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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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May 11, 2014 - 09:29pm PT
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Not peeking ducks and not on the pond, but the creek. Small floating, flying wood ducky objects. Plumage is nice, eh?Moving is for the birds. Too metamorphic. I'm more sedentary with a touch of igneous.
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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May 12, 2014 - 11:40pm PT
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Grown-ups love it, too![Click to View YouTube Video]
BBST, BTW.
[Click to View YouTube Video]Hump de bump doop bodu
Bump de hump doop bap
Hump de bump doop bodu
Bump de hump doop bodu
Hump de bump doop bap
Bump de hump doop bodu
Bump bump
-RHCP
Wide awake now?
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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May 13, 2014 - 10:31am PT
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For old Gene...up and at 'em, buddy!
Out for breakfast. These little birds are really tough to photograph in the date palms.
Bike racers among the date palms are a different kettle of metaphor.
For SCSeaGoat, wherever you're roaming now. Travel safely.
And the mice still are all over the place, neebee.These two are in the jasmine at the base of my reading lamp/quartz garden. One is next to a piece of rock from Bagby, the other is on a piece of obsidian from someplace. And there is a chunk of Tahquitz granite sitting there, as well.
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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May 13, 2014 - 12:45pm PT
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hey there say, mouse... wow, happy to see and hear from you ... been a bit worried, but then, i REMEMBERED you had to use a library computer...
neat ducks, i love the way those ducks, SEEM to be painted, :)
say, great good morning sunrise, too!!
hope all your buddies are well there... and all the 12-to do friends, as well...
i STILL have fletcher's cookie cutter mouse to send, that my cat ate...
it will get there... just things were odd, of course, when my daddy was ill and died, :(
finally am getting caught up with things left on hold, here...
awwwwwww, i love seeing those mice all over the place... makes a house feel cozy, :) oh, wait, i think that is cats, that do that.... ;))
mice, keep a house BUSY, :)) you never know where they are running around at, :)
we got rain here... will be a non-sunny type summer, too, from the way the weather-computer-calendar looks...
say, i AM adding the gourds and color to the back of the painting but it is near done and i can even mail it after the weekend... but i will instead wait until the first week of june, as, i am at the 'scrape the bottom of the barrle' now, due to buying other canvas, etc... and,
a few things for my grandson, to send him...
so--this gives you time to 'hopefully' ask a few folks where she may be, for her to get the artwork... you don't have to tell what kind, just keep that part a surprise... i sure hope she will love it and that it will be a nice memory in her live, :)
welll,back to chores... finally cleaned the house and basement, wow!!
the ol' shed robin, has NOT nested this year, :(
i sure miss her and him... but, at least they, or other robins, ARE hopping in and out of the yard...
and,a scarlet tananger and her him, ARE nesting way out on the end of the ol' oak tree... great to see them!
a bit of sunshine, :))
happy good warm and productive day, to you mouse friend!
edit:
wow, love jasmine and rocks and the mice look great there!!!
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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May 13, 2014 - 12:53pm PT
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hey there say, ... wow, just saw feralfae here...
yes, as to the the lovely mother's day flower, ...i just SAW THEM TOO, :))
very lovely share, thank you from us moms!
and, lostinshanghai, wow, loved seeing that nice mahjong... i love playing mahjong... not as highly skilled as the chinese, of course, or the serious players, as, i just had the step grandkids around to play with, and we just go for simple hands... :))
now, no one wants to play, as, they do not come around, they moved too far near out of town... and mahjong is not a game for those without patience, :))
OH--i meant that more in the way of setting it up...
the game can go quite fast, for those that get into it, :))
unless you go all 16 rounds, :O
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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May 13, 2014 - 03:33pm PT
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I like to play M-J on my computer. Dragon is my best set-up, and I'm making progress in winning more on the Fortress and the dreaded Cat!
There is a beauty of an antique M-J set over in the county courthouse museum, and BTW, I have my own computer back and don't need to rely on the library, shaddokiddo.
