Good Things Come To Those Who Bait

One fish. Two fish. Red fish. Blue fish. Black fish. Blue fish. Old fish. New fish. Tomorrow is the MN bass opener. The real start of the fishing season. For me at least. I am so ready to get out on the water. Author Harry Middleton once wrote: "Fishing is not an escape from life, but often a deeper immersion into it." Middleton was a fly fisherman, but I know his reflection rings true for any ardent angler, technique notwithstanding. There' a lot more to the avocation of angling than Dr. Seuss would lead you to believe. Fishing is more than fish to me. It is more than amusement. It is not a leisure pursuit. For me, it is repletion.

"Some go to church and think about fishing,
others go fishing and think about God."
- Tony Blake

New Car Scent

Check out the new whip. A far cry from the Corolla that's now history. We're rockin' the 17's shortys! Actually, it's a pretty sweet ride. And no, it is not a minivan. I've seen it referred to as a "microvan", but I prefer "urban people mover". The salesguy told us it's the preferred van design of Europe and Japan. I figured that was just a salesguy line. So I looked it up afterwards and found that these little motorcars have been big sellers East of the Americas since '99. With sport sedan performance, dual sliding doors and room for six, this ain't no Clark Griswold Wagonqueen Family Truckster, that's for sure. We splurged a little too; got all the bells and most of the whistles. Plus, it's got the "Zoom Zoom". That's Japanese for Fahrvergnügen.

Here's a funny little commercial for it that runs overseas. I felt exactly the same way when I got home last night.

Vitriolic

The anonymity of the Internet frees up people to say some cruel and hurtful things. They write words they would never utter in public. I guess I shouldn't be all that surprised by what I've been reading on the passing of Jerry Falwell this morning.

Rev. Falwell himself has said a lot of things that were cruel and hurtful. I am not a Falwell fan. I do not side with the Moral Majority. Let me make that clear. Statements made by Jerry Falwell have personally offended me. He's said despicable things about other faiths, races, women, GLBTs, civil rights and even 9-11. But the death of a human being deserves politeness. Some of the remarks I've read are just beyond bad taste. One blogger wrote: "Only wish he suffered more." "There are no tears in my house tonight... only Champagne," wrote another. Parties and toasts were a common theme. There were way to many descriptions of Tinky Winky dancing on his grave. A comment on Gawker.com read: "I hope he is gang-banged in Hell by Satan, Saddam, Hitler and Liberace". That doesn't even make sense. Last night, in San Francisco, there was what organizers called an "Anti-Memorial" held for Mr. Falwell. That's just hateful.

Must we be tolerant of intolerance? I don't think so. But responding to indignity with indignity, doesn't help the situation in the least. I know people are reacting out of emotion, and I'm not a woman, gay or Jewish. Someone could argue that I have no idea how Jerry Falwell's comments affected them. On an individual basis, I guess that's true. I believe that it's your right to say what you want as well. But I also know that hate affects us all.

Botanic

The Saint Paul Farmers Market has finally opened. I love that place. We picked up a few hanging baskets for the back yard. Picking out new baskets has become an annual Springtime tradition for me. (Yeah, that's right, I like flowers.) This early in the season there isn't much else at the market besides flora and flowerage. The average last frost date for the Twin Cities is May 15th after all. But the place was hoppin'. Busy Bees were scouring the grounds in search of alluring annuals for their flowerbeds and porch urns. From Ageratums to Zinnias, the Market at 5th and Wall has them all. Lobelia and Torenia and Begonia, oh my! Vendors were pushing their perennials too, but the baskets and flats were where it was at. Burgeoning blossoms abounded.

Speaking of perennials, the tulips I got from Holland a few years ago sprouted in my little back garden...and were quickly eaten by rabbits. So the other day I headed out to the local hardware store in search of hare remover. Something to repel those confounded cottontails before they devoured the bulbs that haven't shot up yet. If Handy Andy recommended a toxin, so be it. Luckily for the little Leporidae, Hardware Hank endorsed Liquid Fence instead. An all-natural product made from organic ingredients that's enviro-friendly, biodegradable and not harmful to humans or animals.

Anyone ever use this stuff before? The label says its guaranteed to keep varmint out of the area applied to, but will leave a "strong odor" until it dries. I gave the jug a few pumps and thought, "Not pleasant, but not so bad." At first, I was worried the stuff wasn't going to be powerful enough. Silly me. I doused every plant in the garden and then hit up the ones behind the house, under the kitchen windows. Standing in the middle of the yard is where the rancid tang overcame me. Don't know why there was a delay, but it sure was a wallop when it hit. I was actually stunned by the stink. I could taste it in my mouth. I honestly considered alerting the neighbors before someone called Public Health. I figured the main ingredient must be something like fermented bear urine. Rusty fluid taken from a 900lb. grizzly upon his first Spring whizz after a long hard hibernation and a last Fall meal of 5 salmon, a dead squirrel and one small caribou. I looked to the label to see that my guess was off. The primary components of this concoction are garlic and "putrescent egg solids." Believe me, it smells much worse than it sounds. They need to start using this stuff in hostage situations. Once the room is filled with this potent potpourri, nary a shot will be fired.

Find your own local Farmers Market here. Oh yeah, Liquid Fence rocks. I haven't seen a single furry interloper since.