Petey's Powderhorn

Veteran's Day

2009-11-10T22:21:00.001-06:00

Goose Season

2009-10-30T22:11:00.000-05:00

The trigger finger itches. The truck is loaded. The dog is trained. The call are on the lanyard. The shells are in the bag. The gun is ready to rock.

And there are a few birds in the area.

Yes, it is a special time of the year.

Waterfowl season.

Shooting time is 7:02am tomorrow. I'll be there with call on.

Are you?

I'm a Bad Blogger

2009-10-26T23:42:00.000-05:00

and I know it.

But quite frankly, as crappy as life has been over the last month, I just haven't felt much like talking.

A little update.

In case you haven't noticed, the economy still sucks major monkey balls. It is better, but unemployment is up around 10%, markets are still down, and the family business is still losing money. FY2009 was a $300,000 loss on $950,000 in total revenue. Then, we had been working since late August on preparing a grant application for ARRA funds to increase our efficiency. Currently, our recycling center processes 2.5 tons/hour. Originally, we thought we could find enough material to increase that production by 8-10x's. A big key to this increase was the city of Peoria starting a curbside recycling program of significance. That didn't happen. The program that was selected is nothing more than a warm fuzzies program. And after that, all the pieces of our program started to fall apart. By the time we got down to a week before applications were due, we were planning to install a system that could potentially quadruple our through-put but we only could identify sources for a doubling, at best. Finally, last Monday, we found a short sentance that derailed the whole plan. Projects were only able to apply for 50% of total project costs, and costs had to be incurred after the middle of February, 2009. Which for us, meant we only had $200,000 in equipment to put against the total project cost on our half. This meant we would have to get financing for about $1,400,000. Not a possibility. So, we had to abandon applying for the ARRA funds. This was a major blow to my folks. First was anxiety, and then depression.

And on the other side, the weather this fall SUCKS!! Here were are at the 27th of October and we only have 82 acres of soybeans harvested and fewer than 40 acres of corn. It rained all night Sunday. There is more rain in the forecast. We still have over 300 acres of beans to harvest and over 200 acres of corn. At this pace, we will be lucky to be done by Christmas. We harvested Sunday, for the first time in a week.

Basically, please pray for my family. And all the farmers right now. It is going to be a really rough and long harvest.

A Hero Is Called Home

2009-10-06T11:51:00.000-05:00

Friday afternoon, October 2, at approximately 5:00pm, an American Hero was called home. He is my Great Uncle Bruce. Born in a small farming community in central Iowa, Bruce was a boy when the United States was attacked on Dec. 7, 1941. His father had taken him, his sister (my grandmother), and several other kids sledding that morning after Sunday School. At the age of 17, he wanted to enlist in the Marines, but great-grandma wouldn't have it.

So Bruce was drafted into the Army, in a delayed deployment program that was going to send him to college prior to deployment and then bring him in as a 2nd Lieutenant. But just a couple of days before Bruce was to begin classes at the University of Oklahoma, the whole program was cancelled, and he was on his way to Europe.

When he crossed the Channel, he landed at Utah Beach (not on D-Day) and began the move through. He was captured during the Battle of the Bulge and taken to Stalag 12A in Germany as a P.O.W. On April 12, 1945, the Stalag was liberated by the English 7th Armoured Division. Until his passing, Bruce still had the boots and uniform that were provided by the 7th upon liberation-the first change of cloths or shoes since early January at his capture.

Bruce was awarded 2 purple hearts and 2 bronze stars for his service.

After returning home, he met a wonderful woman, who would become his wife for over 52 years. They had one son, and two grand-daughters; the oldest of which was married two weeks ago. Bruce was at the wedding. The next morning, he began a two weeks of illnes, which ultimately took him home. He was coherent, giving orders all the way to the end, and told his son on Friday that he was ready to go home. His wife passed a couple of years ago, and Saturday, October 3rd, was their wedding anniversary, for which they are back together.

It took Bruce over 40 years to talk about his experiences in World War II. He was an ardent advocate for Veterans, especially in the Des Moines area. He served on the committee for the first state or national World War II Memorial, which is located on the state capital grounds in Des Moines. He served as Master of Ceremonies at its dedication. Follow this link to see pictures of Veterans Day Services at the Memorial. Bruce is the 3rd from the right in the first two pictures, and 2nd from the right in the third picture.

It is always sad to lose a dearly loved family member, but our entire family takes comfort in knowing he has gone home to his Savior, and is reunited with his loving wife. We take pride in know that he was a great man, and that we had the honor of being his family.

Bruce you will be greatly missed in this life, but we will see you again, soon.

Is it a Platinumed Golden Anniversary?

2009-09-24T23:37:00.000-05:00

250 years ago, history was changed forever. Arthur Guinness signed the lease on the St. James Gate Brewery in Dublin, Ireland. And more importantly got the water rights on the property.

The lease terms?

100 pounds down, and 45 pounds per year, for 9,000 years.

Sounds like a pretty good deal to me.

And so today, We all must raise a glass to Arthur.

TO ARTHUR!!

h/t to Blackfive.

Great Music Monday-Bringing Mary Home

2009-09-21T22:59:00.000-05:00

I haven't posted one of these for a few weeks. My heart just wasn't in it. But tonight seemed like a good night to get back in the swing.

When I started rendezvousing in 1998, one of the greatest things about it was sitting around a fire listening to music (this is not to say that there isn't still good music, because there is, but I am now part of the performance instead of just a wide-eyed kid wishing I could be that good).

I remember one night in particular at the Galesburg Heritage Days Rendezvous around 1999. We were still camping West of the main pavillion and on Saturday night, there was a good group sitting around doing music. Somebody asked Rod and Ollie to do an old Smiley Bates tune, Bringing Mary Home.

The song is the story of man driving down a lonely road when he see a girl in a formal dress along the side of the road. The driver stops to pick up the girl and take her to her home. They drive down the road and the girls tells the man to pull into a driveway. But when he stops the car, the girl is gone. He goes up to the house. He tells her the story and the woman smiled, and told how her daughter had been killed 13 years ago, and every year, someone brought Mary home.

The story is loosely based on a Chicago area legend and one of the most famous ghost stories in the country. The story of Resurrection Mary.

This song is still one of my favorites and every time I hear it I am taken back to that rendezvous where I first heard it, and then I picture myself on the dark, dusty, lonely road and bringing Mary home.

Questioning

2009-09-20T23:48:00.000-05:00

I'm beginning to really question what kind of hunting dog Omar the Wunderpuppy is really going to become.

Case in point, yesterday (Saturday).

I headed down to Gobbler's Knob Hunting Reserve between Canton and Banner, with 3 purposes. Number 1: Clean the clubhouse for next weekend's test. Number 2: Help anybody that showed up in their preparations for the test. Number 3: Put out some birds to work Omar on and see if I could get him to connect all the elements, point, bird flushes, shot, and retrieve.

2 chapter members showed up to prepare for their text nest week. Both are running Natural Ability, both dogs are Wirehaired Pointing Griffons, both dogs are from the same litter, but the owners did not know each other until last month at another training day.

Primarily, both of those owners wanted to work on the track portion. So they got a couple of pheasants and one of the more experienced members of the chapter and I set the birds out. One dog did a really great job, the other didn't do terrible, but it fell short of good. All in all, I think they will do alright. The only thing that matters is that the owner is happy with the performance and uses the test as an opportunity to evaluate where they need to focus training.

The other person there had his German Shorthaired Pointer which he is trying to get to become more steady. The dog points very nicely, but as soon as you make a step, she wants to break in on the bird. He worked the dog on three or four birds.

Finally, I wanted to get birds in front of Omar and get him ready for hunting season. He has a good strong point, and does a nice job of retrieving when we train at home, but at the last training day, we would point but I couldn't get him to follow up with a retrieve to hand. He just didn't seem interested then.

Not a problem yesterday. I put out 6 chukar partridge, in 2 differnt set-ups. The results were spectacular. On the last bird, I had one of the other guys take some photos for me.

Omar, pointing the bird.

Another of Omar on point.

On Point. Can you tell where the bird is?

The circle in the center of the picture is around a blaze orange clothespin. This marks the location of the bird launcher. It is about 30' in front of Omar.

I'm moving in to flush the bird.

After the flush, taking down the bird.

And a retrieve to hand.

The great thing about this is the way Omar reacts. If you notice in the pictures after I move in and the bird has been flushed, Omar is still standing in the same location. When the bird is shot, he STILL didn't move. Finally, just as the bird hit the ground, Omar broke from his point and moved in on the dead bird, which he retrieved to hand.

Man, that was FUN!

So do you think he is going to be a decent bird dog?

A Tribute

2009-09-17T22:43:00.000-05:00

Today, proper honor was bestowed on one of the greatest American Hero's to grace this country.

SFC Jared C. Monti, was killed in action in Afghanistan in 2006. Today, his parents accepted his very deserved Medal of Honor.

Words cannot express the extreme grattitude that we all should feel towards Sgt. Monti. He is one of the greatest heros this country has ever known.

This is a video of the presentation Ceremony, this afternoon. Caution, it may cause you to get choked up.

Thank you to MCQ at BlackFive for originally posting.

Respect is Gone

2009-09-15T21:38:00.000-05:00

Well, it is official.

Any waining shreds of respect I had for the United States House of Representatives is completely gone. Zilch. Nada. Nil. None. Goose egg.

Currently, there is a major debate on how to reform health care. We are still fighting a war in Afghanistan. The economy, at best, is reaching for the rim of bowl of the crapper that it has fallen into. And the nut jobs in charge in the House of Representatives felt it was more prudent to take a day on OUR DIME to bitch about Rep. Joe Wilson's comment during the boring dronings of the POTUS last week.

What the hell are these idiots thinking? I mean really, WTF.

Yes, Rep. Wilson's comments were in poor taste and a breech of decorum, but in the heat of the moment, after Obama just got done calling almost every Republican in the room a liar, Wilson let his emotion loose. He apologized to the POTUS within an hour of the end of the speech, which Obama accepted. The issued should have ended right there.

But no.

The Dems had to play party politics and flex their muscles and beat the dead and rotting horse for a week. Now, they've gone and caused the carcas to explode and their face is covered with the disgusting carrion.

And then, to ice the intestinel slime that has covered them, Barbara Lee (D-California) and James Clyburn (D-South Carolina) have the audacity to suggest that Wilson's comment was somehow motivated by race. Good God in heaven, please give me the strength to keep from vomiting.

Get it through your freaking heads-just because Obama is black, does not mean that everyone who opposes him is a racist. It wouldn't matter if Obama was black, white, red, yellow, or purple with pink polka dots, it is his policy positions that make my blood boil. And quite frankly, I am sick and tired of the racism towards people like me.

Rep. Joe Wilson is right to stick to his guns and not issue a second apology. And the Dems should be rebuked for the wasting OUR MONEY on this bullshit. Rebuked at the ballot box.

9-11 Reflections

2009-09-11T23:29:00.002-05:00

It has been said that members of my parents generation will never forget where they were when they heard President Kennedy was shot.

And for my generation, it is the attack of September 11, 2001.

I was a Freshman in college at Black Hawk College's East Campus. That morning, I took my very first college test in a U.S. History class. Once the test was over, I went out to a commons area to prepare for my Speech class. I had been sitting for a couple of minutes and opened up my book bag when a woman walked in and said that a plane had hit the WTC and Pentagon, and another was headed for the White House. I sat there, dumbstruck for a minute. Not sure I had heard her right. I packed my bag and proceeded to the student center where over 100 people were gathered around a 27" TV watching Aaron Brown on ABC with the towers burning over his shoulder. Some people whispered quietly, but most were just silent. As I stood there, I muttered under my breath "bin Laden."

That afternoon, the local newspaper editor took an eerie photo. Jet trails. 7 of them. In lines across the sky. By that time of the day, there was only one plane in the air, Air Force One. Bush was flying from Nebraska back to the East Coast and fly right over my town.

The only feelings I remember feeling that day are surprise that it happend, sorrow for those lost, and a deep burning anger against those who had perpetrated the heinousness.

And now, 8 years later, I am sitting here tonight, listening to Alan Jackson who did such an elegant job of containing the confusion I think we all experienced. The History Channel is running video footage of the attack. Tonight, I think it is affecting me more than it did 8 years ago. Maybe it was shock on that day. But it is also stirring my anger and resolve that we WILL prevail. We MUST prevail.

But today is also a day for great celebration in my town. Another group of American Hero's returned from Afghanistan this morning. They have been deployed for a year. This is the second homecoming in just over 3 weeks. And it is appropriate that tonight is also Homecoming at the high school. There is local news coverage of the homecoming HERE, the coverage begins at 2:33.

It is because of hero's like these, that I can right this blog, and that we have gone over 2,900 days without another attack on our soil.

Baxter Black, the great American cowboy poet, really puts the right perspective on today and every single day.

Thanks to Michael Bane for the Baxter Black video.

The Defender's Creed

2009-09-04T08:57:00.001-05:00

I read this this morning in the weekly e-mail from the USCCA (United States Concealed Carry Association) and thought it bore repeating again and again. I may print it and frame it to put on the wall.

The Defender's Creed
By: John Farnam

I accept and understand that human predators exist. Criminal or terrorist, they take advantage of our civilized society to prey upon the weak. They represent evil and must be confronted and defeated.

I believe that self-defense is a moral imperative, and that illegitimate force and illegal violence must be met with righteous indignation and superior violence.

I will not rely on others for the security of myself, my family and my community.

I proudly proclaim that I run with a like-minded pack. I do not amble through life with the mind-numbed herd.

I will train with my chosen weapons, maintain them and carry them in a condition of readiness at all times.

I will be mentally prepared and physically equipped to effectively respond to an attack or emergency.

I will constantly test myself against realistic standards to discover my strengths and weaknesses. I will turn weakness into strength.

I will seek to learn new skills and techniques, and then teach what I have learned to other members of the pack.

Be it with firearm or blade, empty hand or blunt object, I will hit my enemies hard, fast and true.

I will live a quiet and unobtrusive life, but I will develop and retain the capacity for swift and decisive violence.

I recognize that I am the modern equivalent of the traditional Minuteman, and that I may be called to service at any time against heavily armed enemies. I will respond effectively.

I accept that I am a pariah among some of my countrymen, and a quaint anachronism to others. I will not hold their ignorance against them.

I will win, or die trying.

I swear this creed before God, my family and my fellow citizens.

John Farnam is an internationally acclaimed firearms instructor, and the author of three books and numerous articles. Please visit his website: http://www.defense-training.com

Great Music Monday-The Mercy Seat

2009-08-31T23:50:00.002-05:00

Johnny Cash is a Legend above legends. Inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame, the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and Songwriters Hall of Fame, but permanently banned from the Grand Ole Opry, you would be hard pressed to find a more iconic musician anywhere in history.

With a career that spanned nearly 50 years, Cash would see some amazing highs and very deep lows throughout his career. And what could have been a huge low towards the end of his career, actually turned out to be and amazing redirection. When the Nashville establishment no longer seemed to have an place for Cash, he found new direction with Rick Rubin of American-best known for their rap and hard rock records. The albums Cash did with Rubin pushed him to new limits, and were among the best of his entire career.

This week's Great Music comes from one of those albums. And while not written by Cash, he made this piece his own, to the point where I haven't found another version that really compares.

The Mercy Seat.

