Monday, February 19, 2007

Fishin' with Trapper

I took my grandson, Trapper, fishing yesterday.  He's just turned 4 years old.  The fishing tanks around here are all pretty low since we haven't had much rain for awhile.  But, we went fishing in one of the low tanks, anyway.  I built a floating dock in this tank about 25 years ago (It's the one pictured in my blog), and though it needs a little sprucing up, It really is nice for us to use for just such occasions. 
We caught about 20 three-quarters to 1 pound bass.  We put them in a 5 gallon bucket.  Trapper also had a little wide one gallon bucket, so he always had one fish in there.  After we got 10 into the 5 gallon bucket it was getting a little crowded so we dumped them all back into the tank (except one) and fished some more.  Every time we put a fish into one of the buckets we would tell that fish not to give us a shower, but if the fish splashed us we would laugh and say that he gave us a shower and that he wasn't supposed to do that.  We did a lot of smiling and talking about showers.  It was a great time. 
Trapper kept griping at me when I would reel a fish in because he wanted me to catch a smaller one so that it would fit into the little bucket better.  I had this little bottle of fake earth worms (so I wouldn't have to keep buying the kind that die) and one time when I was talking on my cell phone with a man that had called me about some business, Trapper decided to feed the fish in his 1 gallon bucket.  So, he dumped out all the fake earthworms into that bucket.  The fish didn't look too thrilled. The pile of earthworns stayed in the shape of the bottle so I was able to re-bottle them easily. 
Trapper enjoyed playing with the fish in the buckets more than the ones in the lake so I did most of the fishing.  When I could do it without getting caught, I would take a newly caught fish off of my lure and hook it on to his pole (that had a cork and a hook) so he could "catch" a fish as well.  It was pretty hard to do it without him catching me in the act.  We had a great time. 
I needed for us to leave because he was supposed to be picked up by his other grandparents in a little while but the only way I could get him to leave was to bribe him with a piece of gum and a promise of some chicken nuggets.  So, he got his gum and we went to get some chicken nuggets (chicken tenders at Chicken Express) and then met with "Pappy" and "Granny" (we are "Pa" and "Gram").  It was a great day.    
A couple of days ago I made up a story about the "Three Little Chickens That Went Fishing" and he's made me tell it to him about a dozen times since then.  On our way to meet his dad (about a two hour drive) he didn't want to hear about the "Three Little Pigs" or the "Gingerbread Man" or "The Three Bears".  He just wanted to hear about the "Three Little Chickens That Went Fishing".   It made me feel really good.
Trapper is a blessing beyond description to me.  There is just no way to describe it to someone who has never experienced it.  It has to be lived.  I thank God every day for him and I pray that he will grow up to be an awesome man.  I, in fact, expect that he will.  And that's pretty awesome!!!!
Posted by Dennis at 23:23:33 | Permanent Link | Comments (1) |

Monday, February 12, 2007

Rules for Living #1

Well, I felt a little blah today.  I think I'm getting sick.  But, I decided to do what I was supposed to do rather than do what I felt like doing.  I'm glad I did because I accomplished quite a bit, even though it didn't look like I was going to at first.  It seemed like everything was going wrong for awhile, but some how I pushed through it and made some progress. 

This being a Monday and feeling the way I felt reminded me of one of my Rules for Living.  I'll call it Rule Number 1 since it's the first rule I'm putting on my Blog.  It came about because of observations about my effectiveness and my decisionmaking through the years.  I noticed that on Mondays I usually felt kind of blah.  I was not a good negotiator on Mondays.  I was ready to give things away because I didn't feel like hasseling with them.

I also noticed that I was not a good negotiator on Fridays.  I was too joyful and excited about the weekend.  Therefore, I would give things away because I was just too happy.  Because I wasn't a good negotiator (although for very different reasons) on Monday and Friday, I created rule number 1 for my life. 

Rule #1:  Do not make major decisions on Monday or Friday.  That includes things that have to do with major purchases, occupational choices, personal relationships or any major life altering decisions.  Wait until Tuesday, Wednesday or Thursday to make those decisions.  Those are the best decision making days. 

If you follow this rule your life will be better---I guarantee it. 

