Crazy Kansas Boat Tagging

Friday evening came and I was glad to be staying in Kiowa for the weekend.  Christina and I went down to Ingersoll, Oklahoma to eat barbecue for her birthday.  The atmosphere there is amazing and the food even better.  Especially their pineapple cobbler.  It doesn't matter how full I am I can still eat a small bowl of their cobbler.  After that we came home to relax.  I broke my challenge on the way to the barbecue place as I was undoubtedly upset for no reason and was getting worse.  I broke in and had some tobacco as Christina would have had a miserable time on her birthday otherwise.

After that we did not run that night, and so far any night after that.  I am still holding to everything else.  Looks like I had better locate some spam this week for Friday night:>(  I will also be making my promised donation to Paddle for Wells

Saturday we went school shopping for Leo, then went to the pool to swim as it was the last day the pool was open.  On Sunday we tried out a different church.  We went to the Methodist church in town.  We were greeted by one of the warmest welcomes I have ever received.  It's pretty crazy how many people I am starting to know in Kiowa.  The service was a little contemporary and different than I am used to.  It was weird at first, then as it went on, I enjoyed it a little more.  For some reason, I still like going to traditional service.  To be fair we are trying it again this weekend.

Getting settled into Kansas is getting to be a pain.  We have gotten all of our tags but this Saturday we received a letter from the department of revenue saying they were suspending my boat tags in 30 days if I did not provide a copy of my trailer title as well as have the inspection papers from law enforcement on the trailer.

I have attempted to have law enforcement inspect the trailer already and they will not without a title for the trailer.  Ohio does not title trailers under 4000 pounds which was explained to the Barber County courthouse originally, from the State of Ohio, in order to get my tags.

After a long wait over the weekend we contacted Topeka to see what we needed to do about the title.  They said they needed it in writing on a State letterhead from Ohio explaining that they don't title trailers under 4000 pounds.  Upon calling Ohio, they said they would be happy to with a written request from Kansas.  HAS NOBODY EVER MOVED A BOAT FROM OHIO TO KANSAS BEFORE? 

We got the local courthouse to send a request to Ohio so half the problem should be resolved.  The other half with getting the trailer VIN # inspected by a law enforcement officer is impossible.  We don't have a title and will not have one from Ohio.  At the moment the only thing I can think to do is take the boat back to Ohio and sell it to my friend who offered to buy it previously at 3000.00 under what I could sell it for, plus an additional 1000.00 gas money.  I don't want to do that and take such a huge loss on it.  There has to be another way.

From talking to the local sheriff it sounds like I may have no other choice as my tags will be suspended in 30 days and they WILL NOT do a VIN check without the trailer title.
 

THE BIG ONE

After inland fishing for 30 years, I would love to try some ocean fishing.  With no experience with that type of fishing, or the fish that are in those waters, it will be an exhilarating experience to pull in a fish and wonder if I can touch it or not, whether it’s edible, and wonder how to clean it.

Growing up in the center of the United States has made it a bit difficult to make it to the big water.  My largest fish to date is a striper out of Lake Cumberland.  It wasn’t measured because I knew someday I would catch something bigger out of the ocean. 

There are inland places that I dream of fishing someday as well.  As a kid I used to read every fishing magazine I could get my hands on.  I loved to walleye fish and a lot of walleye articles covered Lake Erie.  I was smiles ear to ear the whole boat ride out the first time I went out on Lake Erie.  Just as I was every other time I have went out to fish for walleye on the lake.  Dad came up to visit one time.  That trip was especially memorable as we figured out the walleye and limited out early, outfishing the captain and first mate. 

Now that my Lake Erie dream has been realized it is time to start focusing on THE BIG ONE.  This dream has been bigger than Erie.  It has been bigger than the ocean.  It’s been in the works since I first heard about it.  I love wilderness and the further I get away from civilization the more I love it. 

THE BIG ONE is for my father, my sons and I to go on a fly in trip to a remote lake in Canada, one that can only be reached by air or a long, long…long walk.  My boys will have to be a little older to appreciate it. 