Interesting News Piece

2009-08-31T23:27:00.003-05:00

Last night, after watching Jay Cutler and DA BEARS!!!! beat the Broncos, the late local news came on, and they had a story that blew me away.

Now, it is easy to find "stories" in the MSM that portray gun owners as right-wing wackos. But this particular piece I found to be very good, done by the local NBC affiliate about a USPSA (United States Practical Shooting Association) regional competition held this past Saturday.

The video is HERE.

Or to watch the whole newscast and see how the story was led into, go HERE. The story about the USPSA begins at 13:30.

The news station even linked to the USPSA site. Which I clicked on, and right there on the homepage, was another video from the local Fox station with a feature story about an area shooter preparing for the USPSA Steel Challenge. Watch that video HERE.

I guarnatee you would not see stories like this on a Chicago station.

The "Lion" sleeps tonight, forever.

2009-08-26T20:08:00.002-05:00

The "Liberal Lion" or "Lion of the Senate" if you are the MSM, is dead.

In case you missed the headlines on EVERY SINGLE FREAKING MSM station, Sen. Edward Kennedy died last night, following a battle with brain cancer.

I have two thoughts on this.

1) Politically, good riddance. I am glad he is gone. It has been 47 years of Teddy. WAY overdue for a change. Politicians are like diapers. They should be changed often and for the same reason.

2) I would not wish cancer on anyone except the most vile wastes of humanity, i.e. Osama bin Laden, Hugo Chavez. Aquavelvajad. I would NOT wish cancer on Ted Kennedy, or his family. Especially following the passing of the sister just a few weeks ago. The Kennedy family is in my prayers for their personal peace.

So many options

2009-08-25T22:10:00.003-05:00

Well, I think I am taking the Stoeger back to Gander Mountain tomorrow after a meeting in Peoria. So today, I was surfing through the Gander Mountain site at some options to replace it.

Here's the list I am thinking about.

1. Marlin 39AS .22 lever action. I've always wanted a lever action, and like the function of the Marlin levers.

2. Ruger Mini-14 Ranch Rifle. I've thought about the Mini-14 for years. The only drawback-.223. Not really a big fan of the glorified .22.

3. Colt Single Action Army Revolver. The Peacemaker. 'nuf said.

4. Marlin 336 XLR lever action. The classic Marlin, with a laminated stock, stainless barrel and receiver, and chambered in the classic .30-30 Winchester.

5. Marlin 1895CB lever action. The first lever action I ever shot was chambered in the .45-70 Govt. and so is this.

6. H & R 1871 Buffalo Classic. Another .45-70 Govt. with a 32" barrel, single shot rifle. Just a classic for the high plains.

7. Winchester Model 70. Its a Winchester. What more do you need to know. I'm a Winchester whore. The first two guns I ever fired were Winchester, and they are American Classics.

8. Tikka T3 Hunter. Manufactured in Finland, no Tikka T3 leaves the factory without shooting a sub-1" group at 100 yards. Adjustable trigger pull with a simple Allen wrench. Amazing quality for a cheap price. And in .243, it is the perfect midwest rifle, coyote, deer, javelina, fox, whatever. And they are said to be very affordable..

Preparations for a return home

2009-08-25T21:44:00.002-05:00

This is a video I shot last Wednesday, August 19, of preparations in Galva, IL for the return home of a group of Illinois National Guard Soldiers.

There are flags ever 50'-100' for about 2 miles from the National Guard Armory building all the way to the edge of town. More things were done the next morning, but I wasn't able to get footage of it or the actual return. I simply couldn't get away from work, even though Lord knows I tried.

The video really doesn't do justice to how impressive town was for that day.

God Bless American, and keep and protect our troops. Bring them all home safely.

GAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2009-08-24T23:32:00.003-05:00

The resolution that had been obtained, has been lost.

And I'm so mad I can't see straight.

Back in June, I talked about arriving at a resolution to a long running problem. I thought the issue was dead.

Until today. I finally took the new Stoeger out to use during some dog training. Since I wasn't actually shooting any birds, just trying to mix gunfire with retrieving, I was using 12 gauge poppers (a.k.a. blanks). But that shouldn't matter since a) the Stoeger Uplander does not up operate on recoil, and b) the problem was with the first barrel. Yes, ladies and gents, brand new shotgun that it took a year of bullshit to finally get to replace the malfunctioning gun, has the EXACT SAME PROBLEM!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I fired 10 or 12 rounds of blanks during training, and had two not fire.

Needless to say, I am slightly pissed.

So next time I go to Peoria, the shotgun goes back and I am going to get something different. I don't know if it will be another shotgun, a rifle, or a pistol. But it sure as hell ain't going to be a Stoeger Uplander.

Great Music Monday-It's America

2009-08-24T23:04:00.002-05:00

I know, I know. My posting lately has pretty much sucked. I've just been rather uninspired.

But then last week, was a special day. August 20th, a group of American Hero's returned home (to the town where I live) from Afghanistan to a well earned Hero's Welcome. I have a video that I shot going through town the night before of the preparations being made by citizens, local groups, and the city. Once it is uploaded, I will post it here.

But their return got me thinking about all the reasons that America is a great country. The Soldiers are always #1. But there are several other great things to celebrate in this country.

Rodney Atkins captured the spirit of America really well in his song, "It's America."

Hiatus

2009-08-03T22:17:00.014-05:00

I've been on a little bit of a hiatus for the last few weeks. Partly because I've been busy, partly because I've gone, and partly because I've just haven't felt like saying much.

So a little bit of catch-up.

July 11-18 was the Rocky Mountain National Rendezvous. A 15 hour drive. But worth the miles. There was a little bit of rain on Sunday evening, and Monday we had two wind storms come through. The first wind storm knocked down a teepee and a traders tent, a couple people got knocked on the head by poles, but nothing major.

Tuesday was probably the highlight of the week. Dragonfly, another friend from Northern Wisconsin, and I climbed to the top of the Grey Rocks formation at the North end of camp. I
don't the precise elevation, but it was probably 300-400 feet above camp.

Me and Dragonfly on the way to the summit

On the way to the top, we found this hot tub with a view. Except the water was only about 70 degrees.

Dragonfly by the world's greatest hot tub.

View from the top. Worth every step.

This is the rock face we went down. The picture doesn't really do it justice.

View from the South end of camp looking back to the Grey Rocks. We were at the absolute highest point on those rocks.

Another view from the South end of camp. Our route of travel started all the way to the far left side of the picture, up the long slope.

We left Friday morning and headed to the Museum of the Fur Trade. We were not even 10 minutes from camp, still running on the gravel road with the windows down, when suddenly, we hear the horrible hisssssssss of air rapidly escaping. Cut a tire. Bad. So we pulled into a lane to ranch and changed to the spare. After a short delay, we were back on the road.

The Museum of the Fur Trade was awesome. I was particularly interested in their feature exhibit on the voyagers. In particular, the 36' birchbark canoe. All in all, I took over 230 pictures.

After the museum, we took 2-lane highway to Sidney, Nebraska and Cabelas. Saturday we returned home.

Once I returned home, it was catch up at work. Lots of deliveries to run, contacts to make.

And a project that I agreed to prior to leaving for the RMNR. A good friend from the Quad Cities, who was my canoe partner two years ago on a 3 day Maquoketa River trip, is leaving tomorrow morning (Tuesday) on the MR340. A 340 mile canoe race down the Missiouri River from Kansas City to St. Charles. The boat he is racing in is a 30' Chinook style boat named "Its Woot." The 4 man crew were all members of the 200th Anniversary recreation of the Lewis and Clarke Corps of Discovery. Well, my friend wanted to use a canoe paddle that I built. So the last two weeks were dedicated to making this paddle perfect.

I think it turned out alright.
Full view.

Close up of the Welsh Dragon I hand painted on the blade, with my touchmark above.

And finally, I threw in a great little canoe trip down the Kishwaukee River this last Saturday with Contagion, Ktreva, Wes, Wil, Red, and Dragonfly.

No wonder I'm tired.

Now, more paddles to make, and archery match to plan, and Rendezvous season is about to go into full swing.

Oh, and early goose season is less than a month away.

Great Music Monday-Circle of Life

2009-08-03T22:03:00.002-05:00

Sometimes great music can be found in unlikely places.

One of the greatest movie themes ever came from the animated classic, "The Lion King."

Elton John's "Circle of Life" is one of the greatest movie themes ever. 'Nuff said.

Great Music Money-Mary Ellen Carter

2009-07-20T23:55:00.002-05:00

Stan Rogers is one of the greatest folk songwriters/singers of the last 100 years who was taken fare to young when he was only 33 following a fire on a plane in June, 1983. There is speculation that Rogers died when he went back to try and help other passengers escape.

One of his greatest compositions is a song about former crew members trying to raise their old ship from the sea.

The song is credited with saving the life of one sailor in February, 1983. As the Marine Electric was going down, the Chief Mate was trapped, but used his snorkeling experience to escape and clung to a partially inflated life raft for several hours in the frigid water. And just as he was about to give up and let himself sink to the depths of Davy Jones Locker, he remembered the words of Roger's song and maintained his resolve by singing the song over and over again. Of the 33 on board the Marine Electric, only two survived. The Chief Mate's story is at the beginning of the video below.

The Mary Ellen Carter.

AWOL

2009-07-11T00:32:00.002-05:00

I'm going AWOL.

Actually, it AWL.

Omar the Wunderpuppy is going to the breeders near Rockford for the week, and then Dragonfly, The Man From Ohio, and I are heading for the Rocky Mountain National Rendezvous, a little South of Douglas, Wyoming. for the week. On our way back from the RMNR, there is going to be a stop at Museum of the Fur Trade in Chadron, NE, and then Cabela's in Sidney, NE.

The beatings will resume upon my return.

Great Music Monday-Face the Flag

2009-07-06T23:39:00.003-05:00

It's been a helluva day. So I am making this easy.

Saturday was the 233 birthday of this greatest nation on God's green earth. And in 1973, John Wayne (yes, the American Icon actor) recorded a spoken word album of patriotic themes. Sunday morning as I was waking up, I heard one of them played for the first time ever. I was immediately blown away by its power.

I can't find any video of it, but there is a good site with the lyrics and audio playing. Listen to the voice of The Duke, and listen the the words he speaks.

Face the Flag

God Bless America, and God Protect the Men and Women Who Keep Us Free.

Great Music Monday-Only God Could Love You More

2009-06-29T23:47:00.002-05:00

This past weekend, I had the great joy of going to the St. Louis suburbs for a very special wedding. You see, I have a small family; one brother, and each of my parents only has one sibling (Dad has two other siblings who died in childhood). Dad's sister is married and has three kids, and Mom has a sister. Outside of that, it goes to 2nd and 3rd cousins.

That is until Saturday afternoon. My aunt married a great guy. Now, my aunt is the same age as my Dad (I'm 26, almost 27, ballpark an age from there, cause I won't tell out of respect) and has never been married. They dated for almost 5-1/2 years, and waited until he finished his Master's Degree (graduated a week before the wedding). He also has a 9-year old son from a previous marriage.

This is an awesome union. Truly, a match ordained by God. And the ceremony reflected that their faith is the center of both their lives. Really, it was inspiring.

So this week, the Great Music is a song played at the reception that really describes their marriage and is in honor of my aunt and new uncle and cousin. Welcome to the family.

Great Music Monday-People Are Strange

2009-06-22T23:47:00.002-05:00

I don't really think this particular piece is all that great of a song. It is one that you can't help but sing along with.

This morning sitting in the office, we got a call that one of our drivers had missed a stop on his curbside route. The exchange between our staff member and the resident left all of us doing a *facepalm.*

We called the driver to make sure he made the stop.

His response, "I haven't even done that street yet!"

People are so freaking strange.

So in tribute to the people that cost me so many brain cells, a little ditty.

Resolution

2009-06-21T16:42:00.002-05:00

Last summer, I mentioned that I hadn't gotten some new guns shot. Well, I got one of them shot for the first time during dove season, the Stoeger Uplander. But the problem was that out of the four shells that I put through the gun, one didn't fire. I never thought much about it.

Then New Year's Day rolled around, and there was an extended range session that combined about 1,500 rounds of 12 gauge, 20 gauge, .45 ACP, and .40 S&W. One of the several firearms used that day was the Uplander. But it didn't take long for all of us there that day to get very frustrated when one barrell of the Uplander repeatedly didn't fire. It seemed to be every shell or every other shell through the right barrell (which is the first to fire) would not actually discharge. The primer in the shell was dimpled, but no discharge. Needless to say, I was pissed. Over $600 for a gun and it doesn't freaking work! But it is still under warranty.

I took the Uplander back to Gander Mountain, where I purchased it. When I walked up to the gunsmith counter, he took one look at the gun and said "Oh, it's a Stoeger. I get so many of those in I don't even work on 'em, I just send 'em back to Benelli."

Shit.

So at the end of January (it took me a month to get to Peoria since it is an hour drive), the Uplander was sent to Benelli. I finally got it back in early April. The day I got it back, I took it out to make sure it worked. First shell in the gun: CLICK!!!!!!!!!!!! DAMNITDAMNITDAMNIT!!!! I put 8 more shells through that barrell and had a total of 2 mis-fires. Even more pissed than before. I just spent two months without my shotgun and paid $25 in shipping to get an unfixed gun. So I call Benelli and complain that it is not fixed and that I am NOT paying shipping again to fix the same problem. They tell me to go back to Gander again, and they can bill Benelli for the shipping. So back to the Gunsmith, and as I walk up to the counter, he recognizes me immediately (I've been told I leave and impression on people). He asks what do I have this time.

"Same gun, same problem" I tell him.

"Well, we can send it in again."

Another month of waiting, and the gunsmith calls. Benelli sent it back and said they found no problems.

"They're lying to ya," I respond. So the gunsmith suggests that I bring in a box of the shells I was having problems with and he can test fire it before I take it home.

So when I go to pick up the Uplander, I carried in two boxes of shells. The gunsmith took 4 to his test range and fired, with no problems. I am simply dumbfounded. And he could read it on my face, I am sure. So he suggests, let me try four more. This time, the first shell in the the right barrell doesn't fire. So the gunsmith comes out and calls Benelli to tell them that he had the same problem I did. They ask what shells he used. After he read off the label, the Benelli rep said "Oh, we recommend you don't shoot anything lighter that an 1-1/8 ounce load."

"Well why does that matter on the first barrell?" (and it wouldn't matter on the second barrell either, since the Uplander does not require recoil to set the trigger).

But the gunsmith humors the rep, and says he'll try an 1-1/8 oz load. First shell, CLICK!

Back on the phone to Benelli. This time, he gets the return authorization.

Finally, we have a resolution.

A little over a week ago, the gunsmith called me. "Benelli sent you a new gun."

So the next time time I am in Peoria, I get to go pick up a new Stoeger Uplander. Hopefully, without the problems.

Great Music Monday - Ballad of Ira Hayes

2009-06-15T22:54:00.004-05:00

Yesterday was Flag Day. A day to honor the adoption of Old Glory.

Last year, I posted one of the greatest songs about the flag ever, and this year, we will focus on one of the men who was a part of one of the most famous flag raisings ever in American History, the raising on the top of Mt. Suribachi on Feb. 23, 1945.

This one photo, of the second flag raised on top of Suribachi (see Flags of our Fathers).

This same image is immortalized as the United States Marine Corps War Memorial, located near Arlington National Cemetery.

