Just about everybody that I’ve talked to lately has said they are sick and tired of winter.
I know I am.
One thing for sure, spring can’t come soon enough.
Having said that, I suppose there are any number of things I could do to help get myself through the next couple of months.
I’ve got a jigsaw puzzle on the go. It’s half finished – it’s been half-finished since Christmas.
I like doing jigsaw puzzles. They allow me to do something relatively constructive while letting my mind wander. I write a lot of my columns, in my mind, while doing a puzzle. They also let me put off other things that need to be done – but not right now. Not right away, anyways.
Sometimes the things you put off for another day turn out to be not all that important. Like shovelling the snow. I waited and waited, and low and behold, eventually the snow melted enough that I could get out of my driveway. And I didn’t have to do any shovelling at all!
Maybe I’ll sort through some of those fishing magazines I picked at the thrift store and haven’t quite gotten around to reading. I could always go through my fly boxes and see which patterns need to be replaced and/or replenished. If nothing else, I could always spend a bit of time going through my fishing gear and make sure everything is in order.
I really should check all my lines, leaders and tippet to make sure the lines are clean and there are no ‘wind knots’ in the leaders or tippet. I can start by cleaning the lines with a solution of warm water and a small amount of dish soap, and then replace the leaders. I don’t usually replace the tippet until I’m actually ready to head out fishing. Sometimes I cut lengths of tippet material and then tie the flies on the night before. It is quicker and easier to do in the warmth and light of home.
I know I won’t have to look too far for things I could do around the house. There’s that bookshelf I built to hold all my fishing magazines – the one that doesn’t exactly fit where I originally wanted to put it. Then again, I could phone Cory and see if he wants to go to the Sportsman’s Show in Abbotsford at the beginning of March. It’ been three years now since I’ve gone due to COVID-19. We both just like to walk around and look at all the new fishing gear and talk to the tech reps and sales people. I like it when their eyes light up when I pick up brochures from all those fancy fishing lodges that I’ll never be able to afford. I’m sure it really irks the lodge owners when they see a guy like me helping myself to one of their expensive brochures. But you never know – I could win the lottery.
Read more: Great Outdoors column: Cross-country skiing vulnerable to climate change
Read more: Column: For fishing trips, better to prepare in advance than be sorry later
If I were to win big on the lottery, I think I would invest in a new boat. Yeah, a nice 16-foot aluminum runabout set up with downriggers and an electronic fish finder. Maybe I’d take part of my winnings to book a fishing trip to Mexico or Belize, or better yet, a salmon fishing trip to Scotland.
There are all sorts of things I could do if I were to win the lottery, but I think I’ll just save my money and put it towards a new fly line.
One of these days soon I’ll probably head to the local fishing tackle store with my casting and spinning reels to have new line put on for the coming season. It really isn’t that far off. I make a point of replacing each and every reel lined with monofilament at the beginning of each season. I like to get it done at the tackle store because they have a powered spooler that does a much better job than doing it yourself.
Besides, you never know what they’ve got in, new, for the coming season. There might be a new rod or reel with my name on it. That’s figuratively speaking, not literally. I mean, there won’t be a rod or reel with my name actually written on it like Bob Izumi or Pete Bowman or someone like that. My fishing prowess hasn’t reached that level – yet.
Then again, I could drive over to the thrift store and drop off that stupid shelf I made – the one that doesn’t exactly fit where I originally wanted to put it. So many choices.
newsroom@saobserver.net
Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter
Sign up for our newsletter to get Salmon Arm stories in your inbox every morning.