"Carl's Lounge" (Off-Topic Discussion, Traditional Knife "Tales & Vignettes")

5K Qs said:
This is a waterfowl identification request. What kind of ducks (or non-ducks) are these? Every morning, I see 2-8 of them right outside the dining room window of the cottage we're renting on Lake Huron. They're not very big (probably 1/4 to 1/2 the size of a mallard), they're constantly diving under water, usually stay under from 15-30 seconds, and come up somewhere from 10 to 30 feet away from where they dived, so they swim under water. Can anyone identify them for me?
(I've looked in a bird book we have, and the closest thing I see is a "juvenile pie-billed grebe", but I've never seen anything like mature versions.)
View attachment 2648008

- GT
Click to expand...
I think your guess is probably correct? (Or black mamba black mamba answer - some sort of Grebe, which I read after I posted)
 
5K Qs said:
This is a waterfowl identification request. What kind of ducks (or non-ducks) are these? Every morning, I see 2-8 of them right outside the dining room window of the cottage we're renting on Lake Huron. They're not very big (probably 1/4 to 1/2 the size of a mallard), they're constantly diving under water, usually stay under from 15-30 seconds, and come up somewhere from 10 to 30 feet away from where they dived, so they swim under water. Can anyone identify them for me?
(I've looked in a bird book we have, and the closest thing I see is a "juvenile pie-billed grebe", but I've never seen anything like mature versions.)
View attachment 2648008

- GT
Click to expand...

Looks like a grebe, quick google would suggest you’re on the money with the species.
 
Alex.Y. said:
Why would they need it back I wonder? Maybe it is golden underneath or something?..
Click to expand...
Because that's how Swisses are...
Parents were living 2km from the Geneva border and had Swiss "friends" who one day sold theyr 500Topolino. I was interested for my wife. The answer was "sorry mate, it has to go to a Swiss owner..."
Mind you, these persons are living year long this side of the border...
And don't speak of dissensions between French and German speakin'...
Weirdos, man true weirdos...
 
I am pleased to report that today's pre-weedwack poo patrol was 100% successful and there were no excremental blasts during the whacking. Helps that the weeds are thinner towards the end of summer and the effluvium is not as hard to see.
Carry on.
 
5K Qs said:
This is a waterfowl identification request. What kind of ducks (or non-ducks) are these? Every morning, I see 2-8 of them right outside the dining room window of the cottage we're renting on Lake Huron. They're not very big (probably 1/4 to 1/2 the size of a mallard), they're constantly diving under water, usually stay under from 15-30 seconds, and come up somewhere from 10 to 30 feet away from where they dived, so they swim under water. Can anyone identify them for me?
(I've looked in a bird book we have, and the closest thing I see is a "juvenile pie-billed grebe", but I've never seen anything like mature versions.)
View attachment 2648008

- GT
Click to expand...
Grebes are fascinating Gary, the first time I witnessed their courtship ritual I thought I was hallucinating! 😁
 
We've been really busy the last couple days. Thursday night, a freak storm hit this small area, and dumped 8-9" of rain in two hours. There's a stream that runs across the back & down the side of my property, and there's a bend in the stream at my neighbours house behind me. A flash flood washed away the curve in the stream at his house, and his garage & shed and everything inside just disappeared. His new Subaru washed downstream & was trapped banging against the concrete bridge on the main road beside my house. It then went under the bridge & wiped out a bridge farther down on my other neighbour's property.

Meanwhile, rocks twice the size of 5 gallon buckets are washing into my lower back yard, because the creek bank was gone, and the water, rocks, debris were washing through my yard, and across all the neighbours yards across the road. The water was 6-8" deep and roaring through our yards at one point Thursday night.

Friday morning at daybreak, everybody in the general area showed up. There were two dump trucks, two large front end loaders, I don't know how many tractors, back hoes, and skid loaders here to help. The largest front end loaders and back hoes spent until 5PM moving rocks & dirt from my back yard to the original stream bank to stop the water from washing across our yards. It took all day yesterday & today to get the lane beside my house fully open, it leads back to four neighbour's houses who live back the lane behind me.

I have a three bay pole building & the flood bent in the lower parts of the garage doors, and washed tons of stone & shale inside, surrounding our vehicles, lawn tractor, outdoor equip, etc. A couple guys with front end loaders worked & got my pickup free yesterday, and they got my wife's Jeep out today. Then they got all the rocks out, and leveled it out inside & in front of the building. It's usable again.

Everybody's basements flooded. Ours wasn't too bad, and the refrigerator, freezer, table saw, tools, etc all survived, but there's a bunch of mud to clean out. My son & some of his friends came up & got most of the mud cleaned out today. We're still drying it out with large fans, but can manage from here.

There's a large Amish community that's been moving up here into the mountains the past decade or so. I think every one of them has a new Kubota tractor, or a skid loader. They were all here yesterday working from sunup to sundown & some came back today to help with cleanup. Good people!

The main road out front of our house is open, but secondary the road, which is the back way into town is closed, because two bridges are washed out in the two mile stretch, and the road is washed out about 1/4 mile back from out house, beside the creek & the guard rails are just hanging in midair over the creek. The guy from PA DOT said it'll be months before the road is repaired, and it might just be closed permanently.

