Fishin' at Jackson Lake

Rusty, Mark and I left work a little early yesterday to do some afternoon and early evening fishing.

Trolling around at about 3 mph. waiting for a bite

Yours truly got the first bite, we are pretty sure it was a wiper but he stole my lure before I could get him in the boat..

I need to do better knots !

Pelicans like to fish here too

This guy let us get pretty close

But, not too close

The day was about over, Rusty caught 2 walleye, I finally caught 1 walleye

Many folks do not realize that there is good fishing on the plains (of Colorado), one hour drive from home.

New addition to the blog

 We all know by now that the gov't controlled (or main stream media) is nothing but propaganda  for controlling the American People.

Thank goodness for the internet (so far) to bring us alternative information and information that we can actually use.

I have added in the top left corner of the blog a link to a new blog I started that lists news that I think may be of interest to others.  ..  if not your interest then do not read ;) 

Since, there is so much information out there it is sometimes hard to find stuff.
When I find information I find useful I will post them there, that way I am not using up blog space on this blog for news type information...

The new blog is called "News that I care about"   kinda original  don't ya think?  Just the name not posting news on a blog ;)

Everyone have a enjoyable holiday weekend

(think about us we will be working)

The Sea Nymph is finally home

Some say this looks like a redneck kind of set up

Yesterday (Monday) it was somewhat a slow day, I made a call to the temporary home of the newly acquired Sea Nymph, to see if  friend Jeff needed any liquid refreshments re- supplied :)

He placed his order and now I have more than one reason to go back to the great hunting grounds again..

So I left with the small black trailer and headed to Wauneta,....... made not too bad of time,  only took 3 1/2 hrs, funny how fast one can go without towing the condo behind the suburban.

I loaded the boat onto the trailer, so I would not need to worry about  the condition of the boat and trailer, Just haul it home and worry about improvements later..

As usual Jeff had alot to talk about, it lasted till about 11pm,

We decided to call it a night and retired for the night,  Well 6 hours (5am) I am wide awake, decided to load the motor and complete the strapping down of the boat, trailer and motor.

By 6:30 am I am traveling back to Denver, making good time again (this thing weighs almost nothing.
I arrive a 10am in time to "go to work"

I have big plans for the sea Nymph........  I will keep you posted on its progress....

A little news break

Since it is Sunday when most people are taking it easy, we (sarge and I)  are minding the store.
It is a pretty much a "slow" day.
 I am reading again ...   the RSS feeds that I subscribe to.

When you have a very small business (like ours) taxes and tax collection is one of my hot buttons.

I have searched for a gadget that I could add to  Blogger for daily news that "I" would like to convey, but the controlling  authority " google", will not make it available in their format (maybe I need to start ANOTHER site for news feeds that I would like to share " watch for it in the future"  Humm...

Anyhoo..

Below is an article from Canada about taxation.. I believe it is a good article..

I would hope us in  the USSA would take note.. although It would never show up in the Pressitute media.

Italy and the Great Tax Revolt 

Sunday, May 20th, 2012 by James E. Miller posted in Capitalism, Law, Politics, Regulation.

Taxation is theft.

There is no denying this.  If I and a few brutes appeared at the door of an unsuspecting individual and demanded monetary compensation less we drag him off to jail, this would be a clear cut case of robbery.  It is a common tactic used by mobs or street gangs to offer protection with the barrel of a gun.  The only difference between shakedowns by private thugs and those employed by the state is the badge.  The badge legalizes extortion and imprisonment.

With that being said, it has been three years since the financial crisis and governments around the world are still reeling in the lesser Depression.  Tax collections are down while public expenditures have skyrocketed in a vain effort to stabilize the economy.  Much of this mass orgy in spending has been financed by central banks printing money and the suppression of interest rates down to artificially low levels.  This is the Keynesian remedy to recession.  Spend what you don’t have via the printing press.  Have central bankers create paradise on Earth through counterfeiting.

So far it hasn’t worked.

