Mojo Power

Jigsaw (Mojave Pinstripe)

Most of you well know that I am a big advocate of Mojaves. Mojaves are awesome. Mojaves are a great base morph, as well as a killer combination morph to work with.

Here we have some awesome critters that are all involved with Mojave.

The Snake Keeper were the first breeders to produce and prove out the Mojave in 2000, and it was thus named for the Mojave Desert here in California. I imagine it's due to the dusky coloration, but that may just be me putting an artsy spin on it. I've never really asked Dan and Colette why they named the morph the Mojave. Maybe next time I see them... I'd like to know.

Mojave Spider

Anyway, it seems like no matter what you combine it to, it makes things awesome. Granted, you may disagree awesomeness occurs when it is involved with the Leucistic Making genes, as everything turns out White.

I don't quite get how getting a solid white snake is somehow a bad thing, but I understand from a combination standpoint, it doesn't leave much to work with.

Super Pastel Mojave

So to fix it, I just plan my breedings accordingly, to avoid making more White Snakes as many people tend to poo-poo.

And so should you, if you care not to see that type of morph combination. But think of it this way... The magic that is Ball Python Morphs allows for so many different opportunities to mix new things, it really shouldn't be that much of a hindrance to not work in Mojave into everything.

YAY MOJAVE!

Have a great day, my friends.

Power Males

A lot of people who are getting into the hobby try and figure out what is the best avenue to go..

Should I get a bunch of co-dom females and a cool male, or a cool female and wait to get a cool male for later?

Both of these things work out in the end, and the question really is, what is it that you have in your arsenal to begin with?

If you are just starting out, a few females and a cool male would be a great way to go.
If you are more patient, a great female to grow up is an excellent choice because when she is ready, you can get a great male and make super great babies out of that pairing.

For me, though? I have always been the type to keep the cool females, grow them up and get a super cool male.

So what do I mean by a super cool male?

Well, these photos on the blog are of the Sterling Mojave male that I hatched out this past season. I am very excited to have him here, as I have plenty of cool females to pair him with.

It did, however, take a long time to get there with the collection. Patience is not one of my strong suits, but I have managed to get a bevy of cool females every year to hold back and make work.

So what is best to do?

Again, its up to what you think is best for you....

I know what works for me, and what I intend to continue to do.

Can I find more amazing males to add to the collection? Absolutely!

Is that the plan? You bet your sweet ass it is.

Will you see photos of them eventually on the blog?

Yeah, you know you will... I can't keep anything from you guys... That's why I do the blog at all!

So think on it, share your experiences in the comment section, and have a great day, my friends.

Pinterest

I have been playing around with a few things to help me organize my life and my internettings.

One thing that I was turned on to was Pinterest.

It is an interesting website, for those who find things that they like and want to revisit.

The premise is that one has a Pinterest, which is a virtual photo scrapbook. You get the Pin It app, and you pin photos specific to that which you are interested in on specific webpages. You then have a link back to where you found it, as well as a place to see everything as a reference back.

It works for things you want to buy, ideas of crafts, reciepes, and even wedding planning (cough).

It is one of those "You gotta know someone to get in" kinda websites, so if you want an invite, shoot me an e-mail.

It is a fun thing to play around with, and I have been using it on and off for things that I have had to stop and look at again.

http://www.pinterest.com/

Try it out, look at it.

I'm planning on possibly starting a pin on critters soon, although that is kinda what this blog is for... We shall see. It would be worth a look into.

Have a great day, my friends!

Things are fast approaching

In the past few years, I have been changing the blog to suit what I think is appropriate for what you out there in Internet Land want to read about. Back in the day, I rambled on about anything under the sun, and while it was easier for me to come up with topics, it was less about the snakes.

THEN, I thought to myself, "these people don't want to know what I think about Movies...They are reading my blog because they want to know more about the snakes!"

So I started to try to focus more on the snake stuff. Problem is, part of the year, not much can be said for activities over here other than feeding, cleaning snake poop and watering. That gets old fast.

And with the whirlwind of this last year, a LOT of things outside of snakes has been happening to me, but I have tried very hard not to bring a lot of attention to it on the blog (as it is not snake relevant).

But it's coming to a point where the real life stuff is conflicting with my blogging, and so I think I will just run with it. There are days where I am so consumed with other things that I can't come up with any real fun ideas about snakes. I'm sure there are plenty of other people out there with the same issue... Life can get very heavy on ones shoulders sometimes.

So...

I am going to bring it back to allowing myself some musings once in a while. Nothing earth-shattering, of course. But when I get home from work, or when I encounter something randomly funny in life, it's coming back on here.

Might as well, right?

Life is not all about the snakes, although it is a huge part of it, and I don't want to overshadow that at all.

What spurned this random idea?

Well, my friends... I have four more months until my wedding day. And it's FREAKING ME OUT.

Four months is nothing, you guys. You all know that.