On this trip we will fish from morning until night trying for the largest muskellunge, northern pike, walleye, perch, bass, and trout that have never seen a hook.  We will take shore lunches and fry up the fish we caught to eat.  In the evenings we will start a fire outside the cabin and listen to the peacefulness of no vehicles, only nature at it’s finest.  We will look up at the stars that will be bright and numerous from less light pollution. 

Three generations of fisherman will be building memories together.  The boys having the fishing adventure of their lifetime.

It scares me to think that this trip might not ever happen.  This trip would be, ”THE BIG ONE”. 

This blog entry is my submission for the Red Tuna Shirt Club and Outdoor Blogger Network Writing Contest.

Last night Gavin decided he was ready to figure out how to ride his bike.  We had gotten it for him in February, around Leo's birthday and he hasn't seemed interested in it until last night.  I saw him crawl on and try maneuvering the pedals, so I went over and showed him to always push down with the front foot.  We worked on it for about an hour.  He caught on quick but he was constantly watching his feet and not where he was going.  He ran into a basketball goal, into wooden posts holding a garage up, and off the sidewalk, but he was figuring it out.  He even wiped out one time skinning his elbow a little.  He got back up and started to pedal again.

With a little over a week until the 5K, I am going to challenge myself for the next week.  I have a ton of bad habits and this week I am going to try to give my body a slight cleansing.  Not showers, I already take those.  I am going to go without caffeine, smoking, chewing, drinking for one week.  I am also going to run every evening, drink water, and try to be nice to other people. 

It is only for a week but this will be very difficult.  I want to do this for myself, but to make it interesting if I make it I will take my wife out to eat at the really good barbeque place South of here.  If I don't make it I will make a donation to Paddle for Wells of an extra 20 dollars and eat a spam burger next Friday evening.  Spam burgers scare me a little.  Just the word Spam scares me.  Smearable meat should be cool.  I just can't dig it.

Last night we went to the library.  It has been a long time since I read a book.  This is one of my bettering myself ideas.  I got the book As the Crown Flies by Jeffry Archer.  It is a monstrous book.  I can barely hold the thing up.  Lugging it to the counter, I felt a little overambitious.  Once I started reading it, I was glad it is big.  It's a really good book that's hard to put down.

Today is Christina's birthday.  I didn't make any plans but did get her a couple of presents.  Too bad she can no longer use what I got her.  That will teach me to plan for her birthday any sooner than the day of.

Fall

As summer is coming to a close, I am looking forward to fall.  Football is in the air, the temperatures are starting to drop, and fishing is getting really good.

In Kansas we usually have a month and a half of good fall fishing from mid September until the end of October.  The days get are getting shorter and nights cooler giving us a break from the continuous 100+ degree weather we have had all summer.

The finances are tight right now with traveling so much since we have been back in Kansas.  I still foresee a trip or 2 of fishing before winter arrives.  With nieces and nephews in so many sports and playing on the weekends I won't have a lot of time.  Plus I have a trip planned to Vegas, a possible tournament at Grand Lake, and the Labor Day festivities in town including the 5K I am going to run.

Christina and I have been doing good running the last few weeks.  This week we haven't ran yet.  Last night we drove to the high school to run on the track and there were four police cars surrounding the building and flashlights shining around inside the school.  We decided we better not run on the track next to the building while that was going on.

I don't think I have reached my goal of being able to run the entire 5K.  I can run a mile o.k. but after that my legs turn to jelly.  I can run walk run walk fine.  I have been thinking about it for a while and I think I would rather just stick with Christina through the event.  We have been training together,  for both the 5K and to get back into shape.  Hopefully, we continue to go back to the track after the 5K is over or find some other fun type of activity to get us in shape.

Labor Day weekend may also be the weekend we get our house.  If we do, then I can start getting things listed on my ecrater site to make some extra money for fishing.

With all that I have going on this fall will be fun filled. 

This weekend we will be going school shopping.  Next Thursday is Leo's first day of Kindergarten. 

