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I think the time spent working on these new laws would be better spent cleaning up the corruption in Albany.

I got out this past weekend and made a quick run around both farms to clean up falldowns on the trails. We also got the first plot tilled up, and started formulating our plans for each plot this year. We are going to venture into a couple of new things for us. Corn and Sugar Beets. That will be in addition to other plots with our usual plantings of PTTs/Rape/clover/WR, etc. We are also going to do one plot with buckwheat for a soil builder. 3 new plots going in this year. As soon as we get the existing ones tilled, the new ones will be going in. One of them needs alot of brush pushed out. That will be the last one on the list. Other two need sprayed and tilled a couple of times. I was hoping to get some spraying done this weekend, but its looking like rain so far, so that will probably be out of the question. Pic of some fresh tillage... I took the day off on Tuesday for my son's nursery school "graduation", and decided it was a perfect day to go fishing with him. We headed down to the farm to try or luck in one of the ponds. He ended up catching about 20 fish, all largemouth and sunfish. I didnt have time to do much myself, but managed to nail a few largemouth of my own when he wanted to take breaks. It was his first time out fishing, and hes hooked now. Hasnt stopped telling me we need to buy a boat lol. Heres a few pics of him having a blast...

Hum I've used Irish Spring as my soap for idk 40 some years now, things are starting to makes sense as far as my deer hunting .......

Aging based on Physical Attributes Spur lengths tend to be the most reliable indicator of age. Spurs are used for fighting and defense, and combined with attitude of the bird are a significant factor in dominance over other birds. A general guide to spur length verses age is shown in (Table 3.) In both tables- 3 & 4, regard this as a generic rule of thumb with the conclusions subject to debate between biologists, and especially turkey hunters. As birds get older it is more difficult to estimate age, as measurements overlap, and data is more difficult to obtain. As with beard length and body weights, typical measurements will vary depending on subspecies, geographic region, soil types, and weather conditions. Spur Length Range Typical Spur Length Estimated Age 0.0000” - 0.5000” 0.2500” 1 Year (Jake) 0.6250” - 0.8750” 0.7500” 2 Years 0.8750” - 1.1250” 1.0000” 3 Years 1.0000” - 1.3750” 1.2500” 4 Years 1.2500” - 1.6250” 1.5000” 5 Years > 1.6250” > 1.6250” Greater > 5 Years Table 3: Spur length verses age Beards grow an average of four inches a year, and in the end are affected by growth versus wear rates. Beards break off quite often, lose or break the longer strands, and are a much less reliable indicator of age. Beards are also prone to breakage in colder climate regions where the beards can become wet, and freeze into clumps of ice. As beards get longer, they eventually contact the ground or stepped on. It is thought to be the major source of wear & breakage. Beard length may also be affected by lack of melanin (dark color pigment) or infestation by mites. A general guide to beard length verses age is shown in (Table 4.) Beard Length Range Typical Beard Length Estimated Age 0.0000” - 5.0000” 4.0000” 1 Year (Jake) 6.0000” - 9.5000” 9.0000” 2 Years 9.0000” - 11.0000” 10.0000” 3 Years > 11.0000” > 11.0000” Greater > 4 Years Table 4: Beard length verses age Body weight is considered an unreliable age indicator for a variety of reasons. In general terms, jakes will weigh less than 14lbs-15lbs, and two-year-old gobblers will weigh in between 17lbs-20lbs. After two years of age, the weights can vary greatly. Old dominate gobblers are routinely reported that are tagged with live weights under 17lbs. This is especially common with late season gobblers after a long season of fighting, and breeding. Many old gobblers are found with little to no sponge fat left in the chest cavity. The peak weights have much more to do with food availability, quality of the food sources, and breeding activity of the gobbler, rather than the age of the bird. Many times two & three-year-old toms weigh more than a nasty old long hooked spurred gobbler that is doing the majority of breeding. from: Chapter- NWTF Wild Turkey Record System, "Empire State Limbhangers" a book schedule for 2016 release © 2015 Joyner Outdoor Media

Today I filled out my first W-4 in about 32 years! The last one I inked was probably in 1983 when I went to work in a local service station as a mechanic. In 1985 I bought a franchise and sold it last October 31st so although I didn't need my own W-4 I sure filled out PLENTY of others forms! I have now taken a job in a construction/home improvement business that is owned by a friend. He called me a month or so ago and asked me to come aboard. He needed some help with sales and running crews so here we go...........another chapter in the book is starting. Wish my luck!

