Feathers and Folly - Blog Information

A little about me...I've been married since 1993 and have a wonderful young son (photo at left).  I have way too many hobbies...fishing, piano, kayaking, gardening, and more, but my real passion is nature photography, especially birds.  I have a rather out of control website with over 5,000 web pages and photos that documents my little hobby...South Dakota Birds and Birding.  I've been birding and doing bird photography since late 2000, when on a whim, I bought my first SLR camera and lens system, and for some reason, just immediately started shooting birds.  Ever since that day, bird photography became my passion.

My day job is as a Research Physical Scientist with the U.S. Geological Survey.  I work at the Earth Resources Observation and Science (EROS) Center, a USGS facility about 10 miles from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, out in the middle of some corn and soybean fields.  It's a great place to work, wtih over 600 very dedicated scientists, engineers, and other personnel working to ensure ready availability of geospatial data, including satellite imagery.  The science group that I belong works with research applications using those data. 

Since I started at USGS EROS in 1993, my specialty has been mapping, analyzing, and forecasting the land cover and land uses on the Earth's surface.   I love my job, especially when it allows me to link my passion for the environment with my everyday work activities.   For a little more about my job and access to some of the research I've published, click here.

Regarding this blog....I’ll just get this out in the open right away. I like to write letters to the editor. I read the news, and inevitably, something bugs the hell out of me, and I feel the need to scream. Occasionally, that need ends up getting expressed in a letter to the editor. The topics? The stupidity of our politicians…conservative (and sometimes liberal) hypocrisy…blood-thirsty hunters…the shocking lack of scientific awareness by the American public…and more.

My wife, on the other hand, does NOT appreciate my letters to the editor! Sadly, the reason is that she has sometimes had to bear the brunt of any negative feedback some folks provide. She’s the one who normally answers the phone, and it’s certainly not pleasant to have some gutless, anonymous caller start yelling about a letter I wrote. I’ve also gotten some lovely (gutless, anonymous) letters in the mail, with offers for me to leave the country, or in one case, with advertisements for bullets and gun supplies. The latter is why I don’t write letters to the editor about hunting any more (and no, I’m not against all hunting).

So, rather than vent through letters to the editor, what better catharsis than a blog? This blog will be devoted to my loves, and my pet peeves. On the positive side, I’ll talk about birds, birding, the outdoors, and scientific awareness. On the negative side, I’ll talk about politics, hot-button topics, and also scientific awareness. And who knows, I may also occasionally talk about my beloved Nebraska Cornhuskers, or my fantasy baseball team’s progress (NOT good right now!!).

I hope you enjoy my blog, and my bird and photography website.

Return to Feathers and Folly

Visit South Dakota Birds and Birding

Custom Search

Or, click on one of the following links to visit the main sections of South Dakota Birds and Birding:

SOUTH DAKOTA BIRDS AND BIRDING - LOCATIONS OF WEBSITE VISITORS

Please mail any comments/suggestions/additional links for this page to: Terry L. Sohl