Big Cliff

Last week I posted about my new adventure in life, several people asked about the job aptitude test I had taken. Here is the information. Sorry it took me so long to get the information, if you have any questions let me know. http://www.careercruising.com User name: VCCS Password: CAREER Hope this helps!

Keeping my fingures crossed for you kid!

Thanks for the heads up!

I don't know who the author is but I hope this brings you some comfort: If He Could He would be here if he could, To help relieve your sorrow. And he would tell you: "Time will heal, Though maybe not tomorrow". He would be here if he could, To comfort you in grieving. And he would tell you: "I'm at peace, Don't fret about my leaving". He would be here if he could, But he has given you his best. And now after years of giving, Its' time for him to rest. ________________________________ Our condolences to you and your family John. Cliff & Sue

# 14 as of this morning! It's heading in the right direction.

Good food, good friends, a nice fishing story, what better way is there to spend an evening?

Good morning all! Thanks for all the replies! It is nice to have the support when things are rough but it sure is fun to share the good times! The website I went to was http://careercruising.com but you need a username and password. I just tried the old ones I used but they didn't work. I'll try to get current ones in the next few days for those of you that want them.

Well, I keep voting but only once a day. I wasn't smart enough to figure out the thing about the cookies.

Sorry I haven't been around for a bit. last couple of weeks have been a little hectic. As many of you may remember, last Feb. I posted about returning from holidays only to find that I no longer had a job. I won’t bother going into the details again but I got blindsided and took it hard After wondering what to do next and considering all my options, Sue and I sat down one evening, put on some music and had a real heart to heart talk. I knew I wanted to work; no, I had to work if I was going to be happy. Silly as it sounds, I tried retirement and it just isn’t for me. For the past 40 years I had held middle or senior management positions in sales and or marketing positions. I had enjoyed it but there was just something missing, I was very good at what I did, I had built and sold three very successful businesses, all of which are still running today. Did I want to start all over again and build another one? The opportunity was there however I thought about the long hours involved and the fact that I was tired, perhaps even bored with that type of work. The question became, well, if not that, what do you want to do? I started exploring options, went to a couple of job fairs, attended a job finding course, talked to a councillor at Victoria County Carer Services. This councillor mentioned a website that I could go to and do an aptitude test and that perhaps that would give me some direction. Well, the results came back and the top five things listed were: Gunsmith, Locksmith, Appliance Repair, Marine Mechanic, and Small Engine Mechanic. Go figure, I have been fixing things all my life, love working with my hands, enjoy problem solving and most of all helping people. That I should work in that sort of a field had never crossed my mind, (smart eh?) LOL. I ruled out Gunsmith, with all the controversy and regulations regarding guns these days, I just didn’t want the hassle. Locksmith; the only place I could get the classroom training was in Red Deer Alberta. Appliance Repair, not quite what I was looking for. Marine Mechanic, too seasonal for my liking and Small Engine Mechanic…. Now that would fit the bill perfectly. Sanford Fleming here in Lindsay has the course. Well, this could drag into a long story but I did my research, found that I do qualify for an apprenticeship program, found someone who would hire me as an apprentice and officially started working as a Small Engine Mechanic Apprentice on July 9. (although the let me hang around the shop for about 6 weeks before) The work is hard, dirty, and I am tired at the end of the day but I have never been happier! I spend my entire day solving puzzles, fixing things, and helping people. From one moment to the next I never know what is going to hit my bench; chainsaws, trimmers, walk behind lawn mowers, even lawn tractors, snow blowers, pumps. If it has a gas engine in it it could be next up. My employer is fantastic, I am working with four mechanics that between them probably have in excess of 60 years experience. They have had me doing everything from valve jobs to carburetor overhauls, sharpening lawnmower blades to rebuilding engines from the crank case up. Most of all, they are the nicest people I have ever had the pleasure of working with. I still have to do two years of schooling and start my first year in Jan. but in the end I will have my license. It will seem strange going back to collage after all these years but I’m excited about it and I am in the process of fixing up a nice little work shop here at home, (here I go, bringing work home with me again LOL). Just to put a cherry on top of everything: In the last couple of weeks I have had two phone calls from former suppliers wondering if I might be interested in representing their product lines in Canada. It seems that my former employer hasn’t been doing too well and is now trying to sell the Div. that I worked so hard to build for him. I guess he isn’t having much luck finding a buyer and I suspect that the employee that took my job may soon be looking for a new job again himself. From boom to bust in less than five months; guess they weren’t as smart as they thought they were. (Yeah, I guess I am gloating just a little) Life is good!

You won't need a depth finder, most of the fishing you will be doing is going to be in fairly shallow water anyway and if you are using a depth finder to watch for shoals..... you'll have taken the lower unit off the boat before the finder will show you that it is there. As for shore lunches.... no trip to the French River would be complete without a shore lunch. When I lived there you could camp anywhere that wasn't private property, I understand that that might have changed now and you might have to pay a fee. Sorry, you should check that out with the lodge too. Thanks for the kind words Lew, just trying to pay it forward.

poop Head! How dare you scare the crap out of your family and friends in the name of male ego! I've lived in your world, male ego..... and all that stuff. Did some damage that took years to undo but now I am back on track! Now it's your turn. I chalange you to meet me at Lacair next year, I will reserve a cabin for you, I, and two others yet to be named, you better make it or else! I'm not ready to loose another friend right now!

I just heard from a well informed source tonight that the MNR has been doing some testing regarding killing zebra mussels. Apparently this was done in Scugog and a few other lakes in this area. Makes you wonder doesn't it? OFAH, any input?

