A Humble Tribute To Abe Lincoln

I met a guy totally by accident.  Well, we have actually never met face to face but we have sent messages through our blogs and in e-mail. 

I'm a car guy, even though my blog doesn't seem to meet its title, I have a passion for things that have engines and wheels.  They don't have to go fast but if the engine is in the rear and it's made in Germany then you will find me breaking my neck to see it.  I can even tell you what it is by the sound.  Flat six or thunderous Detroit GM muscle.

While I was jumping all over the place in blog world, I found myself on a site in Argentina. I started looking at the Feeds-It to see where the followers were from and I found a name that intrigued me. That name was Abe Lincoln. He was from the United States. I thought it was a sudo name but I found that he was from a little town in Ohio that I had lived three miles north of him for over twenty years. I spent quite a bit of time in the local hardware store, library, some of the restuarants and their local auto dealership before moving thirty miles or so south to get closer to work after the daughter went off to college.

Well, Abe has been under the weather and I didn't know it. I haven't been able to get on my computer for several weeks because of my schedule. Now that's a joke, I'm retired.  Actually, I find myself a little more busy than when I worked because I find I didn't do anything during the day during the week because of work. My wife took care of the daily tasks that needed done of which I didn't have to be the one to do them. Anyways, I found through my following Abe link that he has had some trouble so I figured today I would post some wildlife pictures I took recently.

About a year ago I went looking for a lens adapter that would give me some greater range with my lenses.  I did a great thing, I spent more money than I wanted to.  I'm on a strick budget since I am on a fixed income and have had help in this matter with my former employer filing for bankruptcy thus loosing medical and pension etc, etc. Things are okay now, adjustment always sets in and rules, if you let it.

Again, I degressed.  I bought a Tamron lens that is 18-270mm in focal ability and 72mm across.  It's a VC lens meaning it has vibration compensation, kind of like steady cam in camcorders.  You don't always want this on, like when you are doing the zoom thing.  I have it on a Canon Rebel EOS XTi that is about fourteen years old and shows no signs of wear.  What this lens does is, I was able to put my other two lenses to rest. I only need this lens for everything I do. It is great for car shows.  I can get right up to a fender or wheel and take a shot of the whole thing or just a corner. Great depth of field the whole time. Only problem, I am still learning how to take great shots, the camera and lense and all their features and power.

So, without future interruption from me, here are some pics to look at and be sure to check out the above link to Abe's site.

Feeding time for the Robin.

Only one left of the original thirteen ducklings.

This is somewhat transparent and only about 1/4 " in body length and 5/8" with legs stretched out.

Great White Herron.  Abe helped me identify this bird.                                                                                

Baby rabbit this spring found up around one of the neighbors yards with 4 more.                                          

         

Some morning mist on a new cornfield.                                                                                                       

Stormy weather

Well, we had the panicking weather guys hollering wolf but it should have been fox.  Maybe that is what Fox News is all about, hollering wolf.  Anyway, a storm front did come through and you can see her the leading edge.  Most we got was high winds and a tad amount of rain.  Lightning and thunder was about once an hour or less over an eight hour period.

A New Neighbor In The Neighborhood

A new addition has come to the neighborhood by way of mother nature.  We aren't sure if it is the same family that was here a week or so, or a new one all together.  The first family had 13 offspring and there is either only one now or this is all the mother had.

We live on a pond so the wildlife is always changing.  Our worst guest is the geese.  The ducks, herons, hawks,frogs and toads, big toads, and fish are just fine.  Geese are just plain annoying with their noise, fighting and of course constantly leaving their calling cards.

We have a red "laser" light like the one people use to point with that can be used at night to run them off.  There is something about the light that really annoys them.  It is totally legal, in fact, it is the only thing that is allowed to be used to get rid of them other than a trained dog.  You can't shoot them except during hunting season and that has a small bag limit.  You can take as many down as you want as long as you use an airplane with people on board but you aren't really allowed to run over them with your much safer car.  It is like going to Michigan where if you hit a deer you must report it.  You won't get into trouble but they like to know for some reason.

