Fishin report for Lake Iwanttobethere..

[Bobby Bass]

I was at the Lodge last night and as I moved around the main room I sat for a spell with the Fellows and shared some of their pitcher of Hamms. Always good to sit with the Fellows and chat some as that is how I get a heads up on their current ideas. Being a member of the Lake Iwanttobethere Fire Department this can be valuable when responding to a call at one of their houses. Last night the conversation was focused around mineral deposits and not just gold and silver but metals that we take in over the course of a day eating and drinking. This got me thinking some and I set off for the other side of the room to bend DOC Burriems ear some and find out if it is true, the eating metal part.

After buying DOC two fingers of scotch he told me that we do take in some trace metals during the course of the day and of course the older we get the more of these trace metals settle in our bodies. I left DOC a little more educated and I had a thought in the back of my mind. Today the wet weather continues here at Lake Iwanttobethere, some rain showers last evening turned in to dense fog over night and it was after eleven before the fog started to disappear. Water is dripping off the eves from snow melting on the roof but the deck is clear of snow and the one lonely wood chair on the deck is dry enough to sit on. The swing has been put in storage but I have moved the wood deck chair under the cover of the roof where the swing was. I sat down and put flame to a cigar and gave some thought to the metal conversation of the night before and I think I have come up with an answer to a question that has been bothering me for awhile.

As I grow older I have been having a harder time getting up out of chairs and bending over to pick things up. The wife tells me it is because I am getting older and Chuck tells me it is because I am getting out of shape. DOC Burriem tells me it is my years of playing football and softball and hockey didn't help any either. Toss in miles and miles of grouse hunting and portaging canoes when I was young along with thousands of hours of fishing and some things are just going to wear out. I suppose swinging a hammer and climbing ladders might have played a part and right now chasing grand kids could be an issue. I know I am no longer built for speed but I think I have the answer to why I am moving slower, gravity.

Yup, I think gravity is holding me back. What better answer can there be? You want to get up out of a chair, gravity keeps pulling you back down. You want to climb a ladder? Gravity makes it hard to get that next leg up. Paddle a canoe, well gravity does not want you to pull that paddle out of the water. Miss a flushing grouse, I bet you shot low because gravity was pulling on that gun barrel and them trace metals in your arm. I blame it all on gravity and that is why I only will drink from an aluminum cans from now on.... OK, I know what you are thinking, gravity does not have anything to do with the trace metals ideas. I was thinking the same thing, there has to be a flaw in my idea, or should I say the Fellows idea. If the trace metals idea is to work it has to do something with the magnetic field of the earth. I will have to return to the Lodge tonight and have a few more beers and rethink my position. Guess that will make it OK to drink from a glass mug, from Lake Iwanttobethere {877,777}

[Bobby Bass]

How come fifty in December feels a lot warmer then fifty in September? Taking a break here from working around the cabin, I swear the wife is rubbing off on me. Tomorrow I have Jeff from Lake Iwanttobethere Plumbing and Heating coming out to service my furnace and water heater. They are due for a cleaning so what am I doing? I am cleaning up around the furnace and heater. I know that makes no sense to me either but the wife asked me this morning at the breakfast table if I was going to clean up that mess before Jeff got here. So grumbling I made my way down to the basement and vacuumed a few stray cobwebs up, chased down a few spiders. Ended up changing the furnace filters and wiped some dust off the stove pipes. It then dawned on me the wife was just trying to get me to clean the basement and I came to my senses and returned back upstairs.

In the morning I make myself a smoothie in the blender, nothing special just some yogurt, milk and a instant breakfast package. DOC Burriem got me started on it because I was missing breakfast most mornings so I do the smoothie now. Well the blender was on the counter top but the top was in the dishwasher. I took the top out put it on the blender bottom added the fixings and turned it on just in time to watch it drain out onto the countertop. We have one of them blender tops that have a spigot on the side of it and the wife had removed it when she put it in the dishwasher. I now had to clean up the countertop and the wife just looked at me over the top off the morning paper and said something about just going ahead and cleaning the rest of the countertop. I think there is a pattern developing here today.

With the holidays here there is a lot of baking going on, the wife makes these boxes of goodies and passes them out to friends and neighbors. The goodie boxes of cookies and fudge are accepted by everyone and never regifted. Yesterday was banana bread day and several pounds of bananas have been left out to get soft as the softer is the better for making banana bread. However this batch of bananas might have been left out too long and now we have a kitchen of fruit flies. A man of my size is not built to be chasing fruit flies the size of a pencil lead point around a kitchen. The good part as was pointed out by my wife is at least I can still see the fruit flies, the bad part is they are so small they slip through the holes in the fly swatter.

Elmer came over in the afternoon because he could smell the bread baking, he had a simple solution for the fruit flies. Taking a couple of bell canning jars he made a paper funnel and put a small piece of soft banana in the bottom of the jar. He then placed the paper funnel into the jar and taped the edges closed. Repeating it we now had not one but two fruit fly traps. This morning I took great satisfaction in seeing the bell jars with a dozen or more flies in each one. I'm thinking maybe later this afternoon I will take them over to Chuck's and release them in his kitchen. He thought it was pretty funny that I was having a problem with the flies yesterday. As for now I am acting like a little kid as every time I go in the kitchen I check the traps and announce to the wife that we got another one of them little buggers, from Lake Iwanttobethere {879,152}

[Bobby Bass]

We are making ice this morning! Overnight the temperature just kept dropping from our high of forty-eight to a windy and cold twenty-two this morning. Went down to the end of the drive this morning to bring back the recycling can and found someone had knocked it over during the night. Nothing I like better than picking up stuff when I am not dressed for it and gravity must be pretty strong today. Bending over so much was almost like exercise so when I made it back to the cabin I gave myself a check mark for the day. Yesterday pretty much took care of the rest of the snow that was out in the open, still snow in the woods and some behind the cabin though. I took the time to restock the fire wood rack both inside and on the deck and I am good to go again.

This morning with no snow and some gusting winds it feels a lot colder then the twenty plus that the red needle on the Bass thermometer is pointing at. A bright sunrise this morning and that is something that has been missing for the past week. No clouds in the sky although Stormy Clearweather is calling for an overcast day. Ice travel on the lake is not recommended even by foot. The rain the past few days has done a number on it but with cooler weather coming in we should be OK here in a few days. Last year the Ice House Fling was held on December 9 we are not going to have enough ice to support houses this year on that date. We are now looking at December 16, so mark that down on your calendars.

Work continues on the S.S. Mistake and progress is being made. Water has been drained from the pontoons and patches made. The day was pretty much spent on the welding as payment was made in beer and it was in paid and consumed in payments per patch. Other then starting a bale of hay on fire it went rather well I am told. The decking is no longer an issue as some support was added to the underside and now the house can be bolted through the deck to the reinforcement. Today I think Chuck said he was going to work on installing the flare pods and filling holes with spray foam. Hammering Hank is going to bring over a old picture window from a job he did and they are going to make a frame for it. It may or may not fit in the shack but would be nice if it did so we could see what is going on around us during the Fling.

My shack is as ready as it is going to be, I locked up Buff and Smokie the two Tom cats in it yesterday and they cleaned out the mice that were squatters. A little dusting and some cleaning and the barbershop chair that I have in the center will be ready for ice fishing. The wife even took the curtains in to wash but she said they fell apart, she is busy this morning sewing me new ones. I don't know if I care for the sponge bob material she is using but the grand kids will like them. Down at the Lodge of course the talk is about our new waitress, Honey. Elmer and Marv both have taken a shine to her and the past few evenings they have been coming in early to share a cup of tea with her. She is not a drinker but does like tea and the two old coots are going out of their way to impress her or should I say try to impress her. Now the two of them sit at the bar and lecture me and Gus about tea, we all are going to get educated whether we want to or not, from Lake Iwanttobethere {880,943}

[Bobby Bass]

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas, not. This morning finds the red needle on the Bass thermometer hanging on the wall of the cabin slowly creeping upwards every time I check it. Forty-three out the last time I looked and that is with cloudy skies. Snow in the yard is pretty much gone and the ice on the lake is, well just ice, no snow cover at all. Shoreline looks pretty bare with just some frozen cattails sticking up out of the ice and with no snow there are no tracks along the edge. I was outside for awhile and it was pretty quiet, just the dogs sniffing around looking for that just right place to do their thing and the thumping of a woodpecker beating his head against a tree. Morning freight train came through and normally I don't hear it but with no leaves on the trees and no snow on the ground that dang horn sounded like it was going off at the end of my driveway.

From my vantage point on the deck I saw one rabbit slowly hopping away into the brush between my place and Chuck's. Dogs could not see it and frankly they were busy into finding that perfect spot. I did hear Chuck's rooster but he didn't really have his heart into this mornings call, matter of fact he sound more like he was punching his time card and was heading back to bed. As I stood outside waiting on the dogs it was not as quiet out as I first thought. Several crows flew low over the cabin and I could hear their wing beats they were so close. No cawing I am guessing their were using the stealth approach on the dumpster they were heading to. I looked up at the big pine looking for movement and it was still, no wind at ground level and no breezes fifty feet up at the top of the tree either.

Edd and Eddie came scampering down the pine, running towards the ground and cork screwing around the tree at the same time. Would make a good county fair ride I was thinking as I watched them. As I focused on them I could hear Eddie clicking away at Edd. I am thinking he probably left some nut shells in the nest and was being chewed out for it. They hit the ground and took off towards the big Maple tree doing that triple jump thing they do. Or maybe it is actually more like the Olympic version of the hop, skip and jump. Either way they cover a lot of ground quickly and Duncan saw the movement but didn't bother to give chase this morning.

Duncan being Duncan still gets watched a lot when he is outside, Still a lot of trouble he can get into. Bud and Barney are done doing their thing and both are back on the deck standing at the door waiting to be let back into the cabin. I open the door and they walk around me and go inside, I am about to call for Duncan when I see him at the beginning of the back trail. I close the door and walk to the edge of the deck as I see Duncan moving slowly forward, lifting just one foot at a time and carefully putting it down on the ground. I step off the deck and walk slowly and what I think is quietly in his direction. I am almost at his side when he turns and gives me his best "I'm working here" look. I stop and look in the same direction he is.