If you were in their boat, would you give someone a replacement? You don't mention how you broke it... your fault? or was it defective? I can't speak for BPS other than I have always been pleased with their service and support but I owned my own business for many years and I found that sometimes customers can expect the unreasonable. The phrase, "the customer is always right!" Doesn't mean that the customer is always fair or reasonable! Let your consciense be your guide!

Well, I never stayed at French river lodge, but I have heard a lot of good things about it. I lived in the area so I never stayed at any of the lodges. Groceries.... The lodge will have some of the basics available but I would make sure you bring your own food. You can always call the lodge and ask! That might be a good idea! Fishing.... Pike, I have always liked Williams wobblers, silver or silver and gold. Red devils, Five of dimonds, Those will produce pike most of the time, some larger.... #6+ mepps in silver or bronze are good choices too. There are some nice bass up there too so don't sell yourself short on that, a few top water and a few plastics. Pickerel jigs tipped with a twister tail especially in the morning or evening and anywhere you can find a back eddy or a bit of current..... a few husky jerks or rapalas cast into the shallows above any fast shallow water or into a bay near deep water should put a few fish in the boat for you. Don't rule out after dark fishing either. There are some monster chanel catfish in the French River system and boy do they put up one heck of a fight. You'll want a heavy rod and some strong line for those brutes. A dead frog or chunck of fresh liver works well for them. Fish on the bottom in a shallow inlet but near deep water. If you hook one you will have a fight you will never forget. Pound for pound they are one of the toughest fish I have ever run into. so many years of experience is hard to impart in a post like this but ask your hosts and they will do everything they can to help you, that is their business! I truly hoope you enjoy your stay and look forward to your posts to tell us of your trip! Big Cliff

Please let there be a happy ending to this thread!

It is so nice to see your business continue to grow Sam. I guess Belleville was a really good move for you! I'll be sure to stop in first chance I get!

There has already been a significant decline in the use of the water in the Kawarthas. I know of cottage rentals that have been cancelled. I wouldn't keep a fish out of these waters until I see some official reports that tell me they are safe to eat. In fact, after cleaning up some 20+ dead and smelly carp in the psat week, I really don't even feel like going fishing. Would you like to go water skiing and dodge dead 30 lb fish? Boat traffic this past long weekend was much slower than we have seen in past years. CTV news aired a report last night, their report wasn't very accurate, they stated Sturgeon lake is upstream of Scugog. It may be North of Scugog but I can assure you that the Scugog River flows into Sturgeon Lake. The report answered few questions and did little to highlight the matter and force the powers that be to provide us with some actual facts. Now I'm told it may be a few more weeks before we know what is causing the problem. I'm still waiting!

You too Moe. Drive carefully!

I'd like to thank each and every one of you for your phone calls, PMs, emails, and replies. Some made us laugh, some made us cry (but in a good way), all were very much appreciated and helped so much these past few days. From the very bottom of our hearts, thank you from the Matthews/Bignell family!

Herb would have approved Beans, as you know he wasn't fussy about what he caught as long as he was fishing. Thank you!

My brother-in-law, AKA justherb on this board, passed away some time last night, I found him this evening when I went to take him his groceries, he had passed away quietly while watching the food chanel and drinking a beer, two things he liked to do when he wasn't fishing. He had been sick for a while now surviving a very risky open heart operation only a few years ago and never really getting back up to speed. He had been in and out of hospital a few times in the past few months and was on a lot of medication. We had been fishing buddies and best friends for more than 25 years, he was a lousy fisherman but that never stopped him from trying and we shared so many wonderful adventures. (Besides if he did start to out fish me, I would just tease him about me getting home to his sister; that would usually throw him off his game). We have one more fishing trip to take, it was something he made me promise to do and do it I will. I will not mourn his passing, he wouldn't have wanted that but I will miss him very much. There won't be any viewing or funeral, he had left very explicit instructions, just the fishing trip. Next fish you catch please say "this one is for you Herb!" he'd have gotten a kick out of that. Forever in my heart Herb. Big Cliff

You just have to submit that one to Readers Digest. It is just too funny not to share!

Thanks for the links Cliff. Every little bit of information helps!The numbers are growing at a very alarming rate, I pass by a shallow weedy area on my way home and there are 100's of dead carp floating. Kemper, you posted: "I also think that we need to slow down with the conspiracy theories, im fairly certain that a stealth MNR boat flying under the cover of darkness isnt spreading a carp disease...." You could be right but it wouldn't be the first time the Canadian Goverment has tried or tested something without telling us about it or admitting it. Perhaps it is just a coincidence that two MNR boats were seen putting some sort of chemical into Scugog and it might have nothing to do with what is happening to the carp but they were seen doing it. Why? Why is the carp kill limited to down stream of Scugog? if it is a virus then you would expect that it would spread upstream as well, infected fish would also swim upstream there by spreading the infection that way too. Chemicals on the other hand would tend to spread down stream. It isn't only the carp that are being affected, they may be the only ones dying right now but there is a distinct difference in the weed growth this year, the fishing for other species has been very poor this year. Something has hapened to change the whole area. Conspiracy or not, I'll feel a lot better when I know what is going on.

I would not deal with these people at all! Anyone that has to use pressure and deception rather than logic and facts to get customers to sign a contract isn't trying to do me any favours. They showed up at my door last spring and told me if I signed up with them I would be getting a rebate from hydro but if I didn't sign up, I wouldn't get a rebate. Then he just wanted me to sign this "form" so his supervisor would know that he had been here and I "declined" the rebate. I didn't sign, he is lucky he left when he still could, and I got my rebate in the mail about a month later. Buyer beware!

Biscotasing? I don't know if you will get 100 fish a day without doing a fly in to some remote lake but Biscotasing is beautiful and has some good numbers of fish. It would be within your range of 10 - 15 hours.