The person on the far left in the picture, is PFC Ira Hayes, USMC. Ira Hayes was a Pima Indian from Arizona.

Following the War, Hayes came home to much unwanted attention. He would be arrested more than 50 times for drunkenness. In 1949, Hayes, along with the other two men who raised the flag in the picture who survived the war, joined John Wayne on the silver screen for the classic "Sands of Iwo Jima." In the film, Hayes, along with John Bradley and Rene Gagnon, played themselves and were handed the same flag raised in 1945, from John Wayne, to raise it again.

But Hayes was never able to regain normalcy in his life. In January 1955, following a card game Ira Hayes was found dead, laying face down in his own vomit and blood. Official cause of death was exposure and alcohol , but his brother believes an argument following the card game was a factor.

Ira Hayes is an American Tragedy. An American Hero who was never able to resume a normal life, and died far too young, at age 32.

Folk Singer/Songwriter Peter La Farge wrote a ballad about the life and tragic end of Ira Hayes. By far, the most popular recording ever was by Johnny Cash.

History foretelling the future.

2009-06-09T22:23:00.002-05:00

Just saw this video and had to post it.

I remember hearing about Alexis du Toqueville's Democracy in America when I was in high school or college, but have never read it. Obviously, I need to.

Andrew Klavan: On The Culture

Great Music Monday-Somewhere In Kentucky

2009-06-08T21:40:00.002-05:00

Well, last week I missed posting some Great Music, I was out of town at a conference for work.

But this week, I have something very special for you. A reader suggestion.

My good friend, Wil, suggested several great songs last year. And I kept a list of them, and have been looking for decent videos to use.

This week, I found such a video for one of the songs. Somewhere In Kentucky.

Tom T. Hall is one of the classic country and bluegrass artists of the 20th century, recording cult classics I Love and I Like Beer.

Somewhere In Kentucky is written by Tom T. and his wife, Miss Dixie, and was recorded on the album Tom T. Hall Sings Miss Dixie and Tom T., a compilation of songs written by the couple, selected by Miss Dixie as part of a Christmas present from Tom T., and recorded live.

The song is the story of a man working in an Ohio mill, who wants to go home to his love, who is waiting in Kentucky.

D-Day + 65

2009-06-06T23:20:00.002-05:00

I had planned to right a long post of reflections on this incredibly important day, and then watch the greatest D-Day movie I've ever seen, The Longest Day.

Unfortunately, I had to work 13 hours today, after a 16 hour day yesterday, and more tomorrow. A pitiful excuse, but it is what I have.

So I will simply say this:

65 years ago today, over 150,000 Allied troops undertook one of the greatest military operations in the history of the world, as they began Operation Overlord, and the beginning of the end of WWII. The Allies suffered over 10,000 casualties that day. over 2,500 would never leave the beachheads. No words can acurately describe the sacrifice, the courage, determination, and spirit of all those who landed on the beaches, jumped from the planes, dropped the bombs, and piloted the planes who moved the Allies that next step closer to victory. We owe everything we have to these men, and to all Veterans, who have stepped up to the plate, willing to give the 'last, full measure of devotion."

Thank you.

Test Results

2009-05-31T21:48:00.003-05:00

Well, it went alright, I guess.

Omar and I arrived at the hunting club Saturday morning at 6:20am. After getting Omar out of the truck to stretch his legs and makes his bladder gladder. Then it was into the clubhouse to check in, meet the judges, and get the day started. After some instructions from the judges we headed to the field for the search portion of the test.

We were running 5th out of 10 dogs. At 7:00am there was a lot of dew on the grass and the temperature was comfortable. But by the time we ran, it was after 9:00. The dew was gone and the temp was steadily climbing. However, we got lucky. Just a couple of minutes before we started our run, clouds rolled in. Heavy clouds. I considered rolling up my truck windows before we started. And the temperature dropped a couple of degrees. After dumping a bunch of water on Omar to cool him down and giving him a good drink of water, we were off for our 20 minutes search. About 8 minutes into the search, Omar bumped a quail, it flushed with no point. DAMNIT. We continued on the search around the corner and Omar found the same quail that he flushed a minute earlier. But this time, he locked onto a beautiful point. I moved in to flush the bird. Awesome. We continued on. Omar had 2 more good points, and we made it through the field portion in good shape. At the end of the search, the judges told me to leash my dog and head back to the gallery. I call Omar, and he is not interested in coming to me, but in continuing to hunt. While I like his desire and enthusiasm, I am pissed because this will probably ding the cooperation score. More waiting while the last 5 dogs run.

The next portion is the tracking. Again, we run 5th. When it is our turn, we head across the field to the blind to wait while the judges release the pheasant to run. They bring us out of the blind and begin their explanation. "There's the feather pile, and when we set him down, the bird jumped over there," as the judges point to a milkweed about 10 feet away. I ask if I can lead my dog to where the bird landed and they responded, "I would." So I did. Showed Omar the feathers and lead him to the milkweed, and released him. He started out good for about 15 feet, then got off track and went into a search, first to the left, then way the hell out to the right. Disappeared over a hill. Comes back over the hill. Stops to crap. Starts searching again, and BAM!!! slams on point. Judges tell me go get my dog and head back. I'm thinking were screwed. But then, a glimmer of hope. When the guy taking birds from the crate out to the judges came back from taking the 7th bird out, he comes over and tells me the judges are recalling Omar to run a second track after the 10th dog has ran. Not because of anything negative, but they needed to do more evaluation. SWEET!!! I'll take the second chance. After the 10th dog ran, Omar and I go out to run our second track. As I come up the judges explain the situatition. After they discussed my run, they figured out that Omar had crossed into the track for the dog that had run before me and that was the pheasant he had pointed, so they wanted to get into an area with less scent and run another track. So I bring Omar up to the second feather pile, get him interested, and release him He tracked for probably 20 feet, then lost the line and began a more compressed search than before, and then locked on point again. "Go get your dog." I'm thinking, well, he tracked, but not very far. If I get a 2, I'll be pleased.

The final portion of the test is the water. I went into this with no worries. My turn comes, I head to the water's edge, pick up a bumper, get Omar excited and throw. Without hesitation, he moves into the water and grabs the dummy. Second throw, same result. Should be a 4 no problem.

The physical exam was fine, all teeth, no extras, good bite. coat fine, testes intact.

AND WE ARE DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Except for the waiting for scores.

Finally, they judges step up to begin announcements. After the formalities, they begin reading scores.

They get to Omar. Eyes: OK Bite/Teeth: OK Testes: OK Coat: Medium Dense Medium Harsh
Temperment: NORMAL Not Gun Shy

Scoring:
Use of Nose: 4
Search: 4
Water: 4
Pointing: 4
Tracking: 3
Desire to Work: 4
Cooperation: 4

For a total of 110 and a PRIZE 1!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I just about fell over. The only point I dropped all day was on the track. Max score in the Natural Ability test is 112. This is a PHENOMINAL score. All the hours and days of work paid off. Omar lived up to his potential and made a great impression.

Now, all he needs is his x-rays for PennHip hip dysplasia check, and he is ready to get laid.

Testing Day

2009-05-29T22:06:00.003-05:00

Tomorrow is Testing Day.

Omar the wunderpup has his NAVHDA Natural Ability Test.

We have to be on the road by 5:15 in the morning. Hour and 15 minute drive to the Preserve. A little run time, and the test starts at 7:00am.

The test combines 4 areas, three of which count towards Omar's overall score, and one that is purely a courtesy evaluation.

First off, will be the field portion. Omar has to hunt for 20 minutes. They will be judging his desire, cooperation, and pointing. The second portion of the test is a track. Judges pull the flight feathers on one wing, and then pull some breast feathers where they put the bird down, and let it run. Once the bird has run a sufficient distance, I bring the dog up to the feathers, get him interested, and he has to track the bird. Doesn't have to catch it, retrieve it, or anything else, just simply track where the bird ran. The third and final portion is the water test. I bring the dog up to a pond, select a retrieving bumper, and using the bumper, I have to get Omar to swim twice. When he comes out of the water, the judges will do a physical exam. Check his teeth, coat, whether he is intact. And then we wait for the scores.

I know Omar is capable of doing very well. But I am nervous as hell.

HTML Help

2009-05-29T00:37:00.002-05:00

I want to create some entries with the "fold" in them. But I have no freakin' clue how to edit the HTML. Can anybody help?

Leave me a note in the comments or e-mail skoal underscore 82 at yahoo dot com.

Thanks.

New Blog

2009-05-27T00:50:00.002-05:00

I have started a second blog.

Crazy? I know.

But for those of you who know me, I am a big guy and am going to change that. I have set myself upon a path to lose about 220 pounds. The new blog is a place for me to chronicle the journey from fat to healthy.

I warn you, some of the stories and pictures may be disturbing to some, but I do this for myself and need a place to hold myself accountable.

I am not looking for others to join a challenge or anything of the sort, this is a personal journey, not a contest with anyone else.

However, if you care to stop by over there and read, I would appreciate the moral support.

So here it is, The Incredible Shrinking Petey.

Great Music Monday-For My Country

2009-05-25T20:27:00.002-05:00

This is a day we all must pause and remember.

Originally called Decoration Day, Memorial Day is a set aside on the last Monday of May to remember all those who have, as Abraham Lincoln put it in the Gettysburg Address while dedicating a National Cemetery, given "the last full measure of devotion."

And on this day, I believe it is proper to once again say THANK YOU to all the veterans who were willing to give that measure, but were able to come home. We owe everything we have to the American Heroes. It is by there grace and sacrifice we are able to live in this great country.

To honor all those who have stepped up, "For My Country."

For my trucker friends

2009-05-22T15:59:00.001-05:00

Your result for The How Well Do You Know Trucking Test...

True Trucker!

91% Pure!

You scored 91% pure. You definitely know something about trucking. I probably don't need to teach you a thing.

Take The How Well Do You Know Trucking Test at HelloQuizzy

The only thing they didn't ask is was my IQ below 50.

I kid, I kid.

Great Music Monday-Are You Lonesome To-night

2009-05-18T21:18:00.002-05:00

83 years ago, Lou Handman and Roy Turk wrote one of the most quintesential songs of love and loss ever. The most famous recording of this song was done in 1960, when the King, Elvis Presley laid it down.

The story is of a man to his former love. Simply asking the question, "Are you lonesome to-night?"

One Word

2009-05-14T20:35:00.002-05:00

It's almost hard to believe that one word can say SSSOOOOOOO much.

What is the word?

OBAMUNISM

What is it?
Communists and Socialists and Marxists of America unite! We finally have a real president who holds our values dear. We support Obama because he wants to nationalize health care, take money from hard-working Americans to give to the poor, and make one class of people. Hooray for communism! Hooray for Obama! Hooray for Obamunism! (That whole democracy thing just wasn't working out anyway.)

If I wasn't freaking broke, I would own at least one of these shirts.

Great Music Monday-New Old Songs

2009-05-11T23:14:00.003-05:00

For this week's Great Music Monday, I am doing something a little bit different.

Many times I have used videos from Bard of Cornwall, Jesse Ferguson.

Well, he went and released and album, New Old Songs.

So this week, I am going to do a short review.

The album cover is simple but conveys so much. At the top, Jesse's name. Bottom right, the album title. and a white background with a picture of Jesse, in kilt, with his guitar raised to the rock gods. The back cover is an interesting picture of Jesse, again in kilt, in a fine hurdler's form, along with the usual information.

The inside cover has some basic biographical information about Jesse and about the album. The most glaring piece of information that should be taken note of, is that all vocals, instrumentals, recording, mastering, and design was done by Jesse.

Now the music. To start the album Jesse leads in with a fine version of Star of the County Down. The music is a mix guitar, mandolin, and bodhran, coupled with the rich tone of the vocals.

Track 2 is a great piece written by former Silly Wizard frontman, Andy Stewart, Ramblin' Rover. The beat is set with the bodhran and the vocals lead you through this new classic celtic folk song.

Tracks 3 (Jock Stewart), 4 (The Beggarman), and 5 (Balland of St. Anne's Reel) do a great job of showing off the plethora of Ferguson's musical talents. You'll hear guitar, mandolin, bodhran, fiddle, and whistle all wrapping the vocals in a nest of toe-tapping goodness.

Track 6 (Birks of Invermay) is a beautiful melody that slows down the pace set in the previous 3 tracks. The great finger-picked guitar carries you with the one you love through the birks.

Finally, track 7 (Sonny's Dream) shares the story of "Sonny" who works the family plot, and his mother is asking him not to leave, for she is home all along since Sonny's dad is a sailor. But Sonny longs to experience the world away. As Jesse sings, you can feel yourself standing in his shoes, and looking out at the big world and wanting more.

And that is what I am doing. Wanting more. The only complaint I have on this great album, is that it ends after only seven tracks.

Jesse has a great voice, rich and smooth, with an accent that I have never been able to identify, but appreciate how it gives a great celtic feel, while still being very understandable.

All in all, this is a great album that any Celtic music lover would be proud to have in their collection. I highly recommend all of you buy it, HERE.

How would she know

2009-05-06T13:32:00.002-05:00

Clinton impressed by Pakistan military action

I saw this headline and all I could think was, "Did they invite them over for tea and crumpits?"

What the hell would Hillary Clinton know about a decent military action?

She thought she was dodging sniper fire when there wasn't even any shooting going on.

Maybe they played a game of Fistycuffs.

Great Music Monday-Cat's in the Cradle

2009-05-04T23:20:00.002-05:00

This week's Great Music is a classic piece of 1970's Folk Rock.

I first heard this song on a recording by Ed Kilbourne in the mid-90's. But it is actually written by Harry and Sandy Chapin. The lyrics written originally as a poem by Sandy Chapin about her father and brother, Harry put the words to music and created a timeless piece on the father-son relationship.

"Cat's in the Cradle" is the story of a son asking his father to join him the childhood activies, but the father responds that he doesn't have the time. And every time the son walks away saying he is going to be just like his dad. Then irony sets in as the father retires and now want to spend time with his son, but like his father before him, the son doesn't have time to spend with his father.

SUCCESS!!!

2009-04-30T15:05:00.001-05:00

It's amazing what you can do with a little duct tape and a superball.

Like, keep 12 people working all day.

A Beer Connoisseur

2009-04-29T22:41:00.001-05:00

Damn Straight!

Your result for The Good Beer Test...

A Beer Connoisseur

70% Knowledge and 100% Taste!

Behold, a true genius! You scored very well on my test. Obviously you know your beer, or you can use the Internet to cheat. I'm just going to hope it's the former.

Take The Good Beer Test at HelloQuizzy

Leave your results in the comments. And no cheating.

Great Music Monday-Turn Turn Turn

2009-04-27T22:43:00.002-05:00

I missed last weeks Great Music Monday post, not by design, but by circumstance. There was Masonic degree work I was helping with and didn't get back to town until after 11:00pm and I wanted SLEEP.

But we are back after a one week hiatus.

In the Bible, King James translation, if you read the book of Ecclesiastes, third chapter, verses 1-8, you will find this text:

To every thing there is a season, and a time to every purpose under the heaven:
A time to be born, and a time to die; a time to plant, and a time to pluck up that which is planted;
A time to kill, and a time to heal; a time to break down, and a time to build up;
A time to weep, and a time to laugh; a time to mourn, and a time to dance;
A time to cast away stones, and a time to gather stones together; a time to embrace, and a time to refrain from embracing;
A time to get, and a time to lose; a time to keep, and a time to cast away;
A time to rend, and a time to sew; a time to keep silence, and a time to speak;
A time to love, and a time to hate; a time of war, and a time of peace.