I see a lot of black and gray and a few splashes of white, some down trees and stumps with knee high brown grass bent and broken from the snow that fell and has now melted. Ground is littered with leaves that are dried and broken and a few small green pines poking up and standing tall. The two of us stand there, Duncan not moving at all, just staring something down that I can't see. I let my eyes do the moving for me and I look off to the side hoping some movement will show me what Duncan sees. I am about to give up and call Duncan when a clump of grass behind a stump explodes into a ball of feathers and wings and a grouse heads down the trail using the trees like gates in a slalom course. We both watch as it flies hard for maybe fifty yards or so then goes into a glide and settles into the brush. Duncan looks at me and he has already learned to give me that " I told you so look" I think he has learned that from Bud. He turns and heads towards the cabin and I follow, I'm thinking maybe today might be a good day for a little trail walking, from Lake Iwanttobethere {883,022}

[Bobby Bass]

Yesterday found Duncan and myself back at the Lodge late in the afternoon. After scratching off a few more things that I had completed from the Honey Do List I rewarded myself with a little nature walk. The twenty gage and Duncan accompanied me on a stroll on what I thought would be birdie trail. But no sooner did we get out of the Tahoe then the sun slipped behind a bank of gray clouds and the wind started to stir branches around us. The loss of the sun turned a decent day cool and Duncan and I both kind of just went through the motions of bird hunting. I should have took the cue from Buddy when I asked him if he wanted to go hunting and he just kind of rolled closer to the fire and just looked at me through one raised eye lid.

I came through the back door of the Lodge and felt like Duncan's body guard. No sooner did the door close behind us and patrons were calling Duncan's name trying to get him to come to their table. Like royalty Duncan made his way slowly from table to table accepting pats and getting rubbed under his ears. I sat at the bar and Gus brought me a big mug of hot cocoa and the heat coming from the mug felt good on my palms and fingers. It took awhile but Duncan was finally done working the room and came over to sit next to me, his shoulder leaning into my leg. Honey Sauce came out from the kitchen and saw me and Duncan and said "Easy to see who he owns" I looked down at Duncan and said "Yup, I'm his"

That time of the year when there is not much to do around Lake Iwanttobethere, there is always work to do but we don't count that. Not much ice fishing going on and the river has froze so the last of the open water is gone. Bird hunting is kind of iffy and rarely do I see anyone else out this time of year. Golf course has been closed for awhile and although they are making snow over on the ski hill it is not enough to open yet. Ice houses are ready to go but with the Ice House Fling set back a week guys have time on their hands. If they stay around the house the wife's have a way of finding things for them to do so that explains the better then average late afternoon crowd here at the Lodge

Honey in a conversation said she is not much of a dog person preferring cats. Duncan must have heard her and has been making it is job to change her mind. He follows her around the Lodge not getting in the way but always close enough so that she knows he is close. She told Gus it is going to take her awhile to get use to the Lodges open door policy about dogs. It was kind of funny when she was trying to get Bud and Barney to move away from their napping place in front of the fire and she was real surprised when she found Pepper sleeping under the pillows on the wicker couch. When Grace the Saint Bernard and Mr. Wilson came in she ran behind the bar. A few minutes later Bailiff entered and the three of them left going out the back door. A worried Dan T. came in a minute later looking for the three of them and followed Honey's finger pointed at the back door. She didn't seem to surprised when Sheriff Tim walked up to the bar and asked about the dogs and Dan, he thanked her and then left by the back door. Gus with a grin on his face filled her in on the last adventure of the three dogs.

Lights were turned on and darkness closed in around the Lodge. A few lights could be seen around the shoreline of the lake from behind the picture windows of the Lodge. Elmer looking out from the warm side of the glass spoke out that a storm is on it's way. I nodded in agreement, my foot that I broke was sore. Gus rubbed his shoulder and said "Snow is coming" Marv clenched his fingers a few times and added "I am saying we get at least six inches of the stuff" Hammering Hank shivered a little and said "Going to get cold afterwards." Guess I better get some gas for the snow blower and everyone nodded and looked out at the dark spot beyond the glass that is Lake Iwanttobethere {884,054}

[Bobby Bass]

Just sitting at the desk here looking over the paper calendar that the keyboard rests on. The wife in her fine penmanship writes things down on it so I don't forget. So when I do forget she can take me to the calendar and show me where she wrote it down. She use to write in pencil and then accused me of erasing things, now she does it in ink with the more important things in her mind done with a flourish. I will admit that some things she writes down are not real high on my priority list, that is why we have a to do list. I have my own calendar on the computer, protected with a password and written in roman times font, nice and neat.

So I see on the calendar that the twenty-fifth is highlighted, da Christmas. The twenty-first is the first day of winter and the fourteenth is early release. This of course means that the grand kids are getting out of school early that day. Back in the day you were just let out early, now it is "Early Release" like someone getting out of a prison for good time served. I open the calendar on my computer and under the 14th I type in sleds. When I pick up the kids from their early prison break I will take them over to "Lookout Mountain" and let them go slide. With snow coming tonight there should be enough on the ground to cover the hill. I say slide because it is a one shot deal, I will drive them to the top and then take the road down to the bottom to pick them up. Hopefully when they arrive they will still have all their hats, gloves and scarfs as Nana gets upset when they lose them.

Twenty-first is the start of Christmas vacation and not one but two Christmas shows to attend this year. A trip to the big city to take in the big light display and of course shopping must be done between now and Christmas Eve. Ice House Fling on the sixteenth so that really means the day before and the day after will be spent in preparation and clean up. I am hoping we get enough snow tonight that we will be able to start piling snow on the hill for the Luge run. Christmas tree harvesting is on the calendar although this year the grand kids may not be going out with me as their parents want to start doing it with them. Of course this means I am going to have to find someone else to drag my tree back to the cabin.

Pencil in a few afternoons of grouse hunting once the snow falls and the calendar is filling up here. The last week before Christmas has some parties to attend and of course that is baking week and there will be samples to be tasted. Lodge Christmas party and of course I will have to help out Gus some decorating the place. Which reminds me I need to get a tree for the Lodge so we can start our Christmas swap. We just hang coasters with our names on them and write down numbers to be drawn. Honey Sauce says she just adores Christmas and would love to help us out decorating. If Hank's wife Tess shows up the Lodge may end up looking like one of them department store displays, right now I am taking a wait and see attitude.

Well, what timing it is starting to snow, HoHo from Lake Iwanttobethere {885,597}

[Bobby Bass]

It took awhile but the snow finally reached the shores of Lake Iwanttobethere, not as much as forecasted but still we got around seven inches. The only place I had to go on Silent Sunday was down to the Gas-N-Go to fill up the snow blower can which some how I had forgotten to do. Monday finds me still having to go down and buy some gas but I am not in any real hurry to do so. I got to sleep in late on Sunday and by noon I had retreated to the theater and had the football game on the big screen. At half time I came out for some chili to find the daughter and her new husband in the kitchen making small talk with the wife. I nodded a few times and went back to the theater passing the deck door I saw the snow was still falling.

With the football game over I got sidetracked watching a movie and it was dark by the time I got out of the theater and headed back to the kitchen. I walked by the deck door and saw that most of the snow had been shoveled away. The wife seeing me just said that the new son in law had shoveled. I was planing on putting on my boots and shoveling but with it already done I just grabbed the bag of salted peanuts and a Hamms and went back to the theater, has to be another football game on. This morning I got up and put my boots on and let the dogs out. Wife was heading into town to do some errands and I needed to go out and clean the jeep off. I went looking for my shovel to clear a path to the Jeep and found the snow blower gas can right where I would not miss it. I carried it out to the Jeep so the wife can take it to town and get it filled.

I spent several minutes tramping around looking for my shovel which was no where to be found. I used a big push broom to clear snow off the Jeep and cleared the windshield on the Tahoe. The Dodge is buried in snow and will probably remain that way till spring. Seven inches of snow sure does change the landscape, everything is clean and white. The dark color of fall is gone, no leaves to be seen on the ground and every fence post now has a white layer of snow on it. The side yard is quickly filled with tracks from Duncan running like a kid in a candy store. Even Bud makes an effort to run a little when Duncan goes zipping by. Barney slowly walks through the snow sampling it like he is walking in a giant snow cone. I walk around the cabin and see I am going to have to get the snow rake out and clean the roof. The forecasted high winds must not have blown overnight, so there is snow too clear.

I walk around to the seldom used front door and find it has not been cleared. I also found my shovel sticking up out of the snow. I pulled the shovel out of the snow bank but only the handle comes free, the rest of the shovel is missing. "Good Grief" someone has broken my favorite shovel! I march to the side door of the cabin just in time to meet the wife heading out. Holding the handle in front of me I am ready to make a production of finding the culprit and getting justice. The wife looks at me and simply says "The new son in law broke it last night when he was doing YOUR shoveling" I stand with the shovel in hand and if she could see my finger inside my mitten she would know I was pointing it at her and said "O"

"Later then" is all she said and headed off to the Jeep, walking right around the snow blower gas can. The dogs and I stood and watched as she backed the Jeep out and then putting it in four wheel drive she stomped on the gas spinning the tires and throwing snow behind her. The last I saw of her or should I say heard of her was the sound of Garth Brooks from her stereo. I made my way to the shop and found a shovel, not my favorite shovel mind you but it would have to do. I walked to the front door and started digging, The morning was not a total lost though, no sooner did I start shoveling then the sun broke through the clouds and I was pretty comfortable shoveling. Was even better when I found a can of Hamms sitting on the lid of the unused mailbox, wife must have left it out for the son in law, to bad he didn't get that far, from Lake Iwanttobethere {87,975}

[Bobby Bass]

If there is anything I have learned is never give little kids or drunks a choice, you can now add giving relatives a choice in free Christmas trees. I didn't make it to the Gas-N-Go to fill up the gas can for the snow blower, so I just moved the snow with the old fashion metal scoop that I have. Chuck came over with the tractor with the bucket on it and moved the pile of snow that I was going to blow later well away from the shop. I actually did not have that much snow to shovel so I went ahead and cleared the snow away from the Dodge and shook the tarp off covering the box. With my place done I took the trail over to Elmers' while Chuck drove down my drive and back up Elmers' plowing as he went. Elmer was out and I joined him in shoveling away what there was that the bucket could not reach. When we were done we sat in the kitchen with snow melting off our boots on to the old weathered linoleum.

