Photo Wiz....NOT

The top two pictures were taken back to back this past Saturday morning with two different camera settings. Both pictures are untouched. The camera did all the work and all I had to do was point and pull the trigger.

I continue to be amazed at how much better photography is since the invention of the digital camera. Hard to believe what you had to go through just a few years ago to get even one good picture out of a roll of 12, 24 or even 36. I can recall numerous times taking a roll of 36 pictures, sending them off to be developed and then being disappointed when they came back a few days later with maybe a handful of decent pictures out of the entire batch. Now you can take as many shots as you want of the same thing and instantly see the results. Take 10 or 20  if you want and keep the best one while culling out all the shots that are less than standard. It's just too doggone easy. Makes me wonder why we hire professionals to take pictures for us at weddings and events like that. I guess I actually know the answer to that now that I think about it, but dang it! 

All that said, anyone who can push a button down while holding the camera steady can take good pictures. I do suppose there's skill involved in knowing what might make a good picture to begin with and when is the right time to push down on the shudder release. Also, understanding the affect of lighting is something not everyone takes time to consider I suppose.

Ok, I guess we still need professional photographers from time to time. But now more than anytime in the history of the camera, the difference between a professional photographer and all the rest of us, is not really all that much in my opinion. I think patience is a big key along with being at the right place at the right time. Also, it helps if you're able to visualize as a picture, what you see through the camera lens before you push the button. If not, you may just end up with a picture of the sky and the ground with a few trees in between-not that there's anything wrong with that.

I may hear back from a highly skilled photographer or two who might disagree with my assessment of taking pictures...and that's alright. I'll keep you posted.....

Fixer Upper

With several former Rolla Goomers coming in this week for our 12th annual Rolla Boy gathering at the cabin, I was inspired to fix a few things that have needed fixing for quite some time. I replaced a leaky kitchen faucet (after consulting with Plumbing wiz and fellow cousin, Duster Man Volkart), gutted the toilet and installed all new tank equipment, fixed one of the kitchen cabinets that was coming apart, replaced some light bulbs and made a few other minor repairs I'd been putting off for some unknown reason.
The cabin is now just about completely up to snuff. Today I'll eradicate some pesky red wasp and try to figure out why my doggone floor electrical outlets don't work (they actually stopped working about 8 years ago, but again....).
Speaking of cousins, I'm thinking about enlisting the help of cousin Darin (formerly known as "Damon" of "Damon, Damon and Damon") to help set up my welding operation, once I've finished the inside of the barn. My only experience with welding was in Mr. Wytick's 8th grade metal shop class in the early 1970's. I'm guessing that experience won't get me a job with Trinity Industries as a welding inspector, but with some brushing up and tutelage from Darin, maybe I can eventually do a little welding on my old trailer. If I get decent before I get sidetracked on some other project, maybe I can weld up a new gate or two. I'll keep you posted....

Still Around

This is a cool old house in South City, St. Louis. I'll keep you posted on other old house developments...

Art By Any Other Name

Art: Something that is created with imagination and skill and that is beautiful or that expresses important ideas or feelings.

~Priceless

You must agree, that's a pretty loose definition. It means that anything and everything created in any way, shape, or fashion by a living being, is art, as long as you refer to it as such. It means if you can take a handful of mud, press it together and set it on the ground, you're an artist (which is very good news for all 2 year old toddlers). If you take a picture of your junk drawer and hang that picture on the wall, you're an artist. If you rearrange your ceramic rooster collection, you are expressing your important interior decorating ideas, and therefore by definition, you are an artist. Congratulations...we're all artist!

