the survey. He said "Because Chubb has a surcharge for drivers in certain geographies. Their data shows that more than 30% of drivers in Harris County are uninsured." Seems like that number would be pretty accurate.
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Pete Rose, Shoeless Joe reinstated by MLB - now eligible for HoF
Spaulding Smails replied to tokamak's topic in Baseball
I'm gonna go out on a limb and say the BBWAA and the HOF create a one-time vote for any of the obviously blackballed players and makes a special category (wing like has been said for so many years) for their induction akin to the Era Committee. Rose, Shoeless Joe, Bonds, Rocket, McGwire, Palmeiro, Sosa, A-Rod, ManRam. -
We've done both hen brooding and putting the eggs in an incubator. We had a broody hen years ago, snagged some fertilized eggs from a friend and let her sit on them until they hatched. They did, and she was no longer broody. Kids were young at that time, and loved the experience. We had a Silkie rooster and a Frizzle hen a while back. Incubated those eggs and ended up with two "Frizzle" hens. Really cool looking bantams. Unfortunately, we had a coyote problem and they were the low hanging fruit. Bottom line is, breeding is easy, natural and cheap with chickens.
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Would love to hear more about the turkeys. Do they roost in the same coop as the chickens? Assuming they free-range, do they wander much? We're about 10 years into chickens. Had two ducks for a while, but it was a pain keeping their little kiddie pool clean, and I'm afraid they'd end up in our swimming pool at the new house. We're considering adding turkeys later this year and/or meat birds. Would love to hear some feedback on the turkeys and the meat-bird situation if anyone does that.
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That was always a rational fear. This was on Lake Medina in the early 2000's, and we always made sure to do it back in Elm Cove where we knew there were no stumps, but I always worried about a log floating just under the surface. I'm 40 lb heavier, 25 years older and that lake has 98% less water now, so no chance I'd do it there or anywhere else for that matter.
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I've done it a hand full of times starting off a wake skate on my ass with behind a tow rope, and I needed to be right at 40 mph. I'd pull my buddy who was 5'6" 140 lb at right around 37 mph. Lots of fun until you fall.
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There's still a surprisingly significant amount of Orangeburg pipe around Austin. It was used commonly right around WWII when iron was at a premium and before PVC became the mainstay. @Armybrat those tunnelling / excavation jobs are no fun. There's a reason we sub out the excavation and just do the plumbing ourselves. Those guys make great money, but that's some hard ass work. We just finished a commercial tunnelling job that had two 4-man crews working for three weeks straight. Belly crawling with shovels and jackhammers pulling material out one bucket at a time. No thank you. [sales pitch] if anyone on the board in the Austin area ever has any drain issues, shoot me a PM. I have a drain specialist on staff with a badass Ridgid sewer camera. I'll run that thing for free for you. That thing helps a ton at identifying the location and diagnosing the problem. She's a journeywoman plumber, knows her stuff and is great with steering the conversation for insurance purposes as well. Lots of other companies will make you sign an open-ended contract and charge you for the exploration. We know exactly where the blockage / breakage / sag is and can typically cut down on the overall cost with that degree of accuracy and precision in the location. It's loud and costly, but much better than a hole in the middle of your living room floor. [end sales pitch]
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Regional Dishes/Drinks of Texas
Spaulding Smails replied to GreenspointTexas's topic in Food and Travel
Just thought of another one I hardly see out from behind the Pine Curtain, let alone outside of Texas / Louisiana. Mayhaw Jelly. My absolute favorite. Love it on a hot, fresh sourdough biscuit. My wife's aunt has a pint or two for me every time we go visit the farm. -
Regional Dishes/Drinks of Texas
Spaulding Smails replied to GreenspointTexas's topic in Food and Travel
We always called these Sport Peppers. Knew my wife was a keeper when she had those on the little bistro table in her kitchen when we started dating. I'm also a big fan of Chile Pequins in a vinegar sauce. Back before my big plant froze, I'd pick a ton in the late summer, jam them down in an old Crystal hot sauce jar, add vinegar until full, and pop the lid back on. Awesome on stuff like green beans and Texas hash. -
What, if anything are you doing to keep the hole plumb / square? Looks like you're doing a good job maintaining dimension, but are you doing anything to keep everything straight? Does it even matter?
