Snow

It's SNOWING!! 

At about 2:30PM it started and has been off and on ever since.




I will try to post more photos in the morning.

Roping A Deer





Haven't stopped laughing...Roping A Deer (Names have been removed to protect the UNEDUCATED!) -- Actual letter from someone who farms and writes well!I had this idea that I was going to rope a deer, put it in a stall, feed it up on corn for a couple of weeks, then kill it and eat it.The first step in this adventure was getting a deer. I figured that, since they congregate at my cattle feeder and do not seem to have much fear of me when we are there (a bold one will sometimes come right up and sniff at the bags of feed while I am in the back of the truck not 4 feet away), it should not be difficult to rope one, get up to it and toss a bag over its head (to calm it down) then hog tie it and transport it home.I filled the cattle feeder then hid down at the end with my rope.The cattle, having seen the roping thing before, stayed well back. They were not having any of it.After about 20 minutes, my deer showed up -- 3 of them. I picked out a likely looking one, stepped out from the end of the feeder, and threw my rope. The deer just stood there and stared at me.I wrapped the rope around my waist and twisted the end so I would have a good hold. The deer still just stood and stared at me, but you could tell it was mildly concerned about the whole rope situation.I took a step towards it... it took a step away. I put a little tension on the rope and then received an education.The first thing that I learned is that, while a deer may just stand there looking at you funny while you rope it, they are spurred to action when you start pulling on that rope.That deer EXPLODED.The second thing I learned is that pound for pound, a deer is a LOT stronger than a cow or a colt. A cow or a colt in that weight range I could fight down with a rope and with some dignity. A deer -- no chance.That thing ran and bucked and twisted and pulled. There was no controlling it and certainly no getting close to it. As it jerked me off my feet and started dragging me across the ground, it occurred to me that having a deer on a rope was not nearly as good an idea as I had originally imagined.The only up side is that they do not have as much stamina as many other animals.A brief 10 minutes later, it was tired and not nearly as quick to jerk me off my feet and drag me when I managed to get up. It took me a few minutes to realize this, since I was mostly blinded by the blood flowing out of the big gash in my head. At that point, I had lost my taste for corn-fed venison. I just wanted to get that devil creature off the end of that rope.I figured if I just let it go with the rope hanging around its neck, it would likely die slow and painfully somewhere. At the time, there was no love at all between me and that deer. At that moment, I hated the thing, and I would venture a guess that the feeling was mutual.Despite the gash in my head and the several large knots where I had cleverly arrested the deer's momentum by bracing my head against various large rocks as it dragged me across the ground, I could still think clearly enough to recognize that there was a small chance that I shared some tiny amount of responsibility for the situation we were in, so I didn't want the deer to have to suffer a slow death, so I managed to get it lined back up in between my truck and the feeder - a little trap I had set before hand...kind of like a squeeze chute.I got it to back in there and I started moving up so I could get my rope back.Did you know that deer bite? They do! I never in a million years would have thought that a deer would bite somebody, so I was very surprised when I reached up there to grab that rope and the deer grabbed hold of my wrist.Now, when a deer bites you, it is not like being bit by a horse where they just bite you and then let go. A deer bites you and shakes its head --almost like a pit bull. They bite HARD and it hurts.The proper thing to do when a deer bites you is probably to freeze and draw back slowly. I tried screaming and shaking instead. My method was ineffective. It seems like the deer was biting and shaking for several minutes, but it was likely only several seconds.I, being smarter than a deer (though you may be questioning that claim by now), tricked it.While I kept it busy tearing the tendons out of my right arm, I reached up with my left hand and pulled that rope loose. That was when I got my final lesson in deer behavior for the day.Deer will strike at you with their front feet. They rear right up on their back feet and strike right about head and shoulder level, and their hooves are surprisingly sharp. I learned a long time ago that, when an animal -- like a horse -- strikes at you with their hooves and you can't get away easily, the best thing to do is try to make a loud noise and make an aggressive move towards the animal. This will usually cause them to back down a bit so you can escape.This was not a horse. This was a deer, so obviously, such trickery would not work. In the course of a millisecond, I devised a different strategy. I screamed like a woman and tried to turn and run.The reason I had always been told NOT to try to turn and run from a horse that paws at you is that there is a good chance that it will hit you in the back of the head. Deer may not be so different from horses after all, besides being twice as strong and 3 times as evil, because the second I turned to run, it hit me right in the back of the head and knocked me down.Now, when a deer paws at you and knocks you down, it does not immediately leave. I suspect it does not recognize that the danger has passed. What they do instead is paw your back and jump up and down on you while you are laying there crying like a little girl and covering your head.I finally managed to crawl under the truck and the deer went away.So now I know why, when people go deer hunting, they bring a rifle with a scope to sort of even the odds.

