RoLo

Lake Underhill. Not the most pristine environment but chock-full of bass Roger

Braid is very thin line, and as line-watchers will tell you, can be very difficult to see Fluorocarbon is twice the diameter of braid, so I use a fluoro leader so bass can follow my leader to the lure. OKAY, I made up the part about the leader

Exactly

Not sure what you mean. Our ice in Florida never melts, except during a power failure Roger

It's normal for temperatures to zigzag like a Zara Spook (hot during the day <> cold at night) but the major temperature trend remains intact ('Up' in spring <> 'Down' in fall). Minor temperature trends don't change the bass's master plan, but certainly change their disposition ;-( The greatest gift during the pre-spawn is stable weather, pretty much what you've described. Roger

Living in Georgia was like living in the Horse Latitudes, but Florida is a windy state where you're forced to adapt. In heavy winds and whitecaps, I just put the Minn Kota Talon on 'rough water' mode and keep my tiptop guide on the water surface. Everything else stays pretty much the same. Roger

Ceramic scissors far outlast metallic scissors (stainless steel is quick to lose edge-keenness). Fishing line is easily severed by swiping the blade across the mono or braid. The only time I use a scissor-action is to trim a tag-end close to the standing-line. Roger

I'm not familiar with Paulding County, but we used to live in Rico, GA on the Coweta/Fulton line. We were surrounded by a slew of private pay ponds. They charged a pittance ($1, $3, $5, $10 per day) and depending on the pond, the shore fishing was mediocre to dynamite! Roger

"In-Fisherman Study Reports" There's something like 180 magazines in all, but the first 24 issues were subscription-only and the toughest to find. They're now out of print, but I see specific segments and study reports for sale on occasion. Nothing comes close to the knowledge in the In-Fisherman's Study Reports, if you get hold of them never let them go. Roger

Shimano Crucial Casting Rod Roger

Central Florida - Yes (every year this time) Roger

You bet!

In New Jersey, it's rare to see a bass one-quarter that size

Good question, but I'd have to give the nod to the smallmouth bass. When a fish takes to the air it expends a great deal of energy, so the comparison isn't exactly fair. Spotted bass are strong and dogged, but I believe a spot would run out of gas sooner than a smallie if it engaged in the same aerial acrobatics as the smallie. Roger

Reminds me of a cheerleader's pom-pom

You ever try netting a 10-pounder while sneezing in a zombie-like state with head pressure & watery eyes?

Captain Shane has been fishing central and south Florida for many years, and I know firsthand that he's a true gentleman. http://www.floridaevergladesbassfishingadventures.com/Meet_the_Captain.php Roger

When any 8 out of the 10 have cleared up, that'd be the official 'post-spawn'

In New Jersey back in the 1970s, "Bunker-Dunking" was all the rage for giant striped bass. Before sunup, I'd meet the work boats at the pound nets in Raritan Bay, and buy live bunkers for $1 apiece. We drifted live foot-long menhaden (locally known as 'mossbunkers') on a dropper rig with a sliding egg-sinker. Unfortunately, when drifting a live bunker your biggest nemesis were the schools of bluefish. Blues are ravenous toothy fish that would begin at the tail of the live bunker and chop their way forward. You could feel their sharp jabs like a school of piranhas, but by that time it was too late. When you retrieved the rig you'd find nothing but the head of the bunker, which we promptly tossed into the ocean. One day my friend told me that while cleaning a striped bass he found 3 bunker heads in a striper's stomach! Since that day we never discarded another bunker head, and actually caught striped bass by drifting a fish head on a big treble hook. Crazy but true. Roger

Back in the 50s while still in high school, my mechanical drawing teacher offered me $2 / hour to scrape wallpaper from 3 rooms in his house. It was a super offer that I simply couldn't refuse Roger

I'm going to DOUBLE the biggest tip you ever got It was $50 sir....Okay here's $100...BTW who tipped you $50......It was you sir

We're now at $2.39 per gallon, which seems to be consolidating a bit. Roger

About a year ago, I moved up from my 8-ft Minn Kota Talon to the 12-ft telescoping Talon. What a joy! It's a sleek piledriver with no interfering outrigging (no grasshopper legs like the Power Pole). It has 'rough water' mode where the anchor tamps down to hold the boat in place in choppy weather. In water deeper than 12 ft, the 'Spot Lock' on the Minn Kota electric motor holds the boat in place via GPS Roger

Gitzits, Slug-gos & Senkos were all unseemly to me.

I would have to say 'all the above', and I'm not being facetious. Roger