You Can Change and Be happy

Last night I was looking for some old information on one of my external hard drives and came across some pictures I had taken of me when I was up at Mammoth Caves National Park in Kentucky back in 2004 shortly before I moved to Ohio. I looked absolutely huge. I compared it to a picture that was taken this year from hike up to Ozuel Falls in RMNP and I could tell a big difference. Yea I still have a gut and probably will always have that gut till I become worm dirt., but my face and neck was definitely slimmer and I just looked thinner. I think that is good. Now to be trueful, I not a weight watcher or anything in the way of that. But I do have less problems with my knees than I have had in a long time and that is a good thing.

Now do I say I'm satisfied with that. NO WAY and yes I do want to lose more weight, but am I going to be totally unhappy with the way I look right now. Not IOTA.

Now it's time to go get the snowshoes out of the storage place and start to go snowshoeing for a couple of hours after work in the morning up at RMNP on the east side and just go have some fun and get some more exercise that I need.

Till later.....

Holy Cow, The Wind is Blowing Tonight

Coming in to work tonight from Fort Collins, I could feel the truck start to move around a little on the interstate and once I made the turn to the west for the main road that takes me into were I work, you could really feel the brunt force of the wind. Now I remember why I hated to drive in the wind in Wy when I was driving those big rigs cross country. The wind was picking up all the loose gravel/snad off the road and blowing it in to the windshield. You could here it just pelting the windshield and the cab of the truck. Once I got to work and parked, that was a new adventure in getting the door to open. One thing I have learned that is if you leave all the windows up and you have the high winds we are having tonight (wanings out for >80mph gust), you stand a chance of having a shattered window(s) in your car. So just a small crack is all is needed in one of the side windows to let the pressure equalize in the car. Plus it is really warming us up before the big cool down that is going to be coming after the wind.

Well till later....

Hey It's Sunny Outside

It's sunny outside and have no clue to how cold or warm it is. I think I am going to get ready and go out and see though. Thinking about heading up and over Cameron Pass to get to the west side of RMNP and see it anything over there worth shooting. No snow in the forecast for the area today for a little while and the wind has died down so it might be a good day to go adventuring out.

Well time to go.

Till later....

Snow and More Snow

Started snowing again last night and as far as I know it has not stopped. The weather guys say we are going to get snow for today, then stop and then start back up later this week. Every time it starts up and stops, it just makes my commute so lousy. People need to understand how to drive in this stuff. Take it easy, slow down a little, give a little more space, and stay off the dag gum brakes. It might surprise you how much easier your drive would be.

Till later....

Making Decisions

Sometimes people have to make some tough decisions and I am not immune to that toughness. I have some decisions to make and making those decisions are probably the toughest I have had to make in a very long time. It is going to take some time to make these decisions and lots of studying and thinking, but I hope I make the right ones based on the previous. Life is a wild and rough ride. Nothing is easy and you always end up paying for what you do, even if you think you don't. But trust me, you will eventually pay one way or another.

Well that is it for now.

Till later....

Boy Are We Screwed!!!

Well all the liberals and the media from CNN, MSNBC, ABC, NBC, CBS, PBS, and everyone else (except for Fox News) got what they have been wanting for the last 6 months, Obama as President. They had him as POTUS the moment he was nominate here in Denver back in August and even before then after he beat ole Hillary. I tell you, the world thinks we are a joke now, just wait till after he takes office, gets his first of many big test and falls flat on his face. The other countries will be just LTAO. He has two years till the mid terms now to prove himself and his administration. If not, his adgenda is toast. I am tired of fancy words and even fancier speeches by smooth talking snake oil salesmen (that is all these politicians are). I want action, firm, strong proven leadership for this country and I just do not think that he is the answer.

More to come later....

Crazy Networks

People these days take what the media puts out as gospel and the truth and nothing but the truth. We need to stop listening to what the news media is saying and learn again to make decisions for ourselves. Like right now, all the networks are running rampant with predictions for this state and that state for who won in that state, yet the polls are still open in over half the country. The networks just need to go back to reporting what is actually there, stop this predicting things and report real unbiased news period. No slanting it to their particular view or opinion. The news podium is not a pulpit to push their agenda or belief on the American people. The problem here that most of the American people today believe in what they hear from what ever CNN, MSNBC, Fox, or any other news network has to say. Everything has to be dumbed down for it to make sense. This is a failing of the education system, as it has lowered the standards for learning so low, it is hard to know any better and also a failing of people in themselves for allowing themselves to believe in the mess that is put out on the air and print and every other media outlet.