True Inspiration - Kayaking for Water Wells in Africa

Check Out This Link

Josh Tart age 22 is on the adventure of a lifetime Kayaking and fishing around half the United States.  During this adventure he is keeping a daily blog.  I found a link on brookfieldangler.com 

Josh has partnered with Team World Vision to raise funds for clean water wells in the poor and remote regions of Africa.
 
Check out his site Paddle for Wells and help by donating or spreading the word of what he is doing.

I have checked out his blog and it is very enjoyable reading.  I will be making a small donation for his inspiring efforts.

Gavin's First Fish

The phone rang Wednesday evening.  We were all outside playing around.  A few were sitting on the porch, a few were riding bikes and the rest of us were tossing the football back and forth getting ready for football season.

I stepped off to the side to see who was calling me.  It was Mom or Dad.  I hesitantly answered the phone.  They don’t call often and I didn’t want to hear bad news.  It was the opposite.  Dad had called to ask if we would like to go camping at Clark County Lake with them.  Clark County Lake is about half way between us.  Plans were made and Friday night after work we were on our way to go camping for the first time this year.

I had used mapquest to get driving directions since there are no towns around the lake for me to put into the GPS.  Mapquest directed us out and around to get to the lake.  Being creative I dragged and dropped points on the map so we could get a more direct route. 

Christina was reading the directions.  We had made it all but the last 15 miles to the lake.  She tells me after the last turn that the next turn is onto a road with no name and it is 1.4 miles ahead.  In 1.4 miles we see the road as we pass by it.  The road is iffy.  It is graveled but crosses a cattle guard first thing and then winds back and forth down through some trees and emerges as it crosses the ridge line.

If we don’t take the road we are looking at an extra 40 miles.  We would have to drive around the hills this road will supposedly take us through.  After some debate it was decided to take the road.  It started out nice and then as we got further into the journey and across more and more cattle guards the road narrowed, and was no longer graveled.  The trip across the road was slow as the road was very rough.  At some points the tire tracks were deep enough that another road was started next to the original.

Three quarters of our trip across the hills we come down into a valley full of cows.  There is a barn and the road goes right beside it.  As we get closer we realize it is somebody’s home.  We hoped that the road continued.  We had gone too far to turn back.  We got a little closer and saw that there were gates across the road next to the barn.  So much for free range cattle and our road. 

Christina looked at me and said, “We can’t go back.”  She got out and opened 2 gates to get us through hoping that we would not get shot.  On the other side, there was a split in the road leading to two houses.  One went deeper into the valley and the other looked to go back up the hill.  I asked Christina which we should try.  She said the one up the hill so we started up the hill.  It ended abruptly at the house.  It didn’t continue on around the house as we had envisioned.  As we were backing down the hill somebody stepped out onto the deck and waved us up to talk.

I got out and walked up to the deck nervously.  I apologized for stirring up his cattle and driving up to his house and explained how we had gotten to this point.  He asked where I was from and explained that I was on ranch roads.  I asked him if the road continued on past the other house and he said that it did.  He gave me directions the rest of the way to the lake and told me that once I hit pavement stay on pavement.

We made it to the lake after dark.  Dad grilled up some hot dogs.  We ate and talked for a little bit then set up the tent. 

The next day I got up and started fishing the rocks in front of camp for largemouth.  I caught about 10 in the first hour of fishing with my two largest being 17 inches and 15 inches. 

After breakfast we headed out on the boat to troll for some white bass.  Leo caught the first one and it went into the live well.  Gavin caught the first fish of his life at 3 years old.  He reeled in a flathead catfish.  Not much else was caught before lunch. 

After lunch we fished around off the bank for a while.  Gavin was really into casting and reeling.  He had one fish swirl at his worm as he was reeling it, but it didn’t get hooked. Leo caught a saugeye.  I was fishing with a small piece of worm trying to catch bait fish for later that night. 

Most of us got in at least a short nap in the afternoon.  Dad and Leo went back out in the boat to try to catch some more white bass.  Leo snagged a large shad.

