More of Margaret's Pictures.. as promised.

These were all taken at the Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge.. on a day while I was off hunting with Fanny about 30 miles away.

Self Portrait 

The Biggest Penis

We were enroute from Crown Point to St Louis, and decided to stop for the evening at one of our favorite stops... Prairie Pines Campground in Rantoul, IL; a very nice city-owned campground. Nice amenities, including huge, private shower rooms. Rantoul also has a pretty good Mexican restaurant- Sol Azteca. That wasn't what it was called last year, but the change in ownership had no effect on the Camarones a la Diabla. As hot and tasty as they were the last time.

Rantoul is also the home of a friend; a successful Urbana retailer... shoes and orthotics. He's had a '65 Shelby Cobra for a couple of years, which he really enjoys. But when I called to invite him to dinner at Sol Azteca, he had news. Big news. The Cobra is on the block. He's purchased something more... um, more. He said he should cruise by the campground in it. I asked what... the new Shelby GT500 Mustang? No, he said, more than that. I said not a GT!?!? Yup.

So here is the ultimate phallic symbol. 550 supercharged, intercooled horsepower; a top speed somewhere north of 200mph (although our friend will admit to only 145... so far). The engine is a work of art. The interior, positively cocoonish. The body... well, see for yourself. All the cues from the legendary GT40 that smoked the Ferraris at LeMans in the '60s are there. It's just 4 inches taller; right about even with my hips at 44 inches.

We spent a good 45 minutes, looking over the beast, and taking these pictures (and believe me, this is a small sample). A local guy stopped and asked permission "to drool". He kept congratulating our friend, and shaking his hand... like, did he just plunk down 160 large on transportation, or did he win the Power Ball lottery?

Anyway... we were too hungry to take a ride last night (!!!???), but we're on the next time we pass through the area, and call ahead.... yeah; steaks on the grille and 100mph+ joy rides on the back roads. Does life get any better? Oh, probably, but what's wrong with the occasional indulgence? 

John Lennon Would Love It!

While not as poignant, or serious as My Strange Nation, "I'm The Decider" is certainly a hilarious parody. But where can one get off calling Bush the "egghead". I thought eggheads were brainy.

Death Wish?

Is this the dumbest bird in the history of the natural world? Sure, birds fly into windows all the time, you're saying to yourself. But have a listen...

We were in the mud up to our rims at the Boone County fairgrounds, following the BCOSW lure coursing trial over the weekend. We decided to let the ground dry, and see if we could get out on our own without an expensive road service call. So, we spent a couple of nights there.

Around daybreak yesterday, I was awakened by a rapping on the bedroom window. The shades were down, but occasionally I could see a shadow corresponding with the rapping, pulled open the shade, and saw this young robin... not accidently, but purposely attacking the window, which is, not coincidentally, mirrored on the outside. So what he was doing was endlessly attacking his own reflection... which he must have assumed was a rival that had to be driven off at all costs. We began to think he was going to drop dead from exhaustion, but that didn't happen. With only occasional forays out for worms, he kept this up until we left the fairgrounds around 1PM! Now that's what I call a really slow learning curve! And if that's the case, what does that say for Gabriel on the inside? He was there for all those hours as well...

Updates, Updates, Updates

California AB2110

This odious piece of legislation has passed out of committee. I'm not sure when it will come before the full assembly, but people in California are advised to not give up now. It squeaked out on a 4-3 vote, with the bill's sponsor "sitting in" to fill a vacancy and break the tie on her own bill. Interesting.

Also interesting is a reported last minute amendment that will narrow the bill's scope, possibly banning only "competitive" open field coursing. Details are too sketchy now, but if this is true it should be considered a major victory, and probably more than the dumb asses who brought this all on themselves deserve. More here when details are known.


Shot On Site Schedule..

Getting back to the mundane... here's the latest on where we're going to be over the next several weeks..

