Monday, January 18, 2010

Mack: If they told the truth...

Thanks to Mack Hall for letting me post this!

If They Told Us the Truth…
 
 
You are not a valued customer. 
 
Your telephone call is not important to us; if it were, a human would be talking to you.
 
This is just a few ounces of coffee pretending to be a pound.  We don't give a hamster's heinie about the poor farmers who grow it; we just stick on labels about "green" and "fair trade" and charge you more so you can feel good about being sensitive and ecological and, like, y'know, stuff.
 
We at (name of tractor company goes here) don't make the name-brand tee-shirts and plastic cups and all that other junk you buy; we make tractors.  Chinese companies, all ultimately controlled by the Red Chinese Army, pay us to use our name on their shoddy wares so you can wear a funny-looking hat and identify with a corporation that wouldn't care squash about you if it even knew you existed.
 
Well, yeah, we can paint one of our cars green for you.  Otherwise, there ain't no green cars.  Cars are four-wheeled machines that run on gasoline or electricity.  Some are more efficient that others. 
 
I'm not really the doctor of democracy; I dropped out of college, avoided military service, didn't vote until I was in my thirties, and got away with doctor-shopping prescription drugs because I'm rich.  And I got rich telling you how to live.  You know, if you think about it, and you won't, the only difference between me and the coffee shop windbag know-it-all is that I pass gas on the radio instead of at the front table.
 
This organic material is not farm fresh.  You bought it out of a store.  It was brought to the store in a truck.  It was stored somewhere before that.  It was shipped to that somewhere from a processing plant.  It spent some time in a processing plant.  It was shipped to the processing plant from where it was harvested or slaughtered.  We print this lie all the time, you know it's a lie, and you aren't offended by the lie.  Curious.
 
Nothing in this café or store was homemade.  A café or store is not a home.  If you want something homemade, go home and make it.
 
Made in China by underpaid workers who have no rights, no safety protection, no health insurance, no nothin'.  Hey, we're the folks who poison your pets and your children, and you keep buying from us.
 
We guarantee (that there is a three-dimensional object in this box you're buying from us.  Whether or not it is useful, aesthetically pleasing, or well-made has nothing to do with us.).
 
Unlimited usage (until you reach the limit).
 
Faster than dial-up (except when it isn't).
 
You pay us to wear our advertising, demonstrating that you have no sense of self.  We love it.  In a sane world we would pay you to wear our advertising, and your friends would pity you for doing so.
 
Our product has a low carbon footprint.  Come to think of it, nothing on this planet actually has a carbon footprint at all.  How dumb are you to believe our advertising about low carbon footprints, huh?
 
News alert – which is only the same stuff we've been telling you all week.
 
I have no intention of changing the culture in Washington.   If you elect me, I will become inside-the-beltway just like everyone else who goes there.  Now buy my book, don't do any critical thinking, be true believers, assemble in large groups to chant and wave, and feed my ego with your adoration.
 
It's the must-see movie of the year – and if we tell you that you must see it, you must obey.
 
User-friendly – hahahahahahahahhahahahahaaaaaaaa!
 
-30-


Rich O' Toole & Blacktp Outlaw


DSC00673, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Find them at RichOToole.com

The full set can be found at Rich O' Toole Band.

Texas Country Music Performer: Rich O' Toole band Live in Concert at Solley's Disco Saturday, January 16, 2010. Taken with the Sony 18-70mm lens and the Sony HVL-F58AM Flash.

Acoustic...Rich O' Toole


DSC00627, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Texas Country Music Performer: Rich O' Toole band Live in Concert at Solley's Disco Saturday, January 16, 2010. Taken with the Sony 18-70mm lens and the Sony HVL-F58AM Flash. Find them at RichOToole.com

The full set can be found at Rich O' Toole Band.

Sunday, January 17, 2010

Rich on Acoustic!!


DSC00631, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Texas Country Music Performer: Rich O' Toole band Live in Concert at Solley's Disco Saturday, January 16, 2010. Taken with the Quantaray 70-300mm lens and the Sony HVL-F58AM Flash. Find them at RichOToole.com

The full set can be found at Rich O' Toole Band.

Rocking at Solley's!!!


