Christmas, Ness Style

Ok, so a dew rag and a pink guitar may not be part of your Christmas but it works for us. Grandma took this picture. I think grandpa was makin' a highball and who knows where John was....
Fishin' report: The nice walleyes still elude us. Picked up two small ones Friday night and Johnny lost a hog Saturday night. For you non-fisherman, a "hog" is a big, @^%#^&!!*# walleye!
I went out tonight and picked up a small walleye at 5:00. I settled in, reading my book, and expected great things. At 5:30 I decided to head in for some dinner. I pulled up both lines and there wasn't a minnow on either... Oh well, at least I was enjoying my new book on John Lennon.
Next weekend we've got some "real" fishermen coming up. Maybe Stone and Uwe will catch something for a change....

For What It's Worth.....

Ice fishin' has been slow as usual. I think we've caught 5 or 6 little walleyes and one keeper. Haven't put out a tip up yet this year. It's either been too cold or those lovely 25 mph NW winds kinda take the fun out of trying to man a tip up.
It hit 27 below last week and there's so much snow on the lake, I haven't the foggiest idea how I'll ever get "The Hotel" off the lake. A problem for another day...
Now that I'm through complaining, I got a Christmas card from an old compadre of mine who I worked with in the cities. She had told me a while back that she had terminal lung cancer. Well, in her card she wrote that she was almost through with her latest rounds of treatments and the doctors think she can live one to two more years. She was all pumped up about that.
And I'm worried about getting an ice house off the lake.....

The Hotel California!

Ok, Ok, I haven't been posting lately but I have been staying busy.
Deer hunting was fun as always. We only got 1 deer but the fun is being in the woods and hanging out with a great group of guys. It's just too bad it's just for a few days...
We did our annual Thanksgiving weekend grouse hunt. I've discovered where the grouse like to hang out but they still don't like to fly in the direction I'm shooting. Johnny dumped one but we couldn't find it. One for the coyotes I guess. What we need is "InstantDog". Just add water...
So, yesterday broke with 25 mph winds and a temperature of 8 degrees. T'was a fine day to launch "The Hotel California"! To say it was cold was an understatement but I wanted to be ready to fish by evening. I caught the obligatory 2 northerns so decided to sleep in this morning. Tonight I was joined by "The Great Indoorsman". We caught those same 2 northerns and 3 small walleyes. Too small to keep but it beat looking at northern teeth.
Last year I caught 5 little walleyes and that was it. Hope springs eternal so may this year??? This is the earliest I've ever got the hotel out so maybe, just maybe...
We'll be out there again tomorrow night. If nothing else, I'm stubborn, or so I'm told.....

Black Ice, Deer Hunting and Pvt. Malone

Thought I might not make it to deer camp this year...
I took today off as my aunt passed away and I was planning on driving down to Howard Lake for the funeral. Weather wasn't so hot but figured it was worth the drive. I got on 94, the road looked good so I put a cd in the Trailblazer and headed on down the freeway. I had just passed the Evansville exit, doing 60 mph when I hit the black ice. I hit the center ditch, doing 60, sideways. I went down through the ditch, up the other side and then back down and up the other side. I was turning the wheel every which way trying to keep from flipping the truck. I ended up down in the middle. I gunned the truck, threw it in all wheel drive, cattails and mud flying everywhere and started to climb up to the freeway. That's when I saw the rental truck bearing down on me. Fortunately, he had seen my predicament and some how managed to slow down enough to allow me to whip up back onto the freeway. I somehow managed to slide over to the right lane so he could get by me. He did a good job just to miss me. Thanks guy...
I saw people sliding around in the west bound lane as well so decided to get off the freeway at the next exit (6 miles down the road). I put the Trailblazer in 4 wheel drive and crawled home on the back roads. Took an hour to go 20 miles.
It's true what they say. Everthing was in slow motion. I remember thinking that Trailblazers are top heavy and that I had to get the truck out of two wheel drive to get out of that water.
Looking back, that truck should have flipped over at least three different times. Why it didn't I'll never know. Maybe it wasn't my time. Maybe I had a co-pilot.....
Guess I'll be deer hunting in a couple weeks....

