Micro

What Ronnie said. I'll add that "Water Moccasin" is a non-descript term of any snake associated with water. Most people don't know a water snake from a cottonmouth, so they call them all water moccasin. Even some people who don't live in the range of the cottonmouth swear they have "poisonous water moccasins." That's a shame because a lot of harmless water snakes are killed in the mistaken belief they are cottonmouths. Cottonmouths are pretty docile as far as snakes go. I've nearly stepped on them and even squatted over one without knowing. (I'm still thanking God for the squatting one. ;D) They do have a tendency to hold their ground. Many snakes will try to get away, but cottonmouths tend to coil up and show you their mouths. Be aware that ALL snakes become "livelier" the warmer it gets. A cottonmouth on a 60 degree day is going to be less enthusiastic than it would be on an 88 degree day. The venom is hemotoxic and myotoxic. It destroys red blood cells, vascular tissue, connective tissue and muscle tissue. Most bites are "dry," meaning they inject no venom. Snakes tend to conserve venom since they need it to start the digestive process. But some will inject venom, but usually not much. A bite will cause swelling and hemorrhaging. A bite to, say, the hand may cause some permanent disability. A bite to the finger may cause loss of that finger. A severe bite can cause death. 100 mg of cottonmouth venom is considered a lethal dose to an adult human. Adult cottonmouths carry more than that, but usually only inject a tiny fraction of it. An equal concern is that cottonmouths harbor a lot of bacteria and parasites in their mouths. Many bites result in infections, and some even gangrene. I live near a reservoir that has a large population of Cottonmouths. There are walking trails and a golf courses right up to the water's edge. People fish in that reservoir. And the only person I've ever known to be bitten was actually out capturing cottonmouths for a master's degree thesis. Here's a warning sign on the trail around that reservoir. Funny thing about that sign - it says you "are entering." Heck, I've seen more cottonmouths before you get to that sign than beyond it ;D.

I'll keep that in mind when I fish some hard bottomed waters. This particular lake is extremely swampy/snotty/mucky. There are some sections of the lake that have hard bottom, but the lily pad sections only have semi-clear water for about 1-2 feet, then anywhere from 4-6 feet of green snot. I fished this lake a lot and have found that in the swamp parts, you have to keep your bait on the surface or in the 1 to 2 foot strata that is clear. Once you get down into the snot, you won't catch fish. All you do is haul up globs of snot. Come August, I won't be able to get back where I caught those fish - it will be choked with green glop.

I never thought I'd get to the point where I could say I'm more accurate with a baitcaster than a spinning rig. But I am now. If I can cast it with a baitcaster, then I'll always choose a baitcaster. I will use a spinning rig for any lure under a 1/4 oz. On top of that, spinning rigs make my tennis elbow act up

I have two of the EXT Pros. They are Morrum'ish. Extremely nice reels and they will cast a light bait with ease. I highly recommend the EXT Pro.

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Swimming senkos rock! I went back out today, caught three more on swim senkos. Woulda caught more, but I ran out (only had 5 left). Had the tail torn off one, and others chewed up. (Caught a few more bass on other plastics.) But nothing seems to work as consistently as the swim senko. It's perfect for the water I fish with thick lily pad beds - really thick. I take my jon boat and follow the little channels that run thru the weed beds and cast that swim senko into any little pocket. The water is coffee colored and has thick algea about a foot beneath the surface. T-rigged on a gammy 3/0 EWG it's as weedless as they come and will slip through just about anything, and it rides just below the surface, but above that thick algea. Here's my biggest today - 3 lbs

What your point' doesn't consider is that those increases' are extremely modest. They don't even keep up with increased demand. In 2007, US drivers burned 36 million more gallons of gas per day than was being refined and that's at 90+% refining capacity. Refining capacity is the principal problem. Oil production IS keeping up with demand. Saudi Arabia just refused a US request for more oil production because, according to Saudi Arabia, current output is satisfying demand. Even if oil output was increased, we couldn't refine any more at least not enough to begin to keep up with increased gasoline demand. George Bush principally wanted more oil from Saudi Arabia (which has easily refinable sweet light crude) not for immediate refining but to pump into the Strategic Reserve. But that's not the reason for the buybacks. Buybacks are typically employed to cover employee stock options - like those of big oil executives. $400 Million to a retiring Exxon CEO. And how many other hundreds of millions, or billions, to other executives and employees. There's no emotion. There's only emotion if I get kissed when I'm screwed.

Needless to say, my senko did not survive...

And here's my first pickerel on a swim-senko.

Later, the weather cleared up. It stayed breezy, but the rain went away and the sun came out for a little while. I caught 5 bass on weightless senkos, and on 3 swim-senkos (one of which I managed to drop on my right foot - dorsal spine down - I was wearing sandals :). Here's my very first bass ever on a swim-senko.

