Thanksgiving 2008 - Tam wanted a picture of us. Everyone here except Jay and Rachel family. Nothing like sweet daughters. Got a pic of Lee and me too. But she would not let me post it. Sambo came home surprising Carolyn. I knew she was coming home. Who says dad's never know whats going on?







For the 2007 and 2008 fires we have placed sowing order for a million trees to be sown for a spring 2010 plant. Most will be grown at Stone Nursery in Central Point. Its not far from Ty and Tams. I think it would have been a fun career to have worked at this nursery. They have closed most of the federal nurseries. There are only 4 or 5 left in the nation. It difficult to keep them open as the reforestation program is based on wildland fires and not a timber management program. Another casualty of the preservation movement. Each nursery had a capacity of about 20 million trees per year. The Nation is good hands. We know how to reforest and we know how to grow and harvest a forest.









Cool fire pics. San Diego I think it was 2003. The other was just one that somebody sent around on the internet. The elk in the water photo was on the Bitterroot in 2000. I was in Hamilton Montana in October working in supply as an ordering manager.






Yellow jackets were extremely numerous this fall. As soon as you parked the yellow jackets were flying around your rig. You could even see some bald faced hornets flying around too. Bald faced hornets prey on yellow jackets. One day in Sept or October I pulled my shorts down to change my pad and 2 yellow jackets immediatley were flying around in my shorts. Then a bald faced hornet flew in and nailed one of the yellow jackets. The other yellow jacket flew off. It only took a slit second for all of this to happen. However when you are witnessing a war in your shorts it seemed like an eternity.

August 1973 on Ukonom district. I was an inspector for a helicopter spraying project. We called the mix Lawton's witches brew - 245T, 24D, atrazine and dalapon. On one unit the chopper had covered the unit so I went out to collect the spray cards. The helicopter came back for another spray. I just hunkered down under some hardwood srouts. I only got few drops on me. I'm one of the few FS employess that can say they got sprayed by 245T.
On a timber recon project in 1974, we got dropped off on a knife ridgeline. The pilot set one skid down under full rotor power and said get out. That would never happen today. Now you have to have a full helispot built to meet safety policy. Back in the 70's these were mostly Viet Nam vet pilots. These guys really knew how to fly.



2006 Fire outside of Junction California (near Weaverville). Thats our FS helicopter. Region 5 bought 2 surplus military choppers.











I drive a real muscle car- 1993 Geo Metro. Some of my co-workers have attempted to own a muscle car but have missed the mark. My first car was a 1964 Plymouth Belvedere 4 door sedan. Rich and I shared it. Couzin Lee called it the "Beige Bomber." Then we bought a 1948 F150 our first semester at U of Illinois. We gave the Beige Bomber to Cuz lee.






My beauty. 1964 F250 flatbed. I bought it from Charlie 3 years ago. Almost have it running really good now. Sambo's high school friend Robbie has been helping me work on it this last year. After if irst saw it, I told Carolyn that it was "pretty rough." She Said, "How bad is it?" I brought some pics home and her first words were, "Oh my gosh, its worse than I expected."