• April 9 - GLIWA, Racine WI, ASFA trial. Irish Wolfhounds only
• April 15-16 BCOSW, Belvedere IL. ASFA
• April 22-23 WCLCC, Crown Point IN. ASFA
• April 25-29 Irish Wolfhound Club of America National Specialty. ASFA, LGRA, etc.
• May 8-13 Scottish Deerhound Club of America Nat. Specialty. ASFA, LGRA, etc.
• May 20-21 CCRR, Other Breed NOTRA, Carthage, IN
• May 27-28 Unknown
• June 3-4 ASFA International Invitational, Falcon CO
• June 23-25 "Ridgeback Rodeo" somewhere in Pennsylvania..

That's the news for now. See you out and about.

I'm Never Going Hunting Again

This news column by Eric Sharp, the Detroit Free Press outdoors writer, in today's issue, has helped me see the light!

EKOJASTI -- The state Natural Resources Commission voted today, April 1, to impose $1 surcharges on hunting and fishing licenses to help an animal rights group develop nonlethal methods of reducing the state deer herd.

At a special meeting in this Upper Peninsula village, the NRC also voted to ban antlered deer hunting in the eastern UP and create a spears-only zone in Ann Arbor. The ban on antlered hunting was approved in an attempt to increase buck numbers. The spears-only zone was created to learn if the most primitive hunting method can reduce urban deer populations without upsetting vegetarians.

Read the whole thing here.

I can now see clearly that if an entire state, like Michigan, which has a rich heritage of hunting, can make the kind of sacrifices outlined in this article, then I can make my own small sacrifice... So, on this First Day of April, in the year 2006, I make this vow: That I will never again release my hounds on a living animal. I will join P*TA, and the H*US, and will deliver to them the names and contact information of every person I know, (and those I don't, and those I will make up), who hunt with their hounds. I will turn over all of my hunt photos to ABC, CNN, and the above organizations, to be used for the greater purpose of ending worldwide hunting, including the hunt for Osama. I will work for the passage of AB2110 to ban coursing in California, because some coursers in that state have already shown they have the intelligence of a box of jelly donuts- minus the jelly- and shouldn't be allowed out of their houses unattended. That is my solemn vow. You will all thank me some day.

Margaret Knows Her Way Around A Camera, Too.

Lately, this space has tried to be political punditry, film and book criticism, and satirical slapstick... among other things. We've lost track of the fact that we're primarily about photography! We've seen a lot of my stuff here, and for more of that there's always the website

But Margaret's been stretching her photographic legs lately, too, so we'll be posting some of her interesting work here. Much of her stuff is shot from the righthand seat of a moving vehicle,(She shot the "Impeach Bush" yard sign for the previous post). So here's some more from that perspective: These were taken on the mountain south of Jellico, TN on I-75. We were going north and seeing our first snow in nearly 48 months! That would account for the extreme concentration on the part of the driver... I really like the use of negative space in the above shot.. it gives it a feeling of true desolation. (Which is how it felt at the time!)
Will post some of Margaret's good abstract nature work in the future. Watch this space.

Home Sweet Home

After spending the last 7 months in Red (NC, MO, SD, NE, OK, TX, GA, FL, TN, OH) and purple (NM) states, it's good to be back in a good old Blue state.. in this case, in our home town, Ann Arbor. These signs are pervasive here... conservatively, no pun intended, in about every 5th yard in the neighborhoods we drove through today. While the sentiment is noble and just, the reality is that it ain't gonna happen... terminal stupidity is not a "high crime and misdemeanor", and since the alleged president is not having an affair with an intern or page, it's not likely to get the attention of the congress. The people have an alternative, however, as writer Kevin Phillips explains here. There may be hope for our "strange nation" yet.

Incest and Vomit and Bestiality Oh My!!

