Happy New Year!

it is 12:08am 1/1/10. i know i haven't blogged in a long time (since dec 9)so i thought i would take a little time to do that and wish everyone a happy new year.

well, the last 3 weeks have been so busy. from trying to get one goose pit redone and decoyed to getting another pit decoyed, to trying to cull some does, working, getting ready for Christmas, etc etc etc.

i did shoot 2 does the other day. i did miss one good buck the day before i shot the does. i am not sure what happened but i looked for blood for 2 hours in the dark and went back the next morning and looked for another 2 hours and never found a single drop of blood. i have not raised my gun on a duck since the second weekend of the season, it is pretty slow where we are hunting.

i got lots of things for Christmas that i am very excited about (i am sure i will leave a few out). i got a gps watch with a heart rate monitor, can't wait to start using it. i got a bike rack for the back of my truck, a pair of oakley sunglasses for running that will be so much better than my old sunglasses, and the best thing is they are camouflage! so i can wear them hunting too! i got guitar hero 5 for the wii (hopefully that will not get in the way of my running when i start back). i got several other small things for my bike and for hunting. i can't wait until it warms up a little to start riding my new bike. wait a minute, i really don't want it to warm up until the week after the youth duck hunt here in tn, i can wait at least until then. i got a couple of pair of wool socks to replace the ones i burned on my montana hunting trip :). oh, i also got an awesome windproof mossy oak jacket that i have already used extensively and it is great. if it was waterproof it would surpass my rivers west jacket as my all around best jacket. the wind does NOT get through the mossy oak jacket one bit. i also got lots of money in gift certificates to cabelas and bass pro. and i got a new duck call and dog training dvd to list a few more.

the weather is supposed to turn really cold here for the next few days so it will be hard to deer hunt thinking that there might be a chance the ducks are flying, so i will most likely be found in the blind/pit for the next couple of days.

the last thing i got for Christmas is a big gut and larger waist. some of my pants are starting to get a little tight. seems like every time i start to drop a few pounds i have to go out to eat, and i find it so hard to not eat such good food. i just love the taste of food, just one of my many weaknesses.

on another note, i did get to shoot another elk this year a couple of weeks ago, not sure if i blogged about that earlier. there is a little zoo nearby that i am the official vet for, and their bull elk was tearing up the fences with his antlers. i had to tranquilize him with a dart gun and cut his antlers off. unfortunately, the owners wanted to keep the antlers, but i did get my picture with it while it was asleep (check out my facebook page).

i hope everyone has a great 2010! my resolutions are to re-lose this weight, try to be less selfish and spend more time with my wife doing things she wants to do while hunting the same amount or more. (if only i could get her to want to go hunting!)

quote of the day today: just think how awful the world would be if there was no pain and sorrow. if there was no pain and sorrow, or hurting, there would not be the opposite of those things either, joy and happiness. i was once told of an actual condition in which people are born that have no ability to feel pain. you might think how great that is. however, most of those people die at a young age because they scratch or chew themselves up constantly. that would be horrible. so pain is good for us so that we can fully appreciate the joys in life. so, i would say, don't try to be numb to the world and live in a daze. live full of hope and desire, knowing that strong desires and goals may bring failure or sorrow, but that only makes the it more fulfilling and joyful when you reach your goals or meet your desires.

have a great year.

Hello Again

i know it has been a while since i have blogged, very truly sorry about that to all of my faithful followers (all 1 or 2 of you). since then what i was afraid would happen did happen. i started hunting a lot, it started getting dark earlier, my exercise decreased, and my appetite stayed the same (and maybe increased). add that all together and what do you have? a bigger, slower, older shane. i weighed last night and weighed more than i ever have, period. that is one reason i decided i had to start blogging again. i have to have someone, even if it is myself thinking others are reading, to keep me accountable.

here are some things that have happened since i last blogged. i did shoot a 7 point buck that came by at 10 yards and had an arrow through his neck (15.5 inch spread). i also went to arkansas to kill 1 duck and get way behind on sleep. i have seen and passed up several nice 2 and 3 year old bucks, some very close. i just haven't seen the 4 or 5 year old buck that i want (might have seen one or two but a little too dark to shoot). i have not been deer hunting much since the arkansas duck hunt and the rut is well passed (the best weekend for deer was probably the weekend i went to arkansas). so now i will be duck hunting mainly and maybe trying to get a buck over some food plots when gun season opens back up.

One other set back to the duck season here in tennessee is that my uncle decided to tear all the stuff out of the goose pit the day before the season opened and we have been getting it re-wired, repainting, etc, etc, etc and have not been able to hunt. i am hoping we will have it finished and decoys out by this weekend since there is a bad winter weather storm up north.

so here are the plans and thoughts for next year's hunts. i plan to put in for montana (chances are i will not get drawn since you typically need a preference point and i don't have any). i also plan on buying another wyoming preference point. i had not planned on elk hunting next fall, although i have thrown around the thought of bow hunting for mule deer, or rifle hunting for elk/mule deer. my uncle has also said he wants to go to idaho and bow hunt for elk since you can buy an over the counter tag there. i had planned on just one trip next year, a trip to canada to goose hunt, one heck of a trip i took last year and the year before. didn't go this year since i took 2 weeks vacation to elk hunt. i have really missed that hunt this year. so, who really knows, those are just some thoughts.

for now i have to get back on schedule and get some of this winter weight off (even though this is the season for eating big meals and sitting around). the high for tomorrow is 31, so not very good for outdoor exercising. guess i will just have to grin and bear it.

lesson of the day, when your exercise decreases, try not to let it decrease, but if you do, try to decrease your food intake adequately. and don't decide to completely remodel your #1 hunting spot the day before the season opens.