Last day...

As it turns out, today was our last day on "the job site" as they ran out of work for us. We took care of a few odds and ends (caulking and painting). The hardest remaining task was hanging the two exterior doors - a little matter of the opening being too short. Joe (with the Darth Vader look) used the power chisel to correct the problem. (Recommendation - measure twice, then twice more, then have someone else measure again when you're pouring a concrete wall. Joe will tell you that taking a half inch off the top of the opening is NOT much fun.)

However, the guys are already looking over the styrofoam blocks to see how they go together. They can't wait to be invited back to help put them together for the next build.

Our team had a GREAT time!!! so will be going to the town winery (since it's Texas wine it seems to be legal in this "dry" county) before 6:00. As the librarian says, "We go to bed early here in Mason".

From around town...

Rain was predicted - so we had sun and warm weather (70's) today. Weatherpeople seem to have the same rate of success everywhere.

Photo 1 - a redbud in full bloom (I didn't realize they could withstand both southern summers and northern winters)
Photos 2 & 3 - deer hunting (plus just plain old hitting-them-on-the-road) is BIG business in the area. This is Mason's Deer Processing Warehouse (I am NOT exaggererating when I tell you it is bigger than their supermarket!) The first photo shows their sign "We Accept HOG" (lots of wild boar down here as well). And, in case you can't read the other photo it says "Vacuum Packed" and the top says "24 Hour Drop Off" (guess you just leave it on their front step with a note if they're not there).
Photo 4 - Texas bluebonnets are just beginning to bloom - a smaller version of Maine's big ones. I'm told the Texas ones are annuals unlike the lupins we have in the northeast.
Photo 5 - The last major piece (and probably the most complicated cut) of sheetrock went up today. In Photo 7 John is putting in the last screw.
Photo 6 - Angie & Karen took advantage of the pretty day to paint doors.
Photo 7 - The goats across the street from the Habitat house. The 4 kids have been great fun to watch. (There is no zoning in Mason so several homes have goats or sheep on their lot.)
Last photo - Bush/vine from the house next to the Habitat house. Have no idea what it is but it sure is pretty!

And we thought Earlville was rural...

In reading the info from the Mason Chamber of Commerce, I thought you might be interested in some statistics. Mason County is 932 square miles. (In case you're mathematically challenged like John is, that's approximately 30 miles by 30 miles.) In 1930 the population of the county was 5,511 (no city pop. -the city of Mason wasn't incorporated until 1945). By the 2000 census the population was 3,738 with 2,134 living in the city of Mason. (I did NOT mistype... the pop. DE creased - it's tough country out here! Using my rough math, that's about 1/2 a person per square mile outside the city.)

According to the booklet, ALL (the booklet has "ALL" in bold, capital letters - it's just not something I decided to add) ALL the "extensive county roads are unpaved" (just gravel/dirt) with most running through ranches and are "used by the local cattle as highways". It turns out some of the state roads are also used as cattle highways. When we went to Doss the other day on a state road, we went over at least 15 cattle guards. Considering that almost every truck has a deer guard on the front, one might assume the roads are also used by the deer (of which we've seen more than we have cattle).

Although the state road to Doss is paved, they don't seem to believe in bridges. (Am not sure whether it's from the lack of rain or the lack of funds...) Instead you'll come to a sign that says "DIP", then the road will go down over what must as some point be a "stream bed". At the bottom you'll see a "Flood Gauge" sign to mark how deep the water is or isn't. (Rain days in Texas take on a whole new meaning.) Because this is Texas "hill country", there are a LOT of "DIP" signs on the road to Doss.

What? No pictures of Doss? Sorry, all we could find was a nondescript feed store and a Lutheran Church (just envision a stereotypical church with a steeple).

Back at the Habitat site, the work team has now moved on to sheet rocking the cathedral ceiling. Obviously, our team leader thinks this is going to be a LOT of fun.

German water towers...

Mason was settled primarily by Germans (with a name like Grossmann this DOES have some appeal). One of the neatest things about Mason's little cottages (they are charming) is that many of them still have their original water towers beside them. They come in all shapes and sizes and what you see is only a sampling. Occasionally one will have a windmill attached and working. Some of the residents still use them as their sole source of water rather than tying into the city's water or just use them to water their lawns. There's even one at the cemetery (next to last photo). The last photo is one that someone has converted into a shed to store his lawn mower.