DSC00646, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Texas Country Music Performer: Rich O' Toole band Live in Concert at Solley's Disco Saturday, January 16, 2010. Taken with the Sony 18-70mm lens and the Sony HVL-F58AM Flash.

Find them at RichOToole.com

The full set can be found at Rich O' Toole Band.

Drums!!!


DSC00540, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Texas Country Music Performer: Rich O' Toole band Live in Concert at Solley's Disco Saturday, January 16, 2010. Taken with the Sony 18-70mm lens and the Sony HVL-F58AM Flash.

Find them at RichOToole.com

The full set can be found at Rich O' Toole Band.

DSC00539


DSC00539, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Texas Country Music Performer: Rich O' Toole band Live in Concert at Solley's Disco Saturday, January 16, 2010. Taken with the Sony 18-70mm lens and the Sony HVL-F58AM Flash. Find them at RichOToole.com

The full set can be found at Rich O' Toole Band.

DSC00538


DSC00538, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Texas Country Music Performer: Rich O' Toole band Live in Concert at Solley's Disco Saturday, January 16, 2010. Taken with the Sony 18-70mm lens and the Sony HVL-F58AM Flash. Find them at RichOToole.com

The full set can be found at Rich O' Toole Band.

DSC00537


DSC00537, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Texas Country Music Performer: Rich O' Toole band Live in Concert at Solley's Disco Saturday, January 16, 2010. Taken with the Sony 18-70mm lens and the Sony HVL-F58AM Flash. Find them at RichOToole.com

The full set can be found at Rich O' Toole Band.

The Band


DSC00533, originally uploaded by RMStringer.
Band Members:
Justin McCart - Drums/Percussion
Jon Magill - Rhythm Guitar/Harmony Vocals
Chris Hagerty - Bass Guitar
Paul Eldridge - Lead Guitar/Harmony Vocals
Rich O'Toole - Guitar/Vocals


Texas Country Music Performer: Rich O' Toole band Live in Concert at Solley's Disco Saturday, January 16, 2010. Taken with the Sony 18-70mm lens and the Sony HVL-F58AM Flash.Find them at http://www.Richotoole.com

Full set is located at Rich O' Toole Band

DSC00524


DSC00524, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Texas Country Music Performer: Rich O' Toole band Live in Concert at Solley's Disco Saturday, January 16, 2010. Taken with the Sony 18-70mm lens and the Sony HVL-F58AM Flash. Find them at http://www.Richotoole.com

Full set is located at Rich O' Toole Band

Pimps & Ho'S Bash!!!

This message has been sent using the picture and Video service from Verizon Wireless!

To learn how you can snap pictures and capture videos with your wireless phone visit www.verizonwireless.com/picture.

Note: To play video messages sent to email, Quicktime@ 6.5 or higher is required.

Thursday, January 14, 2010

DSC08801


DSC08801, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Taken using the Minolta 35-105mm f/3.5-4.5 lens.

Exposure: 0.001 sec (1/800)
Aperture: f/4.5
Focal Length: 105 mm
ISO Speed: 200

DSC08802: MIG rig.


DSC08802: MIG rig., originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Here is a worker using a MIG welding rig to put 2 pieces of plate together.

Exposure: 0.001 sec (1/2000)
Aperture: f/4.5
Focal Length: 105 mm
ISO Speed: 200

Uploaded by RMStringer on 4 Oct 08, 9.11AM CST.

MIG Welding on Steel.


MIG Welding on Steel., originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Taken With My 3.2Mp LGVX9700 Dare
RMStringer

Uploaded by RMStringer on 16 Apr 09, 9.24PM CST

Transco Tower Plaza 1.2


Transco Tower Plaza 1.2, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Taken All Around Houston Texas on Friday Night, August 14, 2009.

Uploaded by RMStringer on 16 Aug 09, 2.51PM CST.

Night Train...


Night Train..., originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Shot at locations around Beaumont Texas.

Taken at River Front Park. There was a train going over the tracks in this photo. It did not come out well as i was doing long exposures to get the lighting effect. I used my 18-70mm Lens for this photo.