With the addition of two lines (Turn, Turn Turn and I swear it's not too late), Pete Seeger created one of the greatest songs of the 60's. Commonly believed to be a plea for peace, the biblical text is really an explanation that everything in the world happens in its time.

The most successful recording of this song is by The Byrds.

Omar's Sister

2009-04-26T23:32:00.002-05:00

I just found some pictures and thought I would share.

My dog, Omar the Wunderpuppy who turns 1 in just over a week (May 5), has 4 brothers and sisters.

The smallest pup at birth is now living in Minnesota, and her picture just showed up in Versatile Hunting Dog, the monthly magazine of the North American Versatile Hunting Dog Association.

It is the picture in the upper left on THIS PAGE.

Great News

2009-04-26T23:00:00.003-05:00

This is some of the best news I have heard in weeks.

If I was Michelle Obama, I would say "This is the first time in my adult life that I have been proud of my country."

But I'm not, I have been proud of my country so many times I can't count. Granted, there have been disappointment's, but this makes me VERY proud.

How to keep your customers

2009-04-23T23:21:00.005-05:00

Let's face it, customer service is damn near an abstract concept anymore. From employees who just don't care to call centers on the other side of the planet, if you have a problem or concern, good luck.

And that is why I am writing this post. I want to share two stories of customer service that I have experienced over the last 5 months.

Experience #1) December 2008 I placed an order for some good cigars. The order included two boxes of cigars. The first box arrived in about a week. But no sign of the second box and no e-mail, call, or note in the package that the second box was backordered. To date, the second box still hasn't arrived. I have tried contacting the company I ordered from to very little satisfaction. I e-mailed them and never got a response. I called their 800 number and got a recording to leave a message and they would contact me. I left two or three messages and was never called back. Finally, I got ahold of a live body. I was informed that the second box was on back order and he would check to see what its status was and for me to call the next day. I called the next day to ask what had been found out only to be told, "It is on backorder, just be patient."

Experience #2) I placed an order March 31, 2009 with Uplanders Warehouse. The order included a shirt and upland hunting chaps. The shirt was shipped from the supplier and arrived in 48 hours. The chaps were on backorder. How did the folks at Uplanders handle the backorder? I received an e-mail FROM THE OWNER on April 2nd, to let me know that the shirt was shipped and the chaps were backorderd, but should ship the next week. April 7th, I received another e-mail from the owners wife that the chaps were still back ordered but would be going out as soon as they arrived to their facility. But because I had to wait for them, they would refund my shipping back to me. What is this? Its only been a week? I was speechless. 3 days later I am heading down the road for a training day with Omar, and my phone rings. It's the owner of Uplanders, Jared Tanner. He has some disappointing news: the chaps still haven't arrived from the manufacturer. Jared apologized multiple times that he was sorry this hadn't been taken care of. I assured him, I understood and was thankful to be kept in the loop. Then, Jared almost caused me to have an accident. He offered to upgrade my order from the chaps I had ordered to a different brand. Now, some companys may offer this option, but not when the upgrade is to a product that costs $10-$30 more, when the original product was only $30, and at NO ADDITIONAL COST. I was blown away. But, I told Jared about my concern that the other brands wouldn't fit, as I had already been down that road. He asked if I happend to know the measuerments and he would check the products. I told him the information and he said he would call back in a couple minutes. Five minutes later, the phone rings again, Jared had check the measurements and confirmed my concern, the others wouldn't fit. So he offered me a refund if I wanted, but I said I would just wait until the chaps came in. Fast forward 9 days, and I get two e-mails. The first is the shipping confirmation and the second from Jared to also tell me the chaps had shipped.

Which company has the better customer service? Which company am I going back to? Which company is getting a link in the sidebar?

Easy question, right?

Fast forward to today (Thursday), the chaps arrived and I have already worn them to the field.

Also in the packege, is the newest edition to my truck.

So, my good friends, go get yourself some gear and support a good company. And when you place your order, don't forget to use their UDonate program. It is simple. When you checkout, check a box for either Pheasants Forever, Quail Forever, or Ruffed Grouse Society and Uplanders Warehouse will donate 2% of your total purchase to your selected conservation group. This doesn't add anything to your total cost, it is simply something that Jared and his wife feel passionatly enough about to make it a priority.

Also, Jared's blog, JT's Upland Blog, is going to the blogroll. Give it a read.

Celebrate 64 years of FREEDOM!

2009-04-22T22:10:00.002-05:00

I missed an important anniversary last week.

64 years of Freedom. Not for me, but my Great Uncle (read more about him in THIS previous post).

April 16, 1945. My Great Uncle, who has spent the last five months of his life in a German P.O.W. camp, surviving on a diet of grass, straw, sugar beets, bread made with "tree flour" (a.k.a. sawdust), and charcoal made from potatoes to prevent dysentery, was liberated by the English 5th Infantry. He was 20 when h was liberated.

Last week, he decided to hold a liberation celebration dinner at the building he lives in.

Go read the entire article here.

Also, check the comments. There are several who make a great suggestion that this should be done not with seniors, but with youth. And I think that is a great idea.

Which Corrupt Illinois Governor Are You?

2009-04-21T16:58:00.002-05:00

This is just really, REALLY disturbing.

Your result for The Which corrupt Illinois governor are you test...

Otto Kerner Jr.

You could have been a contender, but ya blew it cuz you're a sucker.

You are Otto Kerner Jr., born in Chicago in 1908 and educated at the Ivy league Brown University as well as Cambridge and Northwestern Law School. You married the daughter of Anton Cermak, one of Chicago's most influential mayors, and fought in World War 2, winning the Bronze star and retiring from the military in 1954 as a Major General. You served as a US Attorney and then as Illinois' Governor from 1961-1968. Wow! You have the resume of a potential US President. What the hell happened?

What happened is that you engaged in the same practices that nearly all politicians have engaged in since before the pyramids. Skim a little graft hear, wet your beak there, line the nest with the cash you pick up helping out your friends. However, you broke the #1 rule in Illinois politics, which is:"Don't get caught!" You took a huge bribe from Marge Lindheimer Everett, manager of Arlington and Washington Park race tracks in exchange for choice racing dates and to get two expressway exits for her Arlington Park racetrack. The bribe was in the form of stocks.

Some say taking a huge bribe wasn't your biggest mistake. Your biggest mistake was taking a bribe from an apparent idiot. Amazingly, the scandal came to light because Everett had deducted the value of the stock on her federal income tax returns under her own theory that bribery was an ordinary and necessary business expense in Illinois!

You were sentenced to 3 years in the Federal Pen, but were released after about a year because you had terminal cancer. You're buried at Arlington National Cemetary because of your distinguished military service.

There are 4 possible outcomes to this test. Congratulations, you are the least of Four Evils!

Please Remember to rate this test. Thanks.

Here are all the test results:

Otto Kerner Jr.

http://helloquizzy.okcupid.com/results/the-which-corrupt-illinois-governor-are-you-test/?fromCGI=1&var_Larceny=-4

George Ryan

http://helloquizzy.okcupid.com/results/the-which-corrupt-illinois-governor-are-you-test/?fromCGI=1&var_Larceny=9

Lennington Small

http://helloquizzy.okcupid.com/results/the-which-corrupt-illinois-governor-are-you-test/?fromCGI=1&var_Larceny=14

Rod Blagojevich

http://helloquizzy.okcupid.com/results/the-which-corrupt-illinois-governor-are-you-test/?fromCGI=1&var_Larceny=21

Take The Which corrupt Illinois governor are you test at HelloQuizzy

I suppose it could have been worse.

Great Music Monday-Ghosts of Culloden

2009-04-13T22:14:00.002-05:00

This Thursday is a very important anniversary.

April 16, 1746. Culloden Moor outside of Inverness, Scotland.

Charles Edward Stuart, better known as Bonnie Prince Charlie, the son of James Francis Edward Stuart, came to Scotland in 1745 to try and return his father to the throne of Great Britain and Ireland.

The Bonnie Prince rallied the highlands and led his army to within 120 miles of London. However, upon the ill advice of his advisers, Charlie with drew his army to Culloden Moor. There, Bonnie Prince Charlie was beaten by the Duke of Cumberland. Charlie fled to France, dieing some 40 years later, having never again returned to Scotland.

This one battle has become a centerpiece in Scottish history and countless songs have been written about the battle, the escape of Bonnie Prince Charlie, and the hopes that he would return.

However, this song is not one of them. Written, to the best information I can find, by Scottish singer/songwriter Isla Grant, "Ghosts of Culloden" is a song about those who never left that Moor on April 16, 1746.

Please leave your thoughts on the song, the Battle of Culloden, in the comments.

A time of need

2009-04-09T23:12:00.002-05:00

I have mentioned before, that I am a member of the Ancient Free & Accepted Masons (often seen abbreviated A.F. & A.M.), aka Freemasons or Masons. It is an affiliation that I hold very near and dear to my heart. And that includes the appendent bodies. Besides being a Master Mason, I belong to the Ancient Accepted Scottish Rite and have looked into joining other bodies as well.

The old figure that has been used for about 10 years is that Masons give, either through the regular Lodge activities or appendent bodies, over $2,000,000 every single day for charitable activities.

One of the most prominent parts of the amazing work Freemasons do is through the Ancient Arabic Order of the Nobles of the Mystic Shrine (A.A.O.N.M.S.), aka Shriners, Hospitals for Childern.

And that is why this article bothered me so much.

Started in 1920, the 22 Shriners Hospitals provide 100% free care to children with burns, spinal cord injuries, and orthopedic problems.

A very good friend of mine has a son that would not be able to walk today if it wasn't for Shriner's Hospital, and there are literally hundreds of thousands of cases like this.

But at the 2009 Annual Meeting, they will be voting on whether or not to close 6 of the hospitals. This would be a tragedy for so many children and families who would have to travel farther to receive this world class specialized health care.

Basically, my Brothers need help to continue providing this care in all the locations they currently maintain.

So I am asking you, my readers, to help me help Shriners help childern.
Click HERE to make a donation. I did. And this is a tax deductable contribution.

Do you have an interest in joining the Ancient Free & Accepted Masons?

2B1ASK1

Simple Concepts

2009-04-08T23:19:00.004-05:00

I thought these were simple concepts that were taught in government or civics classes in high school, but obviously, a very large segment of the population doesn't get it.

1) The United States of America is a SOVEREIGN NATION.

2) Our Flag NEVER flies below another.

3) The United States of America bows to NO ONE!!!!!

4) No American President EVER BOWS TO ANYONE, be it king, queen, chancellor, emperor, sheik, cleric, or any other head of state.

That is why, no matter how you feel about anything else he has done, EVERYONE should be absolutely OUTRAGED at THIS:

Millions of American Veterans didn't fight and give their lives so that an American President bow to some king living in a sandbox. I don't care who the hell the President is, you do NOT FUCKING BOW to ANYBODY.

We are the Country that refused to tip our Flag to Chancellor Hitler at the 1936 Berlin Olympics. We are the Country that sent our boys around the world twice to save Europe and defeat the Axis.

And then to add insult to treason, I read this tonight at Blackfive.

The American Cemetery at Normandy has NOTHING to do with special treatment for France. And since the administration seems to have missed history class as well as civics and government, besides the 9,387 American Hero's who never left France, there were over 2,700 British casualties on the beaches.

Kumar Goes To The White House

2009-04-07T15:22:00.002-05:00

How do you add credibility to your White House staff?

Simple.

Add Kumar.

That's right ladies and germs, actor Kal Penn, who is not so famous for playing Kumar in "Harold and Kumar Go to Whitecastle" and "Harold and Kumar: Escape from Guantanamo Bay," as well as playing Taj Badalandabad in "National Lampoon's: Van Wilder" and "Van Wilder: The Rise of Taj," and finally as Dr. Lawrence Kutner in "House, M.D." where his character committed suicide in this past Monday's episode (I guess, I was too busy watching the Cubs beat the Astros in the Season Opener) is now going to Washington.

His position?

To be an Associate Director in the Office of Public Liaison, serving as a liaison between the Obama White House and Asian constituents.

I don't know whether to laugh, chuckle, or just be worried.

Great Music Monday-Skye Boat Song

2009-04-06T21:15:00.004-05:00

Today is Tartan Day.

And what better way to celebrate Tartan Day than with Single Malt Scotch and Great Music.

The Whiskey
Because it is a special day, I pulled out a special bottle. I was working in Macomb, IL for my first job out of college from May 2005 til March 2006. During that time, I visited one of the liquor stores in town (it is a college town, there are several for a town of only 10,000 permanent residents). I don't remember exactly when it was during that time, but know I couldn't have afforded to do what I did. I walked into probably the nicest store in town and began perusing the Single Malt Scotch Whiskey selection. Granted, it was not spectacular, but I did find two bottle of interest. One a bottle of 18-year old Glenlivet, and the other, an 18-year old bottle of Glenfiddich Ancient Reserve. Total tab-about $125. The bottle of Glenlivet was good, but only lasted a few months. The Glenfiddich bottle still lives. I have consumed about half of it so far.

Tonight seemed like the perfect night to partake of the finer things in life so I poured a glass. I prefer to drink Scotch on the rocks, with just a little bit of good clean bottled water. I have found that it just cuts the slight bite of the whiskey, as well as opening up the aromas and flavors.

Now, on to the music. Skye Boat Song is a song recalling the escape of Bonnie Prince Charlie following his defeat at the Battle of Culloden, and the hope that he will return to lead another uprising to fight for independence from England.

They lyrics are amazing.

Speed bonnie boat, like a bird on the wing,
Onward, the sailors cry
Carry the lad that's born to be king
Over the sea to Skye

Loud the winds howl, loud the waves roar,
Thunder clouds rend the air;
Baffled our foe's stand on the shore
Follow they will not dare

Though the waves leap, soft shall ye sleep
Ocean's a royal bed
Rocked in the deep, Flora will keep
Watch by your weary head

Many's the lad fought on that day
Well the claymore could wield
When the night came, silently lay
Dead on Culloden's field

Burned are our homes, exile and death
Scatter the loyal men
Yet, e'er the sword cool in the sheath,
Charlie will come again.

For the performance, we have one of the most amazing Scottish groups I have ever heard, The Corries.

Breaking News!!!!

2009-04-02T17:00:00.002-05:00

While the speculation earlier today was that Pro Bowl Quarterback Jay Cutler may be headed to the Washington Redskins, it was, in fact, the Monsters of the Midway who have actually landed him.

SCORE!!!!

DO WANT!!!! Join the Revolution

2009-03-31T22:50:00.003-05:00

I have been waiting for it for 2 months, and today was the day.

Benelli introduced their new shotgun TODAY!!!!

The Benelli Vinci.

Go here to see the commercial, in depth video and and such.

And while those are cool, this REALLY shocked me when I read it:

"Twelve Vincis, three days, 88,000 rounds and zero malfunctions."

Holy CRAP.

