Doug's Spot

2012-02-29T08:18:00.003-06:00

I didn't get to go fishing yesterday due to not wanting to brave the wind and rain. I'm hoping I get to go today, but right now it doesn't look so promising. I'm not going early so maybe a few hours will change things. I went over to the VA to have blood drawn for my appointment tomorrow. On the way over there were areas that I had to use the windshield wipers and some areas where I just used them on and off. That was at 7:30. On the way home (8:15) I had to use them only because of the water being sprayed by the cars in front of me. Maybe the rain is over and the sun will come shining through. I hope so.

I see Mitt Romney won both states last night and looked a little relieved after being declared the winner. I hope he stops with the sniping at his opponents and just points out the shortcomings of Nobama and explains in more detail his solutions to the problems. My preferred option to the nomination would be to have an open convention. I'd like to see the delegates eventually nominate Mike Huckabee or Mitch Daniels. They both have said they wouldn't run but if the delegates called upon one of them to be the standard bearer they would lead us to a victory in November. But let me be clear Mitt Romney, Newt Gingrich or Ron Paul would all be better than the person taking up space in the Oval Office right now. The more I listen to Ron Paul the more I like him. Everyone says his foreign policy ideas are terrible but I'm not so sure they are. What is wrong with having a strong military for our defense and bringing our troops home from all over the world. Why do we need to be the world policeman? We've been doing that for quite some time now and things haven't gotten any better. In fact they are probably worse. It also seems not many countries like us either. Protect our borders and make sure they are secure and let people live their lives. And the best things I like what Ron Paul talks about is the fact that the government ought to get out of our lives, spend less and make fewer (if any) new laws.

TRUE BRAVERY

2012-02-28T06:51:00.005-06:00

I received a nice call from one of my high school buddies yesterday. John is the guy I went to Louisiana to fish with a year or so ago. At the time I thought I'd better go visit he and his wife Honey and do a little fishing because it might be the last time I got to fish with him. Unfortunately I was right. I have called him and recently sent a card and his call was to thank me for the support. He told me he is now paralyzed and was trying to figure out how to get back home to California from Louisiana. I teared up just talking to him and I feel for him and his wife. He along with Don, another friend of mine, are examples of having great attitudes while being stricken with a terminal disease. They never complained and went ahead with living instead of sitting around waiting to die. I only hope when my time comes I have the courage and class both of these men have had. It doesn't look like the weather is going to be perfect but i think I'll hit the river anyway. It may be muggy and windy out but nothing ventured nothing gained. It's been a week since I fished last and I've tied some flies I'm anxious to try out. It's always interesting to see if the fish will take the new flies you tie. I get a good feeling when I see the fish follow the fly and then strike it. It makes the tying all worthwhile. I also need to get back to tying trout flies to use this summer. If I can increase my stash I won't need to tie so many during the summer. One of my problems is I'm tying flies using different materials and I haven't tried them out. I end up tying some with the old stuff just in case because I know they work.

2012-02-27T07:11:00.002-06:00

I am wondering just how much thunder and lightning we are going to get tomorrow. I hope it's not going to be much since I want to go fishing. I don't mess around when I hear that first clap of thunder. I am not going to stand out in the water with a graphite lightning rod. I hope we get lots of rain today and the storm moves out early.

I watched the Oscars last night with Carolyn. This is a yearly must for her ( if she had a tiara she would wear it) so I just sit and watch the Hollywood people use every superlative in the book about everything. How much praise do their egos need? They have so many awards that one should feel like a failure if you don't get at least a nomination. I was looking at Meryl Streep's list of nominations and awards last night and here are some of the awards. Academy, BAFTA, Emmy, Golden Globe, Grammy, SAG and Tony.

I knew while I was teaching that we should have had more awards than just "Teacher of the Year". (I got that one year) We should have had "teacher of the month" or "coach of the season" etc. etc.. The public would have thought we were much better than we were. How about welfare recipient of the year. That would make them feel better about themselves. Maybe the fly fishing club should have a "fisher person of the month" award so we could feel like the other fishermen/women appreciated the work we have done. All silliness aside, do you know any other business, besides the music industry, that pats themselves on the back more than the film industry? I will say they got it right for best actress. I marvel how well she does in all of her roles. She was a good Margaret Thatcher.

2012-02-25T07:21:00.002-06:00

After ranting the other day I'll be nice and calm today and not write of anything controversial. The weather this morning is cool (cold) but it shouldn't be too uncomfortable later on in the day. I really didn't think it would get down into the low thirties but here it is 33 as I write. Spring is here. Our finch couple is in the process of building their nest in the same spot going on four years now. What is their life span anyway? I haven't seen any chickadee enter the bird house so I guess I'll have to build another one next year. Aren't these pleasantries nice and comforting? I can blame this on ranting the other day but the truth is I don't have much to write about today. Brave the cool weather and catch some fish. Tight lines!

2012-02-24T06:54:00.002-06:00

Nobody asked me but....The Republicans just can't seem to understand that they need to frame the issues and not let the Democrats do it. The Republicans seem to always be on the defensive. Take the latest thing the Nobama administration laid on the Catholics. The Democrats made it a women's health issue. Since when is it a "Right" to have access to contraceptives? Where in the Constitution did they find that? Are you kidding me? A women's health issue? Gimme a break. The issue is intrusion by the federal government into a religious sector of our country. Intruding into a religious doctrine. The issue is separation of church and state. Where in the Constitution does it give the Federal Government the right to make a church supply a product to whomever? Remember if the Federal Government gets away with taking one right away from us it can take more. Also where in the Constitution does it give the Federal Government the right to tell a business where to locate? (Boeing) The Republican presidential candidates need to explain in detail, step by step how things will get better by implementing the changes they want to make. For example. How drilling for oil and producing more make us energy independent. How that will keep money here and not give it to the middle eastern countries that don't like us. How relaxing federal regulations or doing away with the EPA can make it possible for more refineries to be built. How that will create jobs which will put more money in the communities which will build the tax base which will bring in more revenue which could be used to pay down the national debt etc. etc..

I'm at a point where I can't stand to watch or listen to this half truth telling president. Take his latest mantra "oil production is up". This from a guy who wants $5.00 a gallon gas. That's true. But how can he take credit? His administration hasn't done anything to help promote it. The wells producing oil got their permits under the Bush administration. The oil in North Dakota is on private land not public. Also new ways to drill are helping produce more but to listen to Nobama talk he's the reason. The Democrats understand that the public is not aware of what goes on and if they lie often enough it becomes true in the public eye. As Clinton told Kerry "it's not what you say, it's how you say it". My feeling is that most of the public is dumb and you need to talk to them as if you were talking to a eighth grade student. Explain so they can understand your positions and why you believe that way. How giving up one right leads to the government taking more. Have you heard Nobama wants to tax the rich so everyone does their share. Does he mention that 48 per cent of the eligible tax payers pay nothing and a large percentage of those that don't pay get money back so they are really minus tax payers. Half truths. I heard the other day that if you receive all the help you're eligible for from the federal government you can have an annual income of $32,000 and if you work and don't receive aid and are at the low end of income before you can go on the dole the average income is around $33,000. Everyone doing their fair share.

Read and heed. "The democracy will cease to exist when you take away from those who are willing to work and give to those who would not." Thomas Jefferson

ENJOY THE JOURNEY

2012-02-22T06:47:00.005-06:00

I've been fishing the last two days. Guess what. I had great time both days fishing with friends. One day I caught a lot of fish, one day I didn't. The thing is I enjoyed both days. Fishing has become the road to good times and the journey has its bumps and smooth sections. The bumps along the road are those days that bites are few and far between but just being out with nature helps smooth out those bumps. The smooth sections are the days you can't seem to do anything wrong. Cast after cast brings in a fish. But the important thing is to have fun as you continue that wonderful journey. I caught the largest bluegill in my lifetime the other day. Click on this picture so you can get a real idea of how large this fish is. He was at least 12 to 13 inches long and weighed any where from 2 to 4 pounds. He was thick and made my hand look small. I thought I had a bass on my line as I was fighting him. He gave me a real fight on my #3wt. He also helped make a good day even better. That day I brought between fifteen and twenty fish to shore. The more I fish the more I enjoy it. One little political note Where has the President been for three years? He now wants to lower the corporate tax to 28 per cent. Is it an election year? Where was this proposal two or three years ago?

2012-02-20T07:25:00.002-06:00

I sure hope the weather forecast is correct. It is supposed to be a rather nice day 54, overcast at noon with a 10 mph breeze. That just might be great conditions for fishing and I plan on being on the river about that time. It's not very nice out right now. It's 51 and windy. I think I'll be OK later on in the day.

I'm in the process of putting new line on my reels. The only trouble is I've only received one and it's the wrong weight. I have to wait until I get the other two to see which one they messed up sending me. I've already taken the line off one of my reels so I may end up fishing with my 6 weight. I'm also trying to get organized for our trip to New Mexico in March. I know the weather and water are going to be cold. I have a pair of neoprene waders that are around 25 years old. I'm not sure if they leak or not. If I find that out maybe I won't have to purchase new ones. I should just go ahead and buy new ones. I think I got my moneys worth out of the old ones. Oh what to do. Isn't retired life grand!!!

2012-02-19T07:52:00.002-06:00

It looks like the rain is over for awhile so it's time to hit the river and streams and reel in those fish. You should get out there in the fresh air and get in tune with nature and have some fun. We all deserve to enjoy our lives as much as possible. Fishing not only gets you out of the house but you get exercise, you get rid of stress and you have time to sort out what's going on with your life. Do I need to come up with more reasons? I think not.

The Spurs won again yesterday to make it ten straight wins. Maybe I should say they outlasted the Clippers. In the last minute both teams had chances to win the game but gave it away. Duncan missed a two footer and with just seconds to go L.A. had a three point lead and the ball out of bounds. An errant pass went to Gary Neal and he hit a three pointer to send the game into overtime. In overtime Neal had a chance to seal the game but missed two free throws to give the Clippers a chance to tie the game with a 3-pointer but the shot was missed. With all the mistakes it was still an exciting finish.

2012-02-18T07:24:00.002-06:00

Since the meeting Thursday I've been thinking about a fish I caught a few years back (disregard date on pic) west of the new bridge. I look at the picture (posted here) and ask myself "do we have white bass behind the city dam?". "Did I catch this fish while it was making a run?". Now it's the only fish like this I've caught in all my days of fishing in the Guadalupe. Wouldn't it be something if they planted white bass in the city lake? Interesting.

Remember that Danny and I are inviting everyone to join us in New Mexico the week of the19th-23rd of March. We are going to leave here the 17th and are camping in Danny's trailer. If you can get a partner to go you'll have to make your plans but we can help you find places to stay or even a guide to hire. It might be fun. Remember we need to do things now before we can't do them.

2012-02-17T10:36:00.002-06:00

What a pleasant surprise I received last night at our monthly HCFF meeting! My friend Danny Wheat presented me with a pastel drawing of a long eared sunfish that I caught in the Guadalupe. (see pic) He really is an artist. If you are ever at Danny's place have him show you some of his art work.

At the meeting last night some things I already knew were reinforced in my mind. Pat Vanek pointed out where to fish at different locations on a river. In particular he told us where to fish on either side of a fall or riffle. He was strictly talking about white bass and their run each spring to spawn. If you have never caught white bass they are a fun fish to catch. My experience with them was on the Lake of the Ozarks in Missouri. At the lake I used spinning gear most of the time but have caught them on a fly rod. Carolyn and I ended up liking white bass better than crappie to eat. I'm not a real fish eater either but I do like white bass. Picture on the right features two white bass and one crappie. If any of you have fishing reports either on lease, gulf or Guadalupe let me know.

2012-02-16T07:33:00.003-06:00

HCFF MEETING TONIGHT

It looks like rain for the next couple of days! It will delay my fishing (could be T-Storms) but we still need water. What does it matter if I put it off a couple of days. I wish I knew what was going on with the fish. The last two places I went I caught one fish. Normally I do pretty well in each spot. I not only caught just the one fish but didn't get any other hits and above all else didn't see or even spook any fish. Is it the weather? Temperature of the water? Have they moved since the low levels last summer? I just don't know. Where I caught the 25 fish the water level and temperature probably stays the same year round. If anybody knows the reason please let me know. By not catching fish I could get an inferiority complex. Well no I guess not but I have second guessed myself before.

I've tried to stay away from politics today as I've ranted for the last several days but Maxine Waters who leans very close to being a socialist/communist (my judgement) called the Republican "Demons" yesterday. This from one that preaches "civility". If you don't agree with them they call you names because they can't drill holes our positions.

HCFF MEETING TOMORROW NIGHT

2012-02-15T07:44:00.002-06:00

Nobama supports “Occupy ---- “ you fill in the blank. If I remember correctly Nobama sided with the Occupy” movement. In a recent letter that was sent out by a renamed Acorn group (ACCE) they were asking for donations for their upcoming occupy the capitol in Sacramento. The letter states quote “thousands of us are arriving in Sacramento on March 5 to occupy the capitol with our demand that the 1 per cent pay for jobs, education, essential services and a better future.” Unquote. This is according to a copy of the letter obtained by Fox News.com. What happened with the idea of work to get ahead? Can you imagine that here in the United States that people want to be parasites and live off of the work of others? A free ride is what they want. Just be born and be taken care of from birth to death not having to do anything to earn something. A job is a right? Birth control is a right? Health insurance is a right? Having a computer and a cell phone is a right? Did you know that one of the taxes on your cell phone bill is to pay for the poor peoples’ cell phones? Did you know that another tax is for their computers? Since when? Since the Democrats took control of the government. What planet are these people from? It sounds like it should be coming from Russia or Cuba.

I got an email from my friend in California. Here it is: featured article in yesterdays Fresno Bee was a story of how two homeless men between them (get this) over 1,300 ambulance calls in 2011. There are over 160 calls already this year and counting. They have cost each Fresno Co taxpayer additional taxes just for these two alone. Now here is the clincher - they often use it as a taxi service--calling, being delivered to the hospital, refusing service, then walking to where they need to go. One was quoted stating it is my right to call. Ambulance service does not refuse service because of a court case establishing legal precedence regarding service. They have been labeled by the media as FREQUENT FLIERS! And we wonder why our country is on a downward spiral to oblivion??? We will get our only chance in November to return some sound reasoning to the good ole USA.