I'm glad the rest of the birds are showing up. It's dry as summer here already and predictions of 103 for this week have everyone a-scared and flapping like chickens, you'd think they lived in tropic paradise, not a desert with terrible air. Some people, mostly commuters, never stop to look at flowers or at bees or much of anything but their phones and bank accounts.
Purple flower, regular old giant bee, not a Lilabiene.
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zBrown
Ice climber
Brujo de la Playa
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May 13, 2014 - 03:57pm PT
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Well, nothing ain't worth nothing, unless it's free. The suits got slightly confused, it was supposed to be "FREE CHEECH".
Howhigh is your consciousness? Does it suffer gridlock? Oh man, I Kant even talk about it.
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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May 13, 2014 - 06:09pm PT
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Can't say if Mr. Travis ever heard of Kant, but I think he knows Emmanuel.
Lots of olive orchards out this way, but more by far of almonds.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
I nearly put this article, which was on the front page of the Merced paper today, in the thread about the drought. There's nothing to be done, short of saving water...of which we are short...except simply to get on with it and mud-puddle through.
http://www.sacbee.com/2014/05/11/6395024/california-almond-farmers-lured.html
PATTERSON -- This town calls itself the “Apricot Capital of the World,” but the slogan is out of date. Nowadays, it’s almond orchards that dominate the landscape in this part of Stanislaus County, along with much of the rest of the San Joaquin Valley.
Almonds have become California’s miracle food. Growing consumer demand has driven up prices and created a profitable $4 billion-a-year crop. In dollar terms, almonds are California’s leading agricultural export, leaving the state’s exalted wineries in the dust. In response, farmers have planted hundreds of thousands of acres of new trees in the past 20 years.
Drought, however, has brought big problems to the almond industry, perhaps more than any other segment of California agriculture.
Almonds and other permanent crops require more water than most row crops. What’s more, almond orchards can’t be idled in a dry year like tomato or cotton fields. Farmers who planted almond trees in recent years have tens of millions of dollars at risk, and find themselves sacrificing other crops in a furious effort to keep their orchards alive. This year’s crop is expected to decline, although it’s not known by how much.
“This crop is one of the more vulnerable ones to the drought,” said California farm economist Vernon Crowder. “Almonds are the big one.”
The plight of California’s almond growers has economic implications across the state. Almonds are California’s third largest farm product, and processors such as Sacramento’s giant Blue Diamond Growers are crossing their fingers and hoping for a decent crop. There’s a political component as well: The drought has intensified century-old rivalries over how water is allocated in California, and the explosion in almond farming has given rise to complaints about overuse.
Some environmentalists say almond farmers and their expanded orchards have contributed mightily to the overtaxing of the state’s fragile water system. They say growers have behaved recklessly by planting permanent crops in areas of the state, particularly south of the Delta, where water supplies are unreliable.
Growers counter that they’re making rational business decisions by devoting their scarce water resources to a high-revenue crop. That’s why growers such as Daniel Bays, who raises almonds on 600 acres in Patterson and nearby Westley, are continuing to plant new orchards even as water shortages persist.
“Yes, it’s a drought year, but we’re trying to plan long term,” said Bays as he surveyed a new field of trees planted near Patterson. “These things go in a cycle. If we held off every time there’s a drought, and didn’t plant ... we’d go out of business.” New almond trees require considerably less water than mature trees, he added.
The growth of almond farming in California has been a quiet revolution. Production in the state, which controls 80 percent of the world’s supply, has nearly tripled in 15 years. California almonds are widely used by food processors in candy, cereal and other products. They’ve also become popular snack foods in Western Europe, China, India and other growing markets; exports have risen 40 percent in three years. Although there have been some ups and downs, prices paid to growers exceed $3 a pound, almost double the price of a decade ago.
“This market, this crop, has not slowed down for 20 or 30 years,” said Crowder, a senior vice president with agricultural lender Rabobank. “You’ve just seen demand skyrocket.”
