Simply Norma

Almost two years ago, we were looking at a house that was for sale and beyond the backyard fence was the Belwin Conservancy which purportedly had wild bison.  At the time, we didn’t see any wildlife but I knew that I didn’t want bison living so close to me. I had visions of them going crazy and crashing into our house (not to mention the possibility of the smell that we might get when the wind shifted our way). So — the “Bison” house was passed on.

Recently we took a drive to the Belwin Conservancy to see if bison actually existed. We weren’t disappointed.

The sign to the Belwin Conservancy is clearly marked and you can drive right through the gate

There are two observation decks at the Conservancy.  The first one is a 6 foot accessible deck that has a ramp. You can see bison from this distance.

Once you pass this observation deck there is a path to a second 20 foot deck. While walking to the second deck there were quite a few flies and a whiff of a not-so-pleasant smell. I take it the bison aren’t litter trained. (laughing)

The second deck does not have a ramp so we headed up the stairs to observe the wild bison. And boy were they out today!

It appeared that one seemed to be staring at me. I think we made a “connection.” Perhaps he/she was as curious about me as I was about him, uh, her?

Hmmm … another one looking my way …

They are beautiful creatures.

The area where the bison live has a beautiful marshland and high up in the sky across the blue Minnesota sky you could see a hot air balloon. I wonder what it would be like to go on one of these rides?

The Belwin Conservancy observation decks are located in Afton, Minnesota and are open when bison are present which they say is from June through October. For additional information please go to their website by clicking here.

Recently we had friends visit us from Seattle and I took them for a walk at a highly rated  lake in Minneapolis called Lake of the Isles.  It was a beautiful sunny day when we went.

The neighborhood is in an established part of Minneapolis and the houses are large, stately and very well maintained.  A quick look at real estate in this neighborhood shows that houses cost up to $6 million dollars.  There are some that are in the half million dollar range … either way, too expensive for me.

The lake is connected to Cedar Lake and Lake Calhoun and has 2.86 miles of shoreline.

A beautiful place to take a serene walk.
 

The first West Nile Virus death this year in Minnesota occurred a couple of days ago. Click here to read the article.

And just yesterday morning my mother was admonishing me about working in our 1/2 acre that is mostly brush and trees as mosquitoes can be present. She reminded me of the West Nile Virus that is taking people’s lives as mosquitoes transmit their disease to humans. Am I careful? Yes, I am, although even when I’m careful by using DEET on all exposed parts of my body, the mosquitoes sometimes find one small spot that I miss. They are able to find me by the smell of carbon dioxide that I emit when I breathe. Well, I do have to breathe …

Searching the internet for something more “natural” to put on my body that doesn’t have side effects, I came upon an idea that I thought I’d try.  Garlic.  Apparently mosquitoes don’t like the smell of garlic so I have been making a paste to rub on my body.

I have been using my homemade potion for a couple of weeks and it works just as well as DEET does. I still spray DEET on the bottom of my pants and shoes to keep away any tics that might be in the area (although we have only seen one this year). Have I gotten bitten using the garlic? Yes. I was bitten twice yesterday in places where I did not rub the garlic on my body. I don’t know if it matters whether you use fresh garlic or ground garlic but I have tried both and they have the same effect although the ground garlic is less trouble to use.

Some people say the garlic doesn’t work for them and they use Skin So Soft by Avon. And, as you can imagine, there are a lot more suggestions out there. If I find something that works (that’s not going to kill me) then I’ll stick with it until it stops working. This solution isn’t for everyone and one day the only thing that may work against mosquitoes is a chemical solution. That’s when I might have to move to a less buggy part of the United States.

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Another cool day in Minnesota. For me that means lots of YARD WORK. I hired the neighbor boy to come help move the woodpile from the back of the property to the side of the property so it will be easier to access when winter comes. I can’t wait to use the fireplace again. It’s so pretty!

While the woodpile was being taken care of, I went to the garage and took out my new 21 inch Friskars Bow Pruning Saw that I purchased last evening at Home Depot.

Notice the orange warning “Aggressive Cuts.” I certainly hope so as I can’t cut a large branch with a “non aggressive” cut.

This bow saw cut magnificently! The cuts were sharp and clean and it didn’t take me long to cut up a few branches. I think I may have even grown a muscle.  hahahaha

The blade is replaceable which is really good as we have quite a few branches that fall throughout the year and the pruner just doesn’t work as well. All this for less than $10! I literally felt giddy as I left Home Depot with my new tool.

Maybe I should buy some flannel shirts so I can look like a real lumber, uh, woman.  haha

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With cooler Minnesota weather, I can now sit in the screened-in porch and enjoy fresh air, wildlife and the quietness that surrounds us.

As I lay back on my chair, content as a bee with nectar in its mouth, I looked up at the ceiling and saw it.  “It” was a large black spider measuring 3-4 inches from the tip of one leg to the tip of its other leg. Instead of getting up and hooting and hollering, I watched as it just sat there as if it were dead. I knew better though — it was alive and would eventually be discontent sitting motionless.

My husband was sitting directly across from me unaware of the danger in the room. Well, okay, it COULD be dangerous. I cautiously rose from my chair and circled to the other side of the room where I informed him of what lay overhead.

Now it was time to investigate how much danger we were in. With iPad in hand, I scoured the internet for images of this newfound creature who had made its way into our peaceful abode.

I immediately eliminated the black widow and brown recluse spiders (both poisonous) from my list. At first I thought it might be an orb weaver and had it been that species I would have been delighted as they eat mosquitoes. Upon further examination (magnifying the images I was comparing) it does not appear to be an orb weaver.

Perhaps a grass spider? Similar but the grass spider only grows to one inch.

So I am left to ponder what this spider is.  Any arachnoid experts out there?

As I left the porch to make dinner, my husband took a broom and swatted the spider off the ceiling then chased it out the door.  Yeah! for a husband who handles the icky things in life for me.

Question: What do you do with the spiders in your house? Do you kill them or do you take them outdoors so they can die naturally?

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