Old Becomes New Again

"There is nothing worse than a sharp image of a fuzzy concept." ~Ansel Adams

First, I want to say thank you to Stephen Haynes for his commentary on my last blog post regarding copyrights. Posting a link on his blog, Magic Flute Fine Art Nudes was definitely a kind enough gesture and I appreciate that. His own blog link has been on my blog roll for some time as a resource to all of you and I honestly hope that you visit it often, first to admire the artwork of a master, but second to be privy to the issues that face photographers and what you can do about it. As I mentioned in the last post, Mr. Haynes is on hiatus from the blog, but he has not taken it down or denied anyone access to it. You can most definitely learn a great deal from heeding the words of this professional. I've had to address with two models issues regarding 2257 and you can guess who's book I am referencing again before I speak on the matter. I'm afraid it might be prudent for many of us who have an affinity for the artistic nude to become  a little more familiar with this issue as it presently stands. Having the means to protect yourself with due diligence cannot be outside the scope of wisdom. A defense of ignorance will be no aid to anyone who's work is challenged on the matter. A model I met with this very day puts that issue to practice and I also just mentioned today as well, in a message with Brittany II, that I need to change my current policies to more, and better, reflect the newly amended regulation.

Its been interesting to go back over images I've taken in the past. Some of which are shots that I've taken during modeling sessions that I either overlooked or didn't bother to edit for one reason or another. On those images, its been interesting to take a second look and peruse the gallery for possible compositions with potential. Some are also a few shots that I'd taken on a CF card of one subject and then filled the card up with a model shoot or another event. I discovered some old barns that I had taken while in Kentucky, maybe two years ago, in the same gallery of a model shoot. I shot the barns while on the way to see the models, but had forgotten them. I wish I had gotten more, but there were only a few. Other images were "in-between" images, I shot while I was shooting something else. For instance, during another model shoot, I took some shots of flowers and rocks, but I never reviewed them again. So, I've spent the majority of this weekend doing just that and its been rewarding. The best of this past week's results have been model shoots I did not long after I began shooting digital. I shot film before this and I've very much progressed in my skill in Photoshop since those shoots. Granted, I wish I still had a darkroom...if only for the option, but I could not help but laugh at my original attempts at photo editing using PS7! So yes, there has been a dire need to re-edit many of these images. Presently, I am reviewing some of my galleries of images that were shot in film. Of these, almost every digital scan is very poor in quality. I'm contemplating rescanning them for better results in the future as the expense is not presently necessary.

“...Frankly, I don’t know if anyone thought we’d go from among the nation’s lowest for unemployment to its highest...."
 -Jeremy Aguero, a principal in local research and consulting firm Applied Analysis, Las Vegas Review Journal

On another note, I'm sad that I have elected to finally let go of my Las Vegas Art Models Group. Too many current concerns demand my more immediate attention. I haven't held a workshop in some time due to a lack of participation, mainly. For about two years, these workshops were central in my priorities, but at some point last year, the people just stopped coming. Part of it, I would imagine might be economic concerns. For the longest time, Las Vegas was No. 2 behind Detroit as the worst hit metropolitan in America. As of this past May, Vegas went over 14.1% unemployment and now lead the nation. And despite this, Congress, namely Republicans, kill the Jobless bill that would have extended unemployment benefits for all of these Nevadans across the state who are out of work. So that's one issue facing my workshop participants. The other is competition. My vision for the LVAMG is one that was never a function of profit. I charged money to pay the model and supplement my expenses to organize an effective workshop. It was nothing I could plan on living off of or pay bills with for sure. However, other organizers popped up who were able to provide better facilities, multiple glamour models, and have credentials of 20 or more years of photographic experience that they were willing to impart upon any and all who were willing to fork over the bucks. I paid the models out of pocket when participants stopped showing. And to be honest, my group was called the "art models" group...not photographer's group. The group was started as an effort to help art models get more work outside of the classrooms in art departments. Maybe I'll revisit this venture again, when my focus can come back to it and my resources can more effectively acquaint such an endeavor.

