Horror Movies

 I love this time of year.  I always want to watch old horror movies.  Ones that use practical effects and do not have a load of money.  Texas Chainsaw feels like a documentary.  The horror is more psychological.  There is very little gore.  Your mind has to fill in the blanks.  As a child, I would watch these movies.  They would always give me nightmares.  Now, as an adult, I do not have them.  At least not from movies.  If you see a movie like the original Maniac and The Thing, you can see the mastery of prosthetic special effects.   I can not believe that The Thing was not a huge hit.  It did have to compete against ET, but that was a family film.  If I were an adult at that time, I would have picked The Thing over E.T.  We also had some of the best Werewolf movies.  An American Werewolf in London and The Howling beat anything that has been made since.  I prefer a good old transformation over a person jumping in the air and digitally becoming a wolf.    As for Vampires, the 80's had Near Dark, Salem's Lot and The Lost Boys.  Now we get crappy digital effects to show a vampire transformation.  If you need a good horror movie tonight, watch something from the 70's/80's.  You might even see an actor who was starring in their first few movies, like Johnny Depp (Nightmare on Elm Street) and Kevin Bacon (Friday the 13th).  

Cruising Information

 I enjoy watching videos on YouTube.  Primarily, I enjoy movie criticism and the background stories behind the making of movies.  I discovered there are channels dedicated to cruising.  I find them both entertaining and informative.  La Lido Loca (https://www.youtube.com/@LaLidoLoca) provides news and entertainment.  As I have kids, I wanted to experience what a Disney cruise would be like.  Theme Park Express (https://www.youtube.com/@ThemeParkExpress) focuses on attractions from Disney and Universal.  From them, I have seen a Disney cruise and do not think I will miss anything by not going on one.  Additionally, some of their offerings would not appeal to my kids.  They have since branched out to other cruise lines.  I find it very entertaining!  Check them out!  

The Big Freeze

 In Florida, the weather tends to remain warm throughout the year.  We do get the occasional cold front.  Usually, it hits around January.  Today, we woke up to temperatures in the 40s.  Most people will be getting bundled up today.  I love this weather.  Enjoy it while you can.  It may also reduce the number of mosquito bites during trick-or-treating.  

Mousetrap

 I'm sitting here, and I hear scurrying in the ceiling tiles.  I pull out the ladder and push aside a tile.  Rat poop rolled down on me.  I go upstairs to grab a mousetrap.  I put peanut butter on it.  Then, I have to set it.  I get really paranoid about these traps.  Every time I set one, it snaps.  I finally feel it is set.  I shakily grab the trap and bring it to the ceiling tile.  As soon as I drop it, it goes off.  The more I try, the more it goes off.  I feel like that comedy movie mousetrap.  I bet the rats are laughing in the dark.  I find some sticky paper to put the set trap on.  This time, I set it down, and it doesn't go off.  Wish me luck!  

Silence is Golden

 I checked for rats again.  I saw one scurry away, but not towards the house.  My daughter says the traps are untouched.  My guess is that I have killed the two that got into the house.  Now comes the fun part.  I will have to look into the ceiling to see where they got in.  I also need to make sure there are no orphans.  Once done, we can seal off any holes we find.  Maybe next year, I will get a more powerful and accurate air gun.  I have to be careful.  I do not need my children playing with guns.  

Travelling to a Cruise Port

 We live in Florida, but not near the ports.  It takes time and money to go there.  Ports keep increasing their rates.  They are topping $30 a day.  I found that near Port Canaveral, there is a company that offers reduced parking fees and provides shuttle service to the port.  I did not find that for Miami.    Another alternative is parking at a hotel that allows you to leave your car while you're on a cruise.  For a family our size, it would not work.  Most will offer a shuttle for 2 people.  You have to pay for extra.  They also do not offer a shuttle back. You have to find a way via taxi or Uber.   A coworker told me she rents a vehicle and returns the vehicle near the port.  The company shuttles her there.  She has a pickup and rents another vehicle to go home.  The big question is: does it save money?  You have to factor in gas, wear and tear on the vehicle, and parking fees.   I know in the future, we have at least one rental in our future.  We have a 15-day repositioning cruise.  For those unfamiliar with cruise terminology, a repositioning cruise begins at one port and concludes at a new home port.  We will start in Florida and end in Virginia.  These cruises tend to be more affordable, but with certain caveats.    One day, we hope to do a back-to-back.  That is where you book 2 cruises that run consecutively.  At the end of the first cruise, you have to get off the boat, and then they recheck you on.  Usually, you can leave your luggage.  