More to come as the night progresses......

The Big Day!!!

Well today is one of the biggest day's in this country's history and yes I mean history. We will either elect the first black man to be President of the United States or have the first woman as Vice President and within a heartbeat of being the first woman President of the United States. Which one do I want, well I tell it like this, I not saying right now.

This country is so screwed up morally and ethically, it just no longer has a compass giving it a true direction and I do not believe that we have not found the right person yet to give it that compass or direction to guide it. It needs a leader, no not a leader, it needs a great leader to put it back on the path that eventually made this country great and the reason it was a beacon of hope for millions of emigrants that came through Ellis Island in the 1800's and 1900's. What we do not need is someone that is going to give a free ride to millions of people who came into this country illegally and do not want to really be a part of the country, ethnically or in any other way. We do not need someone that is going to gut the country's defense in the name of giving to other people. A strong defense and a strong offense force means do not mess with us or if you do, you will pay for it. We need to start taking care of our own first before we start taking care of other people in other countries that would rather see us blown up into a million pieces.

Recently I visited a great monument that immortalized four of our greatest Presidents, people that I believe were great leaders and not people that just were saying the things that people wanted to or not wanted to hear. They made the tough decisions and stood by those decisions. Today's newly elected President will not be among those great men at this time nor do I believe that they will be able to be mentioned in the same breath of words as these men, not these leaders in the near or later future.

I have been active in watching, listening, reading, or otherwise involved in the past elections since 1980, the first year I could vote and this last year and half, I would say has been the worst I have ever seen in the election process. I believe it is a process that is broken and needs to be reworked. I have written before that I am a strong advocate of having a National Election Day. Nothing open, absolutely nothing, except for emergency services like hospitals and such. No stores not even gas stations and especially places like Walmart, malls, grocery stores. On this day, it is your chance to go to the polls and cast your vote. Prove that that you a citizen of this country by legal ID, and no I am strongly against a National ID program. We have plenty of other options on proving that your a legal citizen. Get rid of the Electoral College vote, it no longer has any meaning in the way it did back in the beginning of this country.

This is how I see it.

First Snow - Flurries with Ice

Last night was the first snow of the new season in Fort Collins. It was snowing when I left to go to work at 10 PM last night and snowed until I got past Loveland on I-25. Just glad the DOT was not out in force doing road construction like they have been doing for the last two weeks. The roads were actually in great shape, nothing was sticking to the roads, but I know that I need to go to Home Depot or Lowes and get some weight to put in the bed of the truck to weigh the back end of the truck down some. It has a really bad tendency to try to come around or go where it wants to go. So much torque available, it is touchy in the winter.

Me and a MAC

Oh how I want an Apple MAC, specifically a 24" iMAc. Nothing fancy just the base system. I can add RAM and can use external drives for more data drive and even connect to my Windows network for the network shares. I need this MAC so I can make slideshows and movies for Christmas and to further my photography to the next level. It has every thing I need to do the projects I want to do and I have the software to install for my photography.

Fall Colors

Taken before peak color down along Ohio Creek road in Gunnison County of Colorado with my D2x and a Nikon 70-300 VR.


Taken with a D2x and Tokia 12-24 along Hwy 135 from Gunnison to Crested Butte. It was great day to take pictures.

Picture using the new Sigma Lens

I should have posted this a long time ago, but it has been a busy time and everything. But anyway I just love this new lens. Those was taken with the new lens on a Nikon D2x in RMNP last month during the elk rut.

Same bull but just a lot closer. Massive rack and a mean sucker too.


Such a nice couple.

Housing Crisis and These Damn Bailouts

I am sick and tired of hearing about all the bailout plans for people who are losing their homes due to foreclosure. I have been trying to and want to buy a house. Need to buy a house for tax purposes and just because I want to own a house. I make a good salary and everything, but because of other people and their GREED, people that want to buy a house or a condo are screwed. Just reading on CNN of another proposal by one of the so called candidates for Prez and the article stated that someone working two jobs and busting his butt to pay his mortgage should just quit making his payments so he could take advantage of the proposed bailout.