Elmer pour coffee into mismatched chipped mugs and added a little jolt from his bottle of Wild Turkey that sits on top of the fridge. Not a lot mind you, just enough to give the coffee a little body. We held the mugs in hands that were colder than we thought. Small talk was made until we got to where Chuck was saying his girlfriend wanted him to go out and chop down a Christmas tree and today would be a good day to do it. Chuck made the mistake of asking her what kind of tree she wanted and that is how he got an order for a Norway pine, seven foot four inches tall with no holes or bare spots. Elmer and I chuckled at Chuck and then Elmer rubbing his chin with his right hand said "You know I could use a fresh cut tree myself, nothing big, maybe a nice full little six footer, that is if it is no problem?" Chuck looked at me as Elmer got the bottle of Turkey down from the fridge and splashed a little more into Chuck's coffee mug, I just shrugged my shoulders and held out my mug.

Twenty minutes later and Chuck emerged from the trail from his cabin and made his way to my back door. The wife met him there and handed him something I could not see. I made my way past the two of them and went and started the Dodge. Looks like we have a couple of trees to haul as the wife after finding out I was going to help Chuck said I might as well get our tree to. The passenger door open and slammed closed with Chuck now sitting alongside of me. He was muttering something that I could not make out as I drove the Dodge down the driveway. We hit the road and I turned to take the road that will take us to Chuck's uncle who owns a mess of land with a mess of trees on it. Chuck poked me with his elbow and held a yellow piece of paper up in front of my face. I tried to drive with one eye and read the list with the other, a list of Christmas trees.

It seems that not only are we going to get a tree for Chuck's girlfriend, and Elmer and my wife we are now going to be getting trees for my mother in law, my aunt and Chuck's brother. Add a tree for the Lodge and we are up to six. Before I can say anything I have to swerve to miss an oncoming logging truck and Chuck's cell phone rings. I hear a Jingle Bells ring tone and look at Chuck, I raise my eye brows and he just says that the girlfriend changed it. I just hear the one side of the conversation, but it sounds like we are getting another tree order in. The conversation is brief and Chuck turns his phone off and tosses it inside the Dodge's glove box, "Marv wants a spruce" from Lake Iwanttobethere {888,928}

[Bobby Bass]

Just as the Dodge is getting warm enough to take off gloves we arrive at the turn off that will take us to the road to Uncles land. Glad I added anti freeze to the Dodge last week as the heater is trying to keep up with the cold air coming up through the holes in the floor boards. A winter wonderland spreads out in front of us. Even though it snowed two days ago the snow is still piled high on the branches of the pines. I followed a set of tracks off the road and parked in the same spot as where they stopped, someone else has been here since it snowed. I turned off the Dodge and we sat a spell looking at the list, finally Chuck opens his door and gets out, the creek of the door loud in the quiet of the woods. I open mine and make a mental note that I should WD-40 both doors when I get back home.

We both bird hunt this land in the fall and have been getting trees here since we were kids. It was a tree farm at one tine and there still are pines and spruce and fir trees scattered about. Normally when I bird hunt I would mark a few trees to come back and cut and I do have two in mind in the back forty but the grand kids are going to cut them this year. Chuck puts the list in his pocket and we figure the Spruce would be the first we would go cut. I pull the shotgun out from behind the seat, might as well be ready if a grouse attacks us and wait for Chuck to get the saw. Chuck looks at me and says "Well" I reply with "Well what" Chuck gives me that look that he normally saves for his girlfriend and says "Where is the saw?" Instantly we share a thought, neither one of us had remembered to bring the saw. Did I mention how quiet it was out in the woods?

For some this might be a problem but we were seasoned tree hunters, and we had a shotgun. I had a handful of shells in my coat pocket and there was a box in the glove box. Normally that would not be enough for seven trees but there were a few slugs mixed in, perfect tree cutters. So we set off following the tracks of someone who had been here before us, they wandered towards the line of spruce and I heard Chuck say something about this turning into an adventure. Usually when we were younger an adventure meant we were in trouble or about to get into some trouble. I am getting too old for adventure I think. We harvested the spruce and a couple of fir trees and for us it was done without any adventure. Add a couple of pines and the Dodge was filling up with trees. The last Norway was taking us some time as Chuck was wandering around looking for that perfect tree for the girlfriend.

Starting to get dark out and I must admit I was getting a little chilled. Walking under trees that would dump snow from their branches when they are bumped was getting a tad old. Finally Chuck spied a tree that would fit the bill for the girlfriend, at least the top of a tree. I handed him the shotgun and he took aim about eight feet below the top of a twenty-five foot tree and shot, and missed. The report of the twenty gage was loud and it must have been the tipping point for several trees around us. I just managed to bend forward and my hood covered my head as the branches around us released their snow load. Chuck was not as lucky as when the last of the snow drifted down I saw him standing with several inches of snow on his head and shoulders.

Several shots later and the top fell and we or I should say Chuck dragged it to the Dodge. He made a few attempts at tossing it on top of the pile before he was finally successful. A rope across the top and we were done. We stood back to catch our breath and once again the woods were quiet. We slapped each other on the shoulder and Chuck said " Not even an adventure" that is when the grouse exploded from beneath the pile of trees on the Dodge and gave us both heart attacks, from Lake Iwanttobethere {890,205}

[Bobby Bass]

Just got in from shoveling, a few inches of light powder fell overnight and I made quick work of cleaning the decks and sidewalk to the shop. Yesterday I bought a new shovel from Earl down at the General Store, not that same as my favorite shovel but it will do. I had to clean out the back of the Dodge as I did not get around to putting the tarp back on it. It is now covered and I even remembered to spray the hinges with some WD-40. Christmas trees were all delivered as that was the easy part. We just drove up to the houses, pitched them off the truck and as we were leaving Chuck called on the cell to them their trees were in the front yard. From past experience we know that if you show up with a load of trees people want to pick through them and forget all about the spruce they asked for when they see a pretty Norway.

Of course there are always a few complaints, a tree that may have a bare spot or a broken branch. I brought in our tree and the wife had it decorated by late afternoon, she made a comment that it was a fine tree and just as good as any of the trees you find at the highway tree stand. Then she mentioned that the trees down there are starting at thirty dollars, I asked how did she know that and she answered that her and Chucks girlfriend looked at them yesterday, just in case. I just shook my head, I am married to a women who always has a back up plan, must have rubbed off from me.

So the tree is up and the cabin decorated, during the night the cats rearranged things in the tree. It has been along time since we have had any glass ornaments as the cats drop them from the tree and they break on the hardwood floor. Buff the tomcat who thinks he is a retriever will spend the next few weeks removing decorations during the night and placing them at the daughter's door. Each morning the daughter will carry them all back to the tree and re hang them. Candy canes are a favorite thing to be hauled off and hid. We used to blame the grand kids till we found a stash of the candy canes under the couch. Duncan is pretty indifferent about the tree but we do have to make sure the skirt on the bottom is secure, he likes to drink from the stand. I have found that the same mix that we use at the Lodge also works at home for keeping the tree looking fresh. A mixture of Seven up, Wild Turkey and Hamms keeps the tree hydrated. Although at the Lodge sometimes to much Hamms is added and the tree tends to lean after awhile, but that is why we put it in the corner so it has something to lean against.

While I was out shoveling this morning the wife started wrapping presents. It is her family custom to add a present or two every day under the tree. I enter the cabin to find Christmas music coming from the old eight track that she only uses during the holidays. The old songs she says just sound better that way. Bing Crosby and White Christmas actually do sound pretty good as I sit down with a glass of juice. Several presents are already wrapped and I spy the four pringle cans that are wrapped up for the grand kids. They will be placed under the tree and the kids can shake rattle and roll them all they want and told they can do anything they want to them except open them. It will keep them guessing right up till Christmas Eve when they will get to open them and find crumbs. I see the wife has the old fishing reels out, she uses them to store ribbon on. The eight track player makes that thumping sound when it is changing tracks and it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas, from Lake Iwanttobethere {891,193}

[Bobby Bass]

The Lodge is quiet and dark this morning I parked in my space just off to the side of the back door. I open the screen door that we cover with a sheet of plywood for the winter and slip my key into the lock of the old wood door. Knocking snow off my boots I reach for the light switch and turn on the lights for the kitchen. Gus has the day off as he will be working this weekend and with the Ice House Fling it will be a busy one. I make the short walk to my office and the boots come off and are set in a tray just inside the doorway, balancing with one hand against the door jam I trade boots for slip on shoes. A few more switches are flicked and the fluorescent lights under the bar top flicker and bounce and then stay on.

I reach under the bar top and open one of the cooler doors, I pour myself a healthy size portion of orange juice into a square bottom beer mug. I return the bottle to the cooler and the door latch clicks loudly in the morning quiet. Sipping on the juice I make my way around the Lodge turning on lights and pulling the heavy drapes back from the windows. I stir the blacken coals in the fireplace and am rewarded with a few red glows. I add some split birch and nurse the red coals close to the bark, a little whiff of smoke curls upward. Experience has taught me I can either play with it some or just walk away, it will catch on it's own either way. I stand at the big picture window and look out at Lake Iwanttobethere.

A cloudy start to the day and it is hard to tell where the snow on the hill stops and the snow on the lake starts. Hammering Hank and Skinny have been busy the past several days as the access parking lot has been plowed and orange barrels have been brought out and placed. Mini donut trailer is off to the side chained to a tree but there is no smell of hot donuts in the air. Tomorrow it will be open as the crew will be working all day setting up for the fling. Tents need to be pitched and picnic tables set up in the safe zone. Already a couple of ice houses are parked outside of Dug's Shop awaiting inspection for Sunday's fling. Skinny has launched the test log several times over the past few days and we have eight inches of ice. We would like it to be twelve and if we don't make it there by Sunday morning Big Earls log shanty will have to sit on shore.

