Originally posted by volosong What a hilarious story! You have good storytelling ability. Sounds like you are in the petroleum exploration business.
I just type really, really fast, so it just comes out like I was talking.
No, I'm a GIS analyst now, although still cling to my cop/military roots as a part time soldier in the army. So I do things like you might see in Google Earth i.e. GPS surveys, precision installation of survey monuments, map making, slope/soil stability analysis, blah, blah, blah. And by choice I've specialized in non-urban work; meaning I look for contracts with the mining exploration and forest industries because that lands me in the mountains. Other GIS types like to stick to the cities doing cadastral work, network analysis for traffic and public transit, etc. The current work in the money patch is kind of an accident, and being stuck out on the bald ass prairie is pretty boring stuff even if the money is good. Hopefully, the contracts I'm working on in Argentina will come through - working in Pategonia and getting in a little flyfishing on the side would be great.
Quote: We can use a new find or two.
I'm no authority, but I kind of suspect we've already hit Peak Oil and it isn't going to be a lot of fun here on out. Consider too that China is expected to surpass the US in oil consumption in the next five years and India is not far behind - meanwhile, US consumption is still increasing 16% a year if I remember correctly. Anyways, I can't help out as I don't find the stuff, I just map the infrastructure once the industry has it in place.
Quote: You live in a beautiful part of the country and must be asking yourself about the validity of these 'global warming' claims.
Yeah, I'm pretty sceptical, but more from my science background and from what I see of it from a GIS perspective than anything else. Reducing our energy usage and pollution can only be good no matter what you believe, but the route we're on is kind of doubtful for me - especially if we're actually headed into a global cooling stage. Either way, I don't get too wrapped around the axle about it, as I'll be taking the long dirt nap under blue Montana skis before this ever gets resolved or proven one way or another. The wife and I just try to live a frugal lifestyle as far as our impact on where we live, and don't worry about the rest of it.
Quote: Looks like a good lens. It is almost up to the top of my wish list. Just waiting for more availability.
More availability??? I thought I just saw Adorama had them available for $340 or something like that. I got my lens within about ten days of ordering, I think, even though they said it was on backorder.
You can't wait ten days instead of three to five?
Anyways, when the weather clears up so I can see something in the viewfinder besides rain going past sideways, and I get out of the money patch for some time off, I think I'm going to really enjoy this lens. I could lend it to you until I got back home if you lived next door...
Speaking of the money patch, I better get back to packing for the trip back to work.