Season of Slaughter

It's fall yet again, and everything wants to come into the house. I went to Lowe's last night, and, on my way out, I noticed our cat was having a grand time playing with a maimed rat. This rat is the second one he's caught this season. I hope he's killing them all before they find a way into the Devil Queen.

Aside from rodents, we have an on-going wasp problem. There is a gap between where the eve of the master bathroom meets the Devil Queen's main roof. A colony of red wasps has established itself in this crack. When I say "in" mean to say they seem to be pulling tufts of blown insulation out of the crack to make room for their ever-growing nest. I can't begin to tell you how much poison I've sprayed into this hole. I think I've used at least ten cans so far, and, though their numbers are diminished, they are still there.

[The picture is horrible. The specks all over the roof are dead wasps. I lost count after around 40. The brightest yellow area of the eve is roughly where the gap is]

The last round of poison must have been pretty bad. Since I'd slathered the gap with foaming poison, they were driven to find a back-way out to escape sticky-white-death. The poison must be stout, they were desperate. Unfortunately for me, their escape route was through this crack in the master bathroom ceiling.

Nothing like going to take an early morning piss and noticing - mid-stream - that the weird droning was a flight of angry, semi-poison wasp circling the chandelier. Thank God for the cathedral ceiling. Or, thank Scarlet since it was her idea.

So, driven by fear, shifting priorities, the inability to escape linear time, and laziness, the master bathroom has been sealed up for about three or four weeks. Last night, I went in to survey the situation.

I fell like I'm collecting evidence for a war crimes tribunal. There are bodies everywhere, over twenty to be sure. Apparently, the wasps would pull themselves out of the crack and circle aimlessly until they succumbed to the poison or starvation.

Since it was nearly midnight at this point, I decided to set everything up but leave the actual caulking for tonight. Hopefully, I'll finish before Ms. Scarlet makes it home from work.

On the upside, I did finish painting the last four shelves of the living room built-in last night.

Night of Ill Humors

Last night I just didn't quite feel well. I wasn't sick per se, I just didn't feel good either. Tired, stomach ache, wane, and aching muscles and joints. I got a late start last evening and didn't accomplish too much. A cat-nap, drugs, and half a pot of coffee helped quite a bit though.

Anyhow, this is what I did manage to do. First, I "tented" the living room in preparation for scraping down the ceiling.

Here is what the ceiling looks like now.

Here is the close up.

This stuff is really loose. Some of it pealed away with a dirty look. I originally thought this ceiling would be a three or four day project, but now I'm wondering if I could knock it out in two.

Here is how it should look when I'm finished. This is the foyer ceiling in case you care.

And, here is what I did with the rest of my time, striped and shellacked door hardware (sorry, not the complete set here).

Sorry, I can't find the picture of the door. It will close off the laundry room.

I love how the floor flows seamlessly from room to room, well worth the effort.

Tonight, without further ado, I shall assault and vanquish the living room ceiling.