Barred Owl 2

Man have I been seeing these guys everywhere! Just last night alone I saw three as I was out driving around. (all in a distance of 2 miles!) And me with no camera.

Since I made my last post I have been trying to get a better picture of one. Tonight I spotted one sitting on a line along the road over an open field where it was hunting for mice and the like. I have touched the picture up a bit to bring out the details and color.

My next goal is to get a picture of one in flight as they are truly amazing to see soaring overhead.

*click picture to enlarge

huzzah

well, this is my one year blogaverary. (is that even a word?)

Thank you to the people who have been interested enough in my ramblings to check this site out on occasion.

You rock!

(don't know why the picture...just liked it)

Barred Owl

I love owls. I always have. One thing I like about this time of year here is the Barred Owls become more visible, usually showing up in the same areas around dusk. This year I have been fortunate enough to have one been visiting my yard. I was outside with Finnegan a little while ago and this one soared overhead. I went back in to get the camera, and the owl had landed up on one of the powerlines. Just as I snapped the picture it decided to move on. I was left with a cool shot of this owl with wings in air and talons spread!* Too bad it is from the rear... maybe I'll have to see if I can see it another night.

*as always..click to enlarge the picture

9 people

Check out this groovy illusion. Can you find all 9 people?

Evel Knievel Portland

So Evel is no longer with us. :(

I really enjoyed watching his jumps as a child, and I thought this would be an appropriate tribute video to post as he jumps a bunch of (at the time) new vans!

Awesome!

Amazing guitars!

I found this site with the most amazing custom guitars and basses on it. I recomend checking it out for some details of these breathtaking pieces of work.

Happing Thanksgivy

I want to wish all a Happy Thanksgiving. Hope you had a good one and didn't overdo it too badly, lest ye explode. I believe I will no retire to read some of my favorite puritan, Solomon Kane.

Here is a song of thanks for you to enjoy.

Thank You Pretty Baby- Professor Longhair

Album Covers: Country Church

No info on this creepy ass cover. Sorry

Rock on you dang crazy f*#%ers!

Shakespeare Insult Kit

Well, back after a brief interlude (which included my 33rd birthday...geez I'm old)

I found this amusing page a few days back. Good stuff. I have to say my favorite combo is "thou lumpish fly-bitten barnacle"

Have fun.

Shakespeare Insult Kit

Paul Norris R.I.P

Yesterday Paul Norris, creator of Aquaman died. Ever since I was child, he has been my favorite super hero, and thanks to Mr. Norris I have had the pleasure of enjoying these stories. Here is a link to his obituary.



Thanks Paul.

Halloween!

Happy Halloween to all from yer ol' cap'n. This being Van's first Halloween I feel I should share pics of his costume. Most people who know me know that I love comics, and my favorite hero is Aquaman. So my wife suggested we dress van up this year as Aqualad. I thoght this was a pretty cool idea so we made up a costume, and voila! Here he is making his Halloween debut on dry land...





Special thanks to Rob over at The Aquaman Shrine for the aqua-beanie.

Sutton Island

Sunday we took a ride out to Sutton Island to do a little gardening work. As it was a gorgeous day (started that way anyway) and we had a little time to kill at the end, we walked around the island on the shore path. Sutton is probably one of my favorite places around here, and is reached by a 15 minute ride on the mail boat. The island is made up of seasonal residents, and this time of year they are all gone, so there wasn't a soul out there, and we had the whole island to ourselves. Here are some pics from the day...

This is the osprey nest on the western tip of the island. It's somewhat of a local land mark. It's over 100 years old, estimated to weigh several tons, and is about 6 feet tall.


This is looking back toward Bear Island and the lighthouse.


This is looking back toward Mt. Desert Island, which is where I live.

The shore path veers into the woods for a bit.... right past the spooky old abandoned water tower. Zoinks!


This is on the northern side of the island. I thought it was really cool how the rocks right next to eachother are completely different colors. The dark ones look blackend by smoke or something, but they are not.


One of the many little coves/beaches on the island


A groovy stump. 'sheck it out meng.