VJP wants proof of harm before restricting economic activity. I want proof of safety before initiating fracking. Precautionary principle From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia The precautionary principle or precautionary approach to risk management states that if an action or policy has a suspected risk of causing harm to the public or to the environment, in the absence of scientific consensus that the action or policy is not harmful, the burden of proof that it is not harmful falls on those taking an action. The principle is used by policy makers to justify discretionary decisions in situations where there is the possibility of harm from making a certain decision (e.g. taking a particular course of action) when extensive scientific knowledge on the matter is lacking. The principle implies that there is a social responsibility to protect the public from exposure to harm, when scientific investigation has found a plausible risk. These protections can be relaxed only if further scientific findings emerge that provide sound evidence that no harm will result.

My motives are a little more selfish than trying to save a planet....lol. I only want to save my little part of it. At my age, it may not be all that important, but for those that have a bunch of years left, it may be a bit disconcerting to find out 20 years down the road that people sold off the future years of their longevity and property values for some short term prosperity. I have no problem with extended discussion. And I have no sympathy for demonizing those that offer a view of patience and thorough forethought. I tend to be a bit more cautious on controversial issues, and have no real desire to muck around in things simply for some quick cash only to find out later that maybe we were a bit premature and overzealous in our promotion and defense of these activities. Frankly, I doubt there is anyone on this forum that is capable of giving a credible argument on this issue although many try to give the impression that they have some "special" knowledge. It seems to me that it is not an ideological issue (not everything is). In fact it is a scientific issue that should be sorted out by the scientists. I also believe that the financial arguments are incidental and should not be used to force dumb decisions that may not have such nice consequences. Oh, and by the way, if you really have to get into the ideology of all of the suffering masses of bad economic situations in NYS, keep in mind that much of the liberal, socialistic, gains made in this state, followed that same tear-jerking line of argument. Such emotional heart-rending arguments seldom have good logical outcomes.

Good luck proving the fish was caught on the day posted. Or even posted by the person in the picture .... I could post any number of pictures today of guys with fish caught years ago with any caption I chose , on my page or theirs . Look at the Northern I caught last month !

Actually, you probably would have been happy to find some loose change with the Whites, but instead you found a whole BUCK! Not bad!

Yet the DEC is posing with these. LMAO Guess they are exempt. http://www.syracuse.com/outdoors/index.ssf/2015/05/all-white_sturgeon_netted_by_dec_in_black_river_outdoors_oddities.html#incart_related_stories

A cool fossil find today. At first I thought it was a shell, but now I think its a baby T-rex claw! I found a few other prehistoric clams as well, but they were not nearly as exciting as this one! I'd like to start the bidding at $1,000,000, but I'd gladly take $10 for it,lol

Looks like I'm the only dinosaur hunter here,lol Anyone know of any good spots to look for more interesting stuff locally let me know. I was kinda surprised to find so many in a short time yesterday evening so close to home in the creek bottom. Here's a few more from my surface excavation. I can't find a fossil in this one, but I think I see a miniature deer track @ 2 o' clock from center! This one is loaded with goodies. Looks like some shell parts and a bunch of little sand dollar creatures throughout it.

Actually, the best place for turbines if off-shore. The wind is more steady and the supply is more closely timed to the demand.

The Tea-Turds in congress are working hard to assure that. Wasn't the 1st one brought about due to Republican economics policies too?

