Fishnwire

I feel asleep watching TV in bed around 11:00 and my wife woke me up at 11:59, gave me a kiss and I went back to sleep. Party animal! Just a couple of years ago I used to do New Year's Eve up like I was a rock star...that was fun, but I don't really miss it. This way is a lot cheaper too!

Dave, your technique is weak and your skills are lacking... ...at the game of rock, paper, scissors. I would destroy you!!! Seriously though, nice fish. I've got another reason to go visit my sister in Texas now.

Seconded. My summer helmet is useless in cold weather and my winter helmet would make your head melt in +10C weather. They are entirely different. Both purchased at Royal.

I've never liked coffee, but I did buy make the payments on my quad by quiting smoking and using just the money I was spending on cigarettes to do it. It worked out good because my wife coundn't say anything about the quad being too expensive and once I took it home I was extra committed to not smoking.

To the people with useful comments and questions... My landlord is beyond useless. He's good for collecting rents cheques, but entirely unconcerned with just about everything else. I'll mention it to him, because that's the right thing to do, but will not hold my breath that he will take any action whatsoever. At least I'll be able to say I made him aware of the problem if it comes to anything. The "pup" is a full grown mixed breed (retriever mix I think) that is a good thirty pounds, fast, hyper, and, as I have mentioned, a known biter. I understand full well that the way one approaches and conducts themselves around a strange dog has a huge impact on the animal's behavior and we've always kept that in mind. That's fine. The problem is that the onus is on the owner to make sure that their animal doesn't hurt anyone. When my wife was bitten, she didn't even see the dog until it was on her...maybe she startled it...but the owner should keep the dog leashed, knowing that if it is startled it may attack, as has happened in the past. She seems unwilling to accept what happened and as such believes there's no reason to be vigilant in preventing a re-occurrence. Even if my neighbour can somehow see into the future and knows with certainty that my wife or anyone else will never be bitten by her dog again, why wouldn't she keep her animal leashed at all times just to make my wife, who is "twice shy" comfortable? She knows my wife has reason to fear her dog, you'd think she'd make an effort to try and make her feel as safe and comfortable as possible. Wouldn't you if you were in her shoes? I know I would. Any half decent neighbour would.

LOL indead. It's not a public area...its a narrow alley between the building and the fence and the only way in or out. I have never seen tracks or other evidence of dogs or anything else in that area in the 6 years I've lived here, until they moved in with their dog. The tracks start at their door and return there. There is no question who left them. You sound as ridiculous as my neighbour who tried to claim her dog didn't bite my wife. Give it up.

My wife was bitten by my neighbour's dog (multi-unit apartment building) that was unleashed and unattended when they first moved in. She required stitches and when she told the hospital it was a dog bite a report was automatically filled out by the Health Unit as a matter of standard procedure. My wife and I are both pet lovers and were very concerned the dog would be destroyed as a result. She indicated to the Health Unit that she thought it was an accident and didn't want the matter pursued. The owners were contacted by the Health Unit, but were not fined or penalized in any way, which was A-OK with us. Here's the problem...the neighbour has since told me that her dog has "never" bitten anyone, and basically said that since there were no witnesses, I can't prove it was her dog, and if it was, my wife must have done something to make it her fault. She's entitled to her hair-brained opinion...that's fine, but the problem is that lately she lets her dog run off his leash in front of the entrance to her unit (I see the dog tracks in the snow and no human tracks anywhere near them) so that if my wife walks around the corner on the way to or from her car, she'll be mere feet from a dog that has already bitten her once. It's only by dumb luck that it hasn't happened yet, but only a matter of time until it does. The other issue is that they don't regularly pick up after the dog and the only pathway between the parking lot and my unit is often strewn with four or fives piles of crap which I can only hope I don't step on in the dark. I mentioned it one time, and they promised to stay on top of it, but after a week or so went back to their old ways. I can only imagine what it will smell/look like it the spring when the snow melts and uncovers 4 months of it. I don't expect my neighbours to be perfect, but it seems to me that controlling their animal so that my wife doesn't get bitten a second time and picking up after it are no-brainers. Should I have to put up with this and more importantly, what can I do?

This has probably been done here before, but I don't remember seeing it so here goes. Which side do you like your hand crank on your spinning and casting reels. I'm right handed and I like to crank my spinning reels with my left hand but prefer my right hand to crank my bait reels with. What about you guys?

