News of interest about state trust lands in Washington continued to roll in over the extended Thanksgiving Day break. On Friday (Nov. 27), Ear to the Ground encouraged readers to download the free trail maps from DNR’s website: www.dnr.wa.gov. Speaking of trails, the Everett Herald and several other newspapers in Snohomish County reported on Friday about new forest damage in the Reiter Foothills despite a temporary ban on off-roading on DNR-managed state trust land there.

On Saturday, Nov. 28, the weekly Port Townsend Leader reported on the windstorm damage that has kept some ORV and 4×4 trails closed on the Olympic Peninsula. An Ear to the Ground posting and a DNR news release last week also described the damage-related closures.

On Wednesday (Nov. 25) Ear to the Ground updated you about cutting firewood on DNR-managed state trust lands.

And finally, last Sunday’s Ellensburg Daily Record describes a proposed land exchange between DNR and the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife (WDFW). WDFW has invited citizens to submit comments through Dec. 16 on the proposal to exchange several thousand acres of land in Eastern Washington with DNR. A related exchange between the two agencies was approved in September.

Nycarsforsale.com is one of the website that is having most of the ingredients of the used cars and fresh cars for sale. This is the website dealing in most of the reputed brands and qualities and also developing in rapid speed by connecting too many of the car dealers of reputed places. This website has made a cordial announcement and invitation for all the car lovers and used car seekers to have the widest varieties of used cars along with the best possible quality.

Used cars for sale is fetching higher attention of people with the wider use and demand due to the slow down and decreasing standard of living and purchasing capacity of the people. Debts and inflation are the villains of the story of happy car industries!! Nycarsforsale.com has taken an initiative to make all the efforts that can be putted on to have the greater flow of the car industries. They have approached so many dealers and after the longer discussion and conversation, they have derived that, “used cars for sale are the only options that can attract the buyers to the car industries and that can put the industries on track!!”

So in order to have the best dealing and better performance in future, these used cars for sale are given high priorities and they are offered in widest verities. Widest verities of used cars for sale is achieved with prime facilities by making an approach with various people and also by persuading the dealers to have the car dealing to the peak by offering lower prices. At the end of the meeting, it was finalised that the dealers will charge lower prices even than the shop price and against that the website will share huge traffic with them!!

So, in order to have the best deal of used cars for sale and also to have an awareness related to the buying of used cars just log on to the gigantic website of Topcarbuy.com. This is one of the website that not only deals in buying and selling of the products but also in making the surfer educated about the terms and requirements of a perfect buying and appropriate dealing with informative and educative car articles!!

Have a visit to the website leaving no space for the errors and keeping no margins for mistakes and have ample of verities of used cars for sale and get the top car buying with www.nycarsforsale.com/used-cars-for-sale.php !!

NYcarsforsale.com is the website that has gained huge ground and attracted mass car lovers all around the world due to the superiority of the browsing system and for having the most professional approach in the dictionary making and also in creating web pages to influence car seekers. They have announced huge range of car models and also the different verities of cars for sale on the website!!

This is the website that has always satisfied the car lovers with ever inventing something newer for the car lovers. Recently they have offered a grand sale of used cars for sale which has got gigantic reward and people were benefitted with the widest verities and also with the easy dealings. The reason of reaching this stage in online cars business by  www.nycarsforsale.com is that they have gathered lots of dealers that are selling the cars for sale online with great potential. Also these cars are sold with a great reliance as these dealers are located from different parts of the country and also some of the dealers are from Canada that are having huge verities of cars of different companies that are quite well known.

On this website you will find lots of verities of cars for sale and many more styles like the Convertible cars, Coupe cars, Hatchback cars, Vans, Minivans, Wagon cars and also the SUV cars for sale. These are the major cars that are in demand by the people. Also these cars are having fabulous features of having the brand name and logo of the companies that are already on the top of the automotive world. Some of the most dedicated car companies that are having huge reputation in the car world are Mercedes Benz, Ford, Jaguar, BMW, Chevrolet, Lamborghini, Mazda, Ferrari, Volvo, Landrover, Mitsubishi, Dodge, Hyundai and many more verities are available in the website that can rock any of the car buyers.

So, to have the best verities of cars for sale online, just have the visit to the website www.nycarsforsale.com and make your buying enriched with the widest verities of models. Join the website to attain the invitation cordially give by the website owners!!