DEMOCRATS FAIL TO LEAD AGAIN

2012-02-14T07:11:00.003-06:00

Once again the Democrats fail to lead while controlling two branches of government. The democratic controlled Senate once again looks like it will not pass a budget. It hasn't passed one in over 1000 days. In fact I bet it won't even put the President's budget up for a vote. That's how big of joke it is. No wonder the majority of people have a low opinion of Congress. But the distinction should be made that the House has passed budgets and other bills besides the budget each and every year. Senate Majority leader Harry Reid won't let this years budget from his parties leader come up for an up/down vote. He knows that Nobama's budget is a campaign tool. If only the Democrats cared as much about the country as they care about being re-elected. They are really superior to the Republicans in playing the political game but are really terrible leading us to a better country. Class warfare is all they can run on in this year's campaign. In Nobama's mantra of trying to raise the taxes on the people that pay most of the revenue anyway he says we must all do our share. Well 47% of the people pay no taxes. Is that their share? The Democratic record is awful. They are allowing vocal minorities run this country. Whacko environmentalists, unions with the more for me attitudes, green energy nuts and any other far left outfit have more influence than Democratic members of Congress. It drives me up the wall.

We could be well on our way to an economic recovery if the fringe groups weren't kowtowed to. We could be energy independent and the money spent buying oil could be paying down our debt. Without the EPA's overreaching regulations new refineries could be built and cheaper gas would be a result of that. More money in every one's wallet would bring about more spending which would result in more manufacturing which would bring about more jobs. How difficult is it? Instead of doing something like this the President, who thinks he's king, mandates private companies or religions to buy a certain product or do specific things. Where is the uproar as we lose or are about to lose our freedoms? Remember my liberal friends that when the other party gets in office they might mandate that everyone must buy and carry guns. If the precedent is set who knows what might be put upon us. If we lose that first freedom the second one can follow. Remind you of preNazi Germany? What frosts me most is that 50% of the people are still with Nobama.

The entire mandated birth control argument going on right now should be stated differently. It is not a birth control thing it is the intrusion of government into places where it has no right to be. Since when does the president have the power to tell companies what they must sell or churches what they must do? Boeing in South Carolina comes to mind when I talk about this subject. If government can tell companies what they can do why can't they tell you what you must do? Oh yeah they are trying that right now with Obamacare. You must buy insurance or pay a fine. Gee is government too intrusive into your life? Makes what Ron Paul is talking about right on target. Wake up America Nobama must be defeated in November.

2012-02-13T07:17:00.002-06:00

How about this weather? Snow yesterday, rain during the night and now some more drizzle this morning. Now if it will warm up a bit fishing conditions will be good. That is always a plus.

What did you do yesterday in the cold weather. I got some flies tied for the summer and my stash (borrowing a quilt term from my wife) is growing. I've even been tying some size twenties for the San Juan. Heck I can barely see a twenty and I don't know if I can get the tippet through the eye or not. But from what I'm reading about the area Danny and I are going to that's size and smaller are what they use. I know that catching will be by feel not any by sight. I like seeing a fish take the fly. I'll just have to watch the indicator and hope I'm not too late setting the hook. As always it will be fun just being there.

We have a meeting this Thursday. The speakers recently have been interesting. Danny and Guy are doing a good job finding the speakers. You should also check out the club's website. Danny has done a good job getting it going once again.

2012-02-12T07:55:00.003-06:00

Brrrr it's cold outside. ( 9:15 AM It's snowing since I posted this) Just as I thought spring was upon us the temperature drops to below freezing. Is this the last hurrah for winter? I hope so. I'm ready for the river to warm and the fish to become active. Of course I want perfect conditions, who doesn't?

Carolyn has worked the last two days at Creations and goes back in today also. It makes for a long, lonely day when it's too cold to go out. It's too bad I don't tell her often enough how much she means to me. Sometimes it takes being apart for hours or days to realize how much you rely on each other if it's just to state a fact or get help on a small matter. I guess what I'm getting at is we ought to tell people how much we appreciate their friendship before we are parted from them permanently.

For those of you who are going to brave the weather today and fish tight lines!

DON'T BE FOOLED

2012-02-11T07:24:00.002-06:00

Okay don't be fooled by what nobama did yesterday in regards to the Catholic Church. He gives them a pass on the birth control but still MANDATES that now the insurance companies pay. He mandates. This guy thinks he's king and what's even worse is that we are letting him get away with it. Since when is getting birth control materials a right? Since when does the federal government have the right to tell a business what it must sell? I'll tell you since when. Since the liberals got control of all three branches of government. Now that the Republicans have control of the House and will not go along with the liberal (socialist) agenda nobama wrongfully calls it a do nothing congress. It should be a do nothing Senate which the dems are in the majority. The House has passed many bills which never see daylight once they are passed to the senate. I'm glad the House rejects most all of nobama's agenda. He hasn't seen a dollar that he doesn't want to spend. Look out America if we don't make nobama a one term president we will be just like Greece.

TWO AT A TIME

2012-02-10T07:06:00.003-06:00

I'm including in this post a nice fishing report from Bill. I want to include the picture here so it can be enlarged. I will also post his report in the fishing report section so it will remain on the page for some time. Here is the report he sent me.

I fished Tecaboca on Thursday, February 9, hoping to catch one fish but realistically expecting to get skunked. I am still learning the lay of the land over there, and all of my past productive holes looked void of fish. I floundered around the big hole for about 45 minutes and was getting ready to pack it in when I stumbled upon a pod of rowdy fish. I caught about 10 trout and 2 bass in about 15 minutes. Then it was over. As a first for me, I hooked 2 trout on the lead fly and dropper. I thought I had snagged some 4-armed prehistoric monster. Both trout were about 14 inches. I fished with the Arkansas Traveler and Bug Eyed Nymph. Way to go Bill. The entire story is fascinating. Ready to go home and all of a sudden they turn on for fifteen minutes. I guess that's what I like about fishing--- the unknown factors. The challenge and the humbling days. One day you catch many fish and you think you know all there is to know and the next time you catch one or get skunked and you think you know nothing.

SHEEP READY TO BE SLAUGHTERED

2012-02-09T08:19:00.005-06:00

WAKE UP PEOPLE! I"m beginning to see how the Nazis came to power in Germany. Now I am not calling anyone a Nazi, let's be clear on that. What I'm getting at is the naivety of the people who see nothing wrong with an appointed official dictating what a religion must do. These are the same people that are always invoking the idea of separation of church and state about no Ten Commandments posted in public places or no manger scenes at Christmas or now say "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas. But when the government tells a religion that it must do something against its beliefs it's alright. This latest edict from the Czars in Washington is another example of this administration taking freedoms away from us. If they can do this to the Catholic religion why can't someone down the line insist that any Muslim hospital must serve pork to all its patients. Doesn't it sound like everyone having to buy health insurance whether they want it or not? Maybe sometime an administration will think that everyone must buy a gun. Our rights are being taken away and people don't see it. Hitler got elected and became a dictator. Obama recently said that the Constitution made it harder to govern. Duh. Wasn't that what the founding Fathers wanted. I really believe he would like to be a dictator or King. He is so egotistical that he thinks he knows what is best for us in all matters. Remember if the government can take one thing away from you there is nothing stopping them from taking more.

A late thought. I must mention that one of our Supreme Court Justices, Ruth Bader-Ginsburg told a country ( I believe Egypt) the other day that when writing a constitution she wouldn't start with ours. She sits on the court that decides Constitutional law. What a farce!

Saturday Fly Tying

2012-02-08T07:34:00.002-06:00

Saturday Feb. 11th. will be the date for this months Tweedle- Dee Fly Tying get together at 9:30AM.-noon at the Nat. Center of the River Nature Center.We will be tying flies that have been catching trout this winter at the put in streams. We will also be giving out information concerning Trout -fest which will be on Feb. 25-26th. at Rio Raft Camping grounds at Sattler. Guest and budding fly tyers are welcome. Looking forward to see you Sat. Adios Guy

I went fishing yesterday and caught only one bass. I did however just about eliminated one place to fish. I didn't see any fish except for the suckers and there were plenty of those. One can always use the day catching or not catching as a positive outcome. In this case I won't waste time going back there. Now I don't know if I was using the wrong flies or if the fish weren't feeding or what but I got the sense that there weren't many there. You never know what went wrong when you don't catch a bunch. I guess that's the challenge.

FLY LINES AND SECOND HALF

2012-02-07T07:38:00.006-06:00

It looks like it's going to be a beautiful day. One that almost compels you to try your luck on the river. I'll be trying mine. I'm not sure where but some place will get my attention. Get out there. Remember fishing is not only fun it's good for your health. Especially the mental health.

I bought 3 fly lines (2,3 and 6 weights) yesterday. Orvis is having a sale right now. I paid $29 for lines that are regularly $69. I don't know how good they are but it seems to me that the pricey ones don't last any longer than the cheaper ones. I've tried many different makes and priced lines in close to thirty years of fly fishing. Go on line to Orvis and check it out. I needed lines and just happened to get an email from Orvis (I receive them from time to time) and lo and behold they're having a sale. I think it continues until the 18th of the month.

Get ready to hear about the"second half". The liberals are really good with slogans. You know occupy wall street, 99%, main street, etc. I want you to think about the second half. In their terms this means another 4 years of Obama. Let's see, do I want another four years of higher unemployment, more governmental interference in our lives? Do I want to add another 4 trillion dollars to the debt? Why would I want another half like the first one? If only liberals (socialists) could govern as well as they make up slogans.

2012-02-06T08:07:00.002-06:00

Eli Manning lead the Giants to a close over the Patriots. The Giants have been on a roll and the ball bounced right for them yesterday. They fumbled a couple of times and the ball went towards the Giants like there were a magnets on their jerseys. The Patriot receivers dropped a few passes and didn't make that one great catch. The Giant receivers did and that was the difference in the ball game. I might have missed a couple of plays in the third quarter while watching "Sleepless in Seattle" during halftime. Football season is finally over until August. Whew!

As usual the rain went both south and north of us. I down loaded a radar app on my new phone (read toy) and watched as the rains hit San Antonio and Junction and Llano. I just love being in the 21st century. Not much on my agenda this week. Maybe I need to be on the river. What a great idea. Who was it that said I was losing it? Now let me think. Hmmm.

2012-02-05T08:27:00.002-06:00

Super Bowl Day around the world. I wonder how many Syrians will be watching or how many of the 200,000 Russians that were protesting against Putin will be tuning in? Sort of puts the game in perspective doesn't it? It also tells me how lucky we are to be in the U.S.A.. When we can set aside our own troubles and problems for a day and watch men play a boys' game and collect millions of dollars doing it makes one think that our problems are fixable. They can be if the right people are elected in the fall.

It's raining!!!! Let's hope it continues to fall and start to fill the aquifer. It will take a lot to do so but every little bit helps. It will also lift the river level and take the stress off the fish. Spring is almost here and I want the river to be in good shape so I can fish it with good results. Have you seen the Finches and the Cardinal's colors recently? They are really getting a bright red. Yesterday as I was walking around the park I noticed that trees are starting to leaf out so I think spring has sprung or at least is ready to. Have fun today and take time before the game and think about how lucky you are to be here in Kerrville. Count your blessings.

2012-02-04T08:47:00.002-06:00

Anybody ready to do some trout fishing? Not on the lease but in New Mexico on the famous San Juan River? Danny and I are leaving March 17th (St. Pat's Day) and are taking his trailer. We will camp at Cottonwood Campground. We are going with a guide on Monday the 19th to see where and how to fish the river. Danny met Chris Taylor at a Trout Unlimited meeting and hired him to show us the river. We plan on fishing 3 to 5 days. We are extending an invitation to any and all that wish to go. If any of you go you need to make your own arrangements. We thought it might be nice to share the experience. We will take two days to get there so we don't wear ourselves out and probably two days coming back. The average temperatures that time of year are highs in the 50's and lows in the 30's. Get your fleece underwear out and join us.

The big game is tomorrow and I'm about excited as a sleeping dog. I really don't care which team wins. Isn't it interesting how many people will watch this game around the world. So many serious things happening and we will take time out to watch men play a kids game. I guess we need to escape every now and then. Time to make my pick. Although the Giants are on a roll I'm going with New England.

2012-02-03T06:40:00.002-06:00

An unusual incident occurred at lunch yesterday. When we went to pay the bill I put my hand on Doc's arm and something happened. I went to pay my bill and noticed some money was missing. We looked all over and I eventually gave my name and telephone number to the waitress in case they found the money. I called Doc later in the afternoon to see what was going on. I told him about what happened and that I had lost some money. He told me that he had it and had already called the restaurant. Somehow I drop the bill into his vest or somewhere on his body and he had walked out and noticed it while starting his vehicle. Odd! The lunch ended up not being as expensive as when I left the place. Whew! I can't afford $60 lunches. Other than that lunch was good. There were only seven of us but sometimes that's a good thing since you're more likely to carry on one or two conversations and everyone can join in on them.

Right at the moment it is windy outside and I was hoping to go fishing today but if it stays windy I'll tie some flies. I need some more time to think about where I'll go anyway so let it blow and hopefully rain. I've been tying some bead-eyed nymphs and some leech patterns. I need some underwater flies to strip in. I try to vary the speed until I catch that first fish. Then I try to remember that speed and stay at that tempo until they stop hitting.

I'm sending out my blogsite by email because the old site quit forwarding you to the new site. Put it in your favorites. I try to let you know what's happening with the fly fishing club.(HCFF). Send me comments or suggestions.

LUNCH TODAY 11:30

2012-02-02T07:24:00.002-06:00

Come to lunch today and bring a friend if you want. Swap tales and be ready to laugh. We don't discuss politics or religion but we do talk about fishing, fly tying and many other things. I always look forward to seeing friends. Last time we got together we had our largest turn out ever. I believe there were fourteen of us. We meet at the Guadalupe Oyster Bar and Grill because it is so easy to add tables according to the size of the group. The menu is limited but it's lunch and you can find something to eat. Hope to see you there.