A Wasted Vote

A Wasted Vote

by Chuck Baldwin October 10, 2008
When asked why they will not vote for a third party candidate, many people will respond by saying something like, "He cannot win." Or, "I don't want to waste my vote." It is true: America has not elected a third party candidate since 1860. Does that automatically mean, however, that every vote cast for one of the two major party candidates is not a wasted vote? I don't think so.
In the first place, a wasted vote is a vote for someone you know does not represent your own beliefs and principles. A wasted vote is a vote for someone you know will not lead the country in the way it should go. A wasted vote is a vote for the "lesser of two evils." Or, in the case of John McCain and Barack Obama, what we have is a choice between the "evil of two lessers."
Albert Einstein is credited with saying that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again, and expecting a different result. For years now, Republicans and Democrats have been leading the country in the same basic direction: toward bigger and bigger government; more and more socialism, globalism, corporatism, and foreign interventionism; and the dismantling of constitutional liberties. Yet, voters continue to think that they are voting for "change" when they vote for a Republican or Democrat. This is truly insane!
Take a look at the recent $700 billion Wall Street bailout: both John McCain and Barack Obama endorsed and lobbied for it. Both McCain and Obama will continue to bail out these international banksters on the backs of the American taxpayers. Both McCain and Obama support giving illegal aliens amnesty and a path to citizenship. In the debate this past Tuesday night, both McCain and Obama expressed support for sending U.S. forces around the world for "peacekeeping" purposes. They also expressed support for sending combat forces against foreign countries even if those countries do not pose a threat to the United States. Neither Obama nor McCain will do anything to stem the tide of a burgeoning police state or a mushrooming New World Order. Both Obama and McCain support NAFTA and similar "free trade" deals. Neither candidate will do anything to rid America of the Federal Reserve, or work to eliminate the personal income tax, or disband the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). Both Obama and McCain support the United Nations. So, pray tell, how is a vote for either McCain or Obama not a wasted vote?
But, back to the "he cannot win" argument: to vote for John McCain is to vote for a man who cannot win. Yes, I am saying it here and now: John McCain cannot win this election. The handwriting is on the wall. The Fat Lady is singing. It is all over. Finished. John McCain cannot win.
With only three weeks before the election, Barack Obama is pulling away. McCain has already pulled his campaign out of Michigan. In other key battleground states, McCain is slipping fast. He was ahead in Missouri; now it is a toss-up or leaning to Obama. A couple of weeks ago, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and Florida were all leaning towards McCain, or at least toss-up states. Now, they are all leaning to Obama. Even the longtime GOP bellwether state of Indiana is moving toward Obama. In addition, new voter registrations are at an all-time high, and few of them are registering as Republicans. In fact, the Republican Party now claims only around 25% of the electorate, and Independents are increasingly leaning toward Obama.
Ladies and gentlemen, Barack Obama is headed for an electoral landslide victory over John McCain. John McCain can no more beat Barack Obama than Bob Dole could beat Bill Clinton.
I ask, therefore, Are not conservatives and Christians who vote for John McCain guilty of the same thing that they accuse people who vote for third party candidates of doing? Are they not voting for someone who cannot win? Indeed, they are. In fact, conservatives and Christians who vote for John McCain are not only voting for a man who cannot win, they are voting for a man who does not share their own beliefs and principles. If this is not insanity, nothing is!
So, why not (for once in your life, perhaps) cast a vote purely for principle! Vote for someone who is truly pro-life. Someone who would quickly secure our nation's borders, and end the invasion of our country by illegal aliens. Someone who would, on his first day in office, release Border Patrol agents Ramos and Compean and fire U.S. Attorney Johnny Sutton. Someone who would immediately, upon assuming office, begin leading the charge to dismantle the Federal Reserve, overturn the 16th Amendment, expunge the IRS, and return America to sound money principles. Someone who would get the US out of the UN. Someone who would stop spending billions and trillions of dollars for foreign aid. Someone who would prosecute the Wall Street bankers who defrauded the American people out of billions of dollars. Someone who would work to repeal NAFTA, CAFTA, GATT, the WTO, and stop the NAFTA superhighway. Someone who would say a resounding "No" to the New World Order. Someone who would stop using our brave men and women in uniform as global cops for the United Nations. Someone who would stop America's global adventurism and interventionism. Someone who would steadfastly support and defend the right of the people to keep and bear arms.
"Who is this person?" you ask. Go here to find out:
BALDWIN '08
As John Quincy Adams said, "Always vote for principle, though you may vote alone, and you may cherish the sweetest reflection that your vote is never lost."