Kurt and Dewey go a huntin' (Round Two)

When I discovered the Minnesota deer hunting didn't open up until the second Saturday in November, I decided to take another crack at that elusive quarry, the grouse. Since my normal spot hasn't been overly productive this fall, we decided to hunt north of Mora, in some spots I've hunted off and on over the last 30 years or so. We had stopped going up there after only flushing three birds two years ago.
Well, those three birds must have laid a ton of eggs as we flushed more birds than I had flushed up there in many years. Some flew out of pine trees, some flushed well ahead of us and, of course, some flew in a direction different than that in which we were shooting. We did, however, manage to bring home two.
T'was a great day, great weather, lots of birds to chase and a good time spent with an old friend. It's a shame we don't do that more often.......

The Fat Lady Never Had A Chance...(A.K.A. Kurt And Dewey Go A Huntin')

Ok, Ok, enough about the Fat Lady!
After giving the grouse, and myself, a two week rest it was time to go after that elusive quarry again.
Having discovered that new secret spot where Walker shot his bird, I came up with a marvelous plan. I decided to hunt it first thing and again right before we headed home. Well, we hadn't walked but 100 yards and Kurt got one running around in the berries. It was 7:55 and the skunk was already over. It was going to be a wonderful day! Well, 6 hours later after walking many miles and only flushing 4 more birds (none of which flew in the direction we were shooting), we harkened back to our secret berry patch. This time one flushed in front of The Old Norwegian and I actually had to shoot it out of the air! Must be those new contacts I just got. We jumped yet another bird on the way back to the truck but once again, it flew in a different direction than we were shooting. That's ok. You have to leave some brood stock. At least, that's my story...

45 Years Ago....

Yeah, Jim and I go back a long way. 8th grade in fact. He and his daughter Cailin (my goddaughter) blew into town Monday and I drove down for dinner.
It's amazing how people can lead such diverse lives but when they get together, they talk as though they've never been apart. I guess that's what makes good friends and for that I am a lucky man.
Just remember what I said Jim. I don't ski and you don't hunt but there's plenty of trails to hike and mountains (small ones I hope), to climb....And you know, I never forget.
On a much more serious note, I think Jim was standing on his tip toes during this picture as I always remember being taller than him......

And We Never Heard The Fat Lady Sing........

Ok, maybe that's not politically correct anymore...like I care...
At any rate, Walker and the intrepid Old Norwegian went a huntin' Saturday. The first kill happened almost immediately as I ran over a coon with my pickup. The first kill for Smokey! (In case some of you haven't been paying attention, that's the name of my truck....) But I digress...
Never seen such dry conditions up where we grouse hunt. The grouse were few and far between. In fact, we only jumped two all day and never had as shot at either. As the afternoon closed in on us. I told Walker that I had never hunted up there where someone didn't fire a shot. I said it wasn't over until the fat lady started to sing (although I think I could hear her warming up in the distance). I suggested one last spot I hadn't hunted in years. It was on the way out so what the heck.
When we pulled up I noticed a lot of white berries. Grouse do love those. So off we went for one last walk. After about a hundred yards or so I hollered over to Walker as I had lost sight of him. His response was "just a minute", followed 30 seconds later by three shots. He yelled over that he had hit one so I went over to help find it. Turns out he was getting ready to "answer natures call" when he saw a grouse running through the woods. That bird saved us from being skunked and I announced that I saw the fat lady heading east. We made a swing around, to the east, and headed back towards the road.
I got out first and watched Walker walk out of the woods carrying a wine bottle. Oh, and his zipper was down as well. Maybe the fat lady??? Who knows....

The Northern Contest that wasn't....

Unlike in the Cities, Saturday was a beautiful day up here. A light NE breeze and mid 60's. Today was more of the same. It figures.....
Was in the porch at dusk last night and watched a boat with two guys in it slowly work their way by the house. They left before it got totally dark. They missed out... Would have liked to have joined them but my boat is in Alex for the winter. Next year we'll join them Mikey!
Hey Stone! I managed to pull those front dock posts one last time, and with the help of two young guys we pulled everything out of the lake. Now I've got that big old dock sitting in the back yard. Oh well, this is the country.
Time to hunt grouse now. My shotgun was acting up last year. It wasn't shooting straight. Hope it works better this year....

Fishin' sometimes hurts....

The plan Friday evening was to fish from 6:30 until dark to see if we could pick up some crappies. I caught a nice bass right away. Those of you who fish in my boat know that I always have a couple of extra rods and reels set up ready to go. Well, in releasing the bass, I managed to impale a finger on a jig from one of those rods. I looked down and couldn't see the barb. It was totally imbedded in my trigger finger, no less. Glenda helped me pull the trolling motor and we made a dash back to the dock. I got a wire cutters, cut the hook and tried to push it through. That, unfortunately, didn't work. I had to take a pliers and pull it out the way it went in. As I was stopping the blood, Glenda got some band aids and asked "what next"? I told her to mix me a high ball as we were heading back out! Never did get much action afterwards. Caught a few small crappies and more of those ^%%$%^%^ bass.
We were the only boat on the lake and it was a beautiful sunset. Everybody else missed out. I wonder what the poor people were doing dad.....