A Lil' Bit on Copyrights

"Only one thing is impossible for God: to find any sense in any copyright law on the planet . . . Whenever a copyright law is to be made or altered, then the idiots assemble."

- Mark Twain

Some things about copyrights are tricky, and then there are those that are clear cut. I admit that I don't understand everything myself. I'm not an attorney and I don't speak Legalese. I've listened to and read several blog posts, forum articles, and much commentary about how to copyright, what gets a copyright, and what's necessary to do it. I recently read an extensive article on copyrights and not one time did it mention the U. S. Copyright Office or the Library of Congress. Now it should be taken into consideration that I've already addressed the issue that I am not an attorney. Anything you read here about copyrights should be researched by yourself and concerns need to be taken up with someone who has passed a state bar exam for your area in the field of law. So in other words, Consult An Attorney.

To begin with, I'm only speaking to the copyright of photographic works. So I'm not covering all media of intellectual property. Photographically speaking, it's true that you own the copyrights to an image as soon as you release the shutter. So as soon as you capture the image, its your's. You can put the copyright stamp (the c in the circle...©, which you can produce by holding down the Alt-key on a PC and typing 0169). This is normally done in three parts, the copyright symbol, the year of the copyright, and the owner. So mine looks like this: © 2010 Terrell Neasley. Once you've got that done, you can place that notice anywhere on your photo you like. Some people put it across the center, so its not so easily removed. I usually put mine in a corner of the image and fade it a little. You can do what you feel comfortable with. 

Once you've taken the shot and included the copyright notice, all that is left is proving it's yours. This is where most people get into trouble. I've heard several theories as to how this is done, but there's no need to go into all that. The only thing that will stand up in court as proof that you own said image is your registration with the U.S. Copyright Office of the Library of Congress. Here is the difference between a registered image and one that is not. As it relates to theft, if another agency or someone else uses your image without permission, you can take them to court if you deem the offense serious enough. Mind you...court a'int cheap. Without a copyright, you have to establish somehow that the picture belongs to you. If you can't tough luck. But lets say the image still has the metatag data embedded in it and it identifies you and your camera as the owner. Great, now ownership has been established. All that happens now...I should say probably happen is that the judge will slap the offender on the wrist and say, "Hey...Cut it out! Quit using this guy's images. Court adjourned." And then you have to give your lawyer some money and pay the court fees. You might get fortunate enough to get the judge to order the defendant to pay some of that. ON THE CONTRARY... if you ARE registered, it would go like this. You produce the registration, the court slaps the offending party with Actual Damages by using the industry standard for licensing fees had the defendant legally acquired your permission (depending on how the image was used); You'd get Statutory Damages upwards of $150,000 just for him being a butt-head, AND the guy would have to cover your legal bills. See the benefit here?

So how do you register your copyright? Well first, you have to answer one question. Has the image been published? If it has, you need to make two copies of it. If not, one will suffice. You can't send in published images as a group via electronic means though. Its got to be hard copies.  The C.O. defines Publication as: 

Publication Under copyright law, publication is the distribution of copies of a work—in this case, a photograph—to the public by sale or other transfer of ownership or by rental, lease, or lending. Offering to distribute copies to a group of people for purposes of further distribution or public display also constitutes publication. However, a public display of a photograph does not in itself constitute publication. The definition of publication in the U.S. copyright law does not specifically address online transmission. The Copyright Office therefore asks applicants, who know the facts surrounding distribution of their works, to determine whether works are published.