Exposure: 33
Aperture: f/9.0
Focal Length: 24 mm
ISO Speed: 200

Uploaded by RMStringer on 22 Aug 09, 12.28PM CST

DSC02830


DSC02830, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Shot at locations around Beaumont Texas. The old Pig Stand!

Uploaded by RMStringer on 22 Aug 09, 12.24PM CST.

Natchitoches LA Christmas Festival of Lights 1.10

Saturday, December 5
83rd Annual Christmas Festival, Louisiana’s premiere holiday event.
The Festival of Lights begins November 21 and lasts into the New Year. The Natchitoches (Nack-a-tish) Christmas Festival has been held on the first weekend in December since 1927. Website address is www.christmasfestival.com/ The photos were taken on the Keyser Ave bridge over the Cane River using the Sony 18-70mm Lens was used with The Opteka wired remote.

Uploaded by RMStringer on 6 Dec 09, 1.19AM CST.

Natchitoches LA Christmas Festival of Lights 1.74

Saturday, December 5
83rd Annual Christmas Festival, Louisiana’s premiere holiday event.
The Festival of Lights begins November 21 and lasts into the New Year. The Natchitoches (Nack-a-tish) Christmas Festival has been held on the first weekend in December since 1927. Website address is www.christmasfestival.com/ The photos were taken on the Keyser Ave bridge over the Cane River using the Sony 18-70mm Lens was used with The Opteka wired remote.

Uploaded by RMStringer on 6 Dec 09, 1.27AM CST

Church Street Bridge 1.0


Church Street Bridge 1.0, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Saturday, December 5
83rd Annual Christmas Festival, Louisiana’s premiere holiday event.
The Festival of Lights begins November 21 and lasts into the New Year. The Natchitoches (Nack-a-tish) Christmas Festival has been held on the first weekend in December since 1927. Website address is www.christmasfestival.com/ The photos were taken on the Keyser Ave bridge over the Cane River using the Sony 18-70mm Lens was used with The Opteka wired remote.

Uploaded by RMStringer on 6 Dec 09, 1.29AM CST.

Moon on Water 1.3


Moon on Water 1.3, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Moon Over Toledo Bend Reservoir Texas side, taken with the Sony 18-70mm Lens and the Opteka Wired Remote.

Uploaded by RMStringer on 6 Dec 09, 10.50AM CST.

Moon on Water 1.2


Moon on Water 1.2, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Moon Over Toledo Bend Reservoir Texas side, taken with the Sony 18-70mm Lens and the Opteka Wired Remote.

Uploaded by RMStringer on 6 Dec 09, 10.50AM CST.

Wednesday, January 13, 2010

DSC00098


DSC00098, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Sunset At Lake Sam Rayburn...

Uploaded by RMStringer on 23 Jun 09, 9.11PM CST.

Muted Sky...

Zavalla Texas looking West. Taken With My 3.2 Megapixel Lg Dare. Powered by Blogger and Sony Alpha 200 DSLR cameras: http:// Www.RMStringerPhotography.com
?RMS¿

Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Setting Sun...

Taken With My 3.2 Megapixel Lg Dare. Powered by Blogger and Sony Alpha 200 DSLR cameras: http:// Www.RMStringerPhotography.com
?RMS¿

Saturday, January 09, 2010

Trinity...


Trinity..., originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Taken at a local church today. I was trying to get some of the grass and plants in the setting with the clouds and sky. Perhaps i will go and take it using the 18-70mm lens.

Exposure: 0.001 sec (1/1250)
Aperture: f/5.6
Focal Length: 70 mm
ISO Speed: 100

Uploaded by RMStringer on 26 Aug 08, 7.10PM CST.

DOF Cross 1.1


DOF Cross 1.1, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

This set was taken using different settings to achieve different effects.

Exposure: 0.001 sec (1/2000)
Aperture: f/4.0
Focal Length: 120 mm
ISO Speed: 200

Trio of Crosses


DSC09060: Trio of Crosses, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

had to run home from our church and i always look at the 3 crosses that are located at a church close to our home. I look to see the different light settings on them as i love their position against the sky and landscape.

The sky was very beautiful this evening and i was bringing my camera home so i got out and took this photo with the evening sky as the backdrop. I hope that you love it as much as i do.