Holy Cow! I now have another use for my new garden seat... A camo cover...fan mounted out front and I can roll myself across a field using my feet, chasing Tom's around...HAHAHA There's an image...just joking folks Though now it could be good in a ground blind ..swivel seat and adjustable height...hhmmm

Knock on doors instead of writing a letter.The "in person" contact is always better.I have a 25% success rate from what I have asked permision on.Once you get permission ask about any help you can do.I have fixed farm equiptment,cut dead trees and branches from field edges,posted property for the landowners and I am getting ready to make a cab for a guys skidsteer I just got permission to be on.Its frustrating but so so worth it when you hit a good property

I missed a gobbler monday morning and I've been feeling bad over the whole ordeal ever since. Misses happen, but in this case...looking back...I realize that the shot was marginal and I never should have pulled the trigger. Fast forward to this morning... I decided to go back after the bird that I'd shot at to see if he was still around. He has been roosted in the same exact spot on a gully bank for the past several times that I've been there. He's had hens roosted around him and they all pitch down in to the open hardwood flat below. This is where I missed him the other day, but I was on top not in the bottom where I should have been. This morning, however, I decided to set up in the hardwood flat where he's been landing. At 5:20 he gobbled right where he was supposed to be about 50 yds away and I felt better about the miss since I knew now that he wasn't laying dead in the woods some where. He gobbled two more times on the roost...a hen flew down behind me...I got ready...a couple of minutes later he glides down and lands 25 yds away right in front of the gun barrel...BOOM...game over at 5:45!!! The coolest part of the whole thing is that this bird has 5 beards!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Will post pics later...

Been very impressed with my 570 so far, glad I bought it

Legislative Alert from NY Dove Hunting: The "Refuge From Cruel trapping Act" H.R. 2016 http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-114hr2016ih/pdf/BILLS-114hr2016ih.pdf S. 1081 http://www.gpo.gov/fdsys/pkg/BILLS-114s1081is/pdf/BILLS-114s1081is.pdf

I often wondered too here is what I found: Aging a wild turkey is not an exact science. Knowing the difference between a juvenile bird, also known as a jake, and a mature gobbler is simple enough. The tail feathers on a jake will be irregular when they are fanning. The middle feathers will stand higher than the feathers on the side of the tail. Their beards stick out instead of down and usually measure just two or three inches. A mature gobbler’s beard hangs down and may even drag on the ground when they walk. After putting a gobbler on the ground, most hunters want to know how old the bird is. If the spurs are between a ½” and an inch, there’s a good chance the bird is a two year old. These spurs usually protrude straight out. If the spurs are over an inch long and have a curve to them, this gobbler is more than likely three years old or older. These are known as limb hanging spurs. You can literally hang the turkey on a tree limb by the spurs. Measuring beards is another way to age a gobbler. A two year old tom will have a 5 to 7 inch beard. A three year old turkey’s beard typically measure eight inches plus. Again, the math gets fuzzy from this point as well. The beard of a wild turkey continues to grow throughout life. A beard of 12 inches or more is possible. However, the ends of the beard will wear off as it drags on the ground. This is especially true for turkeys in rocky habitat. Ice will build up and break sections of the beard off in cold climates. These measurements are good rules of thumb, but you can never be certain. There are a lot of environmental factors affecting how a turkey ages. Wildlife studies have shown some birds lost length on their spurs as they age. This is especially true if a gobbler survives to five years of age. Aging a turkey up to three years old is fairly simple. However, it is nearly impossible to age a turkey beyond three years of age.

Government regulation is a very effective means of eliminating free-market capitalism. That's the Socialist goal. Package it under the guise of 'safety concerns', or especially 'For the Children', and it's an easy sell to a public who can't or won't think for themselves.

arn't the liberal in NYS and US government already doing this? BOHICA

I was merely saying what it made me think of.....

Good luck with your seed business SplitG2. Finally, someones getting it right with the seperation of seed size.

The most frightening part of this, at least for me, is the fact that unelected bureaucrats are basically responsible for 27 times more legislation in this country than our elected officials. We've lost control of our governance, and are now under rule.