The S.S. Mistake is about as ready as it is going to be, the converted pontoon might actually have an advantage as we are in store for yet another snowstorm on Saturday. Unknown if the storm will be over by launch time but it is pretty much a sure thing we are not going to have any clean ice for the launch. Yesterday it warmed up into the low thirties and it is supposed to be that warm again today and tomorrow. As I stand at the window I can see a few dots off Root Beer Island, am guessing there are some crappie fishermen out early. I watch and sip on my juice, I hear a snap and turn to see the birch bark in the fireplace has caught and some flames are now licking at the log. I add another piece of birch and a couple skinny pieces of maple and poke at the fire a little with the poker before announcing to no one that the fire is good to go. I walk over to the Christmas tree and plug in the lights and the Lodge is open for business, from Lake Iwanttobethere {892,690}

[Bobby Bass]

Friday was early release for school here at Lake Iwanttobethere but with the tragedy in Connecticut it took on a meaning that hit close to home. With the said news on the radio and live TV we watched as events unfolded and the Lodge was quiet as we watched and as parents we felt the pain. Sometimes reality rears it's head here at Lake Iwanttobethere and yesterday was one of those times. Shortly after noon I arrived at the school to pick up my four grand kids, I had spoken to my children, their parents on the phone during the morning confirming that I would pick the kid's up and take them home. Parking was sparse as it seems a lot of parents and grand parents were awaiting the release of their kids from school. I had sleds and a small cooler with the wife's oatmeal raisin cookies and some juice boxes in the back of the Tahoe. The school bell rang and heads turned to the closed doors of the school. Seconds later a stream of kids in a rainbow of colors exited the school to be scooped up by the waiting arms of parents. Kids were happy, just a half day of school and parents hugged kids a little longer and a little harder. Adults eyes locked and nods were exchanged and they went their separate ways. My four munchkins came out as a group and I hug them all and shook hands with the boys. The girls each got a kiss on the cheek and I told them we were all going sliding. I drove to the hill and I was not alone, other parents had the same idea and kid's laughter filled the air. The kids on sleds and sometimes on their bottoms slid down the snow covered hill and the parents stood and watched and guarded. It should not have to be that way but it is, as parents we are here for our young. We watch our children and our children's children and as we grow into being the elders we watch everyone. A terrible day in a small town in Connecticut, not just another day at Lake Iwanttobethere

{893,636}

[Bobby Bass]

The Ice House Fling was a bust. Here at Lake Iwanttobethere it rained for two days and what snow we had on the hill was gone by Sunday morning. The rain was forecasted by Sunshine Ray to turn into snow but it didn't happen that way. Instead it just kept falling as rain and when it did stop it remained warm enough that it did not freeze. Winds came up and everything actually dried, the parking lots are bare of snow and clean. Ice houses did arrive in the parade and are now stacked in a row neatly along the shore. In the best interests of everyone no houses were launched as the ice was a little iffy with the rain and snow melt. There was some grumbling and we might just have to wait till after the first of the year in the future to launch the town.

The Fling was a bust but the celebration went off just fine. Still a big crowd showed up and the Lodge donated a few kegs of beer and after cups were filled at no charge people were a little more relaxed. The smell of mini donuts was in the air and it was even warm enough that the fine fingers of Fred and Fionia Fiddle, the fiddle players did not get cold and they put on an extended show for everyone. With the pretzel cart and cotton candy kids were happy and Nytelyter was there with his big BBQ. Gus was selling hot dogs and burgers as quick as he could make them and Mindy and Mandy were teamed up with Old McDonnell and selling root beer floats. Big Earl had his log cabin shanty hauled down and he was open for business, with of course discounts for HIYA users.

Up at the Lodge we were busy as people came and went and a few of the Lodge members wanted a shot of something in their coffee thermos. Luge run was open but pretty rough. The rain and made it pretty slick but the snow was crusty and hard. Lucky the track had already been laid out so if you did start at the top you would make it all the way down to the bottom without jumping out over the sides. The more it got used the better it got I was told. This afternoon it is above thirty but no sun out so no dripping water. Actually I think there is no snow at all on the Lodge's roof so there is nothing to melt. Hammering Hank and Skinny hauled the last load of rubbish to the land fill. People were using the orange barrels as garbage cans so that worked out well even though it was not planned that way. The hockey rink is ahead of schedule as a lot of water ran off into the rink, the boards were already up so the base is set.

Honey and Tess and the Woman Auxiliary all came in and decorated the Lodge. The Women's Auxiliary did the side meeting room and instructed Gus to be careful if he should find a need to go in there. They have Gus so rattled he just put a side on the door "Closed till further notice" I would go in there myself but I don't have a need to, but if I did.... So a little more then a week till Christmas we had snow and now we don't. This week there are two kid's concerts to attend, the Lodges Christmas party and a few other stops have to be made. Going to get busy I think and I still would like to take a walk in the woods. With the snow pretty much all gone I am betting them snowshoe Hares are going to be sticking out some. From Lake Iwanttobethere {895,504}

[Bobby Bass]

If I could teach Duncan to carry a football he would make one awesome running back. About an inch of snow fell overnight here at Lake Iwanttobethere and with no wind it has given everything a dash of white. First one out the door was Duncan and he ran a few steps and then launched himself off the end of the deck to land in the yard taking one more bound before cutting hard to the right and in a blink he was down the hill and headed for the lake. There has been a rabbit hanging around and Duncan using his speed kill approach has gotten the rabbit to bolt. When this happens the chase is on and the rabbit and Duncan tear across the yard like a couple of bi planes locked in combat. Sharp turns and banks and fake turns with Duncan sometimes getting so close you are waiting for him to say tag, your it. Then the rabbit will find a way to clear the wide open spaces of the yard and make it to the safety of the brush. Duncan will come back in that lope of his and if he could smile he is. I don't think he really wants to catch the rabbit he just wants to run flat out and see if he can.

The new snow has covered up the bare spots and we are back to looking at a white Christmas. The frozen waters of Lake Iwanttobethere look like a vast white field undisturbed by any color or fence posts. I follow Duncan around the yard with the push broom. I clean off the trucks and sweep the path back to the cabin. Snow is moved away from the shop doors and I clean the window of the shanty off. I will wait till after Christmas to drag it down to the lake, by then I should have a pretty good idea where the fish are biting. The S.S.Mistake is still at the launch site, if we get some more snow to cover the hill we might just be able to sneak it off down the hill in the dead of night. As it is now Chuck is complaining that when he goes inside to have a cup of coffee he can only fill his mug half full because it is resting on the hill and there is quite a list, of course nothing the S.S.Mistake has not seen before on the open water.

In some other news Chuck has bought himself a ring, as a matter of fact he has bought two rings. Don't know if I am supposed to say anything but he has proposed to his girlfriend and I think she said yes. I am guessing on that because when I saw her last she was crying, now she could be crying for a number of reasons, being happy is one which I never can understand. Smacking your finger with a hammer is a good reason to cry but getting married? The only reason I know is Chuck was not home and Mark the mailman needed someone to sign for the package with the rings. For some reason the wife knew exactly what the package held as I think women have some sixth sense in these matters. Sure enough it was an engagement ring and a wedding band. When he came over to see if we got the mail the wife corner him and he fessed up. She then wanted to know when the big day was and Chuck told her that they have been seeing each other for twenty-nine years and he was not about to rush into anything too soon.

Have a few things to do in town so I need to get going, Lodge will be one of my stops mostly to see if there are any peanut butter cookies left. Honey made up a double school size batch of cookies for the guys. Can't make anything with peanuts in it at school any more and she said she had a hankering for peanut butter cookies. She really did say Hankering to, gal is fitting right in at the Lodge, from Lake Iwanttobethere {896,593}

[Bobby Bass]

Yesterday afternoon I had this thought maybe some might even call it a vision. I was thinking about a new diet plan for the new year. Frankly the diet plan that I have been on for the past several years ain't cutting it. Seems every time I go see DOC Burriem he has something else that he thinks I should remove or reduce from my diet. It has gotten to the point that I think the dogs eat better then I do, they certainly seem more interested then I am when supper time rolls around. I was sitting at the bar munching away on peanut butter cookies and a mug of milk, whole milk not skim and them cookies sure did taste good and the milk, well it tasted like milk. That is when I got this thought about eating like I did before I got married, with a few rules mind you.

Back when I was young I was trying to gain weight for the football team and I was eating and not gaining anything. So why won't that work now? Back then I would eat a pint of ice cream everyday during the summer under the shade of the big maple with a small wood spoon shaped like a flat paddle. Of course I don't even know if they make pints of ice cream and it has been awhile since I have seen the little wood spoons, but I suppose I could make some. Now take the ice cream for an example, it was just ice cream, no toppings on it no chocolate syrup or nuts or sprinkles. No banana or pineapple not a swirl of caramel not even a cherry on top but it sure did hit the spot! Hot dogs were made of beef and no label warned you about fillers and the buns were fresh baked that morning, you knew that because the first aroma of the morning was the smell of the bakery.

Soda or pop or soda pop was made with real sugar and you only drank one twelve ounce bottle not twenty ounce plastic bottles with the sides covered in warnings and listing ingredients that you needed a four year college degree to understand. Potato chips came in a bag the size of your hand and you had just enough so that you ran out with the last bite of the hot dog and the last sip from the bottle. The key to the diet I think is that you only buy one even though now you have money and can buy two which is one to many. How many times have we been told to clean our plates or finish your glass, anything left will be wasted. Or the "Starving kids in China" line. My mother never could answer my question on how my left overs were going to get to China.

So I think this year I am going to make a promise to myself to eat and drink anything I want. But only what I could afford to eat when I was young. I will drink a can of pop and single conies. Single patty cheeseburgers with a small order of fries. Small bowls of Frosted Flakes and not the biggest baked potato. I will be a good boy and drink all of my Hamms because that will go flat if we ship it to China. Smaller pieces of pie and more thick sliced bologna sandwiches on bakery bread. If I eat a candy bar it will be a regular size one, not super sized. I will cook my own food and not eat anything frozen out of a box and I will take the time to enjoy it. No more eating while driving and just because something is two for one does not mean I have to eat two, unless it is beer which I can have two! So you are saying to yourself as you read this, this diet will never work, he is not sixteen anymore or twenty-six for that matter. But I might have a point that eating less of the bad stuff and a taste of the good stuff might just work I think you can see what I am getting at, I just need to eat like I am going out for the football team, even if it is in the senior league from Lake Iwanttobethere{897,327}

[Bobby Bass]

An old friend was over yesterday, not a surprise he shows up right before Christmas and we exchange thoughtful gifts and well wishes. We talk on the phone all the time and spend way to much time in the Puddle Humper during fishing season together, according to the wife. He comes in through the kitchen door, no need to knock and is greeted by all three dogs, none of them which bark. He makes his way to the kitchen table and sits down and spends the first minute or two just petting dogs. Barney leans into his bad knee and my friend winces a little but continues to rub Barney under his ear. Bud being Bud does not wait his turn but presses in from the other side. Duncan with paws up on the table tries to go high for attention. The wife comes in the den and says "Your friend is here" and then heads to the kitchen herself.