In walking around, I just assumed the various "bases" were just that - bases... until last week when one owner saw me taking pictures of his and asked if I would like to see the inside of his. It turns out many/most of the stone bases were built by the Germans who used them as smoke houses - very thrifty thinking. The one I saw had pegs on the beams where the sausages and meats were hung to be smoked. (You don't suppose the cemetery used their stone base as a crematorium, do you???)

Anyway, carrying on the German theme... Mason is not far from the more famous Fredricksburg where my sister and mother took John to their favorite biergarten. He was a happy boy! (My sister and mother are perpetually happy!)

Omelet in a bag...

Yesterday was Sunday. I tried but couldn't find an internet connection anywhere in town... big cities!!!

John & I have obviously been out of the camping world for too long. Our team had a "make your own" baggie omelet brunch yesterday. In case you are as dense on the subject as we were, this is how it goes...

Break 2-3 eggs into a heavy duty zip lock bag (write your name on the outside with a magic marker first).
Hang onto the top of the bag and squish the eggs around until they're well mixed. Next add your favorite omelet ingredients. (If you've planned ahead like Angie did, you assign folks to bring small bags of things like crumbled sausage, broccoli, chopped onions, shredded cheese etc.) Zip the bags closed being careful to press out all the air. (Angie says the bags explode if you don't do this step - we didn't do a test to check this out...) Put the bags into boiling water with the zip-part hanging over the edge of the pot. Boil for 10 minutes or until done. You can pull the bags out and press on the "omelet". If raw egg pressed out of the middle put the bag back in the water for another couple of minutes. When done, pull the bag out, open, and plop the omelet on a paper plate. No fuss, no muss (unless you're like me and happen to but the bag as I was adding ingredients to, too close to the table edge and spilled it on the ground - I DID miss my foot!!!) It was a fun thing to do... and the omelets weren't half bad either.

Something DOES happen!

From past blogs you probably are under the impression that NOTHING happens after 6 p.m. in Mason. Not true. Friday - Monday you can go to the movies. The Odeon is, in fact, the oldest continuously operated movie theater in Texas. The movie starts at 7:30 but you need to be there early to get a seat. In the 1980's you had to get there VERY early to get a seat WITH a back. In the 1990's you brought your own seat. Now they have "basic" new seats. A big bag of popcorn is $1 and the price of admission is $4.50. Pictured with us are Rick & Angie of our Care-A-Vanner team (they live in their BIG RV full time).

Speaking of RV's...
John was on the roof of ours today adding more "goop" to try to cut down on the number of pans needed to collect the drips when it rains. An "alternative" was offered by our Airstream camper folks (we actually have 3 of those RVs in our group). They suggested since I had developed my skills foaming in the electrical runs at the Habitat house, that I just foam over the top of the van. John could then cover the foam with duct tape and presto - we'd have our own leak proof "Airstream want-a-be".

Addressing the peeling paint issue... we have decided to collect refrigerator magnets and just cover it up. (I now find myself lusting after those BIG magnetic signs some businesses have on their car doors.)

We have also been looking at other options.

It's Friday!!!

Even though I don't have photos to share of the Habitat build (doing sheetrock just isn't something that looks impressive on film), we're making some progress. It looks like Monday might be the day the guys (no argument from the ladies group) begin hanging the fire rock (=HEAVY!) on the cathedral ceiling. Best we not think about that this weekend.

Back at the campsite...

We're staying in the City Park which is a GREAT location - only about a mile from the house we're working on. If we were earlier risers and not so tired at the end of the day, we might consider walking it. At any rate, the City Park seems to be the "happening" place to be. Today a bunch (group? mass? herd????) of horses and cows showed up across from where we're camping. Tomorrow there will be a teen roping competition. Turns out it's just something they get together and do down here - sort of like getting together for softball. That's also going on in the ballfields that are a part of the park.

On the backside of our campsites is the city's 9 hole golf course - rather exciting when you hear a ball come crashing through the pecan trees we're camped under. Especially for Joe - the greens fee seems to be reasonable... $10 weekdays; $15 on weekends. Camping is also reasonable - $15 night; $75 week; $300 month with a 3 month limit (Habitat provides our sites at no charge).

For walkers, there's a nature trail in the Park which runs along Comanche Creek with all sorts of overlooks with viewing benches. Don't see the water? That's probably because their isn't any... Guess they weren't joking when they said it had been dry!

