Ronzo

Simcoe is still ok as of yesterday. There's a foot of ice in the perch grounds, 4-6" out further. Don't think the warm weather of the past week did much other than to melt the foot of snow that was sitting on top.

I've done something similar before in an old farmhouse, connecting a new 3" waste pipe to an existing stack underneath the house within a crawl space. It was a few years back now, but IIRC, we cut out enough gap for the new T, but cut the gap larger than you would for a completely snug fit, by 3/4" or so. We were able to get enough movement out of the existing stack combined with the larger gap to slide the new connector in. Without a picture it's a bit tough, and depends somewhat on whether you've got other runs coming into the stack within the crawl space, and their orientation.

Simcoe pressure cracks are wacky things. Spudded my way out the other day, got to the big pressure crack here and had to poke around for a spot where I felt comfortable crossing on foot. The ice under the pressure cracks hasn't frozen up either, it's just floating below.

Thanks for the kind remarks, folks! Definitely one of the best days I've had on the ice, water, pier, bridge, whatever! One fishing related note, I had my dead stick down the flasher hole, and rigged it with a big spoon. Dropped the spoon to 12 ft and gave it a jig every now and then. Shortly after, the jumbos would show up. The spoon was large enough that I had no intention of landing a perch on it, but as far as bringing in the big boys to play, it seemed to do the trick.

Last season, I didn't get out on the ice a single time. Year before that I was only out a few times. But this year, I have a very special guest who wants to ice fish with me - my four year old daughter, Eleanor. We live up near Sandy Cove, so on Friday I went for a walk with my spud, and scouted the ice out to 20 FOW. Found 5" or so all the way out, and the always-existent pressure crack was nice and solid, so Saturday morning, we packed up and made the 5 minute drive down to the lake. After long walk pulling an extra 30lbs in my sled, we arrived and got set up. Drilled a hole for Eleanor, one for the flasher, and started on my own hole. That's when I heard it "OK Daddy, I'm ready to catch a fish now!" I had forgotten to explain that fishing is not catching! However, lucky for me, we hit on the hot 'decoration' as we called them, and ended up over several schools of jumbo perch. Eleanor landed 6, while I managed 5. Considering how much time we spent talking about each fish we caught, rather than actually trying to catch more fish, not half bad! Impressively, she stayed with it for 4 full hours before we got a little cold and decided to pack up and head for home. On the drive back, I heard lots of "That was fun! Let's go again!", so I'll call that a successful trip! A few videos: Her first fish: https://goo.gl/photos/SGSss2ibeq2dv39V9 The surprise fish: https://goo.gl/photos/c4Jy88LzARyK8C9YA The jumbo: https://goo.gl/photos/ik667zo4baL14Rxg7

Not a religious man, but reading that article all that I have on my mind is a loud "AMEN!!". Launch is also not a place to crack beers and talk about last night's party.. had fun with that one last year at Balsam.

This is about as on-the-nose as it gets. As close as our personal relationships are, there are things, big or small, that make us bite our tongue. Finding the right person to talk to allows you to get it off your chest. But you're not just venting, you're giving your therapist opportunity to understand where you're coming from, and provide insight as to why you are where you are. No one is saying it's easy to make the first call, or to get in the door to the first session. It was very hard for me to accept that I needed mental help. I'll never look back and regret getting help. If you're concerned about anonymity, look for someone in another city. Sending the love right back your way dude! I've definitely noticed your passion for life, and I have great admiration for your willingness to help anyone in any way you can. To all who thanked me for my post, the biggest thanks would be for even one person who's feeling down to pick up the phone, make the call and go talk to a professional. We're all pulling for you, whoever you might be.

Hi, don't post a lot, I'm a pretty reserved guy, but am fearless when it comes to preaching the benefits of mental health. Five years ago I felt like crap. I had lost my job a year or two prior, and although I'd found new employment I was still in bad shape from the way it all ended. Wrap that up with a lifetime of being bullied and I was a 30-something year old guy with no idea how to be content. I went and saw a therapist. Talked to someone who understood how the brain works. Someone who could help provide perspective on life, someone who helped me understand that most of my problems were just based on how I (didn't) think things through. People like to poke fun at others for "going to see a shrink". They'll probably never learn that ( a ) manning up and facing your actions head-on is about as "tough" as it gets, and ( b ) it'll be the most self-beneficial thing you'll ever do. Five years on, I still see my therapist every 6 weeks. I don't struggle with the things I used to struggle with, but I use him as a sounding board for things going on in my life, and as a way to face up to the decisions I make every day. I have ten times the number of things on my plate these days as I did five years ago, and I cope about 20 times better! You'll never regret an investment like this... IMO the next great leap in human health will be the day (which appears to finally be possible) when humanity as a whole understand that mental health is just as important as physical health. Feel free to disagree - it's your life

I don't shop at TSC too often, but if I do I normally purchase online at the sale price, and then pick up in store whenever convenient. I've yet to run into any problems at TSC Barrie, although they never ever have any of the big sale items in stock - seems like it's always a week or two later that the product finally arrives.

Looks great! I have a plastic tub sleigh that I pull when I walk out onto Simcoe. Definitely need to grab a pair of skis and rig something like this up for myself - thanks for the guidance! Sweet seat too, man!

This. If you're ever looking for a perfect demonstration of how a corporation works over the public to appease shareholders and improve profits look no further than hydro.

