garyfultz

Snow day

It’s a very nice day to stay home, stay inside, lounge, drink coffee and make plans with my wife for the year. After a solid morning of much coffee and good talks I’m thinking cabin fever is highly overrated! I guess I only thought staying in a cozy cabin in Alaska for the winter would be fun. There is not enough coffee for that!

With camera and tripod in hand I decide an outdoor jaunt would be fun. I didn’t get very far as snowflakes blurred the lens but you decide if endeavouring is worth the effort. Sometimes we get something other than what we sought.

I had hoped to capture the snow flakes and it was a learning curve for me even in a heavy snowfall.

snowy yard ed eml — Sumac and Spruce contrast. Snow accents the various tree shapes.

snow days 2 ed eml — Our Driveway is there somewhere beyond the bush. The mailman said he couldn’t deliver a package today. I say what? the drive is only half a mile long.

Snowing cp eml — Birch limbs hang low, I suspect the deer will nip these off. Snow changes many things, even our perspective

Snow on the shed ed eml — Playing with the light meter, getting new perspectives through the viewfinder. Very heavy snow

Garden Shop eml — A little lighter and happier snow picture of the shed. I’m happier now. What a large difference is made with a small change in perspective.

Snow on rail ed eml — Now I notice the railing and blurry wood pile and it’s snowing!

I’m quite sure we should have more snow days. I know my perspective needs to tweaked more often than I would admit. It’s a good day. I needed this snow day.

May your crooked paths be made straight. May we gain an eagles view as we reset. May we have more snow days!

eagle cp eml.jpg — Even eagles need a snow day. Not snowing so much now.

I shouldn’t minimize the talking, much coffee, making a couple of life direction decisions and reflecting on the past few years gone by. Our strength lies in our relationships with each other and in our walk with God. Our lens on life gets a cleaning on days like this.

What if we could see through the lens of life through others view finders? Friends, spouse or even Gods? Our Life: same subject but different perspectives, and yes, in life it gets cold, blows, snows and rains on all of us. Here’s to more snow days!

Gary

Wintering the Weather

I know, it’s the other way around but sometimes having moments of lysdexia can be advantaged. I took some photos from inside my sons house while visiting northern Minnesota at -50 below zero fahrenheit (wind chill as it was really only -34).

My budding Picasso wannabe grandson created a perfect picture which could describe the extreme ends of cabin fever. It only took a few moments to create it. One would think by now there would be a market for erasable anything refrigerators. Less paper trail.

While visiting, helping some small house projects and entertaining 3 small grandsons with more energy than a stick of dynamite, I was able to photograph some of the less fortunate but very amazing creatures. They seem to survive whatever life brings and so they winter the weather. Longer fuller hair, fall fattened, nipping nutritious buds (Yum), and eating constantly. I found three deer just behind the house which served as a small wind break until moving on.

Deer at -50 wind chill eml — The Doe. Yep, it’s cold facing the wind!

Winter Deer 12 30 17 eml — The Fawn nipping buds in the brush

Broken antler deer eml — The buck. Notice his tines have both been broken off.

We were only guessing but the buck with both antlers broken off probably lost to a larger buck in the rut. The other scenario is a hunter missed and shot them off.

The deer are ready to winter the weather. We (the intelligent ones) try to weather the winter. We buy a new car battery when the car does not start in -30. We get a snow blower after the big snow storm, we look for our shovels after…and I am the picture boy of all the above.

I know people (sometimes they are rather peculiar) who winter the weather well. They seem to be prepared not only ahead of time but to assist those who are struggling at weathering the winter. Why fill your car with extra stuff I ask? Well since the heater on our car went out on our seven hour trek across northern Minnesota, we do now! I think I need a bigger car just for all the stuff needed on a trip in a blizzard at life threatening temperatures. I’m actually willing, ready and able to help someone who is wintering poorly and in a predicament. I found most of what I needed in the garage. Who knew?

So, how are you wintering this weather or life for that matter. Your job? Marriage? Handling kids? personal integrity? Need I go on? Are you able to assist those who need help? This week I was moved to help a college student who lost her whole family. Someone set up a go fund me page for funeral expenses. I may never meet her or know her but I was moved to help so we did. I confirmed with my wife that we could and we did. We cannot do much very often but it’s important to us to live this way.

I guess it’s never too late to be ready (ahead of time) to winter all of life’s weathers.

Gary

By the way: In my Spiritual Blog I am still writing about wintering the Soul. That will post soon for you who have an interest. An ongoing story that moves me may move you as well. Visit at https://garydweb.wordpress.com/ after january 22/2018.

Have a Great Christmas To You All Around The World

Ice fishing cp eml
To all you readers and fellow bloggers, Merry Christmas from the frozen lakes areas of northern United States. The sun is a bit inconspicuous through the cab and the trees as it sets over the small lake I was fishing. A safe 7″ of ice with the fold up shelter allowed me to see 9 fish and catch 3.

When I read your blogs from South Africa, UK, South America and so many warmer countries, I often wonder what I am missing that excites you. I only know what you are missing if you have never driven or walked on a frozen lake or peered down a hole in the ice as a monster fish suddenly appears to bite your hook (Or decide not to).