These pictures were taken yesterday afternoon in Barry County, Missouri. They represent two of my fine works of art (to date). I call them "Ranch Art" and plan on leaving them on display for the remainder of the 2014 art period. They can be viewed by appointment only, unless you know the combinations to the first and second gates. In that case, you're welcome to view these works of art at your leisure. However, I must warn you: be prepared to be awed, as you have likely never seen anything exactly like these two specific works of art. Even if you've been one of the fortunate few who have previously seen an old axe stuck in a stump, you've probably never seen a Chinese red handled axe stuck in a stump exactly the way this one is. The fact that this raggedy Ol' axe has been in that stump for several years now, serves as an exclamation point to this amazing work. It's been in there so long in fact that at some point in the not too distant future, I expect to drive up and see the axe lying prostrate on the ground, as a result of the stump decaying to a point the wood fibers will no longer hold the stuck axe in place. When that occurs, I'm going to change the name from Axe In Stump to Old Stump-less Axe. Hold on now, hold on I tell ya: here's where it gets really exciting...
I plan on contacting the folks at Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art about purchasing this particular piece. The fact that this piece has been 6 or 7 years in the making, should allow for a heftier price than had I just thrown it together on the spur of the moment. After-all, it's not as if I just stuck that darn axe in the first old stump I stumbled across and then casually took a picture with my Chinese iCamera while driving by in the Max Mobile. It has taken YEARS to get to this point; years I'm telling' ya. Most artist, other than Leonardo da Vinci (you may have heard of his little work on the ceiling of the Sistine Chapel), don't possess the patience necessary to create lasting works like Axe In Stump. And as they often say in the big city art circles....like patience, artistic ability is a virtue.
NOTE: The stump holding the axe is not an actual stump, rather, an old round of firewood. But I didn't think "Axe In Old Round Of Firewood" had the right ring to it. Plus, when you're an artist, you can call your work anything you want.

As a bonus to this artistic post (no surcharge), the art work below is titled Iron and Cable and was created by the author with no less intentionality and "strategary" than Axe In Stump. While viewing these photographs of my art work this morning (which is also art) I was struck with the idea of issuing a challenge to my fellow world class artisans to take their best shot at coming up with some art that might rival my work (any Missouri or Arkansas county would be eligible to participate, except Arkansas's Carroll County). I don't think it can be done but am none-the-less looking forward to enjoying what I'm sure will be numerous world class entries.
Dang, now I feel guilty for having kept all this art work shuttered behind locked gate all these years. I should probably open it up for public viewing. There goes all the solitude. I guess it's just the price you have to pay when you're such a doggone talented Red Neck Country Artist. I hope it's worth it. I'll keep you posted....

~Author's Artistic Photograph of what he likes to call "Different Angle" of his "Iron and Cable" masterpiece...$7800

~"Old and New" the green sprouts depicting the new while the iron wheels depict the old: $5675

~I call this picture "Descending Light", perhaps understandable by only the most discerning eye: $9.95

Novel...ty

The day had been typical for south Florida: hot and sticky with enough intermittent rain to make you feel like you'd been wearing your clothes two days instead of one. As the flaming sun moved ever closer to the horizon, gradually turning the evening varying shades of orange and red, sitting outside became more bearable, perhaps even comfortable, when juxtaposed with the ambient temperature and humidity the area was infamous for.
Sitting under the faded blue and tattered canopy of the Great Southern Cafe, Mick Stoner (not his real name) recalled the days events while sipping the first of 4 pre-planned gin and tonics: his absolute limit on nights planned as light drinking nights. The day would not terminate until the wee hours and for good reason: when you hired Mick Stoner at $5,000 a day plus expenses, you received his full and undivided attention.

I've always wondered what it would be like to write a novel. I'll keep you posted....

Shopping Large

A few years after Walmart started converting their regular stores to huge Super Centers, I began wondering how long it would be until customers tired of the massive store format. I think it took about 20 years. Time will tell, but given the choice between a huge massive store like a Walmart Super Center or a more quant shopping experience like the one in this picture, I'm guessing a lot of folks are like me and would take the latter, when it makes sense. Of course, you can't walk into a little store like this and expect to buy a riding lawn mower, a brick of .22 shells and a 60" TV, and I have to admit I do like that option. But when I just need a few items, I'm willing to pay a little more to not have to fight the masses or hike a quarter mile to get back to my truck once I've acquired what I went in for. I don't think I'm the only one who likes a smaller store but, time will tell. And when you factor in the massive growth of online shopping, it doesn't look good long term for the mega-mass store format.
One thing's for sure: the corporate folks will figure it out, if they haven't already. In the meantime, I think I'll run up to Walmart for a new shotgun, a set of tires and a toothbrush. While I'm there, I may as well get a few Big Macs and take out a huge bank loan for something I don't need. What the snot: I might also rent a Rug Doctor carpet cleaning machine and get my hair cut...just for the heck of it. I'll keep you posted....