I have a slightly older version of this - it is nearly useless for ice fishing once there is snow on the lake. The short skis break through any type of crusty snow, and then the tips drop down and catch in the hole.

I have a 25 year old Coleman Evcon - inherited it when I purchased this house 2 years ago. Last week I replaced the vent inducer motor. Other than that, it runs like clockwork. You may get better efficiency out of a newer furnace, but they're (a) not as well built, ( hackable (google 'Tranewreck' and you'll come across presentations about how these new internet-connected furnaces have absolutely laughable security), and © take a long time to recoup your money. Since new furnaces break more often, recouping your money becomes tougher. It's all part of the same scam, IMO, to push people to rent furnaces and water heaters - the warranties are shorter, the parts are crappier, so people move toward rentals, which are more profitable. My brother in law is a 25-year HVAC tech. He always says "Unless the heat exchanger cracks, keep your current one. And when you decide to sell, let me know, we'll put a new one in at cost."

Also turned down a couple of invites to stay at home and watch it with my wife - Maybe I should've gone out, seemed to be a LOT of dust in my house getting in my eyes at various points. Very bittersweet. What an amazing gift to Canada from the band. What impressed me most was Gord's defiance whenever the subject of death came up in his lyrics. Watch him in 'Nautical Disaster' when he hits the 'it's not a deal nor a test nor a love....' line. Like everyone, hoping that he gets to live another bunch of years, not just months. Also loved his message - be compassionate and care about all Canadians...

This is the kind of stuff that I was crossing my fingers for when Harper finally got the boot...

Cool!

I'm around the same age, I have two young kids, 1 and 3. The sense of satisfaction that comes from at least TRYING to raise them right far outweighs any sort of fear of other parents judging me. Then again, I'm also the kind of person who doesn't sweat that kind of stuff, because everyone can have and is entitled to their opinion, even those who are completely out to lunch. As far as being "raised right", honestly, that's pretty much a household-to-household deal, even back then. I have friends who didn't really have a chance, because their parents f'd things up so badly. I also know some people who did really well in life because their parents cared and tried to instill solid values. I don't raise my kids in the exact same way I was raised, but the fundamentals are the same - show respect, understand that actions have consequences, try to be nice, and stick up for yourself when you need to. My wife spends time with the kids at the Early Year centres around here. More than once she's asked me "Are we too strict? I see kids running around, climbing on things, and they don't listen, while <daughter> knows better, and always listens". My response is always "And those kids are going to pay for the lack of direction from their parents when they get older". I dunno, I think parents have as much influence as peer pressure. I remember being pressured into a lot of stuff, but just knowing better, and also not wanting to disappoint Mom and Dad. I did some really stupid stuff, but I don't think anyone makes it through youth without a few of those I'm sure people look at me as a parent and think I'm out to lunch. At the end of the day, I love my kids a lot, I care about them a lot, and try to always put them ahead of myself. That's at least a start...

It's not all about the young people being in the wrong -- Who gave birth to them, raised them, and taught them what was right? There are a lot of idiots with kids who became idiots because being an idiot is all they've ever known.

Few hundred feet of not-safe ice off shore in KBay now. An inch or two at most.

Lake open last week.. Frozen now. YEP! Let's get out the ATV!! Probably the same knucklehead I saw driving in the dark without headlights the other night!

Not sure if it's 100% the same, but I use a Costco pop as well. Two seasons on it, no complaints: http://www.costco.ca/.product.100161657.html

I've caught a couple nice smallies from shore on the Barrie waterfront. I usually go to the north-east portion of the park (where the shore runs north-south), and you can cast out toward the bay. Have had decent luck just chucking tubes and working them back to shore.

Looks like a good deal on dimmable LED lights at Tiger Direct today -> $24.95 minus a $20 rebate = $4.95 each. Saw this deal and thought of this thread. Reading the review that's on the site, sounds like they might be too bright for indoors, though. http://www.tigerdirect.ca/sectors/category/deal-of-the-dayca.asp? I've ordered from them in the past and have never had any issues.

Two things: 1) Parents really mess kids up. You know why they keep score at that soccer game? Because Johnny's dad thinks he'll be a superstar and wants everyone toknow it. 2) The availability of the internet has brought good things, but also a lot of horrible things like cyber bullying and instant access to horrifically graphic content. Combine those two things, and you end up with kids who have no direction or discipline, who have been exposed to so much violence they have become desensitized. Seriously, have you all watched some of the parenting that goes on these days? As a dude with two young kids, I see it all the time (thankfully not in my house and not amongst any friends, but just take a look around).

I spent this past winter, my first on Simcoe, dragging my portable hut out from Innisfil. If you can get your hands on a flasher, that's where I'd spend my money. Walk a bit, blow a hole through with the auger, fire up the flasher. Rinse and repeat until you find (a) fish or ( the depth you want. This was my first winter using a flasher, and holy smokes, does it ever take a lot of guesswork out of it. You may be sitting over nothing, which the flasher will tell you. You may be sitting over 100 perch that aren't interested in what you've got on the end of your line, and the flasher will tell you. I would give up dragging my portable hut before I'd leave the flasher at home! Other thing I will say is that early in the season, with a pair of cleats on your boots, you'll be able to walk KMs on the lake with no problem. Once the snow starts to accumulate, damn, it becomes a lot of hard work to get to the deep water!