Here's a very simple 'Progressive' solution to the economic problems these towns are facing: The government buys the land that would have been used for fracking and puts up 'Social Services' buildings where they hand out money. The landowners get paid, the population grows, the demand for rental property and goods and services skyrockets, the town is considered prosperous again, and the government looks like a hero. Everybody wins. Yeah, I hit the sarcasm button a few times there. ;-)

Kind of like the "Climate Change" arguments huh?

Doc, I don't see that this is much of a scientific issue as one of common sense. You pour hundreds of thousands of pounds of chemicals down a well hole under extreme pressure to break up the shale to release the gas. Chemicals that can cause cancer , create a stream of contaminated backwash . That we don't have the capacity to recycle back to the environment can't be good for anybody or anything on this palnet. It's not as complicated as you would have us believe. Nothing about this process is safe, nothing.

That sucks!!! I have to figure out how to preserve all the beards in one piece. It's so much simplier with only one beard...lol.

One thing I forgot to mention, If fracking is so safe why do the Oil and Gas companies make every landowner sign a non disclosure statement? In many environmental incidents the non disclosure statement prevents the information from going public. So the oil and gas companies can claim no documented incidents of water contamination have been reported. Does that mean it never happened?? I think not.

If u tried it and it worked.... just don't film it

Do any of you guys even notice none of these studies ever conclusively states any real problem? How many times do you have to see the word "MAY" in print in these reports before you start to ask why it doesn't say something more certain like "DOES"? Because it is not scientific proof, that's why. Apparently reading a lot of reports claiming fracking MAY cause everything from cancer to violent death, causes brain damage in the people who want it to be the Devil incarnate.

Heck yea! Great job dad. Priceless doesn't describe it good enough, IMO. Pre-school graduation huh? Blink your eyes my friend and it'll be high school graduation.......I promise. You absolutely will not believe how fast the next 12 years will go....... What grade is the little princess now, 4th? (nice to see you around here!)

Wow- this is definitely a must have industry breakthrough! Even if it doesn't work as advertised for hunting, I'll bet it jams the government frequencies from reading our minds and will be pulled from the shelves faster than we can stockpile these amazing garments.

Stupid. Stupid. Stupid. That's the only word that comes to mind.

a little bit of intelligence would have been if this guy called the cops, failed a suit, animal control or any number of documented legal avenues. Then one day when he does pull the trigger, all the history of negligent pet ownership is there in paper and he probably doesn't lose his guns. What's so unintelligent about trying a nonviolent approach first? The reporters would have access to all this and he could have told his story. And the fact that it hasn't come out tells me he never took the first few steps in the process and went straight to flying off the handle.

With regard to the other states benefiting from the fracking boom at the expense of health and welfare of their residents. These states lack any real meaningful regulations on fracking and usually let the regulations they have come from the oil and gas industry. I believe this was good for NY because after 8 years moritorium on fracking we were able to see what was happening in other states. And from what the studies have shown it gave us the information we needed to ban fracking in NY. From air pollution, contaminated wells, earthquakes ,destruction of a rural way of life. With many quality of lfe issues not to forget the short changing of land owners on lease payments and reducing of royalties. Some people have cursed the day they got in bed with these gas companies.

Look what just showed up: From: Oregon State University Published May 13, 2015 03:34 PM New study examines the air quality impacts of fracking wells People living or working near active natural gas wells may be exposed to certain pollutants at higher levels than the Environmental Protection Agency considers safe for lifetime exposure, according to scientists from Oregon State University and the University of Cincinnati. The researchers found that hydraulic fracturing – a technique for releasing natural gas from below-ground rock formations – emits pollutants known as PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), including some that are linked with increased risk of cancer and respiratory ailments. “Air pollution from fracking operations may pose an under-recognized health hazard to people living near them,” said the study’s coauthor Kim Anderson, an environmental chemist with OSU’s College of Agricultural Sciences. The study, which appears in the journal Environmental Science & Technology’s online edition, is part of a larger project co-led by the University of Cincinnati’s Erin Haynes, OSU’s Anderson, her graduate student Blair Paulik and Laurel Kincl, director of OSU’s Environmental Health Science Center. Anderson and her colleagues collected air samples from sites near active natural gas wells in Carroll County, Ohio, over a three-week period last February. Carroll County sits on top of the Utica formation, a deep oil- and gas-rich reef of subterranean shale. The rural county is a hotspot of natural gas prospecting, with more than one active well site per square mile. The study got its start when a group of citizens approached Haynes, who is a public health expert, wanting to know more about health risks from natural gas extraction. Haynes got in touch with Anderson and Kincl, and together they designed the study to include citizen participation. They placed air samplers on the properties of 23 volunteers living or working at sites ranging from right next to a gas well to a little more than three miles away. The samplers are aluminum T-shaped boxes containing specially treated polyethylene ribbons that absorb contaminants in a similar manner to biological cells. Volunteers were trained in proper handling of samplers and documenting of data. After the study period, the volunteers packaged the samplers in airtight bags, labeled them and mailed them back to Anderson’s lab at OSU. The samplers picked up high levels of PAHs across the study area. Levels were highest closest to the wells and decreased by about 30 percent with distance.

VJP's Liberal reference is interesting. When I got involved in the fracking wars in my town, I found the political leanings of those opposed to fracking covered the spectrum. some very conservative residents opposed fracking. Some liberals wanted a big payday. An independent opposed to fracking beat a long-time conservative Republican incumbent for a town council position. This is a Republican town through and through. Our Rs are not the new teabagger types who moved here from NJ. They are the old version or Rs who value the place they live and their quality of life. I have said this in public a number of times: Even if it is proven that fracking will not affect my water, I still oppose it in my backyard. The air quality issues are more of a concern than the water risks because they are proven. Besides risking our health, the destruction of rural character would make this place somewhere I would not want to live. LONG LIVE THE PRECAUTIONARY PRINCIPLE! LONG LIVE THE FRACKING BAN!

Could be a different guy. It's a fairly common name.

In 2013, the report states that federal regulations drained $1.863 trillion from the American economy. On the global scale, that $1.863 trillion price tag would peg U.S. regulatory costs as the world’s tenth ranked economy, more than the entire GDP of Canada ($1.82 trillion) and India ($1.84 trillion). The 2014 report’s findings also include: - $14,974: the price each household pays to cover regulatory costs. - 72: the number of new laws in 2013 which has led to 3,659 new rules, or a new rule every 2.5 hours. - 191: number of “economically significant” rules costing more than $100 million each in annual compliance costs. - 79,311: pages of regulations in the 2013 Federal Register, the fourth highest ever. Atop the list are 81,405 pages in 2010 and 81,247 in 2011, both years under President Obama’s watch. - $10,585: average price per-employee for small business (fewer than 20 employees) to comply with regulatory costs. In comparison, businesses with 500 or more employees pay $7,755 for each worker. http://costofgovernment.org/new-report-reveals-point-trillion-cost-a1817

Really nice! I am beginning to doubt the existence of gobblers in NY based on my experience. lol Gives me hope.

Got all the footage together, absolutely awesome. Just take my word that it's amazing and that I'm so glad I had two different cameras going to capture the hunt. I won't bother uploading here, since I'll just get bashed.... but it's awesome !!

O....and if fishing in carp water and setting pole down make sure drag is loose....will lose one in a hurry...trust me lol????

I have only seen a few but ...damn awesome!!! I was trout fishing one May and saw one hunkered down under some low hanging crap just off a foot path that ran along the creek. It was so tiny. I pretended that I never saw it so I wouldn't stress it out. Just kept walking. Less 50 yards or so down I came across a doe that just blew and stomped at me. She wouldn't leave. After a few casts I just let her have her little spot….

From looking at the shape the deer by me in the Catskills They were nice and heavy.This past winter took it's toll on them , to look at last years young they are very thin and I wonder how they survived. There mothers are a little heavier but still Thin Now. No I have not seen any yet. We will see in another month if the are going to have twins or triplets this year.

Hondamx32, our blends are true premium blends. the seeds we put in the blends make sense and will grow together. Also, if seeds are different size in the blend there will be separate bags inside the original bag so you can sow the like size seeds and have a uniform plot.