It is a 3-piece modular system consisting of a Barrel/Receiver Module, Trigger Group/Forearm Module, and Quadrafit Buttstock. Equipped with the Benelli Crio Choke Tubes and the In-Line Inertia Driven System. The Benelli Vinci is also equipped with the ComforTech Plus system which reduces felt recoil, along with the QuadraFit Plus system which allows custom fitting of the Buttstock Module for drop, cast, comb height, and length of pull.

Great Music Monday-What to Get a Liberal for Christmas

2009-03-30T23:14:00.003-05:00

I may have found a new favorite music group the other day. Thanks to Caleb.

The Right Brothers.

I don't normally go for the alternative rock type stuff, but this is freaking AWESOME!!!

Conservative Music!!!

Hear more of their music here.

Major Changes

2009-03-28T23:51:00.002-05:00

Holy Hell.

What has happened in the last three days?

I feel like I just woke up out of a coma.

First off. You may have noticed a slightly different look on the Horn. With everything that has happened since yesterday, I felt a change was needed. And I think they are for the better. First, the header picture. This is a photo I took last November at the Fort Obie Turkey Shoot. While it is no Oleg Volk, I like it and think it is fitting. There are plans for this to change again later this spring, when my new custom scrimshawed powderhorn arrives and I finish one or both of the custom flintlocks I am working on. I have a vision of what it will look like, but I may have to enlist Mr. Volk to take the photo.

Second, as of 10:15 Thursday, I am no longer an orphan lost wandering in space. I was adopted into the Bad Example Family (WARNING-Trying to follow the Family History WILL give you a headache). Grandpa Harvey (the Family Patriarch) is also responsible for the providing the information that I used to start this wayward venture. Go read the adoption announcement. It includes a nice little stroll down memory lane.

Also, since big daddy is Contagion, there is also inclusion in the Frizzen Sparks Family.

Blogrolls for the Bad Example Family and Frizzen Sparks Family are now located on the sidebar.

And Finally.

He who I hoped to emulate, and have failed miserably, has resurrected himself in an all new Less Commie More Orgy v3.0.

Yes, Sports Fans, Graumagus is BACK. Frizzensparks LIVES. You'll laugh, you'll cry from laughing, and you will be ENLIGHTENED in ways that I could never even come close. The most important thing, is get your ass over there and read. A lot. HOWEVER, please keep in mind that some of it may contain passionate language and stupidity hate. If you are easily offended by reason that has nothing to do with you, you will end up crying.

Beyond Screwed

2009-03-25T21:29:00.003-05:00

That is what we are.

We left screwed 3 stops back.

When the Chief of the European Union says what you are doing is paving "the road to hell," we all better be praying they at least use some lube.

h/t to Joe Huffman.

Great Music Monday-My Place In This World

2009-03-23T22:23:00.002-05:00

On Thursday, I mentioned a little bit about my personal faith journey so this selection seemed appropriate for today.

Michael W. Smith is one of the most talented singer/songwriters in contemporary Christian music, and this is one of his best.

"My Place In This World" is a prayer for guidance. A heart that is ready to be shown the divine plan.

'nuf said.

Is it weired?

2009-03-19T22:09:00.004-05:00

I have been working a lot of extra hours on a second job I picked up for a short term thing. While I have been working on the CAD drawings for this second job, I have had the t.v. on in the background. But today has seemed like a really crappy t.v. day. I resorted to DVD's. Including the complete 1956 Cecil B. DeMile epic "The Ten Commandments" staring Charelton Heston and Yul Brenner. You know, the one that ABC runs every year at Easter. The classic piece of American Cinema. Also on tap for the day was "Van Wilder: The Rise of Taj" and the only movie that I like that Leonardo DiCaprio stars in, "The Man In The Iron Mask," which also includes John Malkovich and Jeremy Irons.

Anyway. About 5:30 I went home to train, run, and feed Omar the Wunderpuppy. Then back to the grind. I went channel surfing for a couple of minutes and ended up putting on "Sister Act."

At this point I think it is prudent to mention, I have already slid well towards total madness.

Back to the story. So the movie goes on as I continue to work on my project. But as the end of the movie comes and the nuns are performing for the "Pope," I actually got a few goosebumps.

For the record: 1) I am not in any way, shape, or form Catholic. Quite frankly, there several things in the disciple of the Catholic Church that I think are off base. I don't hold that against any Catholics, as I have lots of family and friends who are practicing, but it is not for me. 2) I consider myself to be a person of extremely deep faith. I was raised in the United Methodist Church and was VERY active through high school. I don't attend services regularly but still have all of the faith I had then, or maybe more. In fact, I can tell you where I was and the exact date that I accepted Christ. July 7, 1999. In Oneida, IL. Sitting in the bleachers of the R.O.W.V.A. High School Football Field, about 2 rows below the back rail, and just barely North of the Press box. The band Aldersgate from the Wesley Foundation at Western Illinois University (my future Alma Mater) played. Their drummer miss-stepped and fell off the semi trailer they were using as a stage. The feature speaker was a christian comedian named Pat Hurley. I had heard him speak a couple times before that day, but this evening in particular, something he said moved my heart. 3) I like some of the modern christian rock and praise music.

Which brings me to my basic question. Is it weird that a movie, staring an actress that I really don't particularly care for, actually moved my spirit in a small way? Or is it the movement of the Holy Spirit?

The High Holy Day

2009-03-17T09:23:00.003-05:00

Is TODAY!!!!

That's right boys and girls, it is St. Patrick's Day. The High Holy Day.

And for any o you naysayers, it IS A HOLIDAY. Here's proof.

And St. Patrick's Day would not be complete without a good pint of Guinness. And to properly enjoy a good pint, it should be drawn from the keg in a two-part pour.

Here, Fergal Murray, Brewmaster at the St. James Gate Brewery in Dublin, Ireland, where Guinness is brewed, explains the perfect pour.

So enjoy your pint with some good music.

Dubliners-Rising of the Moon

The Chieftains w/ the Kelly Family-Rocky Road to Dublin

Liam O'Maonlai-Paddy's Green Shamrock Shore

Planxty-The Jolly Beggar

Stan Rogers-Witch of Westmoreland

The Friars-Another Irish Drinking Song

And for your laughing enjoyment,

Tommy Tiernan on Duck Sex (NSFW)

If any of you are close by, at Budde's in Galesburg tonight, there will be corned beef and cabbage, beer, and Irish music (possibly or probably including me).

Slainte!

Great Music Monday-Ireland

2009-03-15T22:32:00.002-05:00

I'm posting this a couple hours before Monday, but I don't know what tomorrow will bring other than being busy as hell.

So to continue with the Irish music leading up to the high holy day, I picked a song that most would not actually think of when thinking about Irish music. In fact, the artist is best known as one of the best country music entertainers and is the biggest selling solo artist in U.S. music history.

Garth Brooks.

On his 1995 album (holy hell, it's been 14 years? Damn, I'm getting really old.) "Fresh Horses," which produced two number 1 singles (She's Every Woman, Beaches of Cheyenne), but it wasthe last track on the album which was simply titled "Ireland" that really spoke to me in a way other songs didn't. It was never released as a single, never played on the radio, but I wanted to hear this one song as often as possible.

It may be a major part of what led me to Celtic Music.

The song was written by Garth Brooks (useless piece of trivia I know, his real name is Troyal Garth Brooks), Stephanie Davis, and Jenny Yates. I haven't been able to find out what the story behind the song is but the lyrics are very much Irish in spirit. The spirit of rebellion against insurmountable odds.

They say mother earth is breathing
With each wave that finds the shore
Her soul rises in the evening
For to open twilight's door
Her eyes are the stars in heaven
Watching o'er us all the while
And her heart it is in Ireland
Deep within the Emerald Isle.

We are forty against hundreds
In someone else's bloody war
We know not why we're fighting
Or what we're dying for
They will storm us in the morning
When the sunlight turns to sky
Death is waiting for its dance now
Fate has sentenced us to die.

(chorus)
Ireland I am coming home
I can see your rolling fields of green
And fences made of stone.
I am reaching out won't you take my hand
I'm coming home Ireland.

Oh the captain he lay bleeding
I can hear him calling me
"These men are yours now for the leading
Show them to their destiny "
And as I look up all around me
I see the ragged tired and torn
I tell them to make ready
'Cause we're not waiting for the morn.

Ireland I am coming home
I can see your rolling fields of green
And fences made of stone.
I am reaching out won't you take my hand
I'm coming home Ireland.

Now the fog is deep and heavy
As we forge the dark and fear
We can hear their horses breathing
As in silence we draw near
There are no words to be spoken
Just a look to say good-bye
I draw a breath and night is broken
As I scream our battle cry.

Ireland I am coming home
I can see your rolling fields of green
And fences made of stone.
I am reaching out won't you take my hand
I'm coming home Ireland.

Yes I am home Ireland

Knee Jerk Reaction

2009-03-11T23:27:00.004-05:00

The last 24 hours have been loaded with stories of violence.

Nutjobs in Alabama and Germany who decide the world is against them and want to seek revenge.

The problem is that whenever these incidents happen the immediate knee-jerk reaction of the uneducated masses is to jump up about more gun control.

However, a reasoned examination of those who resort to these horrendous actions would never be stopped by punishing law-abiding gun owners. Quite frankly, less gun control could potentially stop many of these incidents prior to the horrific ends.

Look at Virginia Tech and NIU. One student or professor, properly equipped to protect themselves and others, could have saved so many lives.

Or look at Maryville, Illinois on Sunday morning. We know two things about that morning: 1) Illinois gun control laws did nothing to stop a seriously disturbed man from walking into Sunday services at a church and shooting the pastor, and 2) Illinois' draconian ban on law-abiding citizens having the means to protect themselves and others ensured that no one in the church on Sunday was able to save the life of Rev. Fred Winters.

So fight the knee-jerk and show that the Country still has some sense. Go to this article and on the right hand side, there is a poll on whether there should be more gun control.

h/t to Sebastian at Snowflakes in Hell for the poll question.

Jennifer cites many of the same thing I do and does a great job of making the point I was going for.

A Note to ALL POLITICIANS on "Stimulus"

2009-03-10T09:40:00.002-05:00

A very simple concept that seems to disappear from the mind when one gets to put Senator, Representative, or Governor in front of their name.

Passing a "Stimulus" bill and then raising taxes DOES NOT stimulate anything except for the anger receptors in the brains of your constituents.

(Yes, Gov. Quinn, I am looking at you and your $25,000,000,000 Illinois "Stimulus" bill idea)

Great Music Monday-Carrickfergus

2009-03-09T22:34:00.005-05:00

This weeks Great Music is an old Irish tune that I first learned to apprecieate last April. While sitting in the tavern at Fort de Chartres, with the stories flowing as freely as the ale, one of the Chasseurs, Tatman, broke the general roar with the sound of shillelagh whacking against a table. Tatman stands up and begins to explain that he had just been informed of the passing of his good friend David Cooper. Coop is a legend in the mid-west among reenactors. He started sometime in either the late 60's or early 70's doing black powder shooting. He is a Charter Member of the Ouisconsin and Old Northwest Company and, as I like to say, the Godfather of the Illinois River Scum. There are many people my age and older who think of Coop as a hero.

Coop had started feeling poor in early 2006 and finally 9 months later, the doctors figured out what was wrong and started him on chemotherapy. Unfortunately, it was too late and Coop made his final portage in December 2006.

So we are in the tavern and Tatman begins this song for his departed friend.

Carrickfergus is a rather large city in Northern Ireland. But the song "Carrickfergus" is the lament of one who is sick and reaching the end of their life. Thinking back to the childhood memories, the singer is ready to go home to the friends and family he has lost.

It is performed by Orla Fallon of Celtic Woman. She is simply amazing.

How high's the water, mama?

2009-03-08T15:10:00.001-05:00

Probably a good 8' higher than normal.

This was the scene this morning at the bottom of the hill from my house. Normally, there are 6'-8' high banks.

Evidently, it rained a little last night.

Economies of Scale

2009-03-06T23:13:00.002-06:00

I saw this this morning, and it did two things:

1) Made me do a double take,

and

2)Pissed me off.

What is one trillion?

It's 0ne thousand billion.

or

One million millions.

1,000,000,000,000

In one trillion seconds it will be the year 5179 (1,000,000,000,000/(60*60*24*365))=3170.9 + 2009= 5179.9.

In one trillion minutes it will be the year 1,904,596 (1,000,000,000,000/(60*24*365)) = 1,902,587.5 + 2009 = 1,904,596.5.

Now put that into cash?

And just for the sake of manageability, lets use $100 bills.

Can you imagine what one hundred billion $100 bills would look like?

Well quit wondering and see what it would look like.

In terms of the spending bill that we were lyingly told was a "stimulus," if the U.S. Government spent $1,000,000,000,000 in the next 4 years, it would be a spending spree of $7,922.02 every second for those four years (and yes, I included leap day in 2012).
And just think, in the 45 seconds it took you to read this post, the government spent $365,490.90.

Just some food for thought.

Goosebumps.

2009-03-05T22:03:00.002-06:00

I just watched a news story about the homecoming for Sgt. Schuyler Patch. He is the American Hero I referenced yesterday. His body arrived in Moline this afternoon, and was escorted home by family and the Patriot Guard. The route was lined with friends and supports who had to pay their final respects and say thank you to a fallen hero. As they interviewed people at the airport and at a short service in Kewanee's Veteran's Park, I literally got goosebumps and could feel a lump in my throat.

God speed Sgt. Patch. Thank you.

Half Staff

2009-03-04T23:13:00.003-06:00

Flags in Illinois are to fly at half staff for two days.

The reason?

An American Hero from Kewanee (12 miles from me) gave the "last full measure of devotion" in Afghanistan. A roadside bomb exploded last week killing two.

Please keep the family of these heros in your prayers.

And it is absolutely right that this country and this state pay homage to our heros. One of the ways is when they fall, we lower our flags. And for the last 7 years we have all see our flags lowered on so many occasions. When I was commuting an hour each way to work, my drive took me past a state park and so many times, I would see the flag at half staff an wonder why or who had gone home.

Then tonight, I was at a Masonic Lodge degree in Kewanee. One of the Brothers at the degree is a Principal at school in the QCA. As we were walking out, he commented on the flag at the Lodge building being at half staff and that he had just received the e-mail today from the state that Gov. Pat Quinn had designated today and tomorrow to be the days the flag flys at half staff, as it should.

I commented that I wished there was a way to find out why the flags are lowered to half staff. Now, I consider myself to be reasonably well informed, but if we lose a Hero from somewhere more than an hour or two away, the odds are that I won't hear about it. But if there was a spot on a state website or something along that line where any current notes on flags flying half staff could be found, would be great help.

And while I am at it, I must give kudos to the Principal. Whenever he gets a notice to fly flags at half staff he shares the notice with the students. Bravo.

Great Music Monday-Song for Ireland

2009-03-02T22:11:00.004-06:00

Well, it is March. Which means that we are only 2 weeks away from the high holy day.

So at least through St. Patrick's Day, the GMM will be Irish music.

And what better way to start than with the "Song for Ireland."

From Triskelle: No matter who is performing ... this song always takes us back to the sunset at Doolin in County Clare.
One day we were awaiting the sunset when a woman walked by. Just close your eyes and imagine an Irish woman on the east coast. Yep, that's her. Long curly red hair, sharp profile, long black dress and a dog to knee-height.

It is a dangerous song too. It makes us yearn for Ireland and the urge to buy a ticket is almost irresistible.

Couldn't say it better myself.