Goodbye.......

I know this will be tough for some of you. I know how many years you've struggled pulling this albatross out of the water each fall, risking life and limb just so I could save a buck. Well, you won't be doing it any more. I'm having some young bucks pull it out this fall and I have purchased a new aluminum dock. A lot lighter and it comes in two pieces with removable decking. Hey, maybe you guys won't mind pulling that one out?? Maybe??
Had to use all my smarts to find some crappies yesterday. Fished until I could hardly see my rod. The fish were biting right at sundown and thereafter. Caught some nice ones and tossed back one that had to go a pound and a half. Next time I'll bring my headlamp. Guess that will be the plan the rest of the fall until it's time to chase a grouse or two...

Blowin' In The Wind...(And other stuff)

Well, Labor Day weekend was a repeat of the 4th of July weekend. Wind, wind and more wind. Only had the boat out for an hour in three days. You see, my canopy likes to fly and I didn't want to chase it all the way to Dalton. I bought a bunch of nice minnows Friday night. The bucket is still at the end of the dock. Betcha most of those minnows are toast...
I did, however, have one revelation today. I stopped at the liquor store because Tuesday is "Senior Citizens Day" and I get a 10% discount! The girl kinda eyed me and I said that yes, I qualified. She said she hated to ask people as some were offended by the question of age. She said she wasn't sure with me. When I told her how old I was going to be next May, she said"Wow, you sure have nice skin". WHHAAATTT?? How come no one's ever told me THAT before?? Throw me a bone folks! I could use it.
Hey, tomorrow's hump day. Maybe, just maybe, I can go fishin' next weekend.......However, I will wear a hat and sunscreen. Don't want to damage the skin.....

Walking With Giants

Saturday was a beautiful day. Not too warm, not too cool. The sun was shining and there was a nice breeze. People were out everywhere enjoying their day off. These great people spent part of it walking ditches, breathing in exhaust fumes, picking up trash...
To Clay, Blase, Connie, Tommy, Walker, Loretta, Uwe, Stone, Kevin, Kurt and Cathy....Thank you!!

Fishin', Long Lake Style.......

A long time ago, I had a discussion with the man formerly known as "Walleye Mike" about catching big fish. We agreeded that catching big fish are easier than small fish cuz they have bigger mouths. Small fish require a more precise presentation to put the bait just where it has to be, etc., etc., etc., You see where this is going...
At any rate, this morning at dawn I made the perfect presentation to land this beauty! For those of you that don't know my fishing strategy, that's a 2" Twister Tail on a 1/16 oz jig. Ok, now you know my secret.
I managed to hold this in the air with one hand while taking the picture with the other. Pretty good, huh? And, yes since I believe in catch and release, I let this little gem go.
After all the excitement, I trimmed a big old maple, played with my chainsaw and went and visited an old Norwegian carpenter who put up with my ineptness for almost five years.
Next Saturday a bunch of people will walk ditches, rain or shine, picking up all sorts of trash and junk. Those people are my friends.......

"Rockin' In The Free World"

Procured a cubic yard of river rock and spent a good part of the weekend hauling it, one five gallon pail at a time... Upon completion, I felt a beer was in order. I sat on the shore for a long time. It was nice and peaceful, plus I was unable to move anyway...
We took a nice canoe ride Saturday night. Anyone know how to fix a leaky canoe?
Next weekend it's dock shopping, AND it's"Watermelon Days" in Vining. Probably won't make that. Think I'll try and catch a fish instead.

Dewey Bakin' Cookies!

Yeah, I know....what the heck is this about??
Got knocked off the lake last night due to lightning and the fishing this morning was lousy.
I mentioned that I was out of cookies and was informed that if I wanted some, I had to make them. So, with a little assist, I knocked out these beauties! Ok, some are attached to each other and I had an issue with the butter that I won't go into, but all in all, things turned out ok. Hey, "Real Texas Fish", they are much easier to make with propane!
August can be a tough time to fish. A couple more weekends and it's time to walk some ditches.....

Building a deer stand in July.......

