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Spaulding Smails

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Posts posted by Spaulding Smails

  1. 11 hours ago, fattyflattie said:

    My thoughts exactly.  Need some more pics.  But if you are looking to cull him because he's not what you want at 4, then there's something too that too.  

    Our place isn't huge and is low fenced, but we still try to be selective.  We have bigger, younger deer, but it's always a crap shoot to balance between watching them grow and getting them before a neighbor does.  I'll try to get more pics this weekend when I'm up there.

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  2. Years ago, we had a hog trap that we kept near the pond at our lease in Live Oak Co.  It was essentially the hog-sized version of the Have-A-Heart trap.  Not ideal.  We inadvertently trapped a little 6-pt buck in there.  He managed to get his antlers stuck in the hog paneling, so even when we opened the door to let him out, he couldn't escape.  I ended up climbing up on top of the trap with a hammer and breaking his antlers so he could get loose.  He was bucking and thrashing the whole time, but once he was freed and got out, he just stood there and looked at me for a few seconds before walking off.  Weird feeling.  And, yes I hated that trap and would never own one of my own.  We use a round trap with an open top now at our place in Kimble Co.  No more stuck deer.  

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  3. 5 hours ago, deadshank said:

    Hello there, sexy. 

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    I think 5.5 is right.  Starting the Roman nose and bigger belly.  Just a little sway back and not much brisket neck.  I'd score him in the low 160s for sure.  I always miss on the mass, but he has nice consistent height and looks to be about 23" inside spread.  He's also going to net really high.  Not much variation between the sides.  Great buck!

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  4. I think the rut in Hays County isn't too far away.  Saw a nice Hill Country buck at dusk last night with his nose to the ground walking briskly towards two doe.  Saw another decent buck in my front yard at dawn who looked like he was on a mission.  Always seems like the rut around here is earlier that most other areas.  We usually see it around mid-November at our ranch in Kimble County and it was always right before Christmas when I hunted in South Texas.  Anyone else seeing signs of the rut?

  5. 4 minutes ago, Hate said:


    Alive?? I would say it’s been mostly dead all year.

    Great point.  Truth be told, I knew the bet was dead when I placed it.  But, my kid's a huge Spieth fan, and it'll give us (me) something to root for should he pull off a miracle.  

  6. Question for the degenerate gamblers here.  While in Vegas in January, I put $100 on Spieth to win The Master at +3500.  Is that bet still alive?  Or did it become null when The Masters cancelled in April and rescheduled for November?

  7. 45 minutes ago, The Royal We said:

    I’ve been messing around with this for a few weeks and am finally ready to set it on the lake bottom at my dock.  I might mount a glass fish bowl on top of it, but glue it down with gaps so it can fill with water and won’t cause the whole thing to bob around. I’m a little concerned the bulb will get damaged by a fisherman without some protection. I mounted the bulb in a PVC sleeve but didn’t cement it in the coupling like you typically would - it’s waterproof but will still allow me to cut the glue and wire in another bulb when this one goes out. Thanks for the idea Smails.

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    Bad ass!  That's really well done!  Those bulbs are pretty tough, BTW.  I remember we toyed with putting a cage around ours for the same reason, but figured it was more likely to get a hook caught, so we left the bulb exposed.  Killer job.

  8. The usual (deer, hog, squirrel, possum, lots of armadillos) and one rare one which I still remember / regret to this day.  I hit a ring tail cat about 10 years ago on my way to work.  Love those little guys.  He darted out right as I was going over the low water crossing near my house, and I had nowhere to swerve.

    During the rut about 15 years ago, I had a buck dart out (chasing poon I'm sure) in the early morning hours and slam into the side of my truck doing 65 mph.  Shattered the side view mirror and his antlers left a crease down the right side of the truck.  I turned around to see if he was dead, and he was long gone.  May have survived, and may have folded up in the brush off the side of the road.  

    I also had a guy in a Honda Accord slam a big buck headed the other way once.  Real close to my house right before turning into my neighborhood.  I had the deer on a game cam and he was really nice by hill country standards.  I pulled over, and the dude in the Accord was beside himself and in a panic.  He car was banged up but driveable.  He was distraught because the deer was still alive but badly wounded just on the other side of the fence.  I had my pistol on me and put him down.  Not sure if that made the guy feel better or worse.  He was still a train wreck and didn't want to drive.

    Most recently, my wife managed to hit a damn turkey in my truck.  We had to 86 our Colorado ski trip (arrived the day they closed the mountain due to COVID).  So, we decided to make a cannonball run home.  I drove all morning, and we switched in Albuquerque after lunch so I could get caught up on some work with the shit hitting the fan due to the Rona.  After turning off I-40, she managed to hit a turkey.  On a flat stretch of highway.  When we both saw him at least 500 yds ahead.  He flew right before impact, so instead of running over him, he exploded on the grill.  Needless to say, we switched back to me driving and the remainder of the trip was completely quiet.  

  9. I'm a huge fan of Clausen's pickles.  Both the whole and the spear.  Best Maid hamburger slices on a pulled pork sammich is bliss.  

    Though I'm a dill guy through and through, we recently bought these and they are amazing.  Go so well with a reuben.  