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Total green depth.
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Where are you located? Depending on budget, you may be better off finding a decent set of used "game improvement" irons. I think for the value, they'll be better than an off-brand at Academy or Dick's. You may even want to go to PGA Superstore to hit some demo clubs. Figure out your swing speed and something that feels right, then try to find them used on FB Marketplace or some place like Play It Again Sports. Just my two cents.
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10 months post TJ surgery, my son got back on the bump against live batters for the first time yesterday. Just 3 batters. I didn't see it, but he said it was a mixed bag. He struggled with control, but his arm felt good. He's slated to pitch Tuesday (20 pitch max) on JV. He's worked hard during recovery and followed a pretty dialed in protocol. Big improvement in core and leg strength over that timeframe. Got a really good pitching coach with experience in TJ rehab and a good grasp of biomechanics, so his delivery is way more consistent and repeatable. I think he's in a better, healthier, more disciplined spot than he was prior to injury. We're really trying to keep him from overdoing it, but he's 17 and pushing the envelope.
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I was digging through some old keepsakes that my parents gave me when they recently moved. Found my first little league picture. American Little League tee ball in Corpus Christi circa 1986. I was the only gringo on the team. We were the Yankees. We had yellow and white shirts emblazoned with "Yankees" in script across the front and a yellow hat with "American" across the front. This was complemented by blue jeans since we couldn't afford baseball pants. Nothing about our uniform resembled the Bronx Bombers. The league, my team, my family couldn't afford baseball pants let alone the full licensed apparel. Kind of funny to show to my son after spending the last several years playing select ball with multiple uniforms for every team.
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I watched this in its entirety a few years ago. And again this morning. Thanks for posting. Like @TwiceHorn said, these genre-bending things bring me so much joy. THIS is the kind of stuff that I love about our country. There's a great book called Mexifornia by Victor Davis Hanson. I talks to the historical significance of assimilation in California and the thin line between keeping national pride and heritage and insulating yourself against outside influence to the point of boxing yourself into a corner as an ethnic community. But, these Mississippi Chinese examples and my Sri Lankan buddy are shining examples of our melting pot country. Now back to the LULZ pics and vids!
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I'm buddies with a Sri Lankan guy that grew up in Lafayette. Not super thick, but the Cajun accent is there. Loves to duck hunt, deer hunt and fish. Always has a lip full of Copenhagen. Freaks people out when they've spoken to him over the phone and meet him in person.
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I have a golf rangefinder that I have on long-term loan. Played in a golf tournament at least two years ago. Invited by a buddy. He put together a team last minute. I kind of knew the third guy but had never met the fourth. Fourth guy was from Houston. He left right after golf and left his rangefinder in his cart. We found it after he left. I was headed to Houston the next week for work, so I volunteered to sync up with him. Got his number from the third guy. Texted him when I was on the way, and he never responded. Tried to reach out to him on two other occasions when I was headed to Houston. I even verified the number was correct. Zero replies. Nada. Hence the long-term loan situation.
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Man, that really sucks. With the additional context, I say.... screw those guys. Go full no-lube on them. Six months and you got that?!?! When I first replied, I figured you had a trim carpenter do it for $500 or something over a few days without any shop drawings. Or maybe it was a relative or buddy. But, $1,250 and six months!?!? I'd ask for a full refund or replacement. That's blasphemy. I owned a high-end luxury remodeling company for 12+ years with our own in-house millwork / cabinetry shop. We cranked out some awesome stuff. What you got was a DIY hack-job that I bit my lip about because I was trying to be nice. If someone who claims to be anywhere near a cabinet shop sold you that, I'd be demanding a refund.
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