Pilgrim Bible Church camp out

The 2008 Pilgrim Bible Church Camp out was a blast, we all had a great time.
Thur different games and activities from volleyball to water polo in kayaks, and of course, a talent show. Each morning and evening we heard wonderful Bible teachings. Here are a few photos my sister and I took.

Northwest Trek

A few weeks ago the Langford boys and my mother and I went to Northwest Trek.
For those that do not know what the Northwest Trek is, it is similar to a zoo with animals that are native to northwest Washington.
We all had a great time seeing all the sights.

Spotting Deer

About a week ago I was mowing the yard and I happen to look at the field and I saw deer, so being that I am Matthew I stopped where I was and ran and got my camera then ran back outside just in time to see the deer go in to the forest. Instead of giving up I lit-off across the field into the forest. When I got in the forest I slowed down and went into stealth mode, about 200 feet into the dense forest, a stick snapped, I stopped. I looked to the left and there was, one of the deer. I could barley make out the deer under the brush and trees. So I pulled my camera off my back and crawled as close as possible (about 15ft away) and started snapping pictures, the deer was wondering what I was and started to walk closer and than it stopped at about 8-10ft away and then figured out what I was and ran off.
On my way back I saw the mother deer off in the distance, she was a little more skittish and ran off.

Psa 42:1 As the deer pants for the water brooks, So pants my soul for You, O God.



My new Knife

Down behind enemy lines? Left to fend for yourself? These are the scenarios that inspired the LMF II. Former military man Jeff Freeman led the charge to engineer this fearless new 10" survival knife. And we field tested it with the troops. This knife is as adaptable as the personnel who carry it. Use it to cut through the skin of a fuselage. Or sever a seat belt. Or egress through the Plexiglas of a chopper. Plus, the LMF II does a slick job cutting firewood and building shelter. It can even be lashed to a pole to create a spear.


Overall Length: 10.59"
Length of Blade: 4.84"
Weight: 11.4 oz.


