Their First Bass of 2014

You can only keep fishermen shut up indoors so long. Eventually, they have to come out, take a look around, and head to their favorite local streams. And so it was with Bob Glass and Randy Conkle, who decided to try their luck this past Sunday for the first time this year. They went to West Neck Marina, where, even though the bite was slow, they managed to squeeze out six bites and three fish, one of which was a bowfin (didn't waste their time or a good camera on taking a picture of this "toothy critter").

                   Here's Randy with his Sunday bass...

...and here's Bob with the one he caught the same day.

Bob tells me he hit the water again yesterday (Monday), and in 1.5 hours boated two more nice bass--one a 4 pounder and the other maybe a 2 pounder. "The bite yesterday was pretty good," explained Bob, adding that he would have stayed longer, "but the wind switched to the northeast and ran me off the water."

Bob's fish both days came while pitching a blue-fleck worm. Randy's fish on Sunday fell for a senko.

I applaud both of you on deciding to take the bull by the horns and shake off all that winter rust and for putting some fish in the boat. With any luck, this weather is going to get straight here one day soon so everyone can get back on the water.

As the water warms, be sure to keep those pictures and reports coming.

After 70 Years, a New Experience in, of All Places, the Barber Shop

There's a State Farm TV spot running nowadays that tickles my funny bone every time I see it. The commercial is about how much you can save by combining home and auto insurance. It's filmed in what looks to be a restaurant-patio setting, with a State Farm agent seated at one of the tables with a young mother, whose baby is resting in a nearby stroller. If you'd like to see it for yourself, here's the link: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G270XNaZR4g.

Anyway, a mime suddenly appears and starts talking about how he saved $760 by combining his home and auto insurance. And the next words you hear, coming from the baby no less, are: "OK, does it bother anyone else that only the mime is talking? F-R-E-A-K-Y!!!"

Well, that freaky feeling is a little bit of what I experienced in my visit yesterday to the NAS Oceana barber shop. I think you'll understand why after I explain what happened.

I just had hung up my coat and hat and was going to have a seat when a woman at the far end summoned me to her chair. I purposely had arrived when I knew business would be anything but booming, so I wasn't surprised to get such quick service.

I hustled my buns (as best you're gonna get out of me these days) down to the chair and took a seat without even having to show my ID card as usual. In no time, the lady had the apron on me and asked how I wanted it, which nearly always causes me to burst into outright laughter. I mean--let's be realistic here. When you have no more hair than I do, just how much is ANY barber (or magician, for that matter) going to be able to do with it.

I've more than once---just for grins and giggles--considered asking for a DA, like I once wore in high school, but I don't figure I could do it with a straight face. So, instead, I just ask for the "regular," with an eyebrow trim. I mean, after all, I certainly don't want to resemble the late-Andy Rooney. And, too, I feel like I have to ask for something extra, given the fact it takes 'em all of about 10 seconds on a bad day to cut what hair I now have. Every trip I make to the barber shop these days, and it's been this way for a very long time, is like your first haircut at boot camp--zip, zip, and you're out of the chair.

Yesterday was no different--up to the point where this lady barber let me have a look in the mirror, and I said OK, great job. Thanks.

I then heard her grab something off the working shelf behind her and just figured she was going to give me a shot of what I've always called "spoof juice." It's just that smelly stuff that barbers sometimes still slap on around your ears and the back of your neck, like they always used in the days when they shaved those areas with a straight razor.

I automatically shut my eyes, in case she, like other barbers I've had over the years, got a little too flamboyant with her application. However, that familiar slap to the back of my neck and around the ears never came. I instead opened my eyes to find a mist of powder (or so it appeared) settling around my head. She then started massaging the powder into my ol' noggin'. I wasn't sure if she was trying to make me smell good or perhaps to ward off some evil spirits she might have sensed had taken me over.

In any event, I just sat there quietly and let her do whatever it was she was doing because it really didn't feel half bad. And so what if I did find it a little freaky? It didn't cost me anything extra.

Epilog

What's a little more funny about this story is how it came together for me. In the early hours this morning, the blue light on our heat pump just had kicked on--I know, because I suddenly got hot and had to come out of part of my sleep attire. And just so you know, I'm not going through male menopause--I've already been there, done that, and have the T-shirt to prove it.

Anyway, as I was shedding my shirt, it occurred to me that, in all the years I've been getting haircuts, I've never experienced what that lady did to me yesterday. At the same moment, that TV spot also popped into my head, and I knew I had the makings for a story that I just had to share with someone. Who else better than my blog readers? Hope you enjoy.

