Whats Ticking Out There

The other day I was hiking at the end of Elk Lane to place a cache. I was out there about 20 minutes and one of the little buggers go me.
The funny part was I was on a 15 feet wide dirt road almost the hole time.
I walked through a about a 50 foot wooded area, and that must of when it got me.
I have lived in Oregon about 40 years now,(boy thats a long time) and up till last year, I think I have only had about 2 tick bite me.
Last year, 2007, I got bit 4 times, and here it is February and I have 1 bit already.
Age must be making me sweeter, LOL.
Snow or rain or sun it doesn't matter, the littles things seem to get me.
I looked up ticks on wikiendia to see what was ticking.
It seem the more deer there is the more ticks there is, we need to hunt more deer, I guess.
And of course the more deer, the more ticks and more Rock Mt. Fever and Lyme disease show up in areas with high deer counts.
The Animal Rights people, got fool with this one.
So I copied and pasted the does and don't of tick removing.

I have to say I learn something by reading this.
What are parents and grand parents told use may not have been right.
The does in Green.
The don't in Red.

Removal

To remove a tick use a small set of tweezers: grab the head, pulling slowly and steadily.[6]. There are a number of manufacturers that have produced tweezers specifically for tick removal. Crushing or irritating the tick (by heat or chemicals) should be avoided, because these methods may cause it to regurgitate its stomach contents into the skin, increasing the possibility of infection of the host.[7] Tiny larval ticks can usually be removed using a special tick remover [8]. Lyme disease found in deer ticks cannot be transmitted once the body is removed even if the mouth parts break off and are still in the skin. Prompt removal is important; infection generally takes an extended period of time, over 24 hours for Lyme disease.

The rostrum of a tick (the mouth-parts that are planted in the skin) is fully covered with spikes that are implanted backwards. If you pull upon the tick, these spikes will rise and the "head" of the tick will break and stay in the skin, causing pain and infection. On the other hand, if you turn the body of the tick (like unscrewing), the spikes will fold into the axis of rotation, and the head will detach easily.( was told to turn counter cockwise,LOL)

It is essential not to compress the abdomen of a tick during the removal, to minimize the risk of saliva back-flow; this back-flow into the skin can lead to allergic manifestations and to transmission of tick-borne microorganisms. Tweezers and other similar instruments exert a pressure on the digestive tract of the tick

Tick hooks are effectives tools designed to remove ticks from the skin of animals and people, without leaving the mouth-parts of the tick planted in the skin, without compressing the abdomen of the ticks, minimizing the transfer of infectious agents (Lyme's disease, babesiosis...) [9]

An alternative method used by fishermen, which does not risk squeezing the tick's thorax, uses 18 inches of fine weight fishing line. The line is tied in a simple overhand knot that is tightened slowly around the tick's head. If the line is pressed against the skin while being gently pulled, the knot will tighten around the tick's head. Slowly pulling the ends of the line will then dislodge the tick from the bite site with a reduced chance of leaving the head attached. This method also works with sewing thread.

It is commonly claimed that petroleum jelly placed on the tick will clogs the animal's breathing passages and cause it to de-attach itself. However, many medical authorities advise against this and other "smothering" approaches as ticks only breathe a few times per hour and feeding may thus continue for some time, and because these approaches may irritate the tick to the point of regurgitation of bacteria into the bloodstream.[10];[11];[12];[13];[14]

As stated in information about ether's Anesthetic use [15]
"Ether may be used to anesthetize ticks before removing them from an animal or a person's body. The anesthesia relaxes the tick and prevents it from maintaining its mouthpart under the skin."

Jonathan The Seagull

As you see Jonathan of the famed Jonthan Livingston, the high flying, high speed seagull.
These days He hangs out at the Oregon cost in Brookings.
He keeps and eye on the cost for me.
When I need information about the waves and the diving condition in Brookings area He fly up and set by the web cam.
He uses winking codes.
One wink= its ok.
Two winks= its raining.
Three winks= its bad, and don't come.
Four winks= bring food on the next trip over.
And if He shakes head really fast its really bad weather. Jonathan watch Brookings, OR.

Jonathan Livingston seagull

To Day Is Iwo Jima day

February 19, 1945 8:59 AM
This is the day and time that the first Marine landed on Iwo Jima island.
This is the place that would change how the war between Japan and USA would turn out.
It was all for the air strip, either for the Japanese to be able to bomb the U.S. or for the U.S. to be able to bomb Japan. The planes of the time could only carrier so much fuel.
At this point, it didn't matter, it was a fight to the death for the Japanese .
For the U.S. it was a means to the end of all the fighting.
When it was all done, almost 7,000 solders had died.
There was an estment of 15,000 deaths, before it started.
The Japanese had lost 21,000 solders, with only 1,000 surrendering.