I learn a long time ago just to take my time when greeting a friend, I let the wife do her thing first. As I finish up reading an e-mail the wife pours a cup of coffee, offers cream and sugar and sits down to ask questions of my friend. How is the wife, how are the kids, grand kids your mother doing OK? How was that deal with the doctor? Christmas tree up? Is it decorated? I see you didn't bring the new puppy with, do you have any pictures? I wait till my friend is on his second cup of coffee before I enter the kitchen and getting a glass from the cub board I pour myself some juice and sit down at the table. I sip on the juice as the wife is just finishing up on her questions for the suspect, I mean my friend.

With the wife done I ask a few questions and the wife politely listens before getting up and puts her coffee mug in the sink. She has shopping to do but was waiting for my friend's arrival so she could ask her questions. She puts on her coat and tells my friend there is pie in the fridge and make sure I offer him some and with that she is out the door and the kitchen goes quiet. It is better that I let the wife have first crack at the visitors who come to the cabin. This way she can ask all the questions she wants and then does not have to come back later and ask me if I ask him about this and that. This way I don't have to ask questions that I don't really care about the answers nor do I have to come up with answers to questions that I forgot to ask.

With the wife gone my friend pours himself a refill and loads it down with cream and sugar, just like he normally drinks it when not around my wife or his. We bring each other up to speed and soon I am making conies and we are eyeing the apple pie from the fridge. The coffee mugs are put in the sink and I ask if he would like a beer, the cold bottles already in my fingers. We eat conies drink cold beer and eat healthy chunks of pie. We head to the den to exchange Christmas gifts which might not be what our wives expect. I hold my bag up and he holds his up, we then bump the bags together but do not exchange them. We then sit back and start opening the presents that we bought ourselves and are exactly what we want.

Don't remember when we started our tradition of not exchanging gifts but it has worked well over the years. My friend pulls out a new reel from his bag and tells me I shouldn't have, I smile and tell him it is the least that I can do. We lite up cigars from the box that I found in the bottom of my gift bag. We blow smoke rings and I tell him the wife is not going to approve of these but they are a Christmas present and you can't really not accept them. Smoking cigars, rubbing dogs ears and not listening to Christmas music we sit and chat and make plans for fishing, from Lake Iwanttobethere {898,125}

[Bobby Bass]

Well the end of the world is on the calendar for today here at Lake Iwanttobethere, must be why we are so busy at the Lodge. Gus called me at home to tell me when he arrived at the Lodge this morning he had a line of members waiting to get in. I arrived to find the place buzzing and right away stepped behind the bar to help Gus do some pouring. First off everyone was running a tab, if it was going to be the coming of the end the guys were all thinking they would not have to pay their tab off. The Fellow's were all sitting at the big round table and they were playing high stakes poker. Nothing penny anny about this game as there were stacks of quarters and rolls of dimes that were not even broken into yet.

After pouring for awhile we got caught up and Gus went back into the kitchen and I told him I could handle the bar by myself. Gus and Marv were sitting on the wicker couch with ZNN on the TV. They were smoking fat Cuban cigars and drinking some single malt Scotch from the back bar. The bottle has been here as long as I have and I don't ever remember anyone drinking from it. I took the bottle down and removed the cap, I can't describe the smell but I knew if I took even a sip I would be working for free the rest of the day. The top news story was not the end of the world but was of the theft of eighteen million dollars worth of Maple Syrup in Quebec. Chuck was sitting at the end of the bar and I walked over and asked him if he had heard about the syrup heist. "Just my luck the market will be going up with the missing Maple Syrup and I should be making a killing on my Lake Iwanttobethere Maple Syrup and here the world is coming to an end. I could have paid for the wedding rings in one day." And with that he stared into his mug. I filled his mug and told him it as on the house and then added it to the Fellows tab, just in case.

A couple of hours went by and the Fellows started to bet with dimes instead of quarters and the drinking slowed. No longer were guys so quick to yell out about putting other member's drinks on their tabs. Marv and Elmer switched over to a double malt and started cursing the TV If you didn't know any better you would think they were disappointed that nothing was happening. Sure it was snowing in Wisconsin but that is nothing new. Some of the guys were hoping that maybe the world had ended but it had just missed us here at Lake Iwanttobethere. As guys drifted in they sat at the bar and as I wiped out beer mugs with my towel I heard stories of promises made to wife's and girlfriends, because you know the world is going to end and they just wanted to make them happy. One guy promised his wife they were going to sell the double wide and finally get the little woman the house of her dreams, one that had a basement. Another guy actually propose to his girlfriend figuring it would not matter anymore that he was still married.

I poured beer and shots of Wild Turkey and started answering the phone with "HIYA, yes we are still here and yes we are open" At one point their was a brief glimmer of hope or doom depending on how you were looking at it. There was a loud bang and the Lodge seem to shudder just a tad, A few of the Fellows rushed to the main window hoping I think to see a tidal wave coming across the lake or maybe some flaming meteors falling, but it was only DOC Burriem arriving. He had hit a little icy spot with his car and hit the side porch. No damage was done and DOC took the offer of a drink and went and sat down on the wicker couch with Marv and Elmer none the worse for the little fender bender. I retreated behind the bar and watched the clock, the day is not done yet here at Lake Iwanttobethere {900,427}

[Bobby Bass]

It did not happen, the end of the world that is. Today finds us here at Lake Iwanttobethere with temperatures in the low thirties and the sound of a kids yelling and a hockey puck hitting the boards down at the rink. We have the Lodge deck door cracked open a little to let in some fresh air. There was a lot of cigar smoking going on yesterday and with the Christmas party tomorrow we thought the place could use a little airing out. School is out and even though yesterday was the last day of school it was only for the year not forever. I did attend not one but two Christmas pageants or events or shows or what ever they called them. One of the events I went to did not even pass out the programs till the event was over, that way you had no idea when your daughter or son was going to perform. They have all these rules too about not clapping or yelling for your kid's class and holding your applause till the end of the show. I'm sorry, if you sing well I am going to clap and if you make me laugh I going to laugh. Seems most of the parents felt the same way and there was a lot of clapping and parents yelling greeting to their kids on stage. Might be because we get the teachers to give us dirty looks and waggle fingers at us, something as a group we could ignore. Nothing better than screwing off in school knowing there will be no detention.

Ice is looking good out on the lake and a few shacks have been dragged out and placed. Been cold at night and we are coming into a real ice making couple of days. The S.S. Mistake is still nestled up in the trees on the hill but I have heard Chuck talking with the Fellows about a secret midnight launch. The Fellows are itching to use the air boat that they bought on HSOList, they are done hanging tires all around it to be used as bumpers and figure it will be a money maker for them. Since there is no fling the idea is to use the air boat to push shanties anywhere on the lake, for the right price of course. We are having our gift exchange here at the Lodge tonight, I don't know how many guys are going to attend as some presents were past out yesterday during the end of the world party. I expect there will be some regifting done tonight. I took a side trip out to see Vic at the Lake Iwanttobethere nursing home today. I arrived to find his room empty and had to go to the front desk to find out where he was hanging his hat.

I was directed to the rear of the building and told to check out the pond. As I made my way through the hall I was thinking about why Vic would be ice fishing on a pond that held no fish in the summer. When I got to the back door a janitor sneaking a smoke told me to check the pine tree with the Christmas lights and I would find Vic. I went out the back door across the gravel road to the tree. There I found a orange extension cord leading down toward the ice covered pond. I found Vic. sitting on a wood bench and wrapped in a red electric blanket. Next to him a five gallon Big Earl General Store bucket and a small cooler. I came up and gave him a HIYA and he looked up at me with a grin on his face and said " Back at ya"

Vic asked if I would care for a cocktail and held out a red solo cup with some clear liquid in it and a red and white striped candy cane as a swizzle stick. I chuckled some and replied why not. The fixings were in the bucket and a moment later I was on the wood bench looking out at the small ice covered pond. We exchanged Christmas greetings and when I asked Vic what he was doing he told me he was ice fishing without the hassle of drilling holes. Matter of fact fishing is as good in the winter as it is in the summer here on the pond. I reached into my coat pocket and gave Vic the small red envelope that I had for him. "Ok, to open it now?" he asked. I sipped on my cocktail and nodded yes. Taking his brown jersey gloves off he open the envelope and read the card and saw the paid Lake Iwanttobethere Lodge membership card. "I don't know what to say" he said. I just sipped from the unknown contents of the red solo cup and said. " Merry Christmas and if you need a ride to the Lodge, call me" from Lake Iwanttobethere {902,421}

[Bobby Bass]

Today finds me once again at the Lodge and bright sunshine is pouring through the windows. That is kind of a dumb statement as who ever said dull sunshine is pouring through the windows. Anyway it, the sunshine feels good as I sit on this end of the bar with the lap top. Two days ago we had the longest night of the year and I don't care what you say I can already feel the days growing longer. Only in December does the sun shine this deep into the Lodge that you can sit at the bar and feel it. Only in the mid teens outside but the sunshine makes all the difference in the way it feels out. Half hour out from watching the football game here and we are going to have a pretty good crowd of guys I think. I had to get out of the cabin as the wife has started her cleaning for Christmas Eve and I have been told I would be in the way. I was told to make sure I was back by six to pick her up for the Christmas party here at the Lodge.

