Thursday, November 12, 2009

NIKON D80 WITH LENSES FOR SALE!!!

For those that do not know already, I am going to sell my Nikon D80 and 2 lenses!!!
See pics below!

This camera is a 10.2mp DSLR that is in GREAT SHAPE! 10 out of 10 cosmetically and functionality. No scratches, no dings, camrea is 100%!!! I bought the camera and lenses new and use it for all kinds of photography including my stock photography that I sell.
Included in the package are 2 lenses:

Nikkor 18-135mm f/3.5-5.6 ED
Sigma 70-300mm f/4-5.6 apo MACRO. Macro is from 200-300mm
Both lenses are in great shape and are also 100%.

I have all original boxes, mauals, plastic, covers, cords, battery, charger and even the sales record!!! I am asking $650.00 for all. This will make someone a great Christmas gift!!! I plan on posting on e-bay next week so hurry and contact me if you are interested. I can send more pictures if needed.


Friday, November 6, 2009

TERRORIST? No doubt in my mind!


The below post was on Yahoo front page this morning....thought I would share to see what my readers thought about this guy. Is he a Terrorist? And if so, did the FEDS know about it?
The actions that happened down at Fort Hood are no doubt shameless acts of people who do not deserve to continue life. Kill him....thats my thoughts!

WASHINGTON – His name appears on radical Internet postings. A fellow officer says he fought his deployment to Iraq and argued with soldiers who supported U.S. wars. He required counseling as a medical student because of problems with patients.
There are many unknowns about Nidal Malik Hasan, the man authorities say is responsible for the worst mass killing on a U.S. military base. Most of all, his motive.
For six years before reporting for duty at Fort Hood, Texas, in July, the 39-year-old Army major worked at the Walter Reed Army Medical Center pursuing his career in psychiatry, as an intern, a resident and, last year, a fellow in disaster and preventive psychiatry. He received his medical degree from the military's Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences in Bethesda, Md., in 2001.
While an intern at Walter Reed, Hasan had some "difficulties" that required counseling and extra supervision, said Dr. Thomas Grieger, who was the training director at the time.
Grieger said privacy laws prevented him from going into details but noted that the problems had to do with Hasan's interactions with patients. He recalled Hasan as a "mostly very quiet" person who never spoke ill of the military or his country.
"He swore an oath of loyalty to the military," Grieger said. "I didn't hear anything contrary to those oaths."
But, more recently, federal agents grew suspicious.
At least six months ago, Hasan came to the attention of law enforcement officials because of Internet postings about suicide bombings and other threats, including posts that equated suicide bombers to soldiers who throw themselves on a grenade to save the lives of their comrades.
They had not determined for certain whether Hasan is the author of the posting, and a formal investigation had not been opened before the shooting, said law enforcement officials who spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to discuss the case.
Federal authorities seized Hasan's computer Friday during a search of his apartment in Killeen, Texas, said a U.S. military official who spoke on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation.
In an interview with The Washington Post, Hasan's aunt, Noel Hasan of Falls Church, Va., said he had been harassed about being a Muslim in the years after the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks and he wanted out of the Army.
"Some people can take it and some people cannot," she said. "He had listened to all of that and he wanted out of the military."
She said he had sought a discharge from the military for several years, and even offered to repay the cost of his medical training.
A military official told The Associated Press that Hasan was in the preparation stage of deployment, which can take months. The official said Hasan had indicated he didn't want to go to Iraq but was willing to serve in Afghanistan. The official did not have authorization to discuss the matter publicly and spoke on condition of anonymity.
A second military official said Hasan's family has Palestinian roots. There have been reports that he was harassed for his Muslim religion, but the official says there is no indication Hasan filed a complaint within the military about that.
Terrorism task force agents plan to interview several of Hasan's relatives Friday, according to a law enforcement official who spoke on condition of anonymity because the person was not authorized to discuss the case.
Noel Hasan said her nephew "did not make many friends" and would say "they military was his life."
A cousin, Nader Hasan, told The New York Times that after counseling soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan with post-traumatic stress disorder, Hasan knew war firsthand.
"He was mortified by the idea of having to deploy," Nader Hasan said. "He had people telling him on a daily basis the horrors they saw over there."
Federal law-enforcement agents ordered an evacuation of the apartment complex where Hasan lived in Killeen, Texas, Thursday night and conducted a search of his home, said Hilary Shine, director of public information for the city. She didn't say what was found during the search.
Officials said earlier that federal search warrants were being drawn up to authorize the seizure of his computer.
Retired Army Col. Terry Lee, who said he worked with Hasan, told Fox News that Hasan had hoped President Barack Obama would pull troops out of Afghanistan and Iraq. Lee said Hasan got into frequent arguments with others in the military who supported the wars, and had tried hard to prevent his pending deployment.
Col. Kimberly Kesling, deputy commander of clinical services at Darnall Army Medical Center at Fort Hood, said she had known Hasan.
"You wouldn't think that someone who works in your facility and provided excellent care for his patients, which he did, could do something like this," Kesling said. She praised his work ethic, saying, "In my personal interactions, there was never any indication he would do something like this." Kesling described him as "a quiet man who wouldn't seek the limelight" and said she was 'shocked' when she heard that he was the man suspected of carrying out the shootings.
Hasan attended prayers regularly when he lived outside Washington, often in his Army uniform, said Faizul Khan, a former imam at a mosque Hasan attended in Silver Spring, Md. He said Hasan was a lifelong Muslim.
"I got the impression that he was a committed soldier," Khan said. He spoke often with Hasan about Hasan's desire for a wife.
On a form filled out by those seeking spouses through a program at the mosque, Hasan listed his birthplace as Arlington, Va., but his nationality as Palestinian, Khan said.
"I don't know why he listed Palestinian," Khan said, "He was not born in Palestine."
Nothing stood out about Hasan as radical or extremist, Khan said.
"We hardly ever got to discussing politics," Khan said. "Mostly we were discussing religious matters, nothing too controversial, nothing like an extremist."
Hasan earned his rank of major in April 2008, according to a July 2008 Army Times article.
He served eight years as an enlisted soldier. Military records show he also served in the ROTC as an undergraduate at Virginia Tech in Blacksburg and received a bachelor's degree in biochemistry there in 1997.
But college officials said Friday that Hasan graduated with honors in biochemistry in 1995 and there was no record of him serving in any ROTC program.