One of the most visible symbols of the industry’s prosperity is Blue Diamond. The 104-year-old grower-owned cooperative has become a marketing powerhouse in recent years, pushing annual sales from $750 million in 2010 to an expected $1.5 billion this year. Blue Diamond advertises on “Sunday Night Football” and was the “official snack nut” of the U.S. ski and snowboarding teams during the Winter Olympics. In four years, sales of Almond Breeze, the company’s milk alternative for the lactose intolerant, jumped nearly tenfold to $265 million.
A big factor in Blue Diamond’s growth: the nuts’ reputation for high nutritional value.
“Anything with almonds carries the healthy halo,” said Mark Jansen, chief executive at the Sacramento company.
Backed into a corner
As summer approaches, Blue Diamond is watching the crop forecasts as closely as anyone. Jansen said he believes the company can procure “a pretty good supply” this year. But he acknowledged it will be tough for California growers to match last year’s crop.
“The water supply will impact the yields, probably even the size of the almonds,” Jansen said.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture has estimated the crop could decline 2.5 percent, to just under 2 billion pounds. But experts say it’s too early to say how production will fare. Crowder said he’s heard predictions that yields could drop as much as 20 percent. The harvest begins in August.
The industry’s problems are partly a function of geography. Because of its attractive soil and climate, the San Joaquin Valley is home to nearly 90 percent of the state’s almond crop. Yet that’s where the water shortages are most severe, especially on the west side of the Valley. Growers can pump groundwater to supplement their meager supplies, but groundwater south of the Delta is fairly salty. That’s bad for most crops, and it’s especially bad for almonds.
On top of that, mature almond trees crave water. They need around 4 acre-feet of water per year, or 1.3 million gallons. That’s almost twice as much as grapes.
The result is an industry backed into a corner. There have been scattered reports of growers ripping out older, less-productive orchards to save water. David Doll, a farm adviser at UC Cooperative Extension in Merced, said he thinks more trees will be removed this fall, after the harvest is done and farmers get a better sense of the water picture.
Of the 6,300 almond growers in California, most will find a way to produce a crop this year, Doll said. But if 2015 is as dry as 2014, the problems will deepen.
“I think a lot of guys will find ways to squeak by (this year),” Doll said. “If we go into another year of drought, I think the seams will probably begin to pop.”
That would be fine with Carolee Krieger, president of the California Water Impact Network. She and her environmental organization are among the plaintiffs in a lawsuit, pending in Sacramento Superior Court, charging that state officials and agricultural interests have teamed up to illegally steer a disproportionate volume of California water to farms over the past 20 years. This favoring of farms has added to the stress on the Delta, the lawsuit says.
In Krieger’s view, farmers have contributed to the state’s water woes by planting trees in areas of the state where water supplies are increasingly unreliable.
“In our camp, there’s absolutely no sympathy for them,” Krieger said. “They planted the permanent crops knowing that, in a drought, they could get their water cut off.”
‘In it for the long haul’
Farmers see it differently. They say California’s water troubles are a manufactured crisis, brought on by state and federal officials diverting too much water to protect endangered fish species.
As for the expansion of the almond orchards, growers say it’s a simple matter of economics: It makes far more sense to pour water on a high-revenue crop, such as almonds, than on cotton or some other low-value product.
“They’re planting a crop that makes money; farmers have been doing that from the very beginning,” Doll said. “I don’t think these guys are planting almonds ... because they want to use all the water.”
Besides, farmers say no one could have predicted a year as dry as this one. In recent years, many farmers on the west side of the San Joaquin Valley have been making do with smaller allotments of water from the federal government’s delivery system, the Central Valley Project, in part to ease the environmental stress on the Delta. This year, Bays and other growers who depend on the CVP have been told they’ll get no federal water.
“This is the first time we’ve ever had a zero allocation,” Bays said.
