Since 2009, the retirement home of Shot On Site Photography... the source of the finest sighthound performance images in the world. As of August 1, 2022, the blog will become much more photo-centric. Not only will I post images from the homestead in the foothills of the Little Florida Mountains, and surrounding environs, but also tips about shooting, editing, archiving, software, hardware and more. The political rants will become few and far between (but not eliminated! It is 2022 after all!)
Tuesday, March 13, 2007
Creedence Said:
Bracketology
And dammit; I'm sticking with, "With a name like Smuckers.... etc".
Wednesday, March 07, 2007
New Mexico Reviewed..
The Campos was apparently the place for us, this year, which is surprising, because we missed it completely last year. We more than made up for it this year, visiting at least 5 times. Might have been 6. The owner, Mr. Campo, is a former chef at the Double Eagle in Old Mesilla, near Las Cruces. He was delivering something to Deming several years ago, liked it, and started his own place. The menu is a fantastic fusion of New Mexican/Southwest/Cajun/Italian... If you can impress JoAnn Van Arsdale (with the Ceviche Zacatecas in this case), you're doing well. Very well, indeed. My favorites ended up being the Skilletini- a sizzling iron utensil filled with pasta, Italian and Cajun sausages, ham, and other tasty, heavily seasoned goodies, and the San Franciscan- one of the best "California" sandwiches I've ever tasted... smoked turkey, cheeses, tomato, green chiles and avocado with a spicy sauce, on very thick and chewy sourdough bread.
When going to The Campos it's best to ignore the ambience. There isn't any, other than the giant gourd on the north wall that's painted to look like a penguin. But we don't go there to be impressed by their interior decorator. The exterior, on the other hand is this masterpiece, which the painter (who's name I didn't get), was working on the whole time we were in Deming. The Campos doesn't have a website.. in fact, none of the places in town do, but you can find some great comments on all of them at ChefMoz.org.
In no particular order, we also went to our old standby, Palma's Italian Grill, a couple of times. Absolutely the best bread dipping sauce around... with excellent fresh bread. The Lasagna was still good, and the Tuscan Salmon was as good as we remembered it.. and still a steal at $9.95. And on Saturdays, the owner/chef still strolls around the dining tables with his wireless microphone, karaokeing Sinatra. You don't find that in the "big city".
El Mirador, is one of the many Mexican restaurants in town, and one that we hadn't visited before, but there always seemed to be lots of vehicles there during their two meals, breakfast and lunch. We had one of each, and they were real good- especially the huevos ranchero. Can't give a review on the menudo, but it looked good as it went by to the table behind us. The restaurant, (or one of the four that the same family owns in Deming), was featured in a 2002 issue of Bon Apetite, but I couldn't find anything online.
A name that always popped up in the polls on who has the best green chile cheeseburger, was the local (or regional?) fast food chain, Blake's Lottaburger, and since, coursing our dogs aside, green chiles are a big reason we keep going back to New Mexico, we thought we'd better give it a try. And it was damned good for fast food!
The night before the Pack Hunt, we met a couple of other hound folk, and Dutch and his family, at the Holiday Inn, so we finally were forced to eat at the Prime Rib Grill. I forget what I ate. It was a Holiday Inn, after all.
And on a memorable Saturday night, we drove to Silver City to meet with Dutch, Cherie, and Buddy, and Susan Trow (visiting from Canada), and we drove to even further altitudes to the Buckhorn Saloon & Opera House, in Pinos Altos. Entering into the saloon portion, built in the 1860's, we were warmed by a huge potbelly stove. We went to our linened and silvered table and enjoyed some of the best steaks anywhere- we had he special, New York Strip, smothered in melted cheese and, what else?, green chiles. It was all the more tasty, as it turned out, Susan wanted to buy! We relented. You never have to twist my arm much.
Our last week was in Roswell, and I can't tell much about the local cuisine; we ate at Chili's one night because we had gotten some gift cards for Christmas, and the Golden Corral on another night because, well... we just think the GC is a cut above most other steak buffet places. You ought to try it sometime.. especially for the dessert bar! I almost forgot- we did eat at a small chain steakhouse, The Cattle Baron, following the Saturday hunt. A memorable salad bar, and for some reason, I chose to have blackened Halibut- at a steak place. Was good, though. We also met for the draw on Saturday and Sunday at a former Denny's, now christened, The Cover Up Cafe. Very good breakfasts and free coffee with a meal.
Monday, March 05, 2007
Headlines That Just Catch Your Eye
Here's A Plan...
Thursday, March 01, 2007
Park in the Suburbs...
...Drive into town, in a real "town" car. Shot On Site at "The Ranch" Escapees RV Park, Lakewood, NM.
