Good morning! And welcome to the Saturday Fishing Report.
Monday afternoon from 2-5pm. I talked Hubs into going out with me. We went to the go-to spot. He caught the first fish. A little green sunfish. And the second fish. A little spotted bass. Then he switched from worms to lures and caught the third fish - a spotted bass a hair shy of 15". After he threw it back, I finally started catching. Three little bluegills and a punkinseed. Then he caught another little spotted bass. And I caught a 13" spotted bass. Two more little bluegills for me and another one for him rounded out the afternoon and since we were both freezing our buns off by then, we went home. As Hubs proclaimed on the way home, fall fishing has begun.
Wednesday morning from 9-11:30am. Back to the go-to spot by myself. Not as cold or as windy. I tried some different things. Got bites on fake bait, but nothing was really taking it. They were hitting worms, but soft-mouthing them like a passel of underwater retrievers. Over the course of about 15 worms, I did manage to catch two small bluegills and a large stick. Right after the stick, I thought I got hung up on another stick. Except this one was fighting me. Landed a 13.5" spotted bass.
And now I probably should get dressed and go out to the lake. It's cool and overcast.
Have an awesome day and a wonderful week. See ya next time.
Saturday, November 4, 2017
Thursday, November 2, 2017
Thursday This n That
The bucks are beginning to tussle for breeding rights. We've already seen two with snapped antlers. And we had two others sparring in the yard a couple days ago. Ah, Fall when the testosterone flows and the courting begins. I'm hoping it all leads to a bumper crop of fawns next Spring.
Yes, I know, I'm probably not supposed to capitalize the seasons. My editor would poke me with a pointy stick. But she has no power here on the blog. Bwa ha ha. I can run amok! Amok, amok, amok.
It's morning and I didn't sleep for shit last night which is making me loopy. Amok, amok, amok.
The darkness at 7am is making me unmotivated. But I still would rather not have a time change this Sunday at butt-early in the morning. I never change my clocks before bed. It's one last sleep before my schedule gets screwed royally.
I saw a supposed news story yesterday where the CEO of Nike was listed as Isaac P. Freely. I.P. Freely. Get it?
Amok, amok, amok.
If you didn't get it, you probably had a more refined childhood than I did. And a better class of friends.
Okay, time to wind down the amok and get on with my day. This spreadsheet won't build itself. What's up with you?
Yes, I know, I'm probably not supposed to capitalize the seasons. My editor would poke me with a pointy stick. But she has no power here on the blog. Bwa ha ha. I can run amok! Amok, amok, amok.
It's morning and I didn't sleep for shit last night which is making me loopy. Amok, amok, amok.
The darkness at 7am is making me unmotivated. But I still would rather not have a time change this Sunday at butt-early in the morning. I never change my clocks before bed. It's one last sleep before my schedule gets screwed royally.
I saw a supposed news story yesterday where the CEO of Nike was listed as Isaac P. Freely. I.P. Freely. Get it?
Amok, amok, amok.
If you didn't get it, you probably had a more refined childhood than I did. And a better class of friends.
Okay, time to wind down the amok and get on with my day. This spreadsheet won't build itself. What's up with you?
Tuesday, October 31, 2017
So, It's Halloween
There are no decorations on my lawn. There is no pumpkin in the window. There are no fun-sized, hermetically sealed Snickers in my house ready to pass out to hopeful children. Hell, there are no hopeful children in my neighborhood. Well, the neighbor's grandkids are here most days, but if they're hoping for candy, they'd better be driving somewhere else. If their mom was smart, she took them to one of the area 'trunk n treat' events over the weekend and they've already scored.
Halloween isn't what it used to be.
I don't remember my childhood for the most part, but I imagine Halloweens filled with children running from house to house getting goodies. It was dark and cold. (I grew up in Michigan, folks.) But it wasn't scary. It was fun.
And then we'd go home and Dad would inspect all our candy for issues. We weren't allowed toeat any of it until he pronounced it safe. Yeah, it was the '70s, but even then, there were rumors of candy-tampering. Razor blades in apples. Pins in candybars. I don't know if Dad ever found anything hinky. I do know we wouldn't have been allowed to eat anything homemade unless we could tell him exactly which person put it into our bag. And if he didn't know the person, it went into the trash. Better safe than sorry.