That afternoon I grabbed the fly pole.  I was a little rusty getting started and started to wonder if I would be able to catch a fish.  A few flips of the rod later it started coming back to me.  I saw a bluegill break the surface after a small dragonfly.  Whipping the rod back and forth, I lined up my cast and dropped the elk hair caddis where the bluegill had risen.  I gave a slight pull on my line to give the fly some action and all of a sudden there was a swirl.  The fly disappeared.  I pulled more on my line.  As I did I see the line shooting off to the side.  I had a fish on.  I had forgotten how much fun a bluegill can be on a fly pole.

I landed that first bluegill then went back to work catching several more bluegill.  I heard Christina yelling from behind the cattails behind me that they were about to go on a drive to the other side of the lake.  I yelled back that I would be right there.  I made my way down the shoreline and out the other side of the cattails.

The road to the other side of the lake went up and down the hills of the canyon snaking its way to the other side.  The drive was scenic and rough.  By the time we got back it was getting close to dark.  We ate supper.  I got the boys poles set up for catfishing.

Gavin got tired and wanted to go to bed right away.  Leo stayed up late and finally got tired of fishing when we weren’t catching anything.  I was hot and sticky from sweating all day.  I had to stay up late so I could get some sleep. 

The next day we got up.  I caught a nice chunky largemouth off the rocks.  Mom had breakfast ready, so I only got a little fishing in.   

Dad, Gavin, Leo and I went out on the boat after breakfast.  Gavin caught the first white bass, and then he hooked another that Leo reeled in.  Dad caught one.  Leo wanted to change baits so I let him pick out the lure he wanted to use.  The lure worked well and Leo caught the next few keepers. 

Dad hooked into something that felt like a fish but as he got it in he realized it was somebody’s line.  I grabbed the line off his hook and started hand pulling it in so it would not get tangled around somebody’s prop.  As I got it closer I felt some tugging back.  There was a live fish on the hook of the other line.  Somebody had broke off and the fish had taken the bait and had been swimming around with the hook in it’s mouth.

We ended up with 6 keeper white bass by lunch.  Gavin had 1, Dad had 1 and Leo had 4.  I didn’t fish since I was helping the boys.

After lunch we packed to go home.  I punched in the quickest way home on the GPS.  Right after our first turn we cross a cattle guard with a sign next to it that said No Hunting or Trespassing.  It looked like a pretty major road so we continued down it crossing several cattle guards along the way.  Finally we reached a highway and cruised on home.  This road still went through.

We had a lot of fun this weekend.  Gavin caught his first fish.  Leo out fished everybody.  We had slightly cooler days with highs only in the mid to upper 90’s and overcast into the afternoons.  It was a great weekend for camping.

Gavin's first fish

On the Road Again

This evening we'll be hitting the road again.  This time it will be for a relaxing camping fishing trip with Mom and Dad, the boys and Christina.  We are going to Clark County lake.  The fishing report for there is dismal, but I don't care.  There are fish in the water and we will try our hardest to catch them.

The lake is in a canyon and doesn't look like it belongs in Kansas.  I have fished it one other time with minimal success.  This time we will be there all weekend so we may have better luck.

This will be our first camping trip of the year.  Oh how nice it will be to roast hot dogs and try to catch a catfish with the boys. 

Dad is excited.  He has called me a couple times now and has been talking about catfishing, white bass fishing, cooking the fish, fly fishing, napping.  His inner kid is coming out for this one.  If we give him a soda tonight he may not go to sleep.

I'm taking my fly rod.  It has been forever since I have used it.  I need to get used to it again being close to Colorado.  I foresee myself fly fishing in Colorado at some point next summer.  In the meantime bluegill and small bass are a blast on a fly rod.

This week I registered for the Okie BFL at Grand Lake Oct 1st.  I got an e-mail back stating that I am on a waiting list.  Hopefully, I can fish it.  I don't want to wait until next year to fish another tournament.  I enjoy the competition too much.  If I have to wait, the first tournament next year will be in March unlike Ohio where we had to wait until May.

I also spoke with a buddy from Ohio and we started planning a trip to Vegas in late October. 

Possibly moving Sept 1st

Keaton Teagon Leo Gavin and Breanna pulling Dayton across the yard on the tire.