Sport shorts: The Spurs overcame an eighteen point deficit last night to take the lead in the fourth quarter and hang on to beat the Houston Rockets. They leave on their "Rodeo Road Trip' this weekend. They are good at home (11-1) so it will be a test to see how well they do away playing on the road. Did you see any of the Pro-Bowl game? I didn't watch it because I don't like all-star games but I saw a clip yesterday and if I paid to see the game I'd demand my money back. There was absolutely no effort made in the game to block or tackle. I don't blame the players since they just completed a season and came out of it healthy. Why would you put yourself in harms way in a meaningless game? The possibility of getting a career ending injury doesn't seem to make it worthwhile. The NFL should do away with the game. The soccer fans did it again. Seventy-four people are killed after an upset win in Egypt. No wonder some soccer stadiums have moats between the field and the stands.

LUNCH THURSDAY

2012-02-01T07:07:00.004-06:00

LUNCH THURSDAY 11:30 GUADALUPE OYSTER BAR AND GRILL

After the fishing experience Monday I'm keen on getting out there again. I play bridge today and the lunch is Thursday and I'm not sure what I have on the calendar for Friday. (I don't know whether it's "date day" or not. I had so much fun fighting that big catfish as he made several runs and he had control of the situation not me. I just let him do his thing but I did tighten down the drag somewhat and eventually he tired and I got him to me. The thing about where we fished is that the bluegill are large and fight also. Most of the ones I landed were between seven and ten inches. They are as big as your hands and do not like to come to shore. I think I'll take my two weight next time.

What a mess we are in here in the park. A water leak has been found and I think instead of calling a plumber some guys tried to fix it themselves. After about four hours of "fixing time" the water was turned back on and two hours later the "fix" broke and the water has been off since around nine o'clock last night. I was notified just in time to get a bucket of water filled but that's all we have. I hope they call a plumber and get the leak fixed soon. (9:00 AM the water is back on) Aaah shower here I come!

GUADALUPE FUN

2012-01-31T06:31:00.004-06:00

The conditions were perfect. The sky was overcast and a gentle breeze moved the top of the water a bit and the fish were cooperative. Danny and I went fishing yesterday thank goodness. Just as I was starting to doubt myself (last couple of times I didn't do well) things made a 180 turn and what a great day on the water. I caught twenty nice sized bluegill, with the the largest being 10 inches long and five bass with the largest bass being 12 inches. (shown) But the big one of the day was the catfish. I hooked it and the fish ran right to the weeds. My optimistic fishing friend told me that I'd never get it in on my three weight rod but about 5 minutes later I was picking up that catfish, so we, the fish and I could pose for a picture. I guess Danny was using reverse psychology on me. We fished for about two and a half hours and had a good time. It was one of those days that you just had to keep casting and stripping your line and eventually they started hitting. I'm on cloud nine today. (doesn't take much to please me as I grow older). I'll post some bluegill pictures at a later date.

2012-01-30T06:14:00.004-06:00

My lack of fishing time over the last six months is nearing its end. I have plans to fish today and have been invited to go on a fishing trip in March. I can hardly wait to get back in the swing of making casts to those wonderful creatures that make me so happy. it seems that spring is right around the corner so watch out river/fish because here I come. It is always nice to have someone to fish with to share the experience. Don't get me wrong I'll fish by myself but I'd much rather be with a friend. One of the reasons I moved from Arizona to Missouri was I didn't have a fishing buddy. Carolyn, bless her soul, said OK and we were off to the "Lake of the Ozarks" where we lived on a deep water cove on the lake. (see pics) Being able to launch the boat and be on the water in five minutes took care of not having someone to stay with the boat while I parked the truck and trailer, if I could find someone to go with me in Arizona. I might as well add that Carolyn and I loved Missouri. It seems you never tire of the view when there is water in it. We even liked the winters. Now don't get me wrong we love Texas and Texans too. We look at each as another new chapter in our lives. Get out and catch fish!

2012-01-29T07:28:00.003-06:00

Danny and I (as his guest) went fishing Friday. It was our first time to fish Teca Boca and we didn't do well. I caught a couple of very small bluegill and Danny caught a trout. We didn't see many fish either. Like anywhere else I would image it takes time to learn the area. The nice thing was the fact that we were fishing. I hope all of you in the lease are catching nice fish.

I played the ponies yesterday and lost a few bucks. I had a couple of winners but couldn't get horses to run one-two. Even Carolyn didn't pick a winner. Usually she is real close just by picking names. The day took care of my withdrawal of playing the ponies for the time being.

2012-01-27T07:16:00.002-06:00

Date day turned out to be a nice experience. We saw a good movie. (More about that later) We ate at Jason's Deli for the first time and boy was it good. I had half of a Yankee Doodle sandwich and a salad. The sandwich is both corned beef and pastrami with swiss cheese and was it good. They have a great salad bar with lots of goodies. I would recommend the place to anyone. Then the costco run which went smoothly. You know you just can't get out of there for less than $100.

Everyone should see "The Iron Lady". My take on it is that it was made in Britain. I don't know that for a fact but it seemed to me that the makers of the film were telling the Americans to wake up, take a look at history and solve your problems like we did with a change of government. Margaret Thatcher came to power at the time the unions were flexing their muscles. Prices of goods was rising, class warfare began to appear and special interest groups were only concerned about themselves. The government was spending more money than they had. Sound familiar? Isn't that what is going on here at the present time?

We are on a path that leads to the end of our liberties if we don't reverse course this November. The stronger the federal government, the less freedom for the individual. This thin skinned (complaining about how he was portrayed in a book) narcissistic president of our great country talks a good game but doesn't follow through on what he says in speeches. All he does is blame others including Congress. Any of you out of work should remember that for the first two years the Democrats had control of all three branches of government and did NOTHING about creating jobs. Even this year they could approve the building of the pipeline but they cave to special interest groups and take care of them and not the country itself. They were and still are more interested in making the government more powerful in the daily lives of the public. Examples of this are Nobamacare, the loans to all the "green energy" firms that are going out of business at the taxpayers expense. All the regulations heaped on businesses before they can get things up and running. There are many more but I think you get the picture. This is probably the most important election in our lifetime. I just hope the American voters vote with their brain and not their hearts.

2012-01-26T09:27:00.002-06:00

Today is "date day". Carolyn and I are going in to San Antonio with another couple to see a movie, have lunch and them go to Costco. How romantic is that?? The idea is to spend a day with each other. During the week Carolyn is in her room quilting, sewing, ironing etc. while I am in my room tying flies or playing games on the computer. so "date day" is a nice break.

Not much is happening around here. I'm still waiting for some improvement in the weather so I can once again hit the river and try to out fox those fish that are waiting to play with me.

For you Spurs fans have you noticed how much the flow of the game last night changed when Parker and Duncan weren't playing? The youngsters move up and down the court and share the ball. When the two stars are in they play half court offense and the ball usually stays in Parkers' hands way too long. Just thought I'd add my two cents worth on the subject.

2012-01-25T07:45:00.002-06:00

Rain, rain and more rain. Let it keep coming so the aquifer and hence the river will fill. So far it's been a good rain and I think it rained most of the night. All you fly tyers can take this time to catch up on refilling your fly boxes so you'll be ready to go when the weather clears. I'm still trying to tie some flies using CDC feathers. I'm working on speeding up the process. I think I found the secret to splitting the thread. I took my bodkin out to the shed and got the ball peen hammer out and smacked the bodkin a couple of times and it seems to have helped. I just hope the flies catch fish or I've wasted a lot of time. I'm in a dilemma because the flies take some time and the feathers are so light that trying to tie them this coming summer might be difficult. If I tie a lot of them here and they don't work, well you see the problem.

We heard a lot of the same old things from the president last night and once again it points out his vision of a bigger government. I hope you heard Mitch Daniels response. It was one of the better speeches I've heard. I wish to point out that when Nobama talks about Congress he never, never, mentions the fact that Senate Majority leader Harry Reid doesn't let bills come to the floor for votes. What is he afraid of? It seems he's more interested in showing his power than he is for helping the country. The Senators should give back their salaries since they haven't done anything recently and haven't passed a formal budget in three years. Does the phrase "term limits" come to mind?

2012-01-24T07:26:00.002-06:00

I found out last night that one of my high school classmates and fishing partner isn't doing real well at the moment. He has pulmonary fibrosis which is incurable. He has been doing so well fighting this disease but I guess after his traveling to Louisiana from California he got a cold or caught the flu and it went to his lungs. He was hospitalized and is on oxygen all the time. I went to Louisiana last year to visit and fish with him and thought I'd get down to fish with him this year. His wife told me the doctor says it will be a long slow healing process getting over this cold/flu. I hope he heals and can hang on to fish again. John or Duane or Pirk has faced this thing with a great attitude which I really admire.

Once again I got a taste of reality and a reminder of how fragile life can be. When you are out fishing look around take it all in and appreciate the fact that you are healthy enough to be there. As we grow older we learn or at least we should, that good health is the most important thing in our lives.

2012-01-23T06:45:00.002-06:00

Two good playoff games lead the New England Patriots and the New York Giants into the Super Bowl. Both games ended because of mistakes by the losers. A missed field goal that would have tied the score and a fumbled punt return deep in their own territory sent the victors to the title game. It's too bad that these costly mistakes happened as I would much rather had the teams win the games and not be handed the victory because of mistakes. The field goal miss was terrible since it was like an extra point. It should have been made. I kicked extra points before they widened the goalposts and it's not that difficult. The fumble was the second error made by the loneliest and saddest guy in the Bay area. Both goofs led to touchdowns. I will give the Giants credit in taking advantage of the turn overs. There was one play in the Raven/Patriot game that I don't understand. The Ravens threw a pass that I thought was caught for a touchdown that was ruled incomplete. It wasn't even reviewed. It appeared to me that the Raven receiver caught the ball in the end zone and had possession of it before the defender knocked the ball out of the receivers hands. I'd like to see it again. Probably something about completing the play. Anyway they were two good games and the Super Bowl should be a good one.

2012-01-22T07:44:00.003-06:00

I went fishing!!! I didn't catch anything but I was on the river. My day reminded me of a quote by Roderick Haig-Brown "I have fished through fishless days that I remember happily without regret." That quote is so true. How many times have you been fishing and not caught anything. You're disappointed and then you think that's OK I was fishing. The experience itself is worth it. If we caught fish every time it would become boring and be called "catching" instead of fishing. You would also miss being outdoors and the beauty of nature.

Alright now that I've said all the correct things to say when you get skunked let's get to the nitty-gritty. I had only one fish make an attempt at my dry fly. I think the fish was so little it couldn't have gotten the fly in its mouth. Since the low flows of the summer I haven't figured out where the fish went. I have tried the spots that I used to fish and I'm not catching. Right now I'm writing it off as it's because of colder water and the fish aren't very active. I sure hope that's the case. Oh well, I'll just have to venture out again soon and try my luck. The beauty of nature line wasn't baloney.

CHANGES

2012-01-21T07:15:00.003-06:00

I hope you don't mind my changing the way the blog looks from time to time. I get a little bored with it being the same for too long. You also might have noticed that I change the picture often. I try to feature people I fish with or enjoy being in their company. In the last month I've had Danny, Glenn and Bill in the picture under the title. If I have a picture of you it just might be featured. If you go to the "Links" section and click on "My Photos" you can see the pictures that have been posted on one of my blogs. Going through through them this morning I saw Ron, Martin, Charley, Vicki, Danny, both Bills, Dan S, Phil H, Bob E, Dianne and Roy. I probably missed a few too. It looks like a good day to wet a line. I'll go down below and see if I can find where the fish are hiding. I even checked my lines the other day just in case. It won't be long before every day will be nice enough to be on the river. I hope you're catching fish, especially you guys in the lease.

Tomorrow the Ravens travel to New England and the Giants travel to San Francisco. For what it's worth I'm picking the Patriots and the Forty-Niners in two games that could go either way.

HCFF MEETING

2012-01-20T07:48:00.003-06:00

Chris Johnson of "Living Waters Fly Fishing" http://www.livingwatersflyfishing.com/ gave a nice presentation last night at the monthly HCFF meeting. An avid fisherman Chris guides on the Guadalupe below Canyon Dam. He pointed out that the trout are now making it through the summers and are carrying over to the next season. It's nice to hear that the trout aren't dying due to the water being too warm. He also said that trout are being or can be caught on dry flies. This is great news for me since I'd much rather fish with dries. He showed several flies that he has success with. They are tied with CDC feathers. I going to try and imitate one of his favorites. I met Chris at the Octoberfish this year and after watching him tie with CDC feathers I promptly came home and purchased a "Magic Tool". I picked up a few pointers which he was happy to give to me. I showed him a fly which I tied and he really liked it which made me feel like I was on the right track using the CDCs.

Also last night was the election of officers and Martin Pursch is our new president. Guy Harrison is vice president, Danny Wheat secretary and Bill Emsoff treasurer. A fine slate of gentlemen.

2012-01-19T07:02:00.003-06:00

HCFF MEETING TONIGHT 7:00

I've just got to say it. This narcissistic president of our country doesn't give a darn about the blue collar people. In his decision to turn down the pipeline and not have the creation of thousands of jobs he has the gall to blame the Republicans. Yeah they really had the authority to make that decision. This yahoo only cares about pleasing the radical environmentalists. I really believe he doesn't care about anyone other than himself. He talks about caring for the middle class but every time there is a chance to help them he doesn't. Boeing in South Carolina and now the pipeline. He is only interested in his reelection. It is all about him. He blames everybody but himself. He is never wrong in his own mind. It is always someone else who is to blame. I am including an article that I think everyone should read. Is Obama letting his Muslim upbringing resurface?