I love Netflix.com. Since many theatre chains refused to book
The Aristocrats, I was only able to see it courtesy of our Netflix subscription. Without going into details that would gross out even the least squeamish of our readers, it's a documentary, produced by Penn Gillette (of Penn & Teller) and Paul Provenza (shown below demonstrating Drew Carey's punchline gesture). It's the deconstruction of a 100 year old Vaudevillian joke, that comedians still tell to each other, (but rarely to the public- when you see the film you'll know why. Film critic David Edelstein says, "If The Aristocrats doesn't shock you, there's something deeply wrong with you. You need to be locked up—now." And that from a positive review!). It features 100 comedians from Robin Williams to Gilbert Gottfried, and from Rita Rudner to Whoopie Goldberg... all putting their own spin on this classic underground joke. My favorite? The special South Park animation sequence; and in a segment you'll have to see*, the joke is told by a mime! There are moments where you'll be asking yourself, "what th....??", and others where you'll be, like Rob Schneider at the Friar's roast of Hugh Hefner, on the floor in gut-busting pain. I guarantee it. I'll let Margaret have the last word.. "It was completely disgusting, but I still enjoyed it". What more do you need? Check it out.

*He was a mime after all...

Totally Irrelevant Celebration

Not that it means a damn thing in the grand scheme of things but Duke is OUT. And I couldn't be happier.

Sirs, Lords, Ladies, and all that British Stuff

As I noted in a previous post, Sir Mark Prescott was not knighted. He came about his title, as a Georgian Anglophile who knows him put it, "the old fashioned way, he inherited it". Now this is something that I didn't know, and based on comments on one of the dog lists I'm on, others didn't know about either. As luck would have it, Slate.com has an article today that explains how it works:

"Human nature being what it is, people have always wanted baubles and prefixes, and human nature being what it is, these things have often been for sale. After all, the baronetcy, a quaint hereditary knighthood, was devised by King James I in the early 17th century specifically to raise cash. With the advent of electoral politics, it was parties that turned to selling honors—and prime ministers who were beset by importunate wannabes. After Lord Salisbury became prime minister for the first time in 1885, he said that dealing with those aspiring lords or sirs had "been a revelation to me of the baser side of human nature."

That was then. This is now... the article, entitled So You Want to be a Lord: How to buy your way into the British aristocracy, by Geoffrey Wheatcroft (Sir?), covers the latest British scandals involving buying and selling of titles. So now you know the whole story!

War Declared on your Dog!

You love your dog. You work your dog. Or both. The ARistas are out to take your dog away from you, one baby step at a time. None are more insidious than the H$U$. (I will not post the correct characters here, because there's no way I will tolerate a Google ad for these creeps on my page). If you hunt... with or without a dog, you owe it to yourself to read this recent post in Matt Mullenix's blog.

While I'm on the subject of blogs... there are a few more that I've discovered recently- none more informative or entertaining than this one from New Mexico falconer and houndman, Steve Bodio. His take on the current coursing controversy is enlightening, but you should check out the archives for much, much more. Warning: This site will also make you hungry from time to time. Maybe even hungry enough to try jackrabbit!

Speaking of the coursing controversy in California, there is still time, (although it's running out) to do your part to help Stop the California coursing ban. Note the quote from my Rightwing friend, Bob Jahn (shown here doing his best King of the Hill's Dale Gribble impression). I tend to reject just about all of Bob's politics, but he's spot on here.


The last blog, is my pitiful attempt to counter the gloom and doom. It has nothing to do with dogs, or coursing, or politics. It's Where the Hell is Matt? The journal of full-time globe-trott... er, globe-dancer from Seattle, Matt (Last name not given). He's the guy you may have seen on Ellen, or Good Morning America, or other programs. Wherever in the world he is, he gets someone to film him doing his goofy whiteguy dance. The locations are incredible. Check out the film here. Not only is the blog generally hilarious, but it is educational as well. Well worth a look.

A Different Kind of Writer's Block

In the last few weeks I've had so many things I wanted to post here that I ended up not posting anything. It's also a problem when we spend so much time without a high speed connection. Anyway- I've got some time tonight, and I'm at the Flying J, and the 1's and 0's are flying back and forth between the laptop and the roof of the travel plaza, so... here goes:

Susan Werner

Those of us who despair of our nation's downward spiral to the Right can at least take comfort in the fact that there's someone out there who can voice our despair in a poetic way. And a beautiful voice it is. Give a listen to Susan Werner's My Strange Nation. It gives us hope that the America we learned about in grade school can be returned to US. It's been getting a lot of play on Sirius Disorder. And it's a free download at the website.