It Happens Every Year--Just Like Clockwork

The "it" I'm referring to, of course, is the gaggle of boaters and families who seemingly come crawling out of the woodwork after the first few warm days of the season. And according to one of my ol' friends, West Neck Marina is loaded with 'em today already.

We all know the crowd I'm talking about. They're the ones who put their boats up for the winter without first doing any maintenance, and now they're left scratching their heads because the battery is dead, the boat's motor won't fire, or it won't keep running. And that says nothing about the growing line of other boaters who, for the most part, probably will experience the same results when they finally get their turn at the ramp. Oh, did I forget to mention that, while these folks are waiting in that line, they're doing absolutely nothing about getting the straps off their boats, attaching launch ropes, or loading the boat with stuff they will need or want to take with them? "We'll just wait to do that at the ramp," is their mindset. "Who cares if everybody else has to wait a little longer?"

Yes, we bass fishermen just love this inconsiderate bunch of... I'll just leave it there and let everyone fill in their own names. If that was the only distraction we had to contend with, it might not be so bad, but there's more. For our own sake, we'd better not overlook those unsupervised youngsters being allowed to fish from the catwalks. Take your eyes off them, and you may end up getting a sinker or fish hook up side your head or some other sensitive location. And if you say anything to one of them, you'd better choose your words carefully, or you're likely to get a healthy dose of tongue-lashing from one of those modern-day parents who believes that you stigmatize kids today if you chastise them. My only comment to that is this: Good thing these parents never ran into my dad, or their kids wouldn't have been the only ones stigmatized.

Anyway, I think you probably understand that what I'm basically referring to here is a "3-ring circus." I'm just letting you know that, based on the account of my reliable ol' friend, that circus just hit town and opened today at West Neck, and it's likely to get a lot worse before it gets better. I'm just tickled pink that I had second thoughts about planning a fishing trip out there today. Did I ever tell you how nice it is to be retired?

I Couldn't Believe What I Was Reading...

That's how I felt this morning when I opened John's email and saw that he didn't have enough participants to hold a tourney today. In my mind, I was certain that, with all the sunshine and warmer temperature, most of the regulars at least would show up at Bob's Fishing Hole.

As it works out, though, John is just reminding everyone that the Big Bass Tournaments will wrap up next Sunday, March 2, when, in addition to the regular payouts, there also will be cash on the line for the biggest grindle and pickerel.

You're reminded, too, that the seasonal big-bass pot still belongs to Mark Ingram for his 4.04-lb. bass unless someone unseats him at this final contest in the series.

Anyone with questions should call John Goodman at 427-0659, or you can email him at johngoodman3@cox.net.

It's Really Blowin' Out There, Laddie...

And that fact is more than a little evident in the taut mooring lines holding ye ol' "party houseboat" against yonder West Neck point about 1 o'clock today. To get a better look at what I'm talking about, just click on the picture to get a bigger version of it.

Let me explain myself. I used "party houseboat" because of something I observed Wednesday when I was out fishing West Neck Creek. For the last couple of hours, I was within eyeball distance of this ol' boat, where a power boat with a driver and a couple of passengers had tied up alongside and boarded. Later, while I was tidying things up in my boat after recovery, the power boat dropped off its two passengers at the West Neck ramp. And guess what they were carrying. If you said a "bunch of beer," you would win the grand prize.

I mentioned this incident to Steve before leaving the marina and also suggested what a logical next step in this scenario might be as motivation for actively trying to get the houseboat moved on out of the creek for disposal or returning it to a location where activities can be monitored more closely. I also mentioned the possible problems that could be involved if the craft happens to break loose from its current moorings.

I probably should mention, too, that the water was coming in hard today with all that strong wind, as evidenced in this photo of the ramp area. It was anything but surprising that I didn't find a single car in the parking lot. Even if there still are a lot of anglers anxious to shed that cabin fever they've developed, I can't imagine any of them wanting to go out and fight the conditions that were present today.

Yesterday was the day everyone should have hit the water if you wanted ideal conditions. I spent some time with my boat, but as luck would have it, only was changing out the old starting battery, which had demonstrated to my full satisfaction Wednesday that it was getting ready to give up the ghost. Now I just have to decide if I also should change my trolling batteries. Decisions, decisions, decisions...

