The floating house!

Groovy....does this mean you're going to still post photos?? I hope so! I can imaging a lot of cool macro shots of tractor parts:~)

Hey Kim!

 

Sorry I haven't responded until now.

I was out of commission for a spell, on Feb 14, the morning of Valentines day no less, I suffered a stroke, and have been busy trying to recover!

No worries!

Everything is fine now, well mostly anyway!

I still have a touch of tingling and slight numbness in my left half of my body, the doc said I will most likely have to get used to it.

 

While I was down, I scored me a new to me Fuji S3 Pro camera to take first place above my Fuji S2 Pro!

This camera is awesome!

 

I will have to get out and take some photos with it now!

 

Ken.

 

Here's a sample!

This was shot in very low light, except window light to the opposite and left side, hand held with my Nikon 80-200mm f/2.8 ED lens, set at 200mm, untouched except to resize it!

And yes, that is cat hair.

Hey, I wish I would have known, so I could have prayed for you more! I so sorry to hear that you've been through that, but very happy to know you're doing better! At least you got a nicer camera out of it, huh?....8~> I hope you are going to be okay, Ken.

How are we supposed to wish you well? If it hadn't been for Kim, I'd still have no idea how you were doing. Hope you're rapidly on the mend now. Needless to say you will need to spend next Valentine's Day somewhere besides the house! (just kiddin')

 

Thanks for the visit, I appreciate you taking the time to edit out that taxi. You take care of yourself; I'm sure I'll need few tips on what to do after a stoke pretty soon. I hope you're getting around as good as new and I will look forward to seeing some photos from that new camera posted pretty soon.

 

Best wishes and glad to hear you're doing well even if it's a month overdue.

 

Godspeed, ~Sky

Sorry Kim, Sky!

 

I guess I am just one of those old dogs that would rather go hide somewhere till mended than to have folks fussing over me! :)

 

I do feel much better now than what I did then!

I have gave up on driving truck and have started a metal fabrication business out of my garage, catering to all those John Deere garden tractor collectors out there.

I make hard to find parts that are no longer available through the manufacturer, for example, heres a pic of the last piece I just finished up, for a collector for his 300 that lives over in Pa.

 

Ken.

 

PS:

A country boy can survive!

Glad you're better, Ken. When I have some money to throw around I might want to see about you fabricating me a "Flash Bracket" and maybe some tiller parts. A country boy can indeed survive. Take care. ~Sky

I'm very glad you're surviving well! Our oil boom here has dried up and we haven't had work for 2 months. Bob has started calling his truck an expensive yard ornament:) I may be tanning hides again next fall if the economy keeps going down here.

Thanks Sky!

 

I have a camera flip frame somewhere around here, I would sell cheap, its nice for keeping the flash over head while your camera swivels to the portrait mode, I can't use it with these Fuji's, their to big for it!

 

Thanks Kim!

 

Sorry to hear about you and Bob's work situation, I hope things start turning around soon, or a lot of people I know are really going to be hurting!

 

My oldest daughter and grandson had to move back in with me a few months ago, cause she can't find work anywhere, not even at McDonald's!

We have to be in pretty good trouble when McDonald's has no jobs. I'm afraid I gotta replant my garden if it froze last night. We got a late freeze only 12 hours after having an 88 degree day. Could be meals of venison and turkey here pretty soon and rabbits and squirrels after that! I'd like to say that I don't know what's happened to America but truthfully, I've seen it coming for a spell now. It is indeed good to be a country boy during these times. If I start seeing hoboes in town then I'll know we are in a mess. Maybe when I am a hobo, I'll realize it.

 

 

Kim is gonna be working hard if she's going to have to tan hides again.

 

 

That's the style flash bracket I need with the portrait rotation. I'm afraid my camera is too big for that too. I found one like I want with the rotation but I'm not about to pay better than $300 for it. Plus, I know I could build one but never seem to stop and do it or have time to get started. I'm D3 size with my battery compartment.