Friday, January 08, 2010

Steel Magnolis House 1.3


Steel Magnolis House 1.3, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

The Steel Magnolia House was built in the 1830's along the beautiful Cane River in Natchitoches, Louisiana. The house is rich in history and culture. From the unique architecture to its involvement in the Civil War, this home is truly a piece of Southern history. Primarily known for the on-site filming of the 1989 award-winning classic "Steel Magnolias," there is something to be cherished by all who visit.

Steel Magnolis House 1.1


Steel Magnolis House 1.1, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

The Steel Magnolia House was built in the 1830's along the beautiful Cane River in Natchitoches, Louisiana. The house is rich in history and culture. From the unique architecture to its involvement in the Civil War, this home is truly a piece of Southern history. Primarily known for the on-site filming of the 1989 award-winning classic "Steel Magnolias," there is something to be cherished by all who visit.

Steel Magnolis House 1.0


Steel Magnolis House 1.0, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

The Steel Magnolia House was built in the 1830's along the beautiful Cane River in Natchitoches, Louisiana. The house is rich in history and culture. From the unique architecture to its involvement in the Civil War, this home is truly a piece of Southern history. Primarily known for the on-site filming of the 1989 award-winning classic "Steel Magnolias," there is something to be cherished by all who visit.

Thursday, January 07, 2010

South View...


DSC00455, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Taken at Lake Sam Rayburn on January 7, 2010 in 16:9 Aspect Ratio using the Sony 18-70mm Lens. Very cool temps are here and you can see the big waves in the photos from the North Wind.

Winter Lakeshore...


DSC00461, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Taken at Lake Sam Rayburn on January 7, 2010 in 16:9 Aspect Ratio using the Sony 18-70mm Lens. Very cool temps are here and you can see the big waves in the photos from the North Wind

Rough Water...


Rough Water..., originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Taken at Lake Sam Rayburn on January 7, 2010 in 16:9 Aspect Ratio using the Sony 18-70mm Lens. Very cool temps are here and you can see the big waves in the photos from the North Wind.

Waves!

Lake Sam Rayburn TX. Taken With My 3.2 Megapixel Lg Dare. Powered by Blogger and Sony Alpha 200 DSLR cameras: http:// Www.RMStringerPhotography.com
?RMS¿

Angry Lake!

Lake Sam Rayburn TX. Taken With My 3.2 Megapixel Lg Dare. Powered by Blogger and Sony Alpha 200 DSLR cameras: http:// Www.RMStringerPhotography.com
?RMS¿

Monday, January 04, 2010

The Ellen Trout Zoo 1.6


The Ellen Trout Zoo 1.6, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

The Ellen Trout Zoo in Lufkin Texas Sunday, January 3, 2010. Taken with the Quantaray 70-300mm Tele-Macro Lens.

The Ellen Trout Zoo 1.10


The Ellen Trout Zoo 1.10, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

The Ellen Trout Zoo in Lufkin Texas Sunday, January 3, 2010. Taken with the Quantaray 70-300mm Tele-Macro Lens.

The Ellen Trout Zoo 1.14


The Ellen Trout Zoo 1.14, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

The Ellen Trout Zoo in Lufkin Texas Sunday, January 3, 2010. Taken with the Quantaray 70-300mm Tele-Macro Lens.

The Ellen Trout Zoo 1.22


The Ellen Trout Zoo 1.22, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

The Ellen Trout Zoo in Lufkin Texas Sunday, January 3, 2010. Taken with the Quantaray 70-300mm Tele-Macro Lens.

The Ellen Trout Zoo 1.27


The Ellen Trout Zoo 1.27, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

The Ellen Trout Zoo in Lufkin Texas Sunday, January 3, 2010. Taken with the Quantaray 70-300mm Tele-Macro Lens.

The Ellen Trout Zoo 1.4


The Ellen Trout Zoo 1.4, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

The Ellen Trout Zoo in Lufkin Texas Sunday, January 3, 2010. Taken with the Quantaray 70-300mm Tele-Macro Lens.

The Ellen Trout Zoo 1.2


The Ellen Trout Zoo 1.2, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

The Ellen Trout Zoo in Lufkin Texas Sunday, January 3, 2010. Taken with the Quantaray 70-300mm Tele-Macro Lens.