Local Food

We are being fed well with the churches providing us lunch every day. They are BIG on beef. The Catholics served beef brisket on Monday; the Methodists - beef stew on Tuesday; New Covenant Church - beef minestrone on Wednesday; and today the Lutherans served beef stew. (Guess you would also have to say they're BIG into stew as well. Or perhaps Texas beef is just tough - after all, brisket is a tough cut until it's smoked for hours.)

Around town there's Cooper's Pit that also serves goat and sausage. John & I stopped there last night at 6:00 to get some for our dinner and they were closed. Their brisket roaster (photo above) was, however, smoking away in preparation for the following day. I guess if you want BBQ you have to have it either for breakfast or lunch.

The other sign is from the local ball park - thought you might like to see what they offered.

Last night we also stopped at the grocery store to pick up a couple of things (they, at least, were still open. By the way, that's what was wrong with the computer - everyone shuts them off at 6:00 - who knew?) Anyway, I asked where the wine was (having bought some at the grocery in Brady) and they told me it was a dry county. But you're selling beer, says I. Apparently, that doesn't count as liquor. But there's a winery in town (it closes at 2), says I. That turns out to be a "special" case and the store manager thought they only sold Texas wine. Interesting...

Another day...

Sorry folks - I really DID try yesterday to post but we couldn't get connected to the internet ANYwhere in town with our computer. (Haven't I mentioned before how I HATE computers when they don't cooperate?!) And, of course, it was after 7:00 so NO place in town was open that could offer assistance. Today they dropped me off at the library after lunch so I could use one of their computers only to find THEY were just closing for lunch (1:00 - 2:15). Plus our Verizon cell phone doesn't have service in this area (what's with that Cyndy?!). The definition of "city" is certainly different in Mason.

But enough comments about small city life...
The first photo shows some of our Habitat crew behind the homeowner to be of the house we’re working on – Patricia and her two kids. (They moved here from Buffalo three years ago and mom, at least, is happy to see no more snow.) While some of the crew painted (please notice it took three to hold the ladder for one painting - I was told to point out the slope the ladder was on.), others continued work on the soffit and the drywall inside.

The ladies paint crew happily finished the second coat of paint on the shed.

Around town... did you all know Mason is the birthplace of Fred Gibson who wrote “Old Yeller”? The statue is in front of their new library. ( The one with his tongue hanging out is Old Yeller.)

Mason, Texas

Mason, Texas is a beautiful little city (they call it a city but I'd call it a town). Like all Texas folks we know personally, "Masonites" are really great. Our Care-A-Vanner group is shown in the first photo after the wonderful dinner provided. (The two guys kneeling may be an indication of just how generous the servings were.)

The house shown is what we're working on. It's constructed of styrofoam blocks that lock together like legos. The center is hollow allowing a core of concrete to be poured in for stablization while the styrofoam provides great insulation. Today the foam insulation contractors were there applying insulation to the underside of the roof meaning tomorrow we do sheetrock.

As for our group we worked on painting the shed and painting and putting the soffits up. Just to ensure we wouldn't starve the Catholic Church provided lunch (we all agreed that unless they they stop feeding us so well they'll begin getting less and less work out of us as we'll definitely need siestas). The Church was built in the 1870's and the ceiling was painted blue with angels by a Mexican artist from that time. In the 1960's it was covered over with ceiling tile. One of the nuns who came once a year to give classes HATED those tile and would always make her classes pray to God they would come down. Then... in the 1990's a terrific storm came through taking off half the roof and letting in so much rain all the tile fell down but it didn't hurt the paintings. This time the church left them exposed after they redid the roof.

Speaking of storms - it rained an inch and a half last night in a couple of hours, hail, lightning and thunder, wind. It might have been frightening if John & I hadn't been so intent in finding buckets to put under the leaks in Rambo. John says it's an adventure isn't it... yeah....

Folk Art...

My father, Jim, loved to use a metal detector, always looking for that pot of gold. Along the way (that pot is still out there) he continually "unearthed" interesting things from across the country. Rather than toss them away again, he brought them home. When he had enough he took them to his friend, Jake, who welded them together and onto old metal bed rails forming fence sections that my father used to line the side of the yard.