 

It's probably nice having family at home right now while you get back up to speed.

 

 

You keep doing well, ~Sky

I know what you mean, a Nikon D3 and my Fuji S3 Pro are almost identical in size.

the picture I am including below doesn't do it any justice, its the picture the seller sent me, he is a photo.net member in his 60's, a professional wedding photographer he bought it new and it was his backup camera for the last couple years and he only put a little over 6000 actuations on the shutter, the thing looks and works like a new one, plus he gave me a bunch of extra stuff with it, I got 2 extra LCD covers, it uses AA rechargeable set into a removable battery tray, and he gave me a total of 5 battery trays and 2 sets of rechargeable batteries, 2 CF cards 1gig each and an optional Fuji battery charger that plugs into the wall, all the original stuff, even the original box.

I am tickled with it so far!

 

We have been having some really nice weather, 60's and sunny, I have gotten a lot done outside in the last several days, but thats coming to an end, its raining as I write this! :(

Yeah, Sky...I don't really WANT to work that hard again:~)...I prefer running around taking pictures and playing on the computer! But, oh well, we'll do what we have to...because we are tough Americans in flyover country! Ken, you just keep on getting well, and see if you can't find the time to update us on your cat population...I know what you mean about kids...my 21-yr old tried to move to Washington where his best friends are, but couldn't find a job anywhere. Here he was driving a water truck in the oil field making good money, but now those jobs are drying up too....drying up..well...anyway, we're glad he's back here with us. We might have to all stick together more and more.

That's a nice camera, Ken. Those Fugi's make some nice pictures. Now you'll have to put it through it's paces here pretty soon. Wish it was rainin' here. We are gonna call it a drought pretty soon. Not the best year for a garden. I think a late freeze got the peach tree the other night. Oh well, when it rains it pours and when the economy busts it busts. Just gotta let the sun come up again.

 

I always vowed in the last Depression that I was gonna have money to spend in the next one... April Fool's, I'm not that old but I did hope I had money if things ever got like this but it was wishful thinking. Should keep me honest.

 

Post us some pictures when you get to get out next time.

_____________________________-

 

Kim y'all hang in there, too. Here in Texas we're used to things dryin' up. It's almost second nature for us.

 

Well I gotta run to town real quick but I catch up with y'all again soon.

 

~Sky

Hey guy's

Got me a new house!

Right smack in the middle of lake country a little north of where I live now.

Its an old 2 story 4 bedroom brick 2400sf house with a 40'x60' shop that even has an office in it, a nicely kept old 3 story bank barn and another 30'x50' pole barn and a big shed, 5 acres and even has a small lake behind the property that we will have free access to!

The downstairs was remodeled about 2 years ago, but we will need to remodel the upstairs cause the previous owner started gutting it to remodel it but never finished.

 

Ken.

 

here's a google map satellite image link:

My homestead

Wow, looks awesome! What's growing on both sides of it? And what's a bank barn? I'm happy for you guys...let's see some photos!

Thanks Kim!

 

That is fur trees of sorts, like landscaping trees, it used to be a tree farm, thats the reason for the office in the shop!

 

A bank barn is a barn that has earth banked up on one side to give the farmer access to the second floor with his truck or tractor and trailer, and it helps to regulate the temp on the main floor for livestock, cooler in the summer and warmer in the winter, sort of like a cellar or basement does!

 

I can't wait to get up there and get busy!

That's wonderful! Are you moved yet?

Not moved yet!

 

We have a lot of work to do to the place first!

 

The upstairs isn't livable, so we are going to need to remodel the upstairs first, we might be able to move in about a couple of months, we are thinking somewhere around the end of June or maybe sometime in July.

(The place) Looks great and sounds like a splendid set up. Congratulations. Big barns & shop w/ office, now thats a find you can do something with. You'll probably wonder how you ever did without it. You take care, that's a lot to keep up with. You'll be able to turn out a lot of work in a big shop. ~Sky