Last night I got home after a long day at work and didn't feel like doing anything.  I fell asleep until Christina got home.  Then I decided to get a haircut.  While I was getting my hair cut I heard that we should be getting our house at the first of September.  They should have the finishing touches on their other house soon and will be moving into it.

By that time I will have lived with Todd and Cherish for 3 months.  Christina and the kids will have been there forever.  After we heard that news Christina and I went out for a drink.  We were hoping it would be sooner, like this week.  Now that we know, it feels better to hear a date than to just wonder when or if it is ever going to happen.

Sweet Corn

This weekend we skipped out on a chance to go on a float trip down a river without the kids.  We also skipped out on camping with the kids.  Instead we drove back to my parents house to spend the weekend.  They had been given the opportunity to pick as much sweet corn as they wanted from a field before it was cut down for cattle feed.

Mom called me on Friday and said if I wanted some I had to come home to help.  I didn't want to miss out on the opportunity so I told her I would be there.

We took off after work on Friday and met a storm as we got to Medicine Lodge.  The sky was red as we approached the storm at Medicine Lodge.  We realized it was from the wind picking up all the red dirt.  Right as we realized that we hit a wall of wind that just about took us off the highway.  It was a ferocious storm, so intense that I had to pull of the road for 20 minutes until we got a small break from the high winds, torrential rainfall and hail.   The winds were 60+ mph.  We parked behind a 2 story building to get out of the wind and driving hail.  Right before I pulled off the highway I couldn't see 10 feet ahead of the truck and barely found a pull off.  I looked at the radar on my phone and we were right in the center of the darkest red. 

Storm View as we were driving to Medicine Lodge

Parked in our safety zone.

Looking across the yard at the sheets of water

We left Medicine Lodge and got out of the storm right away.  We reached Mom and Dad's a couple hours later.  The next day we got up had some breakfast and started shucking corn.  Mom and Dad had went out for 2 hours the night before and picked up a pickup full.  We shucked and cut and bagged from 9 in the morning until 9 at night.  Leo stayed pretty busy most of the day as he wanted a wallet so he doesn't lose his money any more.  I told him if he helped shuck corn I would get him a wallet.  Gavin did good for a while then was distracted by quite a few other things. 

We all had fun shucking, bagging and freezing corn.  Dad, Leo and I sat outside and talked in the shade while Christina and Mom were inside cutting and bagging the corn.  Once we got done we fed the scraps to the neighbors horses and played with their kittens. 

The next day we piddled around the farm until it was time to go.  Dad and I got out his 44 caliber black powder pistol and shot it.  It is amazingly accurate at 30-40 feet.  Then we played around with a newly purchased lever action .22 rifle that wasn't so accurate, but still a lot of fun.

We got home in time to watch Captain America at the Theater.

Take the Kids Camping, Enjoy Them!

This weekend the weather is supposed to be nice with temperatures in the lower 90's and a low in the mid 60's.  I am considering going camping since we have not been yet this year.  The boys have been telling me they want to go camping and fishing and I have hesitated due to the 100 plus temperatures with lows in the 80's.

If we go I just want to do a short camping/fishing trip to Anthony lake.  It is only $7.00 a night to camp there and looks like you could do some good bank fishing.  Anthony lake is only 25 miles away so we won't be breaking the bank to get there.  Once we get there we'll eat hot dogs over the fire and chips like the old days.

When I was growing up Dad taught me a lot about the wilderness and other things he learned in boy scouts and growing up.

I want my boys to enjoy the outdoors the same way I do.  Here are some of the things I will be teaching them.

There are several different ways to build fires.  In order to get them to light the first time you have to stack them properly.  Fires require air, as well as wood to burn.  Fire also burns up and needs air at the bottom when starting.  The best fires I have seen are built like a Tee Pee or a Pyramid.  Both start out with a wide base and get narrower towards the top.  They also allow air to enter through the bottom.  With those designs you also need some type of fire starter in the middle of the structure.  Wadded paper and small twigs work well.  The trick is to get the fire going with one match.  Dad used to only bring 1 match camping.  I was always careful to get that fire started.