Monday, November 2, 2009

My Fall colors??






Well, as you can see in the above the pictures....not much fall color change around here! Everything is dying so quickly and it seems like the nornal "fall" turn has really sucked this year.
All pictures were shot with my Nikon D80 and either the 18-135mm or 50mm 1.8 lens.
I used a CP filter for the tree pic and this seemed to really pop the blue sky!!!
Hopefully I will be able to get out and take some more pics soon!!!!





Monday, October 26, 2009

hmmmm.... Storm Chasers????

Decided to sit down and actually watch Storm Chasers last night and I thought a few comments and thoughts were in order.
Very interesting to see some of the storms and structure from April not to mention some great video. Was great to see more of Tony L. interacting and in front of the camera. I met Tony for the first time in 2006 in Denver and then again last year at the "Steve Miller OK party". I have certainly seen him many times on the road chasing and in my opinion what you see is what you get. He is a top notch guy with a passion for chasing.
I really enjoyed seeing him doing his thing in the heat of the battle and playing the game. Tim also did a great job, as always, and is someone who I respect very much.
I also thought that Brandon Ivy and Matt H. did a wonderful forecasting job despite not being able to check a battery before a chase. lol

Of course, a show is done by editing and can go many different ways depending on how you edit the video. One way for a docu-drama/reality type show such as Storm Chasers to go is to create "issues" between certain characters. Theses "issues" are usually done to keep the audience on the edge of their seat in hopes that they will not change the channel.
Some of the "issues" that a network/production company can and will use can be anything from "he said, she said" to actual verbal abuse from one character towards another.

No doubt Discovery used these "issues" with the situation between Sean and Reed regarding the TIV and the "Big Red Shoe"
Admittedly, and as I have said before and took much heat for, there is no doubt that one resembles the other. I think it would be safe to say that one is a direct copy of the other, at least in the reason for building it, which in some circles would/could be considered stealing.
Am I suggesting that Reed Timmer stole the idea to build "The Big Red Shoe" directly from Sean Casey??? Hmmmmmmmmmmm...........