I dropped a camera down the hole to show you just what it looks like down there. I was catching some blue gill that day. Check out this utube video

Have a Merry Christmas fellow readers and bloggers. may you keep connected. May you also become more connected to the God who created all that we know and love.

For me, Christmas is a time where I reflect on how our creator exchanged His eternal Glory for a different kind of glory never seen before. A glory He wants to pass on to us through God in a finite human body as a baby. Inconspicuously inserting himself into his own creation to make a way to restore our relationship to Him. Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men. ” Luke 2:14

may you make room for Jesus in your everyday life this next year.

Merry christmas All

Gary

Get Yourself Out There!

It’s winter here. Quite a ways below freezing and the winter wonderland lies just outside. I cheated a bit and took a few pictures out the window from the comfort of home between sips of strong morning coffee. Here have a look…

I can still hear my mother telling us when we were little kids pressing our nose to the icy windows “bundle up, get your duds on and get out there. Shovel the snow first and play later”

So, whatever is on your daily bucket list that you cannot seem to get to, Bundle up, get your duds on and get out there! I even have a motivational picture for myself (it motivates me anyway, maybe you need your own picture) from the last time I thought “What should I accomplish today?”

Winter Pike on a spoon email — Caught through the ice on stout line, a hook and a stick as shown! Really!

Don’t procrastinate, life is short. Go get um!

Gary

Or you could go shopping for those last minute Christmas presents…

A Little Harvest Rambling, Time of Year Thing

Frost on the truck windshield. I think my brain looks like this during the harvest season

It’s that magical time of the year when rain turns to snow, lakes are freezing over, forests are bare of leaves and most humans are less than half prepared for the winter ahead. I think our fall-winter harvest season does something to the brain.

Most of us in this area of the country harvest our own meats this time of year. Venison, waterfowl, various small game and fish stack the freezers to last through the next few weeks or months. Early ice fishermen must have strange DNA as it’s possible to take a (non-photoshopped) picture of an ice shanty (with one or more fishermen inside) out on the thin ice and open water with a fisherman in a boat a stones throw from the ice shanty. Self proclaimed sensible people might have a lot to say about how much is wrong with that picture, but the rest of us might wonder which one is catching more fish? after all, we are in harvest mode here!

My neighbor has an odd tradition going; he spends bu-koo bucks on food plots and fancy condo deer stands with heaters, nice windows, a stash of food, cup holders and a place to put the thermos full of coffee. Most years all his deer are harvested quite close to the door of the cabin. I told him it would be more comfortable in his condo deer stands than sneaking out the back door and around the cabin in the snow with his bare feet to harvest the deer taking the last frozen apples off the tree.

Me, I’m normal. I get my deer walking through the woods or from a simple stand. This year I only had one cup of coffee and was in the middle of contemplating life from a deer stand (a good book title by the way) when a nice buck interrupted me. So now I am looking for my long cross country ski stuff as they distribute my weight better on thin ice.

My wife has a strange tradition going as well. She seems obsessed with life insurance quotes about this time of the year. I found her stash in my ice fishing bucket. don’t tell her but with all the money we saved by tossing those quotes I am getting her own set of skis and ice fishing stuff as an early Christmas gift.

Meanwhile I’m still looking for my ice scraper as my eyebrows and cheeks freeze sticking my head out the truck window going to the lake.

Happy Thanksgiving Deer

Gary

Seen in the woods

I carry a camera. When I walk the woods, I see.

See any wildlife in one of the pictures?

To really see, one has to thread their vision into every crevice of sight as far as possible otherwise all that is seen is the forest.

One of our deer hunting tales (true story) tells on one of our hunters who saw no deer from his stand. he was in a very scenic area so he took a few pictures with his camera. when he got home and looked at his pictures he discovered several deer were in one of the pictures.

I took this picture while trekking through the deep woods when I spotted the rabbit about 4 feet away. See the ears?

Life is a lot like a walk in the woods. Seeing what is really there is a practiced skill and it relates to every area of our lives should we care to interact with such details.

Why notice the pain in a stranger’s smile if I act indifferent? Why notice the old couples broken porch rail for the 20th time when my tools to help are in the garage? Why not see the young mother trying to help feed her family instead of the slow cashier (same person) in the line you happened to be stuck in? why not purpose to see beyond ourselves?

I am such a non-noticer. I have this tug of war to see or not to see. After all if I see I might have to care. If I care it will cost me something. I,Me, My…selfie time is important right? Do I use the care lens or the selfie lens today?

My daily prayer each morning is that I would see over the logs and beyond the brush and trees of life.

Gary

A Little Deeper

>Gary Fultz on...The Steak or the Sizzle? Picture truth #7
I often wonder what lies hidden in the lives of other bloggers. the adventurer in me loves to paddle into the fog and discover what lies beyond. The relational part of me would love to get around a campfire discussion with other like minded bloggers. Thus I began to explore a deeper blog about my relationship with God.

