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Of course, this waterslide requires artillery to defend...

The recent shenanigans by the North Koreans this week sort of renewed my interest in North Korea and the weirdness that constitutes the whole of the country. Here are some images from Google Earth that show some of the defenses the Hermit Kingdom employs to keep it safe from American "aggression." Here is how the capitol of Pyongyang is defended. Every red box represents an anti-aircraft emplacement. Not just a single gun or missile, but an emplacement with many (8+) guns or missiles. The red boxes represent actual emplacements visible on Google Earth that I and others have found... Here is a typical emplacement... And they don't just defend the capitol like that. Here are locations of actual anti-aircraft emplacements around one of their nuclear reactors... And that is just what a cursory glance as revealed. There are many, many more that I have not marked. Artillery. The country is bristling with artillery. Just about any coastal area with hills or mountains hosts artillery emplacements. They look like this one. One of many that guard the east coast. Look closely and you can see the actual guns... The country is full of military airports sporting planes that were developed in the 1940s, 50s, 60s and along with modern fighters and ground attack aircraft. Just a few of the many airfields I have found... All this is needed, in part, to defend the most bizarre amusement park I have ever seen... If you haven't downloaded Google Earth, it's one of the free internet-gems that you really ought to take time to download and use. It's awesome.

Had a 9.9 pull start for many years and couldn't wait to get rid of it. Doesn't matter how easy they start, pulling a rope is a pain in the ***. Have a 15 electric start on my boat. The extra HP was good. The electric start was GREAT!!!

I've got semi-important documents in mine, too. Sometimes keep money in it. Sometimes jewelry. I wish I had a bigger safe. Also remember that a fireproof safe will protect metal and wood guns longer than paper in the event of a fire. It won't take much of a fire to ruin family photos or paper documents in a fireproof safe in the event of a fire. Very important documents should be kept in a safe deposit box.

The XDM has interchangeable backstraps as well. I might have to look into one... I have been thinking about buying another handgun... If you are looking for a polymer framed gun, take a look beyond the striker-fired Glocks and Springfields, as well. The Beretta Px4 is a phenominally good gun. It feels great in the hand. Had interchangable back straps. Has a hammer. And a decocker/safety. And the Sig Sauer P2022 is another polymer framed gun with a hammer. This Sig pistol is exceptional and has the smootest double action trigger pull I've experienced. It has a decocker. You can get it with night sites. And cost somewhere in between a Glock and a Springfield. It was just accepted by the US Army to arm its tank crews. I have two Sig Sauers and will say they are about cream of the crop when it comes to handguns. The 2022 is no exception. Ergonomically, it's about flawless.

As for brand, I have a Heritage Safe. I like it very much. One thing you will need to do is determine if you need fire protection. A fireproof safe can be several hundred pounds heavier than the same model without fireproofing. This can make it virtually impossible to move on your own, and can limit where it can be put in a house. My safe has fire proofing and I can't budge it on my own. I had to call the store where I bought it to move it when I bought a larger house, and it wasn't cheap. Fireproof safes also don't provide complete protection against fire. Usually, and especially in the price range you are considering, it may not provide adequate protection in the event of a burn down. A small, short duration fire yes, but a prolonged fire, probably not. The more fireproofing you get, the more protection you will get, and the more you will spend, and the heavier your safe will be. Why do I think this is important? If you have a homowner's insurance policy, check out the coverage it provides for firearms. For instance, my policy providers full protection in the event my guns burn up in a fire, but limited coverage ($5,000) in the event they are stolen. I have way over $5,000 in guns. So my thought was if they burned up in a fire, so what. I have full coverage (replacement cost). But if they were stolen, I wasn't going to get the full value of my guns. Therefore, a safe to protect my guns from fire was very secondary to having a safe that protects them from theft or unwanted access. If I had it to do over again, I would have bought a safe with no fire proofing. I could have gotten a larger safe for the same money. That would come in handy because it is inevitable that you will put stuff other than firearms in it. I would have also had more choices on where I could have put it in my house since it would have been lighter (or bigger and just as heavy but with a bigger base and weight spread over a bigger area). You need a safe to protect your guns from unauthorized access and theft. The ability to protect them in a fire is marginal in the event of a significant fire. So assess your need for fire proofing. Going with less, or no fireproofing, makes sense if you are insured against fire. BTW, a safe prevents hacks and kiddies from reaching your guns. A experienced thief can get into just about any home gun safe. I am an insurance claims adjuster and I've seen claims where safes have been axed into, or cut open with metal cutting blades on skilsaws. So make sure you have adequate insurance against theft, too. I bought a rider on my homeowner's policy so now I have full replacement cost coverage regardless of how I might loose my guns.