When my mother decided to sell the house in Arkansas, she reserved four sections and brought them to Texas. Yesterday, on a whim (or was this planned?) she "suggested" it "might be fun" for John and me to see if we could find a place for them in the yard - "better than being stored in the garage - right?" (Guess Mother also thought we needed some weight bearing exercise as they got moved more than once.) We ended up "thinking vertically" and leaned them against the white garage wall. Raided a nearby country road for some caliche (it's in the dictionary) stone to raise them off the ground. Don't worry about them blowing over - John & I can attest they weigh a ton!

Today we're off to Mason, Texas for a two week Habitat build there. Will try to keep you posted but we never know what connection opportunities we'll have.

Around Brady...

Isn't this a beautiful school? It's Brady High School, home of the Bulldogs. When my sister taught there waaaaaay back when, there was no air conditioning but that's been corrected and it's now climate controlled. However, the school board is proposing to level it, make it into a parking lot and build a new building near it. One of John's favorite saying about colleges is "just because it's an institution of higher learning does not mean good thinking always goes on". Perhaps that applies to high schools as well.

About 10 blocks from the school is one of Brady's newer businesses - The Tree House Family Salon offering "Professional Microdermabrasion", at least that's what the sign attached to the building says. We were speculating that since it didn't have a pickup in front, it was probably "out" with the latest family dragging them behind to "cleanse" their skin.

And last, but by no means least, is Texas BBQ. We had lunch at Mac's, home of Brady's finest. However at the same time and only a half block from my mother's, was this BBQ "on the go". It smelled delicious as well.

Eola

Eola, Texas... that's where we went today. It's a VERY small town somewhere north, then west of Brady (FLAT country always turns me around - neither John or I can ever tell what direction we're headed).

On the way we passed a camel... (unlike John, my sister WILL turn around so I can get a photo). I had hoped for a profile shot of the camel on the horizon, but the camel was a bit too friendly and came trotting over to the fence once he decided we were turning around to take his photo. Perhaps the rancher who owns him knows something about this drought the rest of Texas is slow to catch up on. Pulling back on the road was tricky with ALL the traffic. Look left, look right...

Photos 4 & 5 are of the schoolhouse restaurant in Eola. The owner (probably in his mid 30's) bought it 3 or 4 years ago and is a one person restaurant and brewery owner. We had the special of beef brisket (not bad) in one of the classrooms that now serves as the dining room. He cooks, serves, cleans (??? - the floor hadn't been touched in quite some time), makes the beer (VERY good beer) and, when time allows, continues with some restoration work on the place (it was vacant for about 20 years before he bought it so needs a LOT of work). If you're passing through Eola it's really the ONLY place to eat. However, since there's no sign, you do have to know it's there.

Just outside of Eola is Barrows Museum which has the biggest arrowhead collection I've ever seen. It also has collections of just about everything else as well (cats, swans, S&P, rocks, liquor bottles...) Photo 6 is what ladies used to go through to get their hair done. Photo 7 is some old tubs beside old computers beside an old popcorn maker beside an old book printer beside a broom maker (some of it is obviously arranged in "what fits where" order). The outside is sort of the same way - where the museum founders are buried (I didn't ask about the green hose that's on their graves) by the water tower by the windmill by the caboose. In the last barn were the tops of some interesting windwills beside some fans beside some scales beside some old cars... Needless to say, the choice of placement was as much fun as the contents.

To add to your old Texas sayings... "If it thunders in Feb. it will frost on that same day in April." It thundered here Feb. 2 so let's hope we hear if it frosts on April 2nd.

And a PS from yesterday... I forgot to tell you we had lunch in Miss Hattie's housed in one of the old banks in the "historic" section of San Angelo. There's a trap door in the floor which opens to a stairway and tunnel that goes next door into what used to be the bordello. "Gentlemen farmers" would bring their families to town, then send them off shopping while they did their "banking".

A trip to San Angelo...

The closest "bigger" city to Brady is San Angelo, a drive of about 70 miles. It is the home of Fort Concho, touted as the "best restored frontier fort in the USA". (It's NOT pictured - sorry, I forgot!) However... it's also the home of the San Angelo Museum of Fine Arts which has the best ceramics collection I've ever seen. The first two photos are part of their collection I just love. They're by artist Ruth Wilson from Brenham, TX and stand about two feet tall. (Sorry for the reflections - they were behind glass.) At the old gas station on the corner by the museum is an old VW completely covered in mosaic tile, even the wheels (John was quite taken with it.)