Go to the website, fill out the forms, include it with the disk, send it in, and wait. It can take MONTHS for electronic submissions to get the certificate back (or even 2 years for hard copies), but that's okay. It's backdated to the day the copyright office gets it in the mail. By the way, send it registered mail and get delivery confirmation on it and file that away too. Within 90 days of creation, your image is covered. Outside of that, your protection is limited if the image is not registered at the time of an offense. So on day 50, if you see your shot in a magazine, you can still go register the shot (with the next 40 days) and take the magazine to court. If its day 93 by the time you see your unregistered image in that magazine, you can still go register the shot, and then sue, but damages will be limited or could be nil. So a newly born image is automatically protected for 90 days, registered or unregistered, at the time of offense. After that, it has to be registered before the offense. So if its a whole year (365 days) after creation by the time you register, and then at day 366 someone offends, you can still take them to court and make'em pay.

As a rule, many photogs send in all their new works created every 3 months. So every 90 days, they send in everything they did as a collective unit or single body of work at a cost of $50 (Its $65 for a group if published. Check current fees). You can save $15 if you use the electronic submission. You can visit the website to figure out what forms you'll use for hard copies. These have changed recently so you may need to check again, if you think you already know. 

There is a plethora of creditable information governing copyrights. My second most valuable source is Photo Attorney.com, run by Carol E. Wright. She is an attorney specializing in the law for photographers. In fact, right now her latest blog post covers protecting your images. You can more than likely search or peruse her blog to get a bunch of professional advice that cover the basics and bring you up to date on current issues. I've detailed only the basic info that you can easily find. Things like Fair Use, Licensing/Creative Commons, and Reg 2257 are topics that the pros and legal advisors specialize in. I can only generalize. In fact, here are some of Carol Wright's important articles as posted on her blog, of course if she says anything different from me, go with her's:

1. Help I've Been Infringed! - Now What Do I Do?

2. Registering Your Copyrights Using the eCO System

3. Using the DMCA Takedown Notice to Battle Infringement

4. The Fuss About Fair Use

I also recommend heavily Stephen Haynes. He has taken a hiatus from his blog as of a week ago, but you can still search through it for plenty of details and issues. He's an attorney also and wrote the definitive book covering this Reg 2257 stuff, "A Photographer's Guide to Section 2257" . You can get the soft cover version or buy it in PDF. I got it, its worth it. I recommend it. He's helping with a lawsuit against the government because of some of the rights photographers have that are infringed upon by 2257. 

I think this is one of the longest posts I've done. You're probably tired of me by now. So I'll forgo Creative Commons Licencing Agreements, and International Copyrights. I'm sure you can look that stuff up anyways. Take a look at TinEye, the reverse image search engine. I advise researching how to use metadata in your shots and being careful of where you place your images for display online. Its a simple thing to capture an image from online. It makes me wonder why we use unprotected sites like DeviantArt, Flikr, Model Mayhem, and even Blogger, to display our work. Why do we do that? What do we truly gain from the assumed risk? Anyone...

Bringing Back Sam

"Beginning today, treat everyone you meet as if they were going to be dead by midnight. Extend to them all the care, kindness and understanding you can muster, and do it with no thought of any reward. Your life will never be the same again."

- Og Mandino

(This is how I feel sometimes!)

I can honestly say that I have just about adapted to digital photography in the way that I did with film. I could spend seemingly endless hours in a darkroom. While in grad school, a few years back, I'd easily say 75% of my time was spent developing film and prints in a lab. I've clocked more than 24 hours straight...minus the bathroom break and food on more than a single occasion. My academic peers struggled to understand how I could expect to handle the various class projects, papers, and exams since scholastic endeavors were not my priority. Nonetheless I finished among the top in my class for both degree programs. I'm not going to lie and say it was easy. There were many sleepless nights and days, for that matter. I just did what I had to do. Photo was important to me and I had to have it. It may not have been the wisest thing, but it has paid off. I've learned so much more because of my film background and its helped me appreciate fine art photography to a greater degree. The above cartoon was really funny to me. Trust me, I can relate.