Islam in a nutshell This, not the Chinese or the Russians represent the greatest threat to the world and might be the fulfillment of the book of Revelation in the Holy Bible. Adapted from Dr. Peter Hammond's book: Slavery, Terrorism and Islam: The Historical Roots and Contemporary Threat Islam is not a religion, nor is it a cult. In its fullest form, it is a complete, total, 100% system of life. Islam has religious, legal, political, economic, social, and military components. The religious component is a beard for all of the other components. Islamization begins when there are sufficient Muslims in a country to agitate for their religious privileges. When politically correct, tolerant, and culturally diverse societies agree to Muslim demands for their religious privileges, some of the other components tend to creep in as well. Here's how it works: As long as the Muslim population remains around or under 2% in any given country, they will be for the most part be regarded as a peace-loving minority, and not as a threat to other citizens. This is the case in: United States -- Muslim 0.6% Australia -- Muslim 1.5% Canada -- Muslim 1.9% China -- Muslim 1.8% Italy -- Muslim 1.5% Norway -- Muslim 1.8% At 2% to 5%, they begin to proselytize from other ethnic minorities and disaffected groups, often with major recruiting from the jails and among street gangs. This is happening in: Denmark -- Muslim 2% Germany -- Muslim 3.7% United Kingdom -- Muslim 2.7% Spain -- Muslim 4% Thailand -- Muslim 4.6% From 5% on, they exercise an inordinate influence in proportion to their percentage of the population. For example, they will push for the introduction of halal (clean by Islamic standards) food, thereby securing food preparation jobs for Muslims. They will increase pressure on supermarket chains to feature halal on their shelves -- along with threats for failure to comply. This is occurring in: France -- Muslim 8% Philippines -- 5% Sweden -- Muslim 5% Switzerland -- Muslim 4.3% The Netherlands -- Muslim 5.5% Trinidad & Tobago -- Muslim 5.8% At this point, they will work to get the ruling government to allow them to rule themselves (within their ghettos) under Sharia, the Islamic Law. The ultimate goal of Islamists is to establish Sharia law over the entire world. When Muslims approach 10% of the population, they tend to increase lawlessness as a means of complaint about their conditions.. In Paris , we are already seeing car-burnings. Any non-Muslim action offends Islam and results in uprisings and threats, such as in Amsterdam , with opposition to Mohamed cartoons and films about Islam. Such tensions are seen daily, particularly in Muslim sections in: Guyana -- Muslim 10% India -- Muslim 13.4% Israel -- Muslim 16% Kenya -- Muslim 10% Russia -- Muslim 15% After reaching 20%, nations can expect hair-trigger rioting, jihad militia formations, sporadic killings, and the burnings of Christian churches and Jewish synagogues, such as in: Ethiopia -- Muslim 32.8% At 40%, nations experience widespread massacres, chronic terror attacks, and ongoing militia warfare, such as in: Bosnia -- Muslim 40% Chad -- Muslim 53..1% Lebanon -- Muslim 59.7% From 60%, nations experience unfettered persecution of non-believers of all other religions (including non-conforming Muslims), sporadic ethnic cleansing (genocide), use of Sharia Law as a weapon, and Jizya, the tax placed on infidels, such as in: Albania -- Muslim 70% Malaysia -- Muslim 60.4% Qatar -- Muslim 77.5% Sudan -- Muslim 70% After 80%, expect daily intimidation and violent jihad, some State-run ethnic cleansing, and even some genocide, as these nations drive out the infidels, and move toward 100% Muslim, such as has been experienced and in some ways is on-going in: Bangladesh -- Muslim 83% Egypt -- Muslim 90% Gaza -- Muslim 98.7% Indonesia -- Muslim 86.1% Iran -- Muslim 98% Iraq -- Muslim 97% Jordan -- Muslim 92% Morocco -- Muslim 98.7% Pakistan -- Muslim 97% Palestine -- Muslim 99% Syria -- Muslim 90% Tajikistan -- Muslim 90% Turkey -- Muslim 99.8% United Arab Emirates -- Muslim 96% 100% will usher in the peace of 'Dar-es-Salaam' -- the Islamic House of Peace. Here there's supposed to be peace, because everybody is a Muslim, the Madrases are the only schools, and the Koran is the only word, such as in: Afghanistan -- Muslim 100% Saudi Arabia -- Muslim 100% Somalia -- Muslim 100% Yemen -- Muslim 100% Unfortunately, peace is never achieved, as in these 100% states the most radical Muslims intimidate and spew hatred, and satisfy their blood lust by killing less radical Muslims, for a variety of reasons. 'Before I was nine, I had learned the basic canon of Arab life. It was me against my brother; me and my brother against our father; my family against my cousins and the clan; the clan against the tribe; the tribe against the world, and all of us against the infidel. -- Leon Uris, 'The Haj' It is important to understand that in some countries, with well under 100% Muslim populations, such as France, the minority Muslim populations live in ghettos, within which they are 100% Muslim, and within which they live by Sharia Law. The national police do not even enter these ghettos. There are no national courts, nor schools, nor non-Muslim religious facilities. In such situations, Muslims do not integrate into the community at large. The children attend madrases. They learn only the Koran. To even associate with an infidel is a crime punishable with death. Therefore, in some areas of certain nations, Muslim Imams and extremists exercise more power than the national average would indicate. Today's 1.5 billion Muslims make up 22% of the world's population. But their birth rates dwarf the birth rates of Christians, Hindus, Buddhists, Jews, and all other believers. Muslims will exceed 50% of the world's population by the end of this century. Well, boys and girls, today we are letting the fox guard the hen house. The wolves will be herding the sheep! Obama appoints two devout Muslims to Homeland Security posts. Doesn't this make you feel safer already? Obama and Janet Napolitano appoint Arif Alikhan, a devout Muslim, as Assistant Secretary for Policy Development. DHS Secretary Janet Napolitano swore in Kareem Shora, a devout Muslim who was born in Damascus , Syria , as ADC National Executive Director as a member of the Homeland Security Advisory Council (HSAC). NOTE: Has anyone ever heard a new government official being identified as a devout Catholic, a devout Jew or a devout Protestant...? Just wondering. Devout Muslims being appointed to critical Homeland Security positions? Doesn't this make you feel safer already?? That should make the US ' homeland much safer, huh!! Was it not "Devout Muslim men" that flew planes into U.S. buildings 10 years ago? Was it not a Devout Muslim who killed 13 at Fort Hood ? Also: This is very interesting and we all need to read it from start to finish. Maybe this is why our American Muslims are so quiet and not speaking out about any atrocities. Can a good Muslim be a good American? This question was forwarded to a friend who worked in Saudi Arabia for 20 years. The following is his reply: Theologically - no . . . Because his allegiance is to Allah, The moon God of Arabia Religiously - no. Because no other religion is accepted by His Allah except Islam (Quran, 2:256)(Koran) Scripturally - no. Because his allegiance is to the five Pillars of Islam and the Quran. Geographically - no. Because his allegiance is to Mecca , to which he turns in prayer five times a day. Socially - no. Because his allegiance to Islam forbids him to make friends with Christians or Jews.. Politically - no. Because he must submit to the mullahs (spiritual leaders), who teach annihilation of Israel and destruction of America , the great Satan. Domestically - no. Because he is instructed to marry four Women and beat and scourge his wife when she disobeys him (Quran 4:34) Intellectually - no. Because he cannot accept the American Constitution since it is based on Biblical principles and he believes the Bible to be corrupt. Philosophically - no. Because Islam, Muhammad, and the Quran do not allow freedom of religion and expression... Democracy and Islam cannot co-exist. Every Muslim government is either dictatorial or autocratic. Spiritually - no. Because when we declare 'one nation under God,' the Christian's God is loving and kind, while Allah is NEVER referred to as Heavenly father, nor is he ever called love in The Quran's 99 excellent names. Therefore, after much study and deliberation. ... Perhaps we should be very suspicious of ALL MUSLIMS in this country. - - - They obviously cannot be both 'good' Muslims and good Americans. Call it what you wish, it's still the truth. You had better believe it. The more who understand this, the better it will be for our country and our future. The religious war is bigger than we know or understand. Can a Muslim be a good soldier??? Army Maj. Nidal Malik Hasan, opened fire at Ft. Hood and Killed 13.He is a good Muslim!!! Footnote: The Muslims have said they will destroy us from within. SO FREEDOM IS NOT FREE. THE MARINES WANT THIS TO ROLL ALL OVER THE U.S. --

2012-01-17T07:30:00.002-06:00

HCFF First meeting of the New Year. Elections. Good Program: Chris Johnson, hill country rivers guide and on the Guadalupe below Canyon. Hope to see you there. 7 PM at the Nature Center. Board meeting at 6 PM open to members.

A funny thing has happened this morning. I read an article about the President's jobs commission report. Now I can't find it. Yahoo appears to have taken it off its website. The commission is recommending use of all energy sources. Drilling for oil, mining coal, proceeding with green fuel sources, nuclear power and relaxing regulations that hamper getting things done. Welcome to 21st century Obama Administration. People have been telling you this since before you were elected. You're three years too late to get anything done in your hopefully one term as president. Now all of a sudden I cannot find this article. Think someone in the administration got to Yahoo? Hmmmm Wouldn't put it past them. I am curious as to when we will see this report or if we will see it at all.

Football picks picks I was 2-2 but I told you the Giants had a good chance of winning. This week I'm taking the Patriots and the Forty-niners.

2012-01-15T10:56:00.002-06:00

I hope you watched the San Francisco/ New Orleans game yesterday. If you didn't you missed one of the best finishes in a long, long time. Even Carolyn got a kick out of it. Four touchdowns scored in 4 the last four minutes. With the score 23-17 the Saints scored to take the lead by one 24-23. The 49ers came back and scored to take a five point 29-24 lead after missing a two point conversion. (terrible play call) The Saints promptly came back to score a touchdown and a 2 point conversion to take a 32-29 lead with 1:37 left on the clock. San Francisco came back to score a TD with 9 seconds left to win the game 36-32. An exciting finish to a good game. In the other game yesterday the Patriots were much better than the Broncos. Brady was too good for the Denver defense. New England can put up a lot of points on the scoreboard and will be tough to beat.

2012-01-14T07:21:00.002-06:00

HCFF MEETING THURSDAY 7:00 Our Speaker will be Chris Johnson, guide and owner of the Living Waters Fly Shop in Georgetown, Texas. His subject will be fishing in the Guadalupe below Canyon Dam, and fishing in the Llano and San Gabriel Rivers.

Someone asked me at the luncheon who I thought would win this weekend. I'm not into the pros that much but I thought, what the heck, I'll put up my predictions. I think today that Drew Brees is just to hot right now for the Forty-Niners to overcome so I'll pick New Orleans to beat San Francisco. I like Tebow but I think the Patriots will win. I will add that I'm rooting for the two teams I picked against. On Sunday I hope I miss this one I'll pick the Ravens to beat the Texans. In the other game I'm taking the Packers but i wouldn't be surprised if the Giants won. Enjoy the playoffs and make your own picks and see how you do.

2012-01-13T07:37:00.003-06:00

What a nice group we had at lunch yesterday. I believe I counted fourteen of us. It was nice to see everyone. It's been over a month since our last lunch. Come and join us at the next one. When that will be is not known at this time. Not very many at the lunch have been fishing. The couple of guys that have been doing some are getting a few as it is getting harder and harder as the fish see so many flies float by them. One report was that Crabapple is really getting hammered and the fish spook very, very easily. I also heard that Teca Boca is harder to fish as they are guiding you in one direction. That's the best I can do on that as I have never been there. La Junta is still fishing pretty good if you know what to use and where to use it.

FLY TYERS MEET SATURDAY

2012-01-12T06:42:00.007-06:00

LUNCH TODAY 11:30 OYSTER BAR Thursday is here and it will be nice to see the "boys" again. It's been a month since I've seen them. It's time to catch up on things such as who's catching fish and who's catching cold. The conversations at lunch are always interesting and cover a wide range of topics. I look forward to our lunch get together. For the bowl season I picked 21 winners and lost 14 picks.(60%) That's not very good but there were lots of games that could have gone the other way. It was fun and even got me to watch a few games I wouldn't have otherwise. It is now time to watch the Spurs. Carolyn is the fan of the household. I watch because I'm relegated to another room if I don't want to watch. I've had the big screen TV since September to watch the football games so now Carolyn is in charge of it. We don't always watch either football or basketball. He/she that's in charge of the remote can offer to watch something else. We share it pretty well.

2012-01-11T08:10:00.002-06:00

Lunch tomorrow-Thursday Guadalupe Oyster Bar and Grill 11:30

I was asked a question yesterday that I hate answering when the answer is no. I bet you have the same reaction to it as I do. Guessed the question yet? It's "Have you been fishing lately?" or "Caught any fish recently?" Right away I start giving reasons why I haven't. It's almost like I feel guilty for not even going down to the river. I hate it when I haven't been fishing in months. I think I'm going through withdrawals. I'm having an attack right now as I type. You can check your equipment only so many times. That's a good thing for me to do today. Tying flies takes up some time but come on you need to try them out. I miss being in or near the water. Have you ever been fly fishing where it isn't pretty? I haven't. Even in the most remote or desolate place it's beautiful when you are fly fishing. The weather doesn't look like it's going to cooperate anytime soon either. I guess I just have to bide my time. But through all this I'll enjoy this beautiful day.

2012-01-10T06:40:00.002-06:00

Lunch Thursday 11:30 Oyster Bar

Alabama won impressively but what did it prove? They didn't even win their conference. It's been 36 days between games and that must make a team a little rusty. That is just too much time between games. Also it's tough to beat a good team twice in the same year. I guess what it proves is that the BCS needs to go. At least make some better qualifications to get into the championship game. Number one should be that you must win your conference.

For you people who love to read I have been given a great site for books authors etc. Find an author, click on their name and a chronological list of books comes up. That is so nice to have since in some cases you want to read them in order. I don't http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/ think I've given this out before and if I did so what. Put this in your favorites.

I got three or four flies tied yesterday. I tied some variations of the woolybugger. I used different materials than what is called for in the pattern. I hope to get them tried out soon to see if any fish will take them.

2012-01-09T08:15:00.002-06:00

It's raining outside and I hope it continues all day. We need it and rain cleanses the Earth. There is a possibility of more rain tomorrow and I say let it pour. I'll tie some more flies for the spring and summer and look out the window and watch it fall. I love hearing the sound of the rain on our roof.

I'm picking Alabama tonight. I'm not sure if I'm going to watch it or not. Last game was a dull one and I don't know if I want to put myself through another one of those games. Also I really don't care which team wins. They shouldn't be playing for the championship anyway. Alabama didn't even win their conference and already lost to LSU Yeah I know that you know I hate the BCS.