Snack Bar/Book Store at Emerson Country Stores

Christmas Tree at Emerson Country Stores

I have been to the Emerson Place many times over the past 6 years, but I have never braved the World’s Largest Kaleidoscope at the Emerson Country Store . The Emerson Place is a quiet group of stores next door to the Emerson Resort and Spa.  There are a few fancy home decor stores (avoid them if you have wild toddlers), a nice toy store which specializes in kaleidoscopes, and a very chic and cozy snack bar that serves Starbucks coffee and Jane’s Gourmet Ice Cream. (In case you have never tried Jane’s Ice Cream, try it…It’s amazing!) The snack bar/book store also sells homemade danishes, cookies and sandwiches. 

The Kaleidoscope show runs 10 minutes long and costs $5.40 for adults and is free for children 12 and under. It is sort of built like a miniature planetarium. When the lights go out, you can see Kaleidoscope patterns change on the ceiling. Today’s show was “America, The House We Live In”  which included many Americana, political images, and a very colorful 70s segment. It’s good fun for kids and grown-ups! For more info visit http://www.kaleidostore.com. Emerson Country Store, 5340 Rt. 28, Mt. Tremper, NY (845) 688-5800. Shows run daily from 10am-5pm.

Once upon a time, a long time ago…you may have developed an urge to assemble, construct, imagine, build something with sticks and wheels with numerous holes. Tinker Toys (originally: Thousand Wonder Builder) were a creation of Charles Pajeau and Robert Pettit around 1913. The two tried to develop interest in their creation at the American Toy Festival in 1914, but had no takers. A short time later they hired midgets to dress up as Elves and had them display and assemble the Tinker Toys in a store window.

The promotion was a huge success with one million sold the next year at .60 The Tinker Toy set evolved with different colored sticks and a motor. By the 1950’s the toy set was selling a consistent 2.5 million units a year. Eventually, the success story was sold several time and ultimately ended up with Playskool. Not a bad story for two guys traveling by train from Evanston to Chicago, Illinois. For those of you that took the Lego plunge, the petroleum based building blocks satisfied the same urge.

So, perhaps this necessity to assemble was part of your early mental preparation to tie flies. Part art, part architecture, part fantasy…Tinker Toys (ok, and Lego’s) led the way to your fly tying addiction.

Sears and Roebuck Catalog, 1928 (Notice ‘Tinker Toy is the Wonder Builder’)

Want to do something new and fun with your loved one or care-receiver?  Like to find good deals?  In my local paper, I found a web-based service that lists over 150,000 businesses offering those who are 50 and older breaks on a wide variety of products and services like restaurants, travel, recreation, local transportation, shopping, state and national parks, medical services, pharmacies and museums.  SeniorDiscounts.com charges an annual fee of $8 to find discounts by the location or category you are interested in.

For free searches and discounts, you can check out SeasonedSpender.com and Bargains4Seniors.com. Also, I use Restaurant.com where you can purchase discounted coupons for use at local restaurants. Go on, try something that sounds fun and save a few bucks too!

like any christmas break in the philippines, many urbanites start heading to coastal areas for some holiday fun and frolic in the sea and sand. as for fiji, we get a wave of tourist arrivals from the frigid northern hemisphere, wanderlusters averse against the bitter cold to bask themselves under the pacific sun.

it’s fun to fashion-watch holiday tourists in the resorts. it’s like walking into a brochure. of course, it would be so rude to just snap photos of resort guests who come here for rest, relaxation and privacy, so just trust me that most ladies wear bright printed sundresses, wide-brim hats, oversize sunglasses and rubber flip-flops. while this kind of ensemble is very apt for the nature-inspired vibe of the island, sometimes i get to see some jordi labanda-esque tropical wear which i happen to favor an awful lot.

instead of invading the tourists’ private space by taking sudden photos, i assembled some diva-style tropical outfits in polyvore taking cues from the famous pop-art of jordi so you can get an idea of what i’m talking about. to make it more timeless, i stuck to neutral black and white with denim. plus washes of gold because i love how they reflect the sunlight and how they complement the sparkle of the sea.

poolside

wet seal no. 3 by tessaeastgate featuring Michael Kors watches

resort shopping

wet seal no. 1 by tessaeastgate on Polyvore.com

clubbing

wet seal no. 2 by tessaeastgate featuring Miss Selfridge earrings

a few tips on how to look like a fashionable work of pop-art in the resort:

over-accessorize. if you want to look like a diva, there are times you have be fearless about wearing jewelry at the beach or poolside (that is, if you don’t intend to swim; you’d rather not risk losing them in the water). sleek or chunky watches, thick or piled-on bangles, bumblebee or aviator sunglasses, unique hats.

wear figure-skimming outfits. as much as possible, keep away from babydoll dresses and other cuts that de-emphasize your figure. you can only wear an oversize top if it is a sheer cover-up over your bikini.

limit prints. solid colors, especially deep shades, make you look leaner and, combined with the previous tip, even taller. if you want more color in your tropical diva wardrobe, opt instead for wide stripes or color-blocking.

give your flip-flops a rest. no diva will be caught dead in these. rock your strappy sandals.

nail polish. hands with bold nail colors make a strong statement. and they look fantastic holding that glass of mimosa. toenails with the same or complementing shade makes a fabulous end to your bare legs.

waterproof mascara. abundant lashes with your naturally glowing skin, thanks to the tropical sun, makes you look like a complete knock-out.

sun-seekers, hope you have fun in the holiday sun!

