Happy (Belated) New Year!

Immature Bald Eagle  ©Daniel Gauss/Shot On Site 

This young bird may be experiencing its first new year.  Shot this at Bosque del Apache National Wildlife Refuge on Christmas Day, a trip we've been making nearly every Christmas for the last 6 or 7 years. "The Bosque" is one of America's great wildlife refuges, and should not be missed.

You would think, looking at this image, that I was either very close, or I have one of those massive multi-thousand dollar telephoto lenses. Neither is the case. My lens of choice (currently) for wildlife images such as this is the Fujifilm XF 50-140mm f2.8 R LM OIS WR (a mouthful, right), coupled with the Fujifilm 2x teleconverter. The 35mm equivalent of this setup would be 150-450mm. Decently long, but not enough to get in close to this eagle. Here's the original, uncropped and unedited image (about 50-60 yards away):

©Daniel Gauss/Shot On Site

So... how did I get a nice close (and sharp) image? Well, if you've been coming around here long enough you won't be surprised when I tell you it was in the "digital darkroom" with  Luminar Neo!, and its group of Extensions. (Especially SupersharpAI and UpscaleAI). If you own, or have a subscription to Luminar Neo and you want to try out any of the extensions for free, just click on any of those last 3 affiliate links. To purchase Luminar Neo, click on the first link. And don't forget: if you decide to purchase anything at the Luminar site, use the code: PHOTODAN  for 10% off of your purchase!

I'll be back soon, with more cool content about photography, photo editing, activewear clothing, your feet, and some exciting new medical news. Hang in there.

Annual* Holiday Songfest...

*Looking back, it appears that I didn't post these last year. I promise, it will never happen again!

So, without further adieu... the two greatest Christmas songs in the history of the planet...  and we'd like to wish you the very best this holiday season and the coming new year.  And who knows, maybe there'll be a few more posts between now and when I play these songs again next Christmas!

Yes, a Christmas Tradition. Plus One.

I say Robert Earl Keen's Merry Christmas from the Family is the greatest holiday song. Ever. Other people swear by the Pogues' Fairytale of New York.

Who cares? Let's listen to them both! Decide..  or not.

Happy Holidays Everyone!

It's Become A Holiday Tradition!

Ladies & Gentlemen, Boys & Girls, Lesbian, Gay, Bi, and Trans-gender- For your entertainment and amusement, presenting the undisputed Greatest Christmas Song Ever:


Enjoy the Holiday Season and be safe everybody!

Scanners Plus! O Tannenbaum.

Yes.. it's a Shoe Tree. Don't strain your eyes, the original image will appear in its full size in a future post. Meanwhile- the best to you in this holiday season!

Wildflower Season

Wildflower season in the Desert Southwest is ramping up.  On Easter Sunday, we took a long drive into the hills, first to do some Geocaching Northeast of Deming.  The purpose of this was to work up an appetite for the huge buffet Albert Campos was laying out at his restaurant.  (It did not disappoint.. especially the Chicken Cordon Bleu with the surprise inside: Green Chiles).  The entire hillsides of the Goodsight mountains were yellow.. somewhat from the Mexican Poppies, but mostly the huge carpets of smaller yellow-green flowers which may or may not be mustardseed.

Following our huge dinner and desert, we needed more exercise, and drove the Mitsubishi up the power line "road" to a point about 3/4 mile from the big blankets of poppies.  Far from showing signs of fading away, new bunches of this beautiful flower are showing up every day.  Our yard is overrun!

In addition, we spotted many other flowers which are just beginning to pop up.  Most of them we've been unable to identify.  Some of them we think we've identified.  We're leaving it up to you, our loyal readers to look at the pictures in the slide show (below) and help us identify what we're seeing.  (It may be easier to click through to the album at Picasa Albums, and look at the larger versions).

Bubba's Story

A repost from 2007, (and one of my better efforts).  We had posted this picture of Bubba, and had a poll for people to guess his COO (Country of Origin):



The "Bubba Poll" is now closed. For those waiting breathlessly for the answer... It's Georgia. That's right, Georgia. And not the one over there in the old Soviet Union.. the one in the American South. Bubba is an
Appalachian Corn Hound;or rather he's descended from the Corn Hounds, which were first created in the North Georgia mountains at the turn of the last century by mountain men who needed sturdy guard animals to protect their "corn likker" stills. Borrowing heavily from the French Great Pyrenees, for size, American Pitbulls for tenacity, and an occasional greyhound for speed in pursuing the hated "Revenoors" out of the mountains, these ingenius mountain dwellers produced a hound whose only vice was a taste for fine French wines and cognacs. Alas, this was to lead to the ultimate demise of the breed, even though it guaranteed that they would stay out of the moonshine. Because of their expensive tastes, these poor hill folk were unable to afford to keep this handsome dog. Additionally, the Corn Hound was able to somehow maintain beautiful strong, white teeth throughout their lifespans, which led to poor self-esteem among the very people that created them.

The entire population was, therefore, shipped off to Texas during the Great Depression, where the somewhat-wealthy Sheep Barons were able employ them in their current capacity, as sheep guarding dogs. So that's Bubba's story.. so rare, you won't even find it in Wikipedia!

And not only that, but... what?
What's that?
What's today's date, you say?

Why.. It's April Fool's Day.

And Bubba's an Akbash. From Turkey.
Congratulations to all who got it right. Texas, Todd?? ;)

It's An Annual Tradition!