That Greyhound "Thingy"

Well, it went off without a hitch. Unless a 1000 yard drag lure that wouldn't work, and a serious leg injury to one dog, and numerous toe injuries to a bunch of others can be considered "hitches". Other than that, I guess it can be considered a rousing success. In fact, just from the numbers alone: 40 entries! it can be considered a rousing success. Organizers are unclear, but they think this is the first time in ASFA history that the Open Stake in greyhounds has had to be split.

We're happy with our little part in the event. That would be Rally's 3rd place finish in the Open Flight A, not the income derived from photographing the event- that would currently stand as the 3rd worst weekend event for us since we took our show permanently on the road. At least it was enough to get gas to get to the next event in Ohio, and there will still be some internet sales, so it might eventually be a financial success as well. One can hope.

One of the delightful surprises of the weekend was meeting, and hearing speak at the banquet, Sir Mark Prescott- the man who rescued the Waterloo Cup from rust and disuse, and wrote an excellent history of the event. He discussed some of the history at the banquet, and gave a cautionary tale on the recent brouhaha about open field coursing in California. Based on what he told us, it's apples and oranges, and he's got nothing of use for us. For instance, it's unlikely that any open field event in the United States will ever draw 100,000 spectators. That was the crowd for a Waterloo Cup in the 1920's!

Meeting a live Knight was interesting, but it's getting old hat. A few years ago in Lexington, KY I met, and had dinner with Sir Terrence Clarke, another notable canine authority. Wha..? What's that? Oh. I didn't know that.. it turns out that "Sir" Mark is not a Knight. He merely inherited the title. I wonder if that's also true of Sir Terrence. Probably. And Sirhan Sirhan as well, I suppose.

Anyway, back to the action. Without going into all the ins and outs, when all was said and done, a whole bunch of hardware, champagne, and fancy big rosettes were handed to my good friends, Mike and Karen Lorenzo, whose Dresda ended up winning the whole shebang. A much anticipated matchup between Dresda (codename: Tweezer; just check that bite!) and Jerry Burrus's Gilda didn't happen as Gilda, AKA: the blackest dog I've ever seen, dislocated a couple of toes in winning the Open Flight A.













And then there was this:
When I first saw it, it was just after a course had been stopped due to equipment malfunction, so I naturally assumed it was the caution flag. No racing to the finish line, and pit lane is closed! I don't know. Margaret finally 'splained it to me.






The Next Events

Leaving the South. I'm insisting it's way too early to head north, but north we will go. This coming weekend, March 25-26, we'll be at Twin Tower Park outside of Fairborn, OH. Then we'll try and get the awning fixed in northern Indiana, known as RV Central. (It was damaged in Georgia back before Christmas.) From there, we'll go to Belvedere, IL for the BCOSW trial. That will be the 1st and 2nd of April. Not sure where next. I'll let you know when we know. There's an Irish Wolfhound specialty there, somewhere. What fun! A mystery!

Today's Observation

Had dinner tonight, as we often do when travelling, at the Flying J truck stop restaurant. Pretty fair fare. Something I've noticed many times, all across the country at these places: If there's a more unfit class of people in America than truck drivers, I'd like to know who they are. These guys (and the occasional girls) are truly a mess. I can't believe any of them live past 50. I'll try and get some pictures one of these days and post them.

Hanging out in Tallahassee

Is this Florida? Or Southern Georgia? One thing for sure is that aside from being the place where the biggest ripoff in Presidential politics happened, it's where they love their Florida State Seminoles.

We decided to hang around for a couple of days, waiting for some mail that should have arrived Friday.