Don't get me wrong, some people out there got screwed by greedy mortgage brokers and bankers when they refinanced their homes and now they are losing those homes, some of which have been in the family for years. My grief is towards all the folks out there that bought houses that they could not ever afford and some that never even made payments on the houses know full well that they would not make payments on the houses and then you have the investor flippers, bought the houses and then boosted the prices so high trying to make a big profit. This did nothing but cause the whole market to self inflate to unrealistic prices and not true market prices (ie. what the houses were really worth). Now everyone for the most part are losing their shirts and in some cases even their bras and panties too on their houses.

Some where it has got to end and bailouts of the banks and the CEO who are getting their big bonuses for driving this in to the ground is not the answer. Put the money in the hands of the American people and let us buy these properties that we desire. It puts money back into the system and gets the system rolling again. And oh by the way, if you are a wetback illegal from Mexico or any other country, just leave your house and the keys to it at the under the door mat and go back to the rock that you came from in Mexico or one of those Central America countries. I do not want you here, nor your children or your mom and dad or uncles and aunts, cousins. You are a big part of the problem too. You have no right to here and should just go back the way you came here.

Sigma 150-500mm (OS) Nikon Mount

I ordered a new lens today for my camera bag and it should be here next Friday. Thanks B&H for having it in stock and having great shipping rates. Saved over 15.00 on shipping by just one day difference in time and since I will not shoot with it till the weekend anyway, I would rather save the money on the shipping. Created a new group out there on Flickr for the lens. Will update once the lens gets here. Going to be used for the pika and elk shots I have been wanting to get. Probably won't get many pikas, but hopefully I will get plenty of elk during the rut season this year, plus the upcoming aspen season. Now I have the lens I need to get the shots I want.

New Trick

I am going to have try this and if it works, I am going to have to most definitely buy one to use when out in the field shooting. I was watching a youtubevideo just a little while ago and the photog was using a portable dvd player to review the shots he had just taken with the camera. All he did was plug an A/V cable from the camera to the dvd player and just like magic he had a 7" LCD monitor to look at the pictures with. Now I will wonder if works in a bright light situation or not, but hey, if it will let me the pictures I want to keep better, then I will make the small investment. Plus it can be recharged in the truck while driving back or to the next location.

Till next time....

Guanella Pass

This was taken up a Guanella Pass. Left Fort Collins at around 0230 and got there at about 0530 after having to go up a very rough road from Georgetown. The road is under construction and it really tells. Heavy wash boarding in areas and holes that would swallow small cars. Had two areas of single lane construction with traffic lights controlling the flow. Did not have to wait too long. Saw two beautiful small lakes on the way up. One, was a private lake and the other one looked like was used for hydro power by Xcel Energy. Got there early enough to plan out the first part of what I wanted to take pictures of and to setup my camera for the morning. and to just relax and look at the scene that early morning. Shot 100 photos while up there in the morning and did not realize that till I looked later at the camera. This is one of my favorites from that morning.

Well till later

National Weather Service - Hit and Miss

Definitely would not want the National Weather Service to do any work for me. They are so hit and miss on forecasts up here. Telling us the "heat wave" (see previous post) was over. Well it lasted for another day and might just now continue for a few more days. Not that I am complaining, but I would rather hike in 80 deg weather than 90+ deg weather. I guess that is why so many people headed to the mountains over the weekend. The I-70 tunnel is experiencing very high traffic counts. Makes lots of sense to me. Oh well. I will just go the park and hike up to Dream or Emerald for an early morning hike and still have a cool day doing it.

Till later...

The End of the Heat Wave

23 days of 90 degrees or higher is coming to the end. Forecast for tomorrow is the high 80's and maybe even mid 80's. Looking at the 50's for low's during the night. Sure am glad it is coming to an end. Now it is time to go hiking or shooting in the park working on my closeup photogrqphy with flash.

Till later....

Hot and Dry

Another hot and dry day in the Front Range. Every day we set a new record for the # of days above 90 degrees. Heck I will take the 90 degrees any day with the nice humidty we have here verses having 90+ degree days with 100% humidity down south. Dallas, TX is having it's share of days > 100 degrees, now that is hot, along with the high humidity. Sorry not into that kind of punishment.

Till later...

New Toy for My Camera

Went to Boulder yesterday to do several things, one of which was to find Mike's Camera. Finally found it after driving a while. Yes I know a map would have been simpler, but the fun of finding other places makes it fun looking for something. Browsed through the store. Typical camera store. Surprised to see lot of traffic in the store. Lot of it was looking for batteries and they were sending a lot of business to Batteries Etc down the street. Um missed dollars. Anyway, I saw that they had a SU-800 and I have been wanting to explore the CLS system of my D2x, so I decided to get it. It was priced about avg.