Charlie's Students Learn Their Lessons Well

I say that because of what I observed on the water today. In the distance was a young man fishing one of Charlie's favorite areas exactly the same way I've observed my friend do it oh so many times. And he was catching fish just like Charlie routinely does. The similarities were so evident that I knew, before I even could talk to the young man, that he was a close follower of my friend's blog. I was certain there was more to this situation than mere coincidence.

Here's a photo of the best of three bass that Max boated today while fishing a stretch of West Neck. It tipped the scales at 2-5. The other two went 1-10 and 0-14. His lucky baits were a Storm swim shad and a Rapala minnow.

While Max was putting these three fish in the boat, I simply kept flailing in the wind. I fished a mylar minnow, a Mann's baby 1-minus, a Strike King 1XS, and a Bandit 200, without feeling the first confirmed strike. I had a few bumps with the 200 that felt like fish perhaps taking a half-hearted swipe at the bait, but that's about as close as I got to the "real deal."

So, on a day when it was all I could do just to keep my hat on my head, I recorded my first skunk of the 2014 season. I worked hard to dodge this bullet, but it just wasn't in the cards. There undoubtedly will be more before the season ends, so I'm certainly not going to lose any sleep over this first blank.

Besides, I have other things to concern myself with. My starting battery nearly let me down this morning, so I stopped and got a new one on the way home this afternoon and plan to get it installed sometime tomorrow. I also have to decide whether I want to try stretching my trolling batteries through another season.

In the meantime, let me say "congrats" to you, Max, on your catch today. Good luck next time, too.

Things Just Keep Getting Sunnier in Florida

That's the gist of the latest report I received earlier this evening from Rob Powell. But Rob wasn't really talking about today's weather conditions, which he described as "75 and sunny, with light SSE wind."

Instead, he was referring to this 8-lb. 7-oz. hawg that he boated in another trip to Florida's Lake Santa Fe. Things had started slow--he didn't even get away from the dock until about 10 a.m., and after catching one in the 2-lb. range on a Roboworm, the action had slowed to a standstill.

It was then that Rob paused and said, "You know, I've been throwing these little worms a lot. Maybe it's time for something a little different." He pulled out a package of 12-inch junebug Culprit worms, tied one on, and tossed it up beside a cypress tree. As he tightened up the line, "there was that familiar heaviness on the other end," he said. "So I put on a solid hookset and immediately knew I was into a good fish."

Four minutes later, he boated the "expectant mother" in the accompanying photo. The fish was too big for him to hold while snapping a photo, so he put her in the livewell for about 10 minutes until another boat came along. Once he had a few pictures, he released the fish.

Rob closed out today's email with these words of encouragement: "I hope this fishing year starts as well for all of you up there as it has for me."

In exchange, let me just say, "Keep the reports and photos coming, Rob."

A Couple Bits of News

As promised, the new Dewey Mullins Memorial Bass Angler of the Year plaque is hanging in the West Neck Marina Store (see photo at right) now for all to see. I would like to thank Steve for allowing us to display it this way.

I also want to remind all the "well-matured" crowd who patronizes the Marina Store to be looking for a poster advertising our planned Old-Timer's Bass-Fishing Rodeo on Senior Citizen's Day, Aug. 21, 2014. I'll be putting the poster out there sometime later today, along with a notebook for interested folks to use in signing up for this first-of-its-kind event. I think you'll find everything pretty well explained in the poster. However, if you do have any lingering questions, you always are welcome to drop me an email (my address is included at the bottom of the poster), and I'll be happy to help.

Have a great day!

Honoring Dewey and Our Bass Anglers of the Year

At our annual planning meeting held earlier this month, we voted to show our respect for Dewey and all of our Bass Anglers of the Year with a perpetual plaque to be mounted in a prominent spot within the West Neck Marina Store. Pictured here is the plaque, which I just today picked up. As soon as I'm able to catch up with Steve, you'll be able to see it up close and personal for yourself in the store.

We only inaugurated our Dewey Mullins Memorial Bass Angler of the Year program last year, with Bob Glass laying claim to the 2013 honor with a grand total weight of 146.92 lbs. That's a whole bunch of nice fish, including the 6.89-lb. seasonal lunker, which Bob boated on Sept. 7. For everyone who envisions getting their name on one of the plaque's 24 engraved plates, just know that Bob is likely to remain a force to be reckoned with for a long time to come. It'll be in your best interests to plan to fish all or nearly all of each year's tournament schedule if you want to have a decent chance to dethrone him.