So sit back and enjoy as this truly great piece of music as Mary Black, Luke Kelly and the Dubliners, The Clancy Brothers and Robbie O'Connel, and Bard of Cornwall transport us on a trip around the Emerald Ilse.

Mary Black

Luke Kelly and the Dubliners (supposedly, this is the last song Kelly ever recorded)

I love the uilleann pipe bridge in this version.

Clancy Brothers and Robbie O'Connell

And finally, the young up-and-comer, Bard of Cornwall

Which version do you think is best?

Great Music Monday-Murdered In The City

2009-02-23T20:26:00.002-06:00

This week's Great Music comes from a group that I really don't know much about, but the song is amazing.

I first heard this song on Saturday night of the Galesburg Heritage Days Rendezvous when a large group was gathered around playing music. Arkbuilder stepped up and performed this song that he learned just for that day as part of his wedding present to Mr. and Mrs. Dragonfly. I was absolutely blown away.

It is a message from one brother to another.

I particularly like the last line. "Always remember there was nothing worth sharing, like the love that lets us share our name."

St. Patrick's Day is Coming!!!

2009-02-23T11:55:00.002-06:00

And it will be here early in my hometown.

Mark your calendars for March 7, 2009. The Galva Arts Council in Galva, IL will be hosting their monthly coffeehouse a week early.

Due a scheduling conflict, the pub band, Exorna was not able to do their "St. Patrick's Day Warm-up" on the typical 2nd Saturday of March.

This is a great show that lasts about 2 hours. No cover, coffee and refreshments are free, but donations are accepted. Doors open at 7:00pm and show at 7:30.

If you live anywhere close to Galva, you should be there (Wil, Red, Dragonfly, Arkbuilder, Contagion, Wes).

Here's a couple of samples of what you'll hear.

Out!!

2009-02-18T23:28:00.002-06:00

It is 11:30pm on Wednesday. I am still working at the computer. I haven't finished getting my gear in order. Still need to put fuel in the truck. Have to build one thing yet. Details on that when I get back.

And people are going to start arriving at my house around 5:00am.

Gonna be a bad night. Thank God for extra drivers.

Busy

2009-02-17T00:13:00.003-06:00

I feel like a chicken with no head. Running around aimlessly trying to accomplish too many different things.

But at least I got the hardest part of one of the last big projects out of the way tonight. My winter camp prize is painted.

Basswood Canoe Paddle. Hand-built. Hand Painted. By me. With Milk Paint. And you have no freaking idea how much I REALLY HATE painting. But it turned out cool.
The tip is painted just for a cool look. The middle of the blade has the ONW Co. crest. and down the shaft it has 1979 - 2009. This year is the 30th Anniversary of the Company.

Great Music Monday-Feed Jake

2009-02-16T23:55:00.000-06:00

It's late tonight, but I wanted to get this posted.

This weeks great music Monday is a great country song from the early 1990's.

Pirates of the Mississippi released a song entitled "Feed Jake." It is a simple request of friends. "Feed Jake. He's been a good dog. My best friend, right through it all. If I die before I wake, Feed Jake." But it is also a story of coming home.

It is the kind of music that can choke you up.

Standing on Principles

2009-02-15T00:39:00.002-06:00

While cruising through the blogroll, I saw a short video on Snowflakes in Hell of Rep. John Boehner making a speech Friday in the House of Representatives about the $800,000,000,000 SPENDING BILL (this pile is not a stimulus).

Well, Sebastian's clip was only 36 seconds and just a clip. When the video finished, I looked at the related videos and found the entire speech.

$30,000,000 for a mouse? What the hell are we doing, giving it its own Disney World? Now, let me clarify-I believe in wetlands conservation and restoration. I am a waterfowl hunter. Wetlands are habitat for one of my passions. However, I am not niaeve enough to think that the $30,000,000 in this bill will in any way stimulate ANYTHING (is it just a coincidence that these wetlands and these $30,000,000 are going to Speaker Pelosi's, a Democrat, home district?) Or $8,000,000,000 to build a rail system from L.A. to Vegas. What the hell for? Oh, I know more gambling money. It sure is handy that the Senate Majority Leader is Harry Reid, a Democrat from NEVADA!

Just listen to Rep. Boehner's speech. Listen as he talks about the "change" in the Beltway.

Friday the 13th for weeks

2009-02-12T22:37:00.003-06:00

It's not ever Friday the 13th but our luck at works SSSSSSSUUUUUUUUUUCCCCCCCCCCCKKKKKKKKKKKSSSSSSSSSSSS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

But this morning may take the cake.

We have 4-5 trucks on the road every day. At least 3 curbside/commercial trucks every day and either a fourth curbside/commercial truck or a hooklift truck running as well, sometimes both.

A couple weeks ago we were having problems (again, we almost always seem to have a truck with a problem, but this one is much worse) with a truck not running right. We had it towed to the mechanic we use. They started trying to figure out the problem. The tube that suctions the oil from the pan to the head had broke off. At least one piston and rod are shot, and the crank needs turned. We have been trying to find a used motor, but it is just a different enough truck that no one has been able to come up with one.

Then yesterday, one of our drivers calls in saying that his truck is losing water and fast. We told him to take it to a shop in the town he was working in. But since the truck was a cab-over style Crane Carrier, and the lift cylinder had been taken out so it could be replaced, this shop wouldn't work on it. Damnit.

So we had to get it towed to the shop where our other truck was already being worked on and Dad and I headed to the Quad Cities to get a rental truck. Expensive as hell.

Then this morning, we get a call from the mechanic and there is a problem with the truck we just towed in. The part was to be delivered overnight and they were going to have us up and running first thing this morning, but sometime during the night the engine had a short and caught fire.

Yessireebob, fucking truck caught on FIRE!!!!

Burned up lots of stuff on the engine. Hoses, wires, oil lines. Filled the shop with soot all over everything. Shorted the wiring in the overhead doors of the shop. Melted light fixtures in the shop. Luckily, the shop didn't burn to the ground. The truck is totaled. We think we have found a cab and chassis that we will be able to mount the box off the existing burned truck onto.

On top of everything else, I thought the folks were going to have a meltdown.

Frankly, I am surprised it hasn't happened already.

Power-Hungry Pansises

2009-02-11T23:44:00.005-06:00

via Caleb at Gun Nuts Media:

I read this post that REALLY pisses me off.

The Lib-tard pansies that are living on a power trip by being in student "government" have arrived at the most vile decision in their worthless history.

Background: A Marine veteran in Oregon on the campus of Western Oregon University was falsely arrested on a gun charge for carrying a firearm. But the Marine didn't break any laws because he had not possessed the firearm in the buildings, and the prosecutor dropped all charges. However, possession of the firearm on campus is against the administrative rules of the University.

So the charges are dropped, end of story right?

WRONG!!!!!

The goofy do-gooders of the student government had a blood-lust for justice. And this Marine was their target.

So Marine Veteran Jeffery Maxwell was forced to go before a student tribunal in a "trial," which he asked to be public but was denied.

When the kangaroo court issued its "ruling," they slapped this American Hero in the face. Laughing while they suspended him from the University until he:

1. Writes a mandatory “ten page paper” ” with references, “citing, but not limited to:
a) the importance of following the law, even through civil disobedience.
b) the importance of accepting responsibility for one’s actions
c) and recognizing the impact possession of weapons on college campuses has on others.”

and

2. Goes through a "psychological evaluation stating he is not a threat to himself of others."

AAAARRRRRRGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHH!!!!!!

These pipsqueaky little pukes think their shit don't stink.

As far as their "sentencing," let me address it in depth.

For the paper
a)Maxwell did follow the law. Just ask the Prosecutor. If Maxwell would have broken any law, he would have been in jail The prosecutor dropped all the charges as they had no legal basis. Done.
b)Where did Maxwell ever not take responsibility for his actions? Was that when he took responsibility for his own safety? Or when he was serving this Country in the United States Marine Corps?
c) The impact on others? I would wager my entire retirement that had someone like Jeffery Maxwell been on the Campus of Virginia Tech or Northern Illinois University, lives would have been saved. How's that for impact.

and for the psych evaluation, I'll tell you the findings:
Marine Veteran Jeffery Maxwell is an American Hero and the only people he is a threat to is criminals who would try to harm him or others around him.

This demonetization of the best this country has to offer will be a major part of our downfall as a Country.

How can this happen

2009-02-10T22:31:00.002-06:00

There has long been a problem in this Country with illegal immigration. Now, don't get me wrong, I have nothing against immigration. It is what has made this Country great. However, illegal immigration is a major factor in our destruction. We have laws that establish the proper way to come to this Country to live or work. Just like every other country on the planet. And while this process may not be perfect, it is the law of the land.

And what do we do with people who break the law?

So how can this happen in these United States of America?

A rancher, who is a former county sheriff's deputy, and a CITIZEN OF THE UNITED STATES is being sued by 16 ILLEGAL IMMIGRANTS because he scared them when they were TRESPASSING on HIS LAND.

Roger Barnett has a 22,000 acre ranch in Arizona. When the border patrol started cracking down illegals in border towns, the ILLEGALS started using Barnett's ranch as their super-highway and caused all kinds of problems. They destroyed water pumps and storage tanks. Barnett put in a water spigot on an 8,000 gallon water tank to try and halt the destruction of his pumps. There was garbage 10 INCHES DEEP along the trails, the trespassers killed calves and cattle died after ingesting their garbage. The criminals destroyed fences, stole trucks, and BROKE INTO BARNETT'S HOME!!!!!! Finally, he had had enough. Roger Barnett invested $30,000 in motion sensors and would patrol his OWN PROPERTY for these criminals.

The lawsuit stems from a 2004 incident where Barnett found a group of criminals on his property and confronted them while he had armed himself with a pistol for personal protection and also had his dog with him. When he found these law-breakers, Barnett alerted his family and the Border Patrol.

According the lawsuit, Barnett claims to have turned over more than 12,000 criminals to the Border Patrol. TWELVE FREAKING THOUSAND CRIMINALS!!!!!!!!!!!!! This guy should be given a Presidential Commendation, not be stuck in a baseless court battle. I wonder how many law-enforcement officers can lay claim to 12,000 criminals in 10 years (and that is not a slam against any of our fine law enforcement officers who put their lives on the line every day).

Roger Barnett is a National Hero and should treated as such. And the criminals must be prosecuted.

Explaination

2009-02-10T09:18:00.003-06:00

I wasn't able to post a Great Music Monday last night.

Sunday night I got on my personal computer to check e-mail and work on a monthly newsletter. I got through my two e-mail accounts and was moving on to MySpace when

BAM!!!

Blue Screen of DEATH.

Shit.

Computer re-boots. Go through the Windows diagnostic and I have a freaking trojan. DAMNITDAMNITDAMNITDAMNITDAMNITDAMNITDAMNITDAMNITDAMNITDAMNIT!!!!!

So I spent the rest of Sunday night and all last night trying to get rid of the thing.

No fucking luck!!!!

I have a call into a local computer guy to come out this morning to kill it. Just waiting on him to call that he is available.

If I ever find the fucktard who created it, I will shove a Trojan helmet up his ass!!!

^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^

UPDATE!!!

The computer guy called about 9:45 this morning. By 11:30 he had gotten the damn thing to go the hell away. Thank GOD!

Best $30 I've spent in weeks. Hell, I'd have paid $100 just to get rid of the fucking thing.

Bass

2009-02-09T15:51:00.000-06:00

I found this interesting.

Your result for The If You Were A Beer Test...

Bass

(100% dark & bitter, 33% working class, 100% genuine)

So the deal with this test is that each taker, based on his or her scores, is assigned a beer that fits their personality (Corona, Bud Select, and so on), and along with the personality description, there's a poster or an ad for that beer. As you can imagine, most of the images feature booty models, sports cars, or, maybe even more depressing, retro kitsch.

It's a testament to Bass Ale, and therefore to YOU, that when I went to look for ads for Bass, all I found was this. An ad from 1937. Bass is legit, and if your scores are true, so are you. I tip my glass to that.

Personality-wise, you have refined tastes (after all, Bass is kind of expensive), but you know how to savor what you get. Your personality isn't exactly bubbly, but you're well-liked by your close circle of friends. Your sense of humor is rather dark, but that's just another way to say sophisticated, right? Cheers.

Take The If You Were A Beer Test at HelloQuizzy

Support

2009-02-04T09:33:00.003-06:00

When I came into the office this morning, my mother (I work in our family owned business) holds up The Dispatch newspaper out of the Quad Cities, where the main headline grabs my attention: "Sheriffs support concealed guns."

That's right boys and girls, the Illinois Sheriffs Association adopted a resolution in support of the passage of a Concealed Carry law for the State of Illinois. Not only adopted the resolution, but here are the really great kickers: The association's resolution noted it surveyed Illinois sheriffs on the issue, and 90 percent of those responding "support concealed carry in Illinois ..." and "...the group unanimously supported the call for a concealed-carry handgun law."

I'll spare you the reprinting of the entire article, you can go and read it at the link above, but I do want to highlight some of the keys quotes of the article.

From Henry County Sheriff Gib Cady (my county): "We are constitutional officers for the people, and the people want this."

From Todd Vandermyde, spokesman for the National Rifle Association: "Sheriffs aren't the puppets of mayors and county board chairmen. What's being proposed is not a radical idea. Forty-eight states have it. Forty-eight states can't be wrong."

No, they can't be wrong. 40 states have show that Will-Issue programs are effective crime deterrents.

Maybe, just maybe this will grab the attention of some in Springfield.

I'm Getting Hungry

2009-02-03T22:13:00.003-06:00

This may be the greatest idea EVER!!!!

Restaurant plans 'impeachment dinner'

Star Courier

Mon Feb 02, 2009, 08:36 PM CST

Bishop Hill -

The Filling Station restaurant in Bishop Hill will hold an impeachment dinner from 5 to 8 p.m. Wednesday to celebrate the Illinois Senate’s 59-0 vote last Thursday to impeach former Gov. Rod Blagojevich.
Blagojevich made cuts in the state budget last year that resulted in the closing of three of the state historic site’s main buildings last fall and the laying off of four state employees.
The staff at the Filling Station will be serving “ex-governor’s stew” made with “outrageous onions”, “I’m not a criminal” carrots, “out of context” potatoes, “slippery” celery and “behind bars beef,” all in a deep gravy over “slimy” noodles with “corrupt” biscuits, “apprehended” applesauce, “mudslinging” coffee and im“peach”ment pie.
“Join your neighbors for a final complaint fest about our ousted leader and share your hopes for the future of our community,” said one of the employees of the restaurant located near the north end of town.
The cost of the meal will be a free-will contribution.
Large contributors will be considered for a very lucrative job at the Filling Station which reportedly involves a lot of hot water.

Nothing more to say than: Anybody hungry?

Trip to the Beltway

2009-02-02T23:00:00.002-06:00

Sometime last year I stumbled across a great website.

The United States Concealed Carry Association.

I signed up for the weekly newsletter, which really got me almost daily e-mails on current issues on concealed carry, personal protection, firearms safety, shooting tips, money saving tips while still doing effective practice, etc.

Today's e-mail really caught my eye in the first portion.

Before I jump into today's Ammo-Saving tip, I want to bring you in the loop on something that I'm REALLY excited about. A couple guys who you may or may not have heard of before are hard at work on it as we speak... Skip Coryell and Ted Nugent. Oh- you have heard of Mr. Nugent, you say?