Cruise

 We are going on a cruise in the near future.  Our daughters love them.  We appreciate how they care for our special needs children.  I don't know where we will end up.  One stop was Jamaica.  I'm guessing that will change.  Once you buy a ticket on a cruise, they can change the itinerary as needed.  With a hurricane going through, I doubt they will be ready to host any cruises.  It also appears that the Bahamas will be affected.   Hopefully, the Atlantic will slow down, but we still have until the end of November.  

Coyotes!

 As if my issues could not get worse, it seems Mother Nature is attacking us with all she can.  We have chickens that tend to wander out of the yard.  We hope to put them in a chicken run.  The summer was too hot and humid.  Now it is cooling down.  We have a new predator.  They are not exactly new to our area, but I had not heard of any doing anything.  Our neighbor saw a coyote enter their yard and run away with a chicken.  She does not have chickens.  Neither does he.  It was one of ours.  It looks like we need to start planning that chicken run.  

Rats 0, Human 2

 On Sunday, I thought I knew where the rats were coming into the house.  There is a pipe protruding from the side of the house.  I could have put hardware cloth on it, but I was concerned that it would trap them in the house.  I came up with an idea of how to trap them.  I attached an elbow pipe and added a pipe going straight down into a bucket of water.  If they go through it, they will end up dropping into the water and drowning.  I'm not sure if they will fall for it, but we'll see.  

That night, I heard scratching and squeaking in the ceiling.  I know we have a problem.  If they multiply, they could do some real damage.  My daughter has set traps, but they laugh at her and take the bait without setting them off, or they set them off, but do not get trapped.  I go out to feed the dog.  It was dark, so I turned on the light.  All of a sudden, two rats run up the brick wall and disappear.  I thought they went up to the deck, but they were not there.  My next guess is that they are getting into a hole-in-the-wall. 

Monday, I wake up.  I had been thinking of things to do.  I did order poison, but I am very leery about using it.  I do not want the dog or any other animals eating the poisoned rat.  I have already found a dead owl.  There were no signs of a fight.  I guess they ate poisoned prey.  I know that rats have a highly sensitive sense of smell.  I brought out some bleach and sprayed the wall.  I saw a rat scurry.  I sprayed under the rabbit cages and wood planks.  Then, I went inside and retrieved the BB gun. 

Next thing I know, a rat walks up the wall.  I'm not sure if the bleach disoriented it, but it did seem a little sluggish.   I'm at a distance.  I take aim and shoot.  The rat flies backward onto the ground.  His legs were twitching.  I knew I had hit a sensitive spot.  I shot it again to put it out of its misery.  The other rat walked up the wall onto a window screen.  I took aim.  I had to make sure not to hit the window.  I shot.  He fell back but ran up the screen again.  I shot him.  He went down with a twicthy leg.  I finished him off.  I took the tray he landed on and threw it away.  

Turning around, I see the outside cat playing with the other rat.  

"Now you are going after them!" I exclaimed.  "You need to do your job and go after these rats.  Then, you might not have to beg me for food every day!"  Yes, I do feed the cat.  He could be getting some extra protein.  

Last night, I went out to scope for rats.  I did scare one off, but could not shoot him.  I notice the cat playing with something.  It was the body of a smaller rat/mouse.  At least he got the message.  

DRats!

 So, my daughter texts me.  There are rats in the ceiling.  She has dogs, and I asked if they barked.  No!  I walk by her room, and they go crazy.  If there is scratching or moving around, you'd think they'd bark their heads off.  I do not make much noise walking on carpet.  They lifted the tiles to see if they could see anything. Nothing.  We put traps up there.  I am hoping there are no rats.  Seems like it is turning into that movie Of Unknown Origin, with Peter Weller.   

The Long Walk

 I took my daughters to see The Long Walk.  I read this stroy when I was a teen.  It did not disappoint.  The guys who Star in this movie did a really good job.  It is not the feel good movie of the year.  It does make you feel for everyone who dies.  If you get emotional, it will cause tears.