Our Pool

Karyn splashing around with our nephew Nick.

These are some pictures of the pool as it was originally when we moved in.

These little triangle shaped tiles kept falling away from the grout.

We decided to take them all off because Karyn discovered...

Beneath the tile was a fiberglass covering which was hiding nice blue tiles...

So, we took off the tiles, then the fiber glass coverings...

Here is a shot where we had almost finished.

This is the nice tile, its not new looking but it is original 6x6 ceramic tile.

This demonstration shows the process....

The black guck between the tiles will eventually get bleached away from chlorine.

As you can see below, we used pool sealant (white) to enhance the clean look

Also, it served as a liner seal from the piece of fiber glass we removed.

California Wild Fires

Here are some photos we took, starting with pictures of the smoke heading south west from the fire at Porter Ranch.

This first series of 4 photos is back lit by the sun.
Not Fire.

Don't worry, we remain unaffected.

These were early morning photos by Karyn.

Here you can really see the sunrise.

This is my photo showing the contrast.

This video demonstrates the contrast of smoke.

First Impressions

Here are a few photos that represent our very first impressions of the house. We did a few walk throughs and these first 3 photos are from the actual flyer we recieved when we visited the house for the first time.

Just Getting Started.

This is our roommate Susan. She's a genius, she's is making a 3D model of our house on the computer so we can get an idea of how it will look after we do all the renovations. It's nice to look and dream.

Critters at our house

CRAWLY THINGS!!

Those of you who know me know that I just think this is the most bad ass thing on the planet to have found in my yard.

BEHOLD!!

he likes you!

Giant Lizard!

I set him free in a cactus garden lair I built along the support of a small retaining wall I installed.

I burrowed out a long chamber beneath the wood that sits beneath the garden bed.

FLYING THINGS

Here is the one shot where you can make out the yellow Monarch, there were two of them the other day but this is just the one. Can you see him?

CRAWLING THINGS

This fine little critter is what I unearthed during the back yards first renovation. It is a four foot Gopher Snake, we know because we googled it. It has similar markings to that of a California Rattle Snake, but its jowels are not puffy with venom.

CRAZY BUGS

This is the crazy looking Praying Mantis that Karyn found near the pool. We put it in our Meyer Lemon tree.

This critter was very interesting. At night while I was cleaning my pool with the pool light on, you could hear him on the roof making his clicking noises at my shadow.

CALIFORNIA SPIDERS

Below I wanted to show you some of the Widows and Wolf (possibly) spiders we have around the house. It seems like such a shame to exterminate them but we have dogs and I would hate to have anything make them sick like some of these very obviously dangerous creatures. They are remarkably beautiful so before I remove them, I take some photos. Usually I get a good one.

Below is what I believe to be called a Wolf spider. It was captured indoors and released in the front yard after this photo. Note the size of this mother...

The photo above is what I believe to be a brown widow. Not sure if it is male or female but it was hanging out near the pool where I saw the green spider below.

I did not exterminate this green spider it is harmless. I've read that spiders that occupy an area can ward off widows from settling. Harmless spiders are part of our ecosystem and ought to be left alone if possible. It is not neccessary to exterminate them completely in most cases.

Harmful Spiders

I found this little guy in a procarious place, under a small table top about 9 inches tall. We usually put our drinks on it or occassionally Kenda likes to sit on one if we leave a pillow on it.




This little devil bears the tell tale mark at its bottom. If you click on the picture, you will see her little eyes glowing in the flash. This photo was taken in broad daylight when I saw its nest at the bottom of our little trays.

Check out the markings on its back in the series of pictures below. This spider was on the move so I couldn't really get a good shot before I had to remove her from my property.




Here she is running on the cement, I believe this is a Full Fledged Black Widow Spider. Which would be consistent for my back yard. I usually find the Brown Widows in the front of the house. Which I have some interesting photos of.







Here is a series of photos that I believe to be possibly deadly Widows.

I am not sure about their origins or whether they are male or female.

Wherever indicated is merely my opinion, should you know in fact what these are please feel free to contact me or try to post a comment. I am pretty strict about the commenting so be nice.

Here is one I believe to be a Brown Widow simply because of the markings on its back. However, It seems to have a lot of the Black Widows characteristics on its underside.
I found this spider in the front of the house in the garage, where I mostly find Brown Widows.















This is the same spider below:














From the front of the house in the garage area, is where I mostly find these.









This is what I believe to be a male brown widow.

I'm not positive but look closely at the markings they are remarkable. There are others with a hint of green in them which I captured in the photo below.






This is a different spider than the one above it. Found in the front of the house in the garage. Again, I believe this to be a male Brown Widow. It is very small the photo can be deceiving. I use a Canon A20 simple digital camera. Some day I'd like to get a really nice camera that I can take professional photos of spiders with. (and other insects.)







I liked this image, it reminds me of solitude.
















Here is a definite full blown Black Widow from my back yard by the pool pump. Sorry to say there was no other choice but remove this spider from its place.


I got this great shot from beneath.

This obvious Black Widow was in the guest bathroom, shhhh don't tell Susan. This spider had to go too but notice the classic shapes and colors of it as she just hung there waiting for prey.

This was in the back yard beneath a white table we used to have. We have removed it because you should not keep too many structures if any close to your home out here. These are the kind of surpises you might find, unwittingly. Widows come out at night, so if you see one of their classic nonsense cob webs during the day. One trip back during the night with a flashlight and you can make pretty quick removal of a Widow.

BROWN RECLUSE

Here is a stock photo of the nastiest spider I've found to date... this spider was beneath a piece of equipment very close to the house. It is said, that a spider will hide and borrow beneath ontop of or around objects you leave close to your house. So in California, keep things away from your house to prevent spiders from seeking refuge inside crevices and places where you wouldn't even think they could get to. I believe the intense rains this week brought this nasty guy out of hiding. The photos I took are of the half dead version of this spider... I guess I kept him captive too long... for his photo shoot. But be aware... these come in a few different color schemes... but the red ones certainly look the nastiest. You'll know this devil by its hap hazard like stances that it takes.. I think it looks like its a wasted alley dwelling human being.. sloppy stance I call it... where the legs are all askew like the spider might be dead.... be aware.. this spider looked dead at first... but was VERY much alive.... and its little fangs... are horrifyingly large for a spider this big. PLEASE make note... and be aware this spider lurks in things you might put on from the floor.