"Gerber sent the LMF II prototype to Iraq. A Marine told me it saved his life when he used it to cut a heavy-gauge cable. He also used it to punch through the Plexiglas of a helicopter. Splitting tent stakes shouldn't be a problem."
Anthony Licata, Field & Stream, May 2006

Dear Mark (Gerber Legendary Blades),
"I'm here writing this letter because Gerber's new LMF 2 worked like you sad it would. My spotter and I set our position over a section of road where there had been a great deal of IEDs (improvised explosive devices) placed. There was no moon and it was as dark as it could get. This meant I would be able to see the bad guys with my NVGs (night vision glasses), and they would not be able to see us... which is the way a soldier likes it.
As we began to engage two targets, a larger contingent of bad guys arrived and started looking for us. I decided we should pull back and I radioed for evacuation. We moved to a bombed- compound and set up a defensive position to wait for the helicopter. We were then told that the helo had been diverted to a med evac and we would have to wait for our Bradley's, which were about 10-15 minutes out.. no big deal.
Two of the bad guys moved into the compound. We were waiting for them to come into the open for a clearer shot. As luck would would have it, they turned on a generator. Within seconds, the compound was lit up like a Wal-Mart parking lot, and the two men continued their search.
My spotter and I noticed two 220-volt power lines running along the wall to the floodlights. I remembered you telling me that the handle and the butt cap of the LMF 2 knife were insulated and would not conduct electricity.
I have to admit I wasn't exactly thrilled about the thought of having to cut the "hot lines" but in the battle you do what you have to do.
I moved over to the wall and wedged the knife behind the power lines and used my body weight to cut through the lines, I did turn my head and close my eyes.
I felt the heat from the lines arcing but that was it. I wasn't electrocuted. Darkness returned and our cover was restored. We were able to re-engage while we waited for our evac. The knife blade had a couple of chunks eaten out of it by the high voltage, but when I got back to the compound I worked most of them out with a honing stone. You can still see where the blade was arced. Thank you and your company for this great knife.

SFC Dillard Johnson
Platoon Sergeant 3rd ID 3-7 CAV

Tall ships

About a week ago we went down to the bay and saw some tall ships. Hear some of the picture I took.

Gardening

The last three days we have been vary busy doing the not so original task of gardening among several other things.
The creek that runs along the side of the property was over flowing and semi flooded the bottom corner of the pasture, so dad and I dug it 3-6 inches deeper.

Dad and I rota-tilled the second garden to get it ready for planting the pop corn, the sunflowers, and the pumpkins thanks to the Hamilton family for letting us use their rota-tiller.
Dad spaying the cordoned off area.
I burned branches for about an hour and a half and I'll tell you it got hot!!
Ashley Leanne's horse.
This is Pepe' the chicken that guards the garden.

The Garden, containing everything from: corn, beans, tomatoes, carrots, peppers, garlic, cantaloupe and much more.


The labor of the righteous tendeth to life; the fruit of the wicked to sin. Proverbs 10:16

2008 Christian Heritage Conference


Mr. Doug Phillips was the keynote speaker.
We had over 1,500 participants at this year's conference. Raising up the next generation of Men.Peter Roth looking important.
Danny & Annalisa Craig singing, accompanied by Mr. Craig on the piano.
David Craig playing the marimba, accompanied by Mr. Craig on the piano.
More performers at family night.
The Stars & Stripes.
Probably the best part of that evening was the Patrick Henry and the 2nd Virgina Convention Re-enactment (Patrick Henry played by Joshua Erber).

Conversation over the coffee table (A battle of wits).
A friendly hand shake, or is it?
A battle of strength.
Two dashing young Patriots
Michael with his new 70-200mm f2.8 lens.
Buisness at the registration table.

The CD table.
Thomas Jefferson lifts Triumph to victory.








This last week we helped the Bittners spoof up there yard and help paint. We all had a (as the English would say) "jolly good time."

Paul's Brithday party

We had a great time on Paul's B-Day blasting away at the Kitsap Rifle & Revolver Club
Afterward we had lunch, ice cream and opened presents followed by a quick game of Axis & Allies.

2007 trip to Idaho

Hear are several photos from last year's trip to, from, and every thing in between Idaho.