Anyway, getting back to the new arrival, we think the mother is possibly from last years brew.  She knows to come up to our deck and quack for us, even when we aren't outside.  She knows the sound of the slider screen when it is opened.  We also figure she is a young mother because she comes to be fed and she lets her baby come too.  Two years ago a duck had 13, lost one right away because some brat kid threw a rock and hit one.  Then he said, Mr., do something.  The little thing was moving but upside down with its feet skyward.  The remaining twelve got reduced to six over time somehow.  Maybe the hawks in the area?  As the summer wore on they got closer and closer to one day they climbed up on the deck and ran around wanting fed.  Point here is, the mother never got close.  She hung back watching for danger, be it us or something else.  There was constant low sounds coming from her as she directed her young.  If she called them, they didn't quack back one more minute, they took off for her protection.

The male with the mother is the dad we assume.  He is the only one allowed to hang around.  The other males are just here.  Bachelors.

The Family

The new arrival

Along side mom

Heading back to the pond

Feeding on a Rainy Day

A Blue Heron on the prowel for food on a rainy day.  There are lots of small fish so his efforts won't be wasted. As you can see, he has had luck.

New Bird in the Neighborhood

These pictures were taken on 4/2/10 but I couldn't post them because I didn't know what the bird was.  I knew it looked like a Blue Heron and in fact it is of that family of birds.  It is referred to in different ways but they all lead up to an Egret or a White Egret or even a Great White Egret. There is a post that I follow because the gentleman that has it does real justice to photography of birds. 

Little did I know that we only lived about 4 miles apart for 22 years before I moved out of that area about 12 years ago. This is a link to Abe's site and yes, this is his real name...http://mybirdsblog.blogspot.com/.

Abe tells me in an email that it is mating season and that their plumage will change. In the attached link to allaboutbirds I believe you can see images of the long feather exentions.

Bank Bailouts and the Rich Get Richer

I don't usually talk about the banking industry or government regulation even though I do have my opinions of both.  However, now that the health care issue has been put more to the back burner than up front, financial regulation must be at hand. 

I follow a blog from a guy in Cincinnati, OH where I have learned about derivatives, the bond markets and banking issues.  I may comment on his site, and sometimes I may really really sound dumb but I learn.  I definitely know more today than I did a year and a half ago.  This gentleman has no agenda, he's retired.  He isn't running for some office.  All he wants is for the banking industry to get straightened out and the bad boys that don't play fare to go away.  Check him out (http://moneyplusthoughts.blogspot.com/).

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/29/opinion/29krugman.html?emc=tnt&tntemail1=y,  is from the New York Times and is about the regulation of the banking industry.  This story is written about everyday and yet it seems to get the same response all the time.....yawn.  Yes, it is boring to many.  More so to those that don't have the passion for it and those with the passion are few compared to let's say those that have a passion for a sporting event.  I guarantee you that if the NFL decided to change the number of downs in a game to 5 from 4 there would be more people showing emotional concern than there are about how our money is regulated and controlled.  The NFL won't put millions of Americans out of work but one little decision by the banking regulators, like letting banks hedge and speculate with our money, can and has put millions of Americans out of work.

It is a real toss up as to whether Obama should have gone after health care or the banking industry first in importance.  I believe there are many uninsured because they have lost their jobs and not just uninsured.  I beleive Goldman Sachs, AIG (hurry, change the name and people will forget all about us), Moody's, Lehman Brothers all need to be drug infront of the American people.  Their reponse time to allegations should be fare but not exceedingly long as it seems to be.

There are many books and articles out there but, to me, no one is listening.  This bull market recession WILL go on for a long long time.  Yes, it will straighten out but the question is how many more people will be put in food lines without a roof over their heads before someone in government decides enough is enough and gets off their fat ass to go to work for the people of the United States.

If you want to regulated something, start with the lobbyists.  They out number the politicians.  They get in the way of real democracy.

Oh What A Day Makes In The Ohio Valley

Last 4 days we had upper 50 to lower 60 degree weather.  Today.....the cold has returned.  The day opened in the uper 20's and will open tomorrow the same.  But, it is suppose to climb into the mid-fifties by afternoon. 

Yesterday I posted the shots of the Pussy Willow shrub next to our house.  A week earlier I did the same thus I am showing its progression to summer. 

There is s commercial on TV where a man and wife are standing inside and watching the kids shovel the snow.  The wife says something about the weather and the guy says it's cold out, that he isn't going out there.  Well, same here.  It's cold out so I took the picture through the window.  Poor shot but I stayed warm.

You can't see it but I-675 is out below the tree line and was moving at this point at this location.  Just a few minutes later it was at a stand still for a wreck to the north about 4 or 5 miles in my best guess.