Meanwhile, there was the Appalachee Coursing Club trials this past weekend. While the course plans weren't exactly what I was used to from past trials here, I still got some good action. And, as usual, the lunches were first rate.

The Best in Event was won by the greyhound, Donald, owned by Glen and Pam Davis. A relative lure coursing rookie (this might have been his third or fourth trial), he's an accomplished runner. Here, he's shown in his Sunday preliminary run.








The event trophy, is the Robert Nix Memorial Trophy, which was donated by Les Pekarski a couple of years ago. While I only met Robert Nix once, back in 1996, I owe much of what Shot On Site Photography has become to him. Robert is generally considered the father of lure coursing photography. Long before the advent of digital cameras, Robert was shooting events with old, reliable manual Nikons and Leicas, and even though he eschewed photo labs, he always had images to show the very next day. Les recounted yesterday some evenings when he shared a hotel room with Nix where, the bathroom would be unavailble for most of the night because it was turned into a slide processing lab. Here is Les presenting the Robert Nix trophy to Glen Davis.






The other noteworthy happening of the weekend also involved, peripherally, Les, and his wonder whippet Gala. Gala became the first ASFA Veteran LCM3! On top of her previous 20 LCMs, that's an amazing career. Les has computed it out, and Gala (and her running mate, Spy) have each run more than a million yards. You go girl. Here's Gala (muzzle), and Spy running on Saturday.





We're still waiting to see where we're going next weekend. But while we're here, we're going to check out the area. If we find something fun, we'll let you know.

Back To Basics..

For a while now, I've lost sight of the original purpose of this blog, which was to keep the sighthound fancy aware of our travel and shooting plans. So, here goes..

This weekend we'll be in Tallahassee for the ACC ASFA lure trial. This is one of my favorite fields to shoot. The course plans always present the hounds a couple of times on each course, so I always get really good action stuff here.

The following weekend, March 11-12, we're either going to be off, enjoying Fort Yargo State Park in Winder, Georgia, or we'll be at the GOGLC trial in Brooksville, FL- this will depend on whether someone from this trial will be at Tallahassee and I can find out if we can go there in the motor home.



March 18 & 19 we will be back at Old Mill Farm in Cartersville, GA for what is being called an "ASFA National Greyhound Specialty", and which I have been referring to in my emails as "that greyhound thingy". This is a good field to run, and we may run Rally if her injured toenail is healed enough, but it's always been problematic for getting good sight angles for action. Back at the year end trials there, I did get an opportunity to shoot from a unique perspective. But Les Pekarski isn't going to bring out the 62 foot lift truck every weekend.

March 25-26 will bring us back up North for the first time since September, and it's a little too early in the season for my tastes, but we'll be at OKIGO's AKC trials in Fairborn, OH, which is another good field for unique action perspectives.

Our future plans also include the Scottish Deerhound Club of America's 100th National Specialty in Frankenmuth, MI in May, and a NOTRA weekend in Carthage, IN, also in May, and we'll be in Falcon, CO for ASFA's International Invitational in June, and this may preclude us from getting to Lexington for the Saluki Specialty.. it will require a long run, using lots of gas! Will depend on how well we do at the II.

Our 4th of July plans are up in the air right now.. we'll either be at the MGA ASFA trial in Metamora, MI or we may go back to Cartersville, as it's some sort of anniversary event, like the 20th or 25th or something.

That's it for now, we'll fill in the blanks as we get closer to April and May events.

Olympic headlines you missed..

BODE MILLER MISSES GATE IN SLALOM, VEERS OFFCOURSE, SHOT IN THIGH AT BIATHLON VENUE.
BAL DROPS TO .280 DURING HOSPITAL CONFINEMENT
Says Bode: "It's awesome, man... I got to party and get shot on an Olympic level!"

* * * * *

JAPAN WINS LADIES' FIGURE SKATING GOLD
JAP TAKES SILVER

SIGN, SIGN, EVERYWHERE A SIGN

"There's sign everywhere"

"Lots of fresh sign here!"

"Look at all the sign!"