So as guys wait for the game to start there is some talk of how promises made on the end of the world day are going to be handled. The common thought is maybe a few extra gifts under the tree may be substituted for the promise but on the other hand a lot of the guys think the best solution is just deny, deny, deny it ever happen. Lucky for me I have not bought the wife her Christmas gift yet so I will not have to buy extra ones. The Lodge is looking pretty good I must admit, Tess was in early this morning and put down a red stripe of duct tape on the floor that we are not to cross. We are allowed about one third of the main room to watch the football game in and are not to enter the other side. That side has table cloths and candles on the tables and tinsel hanging from the overhead beams. The Christmas tree is on our side but we have been informed that before the party starts the coasters and swizzle sticks and spent shotgun shells will be removed and replaced with more traditional decorations. Most of us being husband are taking a no comment stance.

Game about ready to start here, got sidetracked with Lodge business so I didn't get to finish this report and post it. Will add something after the game and hopefully it will be something good. Have a good afternoon...

Home team wins and there is still a glimmer of hope that there will be a reason to watch football in the new year. The Lodge has emptied out and Gus is busy moving tables and chairs to make a small dance floor. A few of the ladies have already shown up and Gus has been booted from his kitchen. By four the rest of the decorating committee will be here and I will be out the door myself. By seven tonight they will have the place all decorated and the tables all set, Christmas tree will be redecorated and all the decorations in storage will be hanging somewhere. I am off to do some late minute shopping before going home and putting on some clothes more appropriate. I have this Christmas sweater that lights up and the wife hates but everyone else finds amusing. The next few days will be busy so if I don't get the chance I would like to send everyone a Merry Christmas greeting, from Lake Iwanttobethere {903.793}

[Bobby Bass]

Merry Christmas from everyone here at Lake Iwanttobethere

Reed the Realtor, Porky's Houseboats, The Johnson Boys Barley and Hopps, Hammering Hank and his wife Tess, Tom Foot, The Dew Drop Inn, You Bet'Em Casino, Mark the mailman, Ms. Molly Bodensteiner, The Watering Hole, Frank the plow driver, Marv's Diner, Marc's Towing and Lawn Service, DOC Burriem, The Sundown Cafe, Gas-N-Go, Jess the paperboy, Old Lady Snaggletooth and her son Bucky, Blaze, Dan Theim, Dusty McMurty, Dale "Frozen Toe" Mitchel, Mabel's Sauna and Hot House, John Lufer and the Power Co-Op, Jimmy, Swen and Leona and their son Lars, Sunshine Ray, KCUM Radio, Stormy Clearweather, Old Man Walter, Surplus Is Us, Floyd's Hardware Store, Nytelyter, Ben and Jeanie, Mr. McPettes, Mrs. Peters, The Jones twins and the Do Me Inn Resort, Peatmoss, Mindy and Mandy, Brandy, Uncle Gus, Mister Big, Candy, The Inn, T's Bait Shop, Big Jim, Skinny, Chuck, Big Earl and Junior, Dug, The Masterbaiters Shop and Vicki, Amy's Bakery, Del's Pizza and Sub Shop, Sadie and Lady, Barney, Bud, Elmer, Mike, Mr. Thompson, Werid Willie, Walter, Old Man Peabody, The Old Goose, Ed and Eddie, Old Man Iverson, Jerry, Jason, Ma and Pa's Grocery, Vic, Vinney, The Fellows, Honey Sauce, Duncan, Fred and Fiona, Tatter, The Wife, grand kids 1 through 4, Marv, Gus, Katrina, Bailiff, Sheriff Tim, Mr. Wilson, The Women's Auxiliary, Burt's Barber Shop, Farmers Market, Jeanie and Stan, Howard and Polly, Tinker's Fly in Service, The Dew Drop Inn, Eagles Nest, Gray Goose Inn, Echo the wonder dog, Grace, Buff and Smokie, Sam, Pepper, Old McDonnell, Barb, Diggers, Close Enough Shop, The Golf Course, Mr. Perch, The Chicken Shack, Little Louie's Liquor and Licorice, Captain Swanson, Duckslayer, Junkyard Mike, Luan, Tongue and Grove, Norman, the Lodge here Lake Iwanttobethere and of course Bobby Bass

{904.680}

[Bobby Bass]

Another Christmas in the books and now a day to just sit and relax. If I didn't have a cold that might be the perfect end to the past few days. But I got myself a cold and I feel miserable and of course the phone rings at seven in the morning and the son has a frozen water line. By eleven the water is running again and I am looking for my bed and some hot cocoa with maybe a shot of a little something. Kids are all happy, think we got them all presents they wanted. Wife is happy, mother in law is happy and as for the dogs it is just another day with to many people around. The three of them are back sleeping on the couch, glad that they don't have to share with any humans.

My book shelf has been filled with books for me to read, guess all the hints I have been throwing out worked. Christmas party at the Lodge went off without a hitch. There might have been a few conversations between wives and husbands as the ladies met Honey Sauce for the first time. Vic got a ride into the Lodge with Marv and Elmer and the three of them hit it off. The last I noticed of them they had a bottle of Wild Turkey sitting on their table and were trading stories. Christmas afternoon found the Fellows down on the ice with their new air boat offering for a small fee to haul shanties out onto the ice. My understanding is they had a few kinks to work out before they got the knack of it.

The first shack to go out on the ice was Steve's. Not a very big shack for a big guy but they figured they would just put a tow strap on it and drag it out to a spot just off Root Beer Island. They started off slow with Steve standing on the step to his shanty and Greg at the controls of the air boat. With a push from the other Fellows they got the shanty moving and Greg gunned the boat. Did I mention that Christmas Day afternoon was a might cold up this way? Matter of fact it was so cold that cold coffee froze real quick. Greg had the air boat blade spinning as fast as it would go and the guesses were that he was blowing a hundred mile an hour winds plus off the back of the boat. With his coffee cold and not thinking he turned his cup upside down to empty it. Well the prop sucked that coffee and sent it right on back towards the shanty, with the cold weather it froze after it went through the prop and headed towards Steve as coffee flying icicles.

Steve was a very lucky fellow as he was dressed in his hockey gear. If you have been one of the Fellows as long as Steve has you know that if something can go wrong it will. Steve was just lucky that he could not find his hockey helmet and had instead worn his motorcycle helmet, the one with the shield on it. The flying coffee icicles nailed his jersey to the wall of the shanty while others just broke when they hit his helmet and shin pads. Greg looked over his shoulder and saw Steve with his arms outstretched urging him on. Truth is Steve's arms were nailed or iced into the siding of the shanty and he could not move at all. They arrived at Root Beer Island and the other Fellows on ATV's soon caught up. Steve was chiseled off the shack wall and it was decided that perhaps they should try pushing instead of pulling, from Lake Iwanttobethere {907,468}

[Bobby Bass]

Pulling in a favor from the Ski Hill we borrowed one of their snow making machines yesterday. Having done this in the past we quickly hooked it up to water and power and we were making snow with the idea to cover the hill below the Lodge so we could fling the S.S. Mistake down the hill. Surprising how making snow can sure draw the people in. I don't think we had been making snow for more than twenty minutes then kids start to showing up with slides and new snow boards. Of course when we say we I am not talking about myself, I was in more of a management role. Matter of fact with my coughing and sneezing people were keeping their distance from me. As the afternoon went on there were reports of it snowing out by Root Beer Island. We found this interesting as there was no snow in the forecast. Sunshine Ray came over from the radio station and for some reason was pretty excited about the falling snow.

An unusual thing was happening weather wise. With the temperature the way it was and the slight breeze along with the moisture content in the air somehow we were seeding the low clouds. We even made the news as our snow gun was making snow a mile away and it was not the snow from the gun but snow from the clouds. Of course no sooner than the news hit the airwaves then people around the lake starting calling the Lodge wanting us to make snow for their part of the lake. It lasted for a few hours then the winds shifted and things changed but over an inch of snow fell on Root Beer Island.

The Fellows are still shuttling shanties out on the ice, pushing works better the pulling with the air boat. You can stand on top of the hill and see right where they are by the white out the air boat makes. Add the new snow and it looks like a blizzard behind them. They have also started taking the small two man pop up out on to the ice. They lash them one to each side of the air boat and run them out. When they are close to where the owners want them they just cut the rope and send them skipping across the ice. Thing is with the Fellows it did not take to long for them to make a game out of it and they now think they are a PT boat with torpedoes. The challenge is for them to see how close they can come to hitting a shanty already out on the ice with one of the two man pop ups.

So we have the snow gun for twenty-four hours and the hill is white again. There is snow on the Luge and the Fellows have promised they will get the S.S. Mistake down the hill later this afternoon. I am debating on whether I will be on board when it happens. I know Chuck can't wait to fish from the old pontoon boat and with some snow we might not have to bank the sides up with the hay bales. We have several orange barrels already down on the ice as a few of the more adventurous teenagers here at the Lake are getting inside the barrels and riding them down the Luge run. As long as they go down the Luge with the open end facing the up the hill they are good. A few of them have ridden it with the open end facing down the hill so they could see where they are going. A problem with that as the barrels soon fill up with snow making the rider look like snowmen when they exit. From Lake Iwanttobethere, were making snow and ice today {908,882}

[Bobby Bass]

Like nomads the grand kids have been visiting their aunts, uncles and now the past few days the grandparents. With school vacation almost half done the kids have been here the past two days and this afternoon they will move on to their uncles for the rest of the weekend. Pancakes were on the menu for this morning and each one of the four kids had to cook their own on the griddle. With sausage that grandma cooked they had to eat all that they made. Some like big pancakes while the youngest prefers making them silver dollar size, but lots of them. With grandma busy watching over their shoulders at the griddle the table was unattended and the Lake Iwanttobethere Maple Syrup might have been poured by the kids a little heavy. Matter of fact the plate of pancakes that I got looked more like a beaver house in the middle of a syrup pond.

Yesterday we receive some more snow and the number two grandson received a Tonka grader for Christmas. He was soon dressed in snow pants and coat and was out the door grading the snow off the deck one board at a time. With the deck almost half cleared I brought out a thermos of hot cocoa and I poured some in to the silver cup that serves as a top. The grandson stood holding onto his cup and sipping from it, steam rising from the cup. He stood surveying his work and I stood along side acting like a foreman offering suggestions on where he should move the next load of snow. Inside the two granddaughters somehow were convinced by the wife to dust the collection of outdoor magazines that I have collected over the years. Left on their own they removed all two hundred plus magazines from the shelves and rearranged them according to picture covers not dates.

