schplurg

About Swindle: $60,000 a year was a lot more money 37 years ago when he started. Nowadays that might cover your fuel...in truck not the boat

I don't like the fact that Musk is sending up tens of thousands of satellites to do this and neither do astronomers. I'm not a big fan because of that. And what...a $700 deposit? Great!

I haven't decided what I like best yet. I use sunscreen and wear shorts when I bank fish. I've used a UV shirt but it's a cheap one. A little hot but it works. Sunscreen goes on everything exposed and it works really well. I don't need to reapply it much if at all. Don't forget your ears and nose, back of the neck! I pretty much have done the same in the kayak but I am going to experiment. I have gloves, the shirts. I've gone in the yak fully clothed too, complete with sneakers and pants. If you wear a ball cap be careful, I feel like I get too much sun through mine. Or maybe it irritates my head, it never looks burned.

Sounds good man, and I'm glad you started this thread. It actually takes guts to talk about this, even with "strangers" on a message board. I went to the park/lake but didn't bring a rod. I really was the old man on the park bench, like my Mom said. I sent her a picture of me on a park bench haha and she laughed! I have a cool Mom. Some ducks walked up to me and stared at me for a few minutes. I didn't feed them so they waddled away. They know the sound of food wrappers there that's for sure. I like the little nature things I see when I'm fishing. Sometimes being too busy is good! Can't wait to work full time again, or at least more. Sounds crazy geez! But I love the place and socializing there.

I'm not religious but I do sincerely appreciate the thought, and I'm glad it helped you. You too Koz and anyone else who has mentioned it. I kinda avoiding mentioning it before, but thanks. Gonna go for a walk, maybe fish. Well heck may as well bring a rod I called my Mom today and told her about how I went fishing the other day just to chill out. She says "You're one of the old men sitting on a bench at the park now!" LOL. I'm 54, shes 75. Very funny, Mom! I just look old! I've been dealing with the ADD thing since 2nd grade. "Mike is very smart but doesn't apply himself and is easily distracted" They didn't have a name for it then. My Dad saw something was off and started taking me to doctors. I think he overdid it and gave me a complex I love him for trying, especially back almost 50 years ago when nobody knew anything. He doesn't even understand it completely but he's always been there. Good man. He's still around too Feels like an AA meeting (seen it on TV). Anyone else wanna share with the group?

100 pounds is pretty easy to get on a roof rack barring any major physical issues. One end at a time. I have a sketchy back and I do it. Another method would be nicer though. What if you drive with the sunroof open? No stress on it! I just took a look at your vehicle, hmmm. I dunno about roofin it. My mini-van is long and easy to secure. I'd use a trailer if I could store on and had a hitch on my van.

Yep I need to stop with the news. But I don't just read news, I've been involved with critical thinking and skepticism for a long time and I debate with people online. We discuss current events and politics, science, and other topics. Ya maybe I'm weird. That place has gotten too much for me though and yes I need to stop. Too much hate, too much anger and fingerpointing. It's hard because the people there are intelligent, well not all, and I learn a lot about other perspectives. We have members around the world. I don't think I need to "work on" these skills anymore after so many years. This may all sound weird but whatever. It's been great but I think it's time to move on. I don't drink coffee. I do think this country is in big trouble. I won't get into details, but that's a difficult one to ignore for me I don't want to be one of the clueless, though sometimes I wish I were. Bliss and all that Fishing is very therapeutic for me. A few years ago I was having financial problems and a day at the Delta levy took it all off of my mind. The thing that started this thread was a guy not having the motivation to fish though, so there's that problem. Anyways, good responses here. I'd love to get another dog someday. I am a bit lonely these days. I just can't have a dog right now where I live. Dang. But enough about me!

Man I'm talking a lot but I want to point out one more thing that I touched on earlier. A lot of people who don't normally have depression or anxiety issues are now feeling it in some ways because of everything going on in the world these days. We have chaos in politics here, a pandemic that left us largely isolated from each other for long lengths of time and afraid we could die, and now the threat of a major conflict (more major than it already is) with a madman threatening to use nukes. It's like being in 3 horror movies at the same time. A young gal I work with caught Covid early before the vaccines. She gave it to a friend and that friends Dad got it and died. My coworker felt great guilt even though she didn't know she had it. She talked about it with me. We're afraid of killing each other too, not just ourselves! That's heavy. A lot of us went through the cold war so maybe the Russia thing isn't anything new to us, but I called a younger friend of mine to go fishing and he was saying "How can I think about fishing when Ukraine was attacked yesterday?" It's cool that he cares of course, but I talked him down and we went fishing, but it dawned on me that this is new for a lot of people. It is scary. We talked about it some while we fished. I mean we've been wondering, especially for the first year "Will I die if I get this virus that everyone around me is getting?" That's gotta affect people man. That's traumatic really. If you're not feeling it at least a little bit then I want whatever you're smokin' (and that doesn't help my ADD either)!!! But seriously, my HR department says for the past two years workers have been complaining of being unusually tired and generally unhappy and wondering why. A lot of them. The experts realize that this is happening. I guess I'm just trying to say: heck no, the OP (first poster) is not alone, nor am I. Not even close. I'm gonna stop typing now. I'm a little buzzed so...