While we were waiting for the boat, I signed Van's name to the collection.

Spooky pic

Just in time for upcoming Halloween, I thought it would be a good time to post a picture taken by my friend Pex from Finland. This is a shot he took of his new dog Proco. I think it's just an awesomely scary picture between the glowing eyes, background, and effects. Enjoy!

I wonder if I could make Finnegan look this scary...

probably not.

GSVR 3

Hey. Long time no see. I know I haven't been posting as much as I used to , but you gotta live your life, right? And do that I am. I just returned from Great Southern Van Run III in beautiful Cherokee North Carolina in the Smoky Mtns. It was put on by the Southeast Van Council. We left home at about 4:30 last Wednesday afternoon, and got there around the same time Friday afternoon after a few stops. Stayed friday night and Saturday, and left for home on Sunday. We rolled in about 8:00 monday night. What a time we had too! It was great to see my vannin' family again, and to introduce little Van to them. Yes, he went on his first van run at 10 weeks old! 2600 miles round trip, and i'd turn right around and do it again. I live for this stuff. Nothing puts me in a better state of mind than being around vans and vanners. Especially some awesome customs. Here are a few pics from the event.

We took the purple van down for this one.


The vans lined up for the show


Here's a shot of my as yet unnamed van in the show featuring the uber-rare cameo appearance by the Capn' on this blog. (and a leg shot from Mr. Van ;) )


the interior of one of the vans. The owner Kevin does competition chainsaw carving...
more on that later.


Boot's van, "Street Survivor". It's one of my favorite vans currently being built. In my opinion mid-Dodges look best when photographed from a worms eye view.


One of my favorite vans from the event. It's no secret I love the tandems so naturally this one stood out for me.


This super cool shorty was spotted at the Food Lion in Cherokee, and he invited the owner to the event. He had no idea anything like this was going on,and it turns out he had a really great time. I think we'll see him again.


Here's a pic I took during the run into town. Since I was bringing up the rear, I had a pretty unique perspective of the convoy.


Guess who took home the long haul trophy home... This was carved with a chainsaw, and is one of the most unique trophy's you will ever see from a truck-in.


Mr. Van and Mr. Finnegan waiting patiently for the van to be packed so we could get going home.


Speaking of going home, here's a last show of Magic Carpet Ride and Street Survivor with their matching go-karts. Awesome! I can't wait till next year.

Paganisim unleashed!

I found these images this week whilst fooling around online. I think they are a riot. I used to love these extremist pamphlets when I was younger just due to the outlandishness of them. Not to mention they usually showed God destroying the world for the most silly things... like eating a banana. The funniest part in this is the spoken parts. Clearly Mr. Tourist is enjoying himself. Good lord save us from the tiki torch bearing, ukelele playing lei presenting south sea islanders. Think I'll go have a rum drink and ponder this in my favorite vintage Hawaiian shirt...

here's a bonus track from the master of evil himself...

Tiny Bubbles- Don Ho

Special Message from Bob Dylan.

Hey everyone. Mr. Zimmerman had this to say. What a nice guy...

Message from BD

Earlies!

Hi. I thought today would be a good day for some random images of vans I dig. (I have thousands thanks to the magic of computers!)
Todays selection is of 1st and 2nd Generation Chevys. Enjoy!






ok, so this one isn't just Chevys, it's got Fords and Dodges too (and one Mr. Leadfoot). It's the group shot from the Nationals. Leadfoot puts out the only van magazine out there. It's called "Van-iN" and it's 100% vanner owned, written, and published. Here is a link to the mag. Issue 3.5 holds a special place in my heart. :)

Back!

Hi everyone. I want to say thank you again for waiting. Let's get right into it shall we?
I was looking around on line and came across the most incredible instrument I have ever seen. It combines two things I love. Mermaids and guitars! Check out the page. The pictures of this thing are absolutely stunning. If this guy made a bass I'd be all over it. (Probably good for my bank account that he didn't ;) ) There is also a video of the instrument being played, and it sounds great.
The level of skill put into this piece just blows me away. Check out the little details! Even the case is a work of art.