Model, Samantha

I had just begun to play with darkroom manipulations when I ended up moving to Lost Wages, I mean, Las Vegas. I was dismayed because I was just beginning to discover my own style in the darkroom. Inspired by Jerry Ulesmann, I began to see what was actually possible with film that I never imagined could be true. I liken it unto Roger Bannister's quest to be first to break the 4-minute mile. It was imagined impossible until he did it, after which several other runners accomplished the feat within the next few years. This was the sort of effect Ulesmann's work had on my own art. Granted, I don't place myself in a Ulesmann category, but you get the idea. As for digital, its taken me another almost 4 years to began to feel comfortable enough to pick up where I left off in film. I've been doing more of this style lately, basically playing around in Photoshop and figuring it out as I go. I can pretty much look at a shot and get a general idea of what I want to do with it, but lots of it is trial and error. I still feel that there is a slight loss in craftsmanship in digital photography. Partly that may be because in most cases, a craftsman used his/her hands to mold, build, or create something from raw materials. It had an aesthetic value that was created from the common and your style or technique differentiated your own work from similar creations of another craftsman. I guess the same can hold true even though your efforts are in effect, inputs into a computer. I've looked at enough artwork though, that I can in many cases, discern  and identify a particular photographer's work just by the style of the photograph.

Back Patio, Sam's Place, Las Vegas

These are shots of Samantha. Its been more than a year since I've worked with her last. Things got a little busy in her life and we just never touched base with one another again. I was very much surprised to get a call from her while I was in Tennessee to express an interest in continuing where we left off. Sam has actually become a photographer in her own right in since I last met her and we've discussed a few collaborations of our own. Its always good to talk to Sam. You always leave her feeling upbeat and having been inspired from great conversations. These are some preliminary imagery that I sort of took off running with. I got almost 200 images in this session and have edited around 30 or so. You can follow her happenings on her blog Anais Productions as she details her activities as a photog and model.

My Buddy Umit Drops in Again

"I will avoid despair, but if this disease of the mind infects me then I will work on in despair. I will toil and I will endure. I will ignore the obstacles at my feet and keep my eyes on the goals above my head, for I know that where dry desert ends, green grass grows."

- From the Greatest Salesman in the World, by Og Mandino, Ch. 10 : The Scroll Marked III, p. 66

Ironically enough, right after my post of how hot it's been in Vegas, the temperature dropped to more comfortable and reasonable measures. It lasted about a week or so before the temps started to soar again. I much appreciate the brief respite. It only got sweltering a few times a little after mid day. But best of all, we had a nice cloud cover over the weekend while my good ol' buddy, Umit was here. I got to spend the day with him on Friday and we drove around the city looking at shopping prospects. Umit is my grad school compadre who is here visiting from Turkey. I hadn't seen him for 4 years since we parted ways after graduating the MBA program at Murray State University in KY. In December of 07, I did a blog post entitled, "Tribute to Umit", in which I chronicle our experiences and how we met. I was excited that he got to come back to the States again and swing by Las Vegas. He was stateside once before a couple of years back but didn't get to stop anywhere close by. It was certainly good to get to talk to my friend in person for a change. I just wish we had more time to catch up.

Umit, shopping at Tommy Bahama at 

Town Square, Las Vegas

I came across this interesting article the other day: "Rare photo of slave children found in NC attic", by NICOLE NORFLEET, Associated Press Writer – Thu Jun 10, 2010. It details a few interesting points about the picture. First is that its of children. Second, its accompanied by a $1,150 Bill of Sale for one of the children which is no small amount. Thirdly, it was taken by either 19th Century War Photographer, Matthew Brady, who was famous for his Civil War depictions and portraits of President Abraham Lincoln and General Robert E. Lee, or one of his apprentices. A collector paid $50 Grand for the shot and the Bill of Sale. Who has 50 grand just laying around in an economy like this? I mean, Dang! Some dude had to have $50K that wasn't already allocated to anything when he hears about some rare photo and figures, "I think I want that...". How do you explain that to the Mrs? She's probably wondering why it wasn't already being spent on her! Nah...listen to me hating on the rich. It was probably purchased on credit, anyway. Glad I don't have his Visa bill. (Now I feel better.)