They're Doing It Again...
"That’s our Boston: from proud birthplace of the American Revolution to a city of drooling idiots just blowin’ shit up."
Read all about it here.
Wednesday, February 28, 2007
The Schedule...
Yeah, us too. But our 6 week vacation in New Mexico is nearly over, and not a moment too soon, because we're broke. It's time to make some money to pay the bills. So here's the schedule for the next couple of months:
- March 3-4 AAWC Hutto, TX
- March 10-11 WGRA Boswell, OK
- March 17-18 LSWC Ferris, TX
- March 22 GCA Ferris, TX*
- March 24-25 #OPEN# (Possibly NOTRA, Boswell)
- March 31-April 1 #OPEN# (Possibly LGRA, Iowa)
- April 7-8 IGCA Valley Center, KS*
- April 14-15 BCOSW Belvidere, IL
- April 22-28 SDCA Specialty, Fontana, NC
- May 5-6 OKIGO, Fairborn, OH
- May 12-13 #OPEN# (Possibly OB NOTRA, Indiana)
- May 20 Silken Specialty, Gray Summit, MO
- May 26-28 #OPEN#
- June 2-3 ASFA II Farmington, MN
- June 5-8 SCOA Specialty, Lexington, KY
*Pending approval of organizers
Lots of choices after that... we'll just have to see how it plays out.
Thursday, February 22, 2007
60 Year Old Solos Navajo Bill Hill Summit.
Wednesday, February 21, 2007
Tuesday, February 20, 2007
Image of the Day
I decided to be greedy, and take one of the Border Patrol luggage tags. There were lots of fun things in there, including a Fuji single use camera with a couple of shots left. So I took a self portrait. This is a lot of fun, and today- a lot of work!
Geocaching
I mentioned my new handheld GPS receiver in the post about Dutch's hunts, where it helped guide the hunters on a methodical, efficient path. It worked very well. A popular activity for people with these devices is called Geocaching , (pronounced Geo-cashing). All over the world people have placed little boxes and packets of trinkets, and log books and other ephemera, in out of the way places. They then put the coordinates on geocaching websites.. which look something like this, along with hints, and a little description of the location. Once armed with this knowledge, you grab your GPSr, (ours looks like this), hop in your car, (or 4WD vehicle as the case may be), and head out for the cache location.
Monday, February 19, 2007
Dutch's Hunts.
People are whining.. actually only one person is whining (LOL), about not seeing any results from the Pack Hunt and Desert Hare Classic. Having just finished my article for Performance Sighthound Journal, and hitting "send", I really don't want to cut myself off at the paycheck, so you won't see any details here. But I will say they were fun, we had plenty to eat and imbibe, and we used our GPS receiver for the first time to plot an organized, methodical trek. It seemed to work well. The above is the track, and waypoints ("HAR-" is jackrabbits jumped and coursed, "NC-" is, of course, "no course") for the Desert Hare Classic. We found the "glory hole" and we worked it!
The weekend's big winners were Dutch, and Chris M. For how they did it, you have to buy the magazine!
Saturday, February 17, 2007
Copy Cats?
Can Photographers Be Plagiarists? (warning: brief nudity.... that ought to increase the click-count).
Is it plagiarism? Judging from the amount of trampled earth, and lack vegetation between the trail and the subject, I'd say no. It's just appreciation of a nice image by probably hundreds- if not thousands- of photographers- amateurs, professionals, semi-professionals, and just plain tourists.
Thursday, February 15, 2007
Tuesday, February 13, 2007
Happy Valentine's Day.
Today's image returns us to my favorite 15 mile long mountain range. The Floridas. With a twist: Tumbleweeds blown against a fence, with the mountains in the background. Visual evidence why photographers call this time of day "the Golden Hour".
Coming Soon!
Briefly, we'll be staying in New Mexico for two more weeks, then we'll be spending March in Texas. More details to come.
And I can't forget to put up a report for the recently completed Dutch Salmon's Pack Hunt and Desert Hare Classic.
Stay tuned.
A Fish(y) Story.
I thought I loved Grouper. But maybe it's farm raised Asian Catfish that I love. Or something called Painted Sweetlips. (I can't make this stuff up!).
NOAA investigators in Florida found faux Grouper being sold in 17 out of 24 restaurants that they targeted! But it's not just a Florida problem; they say this is happening all over America. Read the whole Washington Post story here. (You may need to register. It's free.)
NPR also covered this story today. Listen to it here.
Y'know, Asian catfish doesn't sound all that bad when you compare it to the two fish entrees whose DNA the investigators couldn't identify. That's scary.
Ya pays yer money and ya takes yer chances.
Going On Offense. Breeders Take it to the Antis!
