O No - not again

I have been having so much trouble this week with something coming up on the porch at night and digging up my flower plants ! GRRR!  So last night I set the live trap to see if I could catch the culprit? I peeked out the door this morning and the food was gone but the cage was still wide open? I wish this dumb trap was not such a dud.

Then I started my morning trek of carrying the little chickens down to the garden and that was when I spotted that the squash bugs have moved in on my two squash plants -so I hated to see that the war was going to be on and I usually end up on the losing side after all the work of starting the seeds and growing the little plants and transplanting them and watering them and now to have to fight for their very existence.  The man online said just to plant new seeds because you were going to lose the battle. The other man showed the soapy water spray so I fixed that up and hit them with that -but they did not seem to die like in the video? Grrr.

My next heartbreak came as I carried another cage of the little chickens down only to realize that I spotted TOO MANY FEATHERS in one of my favorite cages???? Yep - those stupid raccoons had found their way into the cage and killed my two little pet roosters!!!!!!!!!!! I could not help but remember when my girlfriend used to say that the only good raccoon was a dead raccoon?????? So, I will have to do some moving of chickens and find a new way to set that cage with the bodies . I HATE that job -but once they start -they just continue. I am so tired of the battle.

My next project was that Mantis Tiller . I had got that gas tank off and finally figured out how to get the fuel filter out of the old one and into the new one!!!!!!!!!! Yea!

So now I put the new tank on the Mantis and hooked up the gas line -then filled her up with fuel and cranked. After a few pulls it fired up One time and died. That was it - that was the end of my success! No matter how much more I pulled or begged -it was just "Tough Luck".

I gave up and came took a shower. It was hot by now and I fed the kids Tuna chowder and peanut butter sandwiches. Then loaded them up and took them to the local school playground . The little one played until her little face was red and I did not want her to get sunburned . We came home and crushed up some ice and added kool-aid to it as a cool treat.

Now I have got to go figure out some "chicken-swaps" so they won't all end up DEAD! GRRRR!