Once again, fine details are pronounced.

As discussed in Art and Detail, your compositions may be unusual for your age (or indeed any age).

Pieces like the one above may languish hidden in your home for decades.

Yet there’s power and satisfaction to be derived from rescuing your art, framing it nicely and displaying it with pride.

Chances are you’re going to be ‘odd’ for the rest of your life.

Why not revel in your special gifts and enjoy your time on earth?

We started our business in March of 1988 just outside of Bozeman, Montana, with only a few consignments, no salesmen, and a dream. A desire to build a business we could be proud of. We have always operated under a win-win philosophy of doing business. We need to make a fair profit to remain in business and you, our customer, need to receive a fair deal each and every time. This business philosophy has taken us far from our humble beginnings. We now have a beautiful facility and a team of employees who all believe that a “win-win” policy is the only policy to have.

As we have grown so has our product line. we have shopped many manufacturers just as you are shopping for a dealer. We looked at quality, value, service after the sale, and industry reputation. As a result of this process we are offering for sale:

Jayco, Bigfoot, Starcraft Trailers, Trail Lite, Roadtrek, Phoenix Motorhomes as well as Starcraft Marine boats.

We appreciate the faith our customers have in us and do not take that for granted. We strive to earn your business and maintain a reputation of being ethical and honorable. Big Sky RV Inc is a good choice.

Best Price Guarantee

We want to get you on the road enjoying your RV sooner, so we don’t play games with pricing. Because rates, incentives and inventory numbers change so often, we don’t display prices directly on our site, but it’s easy to get the Big Sky RV Best Price for any model you’re interested in.

Simply click on the RV you’re researching in our Inventory, click on the Best Price button above the model details, fill out the form, and we will promptly contact you with our Best Price, as well as an e-mail with an informational snapshot detailing the RV you’re shopping.

Our prices won’t be beat. Don’t hesitate to contact us about the Best Price Guarantee.

Update και νέος χάρτης για το Uncharted 2 | Game 2.0

Αναφέρομαι στο update 1.02 που είναι ήδη διαθέσιμο για το παιχνίδι και προσθέτει νέα leaderboards, την player card στο μενού του multiplayer, καθώς και τον χάρτη The Fort, ο οποίος είναι βασισμένος σε ένα από τα επίπεδα του πρώτου Uncharted[more]

 

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The night sky provided a dazzling background for an old Bristlecone Pine..

It was about 20°F at over 11,000 feet in elevation in California’s White Mountains.  The sky was inky black, dazzling with uncountable stars, and we were photographing a dead Bristlecone Pine using the universe as a background.  This tree had fallen, perhaps centuries ago, and the root system made a graceful shape against the sky.  The pine itself may have stood for 2,000 or more years before a high wind toppled it from its ridgetop perch, and the pine lay preserved by the dryness and cold through the untold years.  Karen found this pine during the day, and we decided to return and photograph it after dark.

The sliver of moon set shortly after sunset, so we had a perfectly black sky..

Our challenge was to light the tree in the foreground using a flashlight, while attempting to balance that exposure with the light of the distant stars.  We needed to “paint” the tree with just the right amount of light and to get a short enough exposure that the stars appeared as points of light (and not arcs of light, which longer exposures show because of the earth’s movement relative to the stars).  Karen moved the flashlight over the roots while I worked with the camera settings and counted the passing seconds out loud.  We did about 40 exposures, of which about a third were excellent.

By the time we finished, we were chilled to the bone from the frosty temperatures and still had to set up camp.  But we were pleased with the results.

This type of photograph would have been much more difficult before the advent of digital photography, and technically would not have been nearly as effective.  With digital, the ISO speed can be set at 3200 and provide good results, and the exposures and composition can be roughly checked on the LCD screen after the photograph is taken, so adjustments can be immediately made in the exposure.  For even more control, the camera can be cabled to a computer to check the results on the spot at higher resolution, but we were traveling light and didn’t bring a laptop.

Bristlecone Pines are the oldest trees on earth, and I find that these photographs take me to a place in the mind where I can contemplate the meanings of the universe and life on earth.

A vertical photograph emphasizes the magnificent sky..