Monday, February 12, 2007 10:28 AM
Subject: REPOST OF LEGISLATIVE ALERT - OPERATION: DOOLITTLE'SRAID
PERMISSION TO CROSS POST WIDELY
Joint Initiative Between The Doberman Pinscher Club of America and The American Rottweiler Club
Operation: Doolittle's Raid
The Legislative Committees of the Doberman Pinscher Club of America(DPCA) and The American Rottweiler Club (ARC) have recognized whatevery member of the purebred dog fancy has noticed over the pastseveral years. With increasing frequency, legislative bodies in our cities, counties, and states throughout this country have seemingly become hostile to the interests of purebred dog lovers in the UnitedStates. Indeed, the passage of the egregious anti-dog legislation in Louisville, Kentucky within the past several weeks has raised the stakes substantially for us. Anti-breeder legislation is picking up steam. It is in Albuquerque, New Mexico. It has been introduced in the state of Indiana. It is metastasizing throughout the country. We cannot merely fight a defensive struggle and expect that our interests will be preserved. All too often, our members have been faced with struggles on another front. Liability and homeowners insurance companies increasingly refuse to insure, or even cancel, those of us who own purebred dogs despite the responsibility that we take in raising and housing our loving members of our families, and regardless of the fact that our dogs have never had an incident resulting in any claim being filed with our insurance carriers. DPCA and ARC know this. The American Kennel Club knows this. The AKC Legislative Department does an outstanding job in working with all of us in very difficult circumstances. The problem of fighting against anti-dog legislation in every state and every city cannot be solvedat the national level. AKC can only do so much. It is up to each of us to step forward at this time. People ask: "what can I do"? They see anti-dog legislation everywhere they turn. They hear stories of insurance companies canceling policies, forcing their friends and family to make choices. Do I giveup my dogs? Do I move somewhere where I may be left alone?These are choices none of us should have to make. Now is the time for us to go on offense. Now is the time for us to take the lead. Now is the time to advance our cause rather than to wait for the next anti-dog bill to threaten us. DPCA and ARC have launched Operation: Doolittle's Raid. In Washington state, HB 1105 has again been introduced in the Washington House ofRepresentatives. This bill, the "Deeds Not the Breeds Bill", twice passed the House of Representatives. In 2005, the bill made it through the House and received a hearing in the Senate FinancialInstitutions, Insurance and Consumer Protection Committee. We ran out of time in that session. Now, the "Deeds Not the Breeds Bill" is moving again. On Thursday, February 1, 2007, HB 1105 passed out of the House Insurance Committee. The prime sponsor of HB 1105 is Representative Tom Campbell who is the Chair of the House Committee on Environmental Health. HB 1105 is very simple. It is one paragraph long. It simply prevents insurance carriers from refusing to insure or canceling the insurance of any homeowner based upon the breed of dog he or she owns. Its simplicity is transferable to other states. The DPCA and ARC have committed in Operation Doolittle's Raid to persuade legislators in 20 states to introduce HB 1105 during the month of February. We will strike in 20 states simultaneously. For once, we will be on offense. For once, we will make insurance carriers have to defend themselves on multiple fronts. For once, we will control the agenda instead of the agenda controlling us. Now is the time. For those who have asked what you can do, we have an answer. Call your state legislator. Meet with him or her at his orher office. Invite him or her to your local shows as a "Distinguished Awards Presenter" to present the Group or Best in Show trophies. Provide him or her with a copy of the "Deeds Not the Breeds Bill", which is the purpose of our initiative which we have titled Operation: Doolittle's Raid. Ask him or her to introduce the bill immediately. Here is a link to the bill: http://www.leg.wa.gov/pub/billinfo/2007-08/Pdf/Bills/House%20Bills/1105.pdf Lastly, once the bill is introduced in your state legislature, we need to know so that we can assist you to publicize that the bill has been introduced in your state. We are now in the process of populating the DPCA LobbyNow Tool with Talking Points to use in the battle that is to come. Our Doolittle's Raid, like the original, is designed to be a daring move intended to shock our adversaries. TheDPCA and the ARC need the help of committed purebred dog fanciers throughout the United States, in many different breeds, to launch this initiative successfully.
Cordially,
Jeffrey P. Helsdon
Legislative DirectorDoberman Pinscher Club Of America
jurisdobes@aol.com
Jan Cooper
Legislative DirectorAmerican Rottweiler Club
jan4rott@rott-n-chatter.com
PERMISSION TO CROSSPOST WIDELY
Dale Maddox Geddis Associate Legislative Director
Friday, February 09, 2007
Catwalk.
A little closeup detail of one of the many falls in the canyon.
We know that lady in red, I think.