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    • Like 1
  10. 20 hours ago, Onboard 2.0 said:

    I look at oil canning like true divided lite windows (multiple actual panes of glass) over simulated divided lite units (one single pane of glass).   Multiple panes reflect light a bit different, and refract it making a more interesting looking window. I like the subtle texture it and oil canning adds.

    I'm in the same boat.  As the owner of a construction company, I always pitch striated roof panels so I don't have to field call backs about oil-canning, but on my personal house, I went flat panel galvalume.  Love the oil canning and I like the variations in patina that are starting to show after four years.  I think it adds character, and it's not sacrificing performance (unless we get a crazy wind storm where flat panels are less rigid).

    That's an interesting take on SDLs vs true divided lites.  I never really thought about that, but it makes sense.  I actually had a customer complain a few months ago because the tempered glass in her living room adjacent to the front door looked slightly different than the non-tempered glass in the next bedroom.  We always go all tempered in the same room to avoid that issue, but she was concerned about the difference from the exterior between rooms.  I couldn't notice it.  Luckily, we have a good relationship with the window manufacturer, and they came out to back us up and cited the language in their product sheet that she signed identifying potential variances in glass color.  

    It's the same with paint.  We had an architect insist that samples we put up not only matched color and sheen, but also PRODUCT so he could review.  So, we had to buy full gallons of all 15 samples he wanted to see.  I thought it was bullshit, but sure enough, he was able to pretty much call out each color variance.  Some people can see variations that others can't.

  11. On 9/14/2020 at 2:26 PM, riloh05 said:

    any of you assholes have one of these- la cornue range? pros/cons...i will hang up and listen.

    We installed a La Cornue range a few years ago on a project.  It was a really, really well made appliance.  That thing seemingly weighed more than a battleship.  To the point of @Landomatic, they need to be the focal point of a kitchen, otherwise they may potentially detract from the aesthetics.  In this case, we did a double glass-front SubZero fridge, and the range was flanked by stone columns in the center of the kitchen with a big island.  Definite focal point and it made sense in the design.

    From a functionality standpoint, this particular client was a major foodie and loved to cook, so it made sense to her.  If you love to cook, can make it the show piece of the kitchen and have the coin, go for it.  Otherwise, go with Wolf or Viking.

    Sidebar... That same client gave me her 30 year old Viking range.  Needed a new igniter for the oven, and I had to convert it from NG to propane, but it's freaking awesome.  Though the new Viking stuff is fine, the pre-acquisition products are incredibly well built.  The appliance guy I use came to do the conversion and said those old Viking ranges are some of the best built products he works with.  

    • Like 1
  12. 10 hours ago, BradInATX said:

    Perimeter defense isn't a terrible idea actually. The fenced in yard part of my lot sits in a way where I could make a chicken run all the way around.
    But now I have to get something else for the rats? Like a mongoose? Or a bald eagle (f yeah)?
    Starting to feel like the episode of Always Sunny with the cat in the wall.

    Mongoose sounds like a solid plan.  Or a bobcat that's trained to avoid birds and only focus on rodents.

  13. 8 hours ago, washparkhorn said:

    I learned today the use of the full-stop [.] at the end of a sentence may confuse younger generations. (no offense intended and with all due respect those who do not understand why a thoughtful writer who uses a period [.] to mark the end of a thought.            

    Seriously - i understand why it may be confusing to those unaccustomed to the use of a full-stop period.  Human communication continues to evolve - as it has always has . . . That is non-controversial. 

    The is not about grammar or spelling nazis. 

    Written communication today has been streamlined to incorporate: 1. Plain Speech (Simple English), and 2. concepts (for example, meme. information utilizing all senses to trigger connection/relatability).

    Written communication has become more efficient in capturing audiences. As audiences are simplified to concepts rather that individual humans - are we snuffing out human ingenuity? If so, what are the consequences?

    Ideas? Resources? Personal thoughts?

     

    While not an English major, I've always tried to communicate correctly, even in text messages.  I'll write full sentences and avoid short hand notation.  For example, it irks me when someone writes "TY" instead of "Thank You".  And, I absolutely cringe when I see grammatical errors in published news articles.

    That being said, I actually heard a pretty compelling argument a few weeks ago on a Podcast about the evolution of communication and language.  The comparison was made between letters home from rank and file soldiers during the Civil War and soldiers stationed overseas today.  Those Civil War letters were verbose and descriptive and full of emotion.  Why?  Because letters to a wife or mother were sent home once a month, and there was no other way to convey those thoughts and visualizations.  And, they had ample downtime in the evenings with minimal other distractions.  They took their time and ensured that what was on paper gave a deep and detailed perspective. 

    Compare that to a soldier communicating home with a loved one today.  It can be a FaceTime call every evening, maybe a few texts during the day.  The wife or mother on the other end can see facial expressions.  Pictures and videos are sent.  Quick texts provide updates.  

    So, the argument was made that it's acceptable and natural to get away from formalities in written communication.  The intent behind communication is to effectively convey information.  If that's being accomplished by a picture, an emoji or shorthand, then it's actually progress in the evolution of communication.  Shortly after hearing that Podcast, one of my managers sent me a text that we were awarded a job we'd bid on several months ago.  I replied with a "happy dance" GIF.  In a sense, that GIF communicated more effectively my sentiments about that achievement more appropriately than any written word could have done.  It's interesting to take a step back and try to understand how rapidly that evolution of communication is unfolding.

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