The answer is hell yes he did. Much the same as stealing the idea of a probe coming from Tim S not to mention the RC plane idea being stolen from Verne Carlson.

There is no question that the word stealing brings thoughts of a really bad person to mind, this however is not one of those times, and the reason why or difference you ask? Well, before you come to tar and feather me or bring Doswells Spanish inquisition to hunt me down let me explain.........It is a fact of life that the wheel was invented once...everybody else just "refined" it. A simple fact when looking at Goodyear....they made it better.
In my opinion Reed took an idea that Sean had, worked angle and simply made it better.
There is certainly nothing wrong with taking an idea and making it better and then capitalizing on that idea financially or otherwise. It is actually how most business work and how most "new" products are built.
It is not a bad thing per say and although at times it may seem somewhat unethical, it's just the way the world works.

On a different note, it was interesting to see some "issues" between Joel and Reed start to show.
Again, it is hard to tell how much was acting for the camera and how much is real and unfortunately the viewers may never really know, especially if they are not involved in or with the chase community.

All in all not a bad couple of shows IMO.

Friday, October 9, 2009

HELP!!!!!

For those that do not already know, Darrin B. and his other half Lexi, basically lost everything in an apartment fire. Darrin is a long time chaser and friend of mine and could really use some help.
Below is a post that Dick McGowen (Darrin's chase partner) recently posted on StormTrack.
ANY TYPE OF SUPPORT IS GREATLY APPRECIATED

"As some of you already know, yesterday morning, Darin Brunin and his girlfriend Alexis Sullivan, were woken up to a fire that was triggered by lightning in Lawrence, Kansas, which consumed the top apartments where they lived and left their apartment inhabitable. Fortunately, two good samaritans rang all of the resident's door bells in the building, giving them all enough time to escape, unharmed. Here is a link to the story. According to the fire department, they have lost pretty much everything and unfortunately didn't have any insurance. They both have received support from the Red Cross and have been temporarily moved to another apartment, but still lack a lot of essential goods for their new home (including clothes) . It is to my understanding, that they will not be able to return to the apartment to see what's left/salvageable for another week, until a structural engineer evaluates the scene. Unknown to them, I am asking anyone who wishes to contribute to their devastating loss, to send funds to my paypal address: midwesternmeso@hotmail.com You may also email myself at the same address to give Darin and Lexi any support or encouragement, and I will pass it along to them. If you wish to donate anything else, please PM me or email me and I will send you an address to where you can send something.If you can not do this, I fully understand (as would Darin and Lexi). Thank you so much to everyone who have already given their sympathies to Darin and Lexi; they are both thankful for all of those who have been so kind to them and have given them the support they need.Dick "

10/8 and 10/9 flooding


What a nasty few days we have had with all the rain!! Looks like the Tulsa area received between 3 and 6 inches of rain, with a few local higher amounts I am sure.
Could see some major river flooding at some locations through Sat. and with the passage of the cold front it looks like temps will get pretty chilly for this time of year especially this weekend!
Low temps for my CWA look to get down in the 30 degree range and we could see a pretty good frost!
The colder temps will certainly help with deer season (I hope!) and with the fall colors.
So far I have only see a few trees with any kind of real color change, most of them are still pretty green at least around here. This time of the year I always carry my camera with me just in case, so hopefully we actually have a good color change unlike last year.

Tuesday, October 6, 2009

Jon - Kate Plus 8 = no show = douchebag


First of all, Yes, real men do watch these kinds of shows.
Second, for those that are interested and watch this show as I do, It looks like there are some major changes that have happened just recently. One of those changes is that the show "Jon And Kate Plus Ei8ht" is no longer on air.
There are many issues first off...the very day that TLC announced that the name of the show would be changing to "Kate Plus Eight" and would focus more on Kate raising the kids as a single mother, Jon's attorney sent a notice to cease filming of the kids. In it he said that Jon felt that the show was detrimental to his children. Funny it wasn't so detrimental on Fri. when they were filming WITH Jon. Sounds a little fishy huh? Second douchebag act is to clear out the joint checking account to the tune of $230,000!!!! Leaving the mother of his children no means to make money and no nest egg to take care of them with. All of this on the heels of running around like a horny teenager banging every 20-something woman that comes across his path. All I can say is it's men like Jon Gosselin that give ALL men a bad name. It's my opinion that he should grow up, shut up and help his wife raise the eight children that they brought into this world.

