Thanks

I want to say thank you to everyone who has visited me during the past year and for all of the kind comments. I appreciate the support and encouragement! It's only fitting that my signature bird be part of my thanks to you and farewell to 2012.

1/640 sec. f/16 ISO 320

Props, Pardon, and Prep

It's time to give Props to some folks who have been supportive of my blog. I've meant to do this for a while now and finally decided tonight was the time. My blog is only seven months old, but there are quite a few people who have been kind enough to read my drivel.


TexWisGirl at The Run*A*Round Ranch Report has been a huge supporter and recently gave me a very nice award (more about that in a future post). She is one of my most consistent commenter's. Nancy at A Rural Journal and Dawn at Puzzle Pieces have also been very kind in their support and feedback. Nancy has promoted my blog more than once on Facebook. If you want to see some truly beautiful photographs, just visit these three outstanding blogs! 


Mel over at Blog Cabin Angler has been a long time supporter of my blog and has routinely provided me with great feedback. Mel has an outstanding fishing blog and is a true gentleman. Kari, known to me as RH, runs I Don't Wear Pink Camo to the Woods and is one beer sponsor away from her own TV show. Kari does something few others do - when I put up a new blog post, I don't have to go to Twitter and announce it - Kari will do it for me on her own. She's cool like that! I tend to remember those kinds of things and do the same in return. Like Mel, Kari has an outstanding blog. 


Al at The SoCal Bowhunter has been a big asset to me with his feedback and willingness to share information. His blog was featured as my most recent blog of the week and it's well deserved. Al is an all around great guy with a wonderful blog. Joe runs this thing he calls Massanutten Game Trails and has been a familiar face here on my blog. I appreciate his support. He's got some of the coolest trail cam pics around and a very intriguing blog. 


LB at Bullets and Biscuits just cracks me up! It's hard to tell what you're gonna get with her, but just the fact that she reads my "what-passes-for-a-blog" is enough for me. Her blog is a treat. I can't promise what kind of treat it'll be every time, but a treat, nonetheless. Stephanie over at Antlers & Gills has been around for a while and I always enjoy hearing from her. She has a great blog full of wonderful photos and interesting stories. The same goes for Emily at Scent Free Lip Gloss. She has a very intriguing blog and I appreciate the feedback she leaves me. 


Some of the folks who are a bit newer to my blog include Kerry at Chaplain to the Outdoorsmen, Justin at Foggy Mountain Meanderings, Lisa at Sall's Country Life, and Duane at Wild Wisconsin. I'm thankful for their feedback and support and they probably just haven't been here long enough to figure out not to come back. These folks have outstanding blogs and I encourage you to visit them. I also want to make special mention of the girl at Hunt Like You're Hungry. I don't know her name so please don't think I'm being rude. Apparently, that information requires some top level clearance which I obviously do not possess. She also has a great blog full of interesting stories and I appreciate her feedback here. 


My props wouldn't be complete without thanking Chris and Jon at Foremost Hunting Blog. They have been big supporters of my blog on Twitter. They're also responsible for my current blog template. Both of them are great guys and very generous with their information and assistance. 


I realize I may ruffle some feathers somewhere because I forgot somebody. I did not go back and look through my posts to see who had commented. This was written from memory and the folks here are ones I recall seeing either recently or consistently (or both). It was not meant as a slight to anyone and if I did forget to mention you, please let me know and I will do so. I believe in giving credit where it's due. Just don't send hate mail. I hope to do this periodically just as a way of saying thank you to the people who actually take in my nonsense. I'm a little fish in a big blog pond and truly do appreciate the comments, feedback, and support. 


Now on to the Pardon portion. Pardon me for being scarce lately. TexWisGirl recently chewed me out for not posting more often. Well, okay, she didn't actually chew me out - it was more of a scolding. Okay, not even a scolding. It was more of a suggestion or perhaps a wish that I would post more often. My biggest enemy in that endeavor is time. This week I suddenly found myself in the middle of a big, time-consuming, yet important "project" and it's likely I will be even more absent at times over the next few weeks until it's over. Life must be prioritized and this thing is very near the top. However, I will strive to post whenever I can until things settle down. 


Okay, I'll wrap this up with the Prep section. My bass tournament partner and I were supposed to go fishing today in preparation for our first tourney in two weeks. Ma Nature had other plans, though, so we did the next best thing - we sorted tackle and got our gear ready. We spent about four hours this afternoon putting fresh line on all the reels, going through lures, and making sure all the necessary equipment was in the boat. 

A few weeks ago when we went to Bass Pro Shops, Jim bought a new chip for his fish/depth finder that has maps of most lakes in the southeastern part of the country. Many of the lakes are in high definition which shows contours all the way down to as little as one foot of water. It's pretty neat technology. After Jim had installed the chip and turned the unit on, he astutely commented that it was showing no fish under the boat. I'm sure the fact that the boat was on the trailer parked in the garage had nothing to do with it. I offered to toss some Goldfish crackers under the boat...I do what I can. 

Jim assuring me we'll catch big fish right here

The only drawback to our tournament fishing is the fact it will compete with our turkey hunting time. While I love to hunt thunder chickens, I have to admit I'm very excited about fishing in these bass tournaments. I've never done it before and I'm looking forward to it. 

So in conclusion, I really appreciate all of the support you all show my humble blog! I'll be a little busier than usual for a while, but I'll return the favor anytime I have the opportunity. And I promise TexWisGirl I'll post when I have the chance!