The winner of the AOY competition is that individual or team with the greatest accumulative total weight at the end of the year's regular tournaments--not including the season-ending two-day Classic. In case of a tie, the individual or team with the bigger fish for the year will be declared the winner or winners. So put on your best game face and plan to join us as we kick off our 2014 season on March 22--provided, of course, that conditions allow.

Memories Are Made of Moments Like This

 

                                                     From Lake Anna
                                                     6 lbs. 6 ozs.
                                                     2/28/76

From Lake Anna
5 lbs. 4 ozs.
5/8/76

                                From North Landing River
                                6 lbs. 10 ozs.
                                6/19/87

From North Landing River
6 lbs. 5 ozs.
5/24/90

               From North Landing River
               4 lbs. 10 ozs.
               7/27/90

From North Landing River
5 lbs. 15 ozs.
8/10/90

                                      From North Landing River
                                      5 lbs. 1 oz.
                                      8/18/90

From North Landing River
5 lbs. 0 ozs.
8/18/90








I have to thank my dear ol' Pop for getting me hooked on fishing in the first place. I also have to thank a guy named Paul P., who first acquainted me with bass fishing. After that came a host of fellow members of Military District Washington Bassmasters, Commonwealth Bassmasters, and finally Back Bay Bassmasters who shared some tricks of the trade that made me a better fisherman. And, of course, I also have to thank ol' Dewey for the many gems of wisdom he imparted over the years. I spent lots of hours picking his brain, and he never once brushed me aside or told me to shut up.

It's what I learned from all those many people, along with others I've had the opportunity of knowing along the way, that has allowed me to have moments like those captured in the photos above. Every one of those moments was and still is special to me. I would be less than truthful if I didn't confess that I indeed long to boat at least one 8-pounder or better while I'm still on "the green side," but if that doesn't happen, so be it. I truthfully will be able to say, "I tried," and I certainly had more than my fair share of fun in the process.

From Sunny Florida...

The forecast was for clear skies, light winds, and a high of 74 degrees. What red-blooded American wouldn't hit the water with a weather prediction like that? Certainly not Rob Powell.

In his email to me a little earlier tonight, Rob detailed how he got up this morning and headed southwest to a favorite ol' lake of his from earlier days in the Sunshine State. He was talking about Santa Fe Lake, located about 15 or so miles east of Gainesville. According to Rob, he spent a lot of time reminiscing about this lake during his past three-plus years here in Virginia.

In his own words, it was like the lake "welcomed me back with open arms." And I'd be hard-pressed to say otherwise, considering what the water offered up today, starting with this 4-pounder. It also surrendered five more bass, the best of which weighed 2 lbs. 4 ozs., 1 lb. 9 ozs., 1 lb. 3 ozs., and 1 lb. 1 oz. Said Rob, "I also missed several fish."

The magic lure today was the same one that worked so well for Rob last year when he fished the Dewey Mullins Memorial Bass Tourney Series--the Roboworm. I seem to recall that this bait accounted for the 4.78-lb. bass that Rob caught on Day 2 of our 2013 Classic and ensured his winning the tournament's Big Bass Pot.

With the kind of success he logged today, Rob said he may get out again tomorrow. He promised me another report if that happens, so stay tuned.

It's Unanimous...

If there's one thing everybody seems to be able to agree on right now, it's that they have a bad case of cabin fever. I'm hearing it from all my fishin' buddies, and I just today also heard it from my brother--a golfing nut who lives back in Kansas and has been shoveling snow off and on for several days.

Their temps in that part of the country haven't climbed above freezing for two weeks in a row, so most of the 9 inches of that white stuff they received nearly a week ago still is hanging around, adding to their frustration level. Only the good Lord knows when my brother will be able to get out and take a whack at a golf ball again. If I was a bettin' man, I'd have to wager that I'll find a thawed stream on which to vent my frustrations long before he gets a chance to tee up on any of the local golf courses. I have no doubts he's already "teed off," what with all that snow staring at him every morning when he rolls out of the sack.

I certainly still remember what that kind of setting was like for me when I spent almost 18 months in Adak, Alaska. You get sick of it in a hurry.

I was checking some of the local bass clubs' tournament schedules this morning and noticed that a few are planning to kick off their 2014 season this month, so I reckon those anglers will see their cabin fever come to an end real soon. Everyone else won't be far behind because most of the other schedules I looked at showed a March starting date.

And, of course, some fisherpersons have been getting out a bit all winter--enough, at least, to keep their fever in check. I've managed four trips thus far and am hoping to make another one either later this week or sometime next week if all the factors involved align right.