Well, the intrepid hunters managed to screw up their respective schedules such that we had to erect a deer stand during the bug infested month of July. What we won't do for Kurt. Kurt picked "the spot" and a nice stand was erected. Bugs were non existent for some reason so other than the heat, things went quite well. NOW, we gotta give it a name........
Had a nice ride in Smokey (I named my pickup). Played some Eagles, Kid Rock, Aerosmith and Plant/Krauss. T'was a nice weekend.....

Dewey Buys a Lawn Mower!!

After the big "party" last Saturday night, I decided to mow the lawn. It's not something I have to do much anymore but I pulled out my old dependable 20" mower and had at it. I noticed the cut was very choppy so decided to turn the mower upside down to check and see if the blade was loose. When I did that, the motor fell off. I knew that was not good as the motor is attached to the cutting blade. You get the picture..... After much analysis I decided that there was no way to drill new holes through the deck and duct tape probably wouldn't hold (for long), so decided I would have to buy a NEW lawn mower! How's your heart Alva?? So here it is, my NEW 22" push lawn mower!! Haven't used it yet but it sure is nice and shiny!
Ok, back to fishin'. Between rain showers Don and I picked up some nice crappies. Caught lots of little ones too and just kept enough for a meal each.
Next weekend it's off to Wisconsin to build Kurt a sure fire stand. Think I'll take the new pick up. Need some road time with Pvt. Malone.....

Sam and Dewey Throw a Party!!!

Well, since my "significant other" is out of town, Sam and I decided to throw a party! Took a picture of "Stu", our first guest to arrive. Ok, so he's only a snapping turtle, he was the only one to show up and you notice, he didn't even bring a bottle! Yeh, we had a ball....
But, the picture of that walleye was getting old. BTW, John and Stone were up last weekend and proved once again they have no idea how to catch a walleye.
My bachelor time so far has consisted of mowing the lawn, reading "Clapton" and washing and waxing the pickup. Oh, I almost forgot "The Party". Good grief........
Now I think I'll pick and freeze some rhubarb.
In two weeks it's off to Wisconsin to get eaten alive in the woods to make a deer stand for Kurt. Then.....it's about time to walk some ditches...
Miss you hon......

The Demise of "Walleye Mike"???

No, he's still with us in body, if not in mind. However, he was upstaged big time by wife Sue who picked up this 26 1/2", almost 7 pound walleye late Friday morning. She was guided by "The Old Norwegian" who, by the way, made a great net job as her 4 pound test line broke. Mikey was in the boat, doing what, nobody knows.....
We caught tons of crappies, many small, (the future), but enough nice post spawn fish so we had plenty to send back to the cities.
T'was a good three days....

Father's Day

Recently, I saw a picture. A Marine, in full dress uniform, was handing a folded flag to a young boy. The boy, who was 7 or 8 years old, had a suit and tie on and held out his hands to receive the flag. You could tell he was fighting back tears, but he was trying his best to be a man. I can still see his face..... I know where he was today....
If your father is still alive, I hope you made contact. For some of us, there are only memories....

Fishin' once again.......

Dewey, Alva, Ty and "Twig Man" (Damon) hit the water in search of crappies. After feeding northerns about 20 or so jigs, twisters, spinners and the like, we did find some crappies. They've moved out, however one of my "secret spots" produced a lot of action.
Good fun with good friends.....
In two weeks it's "Walleye Mike". I'm sure the two of us will manage to get into some kind of piscatorial trouble........

Who says granddaughters can't clean fish??

Last year she caught the only walleye during the opener. Now she's cleaning fish. Next year she'll probably be running my boat......

Kurt and Dewey go a fishin'

Well, the old RHS grads hit the water this weekend. We fought high winds, a bog and had to straighten out the lift after high winds hit, but lots of fish were caught. Ate steak, had a visit from Jack Daniels and decided the world was too screwed up to fix. Twas a good time......
Next weekend it's John and ALL my grandchildren. Ages 11, 9 and 7 and they all know how to fish. Would you expect anything else?? It's gonna be great! Dew
P.S. Hey Steven and Joe, get better. Us old Boomers still need rock n' roll.......

T-Bones....Funny lookin' crappies???

Well, Jason and "The Old Canuck" came a fishin' this weekend. I'm guessing they might have doubted my prowess as a guide as they brought Saturday night's dinner along. Not to fear, "The Old Norwegian" guide put them on fish and sent them home with a nice sack of crappies and sunnies.
I figured some folks may be getting tired of pictures of me holding fish so thought I'd show dinner instead. Yes, those are (were) T-Bones. The food was good and the company even better.....