Drought is a constant in Bays’ world. His family’s main ranch near Westley is straddled by the California Aqueduct and the Delta-Mendota Canal, two of the main arteries of California’s struggling man-made plumbing system. A third-generation grower, Bays, 27, oversees a total of nearly 1,500 acres of land devoted to almonds, apricots, tomatoes and other crops.
Despite the zero allocation of government water, the Bays’ ranch has other sources, including groundwater. All told, Bays said his water supply is about 30 percent smaller than last year’s.
That’s forcing him to scramble. The ranch has purchased some water on the open market, spending as much as $800 an acre-foot. That’s about 10 times the cost of Central Valley Project water. Despite higher water costs, almonds are so valuable that Bays believes he can still turn a profit on this year’s crop.
Bays is conserving water, too. He plans to tear out some older, less productive apricot trees after the June harvest and is likely to leave that land fallow for the balance of the year.
Even as he retrenches, Bays is looking ahead. That’s why he just planted 25 acres of almonds on land that grew melons last year and tomatoes the year before. The new trees, barely shoulder high, represent a $250,000 investment, including new irrigation systems. The orchard won’t sprout any almonds for another three or four years, and probably won’t turn profitable for another three years after that.
“It’s not something you just jump into and jump out of,” Bays said of the decision to plant.
He said the new orchard represents an appropriate use of water.
“We’re trying to be the best stewards of what we have,” he said. “We’re in it for the long haul. My grandfather has been here, my dad’s been here, I’m here.
“You look at an almond orchard, it’s a long-term investment,” he added. “These trees, we figure, have a life of 25, 30 years.”
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LilaBiene
Trad climber
Technically...the spawning grounds of Yosemite
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May 13, 2014 - 07:02pm PT
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Hi Mouse!
Hello & hugs from the muppet and me -- happy Spring!
Headed down to the Gunks for "new seconds" weekend on Friday...WOOHOO!!!!!
Hope all is well and the muppet is already asking how many more days until California and when do we get to see Mouse again?
:D
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zBrown
Ice climber
Brujo de la Playa
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May 13, 2014 - 07:03pm PT
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One thing I have observed about almonds is that even when there is a glut of them on the market, the price never goes down. It seems to be the same with beer. Say, what about ...
FREE CHICO
This is what they always serve at N&TT's house (I've heard).
Another thing that I have observed is all these things that they've (you know who they are or at least who they are not)say are good for you keep turning up not to be (dark chocolate, red wine (resveratro)), but once something turns up on the bad for you list, it can never get off.
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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May 13, 2014 - 07:48pm PT
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hey there say, mouse... wow, thanks for the share on the almonds...
wow, say, my mom is from ohio... she's lived in calif since the early 60's and she is so wise:
calif is desert country... plant for desert, and add just a few
things that you can afford to lose... she'd do a few tomatoes, and a few flowers, but she is mainly--do what the land wants...
ahhhhh, moms... good solid advice... so here i am, now, out here, and, well,
i am planting michigan weeds, ;))
and--
loving it! :)
besides, tomatoes do not grow in the shade here, :))
and i got LOTS of it, :)
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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May 13, 2014 - 08:50pm PT
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I'm not surprised neebee, that you like to play with shadows, in that case. Your "beady-eyed neebee bird" was an eye-opener over on the Birds thread, too.
It's odd, but the last few days I have been taking more time looking at Boomer's picture which you made for me...thanks yet again.
I never noticed before, but there's a mouse in Boomer's pocket looking at the hearts by the river!
Art, the gift which keeps on giving.
Beef, it's what's for dinner.
Powdermilk Biscuits, heavens they're tasty...and expeditious.
[Click to View YouTube Video]This is one of the shows you like to hear when you're driving home from the crag or the beach or from work.
And then you sit in the driveway listening for another twenty minutes after you arrive home...
neebee, if you haven't listened to this weekly show on Public Radio, you might like it.
One for the trail by the house band, called The Guys All-Star Shoe Band.
[Click to View YouTube Video]Pat Donohue commands great respect, IMO.