I passed out candy when we lived in town. We never got very many kids by the house - the golf course subdivision gave out better candy than any neighborhood we resided in. Still, we got plenty. And most of them were good kids. A few turds, but nothing to ruin the entire holiday.
Not sure what it looks like out there in Halloween land these days. Certain costumes you can't wear because someone somewhere might be offended. (I have an old picture of some family kids in their Halloween finest. One cousin is dressed as Aunt Jemima - complete with blackface. Hey, it was the '40s, when no one really got their undies in a wad.) Trick or treating is held in broad daylight so no kid gets lost in the dark or gets stolen or gets... whatever'd. There are these 'trunk or treat' things, where kids can march from car to car, getting stuff thrown in their bags. What fun that must be.
I don't know. I guess the world we live in makes it this way. I don't have any kids of an age to care about Halloween anymore. Mine's 24 and she's off doing her thing. And I'm kind of glad because Halloween this new way makes me sad.
So, for me, today is just another day - only with more scary movies on TV.
Do you have any plans for tonight? Or did you do your Halloween thing over the weekend? What's your favorite go-to treat for Halloween? Mine's always been Snickers, btw. =o)
Halloween isn't what it used to be.
I don't remember my childhood for the most part, but I imagine Halloweens filled with children running from house to house getting goodies. It was dark and cold. (I grew up in Michigan, folks.) But it wasn't scary. It was fun.
And then we'd go home and Dad would inspect all our candy for issues. We weren't allowed toeat any of it until he pronounced it safe. Yeah, it was the '70s, but even then, there were rumors of candy-tampering. Razor blades in apples. Pins in candybars. I don't know if Dad ever found anything hinky. I do know we wouldn't have been allowed to eat anything homemade unless we could tell him exactly which person put it into our bag. And if he didn't know the person, it went into the trash. Better safe than sorry.
I passed out candy when we lived in town. We never got very many kids by the house - the golf course subdivision gave out better candy than any neighborhood we resided in. Still, we got plenty. And most of them were good kids. A few turds, but nothing to ruin the entire holiday.
Not sure what it looks like out there in Halloween land these days. Certain costumes you can't wear because someone somewhere might be offended. (I have an old picture of some family kids in their Halloween finest. One cousin is dressed as Aunt Jemima - complete with blackface. Hey, it was the '40s, when no one really got their undies in a wad.) Trick or treating is held in broad daylight so no kid gets lost in the dark or gets stolen or gets... whatever'd. There are these 'trunk or treat' things, where kids can march from car to car, getting stuff thrown in their bags. What fun that must be.
I don't know. I guess the world we live in makes it this way. I don't have any kids of an age to care about Halloween anymore. Mine's 24 and she's off doing her thing. And I'm kind of glad because Halloween this new way makes me sad.
So, for me, today is just another day - only with more scary movies on TV.
Do you have any plans for tonight? Or did you do your Halloween thing over the weekend? What's your favorite go-to treat for Halloween? Mine's always been Snickers, btw. =o)
Sunday, October 29, 2017
Sunday Update - Week 43
Wow, that week went by fast. Blerg.
First off, the new keyboard is a little crazymaking. The backspace key and the home key are too close together so I find myself wanting to backspace, hitting the home, and disappearing letters I did not want to disappear. Miss left and I get a line of \\\\, miss right and whoosh, letters are gone. Argh. This too shall pass as I get used to this damn thing, but writing with it is a challenge right now.
Speaking of which, I did write last night. I'm this close to THE END. Have to wrap up the climax and do the denouement. I should have this done by the end of the month, which was my 'drop dead' date.
I'm going to treat myself by doing genealogy in November, I think. I don't deserve a break, but I think I need one. Make it NaNoChillMo or something. I might edit, but I'm not promising anything.
In reading news, I finished the 2nd Sleepy Hollow book and inhaled the 3rd one right after. Cliffhanger on the 2nd, doncha know. Impressive books. Super fun to read. Totally gripping. I also read a Mickey Spillane. Awesome stuff. Natch.