What the hell is that all about? Left Behind cultists predicting the EndTimes? Preparing for the Rapture? What are they talking about, these wandering voices in the desert? Nothing so monumental as that. They're talking about the body waste from Lepus Californicus. Jackrabbit crap. But to hear the hunters as they slowly walk the desert hoping to flush a hare, you'd think they were discussing the Communion Wafer Body of Christ

!

The CW is, that when you see jackrabbit sign, you will soon see a jackrabbit! What it really means is: Absolutely Nothing.


In my short hunting career, if I've learned anything, it's that these critters shit way out of proportion to their numbers. One jackrabbit can litter acres of desert, I swear it's true. If it weren't true then we actually would jump a jackrabbit when we see fresh sign. It seldom happens. Oh, that it were true.

But like any creature of habit, we'll be out there again next Winter, talking about sign. And I'll be as guilty as the next guy.

Changing the name...

Huh. No posts since August. Well don't say I never post here.... note the new name of the blog!

Meanwhile, it's the middle of the Winter in Texas, and it's shorts and shirtsleeves weather. Better hustle on that additional study of global warming, Mr Shrub.

More later...

Cherries Cherries Cherries Cherries...

The title is a link... check it out. Your health will benefit. (Other links will appear in the near future, as soon as I learn the code to put them there.)

So begins our days as tourists, and let me tell you, this doesn't happen often enough. We packed up Rally and Fanny, and headed south on US31, then East on M72, our ultimate destination the Traverse Bay and Leelanau Peninsula of Northwest Michigan; home of cherries: The National Cherry Festival, Cherry Capitol Airport, Cherry wines, Cherry Chocolate Truffles, Cherry Orchards, and even, as we discovered, Cherry dog biscuits (called "Hip Bones", because of the anti-oxidant benefits found in the tart cherry).

We decided not to stop in the "Fudgie" haven of Traverse City itself, and go on to Leelanau Peninsula... a large point of land bordered by Lake Michigan on the West, and the West Arm of Grand Traverse Bay on the East. We stopped so the dogs could get wet in Traverse Bay. Rally decided that total immersion was the best way to keep cool on a day where the temperature was rapidly climbing. It was very shallow, and rocky here, but as you can see, we're talking big water here, folks.

Some friends of mine think North Georgia, or Brooklyn are God's Country, but listen to your bodies, which are 80% water.... God's Country is where the water is!

Our next stop was at the Black Star Farm Winery, on the Eastern shore of the peninsula, just South of Sutton's Bay. This is just one of dozens of wineries on Leelanau, and Old Mission Peninsulas.. before you laugh, this is prime wine producing country- the 45th parallel goes straight through the area, as it does the Napa and Bordeaux regions in other parts of the country, and the world. The area is hilly, the soil sandy, the climate arid... (well, normally, but you'd be hard pressed to prove it on this day).

When I first started coming up here, the varietals were primarily whites- Reislings, etc., and, of course, the fruit wines of the region, most notably cherry. These were surprisingly dry, and not at all what you would expect. We purchased a couple of bottles, so you will be able to see for yourselves if we happen to crack one open at a trial or race meet in the near future!

That said, the whites are still the best. The Pinots and other red varietals left me unimpressed, but I admire their ambition. On this day, I tasted a barrel-aged Chardonney that would stand up to any I've had.


We then decided to head across the peninsula to historic Leland, one of the early fishing centers of the Great Lakes. Now, a prime tourist destination, with shops, restaurants, bars, inns- but vestiges of it's past remain, with the shanties, and the old fishing boats... We had an excellent lunch at the Bluebird, which is occasionally haunted by the writer Jim Harrison, when he's not at his other favorite Michigan village, Grand Marais, in the Upper Peninsula.

After lunch, we headed to the waterfront, where I took the picture of "Fishtown", and then to the marina, where I snapped this example of the "little" pleasure craft than come in to tie up.