Along For The Ride

Although Max still prefers riding around in the Max Mobile to about any other form of transportation, he's not averse to traveling open style in the back of the truck-providing of course it's not too hot out. Recently while I ducked inside the Pea Ridge Neighborhood Market for a couple boxes of Triscuits and enough tuna to make it through the next few days of barn work, Max seemed agreeable to wait outside. I suppose he seized on the opportunity to enjoy the many smells associated with a small town grocery store parking lot. He's pretty easy to please providing he gets to go along for the ride. Now that I think about it, that's not a bad way to be. I'll keep you posted....

Toddler K9 Dynamic Duo

Well, Olives and "Big Ol' Happy Head" are up to their old tricks--posing for the pic of the week. Douglas seems to be thinking, "Seriously?".
You'd be hard pressed to find a cuter Toddler/K9 team than these two rascals. I don't think I can add anything to that! I'll keep you posted....

Inanimate Wingman

Although the technical term for this type device might not necessarily be "jig", that's what my brothers and I would call it. We learned everything we know about jigs from our Dad. We've from time to time referred to Dad as "The King of Jigs", due to his rather extensive experience on the subject. In our family vernacular, "jig" is any type of hand made apparatus that assist an individual in completing a task; usually a woodworking task. In this particular operation, I employed this jig set-up to allow for enough downward pressure to straighten out this bowed 1"x12"x8' rough cut pine board that I was installing on the barn interior. I must say, this method works nicely and I've used it several times on the barn upgrade project. If it weren't for knowing that the right jig can help one guy do something it might otherwise take 2 or 3 guys to accomplish, I'd probably have to cull a lot more of these rough cut boards than so far has been necessary. I've actually had only 2 boards so far that even the best jig man would likely have had trouble straightening out. The bowed and curved boards are still usable if sawn, ripped, planed etc. But I'm using them primarily in their largest possible dimension, thus the need for the various jig formats.

The jig: a woodman's inanimate wingman. I'll keep you posted....

Meanwhile Back At The Ranch

 In the news: pillaging, plundering, kidnapping, torture, beheadings, and general mayhem...and that's just in America.
Meanwhile back at the ranch things are pretty quite. I"ll keep you posted....

Fall K9 Day

~Max E. Pad pauses to make sure I'm following in the Max Mobile (10-10-14)

Well, in an effort to keep my word on keeping you posted on Max, he was back in old form yesterday. He actually jumped up into the back of the Tahoe without waiting for me to put the K9 ramp assist in position or making me pick him up and hand load him: which incidentally is probably where the now repaired hernia originated. At 105, that's a pretty big load of K9!

Max chased two squirrels on the way back to the compound, barked at the heard of long horn cattle who reside in the field that borders the north end of our cabin property, and warned of apparent impending danger while I had my head buried in barn work. He almost never barks at anything once we're "on site" and he's settled down for his usual day-nap (which now last most of the day). He must have seen or heard something around the barn perimeter that compelled him to make me aware of the situation. Maybe it was a bear? More than likely, it was a crow or low flying turkey buzzard. In any event, I praised him for fulfilling his K9 responsibilities of keeping me posted, but couldn't help throwing in "Oh really: all these years you wag your tail at everything except squirrels and now that you're 11, you decide all of a sudden you want to be a guard dog...seriously!" He appeared unaffected from the dubious compliment and went back to sleep.

