Ticked Off!

Went to Yellow Bluff last night. While taking a rest I noticed a bug on the ground crawling towards me. The bug was a tick. Being a Marty Stouffer groupie. I've read a few articles and also watched Nature. They sense heat humidity & odor. During peak infestations when you walk through the woods there's a wave of ticks moving towards you. So keep moving. That's exactly what I did.
I got up , moved behind the Tick. It stopped then moved in my direction again. I repeated this a couple of times with the same results. It was neat to witness the phenomenon first hand.
As a side note the best way to kill a tick is to drop it in alcohol. I've tried using a hammer ,not very efficient. Oxy acetylene torch is just too cumbersome to carry around. Flushing will not do the job. They can crawl back up the drain. Now there 's something to think about.

Laura, Lucky and the Skunk

Laura Rosenberry lived across the road from us in Spring Run. Now the north end of Hardware store formally the sewing factory which used to be a feed store. Now theres nothing left to show she ever existed. Except a pair of old reading glasses my mother s squirreled away some where.

Laura lived in if not the largest house in Spring Run it certainly had the most rooms. Not counting the barn that butted up against Rt. 75 There must have been at least seven out buildings. It was like a small compound or village of its own with cement walks to them which was kind of rare ..Due to arthritis Laura did not exactly ramble around the big old empty house. She did get around well enough to make candy eggs. I liked the peanut butter.

Laura was not exactly alone , she had lucky. That's about all she had. A mid sized border collie mix nearly as old as she was.

It was a Saturday night we returned from picking up groceries visiting my grand parents and made the trip back over the mountain.

We were in the kitchen putting the groceries away when the knocker on the front door went wild along with a panicked stricken Laura calling Mr. Hilden ,Mr Hilden.

Dad turned on the porch light and opened the door. There was Laura practically dancing a jig on the front porch. I was around ten at the time and found it kind of surprising Laura who had trouble walking could dance not to mention scream at the same time.

Lucky had been in a fight with a skunk and wanted to know what we should do? Now I could tell you what Dad s thought was at the moment. But we walked over to Laura's anyways.

Now just as we started down the steps when my Uncle Wayne ( aka Pete , Dud ) rolled in the drive way. Uncle Wayne my mothers brother was divorced and lived with us off and on. What he was doing home early on a Saturday night hard to say. He came from the Legion and may have been on the way to Fannettsburg when he saw our porch light on. Or might have decided to call it a night. Wayne slightly was inebriated to pretty well lit. Even so Uncle Wayne new a lot about dogs and I figured him to be a welcome asset.

We walked over to Lauras back yard and there poor old Lucky was cowering in what could be best described as a very rich and fragrant bouquet of skunk. Lucky was currently not living up to his name.

Dad started to ask if Laura had any tomato juice to bathe Lucky when Wayne offered some advice. "We have to shoot him. " Roy go get the gun." Now Wayne called me Roy as in Roy Rogers. When I was 2 or 3 years old my mother would put me in a little cowboy suit which I guess was in style at the time. We visited Charlie and Annie McGee who lived where Gary and Kathy live now. Charlie started calling me Roy Rogers..Now this was the original Charlie McGee not the current one. Mostly referred to as C.M. one of the original occupiers of the bench out in front of Bairs store. That was back when gas stations pumped the gas for you. The bench sat about where the double doors are now. So you had a good view of the pumps. C.M. was among those who made sure George always had a abundant supply of good advice and instruction. Which to this day is still no doubt grateful for.

Well upon hearing Waynes remedy. Laura began to sob and wail. " You can't shoot lucky." Now this was one of the first and few times I have actually witnessed heart felt sobbing or wailing.

Now Dad calmed Laura and reassured her no one would shoot Lucky. Just when Dad would get to the point of asking about the tomato juice Wayne would go off about having to put Lucky down. Laura would start sobbing and wailing. After the third round of this the only one in danger of being shot was Wayne. Dad then asked Wayne to walk me over to the house. It was late and I should be in bed. Even I saw through that ploy. Wayne took me home home and found some tomato juice to bathe Lucky with out any shots being fired.

Laura sold her place a few years later to Ennis Byler and move in to the nursing home on second street in Chambersburg. I stopped in and visited her a couple of time. Never did ask what happened to Lucky. There just some places I don't go if I don't have to.