Now the fun part, learning it and using it. Have some really good plans for its use.

Till later...

Now This is a Sunrise Picture

Wow!!! I really like my new lens. I shot this up at Mt Evans today at sunrise after camping out in truck for most of the night. A friend of mine from another forum here in Colorado showed me this place last night. I am not saying the place where it was took exactly since we want to leave it as our little place. It has so much potential for different kinds of shots. There are some excellent subjects to shot with stobes at night to paint them in light.

Well time to go for a little while. Need to go get something to eat.

It's Here

New lens finally arrived Big Brown delivered it and it was on the camera five minutes later. All I can say, NICE LENS. Going up to RMNP later to shot sunset and a little of waterfalls.

Later...

A New Look, Sort of!

Decided to change my blog look. I was beginning to not like the all white look of the screen, so I decided on this color. I like the way it looks and the way it shows my photos. And I am editing it for my custom look.....

2 cents....

New Lens Coming

Boy oh boy, my lens is on the way. Waiting for that big brown truck to deliver it today. I am getting a Tokina 12-24mm f/4 lens for my Nikon. Wish it was the Nikon 12-24, but for $400 less, I am getting this one. The reviews say this one is actually better than the Nikon. We'll see when it get here. When it gets here I can finally go out get really nice landscapes that I have been wanting to get up at RMNP and other locations.

All's Quiet on the Western Front

Looks like my family of bird's have flown the coop so to speak. No more chirping, no more russeling in the wall, no more flying in and out every minute. Thank goodness. Now it is time to get out there and seal up the holes and fill it up with foam. It sure is nice to have a quiet room for a change. Hopefully it stays that way.

One note for today, today is the anniversary of the landing at Normandy by the Allied Forces during WWII. I just want to say THANKS for all the men that put their lives on the line that day and the many days afterwards to ensure that I am able today to do what I do. Hopefully I was able to pay back some of what they were owed by my service to this country in the 80's. Again thanks. Everyone should thank a VETERAN every day.

My 2 cents...

The Continuing Saga of the Bird family

Well it is late tonight and the bird's are still going at it feeding the kids. I cannot wait till the little ones get big enough to leave the nest becaue if my landlord does not fix the hole then, then I am because I am not going to be listening to more birds in the wall. Should have been fixed a long time ago before it gor to this stage. But now that the kids are there, you cannot move the nest or get rid of the nest the right way (thrown into the trash andhole plugged).

Well have a good one.

My Bird Family

Yesterday I mentioned that I have a family of birds in the wall of my bedroom. Well, now I know what they are. European Starlings is the species of bird I have a family of in the hole in the wall next to the windows. Here is picture of the bird returning from a hunting expedition for food the kids.

Hopefully, they will not be here too long. They are very noisy bunch and when they do leave, I have a surprise for the next visitors. There is not going to be hole there and where the hole was is going to be filled with foam to fill the cavity.

Till later....

Just Love Spring

Finally got out a couple weekend's ago and hiked up to "The Pool" in Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP). It was nice hike, especially hiking with another couple of people that I could keep pace with. It had plenty of scenery to look at. This Western Yellow Belly Marmot was just great. It would pose for us and then move up a little bit and pose for us again. It was just guiding us up the trail for a little while.

Chirping and More Chirping

I have a new family in my room and what a new family they are. See the new family are birds and they have taken up residence in the wall right next to the window. They have access thanks to a woodpecker or multiple woodpeckers putting a hole in the outside wall (apparently they like cedar shingles). The parents, and they are proud parents moved in a few weeks ago and built them a new home and then they just decided to raise them a family in the wall too. Those little guys are loud and always hungry. Guess I am just going to have take advantage of the situation and take some pictures of the proud parents.

My 2 cents worth....

Yes I know

Yes I know, I have not been writing here in this blog. Guess I have not had time or just have not had anything worth writing about. Went snowshoeing last Saturday and believe it or not I did fall on my butt or anything. Knee felt fine. Supposed to go again this weekend up to Dream Lake area in RMNP, but the wind looks like it is really going to be really bad, so I do not know if we are going to make a go of it. If not , I will find me some place to go snowshoeing on Saturday if I have to go up to Cameron Pass area. I have one area I want to go and get some pictures of the Crags from a different point of view.

Just my 2 cents....