Like the Great Depression before, regime uncertainty and an emphasis on consumption over private investment have prevented a sustainable recovery from taking hold.  Public debts continue their upward trend with no conceivable end in sight.  The bond vigilantes have started their attack on the Eurozone; namely Greece, Portugal, Italy, and Spain.  Greece is all but finished as even the most dimwitted of commentators is conceding than an exit from the euro is likely.  Meanwhile in Italy, the lack of tax collection has forced the hand of Prime Minister Mario Monti to crack down on tax evasion.  This hasn’t gone over well with the Italian public.  From the San Francisco Chronicle:

Equitalia, the state tax-collection agency, has been targeted in a wave of attacks as Italians chafe under stepped-up efforts to recover an estimated 120 billion euros ($153 billion) in lost revenue from evasion. On May 12, a Molotov cocktail exploded outside Equitalia’s Livorno office, one day after a parcel bomb was delivered to the Rome headquarters, site of a December explosion that tore off part of the general manager’s hand.

“I have never seen such a tense atmosphere” said Ballico, who has been employed by Equitalia since 1998 and is now on temporary leave to work for the UGL labor union. “They call us loan sharks, bloodsuckers; my colleagues have to deal with anxiety and stomach aches every day and they are scared.”

News to Ms. Ballico: you and your coworkers are “bloodsuckers.”  Your profession is based on pure violence and robbing your countrymen.  Why should they not identify you for what you truly are?

The reactionary attacks are the result of the austerity measures being imposed in Italy and other highly indebted countries of the Eurozone periphery.  These measures are often described as savage cuts in spending when in actuality the public is being squeezed more to fund the government’s operations.  The political class remains unwilling to significantly scale back its operation and profligacy.  The money was supposed to be cheap.  The good times were never supposed to end.

And now the slaves are revolting.

Earlier this month, a 54-year-old small businessman facing financial difficulties and tax debts of around 2,400 euros, took 15 hostages at an Equitalia office near Bergamo for several hours before surrendering to police.

When the chains of oppression are being tightened, some react in not-so-kind manners.

And yet this is the trend happening all around the world.  In light of Facebook co-founder Eduardo Saverin renouncing his U.S. citizenship to live in Singapore and avoid filling the coffers of the IRS from the billions he stands to gain on the popular website’s initial public offering, New York Senator Chuck Schumer and Pennsylvania Senator Bob Casey have introduced legislation to mandate a 30% capital gains tax on those who follow in Saverin’s footsteps.  In France, many entrepreneurs are gearing up to leave as newly-elected President Francois Hollande has promised to raise the highest marginal tax rate to 75%.  Greece is being pressured to clamp down on tax evasion.  The same goes with Spain.  Even Swiss banks are being targeted by the U.S. Department of Justice for acting as tax safe havens.

Politicians and their bureaucratic foils think only in the short term.  They see less tax money flowing into their hands and instantly attempt to confiscate more.  This reaction is an inner glimpse into their true motive of reestablishing supremacy.  Why people would be reluctant to hand over even more of the sweat of their brow is never a consideration.  In the politician’s mind, it is the populous that serves the state, not vice versa.  Centuries of compulsory democracy haven’t altered the relationship between the aristocracy and the serfs who plow the field.  Today, serfdom is disguised with the existence of the ballot box.

Like a drug addict, the state must be sustained by increasing amounts of revenue to satisfy its craving of paying off voters.  It must continually buy legitimacy to hold up the veil which masks its thieving tendencies.  As the tax fund dwindles, governments in the West are becoming desperate.  Like the producers in Ayn Rand’s uncannily predictive novel Atlas Shrugged, many of the more productive members of society have grown tired of being soaked to pay for political handouts and unending wars of aggression.  The resistance isn’t limited to the rich as the Chronicle article points out, “much of the anger directed at Equitalia is from people with more modest means.”

Italian Interior Ministry Anna Maria has declared that attacking tax collectors “is the equivalent of attacking the state.”  What she won’t admit is that the state carries out a perpetual war on those who it feeds off of to function.  In perhaps the greatest and most precise description of the state ever written, individual anarchist Lysander Spooner explains difference between a highway robber and a government tax collector:

The government does not, indeed, waylay a man in a lonely place, spring upon him from the roadside, and, holding a pistol to his head, proceed to rifle his pockets. But the robbery is nonetheless a robbery on that account; and it is far more dastardly and shameful.