To all those of you who again need to feel that tug on the other end of your fishing line, I urge you to keep the faith. Better days simply have to lie ahead--that's all there is to it. I look forward to seeing all of you on the water for another season.

Save the Real Deal--Go for the Cheap Look-Alikes

A few days ago, I was talking about my hesitation to throw these high-dollar Sebile Magic Swimmer swimbaits (pictured at right) in the North Landing River, but that was before I had a discussion with my friend, Charlie, who shared an alternative with me. He simply suggested that I look around on the Internet for some unpainted look-alikes.

I followed his advice and found a seller on eBay offering lots of 10 look-alikes for only $10, and that's with free shipping. I'm no mathematics whiz, but it doesn't take a whiz to figure out that's a good deal.

I subsequently ordered a lot of 10 look-alikes (as seen in the photo at left). It took some digging to find these, and they may not work quite as well as the "real deal" in the photo above, but there's one big advantage. "You don't feel bad about losing one or two of these lures on the bottom in the water we fish," to use Charlie's words. You just retie and keep on casting.

The only piece of business left to this story is getting a few of the blanks painted up for the acid test, but I have that issue covered.

Will these bargain baits catch any fish? I'll have to get back to you on that score after I have a chance to use them this spring and summer--surely this nasty weather will be gone by then.

When You Don't Get Many Color Choices

Most of the time, I have no problem finding enough different colors in any given line of lures to satisfy my tastes. When I don't, especially if it involves a proven fish-catching bait, I find it a little frustrating.

One bait that falls in the latter category is the Strike King 1XS (see photo at top right). Having followed my friend Charlie's advice and "played in my tacklebox" for the past several days, I became acutely aware that I didn't have enough color options for this particular crankbait. As it worked out, I had extras of this Tennessee Shad color.

I also had extras of this Sexy Shad color. "But what to do... what to do?" was the question I kept asking myself. In little to no time, the answer came to me: repaint my extras. Unlike some of my friends, though, who are painting their own lures these days, I lack the know-how to perform such tasks.

As if I needed any further convincing of my ineptitude when it comes to mechanical skills, I today tried to epoxy a planter back together for my wife. Two of the three pieces fell into place acceptably, but the third piece looks like something a third-grader may have assembled. I'm just fortunate that my wife understands my shortcomings in such areas and didn't throw the planter at me.

Getting back to the business at hand, I soon put together an order for getting my extra 1XS crankbaits repainted. Here are the colors I settled on:

                                                                 Blue Tiger

Black Back Red

                                           Purple and Chartreuse

H-37

                                                  Shimmering Shad

Red Orange Craw



Half of these are "confidence" colors. The others represent what I'll call "test cases." Most importantly, all of them are colors you won't find among Strike King 1XS crankbaits in catalogs or on store shelves. In short, they'll be giving fish their first look at this bait in these colors, which may or may not provide some sort of edge, even if it's only an imaginary one.

Only 2 More Big-Bass Tourneys Left This Season

That's the word from tourney director John Goodman, after telling me in an email that only three anglers in two boats showed up at Bob's Fishing Hole this morning for event No. 11.

The winner of today's contest was Brian Skeens (pictured in the foreground, right), who brought a bass to the scales weighing 2 lbs. even. His competitors in the other boat were Jim Sumrell and Cathy Brandt, who developed motor troubles and ended up having to hitch a tow with Brian. They didn't have a fish to weigh.

Both of the remaining Goody's Big Bass contests are slated for Bob's Fishing Hole. Event No. 12 is scheduled to take place Sunday, Feb. 23, and event No. 13 is slated for Sunday, March 2. Both tournaments will run from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m.

The angler currently poised to walk away with all the cash in the End-of-Year Pot from this series is Mark Ingram. Back in the tournament held Dec. 22, Mark weighed in a bass that tipped the scales at 4.04 lbs.

If you have any questions, call John Goodman at 427-0659, or email him at johngoodman3@cox.net.

Our 2014 Tourney Season Is Set

Here is our tournament schedule. Please note that all start times are just estimates. Our tournaments routinely start at safe light.

March 22 (0700-1500)                                       July 12 (0600-1400)
                                                                                   26 (0600-1400)
April 5 (0630-1430)
       19 (0630-1430)                                           August 9 (0600-1400)
       26 (0630-1430)                                                      23 (0600-1400)

May 3 (0600-1400)                                             September 6 (0630-1430)
      17 (0600-1400)                                                              13 (0630-1430)
                                                                                             27 (0630-1430)
June 7 (0600-1400)
       14 (0600-1400)                                             October 18 (0700-1500)
       28 (0600-1400)                                                           19 (0700-1500)

Unlike previous years, there will not be a cookout this year following Day 2 of our Oct. 18-19 season-ending Classic contest. Please understand that you must compete in at least four of our regular tournaments to qualify for the Classic.

