Hilarious Video

For some reason, this just made me laugh to the point where I have to share it!

End of January Updates...

Besides trying to nail my prospectus together and surviving my classes, not too much else has happened aside from the following:

-- Went on a field trip to Seahorse Key. It was a real blast and was actually worth missing the Traditional Bowhunters of Florida tournament for. My immune system didn't approve of the saltwater marshes or the mangroves though :(

-- Dabbled with the yahoo picture service. Besides Seahorse Key, I also did one for my Bowtech Equalizer and my Chek-Mate Hunter I. Once I figure out how to post them on my blog, I will post them here!

-- Took first place in the traditional category at the 3-D circuit shoot. Admittedly, it was a rather embarassing score for me (104/300) but heck, it's still a record for me considering I only lost 4 arrows (as opposed to my usual 7-8) and hit 60% of the targets. I've done much better at practices with 80% hit rates and scoring closer to 120/300, but under competetive conditions and extremely cold weather, I can't complain too much! I've now got a base-line for the rest of the season too and some much-needed practice for the upcoming TBoF shoot in March! And wish me luck that none of my professors decide to dump a mandatory field trip on THAT weekend! With luck, maybe I can dodge some of my field trips so I can make it to the rest of the circuit shoots -- after all, I'm also learning about Florida ecosystems... I actually did take my field notes with me to the shoot to practice my plant identification :)

-- Still writing the sequel to Telcontar Restored. It'll be a long time before I post this one, probably an even longer gap than with Telcontar... All I can say at this point is that my ecosystems of Florida class is really leaving its mark on me, as is my time with my shooting buddies!

Won't the Lizards Ever Learn?

For some reason, my most interesting shots occur right when I don't have my camera. Today after a rather torturous bus ride to avoid the rain that never came, I decided to go to Gator Bowmen for a bit before studying. I took my recurve with me and here's a list of some of the more exciting shots besides being able to get decent groups up to about 25 yards and even hitting fairly small spots at 20 yards and under:

-- There was a bit of a dark spot on one of the field targets that showed up much more clearly than the actual spot. I nailed it from about 10 yards and it was under fairly low light conditions. Turned out that dark spot was a lizard who apparently got a bit too lazy (or cold) to move. I saw the spot writhing after I hit it and sure enough when I went to retrieve the arrow, it was bloody and there was a pretty mangled-looking lizard with a big hole in its back.

-- There was a shot I was taking from about 12 yards for one of these 10 yard target (for compounds) because there are some pretty darned close shots in 3-D shoots with tiny 10 point rings. I aimed a bit high as I tend to do when it's fairly dark and I saw a lizard scampering out and another falling out from under the target and yet another flying out in panic. The one that fell out was in two pieces and I pulled out a bloody arrow.

What did I do afterwards? I continued shooting -- I get far too little time at the range as it is so I just kept shooting until it was too dark! I got some strange sense of satisfaction in being able to shoot these little guys and there's also something oddly fun about being able to catch these lizards, preferably without forcing them to jettison their tails.

As an aside... it's also quite satisfying to be able to shoot a palmetto bug, roach, or freakishly large spider from about 10-20 yards back. I think it's the whole concept of the target that shows up really strongly against the black or white background that draws me to these more interesting targets. Let's just hope that if I do start hunting, I can land a nice solid kill-shot either through the lungs, windpipe, or femoral artery!

And Now I Know!

I finally shot through the chronometer today to get an actual number for how fast my trusty Chek-Mate is with my wooden arrows. The number that came out was 134 feet per second consistently at a 25" draw (anchoring at the corner of my mouth instead of the back of my jaw). This means I'm getting about 37-38 lbs of draw weight tops. That's not too bad for that piddly of a draw weight and heavy arrows! So I'm guessing that I was getting around 145-155 fps at my preferred draw (back of the jaw) with the much lighter but still fairly heavy carbon arrows I used to use.

I'm so tempted to get 50 lb @ 25" (around 57-59 lbs @ 28") limbs for my Chek-Mate recurve to see what kind of speeds I can get, plus I know that 50 lbs on a traditional bow is within my comfort range... but that'll have to wait until I have more daylight hours to myself.

Daydreams...

Earlier today after I sneaked in a bit of time at the range with my compound, I came back to the sight of a pair of fairly large ducks wandering around. I suddenly felt an urge to stalk them for a few yards, taking my time to estimate the distance and adjusting my field sight for the shot. Keep in mind, my sight is NOT appropriate at all for hunting and most people who hunt with a compound use fixed pin sights, although I know a few compound shooters who shoot bare-bow. I'm just following the ducks, trying to move as undetectedly as possible. I went so far as to practice nocking an arrow to my bow quietly and taking aim, but I didn't draw back, knowing that some psychotic neighbor might report me just for drawing back. Plus I don't have appropriate points on my carbon arrows -- the field points would doom the ducks to a rather slow death compared to a nice broadhead. And then there was the issue of dealing with the carcasses. I merely continued to stalk the ducks, always estimating distance and imaginging where I'd aim on them. Maybe someday I can really take a real shot, but for now, I have to content myself with target shooting. Oh I also came to the conclusion that if I ever do shoot those ducks, I'd use my recurve -- at that short of a distance, I think I can still get a good pass-through and my aim is good enough to guarantee a good kill shot.