The highwayman takes solely upon himself the responsibility, danger, and crime of his own act. He does not pretend that he has any rightful claim to your money, or that he intends to use it for your own benefit. He does not pretend to be anything but a robber. He has not acquired impudence enough to profess to be merely a “protector,” and that he takes men’s money against their will, merely to enable him to “protect” those infatuated travellers, who feel perfectly able to protect themselves, or do not appreciate his peculiar system of protection. He is too sensible a man to make such professions as these. Furthermore, having taken your money, he leaves you, as you wish him to do. He does not persist in following you on the road, against your will, assuming to be your rightful “sovereign”; on account of the “protection” he affords you. He does not keep “protecting” you, by commanding you to bow down and serve him; by requiring you to do this, and forbidding you to do that; by robbing you of more money as often as he finds it for his interest or pleasure to do so; and by branding you as a rebel, a traitor, and an enemy to your country, and shooting you down without mercy, if you dispute his authority, or resist his demands. He is too much of a gentleman to be guilty of such impostures, and insults, and villainies as these. In short, he does not, in addition to robbing you attempt to make you either his dupe or his slave.

The only difference between a thief and the taxman is the thief recognizes his crime is wrong.  The taxman not only feels entitled to the labor of others but routinely pilfers under the pretenses of serving its victims.

Decades ago in the depths of the Great Depression, Western governments took advantage of the crisis and consolidated power and enlarged the scope of their authority.  Voters barely put up a fight.  They gave up personal and economic liberty for entitlement programs.  It seemed like the right choice at the time.

It was the great swindle orchestrated by a ruling class looking only to expand its control.

Now that the money for the savior state is running out, the choice is clearer than ever.  The leeches living off the state apparatus are prepared to do whatever is necessary to preserve their well being.  From political protest to tax evasion, trampling the citizenry into compliance is their goal.  It is ultimately up to the public at large to decide how much they are individually willing to take.

The small businessmen of Italy have made their choice and have said no to more of their income being squandered away on the perks of government employees.  Let’s us hope they won’t be the only ones.

James E. Miller holds a BS in public administration with a minor in business from Shippensburg University, PA. He is the Editor in Chief at the Ludwig von Mises Institute of Canada and a current contributor to his hometown newspaper, the Middletown Press and Journal.

 Link to original article

Solar Power for a teardrop & Baseball

Solar power for a teardrop trailer and Mary (I love this stuff)

My neighbor of our store, Lawrence and I had worked out a plan to install a 135 watt solar system on Mary's teardrop trailer.

Mary showed up about 10am yesterday and work had begun ( Lawrence did all of the work :)).

A before and after of the solar panel mounting

Photo shows the mounting of the charge controller ( voltage regulator)

Also the wiring from the solar panel

 Photo of the battery and 400 watt inverter installed into the existing cabinetry

Mary hangin' out for a bit during the install (pretty cool vent)

You can find out more at The Blond Coyote blog (Mary's blog) she has a much more complete write up

Later that afternoon

Baseball at Coors field
Sorry ....  can't get my dumb phone picture to work on the laptop (stupid computers ! )

Happy Mothers Day

To all of the MOM'S 

Happy Mother's Day 

from

Colorado

A Goldwing and a casket

Fellow who's name is David stopped by the other day and I had to take a couple of pictures

 Says he and the wife needed a trailer to go camping with, this is what he came up with, the wife got on-board a little later in the process..

A quote from his web site for you greenies out there 

 "Do you realize the size of the "Carbon Footprint" from a hearse?
We are working on getting a fleet of motorcycle transports that can do the job quicker getting 30 to 45 mpg and a "Carbon Footprint"  that can barely be seen in comparison.
We're sure everyone wants their "Last Ride" to be green."

Actually some of the conversation centered around a small solar system that could be used to power a small 12 volt refrigerator when traveling..

I have a couple of trailer fenders laying around that I will donate to the project..

Time for some BBQ

Taking advantage of some great weather, it is time for some BBQ, summer will get here soon, but today no bugs, no need for citronella..

 Contrary to BBQ purists I like instant gratification when it comes to starting a fire

the key is to not start cooking too soon

Here is my little secret for seasoning

Use Emeril and Costco non salt seasoning at the beginning.