Another State Down

Well here from the front of the bus, must we endure another 8 months of agony, listening about Obama and Clinton and McCain, Romney, Huckabee, Paul, Thompson. We are really scrapping the bottom of the barrel for leadership in this country. Like I said before and I will keep saying, give a national primary where everyone votes and we are done. If no one gets a majority (where a majority is 51%), not just the most votes, then we have a runoff in two or three weeks. The top two vote getters are President and Vice President. That way the people have spoken clearly and with authority...And lets add a twist to the whole picture, we add a binding None of the Above (NOTA) to the ballot and if NOTA wins, then we start over with none of the ones that got beat by NOTA.

Now that would be something, run for office and get your butt beat by NOTA. What a hoot.

This is my two cents and that will get you a cup of joe...

A Wounded Duck

Waking up this morning was a new adventure. Sometime during the night, I "tweaked" my knee again. It was hurting bad enough that I had to go see a doctor about it for a change. My feeling is that something is wrong with my ACL or PCL, since that is where the chronic and the acute pain comes from the majority of the time. If it was cartliage or scar tissue pinching, it would be hurting more to the front or on side where I had the surgery 27 years ago.

I want to get my knee well finally so I can go hiking and snowshoeing here soon. I am missing too many good pictures out there not being about to get out and go for a long hike in the mountains. I want to learn how to snowshoe also. Realy don't care for skiing or snowboarding at all. Too damn expensive and just to many people....

Well that is all for now.

My 2 cents and that will get you a cup of joe.

The Race for Prez

Why are we the only major country in the world that elects their so called leaders in such a long and drawn out process with these caucuses and so called primaries. Then we have a big convention at the cost of the taxpayers to the tune of over 50,000,000 dollars for each convention. And if you do not belong to one of the two major parties, you do not have a chance of a snowball in a hot oven of even getting elected, much less heard, unless you are a very rich person and willing to spend a lot of that money on a losing cause.

I believe that we need to have a national primary day where the voters go to the polls with voter id enforced and no party registration allowed. On this day, the country is shutdown. No stores are open, no business takes place at all. We go to the polls, vote for who we want to represent us in the country's leadership, be it from the lowest offices to the highest office in the country. People have too many excuses to not vote, but then moan and complain about who is elected.

Folks, I spent over 9 years of my life defending this country, time away from my family, put my life along with crewmates of mine on the line every day and we have people that want to just say it is too hard to vote. BS to that. Remove all the excuses and get off your butt and vote.

This country was founded on the principal of "one man one vote" We need to take the time, reflect on what our founding fathers envisioned for us and paid for with their blood and bodies over the last 200 plus years of this country's history.

Give us a national primary day with it being a national day of closure with absolutely no businesses open, yes not even Walmart or grocery stores. Plan ahead, you can survive for one day with Walmart. Do not call it a holiday, you have a duty to go vote that has been paid for in blood by others in the past, today, and in the future. Eliminate the electoral college then on Election Day go vote for your leaders.

Just my 2cents.

Till tomorrow

It Should Be Simple

Blogging, this should be simple. It is typing letters in whitespace on box, right. Not a chance. I had an animated gif I linked to on the web and I had a heck of time getting it off this page. Next is to get it off the profile totally. Should be simple, but it is not being that way.

Till tomorrow...

First Post of New Year

Today, I am going to try to write something new in this blog at least once per day. This is the one for today.

A book I am reading on time management says that it takes 21 days for something to become a habit. Well, lets see, if I write here for 21 days straight then this should become a habit.

Now lets get down to happen today. I am trying to get stuff so I can go snowshoe comfortably in the Rocky Mountain National Park (East side or West side). Today I went to Bass Pro Shop in Denver and got me some middleweight polartec thermal underwear shirts and pants. When I was growing up as a kid in Mississippi, heck we called those things "longjohns". I still call them LongJohns, but now they are fancy LongJohns. I also got me some nice heavy socks to wear with my boots that I bought for hiking, but have not even wore them yet. Just took them out of the box today and tried them on again wit the new socks and those socks were the right ones to get. Now we'll see if they keep my feet warm and dry.

Went up to the east side of RMNP as far as Glacier Gorge. Spraque Lake had a bunch of people on it ice skaing. First time I had seen that there. Came home and fixed myself a semi-traditional New Years Day meal. I had pork chops in BBQ sauce, rice and corn. I tell you, I can cook when I really want to. And I am really get tired of ewating out every night, so look for me to cook more often.

Well guys, that is about it.