They're Back...................

[Frank Walsh]

Oak Island welfare recipients that is. At the price of corn this year, I'm looking for a bailout myself.

[Illinois Dennis]

Some new toddlers I see. They are fun to watch in camp, but very skiddish.

Will be interesting to see how the group grows in numbers over the winter.

[Frank Walsh]

Their numbers will grow like the bailout requests in Washington.

[dpear]

Well Frank,if your bail out request fails,you should get price relief.
Saw the local ethanol plant was only paying about $2.85 a bushel for corn.Not long ago it was about $8 if memory serves.

[fishwizard]

I imagine that enthanol will soon be a thing of the past. Some ethanol plants in the midwest are going bankrupt. My father-in-law has chemistry lab company that does all kinds of testing for agricultural purposes and has done a lot of enthanol testing over the past couple years. A few months ago they had an enthanol plant that went bankrupt, and still owed them about $200,000 for test/analysis services that they'd provided. Luckily my Father-in-law's company is big enough that, while the loss did sting quite a bit, isn't going to ruin them.

Apparently ethanol is proving to be an inefficient means of an alternative fuel source. It costs more energy to create ethanol than it saves from using oil. I think that the bigger plants are looking into being more efficient and conserving energy in there process, but overall the outlook isn't that great for the hopes of ethanol. Although I'm sure there is more to the story than that, but I guess time will tell.

Gas is $1.44 across the street from me, and I never thought I would have seen that again. Will it go below a buck? Pretty crazy to see happen, but who knows?

[BWold]

Looks to me like you have one of the meals for Operation Muskie just hanging around. I am pretty sure the group could manage to take care of a couple of them if they were hanging over a BBQ pit!

[Gissert]

I think I could provide some bailout corn when we come in March

[Frank Walsh]

That would be a big help. The stuff I bought already this year is twice the price it was a year ago at this time. Hope it's old stock, and still reflects the high prices it was fetching last year. Kind of have them on a reduced amount program until I can score some cheaper feed.

[Todd Forcier]

I agree with Bret...looks like supper to me. :D

[Frank Walsh]

I'd eat Spam first.

[Tim Kelly]

washed down with a nice cup of tea.... :D

[Frank Walsh]

Now that's the combination I'm looking for. With the direction of the economy, it won't be long.

[Gissert]

Spam? You were augering through that jerky I had last March at a good clip? I suppose I can try and make some spam jerky for this year....

[Frank Walsh]

Blasphemy!

[NETim]

His beak blinks like a blinkin' beacon!

[Frank Walsh]

Mine or the deer?????

[NETim]

The deer's! (Watched Rudolph recently)

Headin' into town for my life sustainin' supplies... cornmeal, hamhocks, gunpowder and guitar strings.

Good ol' Yukon Cornelius! :D

[GordP]

Nice, but any idea how to get rid of them? Friggen things seem to love the seeds that fall from the bird feeders, and are all over my yard trampling down the snow, not good for the septic field, where are the timber wolves when you need them! Ready to get me a bow, so as to not scare the neighbors!

[Frank Walsh]

That's why I block off the septic fields with snow fence. Not only deer around here, but people and worse sleds. Most people do not understand how septic fields and frost work.

However, we have lots of wolf tracks running through the yard this year.

[Frank Walsh]

They are still here. Spending almost the whole day hanging around. Three bags of corn left. Then they can stage a Tea Party.

[Frank Walsh]

Tomorrow morning I crack the last bag of corn until the fall, so the welfare program is short lived. I have them on reduced rations, so hopefully last the week.

Back to reality!