Friday, October 2, 2009

THE WONDERFUL WORLD OF STORMTRACK

After taking much heat about my last blog and my recent post on ST, I decided I would explain myself and the reasons I feel the way I do.
First of all, in my opinion, Stormtrack has officially gone to hell. What used to be a forum that I enjoyed reading and even participating in some, has turned into nothing more than a socialist forum run by the very people that some of us used to look up to.
Back in the day, I enjoyed reading the new posts, seeing various pics and following the day to day happenings from various chasers during any given chase season.
For me, it was pure enlightenment and helped to curb my "itch" when I could not get out there and chase....I could always read the mag or, after the "online version" stop by ST online and get my fix so to speak. Not anymore.

The latest debacle caused such an uproar that the "mods" tried cleaning house a little and decided to ban/suspend 7 or 8 people. Some of those people are named chasers and have no doubt given much contributions to the storm chasing world. There were also many infractions handed out and as is usual the basic threats of banning were sent out by the "mods" as well as Mr. Tim V. himself.

Of course as is usual for my part, I questioned the "authority" and blatant ignorance of those who handed out said punishments. Not surprising, my thoughts were met with heat, some of which came from a select few of newbies as well as a few veteran chasers. with that said,
I am reminded that true ignorance does not discriminate against even those who may be educated!!!

As of date, I have not been back on ST and certainly do not plan on going back for some time.
This is not a hard decision for me right now due to the fact that deer season has begun and I will no doubt be spending more and more time in the woods with my slow annual retreat from the weather world.
Hopefully it will give me a little break from the day to day stupid stuff like ST. In the meantime, I have joined another weather forum and will be posting and sharing my thoughts there as opposed to ST.

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

"Tornado Hunters" and Tim V what the hell is wrong with you?

Thought that some of my readers might enjoy the trailer for the show Tornado Hunters and Part 1 & 2...stay tuned for part 3 and more!!!!!
I expected to post here last night regarding the situation that happened on ST but I was simply way to tired and did not have a chance. So I thought I would at least address one thing that I am itching to ask: First of all to Mr. Tim V.
what the hell kind of "forum" are you running over there anyways?
As someone who still has a little respect for you, I am asking you to grow some balls and pull the trigger and fire some of those pricks! What I am refering to is the forward and blatant bullies you have listed as your "Mods" I have no respect for people like that and as I said in in the forum last night, unlike driving, for me, it is not a privilage to be a memebr of ST. It is a privilage that ST has me for a member.
Your forum is not the be all end all that you and your "mods" think or want it to be. The only difference between your forum and the likes of others is the fact that you, Tim V, and your mods have turned into a SOCIALIST FORUM.
What a joke! What the hell is wrong with you Tim?
Care for a rebuttle Tim?

Below is my video, enjoy what real chasers do!








Thursday, September 24, 2009

Deer Season!!!

Next Thursday October 1, is the start to my annual retreat from the weather world for awhile. It is the start to deer season, particularly bow season. For those that do not know, I am an avid bow hunter and have been since I was a child.
Deer season is not only a time for me to possibly put meat in the freezer (yes we do eat deer meat) but it also a time that I get to reflect somewhat on the past year. This reflection includes weather and chasing not to mention life in general. To me, there is no better time to really think about "things" than while sitting in a tree stand waiting on the sunrise....overlooking a lush field of green clover and watching the deer eat, play and do what deer do. The serenity of being out in the "wild" is one that I do enjoy and am glad that I can take part in on a year to year basis. It's just one of those things I love. Plus, it gets me out of the weather world for awhile and I get to spend more time with my family.
This year I have elected to take my son, so that hopefully, I can start the whole teaching process while he is young. I don't think I have ever been as excited about deer season as I am about this year.
I have already scouted, glassed, hung the stands and sighted my bow in....I am ready for deer season!!!