Once the fire is started I can show the boys what to do with it.  They can boil an egg or water in a plastic cup directly in the fire, then use forked sticks to take the plastic cup out.  I can have them shave a hot dog stick and cook with it.  We can cook things in tin foil directly in the coals.

The boys love to help put up the tent.  It used to be a lot slower with them helping, but that is one of the biggest parts of camping.  Now they tell me what needs to go where and are a big help with getting camp set up.  The more you teach them the more fun they will have and the less work you will have for yourself.

Once camp is set up and the fire is going I can show them the constellations, tell ghost stories, roast s'mores, skip rocks, show them the different types of bugs, trees etc.  There are also camping games that the boys will be starting to get into such as scavenger hunts, washers, and tic tac toe in the dirt with a stick.

Camping will give them good memories of time spent with their families.  I look back and laugh at the worst camping trips we had when I was a kid.  The best ones I want to repeat.  Each time I go camping I build memories, and memories of camping with my family make me happy!

Still time for a 2011 Tournament

I spoke with my boss and can have September 30th off.  I am signing up as a co-angler for the FLW BFL super tournament on Grand Lake, Oklahoma, Oct 1st and 2nd. 

I'm trying to talk Mizike into going with me.  I need something really fun to look forward to.  This will keep me excited the next couple months.

Running

It rained again last night and cooled down this morning.  We have been looming around 80 in the mornings and it was near 65 this morning.  It felt a little chilly.  Might be time to go camping this weekend.

We made it back out to run at the track last night.  We ran 3/4 of a mile then walked a lap then ran another quarter of a mile.  I ran against my niece Santana the last quarter mile.  She seemed to enjoy making me look bad.  

I feel like I'm getting a little more in shape.  In the next couple weeks I should be running 1 1/2 to 2 miles without walking in between.  With long distance a lot of it has to do with pacing yourself.  I usually run slower so I can run farther.  When I'm about done running I will run faster to burn myself out.   I think that helps strengthen me for the next time I run so I can go farther and faster the next time.

Tags

There are  a lot of things I still need to take care of from our move to Kansas.  Some of it is not our fault that it hasn't been done yet.  We need to get our cars tagged before the end of the month as the tags will be expiring at the end of the month.  I was able to tag the explorer since we bought it when we moved here, but the other 2 vehicles and the boat are yet to get tagged.

We went to the courthouse about a month ago to find out what we needed in order to get the tags switched from Ohio to Kansas.  The lady said the process is easy now.  All the bank has to do is fax a copy of the front and back of the title to the courthouse.  We spoke with both banks. They said that the courthouse had to send a request in writing for them to send the fax.  We spoke with the courthouse again by phone and they said they don't do that.  For a couple days we went back and forth with both places.  Then, my wife finally went into the courthouse and called the banks so they could try to work something out. 

The courthouse finally gave in and sent a request for the titles to be faxed to them.  The first bank mailed us a copy of the title.  Fax it to the courthouse, mail it to us, whatever.  At least that should work.  The other bank took time to type out a letter and mail it to the courthouse saying the title should be faxed to them in 3 - 4 weeks.  Wouldn't it be easier just to fax it.  Maybe that's just my thinking. 

We have the title to the boat but were waiting for the other 2 cars to be ready so both of us only have to make 1 trip to the courthouse.  As if.  It's never just 1 trip to the courthouse.  At least we have 1 vehicle fully legal.

After that I have to drive to Pratt, an hour away, to get the boat registered to Kansas and get its new numbers. 

It took me three trips to Pratt to get my Driver's license.  Why didn't I stop in one of those trips? 

The costs are going to be pretty high to get tags for everything.  I'm guessing around $1000.00 for the boat, the van and the car.  That's in addition to having to take time off work and driving there.  Plus we have to pay 15.00 each vehicle to have the VIN numbers inspected.

It's not easy moving to a different state. 

We will be staying home the next few weeks as we have blown through August's discretionary money.  It's only the 9th.  We don't have our home yet but hope to have it some time this month.  Then we get to start paying rent.

My previous blog did not help me to keep running.  We will be going back out tonight to run again though.  Maybe with staying home for a while we can keep up the good habit.  I need to have more good habits to offset all of my bad habits.