Fishing was a non-issue last week. I had personal things going on that precluded me going too far from the phone for too long. It all wrapped up by Thursday night, so I went Friday morning, but the fish weren't biting and I was freezing my ever-widening ass off, so I left.
Oh, before I forget, I have a sale starting tomorrow. Get the Dennis Haggarty Mysteries for 99c each tomorrow through Friday. (Crap, I forgot to set the UK Countdown.) Just kind of one of those SURPRISE sales that I didn't plan for until the last minute. So it'll be a mostly unadvertised sale, since it's too late to get any ads. =oO
Got our notice from the insurance company that they're jacking up our rates again. Awesome. NOT. Our health insurance now accounts for almost 50% of our entire yearly budget. Arghle. I'd like to find the many politicians who did this and hold their heads in the septic tank until they make it stop.
On a less-irritating note, the big oak has dropped so many acorns that my driveway has a weird pattern to it now. So many little round balls. Everywhere. Hubs keeps sweeping them off the concrete, but the gravel part is a sea of acorns. So's the grass, but it's less noticeable there. I'd pick them up and leave the piles for the deer, but they're so glutted with acorns, they no longer care.
Speaking of deer, we got a new buck in the yard yesterday. We're calling him Snap, because one side of his rack is snapped off. So, we have Oliver (the skinny orphan), Sym (the symmetrical racked one), Six (duh), and Snap. No sign of the bigger bucks we saw last year. And we have about 9 does and girl fawns. Oh, and I almost forgot about the button buck. So five bucks and nine does/girl fawns. Not a bad herd.
And I'm spent. What's up in your world?
First off, the new keyboard is a little crazymaking. The backspace key and the home key are too close together so I find myself wanting to backspace, hitting the home, and disappearing letters I did not want to disappear. Miss left and I get a line of \\\\, miss right and whoosh, letters are gone. Argh. This too shall pass as I get used to this damn thing, but writing with it is a challenge right now.
Speaking of which, I did write last night. I'm this close to THE END. Have to wrap up the climax and do the denouement. I should have this done by the end of the month, which was my 'drop dead' date.
I'm going to treat myself by doing genealogy in November, I think. I don't deserve a break, but I think I need one. Make it NaNoChillMo or something. I might edit, but I'm not promising anything.
In reading news, I finished the 2nd Sleepy Hollow book and inhaled the 3rd one right after. Cliffhanger on the 2nd, doncha know. Impressive books. Super fun to read. Totally gripping. I also read a Mickey Spillane. Awesome stuff. Natch.
Fishing was a non-issue last week. I had personal things going on that precluded me going too far from the phone for too long. It all wrapped up by Thursday night, so I went Friday morning, but the fish weren't biting and I was freezing my ever-widening ass off, so I left.
Oh, before I forget, I have a sale starting tomorrow. Get the Dennis Haggarty Mysteries for 99c each tomorrow through Friday. (Crap, I forgot to set the UK Countdown.) Just kind of one of those SURPRISE sales that I didn't plan for until the last minute. So it'll be a mostly unadvertised sale, since it's too late to get any ads. =oO
Got our notice from the insurance company that they're jacking up our rates again. Awesome. NOT. Our health insurance now accounts for almost 50% of our entire yearly budget. Arghle. I'd like to find the many politicians who did this and hold their heads in the septic tank until they make it stop.
On a less-irritating note, the big oak has dropped so many acorns that my driveway has a weird pattern to it now. So many little round balls. Everywhere. Hubs keeps sweeping them off the concrete, but the gravel part is a sea of acorns. So's the grass, but it's less noticeable there. I'd pick them up and leave the piles for the deer, but they're so glutted with acorns, they no longer care.
Speaking of deer, we got a new buck in the yard yesterday. We're calling him Snap, because one side of his rack is snapped off. So, we have Oliver (the skinny orphan), Sym (the symmetrical racked one), Six (duh), and Snap. No sign of the bigger bucks we saw last year. And we have about 9 does and girl fawns. Oh, and I almost forgot about the button buck. So five bucks and nine does/girl fawns. Not a bad herd.