Well, you're probably wondering right about now, "what is ole' Uncle Ted working on?" Well... it's gunna be huge. You've probably heard of the million-mom march... well, this is something about a billion times better- a Million Gun Owner March, on Washington D.C. It's roughly slated for the Spring of 2010.

This idea is YOUNG right now- in fact, it's so young that I'm about to give you a URL to a website that isn't even active yet.

But it will be after Friday:

http://milliongunownermarch.com/

Remember- the site is still under construction, but I'll shoot you another email when it's up and ready. Guys, I am VERY excited about this. This will be our chance to stand up PEACEFULLY and be heard. We will be able to show the world that American Gun owners are organized, peaceful, proud, dedicated citizens who only want their rights to be left alone.

I think I am going to have to begin planning a trip to D.C. for this. Let's show D.C. what a million people REALLY looks like.

Also, don't forget IGOLD to make your voice heard in the state. In this very hostile time towards the 2nd Amendment, we must remain diligent in our fight. We must never give an inch.

Great Music Monday-Sunday, Bloody Sunday

2009-02-02T22:41:00.003-06:00

After two weeks off, GMM is back.

30 January 1972

British Parachute Regiment opens fire on unarmed protesters in the Bogside Region of Derry, Northern Ireland.

The protest was over the use of internment by the British in Northern Ireland. 13 people died that day, and a 14th died 4-1/2 months later due to injuries received that day. In all, 27 people were shot on that day referred to as Bloody Sunday.

This past Friday was the 37th Anniversary of the carnage.

Over the years, there have been several numbers written about that day. So for the memory of those who died that day, for those who fight for an independent Northern Ireland, the green field that Tommy Makem described in his song "Four Green Fields" as being in bondage, this week's Great Music Monday is actually two different songs about the day.

First, is the song written by John Lennon. Now, let me be very clear, I am NOT a Beatles fan but I appreciate Great Music. Here, it is performed by Wolfe Tones, a great Irish band. "Sunday, Bloody Sunday" is a recounting of the events of the day.

Second, is a song written and performed by U2. "Bloody Sunday" is more of a prayer tribute to those who were slain on Bloody Sunday. A prayer for them.

"The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. "
---Thomas Jefferson

If only it would PASS!!!!

2009-02-01T00:44:00.002-06:00

When I returned to work after a trip to the South, I was greeted Monday morning with this headline:

Taking up arms: Proposed bill would allow Illinoisans to carry concealed handguns.

This is nothing new in Illinois. Every legislative session a bill that would stop the State's continued denial of the basic fundamental right of self-protection. However, in a State where 31 of 59 Senatorial Districts and 62 of 118 Representative Districts come from 3 counties (Illinois has 102 counties) and 35 Senatorial Districts and 70 Representative Districts are in the 4 counties of Chicago and its suburbs up to the Wisconsin state line, downstate Illinois gets shafted out of good legislation if they can't secure at least 1/3 of the Chicago/Suburbs vote. So every time this legislation to remove the injustice comes up, it gets killed by Mayor Daley and his cronies. Even though 2 states allow anyone who can legally own a gun to carry concealed, 38 states have Will Issue concealed carry where if you meet the requirements for a permit it will be issued, and 8 states have restricted concealed carry where you have to show a certain need to carry beyond simple personal protection-i.e. your job requires you to transport large sums of money or you have actually received threats to your safety. Only two states have absolutely no provision for any form of concealed carry-Illinois and Wisconsin.

If this bill would get passed through the General Assembly and by some great miracle, be signed into law by the new Governor, Illinois would be the 39th Will Issue carry State.

So what is it that makes this year different from other years. So different that it warranted a front-page article in The Dispatch newspaper.

The backing of the President of the Illinois Sheriff's Association. Sheriff Gib Cady, who is the Sheriff in my home county of Henry, supports the measure and will encourage the Association to back this legislation this year.

He said statistics show crime goes down in states with concealed-carry laws.

Gib Cady obviously has taken the time to look at the MOUNTAINS of data showing that concealed carry makes us all safer.

It is too bad that Moline, IL Police Chief Gary Francque and East Moline, IL Police Chief Victor Moreno have never bothered to look at the statistics or the results of the 48 existing programs in the United States.

Francque is so confused that he believes "The threat to law enforcement would be enormous with that many people out there allowed to carry guns. I am a supporter of a person maintaining a weapon in their home and defending in their homes, but to be out running around with concealed weapons, you're asking for a huge increase in violence."

Moreno believes that the public interation with law enforcement will somehow become much more tense and be detrimental.

In some states, the law requires that CCW holders must identify themselves as such whenever approached by a law enforcement officer, but not all states with CCW require this.

In the article, there are several people listed supporting this necessary measure. Of course already mentioned was Sheriff Gib Cady. Also expressing support were Mercer County Sheriff Tom Thompson as well as State Rep. Pat Verschoore and State Sen. Mike Jacobs. Both Jacobs and Verschoore are Quad Cities Democrats. The one theme with those supporting the bill is the requirement for training a licensing-which would be like the 38 states with Will Issue programs.

Maybe. Just May Be we are finally starting to be able to grab a toe-hold in Illinois to finally get concealed carry.

We all need to do our part and be diligent about contacting our State Representatives and Senators and pushing them to support or even co-sponsor this bill.

HB0245-Family and Personal Protection Act

Listing of Illinois State Senators

Listing of Illinois State House of Representatives

Downstate General Assembly District Map

Chicagoland General Assembly District Map

2009 Alafia River Rendezvous Recap

2009-01-30T22:44:00.002-06:00

The whole trip started two weeks ago-after a record cold night. The National Weather Service registered an official temperature of -29. The trip was delayed by me about an hour. I came out of the house to the truck to find a low tire. Crap. So I had to make a trip up town to get the tire checked. The guys at the garage pulled the tire off and checked it out, finding a screw in the treads passing air. Unfortunately, they had to actually pull the tire off the rim. Crap. After an hour delay, I was re-hooked to the trailer and heading out. I met the 5 geriatrics in Douglas, IL where w loaded up the trailer and van. When we pulled out of The Man From Ohio's driveway it was -17. But we were headed South. It had to get warmer, right? Right?

Let me explain my travel arrangements. We had two vehicles. My truck with topper. Gear loaded in the topper, and canoe on top of the truck. Behind the truck a clown cargo trailer, full of gear. A minivan loaded with gear. The passengers: Me, and 5 geriatrics. I'm 26. The next youngest guy in the group was 58, and the oldest right about 70. Several of the other passenger are part of an group of geriatrics called the "Grey dogs." The Grey Dogs have 3 travelling rules.
1. Never pass up an opportunity to piss
2. Never trust a fart. Even if you know it's a fart.
3. Never wast a hard-on; even if your alone.

After 200 miles on the road, I hit a little SNAFU. With the canoe on top of the truck and the trailer, my truck was only getting between 8 and 9 miles/gallon. Max fuel range of 220-240 miles. But, when traveling with geriatrics, they have bladders the size of nickles and making it 200 miles between stops is pushing it.

23 hours later, we arrived in Plant City, Florida at the house of one of the Jerks so we could change into rendezvous clothes. The Jerks were up to their usual task of making Bloody Mary Mix-about 100 quarts. But the bastards didn't share. Not even a single drink. Once changed and groceries bought, we headed into camp. As we registered, it was 90 degrees warmer that the low the night prior to our departure. We headed into camp where a couple other Illinois River Scum already had a place claimed.

I unlocked the trailer and it exploded like a clown car. We had a pile of gear that stretched for over 50 feet: two tents, an awnings, a store, 3 tables, a set of shelves, 5 cots, 8 bedrolls, 15 guns, 4 bows, a couple dozen arrows, countless knives, axes and tomahawks, 10 chairs, a double braizier on legs, a set of fire irons, 4 skillets, 5 pots of various sizes, 4 coolers, 6 bow staves, a wood stove, stove pipe, a shower, 20 boxes, 6 beaver pelts, a 16' canoe, 4 canoe paddles, 20 pairs of shoes/moccasins, 10 cases of beer, 36 blankets, and 5 walking sticks.

We set up camp and got down to the important business of catching up with friends and consuming large and varied quantities of alcoholic beverages.

Sunday was more quality time with friends.

Monday started the archery competition. Which is shot in a swamp. In Florida. Where a few bad steps into an area you shouldn't be can cause you to no longer be the top of the food chain. The course of fire is 20 shots, all 3-d targets. There are shots from a standing horse swinging log, under a log, a squirrel on a rope, swinging turkey, standing on top of a 10" diameter stump, and a running bear. A very cool course. And the competition is a 3-day aggregate. And then Thursday is a Fred Bear match, where wounding shots count negative. I shot for 4 days.

Monday night, the North American Fraternal Order of the Beaver had a meeting, where 3 new brothers took the degree.

Tuesday was the Highland Games. I didn't make it up to watch any of the games, but was sitting at breakfast and watched the Parade of Tartans. Quite frankly, it was very disappointing, with only about 20 people marching and in their kilts. Hell, even one of the Piper's was just in tartan knee britches. I did not kilt up this year. And for reference Cameron: it is not crossdressing. It is not a skirt-it's a KILT. If I'd have worn something under it, THEN it would be a skirt.

Wednesday night was the ceili. I went up and did a few shanties and such. There was quite a bit of good music. I happened to end up sitting next to a good man I met last year. He is the only person at an event I have ever met who actually has a wooden peg leg. They call him Lucky Dave. After about my third piece, he leaned over and mentioned how much he enjoyed what I was doing and that we need more of it at events (in reference to me doing period correct music) and that he could tell that everything I did was with heart. It made my night.

Wednesday night was also the record cold. We had a pan of water, about 8" in diameter and 2.5" deep that was frozen SOLID on Thursday morning. Real temperature was 19. I've never seen so many Southernercicles. All the Florida and Georgia boys were miserable.

Thursday night, Joey Hall of Father, Son, and Friends was playing across the way from our camp so I went over there and listened for a couple of hours, until all the players ended up with frozen fingers.

Friday night was the Red Breast Society meeting. The Red Breast Society was born at the 2007 Alafia when a bottle of Red Breast Irish Whiskey and a jar of pickled peaches were brought out and drunken debauchery followd. I have pictures of men feeding fruit to women who is not their wife, of women feeding other women fruit, the bottle of whiskey down several different shirts, women down to the knuckles of fingers of men not their husbands, divers looking for dropped fruit, etc. While I am not a member of the Red Breast Society, I have attended all of their meetings and tend to just sit back and watch the proceedings. Although, this year I did get in on the pickled apples and the Apple Pie Tittie Shots. After the Society Meeting concluded, some Florida friends asked me to escort a couple of young ladies back to their camp. As the good gentleman, I did. Just for some perspective, this is a 1,200 camp rendezvous. We were in the Southwest corner of camp. The ladies tent was in the Northeast corner. On the way, we got sidetracked at Pawney's Pleasure Palace. Lots of people, music, remnants of the 200 lbs of shrimp boiled earlier, and liquor. The ladies and I ended up standing around there for over two hours. It didn't register at the time, but I think one of them asked if I wanted to go sit down in some open chairs and neck. I finally ended up crawling into my blankets about 1:30 and I had to be up at 5:00 to go get the truck so we could pack and leave.

Saturday morning arrived way too early. I actually had to turn on my cell phone and set an alarm. About 6:00am myself and a couple other guys went out to get trucks. Luckily, one of our ONW Brothers had joined us for the week, and he has a handicapped tag and was parked at the main gate, saving us the mile walk to the back of the parking lot. Which left us with only the task of fitting everything back into the trailer. At least the canoe sold.

The drive back seemed to drag on forever. Saturday night, we were 20 miles West of Chattanooga, TN and got hotel rooms for a sleep in a bed and shower.

Sunday, we rolled into home about 5:30pm and were welcomed to The Man From Ohio's daughter's house, where she had a good meal of mashed potates and chicken and noodles prepared for us. We got everything unloaded and I was back to the house and done bringing in my stuff from the truck by 9:30.

Some things I learned:
1. I am not cut out to be a grey dog. Yet.
2. When I get on the road, I really want to rack up miles, and it is just not possible when you have to stop every 200 miles.
3. I have to fight very hard to hold back my urge to kill when a stop is made that doesn't take care of at least 2 of the 3 F's (Food, Fuel, and taking care of Farts). i.e. If somebody needs to piss, don't stop at a rest area, go to a gas station or restaraunt. When stopping for fuel, make sure everyone makes a pass through the pisser.
4. When trying to make milage, sit down meals are the bain of my existance.

Free at Last!!!! Free at Last!!!!

2009-01-29T22:09:00.001-06:00

Thank God Almighty, We're free at last.

Blago's Gone.

Getting the Hell Outa Dodge

2009-01-15T22:38:00.002-06:00

Leaving in the morning for Florida for the Alafia River Rendezvous. Even Florida is in the grips of extreme cold.

But anything has got to be better than these current lows. The forecast lows for Florida are about 30 degrees when me and the 5 geriatrics arrive. A 50 degree temperature swing.

Back the 25th. There will probably be pictures. But don't count on another kilt-modeling.

A Historical Perspective

2009-01-15T22:26:00.003-06:00

I have talked before about my deep respect for President George W. Bush and that I think history will judge the work he did as President very differently than he is judged today.

That is why I found this article so interesting. While driving Omar the Wundepuppy up North today, I was listening to Mike Gallagher and he read this article by Andrew Roberts from The Daily Telegraph in England. Roberts is a highly respected historian.

The text is below.

History will show that George W Bush was right

The American lady who called to see if I would appear on her radio programme was specific. "We're setting up a debate," she said sweetly, "and we want to know from your perspective as a historian whether George W Bush was the worst president of the 20th century, or might he be the worst president in American history?"

By Andrew Roberts

George W Bush's supposed lack of intellect will be seen to be a myth Photo: AP

"I think he's a good president," I told her, which seemed to dumbfound her, and wreck my chances of appearing on her show.

In the avalanche of abuse and ridicule that we are witnessing in the media assessments of President Bush's legacy, there are factors that need to be borne in mind if we are to come to a judgment that is not warped by the kind of partisan hysteria that has characterised this issue on both sides of the Atlantic.

The first is that history, by looking at the key facts rather than being distracted by the loud ambient noise of the
24-hour news cycle, will probably hand down a far more positive judgment on Mr Bush's presidency than the immediate, knee-jerk loathing of the American and European elites.

At the time of 9/11, which will forever rightly be regarded as the defining moment of the presidency, history will look in vain for anyone predicting that the Americans murdered that day would be the very last ones to die at the hands of Islamic fundamentalist terrorists in the US from that day to this.

The decisions taken by Mr Bush in the immediate aftermath of that ghastly moment will be pored over by historians for the rest of our lifetimes. One thing they will doubtless conclude is that the measures he took to lock down America's borders, scrutinise travellers to and from the United States, eavesdrop upon terrorist suspects, work closely with international intelligence agencies and take the war to the enemy has foiled dozens, perhaps scores of would-be murderous attacks on America. There are Americans alive today who would not be if it had not been for the passing of the Patriot Act. There are 3,000 people who would have died in the August 2005 airline conspiracy if it had not been for the superb inter-agency co-operation demanded by Bush
after 9/11.