2008 Fishing Opener

I still have the chills! The temperature dropped all day Saturday. It ended up at 37 degrees. Oh, and did I mentioned it rained the whole day? Toughest opener in a long time. Shoulda gone to Texas.....
But, on the bright side "The Old Norwegian" did win the "What time is Walker gonna show up" side bet. Four buckaroos richer! Sure wish we'd of had some bagels for breakfast tho.....
I also inherited two nice jackets and one vest left by my absent minded fishing partners. They fit very nicely, thank you...
Next weekend it's "The Old Canuck" and Jason. Hope the panfish move in by then.

Next week, The OPENER

Well, the snow and ice are gone and man is that water COLD. Could have a big impact next weekend. Nevertheless, the usual cast of characters will continue the tradition. Mikey will arrive Friday at sun up ready to drink my beer until I get home from work. Walker will be the last one as usual. Remember Doug, no need to signal when entering my driveway.....Johnny and the boys somewhere in between.
Because of my sense of tradition, you don't have to worry about being invaded "real texas fish" Although, I must admit, Sam was a little bit disappointed.
Be safe everyone. See you soon.......

April 26th, 2008

Hey, the fishing opener is only two weeks away. Good grief!!

"Riding with Private Malone"

I remember when I bought that black and red pickup back. I remember how much Eric loved that truck. Well, in the spring of 2001, we heard this country song and I kind of adopted it. Every time I was driving home alone and Glenda would call to see how I was doing, I'd tell her not to worry because I was riding with Andrew Malone. I always made it home safe..... he was always riding with me.
Well, I sold that truck and thought that might be the end of that but Easter morning, well, all I can say is that he's still there. The pickup might be new, the radio does work just right. It even has a cd player. But, I'm still riding with Private Malone.......

MARCH 27th, 2001

Eric - Not one hour goes by that I don't think about you. You were and are and always will be my hero..... Love, Dad

A Solemn Moment.....At The Alamo

Dewey Does Texas!! At The Alamo

I'm a history buff and have many great shots of me looking at battle sites, reading memorial plaques and pondering just what happened to so many brave people during the Texas war of independence. Instead, I decided to post a picture of two great friends who made this trip possible for Glenda and I. Thanks Mel and PeeWee!!!!

The Voodoo Lounge Rides Again!!

45 years and we're still hanging out. Picked up enough crappies to send home with Kurt and Cathy.
While killing time watching bobbers freeze, we came up with a new reality show. We call it "Ice House". We figure we'll get Stone, Uwe, maybe Tommy and Clay and stick them in an ice house. We'll toss in the Lupien clan for good measure. The one that stays in the longest wins a prize. Kurt thought maybe a million dollars but I thought a weekend for one in Henning might be more appropriate. You'll note all expenses are not included..... We will be "Senior Executive Producers" and will allow Johnny to be the producer. Uwe and some chili??? It'll be a slam dunk....

The end of another season

Don't know how we managed but Glenda and I pulled "The Hotel California" off the ice yesterday. I had thoughts of turning it into a permanent shed for my ATV as it gets tougher each year to move it in and out. We're not getting any younger...We'll see what next year brings. Now, weather permitting, it's time for "The Voodoo Lounge".....

COLD...How far we've fallen....

Was watching the Twin Cities news last night. The leading story was on the frigid temperatures and this particular station has "team coverage" to report on the cold. It was -3 below.... Guess that's what happens when people live their lives indoors...
Up here it was -27 Saturday morning and -29 this morning. Drilled holes in"The Hotel California" Friday night but couldn't keep them open after last night. Too cold. Could have used "team coverage"... Guess it's about time to pull her off the lake. When it warms up a bit, it will be time for "The Voodoo Lounge" again.

Livin' it up at the...Voodoo Lounge?

Twas time Friday night for Dewey and Don to head West. Got half way across the lake and discovered The Voodoo Lounge was not following me. It was about 300 yards back. Glad no one was around to witness that...Started to set up and discovered I had managed to crunch in the front corner. That's another story for another time.
Picked up some crappies and sunnies. Some of the crappies were so big, we tossed them back. Don nailed a 3 pound walleye this morning on a wax worm no less. Dewey put the Norwegian Death Grip on it as it came out of the hole. A nice meal for each of us. Caught big bass and a nice northern as well.
Had the portable heater and a lantern going and managed not to burn the place down. Best fishing so far this winter....

Walleye Fishing???? 2008