If anyone is interested in joining us for any or all of this year's events and would like to receive an electronic copy of our Tournament Rules & Regulations, just drop me an email (kenneth34@cox.net).

Lure Colors Sometimes Can Be Fickle

Evidently, the "river perch" Slug-Go is out of production,
because I can't find it on the Internet. This "mahi mahi" color,
however, is similar.

At least that's my take on the situation. For example, I remember one year back in the '80s or '90s when a Slug-Go in "river perch" color was introduced. It was a chartreuse and blue concoction, as I recall. Anyway, I bought a package of them just to find out if they'd catch any fish, and I'm here to tell you that after just a couple of trips, I hit every store in town, buying up every package of 'em I could find.

I seemingly had the corner on the market until one evening when an old fishin' buddy stumbled across me as I was snatching the last of several packages off the peg at a local store. Naturally, being one of those inquisitive types, he wanted to know why I had such a keen interest in that particular color. I could have lied--you know, like maybe telling him I was buying them for a friend from out of town--but my conscience wouldn't allow me to do that.

Instead, I just told him the truth. I also let him have one of the packages I had in my hand basket, and for the rest of that year, I ran into the same friend nearly every time I visited one of the local tackle stores, or took a day off and went fishing. He was like a bad shadow--I couldn't shake him. In the meantime, we were doing one bang-up job of keeping those river perch Slug-Go's between the two of us; we also both were catching a bunch of fish every time we hit the water with them.

At season's end, we both squirreled away our stashes, confident that we finally had found the secret to catching bass almost at will--I'm here to tell you the fishing was just that good with these baits. We were certain that, come spring, we'd pick up right where we had left off.

You can imagine our joint disappointment when spring finally arrived, and we brought our stashes out of hiding, only to see what had been a winner turn into a dud. It was as though the fish were thumbing their noses at those river perch Slug-Go's. I'm not sure what my buddy ever did with all the ones he had. However, I ended up giving away a lot of mine.

I've experienced similar results with other colors over the years, too, but I never repeated the mistake I made of buying every one in town.

The one color that has remained a steady producer for me over the years is firetiger. Very few trips to the water pass without my tying on at least one lure in this color. My overall philosophy, though, for choosing lure colors for a day's fishing always has been and probably always will be: "bright colors on bright days, dark colors on dark days."

Here are the links to a couple other viewpoints about color selection that I found on the Internet:

http://www.bassresource.com/beginner/Choosing_Colors_selection.html

http://www.sportsmansguide.com/Outdoors/Subject/SubjectRead.aspx?sid=14&aid=175345&type=T

These are the links to a couple videos on the same subject matter:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mGjKcFcaT2NM

http://www.bassresource.com/bass-fishing-videos/choose-lure-colors.html

If none of these suggestions work, you always have the option of turning your tacklebox upside down and trying everything. I've never quite gone that far, but there have been lots of days when the area around my pedestal seat looked like a war zone at the end of a day.

Problem Solved

Back in my Jan. 21 blog post titled "A Little Bass-Bait Sticker Shock," I expressed concern that, if my wife outlives me, she might let all my fishing tackle go for a small fraction of what I paid for it. Well, after reading the morning newspaper today, I now have a solution for that dilemma.

On page 2 of the national section, there's a story about a guy being buried in a see-through case atop his motorcycle. Just think about it for a moment: They could sit me in the driver's seat of my bass boat--or maybe perch me on the front pedestal seat, with my foot resting on the trolling-motor pedal--I'd have to think about that option a while before I could decide. Then they could enclose everything in a plastic case, with my rods tied down on deck and all my lures hung neatly around the inside perimeter of the case. What better last wish could a guy possibly ever have? And I'd be in total control of all my tackle forever and ever.

Sure, it would require a bigger-than-usual cemetery plot, and it might take more than one embalmer (it took five to make sure the guy on the motorcycle stayed upright), but that doesn't seem like such a big price to pay for honoring someone's final wishes.

Granted, I'm only being facetious here, but I have to admit that, if I had unlimited resources, I very well might entertain such a plan on a serious scale. I certainly can think of a lot worse ways to leave this earthly life.