“Takin’ my time, choosin’ my line, tryin’ to decide what to do.”

Walk Away – James Gang (1971)

You never know what lies ahead as you head to your fishing holes.

Today we conclude the series with a pic that to me is a visual representation of the beginning of every fishing trip. No matter terrestrial approach as displayed here or chasing those fish via watercraft, the concept is the same.

Before you venture into somewhere out there, there’s a degree of preparation and planning for what you feel may lie ahead. But in actuality, anything can happen which is all part of the fun.

But at the moment represented in our final pic, here frozen in time, hopes run high, the heart beats a little faster and a smile graces the face. The image still does all of those things as I sit here typing while letting my mind wander to thoughts of the next time I get to take that initial step into that world.

You know what’s funny?

Today’s title, lyric and feelings also apply each time I find myself in front of a clipboard or a keyboard.

Thus we conclude the “Blog Banner” series, thirty up and thirty down. An exercise in explaining what the outdoors means to me via some words behind the photos.

And what a journey it’s been.

From Alice Cooper to ZZ Top…Bigfoot to Martians…Joe Jackson to Jack-in-the-Pulpit…legends to one-hit wonders…Sister Sledge to Mr. Hand…tunes featuring the likes of Charlie Brown to Bela Lugosi… Blue Glimmer to Snow White Shad…Julius Caesar to Virgil Ward to Hank Parker… my family to The Addams Family…

All in the name of conveying the title and tagline that reside just above those 30 pictures that I call the Blog Banner.

I’m going to leave the current one around for the rest of the month before another change of blog scenery, thinking perhaps a bit more retro outdoor theme. We’ll see.

Of course, more stuff coming your way and I’ve got my fingers crossed that I get a chance to chase that first March bass. Talk to you later. Troy

“And I freaked ‘cause the guy sitting next to me was a Martian”

Martian Boogie – Brownsville Station (1977)

Inadvertent backdrop took me back to an old TV show

This shot was included in the Blog Banner as an example of a weird accident turned trivia opportunity that wasn’t noticed until taking a closer look at the pic after the trip. These days we do have the welcome feature of immediate feedback on digital photos but I generally just give them a quick glance. I make sure the shots are in focus and that my lighting is acceptable before giving it the okay and letting the fish swim away.

In the case of this shot, it was not a particularly impressive bass but it was my first of the evening which calls for a picture. After all, while you intend to add more to the log, you just never know when those fish will get stingy and leave you without another bite. Since taking up blogging, the first fish shot has become a habit just for such a reason.

Upon having a closer look when compiling my fishing report I couldn’t help but chuckle a bit at the “antennae” protruding from my floppy hat courtesy of one of the electrical towers in the background. The photobomb immediately made me think of the old sitcom My Favorite Martian that used to run in rerun on weekday summer afternoons as a kid. I was never what you would call a fan as I was more of an outdoor kid but I saw enough to get the character of Uncle Martin lodged somewhere in my brain.

And there you have it, another fun bit of once useless trivia put to work all of these years later in an outdoor blog. The actor who played Uncle Martin had a later role that hit closer to my generation. It was none other than Ray Walston who portrayed History teacher, Mr. Hand, in the classic 80s comedy, Fast Times at Ridgemont High.

Good stuff. Aloha and talk to you later. Troy

“You just call on me brother (or sister) when you need a hand…”

Lean on Me – Bill Withers (1972)

Carly with a Henry County, IL pond catch that took an extra hand to hold – May 29, 2017

Anybody remember the Addams Family?

Well, that’s not Thing giving our youngest daughter, Carly, an assist with her bass but instead it’s her younger brother, Jayce. He’s much more in tune with handling the catch. In fact, he can hardly wait to get a hand on a fish no matter who is on the catching end.

When it comes to catching though, Carly will give that boy a run for his money as the most prolific fishing kid. A scan of the outdoor photo collection shows her with a bluegill on the end of a Mickey Mouse pole a month shy of turning two years old.

Carly also holds the unofficial kid species record with a collection of bluegill, crappie, bass, green sunfish and redear. She seems to have a knack for the latter of that bunch, prompting a previous blog entry for the original Blog Banner series entitled “Redear Queen” (click here).

I definitely give this pic a thumbs up just as Carly is doing with one of her two free hands. Hey, no harm in getting by with a little help from your friends (or a sibling). Heck, I used to fish with a Golden Gloves boxing champ in high school, toughest dude around, who either used a leather glove or had me unhook his fish. True story, and he was also afraid of worms. But those are tales for another day, if I ever decide to risk the reveal.

Talk to you later. Troy

“Words are weapons sharper than knives…”

Devil Inside – INXS (1988)

Texting our realtime results from the field – April 21, 2018

Ah yes, the wonderful world of technology and its effect on my hobby.

Plenty of things that we take for granted never even entered my mind back when I started chasing bass in the 1980s.

Blogging for instance, or even the internet for that matter. Heck, I had to wait for the October 1984 issue of Bassmaster to find out that Rick Clunn had captured his third Bassmaster Classic title in mid-August of that year . Nowadays, in a couple weeks I’ll be able to track near realtime catch and weight data, read up to the minute blogs and watch the live daily weigh-ins from the Bassmaster Classic on the computer in my living room.

Or better yet, on my phone, from anywhere.

Which brings me to today’s Blog Banner picture which is actually a screenshot.

So, my brother, Brent, and I are roaming around some Knox County strip mines last April doing a pretty good number on the bass. Well, as he lands a few good ones I fire away with the camera which is actually part of a phone these days. And it’s not good enough to simply store the pics on the phone which boasts a storage capacity that was unheard of on personal computers not too awfully long ago. Nope, you’ve also gotta boast a bit to the fans at home. Instant feedback via texting rather than having to take your film in for processing before it can find a home on the local baitshop counter or bragboard.

Instant feedback indeed in sending a note and picture from the middle of nowhere to Mom, Dad and Julie to keep them up to speed on our results. I’ve gotta say that while sometimes I have about all the tech I can take, the ability to send out on the spot fishing updates is still pretty cool.

For this outing, Brent’s 2-12 would stand as Top Bass, besting my best bass by exactly one pound. Looking back I have to laugh at Julie’s response of “Where’s yours?” as it confirmed that I was once again getting outfished by my younger brother. My reply of “Stay tuned” conveyed that I still had high hopes but in the end I couldn’t effectively provide her with a suitable text and pic reply.

Sometimes the whole instant feedback thing can be double edged sword. Talk to you later. Troy