Summer '09 was the first season that I got serious about throwing top-waters. I'm completely addicted to that, so next year's SMB season is going to be a lot of this... I am going to try putting down my top-water rods long enough to try a couple of things out though. The last couple of years I got right into soft plastics but believe it or not, never tried Senkos...I'm going to pick some of those up. I also never put the time and energy into drop shotting that I should have. I tried a few times but didn't have great success and relied on other presentations instead. I want to get a decent baitcasting outfit and get good on that. I've only ever used cheap bait reels and have never liked them but am told if I get a good one I'll probably like it a lot more. I've got a thread in Classified looking for a decent right hand reel...PM me if you've got one for sale. Also, I want to gain confidence in plastic baits in favour of live bait through the ice. I've tried a few times but had limited success and always end up falling back on live minnows. I used to use a lot of live bait in the summer, but have totally gotten away from it in favour of scented plastic. Not having the hassle of live bait is nice. Good thread, really got me thinking.

When electric trolling motors were still fairly new my buddy had one on his square-stern canoe and told his girlfriend it was just a rudder. She believed him (for a while) and was truly amazed at how fast he was able to paddle that canoe.

I see that Future Shop sells Virgin Mobile in Sudbury. I would normally avoid them, but I guess I'll bite my lip and go check them out. thanks. Can anyone tell me anything about reception between Sudbury and the Watershed?

I sent them an E-mail last month about ordering an Ice Armor Extreme suit directly from them, and they sent this back: Good Morning Mr. Dewar, Sportman’s Guide is the Clam dealer in Canada. Please find their website below: http://www.sportsmansguide.com/search/sear...arch&k=clam They will deliver ice shelters and other accessories. Although we are not able to deliver ice shelters to Canada, we may be able to help you with items you are having difficulty finding. Thank you, Carla Briggs Customer Service Clam Corporation/Polar Sport 600 Clydesdale Trail Medina, MN 55340-9361 Phone: 763-231-4120 Fax: 763-231-4121 www.clamcorp.com I ended up ordering it and a pair of mitts from Gagnon's in Oshawa and had it shipped to Sudbury for a lot cheaper than I could find it anywhere else. I would love to check out that Gagnon's Sports some time in person, I bet it's amazing.

I guess I'm going to take a job out of town. The strike looks like it may never end and I'm bored out of my mind. I hate residential work which is all I can find here right now and the money is actually not bad, so I figure I'd better jump on it while I have the chance. The thing is I have to drive from Sudbury to the watershed every week and I figure I had better get a cell phone (which I had hoped to never own) so I have it on the highway for safety reasons. Does anyone know if there is service in that area? The other thing is that I have never been in the market for a cell phone, and don't know what I should pay for a simple phone and plan or where to go. I'll use it infrequently, but want it for other than strictly emergencies. There is a fairly decent chance I will lose or break it, so I don't want to spend a lot. Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

Having a camp that is remote, I know that I worry about local teens going up there when I'm not around and doing the kind of things stupid kids do...having said that, I would never do or say anything to anybody to get them pissed off enough at me to want to come back and really make a mess of things. Pulling a gun on someone is a good way to get your camp burned down if you ask me. Hopefully they got the message without getting too bent out of shape over it.

I just picked up a 4 lb test spool of http://www.p-line.com/product_detail.php?id=94 for use as leader material for panies through the ice. It's called P-line CX Premium. I've only used it 4 times but am really happy with it so far. Its supposed to be "fluoro coated copolymer"...whatever that is. It's the strongest/thinnest four pound line I've ever used, has no memory, ties like butter and seems unaffected by the cold. The only other fluoro I've used is 12 lb Seaguar InvisX which I like for bass and walleye in the summer and small pike in the winter. It took me a while to get on the fluoro leader bandwagon but after spending a season using it I'll never go back to straight braid.

One thing to keep in mind, which at least half of all builders of huts I've been in did not, is to place your windows low enough so that you can look at your outside lines while sitting down. Having to stand up every two minutes to see if your flag is up is a pain...you should be able to sit there in front of your inside hole, jigging away and just tilt your head up and get a perfect view of your outside tip-up or whatever.

Unless I knew the previous owner was not haywire and hadn't done things like swamp the thing, roll it, bury it and generally drive the poop out of the thing, I'd be hesitant to buy used...but that's just me. I'm not particularily handy at working on them myself, and I like to take mine to some pretty remote spots, so an older machine that didn't come with a three year factory warranty and may or may not be reliable did not interest me. I'm sure there are some good deals on quality used machines out there, but I didn't feel like taking any chances. Everyone who has a bike that's under 500cc will tell you that anything bigger is pointless. Aparrently, their machine is the perfect size, and larger engines simply burn more gas and make noise but don't produce more power. Nonsense...especially for someone who is more interested in "joy riding" than anything else. You can't go wrong with a Honda or Yamaha as far as quality goes, but they're more money than Kawasaki which you should have a look at aswell, IMO.