Looking out at the MGM and Tropicana 

from his Excalibur Hotel room

Mr. GQ! Yeah. I started to have him show some hair on 

his chest for ya'll, but then I thought...Nah, he's cool.

Blogger has some new template designs that I think I'll be trying out at some point. It doesn't appear to allow you to widen out the content area, so I'll have to figure that one out again. I'd been wondering when they'd have something new for us. The new look I've been searching for still eludes me. The current format is not a bad one though, but it lacks that "Oomph!" that I so desire. At some point, I need to establish my brand concept and have my website and blog in concert with one another. I want everything consistent. I've done that with my business card and some brochures. Your marketing needs to agree is all. So that's my goal...to have all my sites with my logo, color scheme, and feel to establish that brand recognition. Not quite there yet though. Incidentally, that quote above is of particular interest to me today. I've read everything Og Mandino has put to print. I should probably read him again. I particularly like the end, "...where the dry desert ends, green grass grows." Sounds like Las Vegas to ME! Therefore I will persist here until I see that green grass.

It's Hot! Damn Hot!

"A woman is like a tea bag - you can't tell how strong she is until you put her in hot water."

- Eleanor Roosevelt 

*Sorry... I just like that quote. Its got nothing to do with any of my topics.

"Hey, can you tell me what's your name? 

"My name is Roosevelt E. Roosevelt." Roosevelt, what town are you stationed in? "I'm stationed in Poontang." Well, thank you, Roosevelt. What's the weather like out there? "It's hot! Damn hot! Real hot! Hottest thing is my shorts. I could cook things in it. A little crotch pot cooking." Well, tell me what it feels like. "Fool, it's hot! I told you again! Were you born on the sun? It's damn hot! It's so damn hot, I saw these little guys, their orange robes burst into flames. It's that hot! Do you know what I'm talking about?" What do you think it's going to be like tonight? "It's gonna be hot and wet! That's nice if you're with a lady, but ain't no good if you're in the jungle!" Thank you, Roosevelt." 

--- Robin Williams, from "Good Morning, Vietnam!"

Summer has arrived here in the Las Vegas Valley a little early...like by three weeks. Already, we are getting record temperatures. At 108 degrees, its pretty dog-gone hot and the hottest time of the year is still a ways off yet. I don't feel all that smart when I walk outside and my mind asks myself, "Why are we here, again?". But honestly, where can you go? Wildfires, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, or blizzards...something's going to get ya. I still say we bring Al Gore back and force him to be Energy Czar whether he wants to or not. Something's gotta be done. Global warming really sucks.

Joanie, Dry lake bed, Nevada

On an entirely different note, I was having a conversation with a friend of mine and I was asked about celebrity shoots. Megan Fox came up in our discussion and he asked if she'd be my celebrity of choice to do a nude shoot with. When I said no, he gave me a look of disbelief, but threw out a few more model/actress names. Rhianna, Brittany Spears, and several more popular names were all dismissed. Still disbelieving me, he asked me to identify who'd be my choice. At first, I said that if the choice were mine, I'd select two of the first models I worked with, but only once. I didn't mention the names, but in truth, I'd like another shot at my friends, Sara and Elizabeth. This was not acceptable to him. He wanted celebrities. I'm not the star-struck type, but I did give him two names that popped into my head. I'd have to say if there were two celebs I think I'd like to work with, it would have to be ESPN Analyst Sage Steele, and the Travel Channel's own, Samantha Brown. My friend didn't understand my choices. He recalled Sage Steele, but had no knowledge of Samantha Brown. I informed him that his not knowing her did not disqualify her. She's on TV often enough whether she's on channels he watches or not. Traveling all over the world with a model is a life-long dream of mine anyway. Samantha is definitely a qualifier in that arena. So at any rate, they are my choices.