Another Trip - A Bunch Of Smashed Up Cars

 

This weekend my cousin Bug and I were thinking of going to Kansrocksas to see Eminem.  Instead we decided to return to our old stomping grounds for the weekend.  I took off from work early on Friday so I could pick up Bug and be to the fair by 7:00 to watch the demolition derby.  We had several people driving that we knew.

We didn't know that winners of the event.  Two of the guys we do know, Jamie and John,  put on the best show, delivering so crippling hits to the other cars.  Jamie had a beast of a car and if he had not gotten hung up on another car I think his car may have made it through the derby without some of the damage the other cars had gotten.  John's car was beat up prior to the demo.  It still held up well and he made it to the top three of the consolation round.  Top 2 went on the the finals.

John's car on the bottom right.

 We got home from the derby late as the derby had a great turnout, both fans and number of entries.  As ready to drink as we were we only got a couple beers down and then went to bed.

The next morning we spent time with Aunt Nikki and Uncle Richard.  Around 5:00 we went to the bar to play some Keno.  We all lost some money over the next couple hours.  I spent about 15.00.  At 7:00 Bug had invited people to Aunt Nikki's to party so we went back.  People started showing up shortly after that.

I got to see a lot of friends.  Mom and Dad even showed up.  It was a good time hanging out and drinking with the Jennings crowd again after all these years.  I made it until about 3:00 in the morning before I went to bed.

Bug and I got up the next morning and drove back.  I was feeling a little rough until I took a 5 hour energy and had a monster.  Then I felt a little better.

Last night I was feeling good by the time I got home and went to watch Harry Potter with Christina and the kids.  On the way home from the theater I was walking under a tree.  I reached up to grab the tip of a branch to pull it down and as I grabbed it, I hear a screech, then something attacked my arm.  As it flew away I saw that it was a bat.  I don't think it bit me or scratched me.  I must have accidentally grabbed it or grabbed really close to where it was hanging. 

Peyton, my nephew had been bitten by a bat a few years ago and he was saying that just touching one you can infect yourself and become contagious to others around you.  They thought I might need to get a rabies vaccination since it touched me.  I am talking with the doctor later to see if this is true.  I don't want to get my nieces and nephews sick.

I read that it is very rare for rabies to be transferred without an actual bite.  My nephew said it didn't hurt when he was bitten by his bat.  I have not seen and broken skin on my arm so I really doubt I was bitten. 

Nobody in the United States has developed rabies when given the vaccine promptly.  Once the symptoms of rabies appear, the person rarely survives the disease.  Death from respiratory failure usually occurs within 7 days after symptoms start.  The incubation period for rabies can range from 10 days to 7 years, with the average incubation period being 3-7 weeks.

I have just gotten Hepatitis B shots, my blood drawn, a TDAP test, and got my tetanus vaccination in the last couple months.  I'm tired of needles.  I don't want 5 more shots for the rabies vaccine.

Wind Dirt Rain

Last night a storm came through to give us a little more rain.  This is the 3rd rain we've had in the last couple weeks.  The rivers are still dry.  High winds swept through the area prior to the storm.  The weather channel said the storm was coming with 80 mile an hour winds.  We were outside in the wind securing everything when I snapped this picture from my camera phone.  It doesn't do the storm justice.  The sky was twice as dark and filled with dirt.  You could taste the dirt each time you took a breath and felt it on your teeth.  Right outside of town you couldn't see anything but a wall of dirt.

 I stayed outside to witness the dirt storm until it started raining.  Then I went inside to watch Harry Potter.  We are having a Harry Potter Marathon this week for my wife.  The local theater is playing the new one this weekend. 

The local theater is only open on Friday, Saturday and Sunday nights.  They usually play movies that have been out for a while.  It's 5.00 a person for the movie, $1.00 for a large soda and $1.50 for a decent sized medium popcorn, $2.25 for a large popcorn. 

After the movie I got out my birthday present I had gotten earlier in the day.  I had bought myself a 7 led headlamp and got it in yesterday, the day after my birthday.  I was playing around with the night vision and decided to see if I could take some pictures.  Here are some pictures of Leo and Gavin in the night vision and spotlight modes.