I really hope I can do something about my academic schedulling -- the prospect of having at most one day to shoot (unless you count destroying the walls in my apartment as shooting) isn't a pleasant one. I came close to using the school's free psychological services when I couldn't get to the range for over a month... so the thought of a semester with almost no shooting is one that leaves me with a very nasty feeling in my stomach and more than a bit of anxiety. I don't function without alone time out in the wilderness as most people around me become painfully aware of! To be honest, I don't think I could ever return to living in a big city -- I need my outdoors a lot and there's few things that nauseate me more than seeing open spaces being turned into horrible things like shopping malls. Aren't there already enough of those horrible things where the only things worth looking at are the book store and hardware store... and a sporting goods store? But I digress... bottom line, not enough time for myself outdoors and I become a real safety hazard.

There's nothing that can compare to the joys of being outdoors among the trees with a trusty weapon and mastering it to the point of being able to consistently hit that distant, almost abstract spot. The compound is a wonderful blend of both physical and mental challenge, a chance to empty the mind and to "be the spot" as I aim and hold it up until I can slowly squeeze that trigger for a smooth release. The traditional provides a different set of challenges for me, mostly mental as I develop my aiming instincts and sense of distance, but also physical in making sure my form is consistent in everything from the angle I lean in to where I anchor my shot. It is in shooting that I can really re-energize myself both mentally and physically, a truly intense source of happiness and relaxation. I guess a friend of mine was right when he once told me that I'd find my strength, both mental and physical, once more if I spent more time outdoors in the wilderness with a quiver full of arrows and a bow in my hand!

3-D Vanity Shots

All I can say is despite having done well in 3-D last week with my compound (distance judging, finding what to hit, etc), I like the feel of my little Chek-Mate recurve much better for 3-D... even if I'm getting about half the points that I would be getting with my Equalizer. With my recurve, I was quite pleased with myself for hitting almost all of the targets, even if I miscalculated on my aim and hit any of the following locations: under the tail, where the sun don't shine, nose, knee. I'm looking forward to the upcoming 3-D shoots, academics permitting!

I'm Going to Lizard Hell...

I think I just set a new record for myself today. I've maimed 4 lizards today, 1 of which I know was fatal. As I was pulling my arrows, I've had the following occur:

-- What looked like a smooth, thin twig fell out of the target, except it was twitching violently. This happened twice.
-- A butt, tail, and hind legs with blood on them came out as I was pulling one arrow out. It was followed by the rest of the little critter. My camera was dead by then, so sorry, no picture :(
-- A lizard with a mangled-looking leg/foot running away from me when I went to pull the arrows.

I managed to catch 3 lizard too -- they were unusually slow today. One of them actually shed the tip of its tail. I swear, I am NEVER going to pick up another lizard by the tip of its tail again! The tail actually fell off like a really weak rubber band. Then there was one lizard that peed/pooped so I just let it go. Then there was one lizard that I was able to hang onto long enough to take pictures of it. It was pretty neat actually because once I let it near my arrow, it latched on like velcro. I was extremely tempted to take it with me, but I decided against it and just let it run off and do whatever things lizards do after the terror of being caught by an archer who's probably killed many of its buddies. They should be grateful that I wasn't shooting traditional, which has a much larger error function and is more likely to hit them! Most of the lizards seem to be smart enough to avoid the bull's eye area, which protects them from most compound shooters. If there's a lizard god, I'm probably going to go straight to lizard hell for all the lizards I've maimed or killed!




Here's some of my highlights from today: A 36-36-36-36 yard fan and a 64-59-55-52 yard walk-up. I seem to be a lot stronger in the hunter side, although targets 22-26 seem to always give me trouble, probably from my stamina flagging a bit before my energy comes back at targets 27 and 28, which are so close that even I can see where I hit. I did go past 500 today -- got a 503, although I know there were several targets I could've easily done a lot better on, especially all of the under 35 yard targets, where I have a tendency to give away points by either taking my shot too soon or having my left wrist twitch at the last instant. All in all, though, I'm happy that I'm starting to close that gap between me and my shooting group -- with enough practice, I should soon find myself slowly approaching a perfect 560... not sure how long that will take, but it's a goal as long as my academics will let me outdoors! I'm not exactly thrilled about having early morning classes, late afternoon seminars, and class/seminar chopping my afternoon so I can't even sneak off campus, and most likely, most of my weekends being taken over too, but heck, I'm here for my education and to contribute to the field of ecology... and that takes priority over everything else, even over my own mental and physical health. I already miss having those night-time geography classes!