I told you Tim Tebow was a winner. He led the Denver Broncos to an upset victory over the Pittsburgh Steelers yesterday. The game went into overtime, well at least 11 seconds of overtime. The Broncs scored on the first play of the OT. They overcame a terrible call that changed the momentum of the game. The Steelers threw a backward pass which ended up being fumble but a quick whistle ruled the pass incomplete. Pittsburgh then marched down the field and scored. If the play was called correctly the Broncos would have had the ball deep in Steeler territory and would have at least scored a field goal and that would have made it a two score game. That's past and they won anyway. I don't think they can beat New England next week but with Tebow you never know.

How about the Cowboys and their December spin. I told you several years ago that they needed to get rid of Romo and Phillips before they would be winners. They got rid of Phillips but Romo remains and they still can't make the playoffs.

2012-01-08T07:09:00.002-06:00

As I probably have told you already Carolyn and I bought iphones. I've been playing with mine a lot. They are amazing. I can see now why so many people are addicted to them. Information, music, camera, phone, books and other things at your finger tips. I am enjoying texting my great-niece. It is so nice (and easy) to be able to let her know I'm thinking about her. We just send a couple of messages and that's it. One night I asked her if she had her homework done. Last night I asked her what's for dinner. The phone right now is like a new toy but I see the practical use of it too. We tried to watch three things at once last night but didn't want to record any of it. As we were watching the Spurs or the debate I could check the other scores to see how the Saints game was going or how the Spurs were doing. I guess the 21st century will be okay as I'm finally coming into it with wide-eyed awe.

Congratulations to the Houston Texans! They won their first ever playoff game. Pretty good when you are playing with a third string rookie quarterback. Also your #1 draft pick of a few years ago is sidelined. The play of the game a great interception by a defensive lineman for a touchdown at the end of the half, changed the game. The New Orleans Saints are rolling too. They decimated the Lions last night 45-28 by rolling up over 600 yards in total offense. They could go all the way. Drew Brees has played well all year and yesterday he had 459 passing yards. Today Atlanta and the Giants tangle and the Steelers and Broncos go at it.

2012-01-07T06:51:00.004-06:00

A little review of the bowl games is due, so here goes. My predictions stand at 19 wins and 13 losses. Not real good with three remaining games. By conference it looks like the Big 12 and the SEC will top the list with the Big 12 ending up winning 6 and losing 2. The SEC will be 6 and 3 because two teams play each other. The Big Ten (which has 12 teams) sent ten teams to bowl games with four teams winning and six teams losing including Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl. Over rated conference in my opinion. The PAC 12 was 2-5 but Oregon did win the Rose Bowl. The USA, MAC and the Big East Conferences all are three and one and have one game left on the schedule. The WAC went 0-3 MWC was 2-3 and the Sun Belt 1-1 with one more game to be played. The ACC was 2-6 and some teams from this conference shouldn't have been playing for the big money. Another over rated conference. TCU and Boise State should have replaced them. Lastly the two independents, Notre Dame and BYU, split with BYU winning while Notre Dame lost. All in all the games have been pretty competitive but don't you think they would have been better if they were playing in a playoff? I do! I'm hoping Alabama wins the BCS just so people will see how stupid and corrupt the BCS is at this time.

2012-01-06T07:09:00.002-06:00

As I try to find a good picture to head my blog I look through them with fond memories. The beautiful spots where I've been blessed to fish with wonderful friends keeps me focused on staying healthy so I can do more of the same. I also think of the great times with Carolyn and the places we've been fortunate to visit. Hopefully the good times will continue for many more years. Carolyn and I travel well together and that makes wherever we go a fun experience. After a morning of fishing we enjoy reading and having grog in the afternoon with friends. All of the wonderful times wouldn't be nearly as good without dear friends. I've been lucky to keep some high school classmates as great friends who we see each summer. Does it sound like I'm ready for June to get here?

I've also been fortunate to meet good friends through the fly fishing club. I can't tell you how much I enjoy fishing with them both locally and on trips to the gulf or Mexico. I don't know what I would have done if I hadn't gone to that first meeting of the club when we first moved here eight years ago. Thanks guys!

2012-01-05T15:16:00.002-06:00

Just when I thought I was on a roll ...wham... I lose three straight picks 18-13 not good. I don't know how many games I've lost because of missed field goals. But like I said it's just for fun.

I've spent most of today trying to get connected to the Internet after putting a new router in the system. Why is it that things are supposed to be easy but never are for me. I always seem to screw it up some way. I've got it going now and I'll keep my fingers crossed that I'll be OK tomorrow when I log on. I've increased the speed but I'd still like to be faster. I think I'll call time warner and have them come out and see if the output is what it should be. I mean my speeds fluctuate from in the 20's to over 100. Something doesn't seem right. I'll just have to manage.

I've been fighting a cold or allergy for a few days. It's like I can't get warm enough. I just turned down an invitation to go fishing because I don't want to float in the water for two reasons. First I don't want to get cold and the second reason is that I think I have a leak in my chest high waders. Not good. I'll be glad when this cold thing is over and I can get outside more.

WAKE UP

2012-01-04T08:16:00.002-06:00

I'm ranting today about the Republicans trying to shoot themselves in the foot once more. Well the Iowans have voted. Who cares besides the media? What are they thinking in Iowa? They listed in precaucus polls that the economy is the most important goal in the upcoming general election. In third place was defeating Obama. Huh? I thought that is the number one priority. They vote for Santorum who can't even be elected in his home state. Just because he went to all the counties in Iowa? Wake up Republicans. This election process should be about who can defeat Obama and nothing else. As much as I would like to vote for Newt I don't think he could win next November. Romney is the only candidate that defeats Obama in the polls. We as both conservatives and moderate Republicans need to back him. If you disagree with him on some issues you can be sure he know economics.. Defeat Obama, elect Representatives and Senators then have a Republican President to sign the legislation. These should be our goals.

2012-01-01T10:34:00.007-06:00

HAPPY 2012 (Check the pictures below. Remember to click on them) Today is our 16th wedding anniversary. What a great blessing it was to meet Carolyn before I retired! We have had so much fun and seen so many places and things together. I hope we have many more years to do more exploring and laughing with friends. I hope all of you party animals are fine this morning. Bob B you especially! Carolyn and I went to a friend's house for dinner. What a great meal it was too. Prime rib, Yorkshire pudding, green beans, small potatoes and gravy. Yum, Yum. Then peach cobbler and pralines. All home made of course. After dinner we sat around the table and talked until about 7:45. We came home and watched the Spurs put it to Utah and I ended up going to bed before the game was over and Carolyn followed. As you can tell we don't stay up to ring in the new year and haven't for several years. I was 3 for 4 yesterday and am now 14-9 in my bowl picks. Not bad after starting 0-4. Are any of you fishing? Let me know and I'll put it in the reports column. Check it out.

2011-12-31T08:24:00.003-06:00

I got a great fishing report from Bill Emsoff so make sure you read it. I included what Bill used because I figure if he caught fish he was using one of his favorite flies. Remember he is a good fisherman so your results may not be as good. It's nice to hear that members are catching fish!

In bowl games I was 2-2 yesterday so my total is 10-8. Not very good but what the heck it's only for fun. The pro basketball season is underway and I don't care but my wife does. I'll be watching a lot of games because I don't want to go to my room.

Carolyn and I decided to step into the 21st century yesterday and got iphones. We came home and played with them for an hour or so. I am amazed at what all they can do. I see why people use them so much. We just hope we get our money's worth.

2011-12-30T07:18:00.002-06:00

I tried to cash my tickets from Santa Anita at the OTB in Fredericksburg yesterday and they don't cash other track tickets anymore. I'm sure I had done it previously but things change. I have plenty of time to cash them so not to worry. I made a couple of bets and won a couple of dollars and now have a voucher (ticket) to cash in Fredericksburg. Hmm guess I'll have to go up there and collect. Could another wager be in the future?

I went one and one yesterday on the bowl picks. Notre Dame led 14-0 and lost 18-14. I thought I had an upset win. Baylor and Washington lit up the scoreboard before Baylor won 67-56. The Heisman voters may have gotten it right this time. Eight and six isn't very good but it is better than six and eight. Most of the bowl games have been close and exciting but who really cares about the teams that are playing?

In the political ring Iowa voters get their say in just a few days. Iowa? Why Iowa? Why should that state be so important. Doesn't make sense to me. I see in the latest poll that Romney defeats Obama. In other polls Obama leads but he usually is below 50% which is not a good sign for incumbents. Let's hope anyway. I'm not sure how I want the republican nomination to come out. Right now I'm leaning toward having none of the present contenders to get a winning margin. They go to the convention, have a few ballots and no winner. Then they draft Mike Huckabee. He might be the man.

My trip to my left leaning family went without discussing any politics. We must love each other because I didn't bring the subject up and neither did they. I'll never make them see the light and they will never change my views. Did you ever notice that people in the cities are more liberal than rural folks? I don't know why but I have my ideas.

Jay I appreciate your comment but I'm not publishing it because it links to a couple of sites.

2011-12-29T08:29:00.002-06:00

I received an e-mail today from Danny stating that the HCFF web page expired and Danny is trying to get renewed. As of today there is no HCFF web page. Come on over to this place I'll try to keep you informed. Danny also sent me a fishing report which I put in the appropriate place. I'm not give you all the details so if you want to know what he's using get in touch with him.

We got home around 6:30 last night and got to sleep in our own bed. It's always nice to be home. We had a great time visiting friends and family. My brother's kids (Corey and Cambria) have graduated from college and the three girls (Maya, Maki and Asia) are all teen-agers. Maya will graduate from high school this year. Along with Carolyn's kids (Dan and Deanna) these are the reasons we go to California as much as possible. It had been two years since we had seen them and all have grown so much. We must go more often so the changes won't be so dramatic.

I won one and lost one (Air Force didn't convert a two point conversion) yesterday so I'm 7-5 on the bowl games.

2011-12-28T06:31:00.002-06:00

On the road today. We should make it home in the afternoon. We spent the night in Lordsburg, New Mexico. We'll leave here around 6:30 AM and be on the road about 10 hours. Carolyn and I each drive an hour and then switch drivers. It really helps keep you fresher when you are behind the wheel. We catch cat naps while in the shotgun seat. We are anxious to get home.

I looked at the bowl games results and since losing the first 4 I've now selected the last 6 winners correctly. 6-4 sounds a lot better than 0-4. By the way I won at Santa Anita. Not much but I came out ahead. If I'd been on the ball I'd have done much better. Oh well I saw the"boys", had a good time and didn't lose. So all in all it was a good day.

2011-12-26T09:15:00.002-06:00

The Christmas get togethers were great. We had Christmas Eve here at Casey's house and there must have been 16 or 17 of us. While Casey grilled the tri tips and chicken, the champagne was poured. The ham had been put into the oven prior to this so everything was in order. The rest of the meal was brought in by the members of the family. This year we brought $15 gifts that could be consumed and drew numbers for the order of choosing. I must educate some relatives on the meaning of consume as a couple of the gifts couldn't be. I wish we could have gotten ours as it was a box of See's Candy. Carolyn and I did something different this year on Christmas Day. She went to her daughter's house to be with her kids while I went to my sister's house to be with my family. I missed seeing Dan (Carolyn's son) but I'm going to see him at his work when we leave tomorrow. My brother-in-law did his usual wonderful thing of preparing a great dinner. Carolyn reports that the prime rib they had was delicious. All in all a good time was had by all. I hope your Christmas was as much fun as ours.

Today is opening day at Santa Anita so I'll be heading that way. I'm going to meet the "boys" early so we can relive the past and laugh about the times we've had together. Then we'll walk over and try to win a few bucks at the track. That's it for today as I must get the Racing Form out and start handicapping the races.

2011-12-25T10:24:00.001-06:00

MERRY CHRISTMAS

Have a wonderful day!

2011-12-24T09:40:00.004-06:00

Carolyn and I spent the evening with friends. These are friends we spent a lot of time with during our summers in West Yellowstone. Dick is the man that got me into fly fishing. (See pic. Dick was patient enough to wait for a hatch.) He looked pretty good last night but is having some health issues. It was nice to talk over the past and be brought up to date on people we knew here in southern Cal. Remember I spent almost forty years here and Carolyn was born, raised and lived here until I moved her to Arizona, Missouri and Texas. It was a nice evening.

The weather yesterday was perfect. I was in a tee shirt all day. It was the first day that I haven't had a coat on. Today is to be more of the same. (73) It is still cool (cold) at night. (38) My family gets together tonight here at Casey's place. We will miss Cambria my great-niece who is in Korea teaching English for a year. We will miss her wonderful sense of humor and upbeat personality. I hope each and everyone of you has a nice Christmas eve and a wonderful Christmas.

2011-12-23T09:51:00.002-06:00

"It's Christmas time in the city, ring-a-ling ......". I had the pleasure of spending most of the day with my wife and her daughter. We went here and there looking for items on lists and got most things on them. Where we went it wasn't too crowded. In fact Glendora, CA looked almost deserted. We ate lunch in Carolyn and my favorite Mexican restaurant and weren't disappointed. That reminds me, I'm glad I like Mexican food because I've had it the last two days and will again this evening as we go to visit more friends. You've probably have noticed that here in the states getting together with friends usually or maybe I should say very often it involves food. That's not all bad either.

Boise State routed Arizona State last night by scoring 56 points. Kellen Moore went 26 completions in 34 attempts and I saw several passes that should have been caught. It was Moore's fiftieth winning game at Boise. That is a record that might stand for quite some time. I'm now 2-4 and maybe on the road to picking more winners than losers.

I still need fishing reports. E-mail me so I can post them.

2011-12-22T09:32:00.003-06:00

I finally picked a bowl winner. TCU showed up at the last five minutes of the first half to score and tie the game. They came out in the second half and tried to give the game to La Tech but were too good in the end and won. Tonight Boise State takes on Arizona State. Boise's quarterback Kellen Moore led his teams to victory more than anyone else ever in college football. I hope he gets a tryout in the pros. He is so accurate with his passes.