The lower half of my yard is still piled high with large rocks, and shale. The neighbors across the road ended up with all the smaller rocks, mud & debris. We got most of the immediate needs taken care of, and we're now getting estimates from contractors to haul away all that stuff. It's going to cost a bunch, and homeowners insurance won't touch it. The county emergency management came out, took pictures, and told us all to take pictures of any damage, get cleanup estimates & email them what we have. They said we may get some help from PEMA (PA emergency management agency), but they can't guarantee it, so we're not to get our hopes up. We all got that done. Now we wait.

Thank God we have people around here that show up unasked when something like this happens. All my neighbors have helped out when somebody around here has a fire, needs help in a blizzard, flood, etc. We just never thought we'd be on the receiving end.
 
Ironbut said:
We've been really busy the last couple days. Thursday night, a freak storm hit this small area, and dumped 8-9" of rain in two hours. There's a stream that runs across the back & down the side of my property, and there's a bend in the stream at my neighbours house behind me. A flash flood washed away the curve in the stream at his house, and his garage & shed and everything inside just disappeared. His new Subaru washed downstream & was trapped banging against the concrete bridge on the main road beside my house. It then went under the bridge & wiped out a bridge farther down on my other neighbour's property.

Meanwhile, rocks twice the size of 5 gallon buckets are washing into my lower back yard, because the creek bank was gone, and the water, rocks, debris were washing through my yard, and across all the neighbours yards across the road. The water was 6-8" deep and roaring through our yards at one point Thursday night.

Friday morning at daybreak, everybody in the general area showed up. There were two dump trucks, two large front end loaders, I don't know how many tractors, back hoes, and skid loaders here to help. The largest front end loaders and back hoes spent until 5PM moving rocks & dirt from my back yard to the original stream bank to stop the water from washing across our yards. It took all day yesterday & today to get the lane beside my house fully open, it leads back to four neighbour's houses who live back the lane behind me.

I have a three bay pole building & the flood bent in the lower parts of the garage doors, and washed tons of stone & shale inside, surrounding our vehicles, lawn tractor, outdoor equip, etc. A couple guys with front end loaders worked & got my pickup free yesterday, and they got my wife's Jeep out today. Then they got all the rocks out, and leveled it out inside & in front of the building. It's usable again.

Everybody's basements flooded. Ours wasn't too bad, and the refrigerator, freezer, table saw, tools, etc all survived, but there's a bunch of mud to clean out. My son & some of his friends came up & got most of the mud cleaned out today. We're still drying it out with large fans, but can manage from here.

There's a large Amish community that's been moving up here into the mountains the past decade or so. I think every one of them has a new Kubota tractor, or a skid loader. They were all here yesterday working from sunup to sundown & some came back today to help with cleanup. Good people!

The main road out front of our house is open, but secondary the road, which is the back way into town is closed, because two bridges are washed out in the two mile stretch, and the road is washed out about 1/4 mile back from out house, beside the creek & the guard rails are just hanging in midair over the creek. The guy from PA DOT said it'll be months before the road is repaired, and it might just be closed permanently.

The lower half of my yard is still piled high with large rocks, and shale. The neighbors across the road ended up with all the smaller rocks, mud & debris. We got most of the immediate needs taken care of, and we're now getting estimates from contractors to haul away all that stuff. It's going to cost a bunch, and homeowners insurance won't touch it. The county emergency management came out, took pictures, and told us all to take pictures of any damage, get cleanup estimates & email them what we have. They said we may get some help from PEMA (PA emergency management agency), but they can't guarantee it, so we're not to get our hopes up. We all got that done. Now we wait.

Thank God we have people around here that show up unasked when something like this happens. All my neighbors have helped out when somebody around here has a fire, needs help in a blizzard, flood, etc. We just never thought we'd be on the receiving end.
Click to expand...
I don't usually read a post that long.
Terrible happenings and wonderful responses you've had. Frightening and inspiring.
Well-written report, too. Glad it wasn't worse.
 
screened porch said:
I don't usually read a post that long.
Terrible happenings and wonderful responses you've had. Frightening and inspiring.
Well-written report, too. Glad it wasn't worse.
Click to expand...
Yeah, I'm sorry about the rambling post last night. I was finished for the day, in more ways than one, and sitting here drinking the one beer that I allow myself per day. After I posted that I went to bed & it was the first I slept in my bed since Wednesday night. From Thursday night to last night, when I'd get so tired that I absolutely couldn't function anymore, I'd catch a catnap in my recliner, then I'd have to get right back to it.

We have things relatively under control now, but everything's a muddy mess, and will take a lot of work.
A couple pics of my lower back yard. The rocks are piled up 2-5' high. These pics are from Friday afternoon, after they got the creek pretty much back in it's banks.
Image.jpgImage 2.jpg
 
Last edited:
Here's the front of the pole building/garage
Image 1.jpgImage 3.jpg
And looking up towards the house. Again, this was Friday afternoon, after the creek was diverted back. Until then, it was running right down our lane, between my house & the white power co. trucks on the side road.
Image 4.jpg
 
Last edited:
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top