And I'm spent. What's up in your world?
Saturday, October 28, 2017
Saturday Fishing Report - 10/28/17
Hello and welcome to the Saturday Fishing Report.
Not much to say this week. Because of life stuff, I only went out once. It was 42F and windy as hell. I tried worms and lures, but nothing was biting. After about 90 minutes, I went home.
Hubs laughed and called me a 'die hard fisherman' when I headed out. We both knew I wouldn't catch anything, but that really wasn't the point. I needed to get out and sit by the lake for a while. Rejuvenation. He understands that, which was why he didn't try to discourage me. It was the first chance I'd had to get out all week and I was taking it.
And I do feel rejuvenated today. Yay!
That's it for me this week. Who knows what the coming week will bring. Warmer temperatures maybe. But too much warmer. I want the water to get cool, so fall fishing can begin and I can start catching keepers again. I need fish in my belly. ;o)
If you get a chance, get outside some time this week. And not just for trick-or-treating.
Not much to say this week. Because of life stuff, I only went out once. It was 42F and windy as hell. I tried worms and lures, but nothing was biting. After about 90 minutes, I went home.
Hubs laughed and called me a 'die hard fisherman' when I headed out. We both knew I wouldn't catch anything, but that really wasn't the point. I needed to get out and sit by the lake for a while. Rejuvenation. He understands that, which was why he didn't try to discourage me. It was the first chance I'd had to get out all week and I was taking it.
And I do feel rejuvenated today. Yay!
That's it for me this week. Who knows what the coming week will bring. Warmer temperatures maybe. But too much warmer. I want the water to get cool, so fall fishing can begin and I can start catching keepers again. I need fish in my belly. ;o)
If you get a chance, get outside some time this week. And not just for trick-or-treating.
Friday, October 27, 2017
Substance Abuse Prevention
Yesterday the President rolled out something about drug abuse prevention. Admirable. Scrolling though the newsfeed about it, I saw people bitching. Expected. One person in particular struck me as particularly stupid when they said something about alcohol abuse and opioid abuse not being the same thing. Well, I guess if you think mandarin oranges and navel oranges aren't the same things, then you might be able to make a case there. From my perspective, an orange is an orange is an orange. Substance abuse is substance abuse is... you get the picture.
It doesn't matter what substance you're abusing, the root is the same - trying to blank out reality.
Trump's thing, like I said, is admirable. Foolhardy perhaps, but admirable. Why foolhardy? Because you can't get people to stop trying to blank out by telling them to not do drugs or drink. Somehow, somewhere in their existence, they've been told that reality is bad and they've discovered that there are remedies for that.
Now, don't get me wrong. I don't think most people take their first drink or smoke their first joint or snort their first line because they're looking for the blank-out. Maybe they start because someone told them it would make them feel awesome or relax them or help them beat stress. Hell, that's why I started smoking - to combat stress. It's probably also why I started drinking, but I started drinking way before I started smoking and I can't remember back that far. All I remember is that I drank, a lot, and more when I was under duress.
I tried pot because my pothead friends made it seem awesome. It wasn't. At all. Huge bouts of technicolor yawning both times. Twice was more than enough to make me stop. It never made me stop drinking, though. Weird. And so stupid.
The first time I got totally drunk, I was 16. Drunk and sick like a dog who's eaten rancid garbage. Didn't stop me. Maybe because for a time before that, I was totally awesome. Bright and shiny and outgoing and popular. Well, popular until the big sick. Then I was only popular to one boy who kept me company in the dark of my friend's bedroom. (Nothing happened. I think.)
It wasn't the first time I drank. It was just the first time I got blotto. I think the first time I drank alcohol had to do with a particularly pissy day at school and my father's limited stash of booze. Vodka, maybe? A little dribble in the bottom of a glass with some OJ. I thought it would make the day less bad. It probably did.
I might've been thirteen. Thirteen and totally unequipped to deal with what was bothering me on any real level. And so it started. 20+ years of trying to whitewash things I was unable to deal with. Drink and forget about whatever was bothering me. Tada. It didn't make the problems go away. It never does. It just made me forget about them for a while. Sometimes, it caused more problems in the aftermath - like the night when I got dumped and decided to drink until it didn't hurt anymore. I got alcohol poisoning and was sick for 3 days - on top of being heartbroken. Weee.