 

Posted by Dennis at 20:39:49 | Permanent Link | Comments (0) |

Saturday, February 10, 2007

AWESOME BLESSINGS

The past 24 hours have been awesome.  My youngest son, Jarod(27), and my grandson, Trapper (4), came to visit.  Jarod and I visited last evening for about 3 or 4 hours about hunting and business and Trapper and giving generously and helping others and all sorts of good things like that.  It's the kind of visit that is an indicater of a wonderful father-son relationship. 

When the boys were small I often wondered what kind of relationship I would have with them when they became adults.  You always hope it will be good, but you never know for sure how it's going to be.  I'm so thankful that it has turned out good in both cases.  Good visits with them are true highlights of my life.  I treasure them.

And Trapper!  What an awesome grandson.  We played games and watched TV and played ball and darts.  We went fishin', but he fell asleep on the way to the tank.  So, I fished while he slept and when I caught a big bass, I tried to wake him but couldn't.  I also used a net to catch about 20 little minnows that were swimming in the shallows.

I put all these fish in a 5 gallon bucket and put them in the back of the pickup and brought them and little sleepy head home.  When he woke up, I showed him the fish and asked him if he wanted to go with me to take them to the other tank (that had dried up in the drought last summer).  He said he did, so we took them to the back pasture and he dumped the fish into the tank and we watched them swim away.  

Then we climbed to the top of the dam to look down to see if we could see the bass in the water(which we couldn't).  Then we skipped rocks on the water and I let him drive the pickup while sitting in my lap as we weaved and wobbled our way back to the house.  I also gave him two pieces of gum because he says that's what his momma always says he can have.  What a great day.  Thank you Lord for blessing me so.

Posted by Dennis at 23:06:49 | Permanent Link | Comments (1) |

Sunday, February 04, 2007

Church today and in general

Today I went to church in the city.  It was very uplifting.  The people were  friendly.  The singing was awesome.  The preacher's message was inspiring.  It's been a long time since I have enjoyed a service that much. 

I usually go to a small town church about two hours from the city.  Things move pretty slowly there.  The singing is uninspiring usually, depending on who's leading the songs and on who's there to sing.  The preacher is a great guy, but he's new and he's limited in what he can say because there are quite a few people who go there that are very legalistic.  So, he has to be very diplomatic if he will ever have a chance to reach them and open their minds.  

I'm very doubtful, however, that those people will ever change.  Their minds are so closed.  I hope I am wrong about them.  I know intellectually that all things are possible with God and that if he wants to effect their thinking he can.  I just think they are so set in their ways that the chances that they going to change are pretty slim.  I don't think they are looking for the truth because they believe they already have the truth and they are not willing to question anything they believe.  And if you try to be open minded about anything, they will label you and condemn you.  It's very frustrating---but it's reality.

But today. . . thank God for the great uplift he gave me today!

To anyone who might read this, I would be interested in hearing of your religious experience and feelings---even if it's months down the road---even if you think I won't like what you have to say.  Thanks in advance.  Dennis 

Posted by Dennis at 23:00:57 | Permanent Link | Comments (1) |

Friday, February 02, 2007

New Beginning/Reaching Out

I am intrigued by this concept of putting my thoughts down on this screen before me with the possiblility of it being viewed and read and commented on by anyone on the planet within seconds.  Just in the past 24 hours I've read blogs from Malaysia, Singapore, Ireland, Georgia and who knows where else. 

I've gone on "YouTube" and watched some short videos that have been seen by as many as 40 million viewers in the last few months.  I've ordered a book from Amazon.com and sent spreadsheets and pictures to friends via email.  I've used "Consumer Reports" online to compare the quality and value of headphones.

I've posted a computer problem online and it was resolved by a friendly individual, from Boston, in a matter of minutes---for free.  I've read news articles and examined travel deals and paid bills online. 

It's an amazing thing.   Now I'm reaching out to you, a stranger, and we will just see what comes of it.  Maybe you'll be my new long distance friend too.

Now if I can just get this pencil sharpener to work . . . . 

 

Posted by Dennis at 01:10:13 | Permanent Link | Comments (2) |