I went out today to my favorite lake. Despite the forecast that it was to be sunny all day, no sooner did I hit the water than it clouded up, rained, and the wind gusted to 15-20 mph. I was casting green 4" weightless senkos on my 6'8" MH casting rod - which ain't easy under those conditions. I misplaced a cast and the senko landed directly behind a branch sticking out of the water. On top of that I got a backlash. As I was picking my backlash, the fish took my senko. I gave a half-hearted hook set on top of my birds nest. I managed to get a half-azzed set and began to take in line on top of my backlash. In the mantime, the wind is blowing me into the trees. The fish managed to swim around that branch several times hopelessly hanging up. So, while it's raining, blowing, I've got a backlash, I'm geing blow into the trees, I manage to get over to the banch. I lipped the bass and tried to get the line of the branch. No good, I had to break the line. By this time, my boat is now under the trees up against yet another blowdown. This finally stops me. And I am able to get a picture of possibly the hardest earned bass of my life, and the stump that grew straight up from hell.

There are fewer and fewer shareholders. Exxon doesn't give a rat's *** about shareholders anymore - they are trying to get their stock.

Bloomberg. Exxon is buying back stock at a rate of $30 billion per year. At that rate, it will have bought back 100 of its stock by 2024. That's unprecedented. So are our gas prices. The ones we have aren't being expanded, and they aren't being built overseas (which would be a strategic blunder). The simple fact is, there is plenty of oil, but refining capacity is seriously lacking. And big oil is doing nothing about that. How are they protecting people when they buy back stock? Someone who just sold their stock isn't a stock holder any longer. And it's not about protecting stockholders. It's about enriching executives in the big oil companies. Exxons CEO received a $400,000,000 retirement package - to include lifetime personal security, two years of home security, lifetime use of Exxon's fleet of jets, stocks, other options. $400 million????????? If big oil is spending all there profit buying backs stock, it's becasue they expect it to rise. They'll make it rise by raking in yet ever more profit.

The problem isn't the profit, it's what they are doing with it. Their profit margin is where it is supposed to be - but they are using an inordinate amount of profit to buy back stock instead of investing some (or any) of it in new refining capacity. That's the difference between $2.50/gallon gas and 3.60/gallon gas (and a $25 million retirement package for a CEO, or a $400 million retirement package like a big-oil CEO just got).

There are only three venomous snakes in Virginia (Copperhead, Timber Rattlesnake, Cottonmouth), and only two in your area (Copperhead, Timber Rattlesnake). There is no mistaking the rattler. But it can be found in several color phases in Virginia - from orange/yellow to black. The copperhead looks like the copperhead in that picture. Here is a snake ID guide. http://fwie.fw.vt.edu/VHS/virginia_snake_identification.htm

Looks like it is a couple feet long.

Pretty cool series of pictures. Kingsnake vs. Copperhead

If you can stand to step away from pure fluoro, then I'd recommend Yo-Zuri hybrid copoly. It's a little stiffer than mono, but more manageable than pure fluoro. It casts well from a baitcaster. It's much cheaper than fluoro. And it has very, very little stretch. Roadwarrior recommended it. I hated it when I first tried it, now it's one my favorite lines.

I didn't believe not too long ago - but greed is it. Big oil has been making huge profits. When politicians propose a windfall profit tax, big oil laments that their profit margin is only 7%, smaller even that Google's and Microsoft's. The difference, however, is that if Google and Microsoft mismanages their assets, our gas prices don't go through the roof. And that's exactly what big oil has been doing. Instead of investing all those tens of billions of dollars into new refining capability (which is seriously lacking), they are spending the vast majority of their profits on stock buy-backs.

Now you have.

I got the 7'3" medium heavy Elite Tech Crankshaft rod. The staff must have thought I was nuts standing there examining and flexing the rods, walking away and coming back, for the better part of an hour. I thought about it and most of the crankbaits I use are 3/8oz or heavier. I thought this rod would be the most versatile. I've got a Fenwick HMG 6'6" medium baitcaster that handles small cranks just fine. Now, I just have to come up with the perfect cranking reel. I'm gonna wait until after ICast to see if anything new-and-cool comes out. I really want to wait and see if the new Abu Garcia Toro comes in a cranking version, and see if that's a reel I want to buy.

Yeah, me to. Fenwick makes a 6'6" and 7' medium rod rated for 1/4-5/8 oz baits. They also make a 7'3" medium heavy rated for 3/8-1 oz baits. I'm thinking about a 6'6" for light baits and the 7'3" for open water and bigger, deeper diving baits.

To me, the ear housing looks a lot beefier than the current Revo. Also I notice the name: "Toro 50." I wonder what the 50 means. I wonder if there is a yet a bigger or wider model in the works. (The mind boggles ) When I saw it, the first thing I though was "Zillion."

Here is I...