Then it was down M22, following the Lake Michigan shore towards Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore. Just inside the Federal boundaries is Good Harbor Beach, where I spent many days in the water in a previous lifetime...
We thought it would be a good time to let the girls sample the waters of the second-biggest Great Lake. Rally wasn't keen on the waves- she should see it when the West wind really picks up!

Unlike Traverse Bay, this was all sand... the entire West Coast of Michigan's lower peninsula is sand and dunes; almost 400 miles of it! Good Harbor beach is nice in that it is dog friendly- at least half of it is... when you come out of the parking area, dogs are not welcome to the left (south), but are welcome to the right, (north). There were several out on this day, chasing Frisbees into the surf, and just having a ball.

As I said, I'd previously spent quite a bit of time at this beach, and it was time to try and find another old haunt: Pyamid Point. Pyramid Point juts out into Lake Michigan, about 10 miles south of Good Harbor Beach. It also rises about 400 feet above the lake, on a very steep sand dune bluff. Unfortunately, there was no one walking on the beach, so I couldn't get any scale shooting straight down, so I thought I'd let the National Park Service let you know how high, steep, and dangerous it is. By the way, the trail from the parking lot is about a mile long, and also very, very steep! I noticed that the top of the dune, as dunes will do, is relentlessly marching East. Several trees on the East side of the crest have been pretty much swallowed up.

I couldn't resist capturing some of the ways people enjoy themselves after the climb. Besides working on golf shots, others go off to the back recesses and probably get naked. And other stuff. South Manitou Island, which is also part of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore, can be seen in the distance. The golf shot did not carry. But ferry service out of Leland, will take you there, and it's a whole 'nother fun place to hike, camp, climb, and swim.


It was getting late, so we decided to forego the rest of the trip south to Glen Arbor and it's shop, Cherry Republic. It was time to head back to the campground to see Buffy and Randir, who'd spent the day in the air-conditioned comfort of the Express. While passing through Traverse City, I had Margaret snap this shot, which is indisputable proof that this is a very special place.
















...and finally, this parting shot, which is more proof, that the land, not to mention the young girls, is fertile, fertile, fertile: (You can grow anything here!)

Biology Series #1

This is old (from the Spring, still in Texas), but I just came across it playing with Picasa. Where do Scissor-tailed Flycatchers come from?

Where do you think? Geez......

God's Country

...that's Northern Michigan to the uninformed among you. And it's where we are this weekend, just south of Charlevoix, and just east of Lake Michigan. They do two things well up here: They cater to tourism in a big way, and they grow the best fruit in the world. Northwest Michigan is the Sweet, and Tart Cherry capitol of the planet, and they're all in season right now. In this picture we happen to be parked in front of a pear orchard, but there are cherry trees up and to the right. Also, apples, peaches.... pumpkin pie..??? Ooops, got sidetracked there. Blueberries, too! All the healthy, antioxidant fruits.

We're up here for a craft show. We're set up amongst the woodburners, glass etchers, trivet firers, clothing painters, and guys who make tables, chairs, and bars out of big treestumps, and slather it with 6 inches of varnish. I'd like it in my house... if I were a hobbit. We just have our photo tee-shirts, totes, and Margaret's handmade jewelry. Here's the booth... looking a bit different than our normal field trial setup. Ask Margaret about the jewelry the next time you're at a field trial!

Once the fair is over, we're going 31 miles southeast, to Lakes of the North... a residential resort community that has a campground. Margaret's parents have a lot there, so we'll get to park really cheap, and then we'll play tourist for a couple of days. Ummmm, fudge.

After playing tourist, we'll be going to Wisconsin for a couple more art/craft fairs- one in Waukesha, and one near Madison. Then we'll get back to the blessed hounds, and shoot the Midwest Coursing Club's trial at the end of the month. That will bring us up to Labor Day, and I'll rant about that later.

Meanwhile, please scroll down to the previous post, and help us out with the vanity license plate poll. Later.