Sunday, January 03, 2010

Mack: Great Work -- Now Go Away

Many Thanks to Mac Hall for letting me place this on my website.

Great Work – Now Go Away

 

Last fall a Navy commando unit in a brilliant operation captured a notorious terrorist alive.  Alive.  But the terrorist later said that the sailors socked him during the confrontation and gave him a fat lip, and now the sailors are being court-martialed.  So will the Japanese government now sue World War II veterans for hurting Generalissimo Tojo’s feelings?  Will Grandpa be yanked off his rocking chair and sent to jail because he once said something rude about Adolf Hitler during the Battle of the Bulge?

 

More recently a police officer in a city far, far away was suspended with pay after he fired his pistol at a man who was threatening people, including the officer, with a knife.  In such matters one would think that the suspension would be for the sake of the officer, for a good man does come away from such a matter the same man who went into it.  But the matter always seems to project as a suspicion of the officer, and the dreary electronic comments from the sort of people who take their ideology from street corners and their grammar from twitting support this grim conclusion.  Folks want to be protected but then they sideline-quarterback the protectors.  As someone (the sources conflict) said, (Newark) hath no fury like a non-combatant.

 

The concept of suspending someone for doing his job does not obtain in most vocations.  One does not imagine the head of surgery saying “Doctor Snorthbargle, you were simply brilliant today in saving the life of that emergency patient.  You’re suspended until the medical board investigates you.  Now go away.”

 

The supermarket manager does not call for an inquiry on little Siegfried the sack boy because the customers compliment him for his good work.

 

When a team wins a football game they are not sent home while a court determines whether or not they acted wisely in doing so.

 

Consider the possibility of a police officer observing a citizen driving carefully, following all state and local laws while operating a safe and well-maintained motor vehicle.  The officer arrests the citizen and brings him before a justice of the peace who rules: “Citizen Jones, you were seen driving in a prudent fashion.  Your license is suspended while I refer your case to the grand jury.  I am impounding your car.  You may have one telephone call to send for someone to come and get you.  You might want to tell that friend or relative to drive irresponsibly unless he too wants the full majesty of the law to come down on him like a ton of cliches’.”

 

What if Captain Smith had parked the Titanic for the night long, long ago?  “Captain Smith, you brought the company’s newest ship and all her passengers and crew safely to New York.  Until the Board of Trade considers this matter carefully, your master’s license is suspended.”

 

The judge summons Perry Mason to the bench.  “Mr. Mason, you were wonderful today.  You saved an innocent woman from the death penalty and you helped the police find the real murderer.  You represent everything that is true and noble in the legal profession.  Your license to practice law is suspended until further notice, and the bailiff will now escort you to your cell.”

 

On a fine autumn day several liberal arts graduates from the United States Department of Agriculture descend upon Farmer Brown with briefcases full of legal documents.  “Farmer Brown, you raised fine crops of wheat and soy this year.  You provided part-time employment for three transient laborers and for five high school kids during the haying season.  You filled out all your government forms accurately, paid your taxes, demonstrated wise agricultural practices, and in all ways are an excellent man.  Your livestock are well cared for and you are unfailingly considerate of your neighbors and the environment.  Therefore, we must investigate you.  During this investigation, which may take a year or two, you are forbidden to farm.  This means you will lose the land that’s been in your family for generations, but don’t worry; it will make a nice parking lot for Giganto-Mart.  Further, your federal government, for whom you voted, is in its infinite generosity giving you a discount on your monthly rental of a public-housing unit.”

 

These are humorous imaginings, but there are very real exceptions to the idea that the laborer is worth of his hire: the illogical ways the American people sometimes mishandle their own police and their own young men and women in the services.

 

Jessie Sturat: Playing Accordian!


DSC00210, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Phillip Glyn and Ridding High at Solley's Disco Saturday night 1-2-2010. Taken with the Sony 18-70mm Lens and the Sony HVL-F58AM Flash

Phillip Glyn: On the Spoons!


DSC00209, originally uploaded by RMStringer.

Phillip Glyn and Ridding High at Solley's Disco Saturday night 1-2-2010. Taken with the Sony 18-70mm Lens and the Sony HVL-F58AM Flash