More FAQs on Dunheasa/Telcontar

I've been getting yet more questions... so here are my responses to them:

From Whispers from Afar"

Q: Who is Tarathorn based on?
A: Academically, Tarathorn's based on me, but the persona is based on someone I knew at Caltech from the ballroom dance team. She was also inspired by some freakishly young students I've run into -- those little 14-year olds who made the grading curves in my biology classes really hurt!

Q: How close-to-life were the professors in the story?
A: Some were almost dead-on, some are amalgamations of various characters I've run into over the years, most just had quirks from memorable professors I've had over the years.

Q: Who or what was Billie-Joanna (from Whispers from Afar) based on?
A: A favorite D&D character I played in a very long campaign, who also shows up in Telcontar Restored but in an older, mellower form.

Q: Was organic chemistry THAT bad to have a story like Whispers from Afar?
A: Yes and no. It was a pretty painful series, but at least I didn't have anything more embarassing than a yield of 1% on an experiment that should've yielded at least 25%

Q: Who/what were the Tuonela from Whispers from Afar based on?
A: To be honest, I wasn't thinking too much about that. The name "Tuonela" I think comes from either Finnish or Scandinavian mythology, Finnish more likely. As far as the people themselves, physically I visualize them as looking more Aztec or Mayan but culturally, fairly western European. The name "Andraste" comes from Celtic mythology, the name just stood out for some random reason at the time. A future story may flesh out the Tuonela a whole lot more.

Q: Will Tarathorn ever go back to Tuonela?
A: Who knows... ?

From multiple stories:

Q: Which characters are based on you?
A: In a sense, most of them are in some aspect or another, usually something academic or some really interesting/amusing (mis)adventure. Joanne de Salvo (from Journey to Dunheasa) is most blatantly based on me and Captain Greywolf is a fantasy version of me. Kestrel is also pretty blatantly based on myself, although a much spazzier version!

Q: Is Tuonela connected to the Crossroads? And where exactly is Tuonela?
A: Not directly but it is a lot closer to the Crossroads than this world! It's in the world known as Palindor, which is where Vincent and Ivan end up going in Telcontar Restored when Kestrel takes them on a the little trip.

Q: Chronologically, how are these stories supposed to go?
A: Journey to Dunheasa is first. Whispers from Afar and Peek at Geekster Life take place around the same time, although Peek goes further ahead in time. After those two, Telcontar takes place.

The Wicker Man

Here's the Wicker Man that my friends built before we set him on fire. Basically, my traditional archery coach and her husband have a New Years party where they build this big Ent-like thing and all the guests put something in, either a scroll with a note or some paper/wood/cloth-based item into the Wicker Man as a new year's wish or resolution. My fellow archers and I nick-named this one "Treebeard" after the old Ent in Lord of the Rings and I really felt at home once again when we were discussing how big Treebeard really had to be to be able to pick up two hobbits. It's really refreshing to be able to talk about Tolkien and Dungeons and Dragons again! Besides the ritual burning, there was also plenty of really good food, including barbequed wild boar, which is much, much better than the store-bought stuff! I might just take up bow-hunting to get that occasional fix for really good meat!

There were some people who cracked me and my friends up when they decided to make Treebeard anatomically correct, at least for a human! I didn't realize that they put a sock somewhere amusing until one of the children couldn't stop laughing and pointed out where the sock was hanging. Then we also noticed that several people had placed their scrolls in other places where things didn't quite belong. You can probably guess based on the pictures what was so hilarious!

There's Treebeard burning brightly:

Traditional Fun

I tried my new arrows for the first time on Friday and got pretty good results... considering that I'm fairly rusty in my traditional shooting and had to work to get my form back to par. I forgot that 40-50 yards is VERY difficult for me, but even when I missed, my arrows always came back to me. Nothing broke, nothing came off, but darn, my bow nailed those arrows in harder than some compounds I've been around! It's amusing knowing that my recurve is nailing those arrows in deeper at 40 yards than my compound coach's 61 lb compound does at the same distance, although a lot of it is also the weight distribution on the arrow. I also tried a precision drill at 15 yards and while I wasn't quite able to hit the bull's eye on those tiny little things, I did get a pretty good group once I got my form back together. I think these arrows are a real set of winners in my book and hopefully I'll be able to nail some 3-D targets at the upcoming TBoF shoot this month! It's very refreshing to shoot traditional and I think I've decided that even if I am a lot more competetive and have a blast with my compound, I still love my recurve more!