This past summer I was in my boat fishing and all of a sudden the dog jumped up and ran to the back of the boat and was about to jump in the river when I grapped him. I looked where he was looking and saw a squirel swimming about ten feet behind the boat, crossing the river. I only got a quick look at him and then he made the shore, but in the couple of seconds I saw him in the drink, I could swear he held his tail straight up out of the water. I remember noticing that the tail appeared dry and bushy as it pointed up in a gentle arc held above the water line. If squilrels don't normally drag their tails when they swim, maybe fish won't key in on this unnatural presentation. On the other hand, maybe a dangling tail is so desirable to fish that squirels have evolved to lift them when swimming for just this reason. Good luck and let us know how you do. I'm curious myself.

My brother bought a one piece set by "Under Armor" last year...they are not waffled and cost around $100 but he claims they unbelievably warm and worth every penny. $100 for underwear seems a little high to me, but he keeps insisting I give them a try.

I wonder what percentage of fatalities on the water are a result of excessive speeds. I'd feel safer on a body of water full of drunken canoeists than I would if there was one sober guy out there in a speedboat flying around doing 70.

Yes, but as we've proved, knives are less dangerous than guns. Are you telling me, given the choice, you wouldn't prefer to face someone intent on harming you armed with a knife than a gun? Of course you would...any clear thinking idividual would feel the same way. The fact that these people have to "turn to knives" proves that efforts are working to keep guns out of the hands of criminals. Seems like a success story to me. I understand that. They are important. But the point that I'm trying to make which you seem to be ignoring is that If guns are laying around wich are not registered to a particular individual, who is responsible that those safe storage laws are adhered to? If those laws are not followed and a gun finds it ways into the hands of some kids that are hurt for example, wouldn't it be nice to be able to trace it back to the owner that failed to properly store the weapon? Without registraton the owner may be able to aviod being determined, or at least possibly be able to deny ownership.

I'm fairly certain that not one particular group is responsible for the overwhelming majority of instances, and it would be impossible to ever know for sure anyway....it would probably be good advice to be vigilant of any person acting suspiciously or in a position to rip you off, and not focus on anyone because they happen to be a particular minority. I'd be amazed if the authorities investigating this publicly described it as a "native theft ring." Giving the description, which might include race, of a particular individual or individuals who are known to or suspected to have committed a crime is one thing, but assuming every time a car gets hopped in a Hamilton mall, a native is probably behind it, is way over the top.

Come on Dara, you're smarter than that. Of course a gun is inherently dangerous. Its a gun. You do understand that their pmiary function is to kill living things, right? Without question guns are more dangerous than knives. There are probably a lot more knives in Canada than guns, but which is responsible for more deaths and serious injuries each year? Would you rather face off an intruder armed with a knife, or a gun? You come at me with a knife and you're going to have to get close up enough for me to fight back, and I will. I might still go down, but I'm going to make it messy and noisy and drag it out as long as possible, and it's not going to be as easy as just squeezing a trigger. If he's not bigger and faster than me I have a chance...you cannot say the same about a gun. Absolutely guns are dangerous and trying to suggest otherwise is sheer lunacy. If you don't realize firearms are dangerous, you should probably be prevented from owning them. Are you telling me they don't teach that guns are dangerous in hunter-safety and PAL classes? You'd think that would be lesson one. You're right. That is needed aswell. The advantage of also having all guns registered is that forces an increased level of accountability on the owners. They need to know the whereabouts of their firearms at all times, and that they are safely stored. No more leaving old guns under the bed at camp or elsewhere for anyone to find or some such behavior. What about the example given in this thread? I'm sure he wouldn't have, but if the owner of the lost gun knew it wasn't registered and couldn't be traced back to him, he might not have bothered to report it lost. The thing is, like I said, owning firearms is a privelegde that most of us can enjoy if we desire. Being asked to simply register whatever firearms we wish to own, and therefore take responsibilty for, is not asking a lot. That goes for even "every little 22 you own". You didn't actually address how being asked to register whatever firearms you choose to own is being "pushed around" whereas being asked to register your motor vehicles is not.

I think you could be charged, but under the circumstances you are descibing, the cop would have to be a real prick to give you anything more than a warning and ask you to take it to the porch. You never know though.

My brother-in-law from Texas pulled a can of beer from his carry on and cracked it at the Toronto airport after they touched down. He couldn't understand why my sister freaked out. When told he couldn't drink in the car he just kept saying, "But I ain't drivin'!". He told me back home you can have a passenger passed out with an open bottle in his hand and a backseat full of empties, and as long as you don't blow over you're good to go.