Meanwhile the trees are in the beginning stages of their annual Fall color change. This is the time every year when folks start predicting whether or not it's going to be a colorful fall and debate the root factor that determines the depth of color e.g.: rainfall, temperature, angle of the moon or whether or not Marsha H. has been spending enough time playing golf and drinking Miller Light with all her Belle Vista Lady friends. I'm not an old farmer, but I'm going with the latter. I'll keep you posted....

~October 10, 2014

~The View (not the TV show starring Whoopy and the Gang) October 10, 2014

Stone Craft

This stone structure is located in a park next to the Missouri Botanical Gardens in St. Louis, Missouri. The old house sits adjacent to a long, tall stone wall protected by a very substantial and locked wrought iron gate. As a result, I wasn't able to find out any detail about the home's history. 

If you have an eye for craftsmanship, however, you would surely appreciate the level of skill possessed by the stone masons who built this structure long ago. I'm always impressed by fine stone work and the skill it takes to fit stone together at right angles and with such tight tolerances, not to mention the strength and endurance required to handle heavy stone all day long; week in and week out. 

I'm guessing the average stone mason of days long past likely enjoyed a pint or two of stout ale after 50 or 60 hours of applying their trade. Saturday evenings might have found the guys responsible for this structure sitting at a corner table inside O'Shaughnessy's Pub, "2 in" while eagerly sopping up the remnants of their second bowl of gruel with an ample supply of sour dough biscuits. 

Dang: I should have been a stone mason! Maybe it's not too late: I'll keep you posted....

What In The Sam Hill!

The other night while I was sitting on the cabin deck taking a break from barn work and eating a bag of chips, I thought of my Great Grandma, who always had a bag of Kitty Clover BBQ Potato Chips on the table at the back of her kitchen. I doubt if she ever thought those potato chips would be one of the many things her grandkids would remember about visiting her house in the 50's and 60's, but for me, among many other things, it is. (I know I've mentioned Kitty Clover before, but dang those chips were good!)

You never know what a kid is going to remember about you when they grow up. That's something I've thought about quite a bit over the years. It's probably one of the reasons I had several repetitive sayings in our home while our kids were little, like "don't kiss any boys" and "coon-dog, bird-dog, yard-dog, dog-dog". A few memorable and ubiquitous family sayings from my childhood home were, "Thun-der-ation!", "What in the Sam Hill?" and of course, "Wait till your Dad gets home!". Now that I think about it, my two brothers and I spent a lot of our childhood "waiting for Dad to get home". If memory serves, our older brother "Ace" was behind most of those darn waitings. I'm also pretty sure he deserved to get in trouble a lot more than he did, however, always the consummate salesman, he managed to get out of more trouble than he got into.

I wonder if maybe it's not too late to "tell Dad". I'll give that some thought and of course keep you posted....

Southwest Missouri October Sunset

This was last Monday evening's sunset in Barry County, Missouri. Had Jeremiah Johnson saw this, I suppose he would have said something like, "Dang; a genuine Southwest Missouri sunset...you cain't go no better!" I'll keep you posted....

Budder

I suppose there's a line between general topics and personal information. That said, we're all pretty proud of this little guy. He's our new grandson "Budder"! That's not his real name, but that's what I find myself calling him. Little Budder is a dandy and will probably in time turn out to be a turkey hunter. Speaking of turkeys...

...yesterday morning on the drive back to the cabin, I ran across a handful of turkeys in the first clearing. Very uncharacteristically, the two birds you see here paid no attention to us and were completely unaware of our presence. Max and I walked up close enough to them that I could have dispatched both birds with one rock, had it been turkey season. They continued dancing around with each other until Max finally spotted them and barked, which of course sent them running frantically and eventually airborne. After banging and flopping around in the tree canopy for a second or two, they flew off down the hill to join the smarter birds; who ran off when we first came driving up.
If turkeys mess themselves when severely surprised, I'm pretty sure these two birds had to change their shorts after their close encounter with Ol' Max!

Silly turkey capers: I'll keep you posted....