We took care of some family business yesterday. My sister needed to see our father's grave so we went to Bakersfield, CA. I'm so glad we did because we hadn't ever talked about the day he was killed in the oilfields around Bakersfield. I was in the seventh grade and my sister was in high school. I only remember being taken out of class and then learning what happened from our minister. I think I then went into shock and I don't remember the rest of the day. My sister, Yvonne, filled me in with the some of the things that went on the rest of that day. Isn't strange that for 60 years we hadn't said anything about that day and then all of a sudden it became important to not only Yvonne but me also. Sorry about having to get all this out but this blog is therapy for me and saves me from seeing a shrink. That is said with tongue in cheek.

Remember I value comments or questions and will post them if you want me to as long as they are not obscene.

2011-12-20T10:07:00.004-06:00

Today Carolyn and I are going to try and get together with friends that came to West Yellowstone each year and Phil is a fishing buddy that I really enjoy fishing with. He goes all over the world to fish and I'm anxious to hear about his upcoming trip to Argentina. (I may make it to Argentina if my nephew decides to open a bar in Buenos Aires. I think if he does we'll have to visit.) Phil and I would walk the Madison from Barnes to Baker's in August. It took us most of the day criss-crossing the river and catching and releasing nice trout.

Wednesday Carolyn and I head for Bakersfield with my sister and brother-in-law to take care of some business there. Thursday we'll meet Carolyn's' kids and Friday visit with the guy that got me into fly fishing. As the time goes by it seems as if we have more and more to do. I hope to make out to opening day at Santa Anita on the 26th. If I do I'll be able to see Arv, Marty and Ed. I spent lots of time with these guys during my single years. I've got to see them. Maybe even make a wager or two and win some money.

2011-12-19T10:10:00.002-06:00

Carolyn and I did one of my favorite things yesterday. We went shopping. I actually hate to go shopping but I wanted to keep Carolyn company and to view some tablets. She and I are thinking about getting a couple and everyone we talk to are telling us to get the Ipad. Both of us have older PCs and are thinking of using the pad as our portable computer. The young man at Best Buy was really nice and showed us many things you can do with one. He even hit one app and our picture showed up on a television screen across the store. HUH? How do these things work? We are not techies and are wondering if we spend the money to get the Ipads will we be able to learn how to use the apps. Golly what tough decisions we must make as we age. If I were a betting man I'd bet we end up with a new toy of some sort.

The bowl season has started and I'm zero for three. Two of my teams lost in the final minute or I'd be 2-1. The games start again tomorrow. For games that matched up teams with not great records the games turned out to be watchable and I'm learning how some are playing a lot of guys that will be back next year. I don't know how many games I'll be able to watch while we are out here in California but I'll try to see as many as I can.

I hope the HCFF Christmas Party was a fun night. We hated to miss but needed to be on the road. I read where it is raining there in Kerrville and I hope it continues. Tight lines for you guys that are fishing the lease. Ron L called the other day and said he had caught a few so get out there and bring'em in.

2011-12-17T11:33:00.002-06:00

Well here we are in beautiful Southern California. We had a nice easy trip out here with no incidents. We spent one night out (Willcox, Arizona) and arrived yesterday around 2:30. It's nice to be here but I won't be sad to leave here either. The bowl season gets underway today with three games. It will give me something to do today as I think I'm the only one without plans. But you know what that's ok with me. No shopping..... For your information gas prices get higher the further west you go. New Mexico was a little cheaper than Texas, but Arizona and California are 30 to 40 cents higher. Have a nice weekend.

2011-12-13T07:22:00.002-06:00

He comes my picks for bowl games. Since there are so many I'm only going to list the winners. If you want to see the match-ups go to the Dec. 7 post. Here we go: Dec.17: Wyoming, Utah State, San Diego State. Dec 20: Florida International. Dec 21: TCU. Dec 22: Boise State. Dec 24: Southern Miss. Dec 26: Missouri. Dec 27: Purdue and North Carolina State. Dec 28: Air Force and Texas. Dec 29: Notre Dame and Baylor. Dec 30: Tulsa,Iowa State, Miss State, Oklahoma. Dec 31: A&M, Georgia Tech, Illinois, Vanderbilt and Auburn. Jan 2: Houston, South Carolina, Michigan State, Ohio State, Oregon, Stanford. Jan 3: Michigan and Clemson. Jan 6 Arkansas. Jan 7: SMU. Jan : Arkansas State. Jan 9 Alabama. The bowl season is a long one and they say a playoff would take too long.

2011-12-12T08:35:00.003-06:00

Tebow does it again. since taking over the quarterback duties with the Denver Broncos Tim Tebow has shown the "experts" that he just might be able to cut it in the pros. The Broncos are 7-1 since Tebow took over and he's making the analysts eat a little crow. He's a winner and gets all the people around him playing better. The Houston Texans pulled one out yesterday by scoring a touchdown with 2 seconds left in the game and then kicked the extra point to win 20-19 over the Bengals. They are going to the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. They are now led by their third string quarterback TJ Yates. He played his college ball at North Carolina. He did a good job yesterday in the last minute. Houston which normally finds some way to lose is finding ways to win this year. Three of their better players, QB Matt Schaub, receiver Andre Johnson and defensive end Mario Williams and backup QB Matt Leinart, are out for the season but they are still winning. Go Texans!

I don't know what is in the minds (if anything) of the people of this country. The latest polls give Nobama a disapproval rate of about 52%. (only 43 approve) Seventy-four per cent think the country is on the wrong track, headed the wrong way. Yet, he leads the Republican front runners in head to head polls. HUH? Gee isn't it a pretty easy vote? I don't think the country is doing good and it's going the wrong way. I'll vote for anyone other than the guy heading the government. I mean this is a no brainer! I guess except for the people that don't use their brains.

2011-12-11T07:35:00.002-06:00

Quite a few interesting things have happened over the weekend. Most of them relate to college football. Robert Griffin III won the Heisman Trophy. He put Baylor University back on the map. Navy defeated Army for the tenth straight time 27-21. Sam Houston State won their 13 game of the season and continue to the next round of the division 1 AA playoffs. Hiring of coaches was hot and heavy as Texas A&M hired Kevin Sumlin away from Houston, UCLA hired Jim Mora, Kansas hired Charlie Weis formerly of Notre Dame, Illinois hired Tim Beckman of Toledo and North Carolina hired Larry Fedora of Southern Miss. Remember they are the team that routed Houston in the Conference USA championship game.

Also this weekend the number 1 and 2 ranked teams in college basketball both lost. Kansas defeated #2 Ohio State and Indiana beat #1 Kentucky. The Spurs open their season on the 26th so basketball fans take notice.

2011-12-10T06:58:00.002-06:00

We had a nice turnout for the ROMEO lunch Thursday. Ten of us had a good time enjoying each others company. It was nice to see all the guys and be able to wish them a Merry Christmas.

I won't be here for the HCFF Christmas Party as Carolyn and I will be spending that night in Willcox, Arizona. We will leave Kerrville early Thursday morning on our way to California to see family. Carolyn's son and daughter and my sister and nieces and nephews all live in southern Cal. I am going to try and stay away from politics as my family are out in left field on the left coast. They think I'm right of Attila the Hun. I think of myself as a moderate. Hmmmm. Anyway we will be on the road two days and will get into Claremont in the afternoon of the 16th.

Yesterday Carolyn and I went into the Rim to do some Christmas shopping and when we got that all done we started shopping for ourselves. We are thinking of buying tablets. After going to a couple of different stores we were really confused as to which one we should get. I-Pad or Samsung Galaxy 10.1. So we decided to wait and go online to get more info and read some reviews. This AM I looked at the HP Touch pad which is quite a bit cheaper and now we are leaning in that direction. You know being tech challenged it makes decision making harder. We'll keep shopping and who knows maybe we just won't buy any. Ya think?

2011-12-08T07:50:00.002-06:00

ROMEO LUNCH TODAY!! GUADALUPE OYSTER BAR AND GRILL 11:30

I went down to the river yesterday to see if I could entice some fish to take my flies. The weather was cold low fifties and the water seemed cold to the touch also. Maybe too cold for fishing. I got several bites but no takers. I got the hits on wet flies. Even though I didn't catch any it was good to be back in action. I tried one of my CDC dry flies and although I had no takers it floated and looked good on the water. I can hardly wait to float it by some trout next summer.

While the weather is colder I'm spending time getting my flies organized. I look at my fly box and wonder why I have all of these different flies. I only use a few different ones. So I'm tying the same flies and getting a pretty good inventory of a couple of types I use in the summer. You know PMD's, BWO's, Adams and Adams Parachute, Caddis etc. Four or five different patterns and getting rid of the old ones and tying new. My box will be nice and neat with the flies I use and not be taken up with a bunch that look decent but ones I never use. It'll be neat until I use a few and put them back in different spots because I've got to get my next fly in the water in a hurry. Right now I've tied some dries using CDC feathers and I don't know whether or not to keep tying them because I haven't fished them and don't know if they'll do the job. Oh what important decisions I must make. Earth shaking aren't they. Stay warm and see you at lunch.

2011-12-07T07:29:00.002-06:00

Fishing has been on hold for me for so long I might not be able to remember how to cast. I am going to try to get down to the river this week and try my luck. I'll put my waders on and bundle up to stay warm. I feel like the fish are not stressed like they were in the summer. There is a little more water running so there must be more oxygen available to them and the heat has left so they just might be interested in my flies. Now isn't it silly to try and make a case for going fishing when I don't have to do that. Just go.

Here are the bowl games to pick. I'm not going to put all the dates down but they start the 17th and they are in chronological order. (unless ESPN had them wrong). Temple/Wyoming, Ohio/ Utah State, San Diego State/La Lafayette, Florida International/ Marshall, TCU/ La Tech, Arizona State/ Boise State, Nevada/ Southern Miss, Missouri/ North Carolina, Western Michigan/ Purdue, Louisville/North Carolina State, Toledo/ Air Force, Cal/ Texas, Florida State/Notre Dame, Washington/Baylor, BYU/Tulsa, Rutgers/Iowa State, Miss State/Wake Forest, Iowa/ Oklahoma, Texas A&M/Northwestern, Georgia Tech/Utah, Illinois/UCLA, Cincinnati/Vanderbilt, Virginia/Auburn, Houston/Penn State, Nebraska/ South Carolina, Michigan State/Georgia, Ohio State/Florida, Wisconsin/Oregon, Stanford/Oklahoma State, Michigan/Virginia Tech, West Virginia/Clemson, Kansas State/Arkansas, SMU/Pitt, Arkansas State, Northern Illinois, Alabama/LSU. Email picks to me before the 17th

2011-12-06T12:30:00.003-06:00

Since we are years away from a playoff system in college football why not make some logical changes to the lousy system we have now. #1 A team that doesn't win their conference cannot play for the championship. #2 Any team ranked in the top ten must play in a BCS bowl. #3 Coaches cannot vote. #4 To become eligible to play in a bowl game you must win at least 7 games. That might do away with some meaningless bowl games but who really cares to see 6-6 teams play. #5 Get new unbiased people to run the system. I might have more changes later but this would be a start. Oh yeah, # 6 do away with the BCS.

2011-12-05T08:15:00.005-06:00

The BCS has gone and done it. A rematch of two teams in the same conference for the championship. What a stupid idea. If Alabama wins why should they be called champions? LSU beat them this year. If LSU wins so what? They beat them twice big deal. It just makes sense to have paired Oklahoma State against LSU. OSU won the Big 12. They deserve to be in the title game. Oh well the BCS isn't very smart or they are corrupt and I think it's the latter.

Have you seen the bowl lineups for this year? Thirty-five bowl games. Can you imagine? Thirty-five of them. To become bowl eligible all you need to do is win six games. So the larger schools schedule patsies the first two games of the season so in the next ten games they can play less than five hundred and still be eligible. Let me give you an example, Iowa went 7-5 on the year but their first two games were against Tennessee Tech who lost to Tenn State, Central Arkansas and that powerhouse Murray State. The other easy game was with Louisiana-Monroe who went 4-8 on the year. Another example, Florida was 6 and 6 but two of their wins were against Florida International 1-11 and UAB 3-9 and one of UAB's losses was to Fla Int. There are 12 teams with six and six records and one with a 6 and 7 record all in bowl games. There are 15 teams with 7-5 records playing. Allowing these teams to be in a bowl is all about money and goes right along with the theory that participation is the thing not the competition. I could go on and on but seeing red is hampering my typing so I'll let it go for now but you'll probably hear more from me on this.

2011-12-04T07:17:00.002-06:00

The regular season for the college football teams ended this weekend and once again the BCS is a mess. People think Alabama should play LSU again. What a terrible idea. Bama didn't win their conference and have lost to LSU already. Granted it was a close game but many one loss teams lost in close games. Boise State lost when they missed a field goal on the last play of the game. Oklahoma state lost in two overtimes and won the 2nd rated conference. What if Alabama won the game with LSU. Would they be champions? They would have split the two games. I hope someone has common sense when it comes to deciding who plays for the title. This week I was 9-2 and ended the season 158 and 73 or 71.5 per cent. I picked one more correct than Bill this week. Now only the bowl games remain to be selected and winners picked. By the way there are way too many bowl games now. Teams with losing records are liable to be playing. They've lost some the excitement of being invited to play post season because so many teams are included. I don't want to say I'm old but I can remember when there were only about four bowl games Cotton, Orange, Sugar and Rose and they were all played on New Year's Day.

I went into the Tivy game yesterday and it looked like I was watching a different team than I saw earlier in the year. They did not run the same offense that they ran earlier. I don't know what the thinking was but I thought their game plan both offensively and defensively were not good. Of course I am not familiar with their talent so it might be an unfair criticism. Calallen had real tendencies offensively and I didn't see much adjustment to them. But the Tivy coaches are doing a good job as each year they go a couple of rounds in the playoffs. Looking at the roster they should field a good team again next year.