Joanie was very patient and never complained about 

putting her tush on rough spots.

I need to get back to doing my art nudes. Its been a loooong while since I've done it regularly. Joanie, is the only person I've worked with since October, I believe. Its been tough to find the time while I've had other concerns. I wasn't even trying to shoot any nudes. In fact, I would not have even gotten to shoot Joanie had she not asked me first. The shots you now see were done a month or so ago on a second shoot I did with her. I now have a few models lined up for the near future, that I've been in talks with. I was supposed to work with a friend while in Tennessee, but it just didn't work out. Normally, I'd have found a back-up, but I was sort of sure of this girl, so I didn't hunt for anyone else when she originally said yes. That back-fired on me, but such is the business. Right now, there are at least three new models that I'm looking forward to. Actually, I've shot with one of them before, but its been more than a year. There's also Faerie whom I'm due to see this upcoming weekend, but I don't know if we'll shoot. Its more of a social thing, but I'm taking the camera anyway. I never want to visit Faerie without my camera. So hopefully, I'm looking at 5 potentials (another one popped in my head.)

Abstract image of Joanie

Dave Rudin and I talked extensively last night and one of our topics was the nude drought we've both been in.  The two of us tend to envy Dave Levingston who seems to shoot daily. (BTW, be sure to update your links to DaveL's new blog site.) There's no way DaveR could handle that work load with his film photography. In fact, he discusses the 30 rolls he's still needing to develop from February, in his latest blog posting. I don't know if I could handle that load either. I still spend a lot of time editing and can easily get back logged. I could probably handle 4 to 6 shoots a month, though. One thing DaveR pointed out that I didn't realize was that actor Dennis Hopper, who passed away recently, was also a photographer. I knew about the exploits of Leonard Nimoy, Spock from Star Trek, and his foray into some serious art nude work, but I hadn't the slightest clue about Mr. Hopper. I came across this Chasing Light blog post by NY Photographer Doug Kim, who displays some excellent shots taken by Dennis Hopper. My favorite is the first one of Paul Newman. I just finished a Paul Newman movie called Exodus just a few hours ago, in fact.

I Wish I Had Given Al Gore More Consideration

"If you asked me to name the three scariest threats facing the human race, I would give the same answer that most people would:nuclear war, global warming and Windows."

- Dave Barry

The past few weeks, mainly all of May actually, have been an interesting one. Much of it has been contending with the Veteran's Administration regarding injuries and problems from my Army days. As of recently, the wrist has been wrapped up for the last 3 weeks, but trust me there are other issues too. This is the first time in my life where I've felt like the body is just breaking down. Yeah, I know...people keep saying I'm getting old is the rampant joke. I've never had an issue with my age, but at 41, I know I experience pains that should be a ways off, yet. I beat the hell out of my body and practically gave it away to the service of my country in my youth. I gotta tell ya... I'm paying for it now.

Daughter and Granddaughter

As mentioned in my last post, I got to spend a little time in Tennessee visiting my brand-spanking new grand daughter. My mom also flew to TN and that was a pleasant visit as well. It was a first for getting to spend time with just my mom. Usually some of the other siblings or family members were around, but during out stay, we shared a room at the Millennium Maxwell House Hotel in Nashville. I don't remember ever having Mama all to myself. My daughter and her husband have two cars so I got the loan of her car to chauffeur moms around when necessary. Tennessee, especially the Nashville and Clarksville area were recently hit with record flood waters only weeks before our arrival and it was still raining. Waters were receding by the time we got there, but you could still feel the dampness in the air. Humidity was high. There was an extreme contrast in environments. I flew in from one of the hottest and driest places in the U.S. into an area of the country with the most water looming in the air still. My body hadn't experienced that since my deployment to Central America from Fort Campbell on a peace-keeping mission. We practically needed scuba gear just to walk off the plane. TN was also so green...a total opposite to the desert browns. I got lots of pictures that I am still editing on, mainly  pics of the baby along with family and friends who came to see the baby. These are a few of the miscellaneous shots I took.

