Tuesday, July 7

Full Moon!

Is it true that crazy things happen on a full moon? That sounds like a great lead-in for a big story, but I'll have to leave you hanging. It's 8:32PM as I'm writing this and nothing crazy has happened tonight, knock on wood. There was a rescue on the beach earlier and I finished reading the digital copies of a ton of materials. I've got the hard copies of other materials to dig through plus working on a draft for a Superintendent's Order about the Safety Committee, so my work is cut out for me. I'm juiced. Again, no craziness to speak of- maybe all the rat traps will fill up tonight and the rats will be gone for good. We can all hope.

This morning started out right and proper with a confirmed kill for a rat at Dwight's. One down. He makes a good hunter and trap setter. I would like to add that I did assist in the placement of the traps. For the ones set here at Island Fancy, we were also able to catch one. It almost made a narrow escape through the wiring of the trap, but it was just too big for the small cracks. That rat is also no longer going to be an issue. Maybe I'll keep a running tally at the bottom of my post and folks can check in to see the progress we're making on a day-to-day or post-to-post basis. I personally would rather not post about the rats directly any more than necessary, since it's kind of a topic that goes under “that which we do not talk about.”

On the list of things that can get talked about to no end, there is food. Food is soul-filling and smile inducing. It's amazing the happiness that can come from a well prepared meal. I've been blessed with a sense of smell and a working set of taste buds. I made a delicious dinner tonight. I cooked up some Kashi rice pilaf, a Kashi fiery fiesta microwave rice pilaf pouch, some frozen mixed veggies, and tossed on some salt and pepper. The meal isn't bad for missing my beloved animal protein. A bunch of whole grains and some vegetables. What I would do for some bacon. I should pick up a pound next time I'm at the grocery, if it looks good.

I got my first supplemental provisional package from home yesterday. The laundry detergent, some toiletries, my Timbuk2 bag, and some more shorts were a welcome sight. I hand out a hearty shout-out to my awesome mom that shipped it to me. Nothing like getting a box of things from home, opening the box, and breathing a whiff of home laced deep into the fabric of my shorts. What does home smell like to you? We all know that distinct smell. Smells ignite all sorts of thoughts and memories. I walked into the Tap Room here on St. John today after work and the bar smell was unmistakeable. It's not a bad smell nor a particularly good one, it's just a sweet smelling aroma from the alcohol that lets you know where you are. The Tap Room is an excellent establishment and they know how to make a tasty Ginger Beer. I tried the Fort Collins Chocolate Stout that a friend ordered and it was also quite delicious. I have not tried too many ginger beers in my day, but I love trying something new. The ginger beer I tasted had a likeness to ginger ale, but it had a lot more ginger flavor and it was a little bit more sweet. In sum, delicious. I can see where adding a shot or two of your favorite Cruzan rum, or something like Cruzan like black strap would be tasty- they call it a Dark and Stormy at the Tap Room. I guess the clear liquid of the ginger beer would get swirly and cloudy with the dark rum added to the glass. I will have to try one next time I'm up there. Or, the chocolate stout. Or, maybe their home-brewed root beer. It's a hard sell for me to find a new favorite root beer though, I'm partial to the frosty mug and bubbling brown bliss that comes from Dog N' Suds in Lafayette.

Rats: 2