The next factor that will be seen in its proper historical context in years to come will be the true reasons for invading Afghanistan in October 2001 and Iraq in April 2003. The conspiracy theories believed by many (generally, but not always) stupid people – that it was "all about oil", or the securing of contracts for the US-based Halliburton corporation, etc – will slip into the obscurity from which they should never have emerged had it not been for comedian-filmmakers such as Michael Moore.

Instead, the obvious fact that there was a good case for invading Iraq based on 14 spurned UN resolutions, massive human rights abuses and unfinished business following the interrupted invasion of 1991 will be recalled.

Similarly, the cold light of history will absolve Bush of the worst conspiracy-theory accusation: that he knew there were no WMDs in Iraq. History will show that, in common with the rest of his administration, the British Government, Saddam's own generals, the French, Chinese, Israeli and Russian intelligence agencies, and of course SIS and the CIA, everyone assumed that a murderous dictator does not voluntarily destroy the WMD arsenal he has used against his own people. And if he does, he does not then expel the UN weapons inspectorate looking for proof of it, as he did in 1998 and again in 2001.

Mr Bush assumed that the Coalition forces would find mass graves, torture chambers, evidence for the gross abuse of the UN's food-for-oil programme, but also WMDs. He was right about each but the last, and history will place him in the mainstream of Western, Eastern and Arab thinking on the matter.

History will probably, assuming it is researched and written objectively, congratulate Mr Bush on the fact that whereas in 2000 Libya was an active and vicious member of what he was accurately to describe as an "axis of evil" of rogue states willing to employ terrorism to gain its ends, four years later Colonel Gaddafi's WMD programme was sitting behind glass in a museum in Oakridge, Tennessee.

With his characteristic openness and at times almost self-defeating honesty, Mr Bush has been the first to acknowledge his mistakes – for example, tardiness over Hurricane Katrina – but there are some he made not because he was a ranting Right-winger, but because he was too keen to win bipartisan support. The invasion of Iraq should probably have taken place months earlier, but was held up by the attempt to find support from UN security council members, such as Jacques Chirac's France, that had ties to Iraq and hostility towards the Anglo-Americans.

History will also take Mr Bush's verbal fumbling into account, reminding us that Ronald Reagan also mis-spoke regularly, but was still a fine president. The first
MBA president, who had a higher grade-point average at Yale than John Kerry, Mr Bush's supposed lack of intellect will be seen to be a myth once the papers in his Presidential Library in the Southern Methodist University in Dallas are available.

Films such as Oliver Stone's W, which portray him as a spitting, oafish frat boy who eats with his mouth open and is rude to servants, will be revealed by the diaries and correspondence of those around him to be absurd travesties, of this charming, interesting, beautifully mannered history buff who, were he not the most powerful man in the world, would be a fine person to have as a pal.

Instead of Al Franken, history will listen to Bob Geldof praising Mr Bush's efforts over Aids and malaria in Africa; or to Manmohan Singh, the prime minister of India, who told him last week: "The people of India deeply love you." And certainly to the women of Afghanistan thanking him for saving them from Taliban abuse, degradation and tyranny.

When Abu Ghraib is mentioned, history will remind us that it was the Bush Administration that imprisoned those responsible for the horrors. When water-boarding is brought up, we will see that it was only used on three suspects, one of whom was Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, al-Qaeda's chief of operational planning, who divulged vast amounts of information that saved hundreds of innocent lives. When extraordinary renditions are queried, historians will ask how else the world's most dangerous terrorists should have been transported. On scheduled flights?

The credit crunch, brought on by the Democrats in Congress insisting upon home ownership for credit-unworthy people, will initially be blamed on Bush, but the perspective of time will show that the problems at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac started with the deregulation of the Clinton era. Instead Bush's very
un-ideological but vast rescue package of $700 billion (£480 billion) might well be seen as lessening the impact of the squeeze, and putting America in position to be the first country out of recession, helped along by his huge tax-cut packages since 2000.

Sneered at for being "simplistic" in his reaction to 9/11, Bush's visceral responses to the attacks of a fascistic, totalitarian death cult will be seen as having been substantially the right ones.

Mistakes are made in every war, but when virtually the entire military, diplomatic and political establishment in the West opposed it, Bush insisted on the surge in Iraq that has been seen to have brought the war around, and set Iraq on the right path. Today its GDP is 30 per cent higher than under Saddam, and it is free of a brutal dictator and his rapist sons.

The number of American troops killed during the eight years of the War against Terror has been fewer than those slain capturing two islands in the Second World War, and in Britain we have lost fewer soldiers than on a normal weekend on the Western Front. As for civilians, there have been fewer Iraqis killed since the invasion than in 20 conflicts since the Second World War.

Iraq has been a victory for the US-led coalition, a fact that the Bush-haters will have to deal with when perspective finally – perhaps years from now – lends objectivity to this fine man's record.

Andrew Roberts's 'Masters and Commanders: How Roosevelt, Churchill, Marshall and Alanbrooke Won the War in the West' is published by Penguin

Brrrr!!

2009-01-15T22:19:00.002-06:00

It is Fucking Cold!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Calling for all-time record lows tonight. The local school has been closed for two days, and if they weren't having teacher's institute tomorrow, probably would be closed. We didn't send trucks out to run routes today. I had to drive to Rockford this afternoon to drop Omar the Wunderpuppy off at the kennel for boarding while I am in Florida next week. The highest temp I saw all day was -9. Six seconds outside and the snotcicles have formed.

Where the hell is Al Gore and his globull warming. Maybe we can set Gore on fire for a little warmth. Just watch out for the flashpoint.

An Important Message

2009-01-14T22:35:00.003-06:00

I saw this video over at Contagion's and it is a very powerful piece about the results of the British Handgun Ban.

The last 20 seconds have a very important message for Americans that we all need to take to heart.

We must always be vigilant and never yielding, for we must never allow ourselves to live in fear, and with the words so often used by Charlton Heston:

Join the Resistance

2009-01-13T22:29:00.004-06:00

I spend a lot of time in the vehicle. And while I love music and listen to a LOT of it, I frequently need a change. So I kick on the AM radio and listen to conservative talk radio.

My station of choice is 560 WIND out of Chicago. The morning starts with John Howell and Cisco Codo-who are local hosts and talk about Illinois and Chicago politics, along with national stuff. Then Dennis Miller is live for 3 hours, then 2 hours of Mike Gallagher, and finally 3 hours of Michael Medved takes me till 5:00. After 5, the station get too staticy to be able to listen. I have even bee known to listen to these guys via internet streaming radio while at my desk.

Anyway, Mike Gallagher (who is probably my favorite of the 3 syndicated shows) has been running adds about joining the resistance. Grassfire.org has an online petition they are collecting signatures on to present to President-Elect Obama.

The Resistance States:
As an American citizen, while I will show respect to President-elect Obama, I oppose the far-Left and socialistic elements that comprise the centerpiece of his agenda. I recognize that it will take a patriotic and resilient Citizen Resistance to block implementation of this agenda and I join with others who oppose these threats to our liberties.

Specifically, I Resist:

	Socialistic wealth redistribution including any and all tax increases and big-government welfare programs.		Silencing conservatives through the Fairness Doctrine and other efforts that restrict free speech.
	Open border anarchy including amnesty for illegal aliens and promotion of multi-nation “unions”.		Government-run health care that weakens our system and imposes more tax burdens on citizens.
	Weakening of our military through rapid pullback from Iraq, defunding our troops and overall disarmament.		Social liberalism including radical pro-abortion agenda, the end of marriage and the homosexual agenda.
	Liberal court activism that undermines faith, family and liberties while expanding government control.		Post-American globalismthat diminishes our global role and threatens our national sovereignty.
	Environmental extremism, the CO2 tax, undermining coal and nuclear, and bans on exploration.		Weakening the 2nd Amendment through unconstitutional gun laws that take away or penalize us for owning firearms and our right to defend our family, our property, and ourselves.

I signed the petition. I hope you will, too. Go to www.resistnow.com and sign and share with your friends.

Remember:

Great Music Monday-I Can Only Imagine

2009-01-12T22:39:00.002-06:00

First, Confessions.

#1. Yes, I am aware that my posting has been light recently. Even thought the Motley Crew have all returned home, several other things have kept me busy and I don't expect it to change this week. And next week will be no posting since I will be on vacation.

#2. While preparing tonight's GMM, I had the horrible realization that last week's GMM was a repeat. That is what I get for trying to blog too late at night. Forgive me please.

Now, on to the new music.

I haven't talked about it on here much, but I am a devout Christian. I have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and it is very important to me. But I don't try and shove it down other people's throats.

Part of my faith is spent in contemplation of Paradise. That place I will go when I come to the end of life's toilsome journey, and from my nerveless grasp shall drop forever the working tools of life.

And that is what this week's song is about. "I can only imagine." This great song is performed by the group Mercy Me and transcends genre. Last year while driving to Southern Illinois for a goose hunting trip, I put in a cd I had burned with this song on it and one of the other guys in the truck mentioned how much he liked this song, and the only stuff I ever heard him listen to was hard rock.

Great Music Monday-Last Ten Years

2009-01-05T22:44:00.003-06:00

Although this song is a couple of years old, it is still a poignant look back over how far we have come in such a short time.

"Last Ten Years (Superman)" by Kenny Rogers is a look back over the late 20th Century and early 21st Century. Johnny Cash, Ray Charles, George Harrison, Christopher Reeves (Superman) all left for eternal rest. Cellular telephones came to a huge prominence. The attacks of 9/11. And so much more.

Kenny Rogers - The Last Ten Years
Watch Music Videos at www.yallwire.com

As always, please leave comments and suggestions.

Holy Crap...

2008-12-30T23:14:00.003-06:00

...they're multiplying.

I have created blogspawn #1.

Frequent commenter and good friend Jim E has gone off and got himself his own blog.

He claims it is gonna be about hunting and stories from the road. He's got a couple of posts up about his success during deer season this year along with a story on hunting ethics and herd management.

So go visit the Jim Engstrom Blog and share the wealth.

Great Music Monday-Miss Sarajevo

2008-12-29T23:54:00.002-06:00

Just barely getting this in on Monday.

This just seemed like a good piece for tonight. Passengers (U2 with Brian Eno) with Luciano Pavarotti.

From Wikipedia:

Original Soundtracks 1 is an album of songs based mostly on non-existent films; however, "Miss Sarajevo" is one of four tracks from the album that are based on real films. The film Miss Sarajevo is a documentary by Bill Carter about a beauty pageant held in the midst of war-torn Yugoslavia. The winner was a 17 year old blonde girl called Inela Nogić. Carter traveled to Sarajevo in the winter of 1993 to offer humanitarian aid and quickly found himself in the heart of the conflict. He lived for six months in a burnt out office building, subsisting on baby food and whatever water he could find in the rivers and sewers and delivering food and medicine to those in need.

Carter originally contacted U2 while they were on their Zoo TV Tour to show audiences the real people involved, feeling that the western media was ignoring the human aspect of the war. The band arranged for several satellite link-ups where Carter gave the locals — who had been cut off from communication with the rest of Europe for about a year and a half at this point — an opportunity to be heard before stadiums of thousands. The link-ups were brief and unedited.

"The idea was simple, instead of doing what the news does, which is entertain you, I wanted to do something that the news rarely does, make a person care about the issue...I wanted young people in Europe to see the people in the war, I didn't want them to see politicians or religious leaders or military spokesmen."

—Bill Carter, ^[1]

Carter had his camera sent to him from his home in California so he could film the documentary (which was produced by Bono) with the same goal of exposing people to the individuals living through the war. "The war is just a backdrop, it could be any war, the point is the vitality of the human spirit to survive, [to] laugh, to love, and to move on, that is something we will be addressing always."

The song protests the war in Bosnia, criticizing the international community for its inability to stop the war or help those affected by it. It was the only single released from the album. Its video combines clips from Bill Carter's documentary with footage from the Passengers' first performance of the song at the 1995 "Pavarotti and Friends" concert in Modena. Clips from the documentary contain striking imagery, such as a shot of beauty pageant contestants holding up a banner with the words "DON'T LET THEM KILL US," as seen on the single's artwork.

Sarajevo PopMart Tour performance

In addition to the "Pavarotti and Friends" performance, the song was played once on U2's 1997 PopMart Tour in Sarajevo with Brian Eno. U2 was the first band able to host a concert in the city since the end of the war, and the band was very pleased to be present there at the time. As per the Sarajevans' request, the show was not a benefit concert, and the band performed just as they did in any other city on the tour. The actual winner of the Miss Sarajevo pageant, Inela Nogic, was present at that show, and was escorted to the concert with the band themselves. Bono lost his voice during the concert, and unfortunately messed up during the performance of "Miss Sarajevo," and said afterwards, "Sarajevo, this song was written for you. I hope you like it, because we can't fucking play it."^[2] In reference to the performance, Larry Mullen Jr. said, "That [was] an experience I will never forget for the rest of my life. And if I had to spend 20 years in the band just to play that show, and have done that, I think it would have been worthwhile."^[3]

Let us remember as we prepare to begin a new year, that we are blessed to live in this country. Even with all our problems. Reflect on your life, and the lives of our American Heroes. The men and women who stand ready to give the last full measure of devotion. And reflect on those who live in countries torn by war and strife.

Petey's Powderhorn

Veteran's Day

Goose Season

I'm a Bad Blogger

A Hero Is Called Home

Is it a Platinumed Golden Anniversary?

Great Music Monday-Bringing Mary Home

Questioning

A Tribute

Respect is Gone

9-11 Reflections

The Defender's Creed

Great Music Monday-The Mercy Seat

Interesting News Piece

The "Lion" sleeps tonight, forever.

So many options

Preparations for a return home

GAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Great Music Monday-It's America

Hiatus

Great Music Monday-Circle of Life

Great Music Money-Mary Ellen Carter

AWOL

Great Music Monday-Face the Flag

Great Music Monday-Only God Could Love You More

Great Music Monday-People Are Strange

Resolution

Great Music Monday - Ballad of Ira Hayes

History foretelling the future.

Great Music Monday-Somewhere In Kentucky

D-Day + 65

Test Results

Testing Day

HTML Help

New Blog

Great Music Monday-For My Country

For my trucker friends

True Trucker!

Great Music Monday-Are You Lonesome To-night

One Word

Great Music Monday-New Old Songs

How would she know

Clinton impressed by Pakistan military action

Great Music Monday-Cat's in the Cradle

SUCCESS!!!

A Beer Connoisseur

A Beer Connoisseur

Great Music Monday-Turn Turn Turn

Omar's Sister

Great News

How to keep your customers

Celebrate 64 years of FREEDOM!

Which Corrupt Illinois Governor Are You?

Otto Kerner Jr.

Great Music Monday-Ghosts of Culloden

A time of need

Simple Concepts

Kumar Goes To The White House

Great Music Monday-Skye Boat Song

Breaking News!!!!

DO WANT!!!! Join the Revolution

Great Music Monday-What to Get a Liberal for Christmas

Major Changes

Beyond Screwed

Great Music Monday-My Place In This World

Is it weired?

The High Holy Day

Great Music Monday-Ireland

Knee Jerk Reaction

A Note to ALL POLITICIANS on "Stimulus"

Great Music Monday-Carrickfergus

How high's the water, mama?

Blogroll Updates

Economies of Scale

Goosebumps.

Half Staff

Great Music Monday-Song for Ireland

Great Music Monday-Murdered In The City

St. Patrick's Day is Coming!!!

Out!!