Vanity Plate Poll - 7-29-05

We've been considering vanity plates for the Bounder, and the Escape for some time now. It's especially important, now that we're offering the "Dog Tags" shirt design. We've settled on

XLCRATE

for the Bounder. We thought we'd have a poll to help us out with the car. (This will also help us find out if anybody's reading this damned thing). Here are our finalists:

JACKDOG

LNGDOGS

LONGDOG

DOGBOY

STAGHND

DZINRK9

K9IMAGE

HUNDPIX

We'll also take suggestions, (we can't think of everything, after all!). Leave your votes and comments.

BOOK RAVE - 7-27-05

I just finished Folly and Glory, the fourth, and final, book of Larry McMurtry's Berrybender Narratives. The others being, The Sin Killer, The Wandering Hill, and By Sorrow's River. If McMurtry isn't America's best writer, he's at least one of the top five or six.

The series follows Lord Berrybender, and his family's trek into America's 19th Century wild West. The characters are a mixture of fiction, and real heroes of the times, like Kit Carson. Along the way, they encounter Indians, Slavers, Mexicans, other travelling foreigners, both famous and unknown, Bison, trappers, traders. Starting and ending at St. Louis, the trek covers the whole of the West from Yellowstone, to Santa Fe, to Austin.

It's not a series for people who like to get comfortable with a character, because like the real times, death follows the Berrybenders and their extended entourage on their four year, four book trek. I was disappointed, for instance, that their staghound was killed by Indians very early on in the first book!

I give the whole series All my thumbs... UP!

B & B?

I was taking head shots of Fanny and Buffy, so Mary Jane Helder could do a watercolor... and the picture above, just reminded me of something, but I couldn't quite put my finger in, er, on it.......







huh, huh, huh-huh, huh...... I said finger.

How It Got Its Name..

It suddenly struck me: Why Hare-Brained Express? The idea came from many photo images I've taken of our hounds in pursuit of the Corralitos version of the Black Tailed Jackrabbit- a formidable foe- capable of amazing speed and agility in avoiding being caught. In fact, until last Winter, my hounds have never caught one- and they've never caught one without help from another dog... usually a Saluki! Anyway, here is the image we chose to put on the rear window of the Bounder... That's the World Famous Buffy the Vampire Slayer, in a single-minded, "hare-brained" pursuit. This, of all the shots I've taken- even the later ones of Rally's intensity of purpose, best illustrates the name. From a format standpoint, it's also the one that best fit the window. LOL.

Dog Tags!

Introducing Dog Tags: the T-Shirt

Here it is... the latest innovative design from the fertile minds of Dan & Margaret. The cool part about this is that it will be constantly evolving, as my collection of "dog tags" grows and grows, meaning that the shirts will be true limited editions. My shirt is a plum color... very close to the color of the font, above. It looks great. It also looks great on Black. Click on the image to see the full size!

Leave comments and feedback. We'll be sitting tight here in Jackson, MI until the camera comes back.

I'll update the Fall schedule in the next day or two.

I'm getting Behinder and Behinder!!

I can't believe I haven't posted since April! Well, most of the events of the previous posting have come and gone. The Irish Wolfhound specialty was fun, especially watching the big'uns doing agility. I was impressed. The II was hot, humid, exhausting, and, as always, impressive.

This past weekend, we went to Canada to shoot the Ultimate Canine event. Obedience, Rally, Shows, Lure Coursing, and Racing- both straight and oval. We entered Rally in the oval meet- her first official event as a greyhound. And damned if she didn't go undefeated and win the damn thing!

The picture above is one of Margaret's new "artsy" designs for tee-shirts, tote bags, and such. We'll be seeing how much interest is out there over the next month, as we take them to a couple of craft shows in Michigan and Wisconsin. We'll put a selection up on the website, so you can see what we've been doing lately.

We're on a kind of "forced bivuac", as the Nikon D2H... the workhorse of my business, went to hell last weekend, and is now being "rejuvinated" by the Nikon service techs on Long Island. $400+ bucks, they tell me. Hey you out there- Buy some shirts!

I've got a cool new shirt design, that all you dog folk are going to love! I'll post it tomorrow!