Gavin

Leo

Gavin

Anthony City Lake

Friday afternoons I start getting restless.  We have been going going going on the weekends.  This last weekend we stayed home and I was completely restless.  I paced, I looked out the window, I kept trying to figure out something I could do. 

It's hard when you're living with family and do not have your own things.  I wanted to make plastic worms, or paint crank baits, or sell items on ecrater.  I couldn't do any of that since all of my things are at the house we haven't moved into.  I have lived at Todd and Cherish's for 2 months now.  Christina and the Boys have been there for about 5 months.  We get along really well for living together that long.  You can tell it's starting to wear on Todd.  I understand.  We had roommates the last few years.  It's nice to have your own place, your own space. 

I look forward to eating ice cream and not having to get ice cream for all 11 kids as soon as I get mine.  I look forward to sitting in my recliner and watching something other than Disney while looking things up on the internet on my laptop.  I look forward to sleeping on my king size bed and having the kids sleep in another room.

I miss these things but I am very grateful we have a place to stay while we are waiting on our own place.  There will also be a lot of things I will miss about living here.  The boys are constantly playing with their cousins and aren't always right by us.  I get to spend quite a bit of quality time with my nieces and nephews and brother and sister in law.  Todd and Cherish are inspiring people and make you want to do better.  When you are around them you do just a little more.  There's no time to be completely lazy in their house.

We did get out for a little bit on Sunday night.  We drove 30 minutes to Anthony for Pizza Hut and Ice cream at McDonald's.  Then went to check out Anthony City lake.  The lake is really low right now as are all the water sources around here.  It is still doing well fishing wise.  There is a good amount of structure and forage in the lake.  I look forward to bank fishing it.  The disappointment of the evening came when we were looking at the boat ramp.  They have a pay for use of boat at the lake.  It is 12.00 per day or 45.00 for the whole year.  The lake isn't big enough for my boat to get on plane so I doubt I spend that kind of money to put my boat on the lake.

Christina Leo and Gavin enjoying ice cream at the lake.

A look across the lake

Low Lake Level

Camping was reasonable at 5.00 per night for primitive camping and the campground was well shaded and not far from the water.  It had lights along the paved walking trails.  The restroom was unlighted and primitive.  No running water and a big hole in the ground.


We have not been camping yet this year.  I really want to get the boys out there.  As soon as the temperatures get a little cooler we will go camping. 

I have started to think about my future of tournament fishing.  I will not be able to hit a lot of tournaments a year so I have to make the tournaments I do fish count. 

Since I am working and will only have 1 week off a year I decided I can't be a boater.  I won't have the time required to prefish any tournaments.  I would like to be a boater in the next couple years though so I am going to try to fish the Stren Series next year as a co-angler.  This fall Oct 1st and 2nd I am going to register to fish a BFL on Grand Lake in Oklahoma.  I love tournament fishing and this is a 2 day tournament which makes it even more fun.  It will be nice to get some knowledge on one of the better local lakes as well.  Local = less than 8 hours away, Grand Lake being 5.5 hours.

Christina and I have started running at the high school track in the evenings.  We have been three times in the last week.  There is a 5K in town on labor day that I am planning on running.  I also want to get back into shape.  Each time I get out there it is getting easier to run.  I want to be able to take off and run several miles at time without it killing me.  I heard that you are less likely to continue doing something once you start talking about it because you are satisfied just telling people that you did it.  I kind of believe that about myself,  but it seems that if I put something on here I have a higher tendency to stick with my plan.

When I moved back to Kansas I weighed over 240 pounds.  That is the heaviest I have been in my life.  I would like to be able to get back down around 190 to 200 pounds.  We threw alfalfa bales for a couple days and I lost about 15 pounds in those 2 days.  I was able to keep about 7 or 8 pounds of it off.  Now that we are running  I weighed myself again last night and I was 229.  That was after running so I know I had lost quite a bit of water weight. 

Exercise and eating healthy are concerns of ours right now.  Our boys are paying attention to us more than ever now and if we show them we are staying active then hopefully they will do the same.