This is, of course, all anecdotal. Still, I expect the stories of so many others aren't that different. All trying to escape reality like reality is at fault for all our problems. And if we can just escape it or avoid it, everything will be fine.
That's what we need to fight - the mindset that leads to wanting to blank out which leads to substance abuse. I'm not sure it's possible in this day and age. :shrug: I changed my own mindset long before I quit drinking. I no longer needed to get drunk, but I still drank. One or two a night. I just petered off over the course of years until I realized I didn't need it anymore and then I realized I actually didn't want it anymore.
So, while wanting to fight the cycle of substance abuse is admirable, it's foolhardy to think we can stop it with slogans or initiatives or laws. Stop it with a change in philosophy and culture. Stop it by showing your children that alcohol and drugs aren't necessary and that life is awesome without them, and that we can solve our problems without artificial help. If we can do that, maybe someday we can reverse the tide.
It doesn't matter what substance you're abusing, the root is the same - trying to blank out reality.
Trump's thing, like I said, is admirable. Foolhardy perhaps, but admirable. Why foolhardy? Because you can't get people to stop trying to blank out by telling them to not do drugs or drink. Somehow, somewhere in their existence, they've been told that reality is bad and they've discovered that there are remedies for that.
Now, don't get me wrong. I don't think most people take their first drink or smoke their first joint or snort their first line because they're looking for the blank-out. Maybe they start because someone told them it would make them feel awesome or relax them or help them beat stress. Hell, that's why I started smoking - to combat stress. It's probably also why I started drinking, but I started drinking way before I started smoking and I can't remember back that far. All I remember is that I drank, a lot, and more when I was under duress.
I tried pot because my pothead friends made it seem awesome. It wasn't. At all. Huge bouts of technicolor yawning both times. Twice was more than enough to make me stop. It never made me stop drinking, though. Weird. And so stupid.
The first time I got totally drunk, I was 16. Drunk and sick like a dog who's eaten rancid garbage. Didn't stop me. Maybe because for a time before that, I was totally awesome. Bright and shiny and outgoing and popular. Well, popular until the big sick. Then I was only popular to one boy who kept me company in the dark of my friend's bedroom. (Nothing happened. I think.)
It wasn't the first time I drank. It was just the first time I got blotto. I think the first time I drank alcohol had to do with a particularly pissy day at school and my father's limited stash of booze. Vodka, maybe? A little dribble in the bottom of a glass with some OJ. I thought it would make the day less bad. It probably did.
I might've been thirteen. Thirteen and totally unequipped to deal with what was bothering me on any real level. And so it started. 20+ years of trying to whitewash things I was unable to deal with. Drink and forget about whatever was bothering me. Tada. It didn't make the problems go away. It never does. It just made me forget about them for a while. Sometimes, it caused more problems in the aftermath - like the night when I got dumped and decided to drink until it didn't hurt anymore. I got alcohol poisoning and was sick for 3 days - on top of being heartbroken. Weee.
This is, of course, all anecdotal. Still, I expect the stories of so many others aren't that different. All trying to escape reality like reality is at fault for all our problems. And if we can just escape it or avoid it, everything will be fine.
That's what we need to fight - the mindset that leads to wanting to blank out which leads to substance abuse. I'm not sure it's possible in this day and age. :shrug: I changed my own mindset long before I quit drinking. I no longer needed to get drunk, but I still drank. One or two a night. I just petered off over the course of years until I realized I didn't need it anymore and then I realized I actually didn't want it anymore.
So, while wanting to fight the cycle of substance abuse is admirable, it's foolhardy to think we can stop it with slogans or initiatives or laws. Stop it with a change in philosophy and culture. Stop it by showing your children that alcohol and drugs aren't necessary and that life is awesome without them, and that we can solve our problems without artificial help. If we can do that, maybe someday we can reverse the tide.
Thursday, October 26, 2017
Thursday This n That
Due to circumstances, I have been kind of absent - both mentally and digitally - lately. I hope to clear this all up by next week.