Yes friends, followers, and readers, once you go past two years, it becomes a tradition.  I'm speaking, of course, of the annual playing of our Holiday video, Robert Earl Keen Jr's "Merry Christmas From the Families".  The greatest Christmas song ever written!  "White Christmas"? Hah!  "Sleighride"? You must be kidding.  What makes it so great, you ask?  It plays as well in July as it does in December, that's what.

Grab an eggnog, sit back and relax.. or sing along (that's what I do), and you all have the best of Holiday Seasons, and a great new decade!

Stocking Stuffers! (From the Shameless Commerce Div.)

Look up there in the Cafe Press box!  New designs!  "Life's too short to hunt with a slow dog", featuring 6 of the fastest, true sighthounds. They make great gifts, as do the  "I'd Rather be Coursing",  "The Family that Preys Together",  "Prey.. Church of the Open Field", and "Hearts, Hounds, Arms & Love" items.   

Many are available in coffee mugs, courier bags, T-Shirts, sweatshirts, etc etc etc.  Still time to get them before Christmas.... but you have to HURRY!

Just Click and go there!

Thanksgiving 2009

I think he was reminding motorists to "eat mor chikin."

Happy Thanksgiving to all our readers and followers.

Veterans' Day 2009.

Phil Ochs, one of the great voices of the so-called "folk revival" of the 60's.  (And one of my all time favorite "protest" songs.)  For veterans and fellow travelers.

A Wedding? Cool!

Somebody got married today! Wonder who? The dogs were in attendance. I'm sure even Randir was here. Details to follow when things slow down around here. And a slide show. And a video on YouTube! The marriage 45 years in the making.

Independence Day

Spent most of the day being.... what? Independent, I guess. Late this afternoon we went in to the St. Clair Winery, to get refills in our half-gallon "bulk wine" jugs. (One dry white, one dry red). Enjoyed the "jazz" trio playing on the veranda for the "Festival of the Grape" (or whatever they called it), then came home to watch the town's fireworks display from our front porch, several hundred feet above launch site. Next year, I think we'll go in to town to watch.. it was a little bit too far, as this un-cropped image will show..

...I like to be a bit closer than 8 miles, or however far away this is. I've loaded several more (cropped) fireworks images to the slide show on the sidebar.

Speaking of the slide show, I meant to mention it earlier, as it's all new. Since it's Summer now, I thought it was time to get rid of the Winter mountain shots that have been running there since around February. All but a handful of the images in the new show were taken from the porch, or the yard. Sweet.

I may as well mention something else new on the blog, although you'd have to be blind not to have noticed it- the new Cafe Press app from Sellit. I want to point out the "Share" button on the lower left corner. Press it, and see the many ways you can help old Shot On Site make a few extra bucks in his retirement. Go ahead. You want to.

Also helpful... especially for someone I know who is looking to score some fresh green chiles... is an ad I noticed up under the blog description.. someone is selling Hatch Green Chiles. Blog rules forbid me from suggesting what you do, but I think you know.

Heavy Weather

For the past several weeks, with the exception of an occasional overnight passing shower, we've missed out on the so-called "monsoon" rains. We've been able to see it. See it often, in fact. Usually as in the form above, as heavy downpours just a tantalizing couple of miles away on the Deming Plain.

Well folks, just moments after this picture was taken, this storm, complete with lots of sky to ground lightning, thunder, and flash flood alerts, washed over the Hare-Brained Homestead. We could see how the arroyos could fill up in a hurry, and even though I could see the UPS van, just a half mile away, making a delivery at Rock Hound State Park, he wasn't going to deliver that last package to our little abode up here on the hill, because there was no way he'd be guaranteed that the wash at the bottom of the hill wouldn't be rushing with water. So at 8:44PM, my UPS tracking status changed from "out for delivery", to "emergency conditions beyond UPS' control". And that was that. I won't get my new tripod until Monday, and I'll have to make do with the old one to shoot the Deming fireworks tomorrow... (which we should have a fantastic view of, and which you'll see pictures of here.) Hang in there.

Happy Birthday Chuck D!

200 years! Seems like only yesterday..

Merry Christmas from the Families.

Robert Earl Keen

More CMT Music

More CMT Music Videos

What the heck. After perusing South Park, Monty Python, and other Christmas anthems not safe for work or kids, I ended up with the same video we used last year. And it's so good, arguably the greatest non-traditional holiday tune ever, we're just going to make it an annual thing. Our "christmas card" to you!

Thats the Old Christmas Spirit!

The Farkers are having fun with this one... I particularly like the comment from the British MP who declares "These cards are profane. Christmas is a Christian festival and should not be associated with swearing and vulgarity."

So, on this shortest day of the year, I'd like to wish one and all a happy Festivus! Patrick the Terrierman, explains why the distinguished MP is basically full of crap.

Meanwhile... I do need to throw together at least one web card for this holiday season. If you know us, watch your inboxes!

AAARRrrrrggghhhh!

Avast! Come midnight tonight, ye better be ready to Talk Like a Pirate! or ye'll be walkin' the plank and feedin' the fishes. Or, to put it another way: "Über die Planke schicken"

But Don't Let Him Pee on the Water Cooler!

Tomorrow is the 10th Annual "Take Your Dog to Work Day". I've been taking my dogs to work with me- every day- for the last 14 years! Does your company let you bring your dogs to work regularly? Will they let you bring your dog tomorrow (June 20th)? I'll bet my old employer won't. They've become quite boring over the years since I left.