Tugboat heading down the post-flooded Cumberland River.

So what's my title about, you ask...

I recently and finally watched "An Inconvenient Truth" which was made back in 2006. I'm 4 years behind on this documentary. I just never made time for it, mainly because I did't really like Al Gore all that much and I can't really tell you why. At the time the documentary was made, I wasn't keen on environmental change and didn't understand fully what we could do to make a real difference. I just didn't believe it could be done. The different advocate groups could yell and preach all they wanted but I just didn't see the rest of the world caring so much and thus my own attitude became very passive about the issue. We weren't giving up oil. I couldn't see electric cars replacing American muscle. Solar panels were too expensive and they look ugly on your roof. I guess I gave as much respect to the issue as I do they guy wearing the aluminum foil hat to keep aliens from controlling his mind.

Cameron, entertaining at his house

I watch many-a-documentaries, though. "An Inconvenient Truth" was on my list to see. It just never beat out the more interesting documentaries that discussed space, science, sex, religion, or elements of the human condition. What did get my attention a little was some of the cable television shows that made a series out of going green, particularly some of the house constructs that implemented  renewable energy tech into their homes that looked gorgeous. Also about this same time frame I was in grad school and touched on this a little while getting my MBA in 2006. The next year however, we really dove into this during my Master of Science work in Telecommunications. It was a misunderstanding on my team's part that made me stumble into this green tech thing head first. Our final class project consisted of basically wiring a brand new university for state of the art Telecom. Because of some ambiguity in the instructions, we interpreted it as building the entire school from scratch when the requirement was just for the infrastructure! We went all out in construction design, materials, techniques, and technology to build the school while minimizing our carbon footprint. By the time we finished, we had build the school for free (due to actual existing government grants, partnerships, and tax credits), we were completely off the grid and selling energy back to the Tennessee Valley Authority, and used as much local material and talent that could be acquired. We incorporated new and cheaper non-silicon solar tech (CIGSS), the latest and greatest in energy efficient IT (Virtualized Servers and MAID systems), and even a wind farm. We even had waterless urinals, for crying out loud. We were Platinum rated in LEED compliance. We didn't miss any element of infrastructure design. We built in consideration for the nearby New Madrid fault as well as social concerns such as the school shooting that happened Virginia Tech that same year in 2007. This was a great project management challenge and we did well with it.

Magnolia Leaf and Bloom

So that left me with a wondering of why more companies weren't seeing the benefits of this. This point in time was a complete 180 from where I was before. I moved to Nevada in 07 and was amazed at the fact that this state gets more sun and has more federal land than anywhere else in the US, yet we don't take advantage of it. Casinos are more tech savvy than the state, yet there is more that they could be take the lead in. They certainly do when it comes to protecting their money...how about the same with the environment. Agencies are doing a good talk about green tech, but I'm just not seeing enough action. I worked for the State of Nevada in a huge government building. I got a 3 hour tour of the facilities and explored everything from the HVAC systems to emergency controls, but not so much in green efficiencies. I've seen the nay-sayers and listened to their views. I've analyzed the propaganda of those who refute the obvious. I have never before seen so much organized effort that has wasted so much money and time. Wait, actually I have...from the same people who kept trying to say cigarette smoking wasn't really causing cancer. As you can imagine, many of the anti-global warming pundits are also backed by the oil conglomerates...like BP!

 So, yeah...I wish I had given Al Gore a little more consideration.

"The warnings about global warming have been extremely clear for a long time. We are facing a global climate crisis. It is deepening. We are entering a period of consequences." 

~ Al Gore