The books I've been reading have made it so I will never look at the Headless Horseman the same way ever again. And there are images of him everywhere right now. :shudder: If you want a spooky, but fun, read for Halloween, snap up the Sleepy Hollow books by Richard Gleaves.
Someone.... I think it was Silver... asked on their blog yesterday what our fears are. I had a tough time coming up with something. I mean, my go-to answer has been 'moths' for years, but as I was sitting there trying to think of what scares me, I realized that my efforts to scrub away the moth fear have been successful. I mean, I still don't want them on me when I'm unprepared, but I can look at them and touch them without going all 'super ninja warrior dance party'. I'm not afraid of heights - but I do get vertigo (which sucks). I'm not afraid of spiders. I'm not afraid of the dark. I still cannot have anything over my face when I'm sleeping - so I guess, fear of suffocation? :shrug: I'm not fearless by any stretch of the imagination, but I think I'm done with phobias for the most part.
I am not a patient person. I hate waiting. For anything. I was bad before I started writing, but all those years of waiting on queries and submissions almost killed the last of the patience I had. I want it and I want it now. I will wait for stuff, if I have to, but I don't have to like it.
The above makes Christmas interesting. When Hubs asks me what I want for Christmas, the answer is always nothing. I don't need anything and whatever I want, I get without having to wait for December 25th. (And if I needed anything, I wouldn't wait for it either.)
Speaking of Christmas, what the hell? All the stores I go to already have Christmas crap out - and have for a week or two at least. The state of MO is already selling Christmas scratch off lottery tickets. It gets earlier every year. It's Christmas, people. DECEMBER. Or at least wait until after Thanksgiving for petesakes. Before Halloween? NO.
I haven't bought any Halloween candy this year and I probably won't. We never get kids stopping by the house, but I used to buy it for Hubs and I. This year? Nah. We have plenty of goodies in the house without the big bowl of candybars on the dining room table. Maybe when they have the after-Halloween candy discounts. I can't resist those sales. Candycandycandy.
Okay, that's more than enough out of me. What have you got for me?
The books I've been reading have made it so I will never look at the Headless Horseman the same way ever again. And there are images of him everywhere right now. :shudder: If you want a spooky, but fun, read for Halloween, snap up the Sleepy Hollow books by Richard Gleaves.
Someone.... I think it was Silver... asked on their blog yesterday what our fears are. I had a tough time coming up with something. I mean, my go-to answer has been 'moths' for years, but as I was sitting there trying to think of what scares me, I realized that my efforts to scrub away the moth fear have been successful. I mean, I still don't want them on me when I'm unprepared, but I can look at them and touch them without going all 'super ninja warrior dance party'. I'm not afraid of heights - but I do get vertigo (which sucks). I'm not afraid of spiders. I'm not afraid of the dark. I still cannot have anything over my face when I'm sleeping - so I guess, fear of suffocation? :shrug: I'm not fearless by any stretch of the imagination, but I think I'm done with phobias for the most part.
I am not a patient person. I hate waiting. For anything. I was bad before I started writing, but all those years of waiting on queries and submissions almost killed the last of the patience I had. I want it and I want it now. I will wait for stuff, if I have to, but I don't have to like it.
The above makes Christmas interesting. When Hubs asks me what I want for Christmas, the answer is always nothing. I don't need anything and whatever I want, I get without having to wait for December 25th. (And if I needed anything, I wouldn't wait for it either.)
Speaking of Christmas, what the hell? All the stores I go to already have Christmas crap out - and have for a week or two at least. The state of MO is already selling Christmas scratch off lottery tickets. It gets earlier every year. It's Christmas, people. DECEMBER. Or at least wait until after Thanksgiving for petesakes. Before Halloween? NO.
I haven't bought any Halloween candy this year and I probably won't. We never get kids stopping by the house, but I used to buy it for Hubs and I. This year? Nah. We have plenty of goodies in the house without the big bowl of candybars on the dining room table. Maybe when they have the after-Halloween candy discounts. I can't resist those sales. Candycandycandy.
Okay, that's more than enough out of me. What have you got for me?
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