We used to have a cat that would hunt them. We'd sometimes see a cricket leg in a hairball. That cat died a year or so ago, and the population has increased since then.

It's a little horrifying that the traps caught so many. You would see one or two when you would go down into the cellar, so I figured there were a handful down there. I'd step on them when I could. Fast buggers would hop away. The traps are clearly working though.

I just noticed last night that a trap caught 5 little baby tank bugs. You know, the ones that look like armadillos and roll up in a ball when disturbed. Caught a spider too. This could turn into a real biology experiment. I could turn it into a web page. Look what's living in glatt's-cellar.org.

I know an old lady who swallowed a fly...

Now, crickets may be creepy and lizards may be cute, but which would you rather have poop in your laundry?

We have big black w/yellow spots salamanders living in our well head. When the basement floods (there's actually a spring down there) they hang out near the washer.

Great pic of your cat Sunsparks - love the eyes!

Sounds like a good close-up to me.

I'm not calling this a bad decision or anything, but what is your reason for not spraying?

Man, you're lucky those things don't make noise. You'd never get sleep.

Another recent addition to the close-ups: an engine lift.

http://static.flickr.com/46/127253678_d33b2160d2.jpg

I didn't realize there were so many. They were mostly confined to the unfinished cellar, where we don't spend much time, so they don't bug me that much. Every few weeks, a rogue would make it upstairs, which did bother me. But other than that, out of sight, out of mind. I'm not afraid of poison, but would rather not spray it around unless I really need to. And finally, poison isn't really a DIY job, and calling in a pro is relatively expensive. I'm cheap.

The infestation looks really horrible, because a glue trap concentrates all the bugs in one tiny area. When you go down into the cellar, you might see a bug or two, but are equally likely to see none. It really doesn't appear that bad.

The traps seem to be working.

:thumbsup:

Tiny toads
 

These little guys sure were hard to get pics of, but I kinda like some of the blurry ones...

http://pic7.picturetrail.com/VOL205/.../157265162.jpg

http://pic7.picturetrail.com/VOL205/.../157265167.jpg

http://pic7.picturetrail.com/VOL205/.../157265196.jpg

http://pic7.picturetrail.com/VOL205/.../157265213.jpg

.
http://pic7.picturetrail.com/VOL205/.../157265105.jpg

I like the frogs, jinx. So tiny. How did you find them? They look like they would blend right in with the ground.

I recently stumbled across this old one. My son's eyelashes seemed so long to me. Maybe it was just the light and angle.

yikes. you could swat flies with those things

It took me 3 days to get the pics (forgot the camera, then brought the camera but forgot the memory stick) and they got a little harder to find each day, but we just sat and waited for them to move... and suddenly they were everywhere.

http://pic7.picturetrail.com/VOL205/.../157265218.jpg

http://pic7.picturetrail.com/VOL205/.../157276074.jpg

Those eyelashes are long! That's a cool shot.

I totally want a terrarium filled with those little baby toads!! A-freaking-dorable. And, they wouldn't make me sneeze...any idea on an ID? Local nature center could help if you bring those great pics. Neat!!

Ce n'est pas une pipe.

bla, bla, bla, bla, one pipe?

Movin' on up, eh.;)

It was a gift from the maker... he is very talented.

Great photos, all. Makes me want to get a camera and try my hand.

"This is not a pipe." A reference to a famous painting by Magritte.

My favorite pipe painting, it is also famous.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...-lisa-1503.jpg

Trying out a new filter... do not have the hang of it yet.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...e/100_0272.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...e/100_0269.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...e/100_0268.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...e/100_0251.jpg

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http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...e/100_0273.jpg

http://static.flickr.com/67/191034755_ad963d76b0.jpg
Windshield glass. Lots of it.

http://static.flickr.com/78/191022746_5cc8b6cbce.jpg
Beep-boop-beep.

http://static.flickr.com/68/183753534_7a2b29172f.jpg
Tuners.

http://static.flickr.com/63/183755043_a2cf36cd0d.jpg
Gritty. (how this measures a vacuum, I'll never know)

http://static.flickr.com/54/183752250_94e8f55bf2.jpg
Mandatory keys image to go with the tuners.