In row 2 we have Panchita's tortilla factory where we picked up GREAT (you guessed it!) tortillas and homemade salsa with ZIPPPPP! The tortillas are delicious because they're probably made with lard. As you can see by the middle photo I took in the supermarket, the 25 pound buckets of lard are the most popular size.

The country between Brady and San Angelo is flaaaaaaaat! The first landscape photo is the country either before or after Wall. The next one is on the other side of Wall. (Sorry, I blinked when we went through Wall and I didn't get a photo.) They grow a LOT of cotton there assuming it rains which it hasn't in quite a while. As the country begins to transition to mesquite nearer Brady, there's a ranch called Buzzards Roost. (I just liked their gate.) The last photo I took for John's cousins John & Judy of Eden's auto body shop (J & J run one in NJ). For those who don't know about Eden, it's the geographic center of Texas. One more thing about the terraine in case you haven't already noticed, this part of the world gives Montana competition for the phrase "big sky country".

Food...

Like most towns, Brady has its share of interesting places to eat. In fact, there are so many choices we've decided we need to eat out every day to try the best ones out. Yesterday it was "El Flamingo" home of some pretty good Mexican food. Today it was "87 Cafe", the home of Brady's best hamburger. Big, juicy, handmade burgers (no preformed patties here) with the works and served wrapped in paper as only the best burgers are - price w/chips... $2.95.

Brady is big on goat. They raise them for their hair (angora) and they raise them to eat. Although some of the local BBQ places sometimes offer roast goat, the biggest customers of Texas goats (for eating) are New York City Muslims. Their religious leaders come to San Angelo and buy them by the truckload. Don't fret... Brady always saves enough for their annual World Championship Goat Cook-off. It's Labor Day weekend if you ever feel inclined to tackle Texas heat that time of year.


Yesterday when I went to the local meat locker (when was the last time you had access to a real meat locker where you could have your own animal butchered and kept in a deep-freeze locker until needed?)... Anyway, when I went there to buy some beef bones for stock, I found their price list interesting - especially the goat head for $2 - I think you get the whole head - but, though tempted, I decided to take a pass this trip...

About Rochelle...

Wanting to keep Rambo in tip-top shape, we decided it would be a good idea to have the oil changed while we're here in Texas. J.A., my Texas-born brother-in-law who knows all the best places, sent us to Rochelle. Although we had been there last year, there didn't seem to be much action when we left Rambo a little before lunch for an afternoon appointment. John had to admit it did look a BIT suspicious when the only two vehicles waiting for service were an old road grater and a tractor. But, you never know about Texas.


Rochelle, where we took Rambo, is a fairly small town. In fact, the WHOLE downtown (pictured) is for sale if you're interested. The sign in Brady for Rochelle says it's 10 miles. The sign in Rochelle for Brady says it's 11 miles. (Guess the tailwind/headwind must have been fairly strong the day they took the measurements.)

So where's the garage? Well, it wasn't where we left Rambo but it wasn't far away (nothing is that far away in Rochelle) so the mechanic just went and got it. The garage is the building on the left in the photo. The building on the right I assume is either for rent or for sale. They are on Sixth Street although I have no idea where the other five streets are. (Guess the "city planners" have big dreams.) Way off to the left in the photo is another vehicle in for work - the one with the hood up. It's on a trailer. I couldn't decide if they'd brought it in with the hood up or if the mechanic just decided to work on it on the trailer. I didn't ask...

About those beads...

Remember those Mardi Gras beads that were collected at the parade and which have, I'm sure, decreased our gas mileage because of their weight?

If an article Joe brought us from the Pensacola News is to be believed, there are countless things you can do with them. Such as?

• Stringing them together to make a bead curtain to hang in a doorway - perhaps it might even discourage mosquitoes from coming in..
• Pasting them around the edge of that dull old picture frame you have hanging on the wall (don't you think your relative in that frame might enjoy a change of pace?)
• Making your own earrings (although you might want to shorten them up a bit)
• Think about those animal balloons clowns twist together out of long balloons. Turns out you can cut the bead strings into shorter lengths and use them to make some "cute little pets" of your own...
• Like stained glass? The article suggests spreading the beads out on a cookie sheet, melting them down in an oven, then with thick gloves shaping them over an upside-down bowl to make a melted bead bowl. It also warns it stinks to high heaven so be sure to do it with the doors and windows open and the fans blowing. (Lucky for us, Rambo does NOT have an oven!)
• Don't forget the rear-view mirror. Rambo is still sporting a few himself.
• When all else fails, hope someone you know (such as your sister, Becky - she's the one with the beads, that's my mother, Alice, next to her) is having a birthday and load them down with birthday beads. (Can you believe I actually had to remind Becky TWICE before she finally took them home?!!!)

Be warned, you may be next....

Texas & more of Texas...

If you've never been to Texas, it's a BIG state. Sort of discouraging when the first exits you see are numbered in the 800's which means (we finally figured this out last summer) that it's that many miles to where the road exits the state on the other side.

Coming in on I10 from south Louisiana, you pass the last of the rice patties, most of which are being used at this time of year to raise those millions of crawfish needed to feed all those hungry folks down here. It's FLAT. Near exit 808 there's a billboard for an Alligator Fest in Sept. (no town mentioned - guess they figure everyone knows where it is). Sloooooowly, the terrain changes from FLAT to a gradual rolling as you enter Texas Hill Country.

Signs change to BBQ... Pecans... Bulls for Sale...
You begin to see cactus, lots of cedars. Finally an actual curve in the road. (Remember the "connect the dots" games you did as a kid. That's how they lay out roads in FLAT country between towns.) You know you're in cow country when you see a store sign - "Cow Patty Patch" - where your "MOO LA" goes further. (Now why did they have to spell Patty the same way I spell my name?!)

Anyway, we finally made it to the heart of Texas (the almost geographic center of the state) where my mother lives (born in Ohio, spent most of her life in Arkansas, & now lives in Texas) and also my sister (born & raised in Arkansas but has lived most of her adult life in Texas) and her husband (a true dyed in the wool Texan, born here with his boots and cowboy hat already on I'm sure - Texas mothers are a hardy breed).

PS - I tried uploading the photos again from Friday to those blogs as it seemed a lot of folks had problems seeing them. Hope you can see them now.

Last day "on the job"...

The photos are a last look at the project. John & I and the other two couples have been with "our house" since we started framing. Today the last of the sheathing on the outside went on (for you construction folks out there - we know you generally put it on the wall BEFORE you stand it up but they do it last here). The first photo was taken just after lunch.



The second shows the openings cut out. We must admit that our group just rough nailed it. A new group of ten CCC (Civilian Conservation Corp) kids came yesterday and they were given the task of pounding in the hundreds of nails required to hold it on. Since this is the first time some of them have hammered, we're sure they're going to have sore arms tomorrow!



Photo 3 - Another new house was started today. Even though it's only 30 feet from the house next door, it's in a different flood plain so must be built higher in the air than the others that are built on slabs. Many hands make light work as the center beam is carried into place.




The last photo is this little thing that all Habitat projects we've been to do in the morning. Everyone gathers in a circle for an overview of the days work and a short devotion. Then with our hands joined we hold them in front and say "Habitat is not a hand out, but a hand up" and lift your hands in the air. (I will tell you it takes most of us the full two weeks to finally get what are hands are doing coordinated with what we're saying!)

Tomorrow we're off to Texas for new adventures!!

Crawfish Boil

Last night as we were trying to decide what to do for dinner, the answer arrived at the pavilion. Turns out the Habitat project has made arrangements for us all to be treated to a crawfish boil - Louisiana style (they just forgot to mention it to any of us campers but we can be VERY flexible especially when it comes to a free dinner!)

Photo 1 - the guy on right looking in the pot is John (when food is being cooked he's always the first one to arrive on the scene).
Photo 2 - 250 pounds of crawfish to serve about 70 folks (if you've never had crawfish, there's a LOT of waste).
Photo 3 - the "pot" - they throw in tons of seasoning, onions, the crawfish, then let it boil awhile. Then they drop in bags of potatoes, sausage, corn on the cob and cook everything until done.
Photo 4 - some of the crawfish being brought in
Photo 5 - happy eaters
Photo 6 - a crazy Canadian with a crawfish body on each finger
Photo 7 - the serving dish (an actual boat)
Photo 8 - one crawfish who finally became someone's dinner
Photo 9 - back at the beginning again