Tomato/ Tomato, they is just overgrown rats 
Yep, like most have the facts wrong and pass it off as unimportant rather than own up to it.
From my vast files with permission of the author:
37 years ago we bought this house and put in a lawn right off. Within a few weeks I had gophers. EVERYBODY for miles around had gophers. We tried everything we could think of, flooding their burrows, gas, noise makers, poisons, smoke, you name it.
At the time I was still in the Marine Corps and working part time for The Flintlock gun shop in Anaheim and had a goodly supply of Gearhart-Owens black powder... including a brand new unopened can of FFFFg (that's 4F for you counting-challenged yokels.)
I waited until the ground had dried for a week or so, and on a fine Saturday morning I filled all the holes I could find, and set my plan in motion. I ran a string of powder about a yard long (NOT LONG ENOUGH) and as big around as a pencil away from the hole and poured the rest in. I just poured it in loose, not in any way compacted.
I made sure everyone was back and touched my cigarette to the "fuse line". It took nicely and ran right down that hole.
I don't remember any sound at all, but it suddenly felt like someone had hit me on the soles of my feet with a baseball bat, (NOTE: Louisville Sluggers are made about a mile from my house.), a huge column of white, black, and orange shot up almost in slow motion, and a thought ran through my mind, "MY GOD, that's right over my water main".
I picked my self up from flat on my back and did a quick survey. No one seemed to be hurt but my kids and a couple of neighbors were laughing hysterically. Some others were coming outdoors to see what had happened. My hair was singed, my t-shirt full of little holes, and I had no eyebrows. My plastic USMC glasses were pitted and bent. Smoke was pouring form a hole the size of a large wash tub and the yard was littered with dirt and rock.
Half an hour later my across the street neighbor came over with a huge divot of sod and handed it to me with "I think this might be yours" before walking away. He still lives there and we're still friends.
No other damage was done, no windows broken, my water main is still intact after 37 years, and no one called the fire department or the police. Of course the neighbors wouldn't let their kids out if I was in the yard and several moved away within a year or less.
BUT!!!
There are no gophers in my yard and none in the entire neighborhood, and haven't been since that Saturday in 1978 when I declared war on them.
After all my experience I learned several things:
1. 3 feet of powder train isn't enough.
2. 1 full pound is likely overkill.
3. Black powder doesn't have to be compacted, merely somewhat confined, to explode
4. Some neighbors can be very forgiving.
5. The shakes go away after a couple of days, but your hearing is never the same again.
6. Local Fire Marshals who hear about things through the grapevine can have a wonderful sense of humor. (RIP Dave.)
7. Experience is a wonderful teacher... if you survive.
8. The damnedest things can get you a great reputation.
9. Some things are funny no matter what, but see #5 above.
10.Pobody's nerfect.
News & Blogs
Home
Posts
Recent Posts
Help
Business Directory
Calendar
Advertising Rates
Contact Us
Login
Register