I have plenty done, plenty planned, lots of things dealt with... but four more months to get all the little things together, all while working full time, snake-ing as much as I can, and now going back to school again for another semester.

AAACK!

Of course, I can do this.. I just need to scale back on things a little, one of which is beating myself up trying to figure out what to write the night before on the blog. It takes planning to get something really interesting up on here, and sometimes, I just don't have the mental power anymore.

So that's the plan.

What do you think?

Of course, I value your opinions, oh wise readers of mine. I know some people don't read this every day, and of course, there are times when I don't even think what I wrote is remotely interesting. So we are going to change it up.

New Year changes for a better tomorrow.

Have a great day, my friends.

Break

Getting back into more work in life, so I need a night off.

I will be back and bigger than ever on Thursday!

Have a great day, my friends!

Tragedy

Well, seems like there are a lot of things happening already this year.

A fellow breeder in Philadelphia was meeting a potential customer for a sale of 20 animals. It is not known if he met up with his customer or not, but he was shot in the chest and his car stolen. The snakes were taken with the car, but the car crashed into a pole and the suspect fled on foot.

http://www.blogger.com/goog_848099436
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012/01/23/police-hunt-gunman-after-man-shot-during-snake-sale-in-philadelphia-parking-lot/

"A 38-year-old snake breeder who was shot in Ridley Township while trying to sell 20 pythons worth about $12,000 is a computer software engineer from Douglassville who has a snake-breeding business on the side.

Mark L. Haas remains in intensive care with a collapsed lung at Crozer-Chester Medical Center after being shot Sunday in the parking lot of Woodlyn Shopping Center, said Ridley Police Lt. Scott Willoughby. His injuries are not life-threatening, he said.

Haas was supposed to sell the snakes to a buyer from New York, but police still do not know if the deal went bad or Haas was the victim of a random carjacking.

The suspect took off in Haas' car with two boxes of snakes inside and eventually hit a pole in Folsom, then ran away. Willoughby said police found the car and removed the boxes - one containing 20 baby pythons and the other a five- or six-foot python - back to the police station so they would not freeze.

Haas' girlfriend picked up the snakes and took them back to his breeding facility, he said.
A website for Haas' company, Shinja, says he breeds pythons and poison arrow dart frogs, with the snakes selling for up to $20,000."


I know Mark only thru the internet and not well, but I dread the possibility that this could happen again to anyone, especially someone I am familiar with.

He should be fine, thank goodness.

Please remember that this industry is close-knit, and that stuff like this can happen. No matter what, there are crazy and illegitimate people out there trying to manipulate and steal things.  I am very sorry to hear what happened to Mark, and let's take this as a learning experience.

1) Do not meet up with anyone alone. Even in a public place, it can be unsafe.
2) Make sure someone knows where you are going, even if they aren't going with you.
3) Meet up during the day with a friend to accompany you.
4) When in doubt, SHIP.

If you can think of any other tricks, please share and comment below. Let's all stay safe out there.

Have a great day, my friends.

Happy Year of the Dragon!

So today is the Lunar New Year, and it brings with it the year of the Dragon. It is the year of the Water Dragon, which means several things. 

"The Year of the Water Dragon (1992, 1952 and 2012) is noted for its calm, visionary intelligence, and balance of right brain creativity with left brain logic."

"This is a year when people who are extroverted and outgoing will feel in their own element. People who are timid or introverted may have a harder time keeping pace with the year.

And of course, we started the New Year with some new critters! Of course, the White Gold clutch wasn't too shabby, but I also picked up a new Calico female to add to the harem. I don't have many Calicos, and this is my attempt at beefing up the white sided critters.

Joel seems to think the Calico gene is "lame", so I kinda kept away from them for a while, but with this girl, I am pleased. Next acquisition of Calico/Sugar will be a combination male, but until that happens, I'm going to keep things simple. This is the last gal until then. (We shall see if this is true, but at this point, I am serious)

And here we have the lowest white Mojave Pied that I hatched out. I really like how he turned out! The gold really is pretty! Apparently the lower white Mojave Pieds are more valuable. Isn't that interesting how that changes depending on the morph type?

Anyway, enjoy the New Year! I shall be in new clothes and eating something sweet this morning. Bringing in the New Year right...

Have a great day, my friends!

The Dragon is the only one of the 12 animals of the Chinese Horoscope that is mythical. This indicates a connection with the transmuting power of Heaven, hence this is a year when we may be able to achieve what seemed impossible before.

A warning in the Year of the Dragon is to manage energy wisely, so you don't get exhausted. This may be hard to do in a year of abundant good energy, because it may seem unlimited. 

Contrary to some popular rumors that have been circulating in the past few years about predictions, there is nothing in Chinese Astrology that indicates that the year 2012 is the "end of times." 

Dragon years are expected to be full of benevolence and grace, especially a Water Dragon Year."

So the bottom line? This should be a good year! I know I'm excited about it, for all of the new things that are changing in my life. Bring it on, New Year!