Very nice! I like the tuners one the best. Must be the shiny objects attract me.

.

http://static.flickr.com/76/196649811_74bb22c59c.jpg
Hedgehog quills.

http://static.flickr.com/66/196649808_f8181de809.jpg
Coffee

http://static.flickr.com/71/196649809_110504828e.jpg
Cookie!

http://static.flickr.com/59/196649810_c6a10969b0.jpg
Stir fry noodle ends.

You could have put that one in the "what is it?" thread. I figured it was some kind of pasta since the others were also food, but I had no idea. I like it and the coffee one.

New pipe
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...606KSStell.jpg

Really nice contrasting textures. Are these pipes ever put to use or are they just for display?

part of a motor from a cannibalized VCR:

I smoke a couple of times a week. Pipes, cigars, tobacco and their history are a hobby for me more than smoking is.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...aste082505.jpg
I have a pretty decent English tobacco collection, around forty pipes and not too many cigars in an igloodor.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...e/06-14-06.jpg

I had a tape stuck in an old VCR and I had to take the VCR apart to get it out. I was enjoying myself, so I kept going, dis-assembling the VCR as far as I could, back down into original component pieces, which I have kept in a cardboard box in my closet and have no idea why. I plan, vaguely, to build a robot or something someday.

VCRs are great for that. I picked this one up off the curb in front of my neighbor's house last night. It was a TV/VCR combo that was dead. I quickly checked the fuses, but they were fine. Didn't feel like trying to figure out what was wrong with it, because it's a piece of junk. Maybe the power switch. Anyway, I got two good motors, and this one motor that had to come apart to remove. I also got a nice red LED. A cheap speaker. Some RCA connectors. Etc. Don't know what I'm going to do with them. Maybe make a robot. I've got a cabinet in the basement with a bunch of motors from stuff I've taken apart over the years. I might see if I can somehow isolate the power supply from this thing. That would be cool.

Pictures of a Bearded Robberfly, I wish I took. :smack:

not so close

Kitsune I love the quills, and that fly is very fly Bruce.

Go ask Alice...

A good friend of mine is a master pipe maker... this is a rare all straight-grain pipe. Great to see and hold something I will never be able to afford, a true thing of beauty.
http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2...e/100_0458.jpg
2... 3... 4

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v2..._0465Close.jpg

Any idea what causes straight grain briar to develop? Uh....it is briar, isn't it? :confused:

A very rare pocket in the sand. Briar is the root ball of the tree in a sandy region, it is hard to find a piece that has straight grain all the way around in a piece large enough to make a pipe with no sand pits or variations and a craftsman skilled enough to see it in the block, as well as able to bring it out in the pipe (then to sand it/stain it... bla, bla, bla, properly)... too many things to discuss here.

http://img49.imageshack.us/img49/7118/elvisoe1.jpg

http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/3190/faceeh6.jpg

http://img49.imageshack.us/img49/9074/lillyob0.jpg

http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/2624/nosehn2.jpg

http://img145.imageshack.us/img145/4497/orchidsn8.jpg

http://img144.imageshack.us/img144/8140/pretzelrr3.jpg

http://img49.imageshack.us/img49/1214/tibetoa1.jpg

Radiohead. :cool:

Love the dog's nose, Ibram.

fungi

http://pic7.picturetrail.com/VOL205/.../173149841.jpg

http://pic7.picturetrail.com/VOL205/.../173149833.jpg

http://pic7.picturetrail.com/VOL205/.../173149933.jpg

http://pic7.picturetrail.com/VOL205/.../173149825.jpg

http://pic7.picturetrail.com/VOL205/.../173157133.jpg

I love the blue one in the middle. :thumbsup:

I love the spikey mushroom.

...but, what, no penis-looking ones?

http://static.flickr.com/62/207708118_2d4c4db1e4.jpg
Warm.

Toaster? :question:

And the tubes, they glow in the dark...

Nope! I'm gonna let people guess on this one for a day. :p

Tubes, in an amp or something?

Like I said...

And the tubes, they glow in the dark...

Close enough -- it is a 150W halogen bulb for a torchiere, dimmed.

Two elements? Must be a halogen bulb? :confused: