DH made a comment this is one time my big mouth may come in handy LOL!! LOL! I'm not going to rant on about cameras, forgot that Panasonic that took nice HD videos. The Sx IS series wasn't quite what I wanted as a backup camera, but I did like the tilt screen and got some decent photos before I gave it away. It does take really nice macros. At the tele end, all I could see was a huge blur and the way you control the zoom, it took too long to get my subject in the viewfinder. I went for it because of the 12X zoom. But to be fair, I have a nice telephone lens. It is tricky to use on moving subjects.

Awesome Bass! Way to go! I went fig hunting last year and found 3 trees. The owners of the property were not sure what type of tree it was. I got some cuttings and last year all died except 2. They are very hardy because these 2 survived in my trash pile because I thought they were dead. Now they are 14 inches tall with figs on them. The figs are white but not ready to pick yet. I found another tree that is just beautiful but don't have the nerve to ask for a cutting. Send me a cutting next year from your tree after it grows. Dennis

Well, I have to wait for my PODS to arrive here on Dec.1st and then find my Sony cord to connect camera to computer. Why I lost touch with that and not in my computer bag, I haven't a clue. I took all these lovely pictures of my three original hosta still all pretty and nice in the garden bed covered with leaves, and duhhhhhh, there they sit untouchable in the Sony camera. The new Nikon P500 arrives on Nov 29th, I think Tuesday, and after I charge the battery, I'll be reshooting the same garden shots. As direct a comparison as I can make, provided we don't have a terrific freeze before then. I got a monopod and a tilting ball head. Incidentally, I decided on the Nikon because of my hands. I must have broken my left hand while loading the PODS to move, and it is quite painful and will not do things as it should. Not knowing if I will regain an adequate degree of use for a heavy camera, I opted to go with one having a fairly long zoom lens w/o so much weight. Being left-handed I've always been more ambidexterous than many folks who are right-handed, but some things you just MUST have both hands working right. Like pruning with hand clippers.

For the last two years, I've been experimenting with methods used to deter hawks. I wanted to see if any particular method worked better than another and, I was hoping to find their achilles heel so I could perhaps create a method that would help people who want to enjoy the critters in their yard. I did this for not only songbirds but mammals, such as rabbits. I found that tape, for the hawks here, did nothing. I didn't try CD's but I would think they'd have little effect on a seasoned hunter. I tried that easily torn regular bird netting and fishing line. This did deter bigger hawks like a redtail or goshawk and definitely eagles. It did nothing to deter male coopers hawks, peregrines or sharp shins, assuming they could find a tiny gap between pieces of netting. Now if you get the holes small enough with the fishing line, it could have an effect but a quickier and easier alternative would be the aviary bird netting. I bought some on amazon. It's very strong, and the holes are 2" x 2" which is too small for any hawk to enter. That did deter them, as long as the netting completely covers everywhere the prey animal is located. So basically, a barrier is needed since gadgets used to 'frighten' or 'confuse' don't usually work. A bigger hawk, like a redtail, could possibly go crashing into the netting and if it isn't stuck in it, it would not only ruin your set-up, it would probably kill the prey but redtails here tend to avoid netting. For smaller mammals like rabbits, I recommend burying the surface of a solid corrugated pipe at least a few inches deep from the surface, not in a low spot where water can sit and possibly get in an entrance, covering up with the soil and putting a brush pile over top. Hide entrances in shrubs if possible. Make sure the pipe is pretty long at least 12 feet but preferably 18 ft or longer as hawks will try to flush the rabbits and this is less likely if pipes are longer. If you have larger mature rabbits in the area, I'd recommend you buy 8" if offered, or split the 6" pipe (that's the only size pipe our stores offer) and open it up a bit before burying, to allow a bigger rabbit entry. If trying to protect a small dog or other small animal, I'd definitely go with chicken wire whenever possible but otherwise, the aviary bird netting is strong and on a strong frame, should deter most attacks. It's also black which makes it blend in much better than chicken wire. I've tried water guns, nerf guns, clapping and yelling. Yelling is very effective if you see a hawk chasing down prey. It distracts them for a moment and the prey gets away but given you'd have to be monitoring constantly, that's not practical. But if you see it, a great big 'hey!' usually is enough to break up the chase. Nerfs work but again, you have to be there constantly. Recordings of owls or a peregrine falcon will work but usually only on juvenile hawks. I've buried pipe but found the pipe wasn't long enough and wasn't hidden well enough. All the hawk has to do is be able to put a talon at the opening of the pipe and the rabbits or whatever small animal is hiding, will flush from cover that the hawk couldn't possibly have accessed. So best protect entrances with brush or a large stone. In conclusion, hawks will go where the food is. They are also capable of retaliation when they think you're trying to stop them (confirmed by a falconer and my own experiences) and will try that much harder to thwart you. The best thing is to not concentrate any animal or bird to avoid attracting them and if you do decide to feed, hide feeders or mammals/buried pipe under trees and shrubs before they discover it because once you get on their radar, it takes a couple of years for them to forget you.