2011-12-02T08:04:00.007-06:00

I see where Mike Sherman was fired. I hope A&M gets a good coach as they head into the SEC. They blew too many leads this year and something had to be done. I think this is a good move for the Aggies. Has anyone seen our President? Oh yeah, his cronies at the sixty some fundraisers that he's attended, while the country goes in the tank, have seen him. Has this guy ever done anything? As a councilman or whatever they call them in Illinois he voted present and was running for the Senate and as a Senator he voted present all the while running for president. Now that he is president he's still missing in action while running for reelection. He's never done a thing and it's carrying over to his present job. He hasn't compromised on anything and blames Congress for doing nothing. I must remind you that his first two years in office Congress was controlled by his own party. The Senate still is and Harry Reid will not bring any of the some 50 bills passed by the House and sent over to the Senate to a vote. The democrats are still blaming Bush, the tsunami in Japan, Europe and everyone and everything. Maybe I should say they are still whining. They should look inward. He promotes class warfare and socialism. He has no clue on how to solve the jobs problem except to raise taxes on the rich. Has he given in on that idea? NO he wants something to run on because he can't run on his record. We, well the country (unfortunately) elected him president not king. The really sad thing is some people think he is doing the right things. How stupid can they be? Obama is making Jimmy Carter look good. Murphy's Law is still valid. Obama has reached his level of incompetence

2011-12-01T07:55:00.002-06:00

This week I'm picking the following teams to win their games. Two games feature teams that have already met earlier in the season. I don't know why but I'm picking the losers in both of those games to win this time around. In Friday the Friday night Mid-American Championship I'm going with Northern Illinois. (This is the only game Bill and I picked differently) Saturday the winners are Houston in the Conference USA Title game over Southern Miss. Kansas State to defeat Iowa State. Wyoming to beat Colorado State. TCU over UNLV. What a great rebuilding season for TCU. The coaching satff at TCU is terrific. They do a tremendous job. Baylor to beat the Longhorns. LSU over Georgia, Boise State over New Mexico. Isn't it too bad that the Boise place kicker missed the last second field goal against TCU. They would be in the hunt to play for the BCS Championship if the ball had sailed between the uprights. Oklahoma State to beat Oklahoma, Virginia Tech to make amends for an earlier loss to Clemson and Wisconsin to also turn the tide and beat Michigan State this time around.

2011-11-30T07:28:00.002-06:00

Yesterday was Carolyn's birthday. It's too bad that I don't tell her how much she means to me every day instead of mainly on special occasions. I've got to start doing that each day. We went out to an early dinner (late lunch) and asked Barbara to come along with us as the four of us used to do. But now there is only the three of us and I missed Don not being there.

Boy are my legs sore. I put some roofing material on our our 5th wheel Monday afternoon and I'm still sore. I used muscles I haven't used in some time I guess and I'm paying for it. Being on my knees and getting up and then on my knees again and climbing up and down ladders several times for a couple of hours reminded me that I'm getting older and I'm not in very good shape. I think I knew that but I wouldn't admit it. I'd better get to the workout room here in the park after the guys get done remodeling it.

This weeks games. Friday: Ohio @ Northern Illinois (Mid American Conference Title Game) Saturday: #24 Southern Miss @ #6 Houston, Iowa State @ #11 Kansas State, Wyoming @ Colorado State, UNLV @ #18 TCU, #22 Texas @ #17 Baylor, #14 Georgia @ #1 LSU (SEC Championship game), New Mexico @ #7 Boise State, #10 Oklahoma @ #3 Oklahoma State, #5 Virginia Tech @ #20 Clemson (ACC Championship Game) Clemson defeated Virginia Tech earlier in the season. #15 Wisconsin @ # 13 Michigan State.

2011-11-28T07:45:00.004-06:00

I've been messing around trying to tie some flies using CDC feathers as dubbing, wings and hackle. The flies pictured here are Baetis (top 2 pics)(remember you can inlarge these pics by clicking on them) and PMD (lower)sparkle duns. Sparkle duns are used in Montana during PMD and Baetis hatches and I've had success with them. I use them in Colorado with good success also. I usually tie these using deer hair for the upright wings but thought I'd try the CDC and see how they would look. They look real "buggy" to me and I hope the fish think so too. I'll find out when next summer comes along unless I try them out for bluegill before that.

In pro football Tim Tebow keeps bringing the Broncos back to record another win. He may not be a classic pro QB but he is a winner. The so called football analysts think he won't make it as a QB and I hope they are wrong. I'm hopeful that his passing improves during the year and off season because as a leader he gets the people surrounding him to give their best.

2011-11-27T08:14:00.002-06:00

Yesterday I only picked one upset and the team I picked lost 38-0. But yesterday I went 13-2 so I ended up 14-6 which makes the total for the year to date 149-71 or 68%. Bill went 16-4 so you know who to go to for sure things. The BCS is still a mess. There will be a lot of teams that will be disappointed that they didn't get to the championship game. It's too bad USC is on probation because they might be playing the best ball right now of all the contenders. They've won their last four after losing to Stanford in 3 overtimes. They've scored 170 points in the last four games and given up 69 and they aren't playing to go to a bowl game only for pride.

I'm anxious to see how Matt Leinart will do today at quarterback for the Texans. He played at USC and I'm a Trojan fan. I'm hoping he takes the reins and does well. It finally looks like the Houston ball club will make the playoffs. I hope they don't implode.

2011-11-26T08:48:00.002-06:00

Houston proved to me yesterday that they can play with the big boys. Tulsa which had lost to three ranked teams got annihilated by Houston 48-16. The game was close until the 3rd quarter. Just one of my upset picks that didn't pan out. None of them did. I'm 1 and 4 while Bill is 4-1. LSU proved they are the best and I don't want to see Alabama play them again for two reasons. #1 Alabama didn't win their conference and #2 LSU already beat them. Who deserves to play in the BCS title game? If LSU wins out who goes to meet them. They've beaten Alabama and Oregon already this year. Houston is the only other unbeaten team. Boise State has missed out on its chances by missing field goals the last two years. TCU the winner of the Mountain West conference has two losses. Oklahoma State would be OK if they beat the Sooners next week. They lost but it was after the plane crash which could have changed their mental state before the game. If Oklahoma defeats them it will cause more of a mess. Now it becomes even worse if Georgia beats LSU in the SEC championship game. Let's see, Boise State beat Georgia, Georgia beat LSU, LSU beat Alabama, who beat Arkansas, who beat Iowa State, who beat Oklahoma State and on and on. Houston has the best and most defining argument. They are undefeated! Do playoffs come to mind??

2011-11-25T08:30:00.002-06:00

Once again Texas A&M showed they cannot win when crunch time comes. It must be bred into an Aggie that one cannot be good enough to win. It doesn't seem that they have the attitude that we are good. We are winners. Look at how many games this season that they had big leads and blew them. Last night the QB wasn't on his game but the coach left him in and made no apparent adjustments. Texas isn't as good of a team as A&M but they have the "winner" attitude. "Somehow we'll pull this out". I was really hoping to see A&M have a great season but I am really disappointed in what I saw this year. I believe a lot of it is the coaching staff because the same thing occurred over and over and a lot of it stems from attitude. I was disappointed a couple of weeks ago when they won big and I didn't see Manziel or another young QB in the game. Coach Sherman had some success in the pros but can he now relate to the college kids?

I think he needs to rethink his offense. I had a nice Thanksgiving here in the park. Over 110 people shared a wonderful meal and a good time. I hope your Thanksgiving Day was good too.

2011-11-24T06:32:00.002-06:00

HAPPY THANKSGIVING !

Don't eat too much. Nap in the afternoon and enjoy the Texas/Texas A&M game tonight.

2011-11-23T08:51:00.003-06:00

I received an email from Bill today giving me an update on fishing the river. He didn't catch anything in thirty minutes and his feet were numb by that time. Guess it's time to put waders on again. I've been wondering if I could still wet wade but this puts that possibility out of my mind. Thanks Bill.

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and believe me when I say I've got a lot of things for which to give thanks. As I've gotten older my number ones to give thanks for are Carolyn and good health. Now before I get a lot of static for not having Carolyn in first by herself hear me out. Without good health I wouldn't be able to enjoy my time with her nearly as much. We might not be able to do things we do now so both are really important to me. I'm fortunate and I do appreciate the fact that things are good. Have a nice Thanksgiving!

2011-11-22T07:56:00.002-06:00

Did you enjoy listening to the rain last night? What a nice sound. One we haven't heard too much of lately. Let' hope we get more soon.

Bill sent me his picks again and anyone else that wants to email me the winners DO IT. A little non-pressure competition. We don't really care who picks the most. It's just fun to have something going over the weekend. My picks are: Texas A&M over Texas, Tulsa to upset Houston, Iowa to upset Nebraska, LSU to remain undefeated, UTEP over UCF, Oklahoma to beat Iowa State, Georgia over Georgia Tech, Michigan State to beat Northwestern, Michigan to defeat Ohio State, SMU over Rice, Boise State over Wyoming in what could be close, Alabama to win when they meet Auburn, Virginia to upset #5 ranked Virginia Tech, (I don't think VT has played many tough teams), Oregon over Oregon State, Penn State to beat Wisconsin, Baylor over Texas Tech, Washington to beat Washington State, South Carolina over Clemson, Stanford to defeat Notre Dame and USC over UCLA.

ATTENTION FLY TYERS

2011-11-21T10:03:00.002-06:00

I just found the best fly tying video instruction site I've run across yet. Go to links and click on videos. Send me feedback about the site.

2011-11-21T07:48:00.002-06:00

Thanksgiving week means the games start earlier in the week. To give you some more time to make your picks here they are today. Thursday #25 Texas @ Texas A&M. Friday: Houston @ Tulsa, Iowa @ #21 Nebraska, #3 Arkansas @ #1 LSU, UTEP @ UCF, Saturday: Iowa State @ #9 Oklahoma, #13 Georgia @ #23 Georgia Tech, #14 Michigan State @ Northwestern, Ohio State @ #15 Michigan, Rice @ SMU, Wyoming @ #7 Boise State, #2 Alabama @ #24 Auburn, #5 Virginia Tech @ Virginia, Oregon State @ #10 Oregon, #19 @ #16 Wisconsin, Texas Tech @ #18 Baylor, Washington State @ Washington, #17 Clemson @ #12 South Carolina, #22 Notre Dame @ #6 Stanford and UCLA @ USC. It's a nice slate of rivalries. Good Luck.

2011-11-20T07:33:00.003-06:00

I wish the picture was of me but it isn't. This is my friend Dan and a beautiful cutthroat that he caught in Wyoming recently. He was using a #4 wt rod and 6x tippet. He said he had to cast to the fish about 20 times as the trout wouldn't move an inch to eat. He finally got the fly exactly over the fish with the right drift and the fish hit it. The fight didn't last too long as the river was shallow and the under cuts in the bank didn't have long roots in it.

Upsets and more upsets over the weekend. Four of the top ten teams lost and three more teams in the top twenty-five lost. #2 Oklahoma State, #4 Oregon, #5 Oklahoma, #7 Clemson, #16 Nebraska, #20 Southern Miss and #25 Florida State all got beat. There are now only two undefeated teams LSU and Houston. You know the people that call the shots aren't going to put Houston in the championship game so who do they put in? I wouldn't think they would put Alabama against LSU. If they did and Alabama won how could they be called the champion since the two teams would have both defeated each other during the year. So now which one loss team do they select? Maybe Oklahoma State should play if they beat Oklahoma. The team must have been down somewhat learning game day of the tragic deaths of the girls basketball coaches. That had to be on their minds. Doesn't the mess this year with the BCS just scream for a playoff?

2011-11-18T08:19:00.001-06:00

When will the public wake up? The media is very, very biased!! Don't believe them. Look elsewhere to get a different take on things. The lame or is it mains media are in cahoots with the left wing. Remember the German media sided with Hitler. It's what they choose not to report. How many of you know that MB Global headed by ex-democratic senator and New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine went broke and has no idea where $600 million of customer money is. Did you know one rioter or protester planned on throwing a Molotov cocktails to try to burn down a bank and as many other buildings as he could. Thank goodness he was arrested. Do these protesters of "occupy wall street" remind you of the "brown shirts of 1930 in Germany? Has the media made the linkage yet? Has the media asked the left leaning group of millionaires that think they should be paying more in taxes "why don't you pay more"? Why doesn't the media explain to the public that when the government talks about making cuts that it isn't a cut but just not as much of a raise as originally planned. We must defeat the left or within 4 to six years we will be through as a great nation. That's the goal of the left. It comes from a generation that was raised on the idea that competion is wrong and the important thing is not to win but to play. Everyone gets a trophy for participating. No wonder they believe having a job or health insurance, a house, food, cell phone, retirement program etc are rights. I don't think so.

One other thing before I quit ranting today. Wisconsin has started to gather signatures to oust the governor. Just a minute guys, in a little over a year he has balanced the budget, created over 40,00 jobs. The student teacher ratio is still 13-1 and no teachers have lost their jobs. Doesn't sound like someone who should be kicked out of office. Have you sat down and thought about government workers no contributing to their retirement? The tax payer pays their salaries. Then when they retire the tax payers pay their retirement and the salary of the person that took their job. Then when that person retires the taxpayers pay his retirement and the first person's retirement and the salary of the person that has the job now. Multiply this by thousands and you should understand why states are going broke. But once again the media doesn't explain this.

2011-11-17T08:11:00.000-06:00

My good friend Don died last night. Don was in pain the last several months but decided when he found out about having terminal cancer that he wouldn't just stay in bed and wait until death came. He carried on his life as normally as possible. We even took a trip to Tennessee in September while he was in terrible pain. He handled his dying with class. He didn't complain and didn't feel sorry for himself. He was mentally sharp up to the last days. He was a smart guy with a great sense of humor. He often told me he appreciated the fact that I got his humor because many people didn't. He wrote three or four books that are a showcase of that humor. I've known Don and Barbara, his wife, for quite some time but the last eight years we have been very close. The two of them and Carolyn and I had a standing date each Friday when we would eat at Mamacita's and take in a movie in the afternoon. Then we would come back to either house and play a board game and have dessert. We would talk and talk afterwards. I'm going to miss those times. Don and Barb came to visit us wherever we lived. They came to see us in Bullhead City, Arizona and Rocky Mount, Missouri. They visited us in the summer in Yellowstone, Montana and Buena Vista, Colorado. We hope to carry on our close friendship with Barbara but will miss "The Donald".