Last night we had a Scooby Doo marathon in the theater. One of the granddaughters is a big fan and she was in charge. We had popcorn and some magic potion that she made up for us. I think it was cranberry juice added to water bottles and then shook real hard. Since she was in charge she also started a check sheet on all of us. A check sheet is where you do something wrong you get a check behind your name. Since we were watching TV shows you would get a check mark if you talked out loudly. I found out that I got two check marks for falling a sleep and snoring but I don't know what the punishment is or was.

In an hour or so I will load them all up in the Tahoe and drive them over to the son's house. I will then check in at the Lodge and a trip to visit Vicki at the Masterbaiters Shop before heading out on the ice for the early evening bite. The S.S. Mistake was launched, successfully I might add last night. With the snow that was made and the snow that fell the Fellows with their ATV's moved the Mistake to the hill and it took off by itself down the hill and out on to the ice. Greg had the air boat at the ready and he swooped in behind the Mistake and added some push sending the old pontoon about three hundred yards from shore and straight out from the Lodge. The location just happens to be over one of the well know secret spots on the lake. This evening I will spend some time fishing it with Chuck and if we catch a few I will haul my shanty out on to the ice and set up close by either tomorrow or Monday so from Lake Iwanttobethere have a good one. {910,372}

[Bobby Bass]

Up early this morning as Duncan woke me up trying to get under the covers with me. The sun is rising but it looks cold out and that is confirmed when I open the deck door to let the dogs out. The days of just walking out with nothing on your feet are long gone but will return. The night had been forecasted to be cold with strong winds but this morning finds it calm. It being the last day of the month and the year I was toying with the idea of getting one last grouse hunting walk in. After feeling the cold air swirl in the cabin after opening the door I have decided that I will try a mid afternoon hunt instead of a morning one.

A quiet cabin yesterday as the grand kids were all at the son's. I was out getting firewood for the rack and I saw a couple of puffs of smoke from the direction of his cabin across the lake and I thought maybe he was sending a signal. I mentioned it to the wife in passing and she said that maybe she should go and check on her babies. I assured her that he has a phone and no one uses smoke signals anymore. She then reminded me of Elmer and Marv in the yard with a wet cow hide last summer practicing their boy scout skills. I suggested she just call the son and make small talk with him.

Yesterday I made a pot of chili and had a few of the guys over to watch the football game on the big screen. A couple of loaves of bread were baked and the hint dropped that all that was needed was a twelve pack of beer. At half time we made it to the kitchen to ladle scoops of chili into bowls and grabbed a platter of hot sliced buttered bread. Back in the theater we shoveled in spoons of chili and made a few side bets on the game. The best football games are always watched when there are fans of both teams playing. Yesterday there was a token Packer fan who came boasting and left shaking his head with "Wait till next week" I already have Saturday evening penciled in for the rematch and pizza on the menu.

With the New Year just a day away I am already going to make a prediction, Cabin Fever is going to come early this year and it will strike hard. I received in the mail my first fishing catalog for the new year and I have already paged through it twice. With everyone trying to be ahead of everyone else I can't imagine that the seed catalogs will not be too far behind. My summer excuse of inside work is meant to be done in the winter is being quoted to me by the wife. I have started on converting a storage room into another bedroom to be used as a bunk room for all the grand kids. I have been reminded by the wife that I actually started this project last spring but summer got in the way.

Last spring I gutted it and put up insulation and got half the sheet rock up before I was sidetracked by warmer weather and outside projects. It is a good place to hide out with a book and some juice and sit in front of the window that faces the lake and lets in lots of sunshine when the sun is shinning. I found that I could read and be undisturbed in the room, all I needed to do was start the circular saw every few minutes and pound on a two by four with a hammer before going back to my book and reading a few more pages. Nothing keeps the wife away better then the sound of a man cutting and pounding, from Lake Iwanttobethere {914,064}

[Bobby Bass]

New Years Eve party at the Lodge was a black tie event this year. You needed to have a tie and a date when you came through the main door but a few steps inside and the ties were taken off and stuffed in coat pockets. With the Women's Auxiliary having a beachhead inside the Lodge the women of Lake Iwanttobethere are expanding their presents inside what once was a man's domain. Lucky for us the Women's Auxiliary spent most of their time in the side meeting room drinking what I have been told was an excellent mushroom tea. Their husbands took over a table by the fire out of sight and ear shot of their wives.

The Lodge crowd was pretty much an older membership kind of thing, the younger members having starting their celebration early and they were down on the ice where a couple of shanties had been placed close together and a tent erected between them. The Fellows were split between the two parties, those in a relationship were in the Lodge and the ones trying to get out of one or no longer in one were down on the ice. A normal meal at the Lodge for New Years is a buffet with platters of wings and hot sauce along with bowls of chips and dip and bottled beer in iced buckets. Kettles of chili and cookie sheets covered in layers of onion rings would be set on a couple of tables with a few rolls of paper towels. Pretty much like a Lodge after meeting snack. But this year we had to do it a little different, the women's idea.

We had table clothes on the tables and I mean they were unfolded and covered all the burn marks on the tops Chrome napkin's holders were gone along with the salt and pepper shakers. Ketsup and mustard and hot sauce, not to be found. Instead the tables had the same number of chairs as plates. Each plate had three forks and two spoons and one knife that was so dull you could not cut through a French fry with it. I was later informed it was a bread knife but I could not tell since the only light we had was from flickering scented candles on the table. Each setting also had a flat glass that was worthless to drink out of. Someone refereed to as a "Finger Bowl" I just used my to rinse off my fork when it fell on the floor.

Fluted glasses that you could fill up three times with one bottle of beer which meant you spent more time pouring then drinking. Water glasses that to me just took up space that could have been better used for shot glasses. Although I did notice by later in the night they were being used as shot glasses. The meal however was pretty good, we had prime rib at my table or our table I should say. That was another thing we didn't get to pick our table but had to look for these little cards that had our names on them. I somehow was seated with three of the women's auxiliary members and their husbands along with Doc Burriem who to his credit found a way to use his water glass by adding to it from the flask he always carries in his vest pocket.

We sat at our tables and servers brought us our food. I have no idea who the servers were, I am guessing high school kids that somehow were in debt to the women's auxiliary. Being polite I made small talk with the ladies and avoided the kicks under the table from my wife who would bounce one off my shin when I started to take the conversation in the wrong direction. The ladies headed to the side room to drink tea and the wife to one of her girlfriends. I grabbed a water glass and went to the deck door to look down at the other party on the ice, wishing I was there. Skinny stood on the ice looking up at the flickering light coming from the Lodge and saw the curl of smoke rising from the chimney, shivering a little and eating a cold sausage he held the ice cold beer in his numb hand and thought about them lucky guys in the Lodge, from Lake Iwanttobethere {916,162}

[Bobby Bass]

Holidays are behind us and grouse season has come to a close. I did manage to take a walk behind the cabin one last time and Bud and Duncan both went with. Was so busy with other things that I failed to mention the walk or maybe it was that we didn't kick up a single bird and it was pretty cool out that day. Something has been having a good season as next door Chuck has lost two of his ducks the past week. Something is coming in the pen during the night and killing the ducks and the culprit is at large and unknown. A trail cam is going to be set up and the killer will be dealt with I have been informed. Echo the wonder dog is still too small to be of any help but she has grown to over twenty pounds now. I can hear Chuck yelling at her from time to time to stop picking on Tatter, his two hundred pound mastiff.

Killing time this morning waiting on the sun to climb a little higher in the sky and warm things up some. Not a cloud that I can see and we might just reach thirty above and beyond maybe. Have to go down and see Big Earl at the General Store. The wife's washing machine died and nothing I can do to fix it. She has been without the machine for two days and told me I need to go and get the cover off the Dodge and get down to Earl's and bring her a new washer. I made some off hand remark to her about taking the spud to the creek and breaking ice and just pounding some clothes on the water covered rocks, was good enough in the old days to wash clothes that way. I managed to dodge the wooden spoon that she tossed in my direction and told her she will have a new machine installed by this afternoon.

Ice houses are scattered across the lake and fishing has been poor or no one is saying anything. The past few winters have been not what we would call normal winters and this year is turning out to be the same. Not a lot of snow and late ice again has meant that a lot of the bigger houses are not out yet. Seems more people on the lake are just putting their house right out from their cabins instead of hauling them down to the access. Matter of fact mine is still not out and I am thinking I might just set up right off where Elmer has his dock in the summer. I know he has a good brush pile out there. Of course having the S.S. Mistake out in front of the Lodge is a plus and it will give us two different locations to go fish. Grand kids are also getting a little older and are more willing to spend time on the ice, especially if it is just a toboggan ride down the hill from the cabin.

Honey Do List has plenty of jobs on it to do but I have been staying away from it. Told the wife that I am on vacation till further notice. With the grand kids back in school I need a vacation from their vacation. Read two of my books that I received for Christmas and if all goes well with the washing machine I will be able to catch some afternoon sun and start reading another one. I can already see a trip to the dump in my future as the old machine will have to be hauled away and I am sure the wife will find something else that should go with it. Big football game tomorrow night so Sunday should be a day spent on the ice fishing, hope to have a tale to tell you soon after, from Lake Iwanttobethere {918,411}

[Bobby Bass]

Yesterday afternoon it got as warm as thirty-five above! Which is a lot better then thirty-five below this time of year. I spent the afternoon on pins and needles waiting for something bad to happen. I say that because I hauled out the old washing machine from the basement, and installed a new one and not one thing went wrong. I took the tarp off the back of the Dodge and turned the key and the old truck started right up. The bed of the truck was dry and clean of snow and when I made it to Big Earl's General Store the washing machine was waiting for me on the dock with a new set of hoses, at no charge. I took the machine out of the box on the deck and I had already cleared a path down the stairs and to the laundry room. The new washer was hauled down the stairs and hoses installed and slid in to place. I had to make just one small adjustment to one of the legs to make it level and it was done.