Later the olive oil as a finish

A  little hickory smoke happening

We get our  rib-eyes from a small grocery store in Wauneta Ne, (where we pheasant hunt) named Walgreen's they have their own butcher shop , locally produced .... Yum Yum

 Now some BBQ cookers use digital timers but, I use the whiskey timer, two of these and they are ready

 Eat your heart out Brad :) Ha Ha .....  love ya man

Traveling Hard & Fast

A gps is a wonderful thing for keeping trip data, although, after the trip it is pretty much worthless unless you are going to make the same trip again.

In almost all trips I do with the trailer I will "take my time" only going about 300 miles per day, max.

This time I went 783miles through many many "ConeZones" (hate those things)
If you are going across I-80 this summer beware.... half of it, is under construction.
At each "pitstop" I did check the trailer tires :)

Since I needed to get to work I decided to leave a 5:18am and make a dash from north central Iowa to Frederick Colorado in one ride.

Ended up with a pretty sore butt, and tired, But did arrive at a decent time .

Although the gps says I was stopped for 53.33 minutes I actually pulled into the driveway with 30 minutes of stopped time. I did not turn off the gps until I unhooked the trailer.

Seasons

 Seasons:

  I observe hunting seasons for pheasant, turkey, and other game, a season for work in the outdoor pet business, BBQ season, baseball season, football season, snowbird season.

So, I guess I am into seasons

I was in a bit of a hurry to repair the trailer in anticipation of this trip, But it was completed in time.

I have traveled to Mason City Iowa to witness the last season of a loved ones life, to witness the goodness of  people and their soul's.
Not, the nasty things one observes (almost daily recently) from the mainstream media, politicians, or radicals that want to tear down this country.

I will share some landscape images from the town where The Music Man movie was made, how the area was turned into a peaceful part of our world for those in their last season.

How the town preserves (and improves) the parks they all hold dear to their heritage.

The entrance of the campground that is located along the Winnebago River.

 There are many trees and abundant wildlife here especially waterfowl .

Image of my full hook up campsite, includes water , sewer, and electric for $25 per day

Across the Winnebago river is an old town park they call east park..

The first thing you will notice when entering the park is the Steam Locomotive display

This year is the 100th year of the locomotive ...She was built in 1912

She has a very good web site:
Friends of the 457.org

As the site scrolls through the pictures of the past, there is the oldest one showing the 457 setting in a dirt field.
Those were the days ...where us kids,  would crawl all over the train like wild monkeys, things have certainly changed since then.





Workers are working on the old gal to get her ready for the upcoming celebration.

100th Anniversary

I have not observed a sign like this one lately
At least they are not anti-party 

I like it :)






Another landmark for me that has a soft spot in my hart is the east park band shell.

 "And you'll feel something akin to the electric thrill
I once enjoyed when Gilmore, Pat Conway,
The Great Creatore, W.C. Handy and John Philip Sousa all came to town on the very same historic day!" 

 -Harold Hill, Meredith Wilson's "The Music Man"

 

In the summer of 1920, the city of Mason City Iowa formed the Mason City Municipal Band.

To celebrate the occasion, they spared no expenses and hired some of the great legends in the music world to participate in the 10-week season.

Flute/Piccolo: Meredith Wilson, 
Principal Flute with the New York Philharmonic. Formerly Sousa's Piccolo player.
Grew up in Mason City Iowa, on which is "River City" is based in the Music Man.

• Solo Cornet: Frank Simon, Cornet Soloist with Sousa's Band. Later, director of the famous Armco Band.
• Conductor: James M. Fulton, of Boston MA, composer of many marches.

Every year to computerate the heritage of music in Mason City a festival is held below is this years information... When I was in school I had to march in this thing  :)

North Iowa Band Festival

Date:Sunday, May 27, 2012 time:12:00 pm

venue:North Iowa Band Festival

address:25 West State Street  Mason City, IA 50401

 View map from:North Iowa Band Festival
12:00 p.m. Carnival Open - East Park
8:00 p.m. Entertainment - Band Shell

---

The reason for this trip:

R.I.P. Dad