On February 23, the Flag Raisers made it to the top of Mount Suribachi and raised the US flag. This actionly was the 2nd flag raised, but the first, was so small that it could not be seen, so they raise a bigger flag.
When this flag was raised the hole island, all eight square miles, as will as the ships off the cost started yelling and blowing there horns.
It took another two months to fully take the island, before the air strip could be used.
Three of the men from the group of the Flag Raisers came back the USA to help raise money for the war, trying to get people to buy US saving bonds.
It must of been costly to fight a war on two fronts. Or two wars.
Sometime I think I/we fore get the price that was paid for the freedom we have.
When I see, on the News the troubles in other places, I'm so glade that I live in this really, really free land.
I am truly blessed to be born into a country, such as ours, when God could have place me any place in the world. :)

A Bugs World

Monday AM, I pick up Mike and we drove to the Tomb stone query in Merlin.
Mike found it interesting.
Then I run home to got something to eat, drove to meet Paul and we rode the mountain bikes on a lope of about 12.3 miles, starting on Highland Avenue over Merlin Hill into the Merlin interchange and up to Plum Tree road.
This is and odd road to ride on, because as you turn onto Plum Tree road your looking up this about 1 1/2 straight away. Will it, looks like you are going to be going up hill the hole time.
So your brain kicks in and you start pedaling harder, for about the first quarter of a mile and then you find its actual is getting easier to pedal.
One of these costing up hill phenomenas.
I found myself almost running into the back of Paul's bike before I slowed down.
This is also a funny road, because you start out on Plum Tree and when you cross the rail road tracks the road changes to Pine Crest road.
We road down Pine Crest to Upper River Road back to Paul's house.
12.3 mile in 63 minutes is what Paul's meter said, My said 11.7 in 63 minutes.
We'll go by Paul meter, for recorder keeping purposes.

So on the way home I stopped by and pick up this cache rear this bug art.

He looks like a cricket or maybe Jimmy Cricket. Must be and cricket, because crickets make music with there legs
and grass hoppers only make noise.
Anyways He's all made of steel.
This is a new location for this guy. He's been on the same block for about 4 years that I can remember.

Will I better Hope to it. LOL

TFT 5 Times

Friday morning I took the day off and went out caching to see if I could better my number of FTF(first to find).
So here the list of finds in the order that I found them:
1. Submerge time of 9:45AM beat the next cacher by 15 minutes.
2. West of Eden time of 10:05AM about 10 minutes ahead now.
3. A Real Gem time of 10:20AM about 2 minutes ahead now.
4. TREEFALL DOWN time of 10:25AM, placed 1/11/08.
5. LIGHTNING BALL time of 11:20AM, place 1/11/08.
Five FTF in one day, a new record.
Duck was close behind me on the first three finds, the last to were way out there so no one had taken the time to go after them, mostly because of the snow we had.

I pick-up a hard to find one in the Glendal area on the way back.
Lots of no finds on this one.
Deer Pond
Funny thing, was that I found the cache laying out in the open, so I don't know why, no one could find it??
Should become more active, now that someone can show that it can be found.
About a year ago I started after this one, it was dark and the CV joint started knocking on the old car and I had another .6 tenth of a mile to go on this dirt muddy road so I turn around while I could still go home on my own power.
HoodY
As it turn out today, it was not much different, still could not drive to it.
It was about noon, but the road was muddy at first and then turn into lots of muddy snow.
Not to bad, but there was a wood cutter park in the middle of the road, couldn't go around either side.
There I seat at 1/4 mile by GPS and about 1/2 by walk.
So I walked up and found it quickly, the place is on a saddle between Glendal and Wolf Creek.
All in all, 9 hunts and 9 finds and great day caching, and got home by 2.
You can crick on the cache names, there are all links to the cache page.

Book Report Time, Star Trek

Star Trek, strange new worlds.
This book was but together, by a short story writing contest.
So the stories are about about 30 to 40 pages long and each one is different.
These people who write for this type of thing are what you would call Treker.
They live and breath the star trek stuff day and night.
I did not think it was all the good of reading material but I started it so I had had to find it.
I was staying at the Holiday Inn in Portland many years ago and the day I was checking out, all these people were checking in for the next day Star Trek Even.
Lots of people dress up like character from the movies and tv programs.
Pretty funny look to me.
Glad I was leaving.

The Great Tod

Here a change to meet our family scuba instructor. He taught pretty much the hold family. In July of 06 I signed up Me, Rochelle and Daniel and then I talk to Randy and He signed up with John P. and Then I talk to Paul and Robyn and they signed up so the hole class was our class. So here a picture of out instructor.