The old washer was hauled upstairs and then dragged over to the lean to and tucked away, when I entered the cabin the wife asked me why I just didn't put it on the Dodge and haul it to the dump. Thinking quickly I told her I was going to take the machine apart and use the drum to make a new fish basket for the dock. She nodded her head in agreement and said that it would be a good recycling project. I headed for the den but she stopped me with "So now that the Dodge is empty you can run over to the lumber yard for them two by fours you said you needed for the bedroom job." Caught in mid stride I turned slowly thinking quickly for an excuse not to go to the lumber yard but I had nothing. I tried telling her that I didn't really have a count on the number of two by fours I needed. Holding my chin in my fingers I acted like I was thinking. "Hmmm it was either six or eight, I better go and recount" I said. Looking back at the wife she stood by the door holding my coat for me and simply said " How about you just pick up ten to be sure and if you leave now you will be back in time to get some work in today."

Taking the coat from the wife I smiled and almost made it out the door before she reminded me to grab my wallet. I walked over to the Dodge and opened the driver's door and out of no where Duncan jumped up on the seat and made his way to the far side where he sat down leaning against the door and gave me his best going for a ride look. I turned back to see the wife in the doorway waving good-bye, guess Duncan was going shopping. With the heater on high and the sun shinning in the windows it was almost warm enough for the drive to the lumber yard. The Dodge in the last few years has become a summer truck as I lose a lot of heat through the holes in the floor boards and along the bottom of the doors. I arrived at the Lumber Yard to find Tongue and Grove the owner's sons sipping on coffee and leaning on the big doors to the mill shed. I pull up and tell them about two by fours and they tell me to help myself and that they are closing soon. They waved me on and I drive over to the lumber shed and pull inside.

Cold, lumber yards are never a warm place to work in. They stay cold in the winter and never really warm up in the summer. I park by a unit of two by fours and with Duncan watching I begin to sort. Standing on one end of the unit I pick up a board and look down it's length for bowing if it past the test I set it to the side. I wonder to myself how many times I have done this and how many thousands of boards I have looked at over the years. I am always reminded of the year I spent building tresses and how cold it got in the building. I put twelve two by fours in the Dodge and drive out of the shed, as I pass Tongue and Groove I just tell them to put twelve eight foot sticks on my bill, you see I didn't need my wallet, from Lake Iwanttobethere {919,532}

[Bobby Bass]

Helpers, I need more helpers. Sitting at the desk in the den I find myself coming up with more projects that need to be done but what I need is helpers to do them. We are not talking elf's here but I am guessing the wife would welcome some elf's to take down the Christmas decorations that are still scattered around the cabin. There seems to be an endless and growing list of things to do around the cabin and I keep getting distracted when I start doing something. Duncan is to blame as being the biggest distraction. Coming up on two years old and like any two year old he is demanding. Even as I write this he is standing on his hind legs next to my chair with his front paws on the desk top and his nose resting against the keyboard. I can't be sure if he is reading what I am typing but I would not be surprised.

I had to take a break and let Duncan outside, I tried distracting him with a biscuit but that didn't work. He ate the biscuit and came back so I gave him three more which he can easily carry in his mouth. He brought the biscuits to the living room where he dropped them on the floor in front of Bud and Barney who were laying on the sun covered rug. The two old dogs eyed the dog bones like they were eyeing a box of chocolates before each selecting one. Duncan took the last one and crunched it up before licking his paws clean and returning to jump back up on the desk alongside of me. In the summer the dogs can pretty much come and go as they please through the deck door but with winter we have the inside door closed and they have not yet figured out how to open it. A few years back I installed the lever style handles on all the doors making it easier to open the doors when you have your hands full. It also makes it easier for the dogs to stand on their hind legs and open the doors for themselves. They have just not figured out how to pull the door open but they have the open and push the storm door down pat.

I let Duncan out and followed him out on the deck, the bass thermometer's red needle is resting on thirty-seven and I tapped the glass and it jumped to thirty-eight. For noon at the end of the first week in January not bad at all. As long as I was outside I figured I might as well do a little work, well Duncan should do a little work. With Duncan sitting and looking at me I told him to go get some wood. He raced off the deck and jumped the stairs headed for the wood pile. He reached the pile and turned to look back at me. I yelled BIRCH and he grabbed a split stick of birch and headed back to the cabin. When he got to the deck I took the split piece of birch from him and said "Wood" I tossed the wood onto the rack and looked back at Duncan who was already waiting at the wood pile. I yelled MAPLE and Duncan went to the other side of the wood pile and started tugging on a good size piece of maple. He was having a problem so I yelled out "Smaller" he gave up on the round piece and grabbed a split piece of maple and made his way back to the deck.

With the wood rack filled again Duncan and I returned inside the cabin, him to the floor for a puppy nap as I like to call them and me back to the keyboard. So I sense a few of you may be shaking your heads about Duncan retrieving wood. What, I told ya he has a really big mouth, from Lake Iwanttobethere {921,019}

[Bobby Bass]

The remolding of the storage room and former office space to what will become a bunk room for the grand kids is moving along at an acceptable pace. The walls have been gutted, insulated and vapor barrier installed. Over half of the room has been dry walled, of course this was all done last spring. As for now I am working on studding up a closet wall and still trying to decide how best to utilize the space, shelf's or hanger rods. With two grand sons and two grand daughters both groups have different needs. Every time they come over they head for the bunk room to inspect what I have done. They are worse than the wife as far as having a time table for completion. Number two grandson is concerned I will not have enough room for his trucks. Number one grandson wants to know where the shelf will be for his tackle box and number one granddaughter a book shelf and a safe. The safe is to keep her brothers away from her "Good Stuff" that I guess at eleven you start to get. Number two granddaughter just keeps changing her mind on what color I should paint it.

After Duncan and I filled the wood rack yesterday we took a drive into town. As I grow older Doc Burriem keeps finding more reasons for me to stop at the pharmacy each month. I left Duncan in the Tahoe sitting in one of the grand kid's car seats and went inside. I waved a HIYA to Dave working the counter and headed back to see his brother Dave at the pharmacy counter. His name really is Dave but he is Dave's cousin not his brother but we like to kid the both of them. I tried to get the HIYA discount but Dave just smiled and took my money and gave me the little white bag. Same kind of little white bag I get at Amy's bakery but according to Doc one has good stuff in it and the other not so good. I prefer the donut bag myself it is a lot cheaper.

Next stop was the hardware store to pick up a few electrical boxes and some switches. Need then for a closet light and moving the room light to a better location. So much work that is done behind the walls that no one ever sees. I tell Chuck that is why I am taking so long doing the remodeling job so the wife will appreciate it that much more, so far it is not working. I did drive by Burt's Barber Shop but I saw there was a few cars parked out front and someone was in the chair getting clipped. Time for this years first haircut and the wife suggested I should get my beard trimmed by someone who does it for a living. I have had a beard for about twenty-five years and normally I wear it pretty closely trimmed but this year I decided to let it grow.

The hair on the top of my head grows slow compared to my beard which has taken off. There is a length where the beard becomes itchy and I made it through that and now it is just soft and the kids like to play with their fingers. The threat of a whisker rub is an empty one now as the beard is soft and not scratchy. I do tell the youngest daughter that I am just going to let it grow to ZZ Top length and she keeps threating to cut it off when I am sleeping if it gets that long. I have been told that I look like a out of work Santa, I just reply it is the off season. I expect come fishing season I can charge a little more for my fish guiding services, I will advertise as a grizzled fishing guide and with a flannel shirt I will at least look the part. So far no problem with the longer beard except when smoking a cigar I have to be careful when the gar gets short not to set my beard on fire from Lake Iwanttobethere {922,317}

[Bobby Bass]

Some grumpy guys down at the Lodge yesterday and I am guessing it is the sum of a lot of things. Time of the year when the bills are coming due for all that Christmas shopping not to mention that Mayan calendar fiasco. Also I had to issue the bar tabs to a few members who have reached their limit, the best way to do that is over a beer. By the end of the day I was a few beers past my limit. Fellows were sitting at the big round table only a few of them were in the sun. On a good note we have gained almost twenty minutes of sunshine as the sun is retreating from inside the Lodge and getting higher in the sky.

As I drifted around the Lodge main room I overheard a lot of different conversations and participated in quite a few. Without mentioning names there was a conversation about going winter camping, actually two conversations as one group was talking about snowshoes and a tent and another group was talking about a hot tub and a floating bar. Another group was talking about lake trout fishing and an interesting conversation at the Fellows table about tuna and marlin fishing. In the past week there was a news story about a tuna being sold over seas for 1.3 million dollars and the on going legal battle of a large marlin worth almost a million dollars in prize money. The Fellows are working on a plan to bring tuna and marlins to Lake Iwanttobethere. I over heard some of the conversation so I pulled up a chair to listen in some more. Always a good idea to have an ear open around the Fellows when they start scheming things.

The Tuna and Marlin has already gone past a few round table discussions that I missed out on. Of course we have no Tuna or Marlins in Lake Iwanttobethere so the first order of business is to get some. I found out that Greg was already on that as he is dating Bonnie the owner of Fin's, Tails and Sushi. Like most business ventures here at Lake Iwanttobethere you have to be diversified so you can make a living year round. Bonnie has a tropical fish shop and also sells sushi. Not out of the same door though, She has a corner store with the fish shop on the street side and the Sushi Bar on the avenue side. Anyway Greg is working on importing the Tuna and Marlins from her and then selling it back to her, the Tuna that is. The marlin would be used in a fishing contest charging big entry fees.

As with almost all of the Fellows ideas they needed someone to come up with the venture capital. They told me their idea like they were pitching a business plan complete with diagrams on paper napkins. I sipped on my beer and listen to the Tuna projected sales and on how they could get maybe twenty or more boats fishing for Marlin. They could all become charter captains and the Lodge could sponsor the contest and make the news. With the presentation complete they all sat back to sip their beer and looked at me for my approval. I set my beer mug down and moved the empty mug to the center of the table. Wiping a little foam from my lips I simply said "You know Lake Iwanttobethere is fresh water" and with that I rose from the table and moved on. Twenty minutes later I happen to walk by the table and I over heard Steve talking about the big salt pile that the county does not use anymore and how Mike has that pond, from Lake Iwanttobethere {924,316}