I haven't fished there in years, but I understand the The Hot Ditch is still the bomb-diggity place to catch big specks. That whole section of the Eliz River is good. Are you kayak fishing? If you don't mind coming to the Peninsula, then the Back River on the backside of Langley, AFB is good. There is a parking area at the end of Poqouson Avenue in Poqouson where you can put out. Also, the little marina at the end of Messick Road is a nice area. I understand it produces a goodly number of decent sized specks and drum.

That's a bowfin.

That's a bowfin.

That's a bowfin.

Just going through my pics. Here's a few more I haven't reduced in size... http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/5.JPG My biggest bowfin, and my trolling motor before I cut 18" off the shaft. http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/7.JPG

Just going through my pics. Here's a few more I haven't reduced in size... http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/5.JPG My biggest bowfin, and my trolling motor before I cut 18" off the shaft. http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/7.JPG

Just going through my pics. Here's a few more I haven't reduced in size... http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/5.JPG My biggest bowfin, and my trolling motor before I cut 18" off the shaft. http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/7.JPG

I have a couple of these strategically placed in my house, programmed with the same combination to keep it simple...

Why do you have Pepto Bismol in your fridge? And you do know a fridge keeps solid products cold, too? ;D

They must die of natural causes.

I agree. Yesterday my lake water temp was 51 degrees when I put in and 53.4 when I pulled out. No matter the water depth, I was finding fish at 4 to 8 feet, even in 30 feet of water. I tried drop shotting in deep water, and caught nothing. My bait was way below the fish. Everything I caught yesterday was on a slow crank that dove to about 8 feet.

Got any high-resolution photos? Here's a few I've take this year... http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/1.JPG http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/2.JPG http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/3.JPG http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/4.JPG

Got any high-resolution photos? Here's a few I've take this year... http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/1.JPG http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/2.JPG http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/3.JPG http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/4.JPG

Got any high-resolution photos? Here's a few I've take this year... http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/1.JPG http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/2.JPG http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/3.JPG http://members.cox.net/rowlandparks/4.JPG

I've owned three Glocks, all .45 ACPs. I've owned a Glock 21SF, 30SF and a 36. The 36 had some feed issues. The 21SF worked well, but the slide rubbed the triggerbar and gouged it. The 30SF was very troublesome. The trigger bar ended up with a pretty significant gouge and the slide would not go into battery after each round fired. It would go forward except for the last 1/4 inch or so. Then I had to push it forward by hand. This problem actually got worse as I fired more rounds. Got to the point I could not trust these guns to use for self defense. And sold all three. Glock makes a good gun, but not in .45ACP. The problem I encountered were apparently widespread. And Glock would neither acknowledge them or fix the guns without a fight. If you want a Glock, avoid the .45ACP versions. If you want a poly-framed .45ACP, I'd recommend a S&W M&P or a Springfield.

It could be your batteries. I have that charger and haven't hand any issues. I have had a battery that was depleted to the point where it literally took minutes for it to "charge" and an hour or so to deplete when hooked only to my fish finder. Now it does exactly what your batteries are doing - showing fully charged almost immediately upon hooking it up, and taking minuts to deplete. I was able to narrow it down to the battery being the problem by hooking it up to a portable charger and getting precisely the same result. (Actually tried it with two portable chargers with the same result.) Think of it as filling a shot glass versus filling a bucket. BTW, I have a small jon boat and use my 20+ in the garage. I have it mounted on the wall at my "battery station." I leave my batteries hooked up to it 24/7 when I am not fishing. If you are letting deep cycle batteries sit around after being discharged, or are not letting them sit on your 20+ all the time so they get a float charge, the life of the battery will be shortened.

Apparently, he's more valuable than just an illegal arms dealer. He has deep knowldege of the KGB and Putin's role in it. Quite a catch.

I'm going to try the 3/0 Finesse Wide Gap in the picture. It is almost exactly the same size as the 1/0 EWG in the same picture, except for a shorter shank.

Made his real fame and fortune as Soda Popinski in Mike Tyson's Punch Out. 'Course, he's grown his hair back since then,