2011-11-16T08:56:00.000-06:00

HCFF MEETING THURSDAY 7:00 BOARD MEETING 5:30 EVERYONE INVITED

Since I don't have much to write about today I'll post my picks for this week. #16 Nebraska beats # 18 Michigan. #17 Wisconsin over Illinois. Louisville to beat UConn. Northwestern acts like they can defeat Minnesota. #6 Arkansas will be victorious at home. #7 Clemson keeps winning when they meet NC State. #11Houston will score enough to beat SMU. #21 Penn State in a close one with Ohio State. Washington over Oregon State. Rice gets another win when they host Tulane. Texas A&M will not blow a lead at home against Kansas. #1 LSU remains undefeated at Ole Miss. #19 TCU continues to win in what was supposed to be a rebuilding year. #25 Florida State to win over Virginia. #5 Oklahoma will score a lot of points against #22 Baylor and win. #10 Boise State defeats San Diego State. #13 K State to beat the #23 Texas Longhorns in Austin. Tulsa who might be the best 3 loss team in the country (losses are to #2 OK State, #5 Oklahoma and #10 Boise State) will defeat UTEP. Arizona always gives Arizona State trouble but Arizona State will prevail. Lastly #9 Stanford wins against Cal which could be a close game due to the big rivalry.

2011-11-15T08:51:00.000-06:00

The Packers look like the team to beat if you want to win the Super Bowl. The undefeated Packers seem to be heads above the rest of the league. I know it's early but they might go undefeated.

As I sit here and type I look out the window and see flashes of lightning and hear the rain against my window. Usually I unplug the computer but today I decided that if it's meant to be that my PC gets fried so be it. It's old and I should get a new one. If it doesn't get fried I'll probably have this one for a long, long time. I hope it rains all day and enough to raise the water levels in both the aquifer and the river. I haven't been fishing in the river in so long that I'm wondering how I get down to the river and where to fish after I get there. I'll figure it out one of these days. Have a nice day, keep dry and enjoy the sounds of the rain on your roof.

2011-11-14T10:30:00.000-06:00

As the pro football season progresses I'm following the Tebow controversy. I've listened to a lot of sports analysts and most all say that he isn't good enough to play quarterback in the pros. A lot of fun was poked at the Broncos for changing their offense for him. I think a lot of the ridicule is based on Tim being a clean cut Christian young man that isn't doesn't quite fit in the mold of a pro QB. My thinking all along has been that he is a winner. He has won at every level so why not give him a try. It took the Broncos long enough this year to start him and he has led his team to victory in the last two games. His numbers aren't great but the team seems to be playing for him. Sunday he had only two completions but one of them won the ball game. When crunch time comes calling he always seems to step up. I'm not predicting anything but I hope he makes it.

So you can get an early start on your picks here are the games for this week. #16 Nebraska 2 #18 Michigan, #17 Wisconsin @ Illinois, Louisville @ UConn, Minnesota @ Northwestern, Miss State @ #6 Arkansas, #7 Clemson @ NC State, SMU @ #11 Houston, #21 Penn State @ Ohio State, Washington @ Oregon State, Tulane @ Rice, Kansas @ Texas A&M, #1 LSU @ Ole Miss, Colorado State @ #19 TCU, Virginia @ #25 Florida State, #5 Oklahoma @ #22 Baylor, #10 Boise State @ San Diego State, #13 Kansas State @ #23 Texas, Tulsa @ UTEP, Arizona @ Arizona State, Cal @ Stanford.

2011-11-13T08:21:00.000-06:00

I learned a couple of things yesterday about a couple of undefeated teams that are no longer undefeated. Boise State needs a kicker and their pass defense is atrocious. TCU scored on long pass plays three being over 65 yards. The Broncos still had a chance to win the game but miss a field goal on the last play. Also I learned that Stanford isn't quick enough to catch the Oregon running backs. The Ducks were by far the better team last night and did not look like the team LSU beat in the season opener. I still can't figure out when Texas is going to play and win. Every time I pick them to win they lose and when I pick them to get beat they win. Texas A&M blew a ten point lead in the 4th quarter to lose in the fourth overtime. They've been ahead in most all of their games. USC is back. Each week they look better and better. Too bad they can't play in post season. I was horrible with my picks. I went 11-9 this week and am now 121-59. (67%)

Rain is in the forecast so let's keep our fingers crossed. Maybe we'll get some this time.

2011-11-12T08:31:00.001-06:00

I forget to tell you that the ROMEO lunch was a nice time. There were eight of us there and there was no lapse in time without conversation. We stayed around an hour and a half. Enjoyable!

Are the liberal places in the states being taken for a ride or what? Notice the cities that are having problems with the"occupy" groups. Seattle, Oakland, New York, etc. (all left wing places)are getting what they deserve. The groups should have been kicked as soon as there waas trouble or before the killings. The Tea Party rallies needed to pay for permits and didn't destroy anything. The Occupy group just took over spaces and caused lots of damages and deaths. They were praised by Pelosi, Obama, Reid etc. Should that wake up you people that are even thinking about voting for the democrats. Chaos versus order. A legitimate grievance versus no cause other than being against capitalism. I wonder how they would answer the question "Did a for profit company make your tent you're sleeping in or the clothes you're wearing?" How about "who creates the jobs you want"? With all this happening the lame stream media praised them. I must be living on a different planet than I used to live on.

2011-11-11T09:40:00.000-06:00

I started the weekend off with winning one and losing one. My upset went astray as Georgia Tech lost to Virginia Tech. G Tech was in the game until the very end. My other prediction came true as Houston swamped Tulane73-17. To go along with the weather here are my cold winners. (in bold type) #2 Oklahoma State beats Texas Tech, #9 Clemson defeats Wake Forest in one that could be close. #12 Penn State with all that's going on there rises to the occasion and beats #19 Nebraska. #16 Texas seems to have improved greatly this season and keeps on a streak by beating Missouri. #17 Michigan State loses to Iowa in Iowa. West Virginia travels to Cincinnati only to lose to the # 23 ranked team. Rice doesn't have enough to stay with Northwestern. Tulsa beats Marshall. Baylor topples Kansas. #5 Boise State gets a big challenge when they host TCU but celebrate after their win. #14 Kansas State beats A&M and #15 Georgia beats #20 Auburn. #18 Wisconsin defeats Minnesota, #24 Michigan wins at Illinois, USC beats Washington, while SMU sinks Navy. In a toss up I'm taking UCLA to beat Utah and in the big one on the coast I've got Stanford to beat Oregon.

FYI The following teams which seem to score a lot of points all are linked in some manner with the ex-Texas Tech coach Mike Leach. Houston, Oklahoma State, Oklahoma, Arizona, Baylor, Texas Tech and West Virginia. There is a coach at these schools that either coached with Leach or played for him. He's not coaching? Hmm.

2011-11-10T10:35:00.000-06:00

I haven't taken the time to make all my picks and I've been busy this morning so I'm only going to make my picks for the games being played tonight. They are #21 Georgia Tech over #10 Virginia Tech in an upset. #11 Houston will thump Tulane easily. Picks for Saturday will be up tomorrow. I'm having lunch with the "boys" today so I'll get in a few laughs and hopefully will learn some things also. (never to old) That's it for today, more tomorrow.

2011-11-09T08:19:00.000-06:00

The November newsletter Danny sent out was well done. Kudos to Danny. For your information that was rain yesterday. I know it's been so long since we had any that you might have forgotten what it was.

I have made a couple of purchases for my fly tying in the last week. At Octoberfisch I was impressed with the Petitjean Magic Tool so I went online and bought one. It helps you make a dubbing rope with CDC feathers. When I first saw it I thought I wouldn't use it enough to make it worth the money. (they were going for $45-$50) I got home and I got thinking (yeah I can) that I'm a dry fly fisherman and I could tie all my dries with CDC feathers and all my flies would float nicely. Coming to that conclusion I went online and found a kit for $29.95 plus $5.60 shipping so in my hesitation at Octoberfisch I ended up saving myself about $15. I'm not through though. I bought larger feathers over the Internet today so I'm out a few more bucks. I'm anxious now for them to arrive so I can get started on the flies I'll use next summer.

This week the games to pick are: Thursday #10 Virginia Tech @ #21 Georgia Tech, #11 Houston @ Tulane. Saturday: #2 OK State @ Texas Tech, Wake Forest @ #9 Clemson, #19 Nebraska @ #12 Penn State, #16 Texas @ Missouri, #17 Michigan State @ Iowa, West Virginia @ #23 Cincinnati, Rice @ Northwestern, Marshall @ Tulsa, #25 Baylor @ Kansas, TCU @ #5 Boise State, Texas A&M @ #14 Kansas State, #20 Auburn @#15 Georgia, #18 Wisconsin @ Minnesota, #24 Michigan @ Illinois, Washington @ USC (not ranked in BCS due to NCAA sanctions but #17 or 18 in the other polls), Navy @ SMU, UCLA @ Utah and #7 Oregon @ #4 Stanford.

2011-11-06T09:47:00.000-06:00

The long awaited ballgame between LSU and Alabama lived up to its hype. Both defenses were outstanding and neither offense could maintain a drive. It really came down to place kickers as Alabama missed three field goal attempts and had another one blocked. I thought Alabama out played LSU and should have won the game, but they made a couple of mistakes that in the end cost them the game. One glaring mistake made was putting in an injured player to receive a punt when they had LSU backed up inside their own ten. The punt receiver's ankle was bothering him and he couldn't back up to make a fair catch and the ball bounce and ended up thirty more yards down the field. Instead of having the ball in good field position with a possibility of marching into LSU territory with perhaps another field goal opportunity the were backed up into their own territory. LSU played well enough to win but if they played today I'd still like 'Bama.

It was a day filled with close games which led to some upsets and some finger biting games for a couple of undefeated teams. I was hoping Kansas State could rally and beat OK State but they fell short. Six teams in the top 25 lost. They were #2 Alabama, #9 South Carolina, #10 Nebraska, #19 Arizona State and #24 West Virginia. Oklahoma State ranked #3 held on to beat Kansas State 45-38 with K State inside the five when time ran out. Michigan State had all it could handle with Minnesota before pulling it out with 10 points in the fourth quarter. I went 11-9 for the week and am now 110-50 or 69%.

An acquaintance of mine won a Breeder's Cup race yesterday. He trains the horse and is also a co-owner. Congratulations Bill Spawr!

2011-11-05T07:29:00.001-05:00

Football Saturday!! Good games on tap (the beer is in bottles) and cool weather outside. It must be the middle of the college football season. Tulsa won the other night. They are 6 and 3 right now and the three losses are to highly ranked teams. They lost to Oklahoma, Oklahoma state and Boise State. They meet #13 Houston later in the season for their division title of the C-USA conference. USC won big last night which was no surprise. Colorado isn't very good. I see where Syracuse or the NCAA haven't done the right thing. Syracuse was given the win over Toledo in overtime but the field goal wasn't good and the replay booth didn't overturn the call. It is obvious that the ball missed going through the uprights. Toledo could be bowl eligible all ready.

When are we going to get a playoff system for Division I? This year four or five teams could end up undefeated. Some computers are going to determine who plays for the BCS championship. It more appropriately should be called the BS Championship. I hoping for a scenario that goes something like this. Boise State wins out and remains undefeated. Tulsa beats Houston, Oklahoma beats Oklahoma State and Stanford loses to Oregon. I think that would leave the winner of the LSU/Alabama game tonight and Boise State the only remaining undefeated teams. Would the BCS then put Boise State in the title game? They might be forced into it. It's fun to dream up scenarios.

2011-11-02T09:14:00.000-05:00

Bill sent a fishing report so check it out. I still haven't been down to the river and I need to do that so I can relay my findings to you.

It's a big weekend of football coming up with #1 LSU and #2 Alabama playing in what should be a great game to watch. My picks for the week are: Tulsa over UCF, #15 Michigan over Iowa, Texas Tech (yeah that's right) to beat #21 Texas, #24 West Virginia over Louisville, North Carolina to beat NC State, TCU over Wyoming, SMU over Tulane, #4 Stanford to keep winning when they face Oregon State, Texas A&M who can't seem to hold onto a lead loses at #6 Oklahoma, #10 Nebraska keeps winning by defeating Northwestern, UTEP over Rice, Air Force bombs Army, #25 Southern Miss over East Carolina, Washington State to upset Cal, #13 Houston to rout UAB, Missouri to defeat Baylor, #9 South Carolina loses to #7 Arkansas, in the big one I'm picking #2 Alabama to beat #1 LSU, #14 Kansas State to get beat by #3 Oklahoma State and #8 Oregon to beat Washington.

2011-10-31T08:10:00.000-05:00

What a great time was had by one and all last evening at Danny and Carolyn Wheats' house. Having it on a Sunday and at his house Danny hit upon a good idea. There was a different feeling, not as sterile as the park, but a warmer more friendly atmosphere it seemed. The weather was ideal, no wind and not too cool or to warm. It's always nice to see Martin and John make the journey to share an evening with us. Carolyn (my Carolyn not Danny's) and I mentioned what a nice group of people and how lucky I was to go to that first HCFF meeting years ago.

This last weekend I went 15-5 with my picks and am now at 99-41 or 71%. How did I know that A&M were going to blow another big lead and Texas Tech wasn't going to show up at all? The Ohio State win didn't surprise me as I almost went the other way. My top five teams are the same as everyone else, LSU, Alabama, Oklahoma State, Boise State and Stanford. I'm still pulling for Oklahoma State and Stanford to lose a game. If they do and Boise State wins the rest of their games they would have a good argument to play for the BCS Championship. LSU and Alabama play this weekend so one of those teams will have a loss.

This week pick the winners of these games. Thursday Tulsa @ UCF. Saturday #15 Michigan @ Iowa, Texas Tech @ #21 Texas, Louisville @ #24 West Virginia, North Carolina @ North Carolina State, TCU @ Wyoming, Tulane @ SMU, #4 Stanford @ Oregon State, Texas A&M @ #6 Oklahoma, Northwestern @ #10 Nebraska, UTEP @ Rice, Army @ Air Force, #25 Southern Miss @ East Carolina, Washington State @ Cal, #13 Houston @ UAB, Missouri @ Baylor, #9 South Carolina @ #7 Arkansas, #1 LSU @ #2 Alabama, #14 Kansas State @ #3 Oklahoma State and #8 Oregon @ Washington.