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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May 13, 2014 - 09:01pm PT
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hey there say, mouse...
yep, that mouse is you, in boomer's pocket, as if WATCHING him 'shoot the moon' in the game of hearts... did you see the queen of spades there, too??
:)
say, i have faster net now, so i will try this song...
i STILL have slow warped sound issues at time and i have to pause everything , so it will work, sound-wise...
ALSO-- you have the golf tee, with you... and the HAT from the book store that you wore once...
and did you know that the clouds are fish??
boomer loved to fish...
and: the moon, IS a golf ball???
i tried to keep this very subtle, so the painting would still like real scenery...
and--that is the yosemite chapel in there too...
and of course the oaks and silhouette that you always enjoyed..
(from your post, wayyyyy back, as to boomer)...
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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May 14, 2014 - 12:51am PT
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"Man On The Moon"
[Click to View YouTube Video]
Mott the Hoople and the game of Life yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Andy Kaufman in the wrestling match yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Monopoly, Twenty one, checkers, and chess yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Mister Fred Blassie in a breakfast mess yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Let's play Twister, let's play Risk yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
I'll see you heaven if you make the list yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Now, Andy did you hear about this one?
Tell me, are you locked in the punch?
Andy are you goofing on Elvis? Hey, baby
Are we losing touch?
If you believed they put a man on the moon
Man on the moon
If you believe there's nothing up his sleeve
Then nothing is cool
Moses went walking with the staff of wood yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Newton got beaned by the apple good yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Egypt was troubled by the horrible asp yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Mister Charles Darwin had the gall to ask yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Now, Andy did you hear about this one?
Tell me, are you locked in the punch?
Andy are you goofing on Elvis? Hey, baby
Are you having fun?
If you believed they put a man on the moon
Man on the moon
If you believe there's nothing up his sleeve
Then nothing is cool
Here's a little agit for the never-believer yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Here's a little ghost for the offering yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Here's a truck stop instead of Saint Peter's yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Mister Andy Kaufman's gone wrestling yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah
Now, Andy did you hear about this one?
Tell me, are you locked in the punch?
Andy are you goofing on Elvis? Hey, baby
Are we losing touch?
If you believed they put a man on the moon
Man on the moon
If you believe there's nothing up his sleeve
Then nothing is cool
Which makes it uncool.
[Click to View YouTube Video]
"Brouhaha or brujojo? It's your choice."--Elvis M. Personhater
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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May 14, 2014 - 10:14am PT
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Begin your commutes, suckahs!
Solar emergence to the south of Gray Peak.
Don't forget the sunscreen. (And remember, don't use a brand that may be "bad for you.") It's predicted to hit 97 here today, 101 mañana.
A PUBLIC SERVICE REMINDER
On May 12, yesterday, Yosemite Area Rapid Transit System changed their schedules. The new schedules will be effective until September 28, this fall. Here is the link.
http://www.yarts.com/schedule/2014/Hwy%20140%20Summer%202014%20Mer%20to%20Yos%200421.pdf
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neebee
Social climber
calif/texas
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May 15, 2014 - 10:44pm PT
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hey there say, mouse... here she is... will pack this up and mail it...
my friends lent me the money, i will pay them back, in june...
i will email, just when it goes out...
hope you all can find the gal and give it to her...
:)
edit:
say, mouse, loved that large-group musical performance, :)
spunky! and spiffy!
:)
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mouse from merced
Trad climber
The finger of fate, my friends, is fickle.
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May 15, 2014 - 11:27pm PT
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Thanks, neebee.
Just like the State of California is trying to burn up,
I'll bet she will turn up.
As fire season kicks in, a couple of shots from last summer.
And let's not forget Idaho's and Idawide's grim smoke fests.
Spirit stoves! Yumpin' Yiminy what a stupid idea. Hunters with matches, another stupid idea.
Goin' out to all the Polish cowpokes.[Click to View YouTube Video]"Two bowls of chili and you'll feel sweller..."
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