SO… I redirect those interested to My Spiritual Blog. Like the picture above, taken early one morning from an island deep in the heart of the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, there is light shining through the fog. Go toward the light and you will discover the Author of life who would invite you into one’s most important relationship.

Click here to see Gods Ways Are Different…

>Food for thought By Gary Fultz — Some spiritual food, discussion and warmth for the soul

Signiture eml

I Wish

“Grandpa, can we have another adventure tomorrow?”

I wish we could have a pause button on time. Took the boys fishing again without the success of the former fishing trip. It was still an adventure. more of a snake and spider adventure from the bank. The boys left several hooks and bobbers in the nearby trees. Some in trees that were not nearby. A nearby bank fisherman decided he had work to do at home about three casts later from the boys. Sorry man but not stifling the adventure.

“Grandpa, how old are you?” “How long will you live?” Me: “Well, I have taken to celebrating my birthday at least three times a year so I could live to be 150 or more” Grandson: “I don’t think it works that way Grandpa!” Me: “I Wish”

Grandson: “Grandpa, I wish you could live here forever” Me: “I will, but not here” Sometimes I want to pause time and just talk

What conversations do you hope for?

Gary

Bounty: A Tribute to Dad and Mom

I belong and am part of a family of “Bounty”

Everyone belongs and everyone contributes. It’s a way of life and seems in our DNA. Let me explain by way of our september adventures to visit some of the family back home. I have pictures to back it up!

My uncle knowing that I work for a truck bed cover manufacturer, ordered a cover so I could deliver it and save a bit of money. He also needed a recommendation for who could do an installation. It’s OK in our family system that we volunteer each other. If we can, we do. If we cannot they understand. It’s that simple. No keeping track of who has done more for the other.

We picked apples, crab apples, corn (lot of corn), onions, peppers, squash and potatoes till the car sagged from one of the brothers farms. A sister in law trimmed our little dogs nails in their pet grooming shop while we picked.

Somehow family seemed involved in everything while we who live the furthest away seem out of sync a bit…More in the sense that we are missing out on a lot of things with each other.

One brother is remodeling a bathroom for our handicapped daughter at Dad’s place. Two brothers are collaborating on building the cabinets for our sons new house. Dad often does parts runs for one brothers farm. Family gets really good deals on a half or whole beef from one farm. An Aunt gave me some trout so I brought it over to smoke it (Don’t worry dad has a smoker) and we put in some lamb-pork sausage from the farm as well. We had a couple of hours this morning before traveling the 5 hours to our house so Dad and I picked up a meal of pike from a little lake casting off shore. Fresh pike filleted boneless is a great meal. It was shared by a brother who is cutting up the blown down trees on his saw mill on dads land. I could keep going on and on about how we work together and help one another but here are some pictures.

7 siblings and Dad, and we are Family. Miss you mom.

4 things about Mom and Dad; 1) They were lovers of God, each other, us kids and our neighbors (a lot of others)

2) They had depth of character. They did what needed to be done when it was needed to get done (Not when they had time).

3) They worked earlier, later and harder than most people. Their kids now do as well.

4) They spent extra time talking and thinking life issues through. Their goals and how to get there were important. Their relationship skills were honed well and they were together in tackling all that life brought upon them.

Becoming a bountiful family is hard work. So is a Bountiful garden, a fruit bearing apple tree, a great herd of beef, straight and true boards off the sawmill, a remodeled bathroom and even a successful fishing trip. As Dad would say, “everything bountiful takes a lot of time, work and intentionality”.

Hey guys we left some apples ready in the freezer for making apple crisp!

Gary

Signiture eml

The Thrill of Frill

frill fril/ noun (Google “Frill”)

1. A strip of gathered or pleated material sewn by one side onto a garment or larger piece of material as a decorative edging or ornament

2. an unnecessary extra feature or embellishment.

“it was just a comfortable apartment with no frills”

synonyms: ostentation, ornamentation, decoration, embellishment, fanciness, fuss, chi-chi, gilding, excess

We love Frills. Frill is a spice for our everyday lives. Frill is unordinary, extraordinary, exciting, over the top and yes we get it. Well, maybe we get it.

Nature has Frills!

How about a sunset with frills? how about just showing the frill?

How about a frill on a plant?

I walked around our front yard and picked some of our mostly wild plants for my wife. Yes we have a place full of frills.

Hey, do we come with frills?

Smile, say a kind word to the cashier and use their name (notice the name tag). strike up friendly conversation while standing in a long line. In the workplace: Be pleasant. Be more than worth your pay. encourage your boss (not to be confused with buttering them up…be genuine with no ulterior motives), pick up after yourself (even in the fast food restroom), be on time and there every day (even when the fish are biting…this is me biting knuckles).

Frills are intentional

I mean it takes discipline, forethought and creativity for frills to become a part of us. Character. We all know someone like that. I believe our creator loves frills. I see them everywhere and try to capture frill moments in nature with the camera.

What are your favorite Frills you see in others? There is a Thrill to Frill!

Gary

Thanks for reading, feel free to comment, frills are ok.