Not Pinterested

Old stone houses are timeless: I guess they never go out of style. This house is located in Dallas on the "M" streets and I'm guessing was built in the early part of the last century. I took the picture when my bride and I were walking around looking at houses-just for fun. I've been saying for years I was going to start keeping track of all the things I like in a house, and then BOOM someone beat me to it. It's called pinterest...dang it! I'll let them keep you posted....

Loveless/Shore Deer Hunt

~John Shore watching over the deer woods

A few years ago I invited a good friend of mine to bring his son and anyone else he wanted out for a deer hunt and related festivities. So, in addition to his son Luke, Matthew brought his father-in-law, brother-in-law and nephew. We had the usual good time guys have at deer camp and although it was only for one night and the following day, we created some good memories. It was definitely worth everyone's time.

I took this picture as Matt's father-in-law John kept watch from the relative comfort of our wraparound deck for any unsuspecting deer that might pass within an unsafe distance of the cabin. Like myself, John had apparently decided that for him it's not so much about the harvest as it is the experience surrounding it. I suppose he may have been standing there thinking more about his son, son-in-law and two grandsons having a good time in the deer woods than he was about actually shooting a deer himself. Time has a way of doing that: changing our view on some things and rearranging our priorities on others. In my view, there would have been nothing at all wrong with John getting up at 5 a.m. and heading straight to the woods to sit all day on a deer stand in the hopes of bringing in a nice deer--nothing at all. I just find it inspiring that O' John was simply having a good time spending a little time on the edge of civilization with his boys and grandsons. And as far as I know, he didn't have any idea I took this picture--and that's also kind of cool.

PS. Hard to believe it's dear season once again in Missouri and Arkansas. I'll of course keep you posted....

Coffee Spot

I'm recommending that if you don't have a favorite coffee spot in your town, you might want to consider getting one. Also, if you're inclined to "git outta town" now and then, you might consider identifying a favorite coffee spot in each of the towns or burgs you visit. When we're in St. Louis, my favorite coffee spot is "NORTHWEST COFFEE". It's kind of a hole-in-the-wall, but I like it...."I likes it a lot!"

My next order of business is to identify a favorite coffee spot in Clarksburg, Missouri: that might be a tall order. I'll keep you posted....

Barn Update

In an effort to stay one step ahead of my "Almost Uncle Tom" as it relates to barn work, I finally finished one interior end of my barn and am pleased with the results. It would have cost several hundred dollars to buy all this lumber new, but fortunately I had everything on hand, neatly stacked inside the barn.

I've decided I don't like the looks of the plain double doors from the inside of the barn and will have to come up with something to dress them up. They really stick out now that the wall is finished.

The cedar boards that run horizontal on the face of the gable end are cedar 2x4's my Dad and Tom ripped on the table saw the last time they were out. They stopped by to relax after a heavy day of yard sailing, flee marketing, and assorted other field trips with Mom and Aunt Dee, but ended up sweaty and covered in western red cedar dust instead. At least their efforts weren't in vain: unless the barn burns or blows to the ground, their hand mill work should be there for future generations to enjoy.
I have more than enough lumber left to finish out the other 3 sides: a total of about 1400 board feet, give or take.
Should I acquire a picture of Tom's not quite completed barn, I'll fill you in on it as well. I'll keep you posted....

Test Eater

I wonder how hungry the first person who tried raw oysters must have been when he decided, "I'm going to try eating one of these". I'm guessing about as hungry as the first guy was when he decided to give tripe a shot. If not for the affects of near starvation, I have to believe there are a lot of foods that would never have been discovered. Personally, I'd have to put grits on that list, unless of course you smoother them in butter and or bacon grease. Ala' cart, grits might as well be saw dust in my opinion. No offense to all the fine folks who like grits: if it weren't for you guys, we'd have to come up with some other way to dispose of all that saw dust! I'll keep you posted....

PS. Historically "test eaters" were likely all males e.g: "No-No Blanch, put that darn thing down: let Bill try it first!"