Way too many negative stories involving Paxil. No way, but I don't need it. My sister was involved in a class action lawsuit many many years ago. I mean not "involved" but she got a settlement. You gotta be real careful with it. She had bad reactions. She only used meds temporarily after a bad time in her life. I don't have bad depression really, it's mainly ADD. My brain goes too fast. I won't do SSRIs at all. I can actually go without meds okay but I am way more productive and steady with the Bupropion/Wellbutrin than with nothing. There are people out there who have depression way worse than I do. Maybe it would help them. I've tried other stuff in the past. My doctors were frustrated trying to medicate me long ago. Said I was an unusual case. I've been taking Wellbutrin for a few decades, sometimes off but mostly on, and I can't see that it has harmed me, as in side effects or growing a third eye I am going to see a doctor soon though to reevaluate me. Been a long time. This med thing is really frustrating. It isn't perfect and I have stopped many times, but I always go back. I'm happier with it, but it isn't perfect. And not all generics are made equally. I found that out the hard way. Sometimes I feel like it isn't worth it, but usually I guess it is. BTW I hope @ThatFishingGuy is still around and feeling better (fishing).. Shouldn't his username be linked, did I do it wrong?

Dude give us time! Bunch of slow old guys here! Well they are, not me. I only own one Daiwa (Fuego CT) and I'm not the most knowledgeable person here, but I'd say no, that does not sound normal. You will get better responses from the old guys soon!!!

Saving money is cool, but if you wait two years to buy one, that's two years out of your life without a boat. Maybe that's okay, but the older I get the less okay that is for me. And who knows, maybe some other disaster will come along (WWIII?) and make the wait for good prices even longer. Good points. I remember when they broke up Bell telephone. I was in Jr High I think. That was nothing compared to Amazon. You can buy your way out of anything in this country. We are seeing it daily in the news. Some people are ju$t above the law.

You remove the pedal drive when you put it on the roof rack. That would take care of a little weight. I think the yak is 85 pounds? My parents told me not to stand on chairs when I was a kid!

I'm still not sure why, but..... Float Tubes All float tubes require launch permits, which should be displayed in a manner similar to fishing licenses. All persons in float tubes must wear a U.S. Coast Guard approved Personal Floatation Devices (PFD’s) at all times. Use of float tubes is restricted to the Castaic Lake Lagoon. Whistles or other sound signaling devices, while not required, ARE STRONGLY RECOMMENDED. A 12” x 12” orange square is required on the back of the float tube. I am so SOOOO glad I grew up when I did. We'd walk, whatever to the local small lake, launch a tiny sailboat, rafts, swim. Can't do any of it now, at least not here.

Is this because of Quaga? Some lakes around me don't allow contact with the water (no swimming) but don't people ski in those two lakes? Just curious.

Nobody is perfect. It's no surprise that something as complicated as the human brain isn't made perfectly. One leg shorter than the other, colorblindness, allergies. Humans are an all around mess! Edit to add: Just look at my "hair"!!!!!

In my mind "finesse" is a verb, in other words how you fish. Most may not agree but that's how I look at it. I have two styles - slow and fast, and stuff in between I'm sure. Nothing to do with "power". The term "Power fishing" makes no sense to me. I think that I can finesse any bait. Again, in my mind, finesse has to do with the action of the bait. If I'm reeling in a wacky rig at 50 mph with a light rod it is not finesse fishing to me. As for the OP, I would think it more likely that a bass willing to strike a fast moving bait would be more willing to bite a slow one rather than the opposite. Lazy fish: I'm only eating stuff I can get to easily. Active fish: I'll eat anything. Just a guess though.

It's never happened to me. Firefox Win 7

Sorry if I'm taking over the thread. I just took this photo on my "forced" fishing trip today. Lousy camera but I wanted to prove I went haha. And just show that I got to see this instead of looking at my PC screen all day Two geese swam up to me, came ashore about 15 feet to my left. Was cool just watching them. One stood up, spread his wings and flapped them a few times and all kinds of dust and sticks and twigs blew around. I could feel the air moving. Never noticed that before. It's the simple things sometimes. I walked around the lake, cast here and there, then went home. I've never even had a bite here. Didn't care.

It would be great if you could borrow a kayak - any kayak and see if you even like being in one. I hated my first yak. Not stable enough, no pedals, hated being stuck in a seat. Thought I'd never try it again. But with the new one, pedals, super stable, seat is about the same, I love it. Getting rid of the paddle was a biggie. It's a better yak all around. You don't have to try the one you want to buy. Just being on the water, being so low to it, having limited movement will give you an idea not only if you like kayaks, but what you might like in the one you want.

If you can't see it, it ain't broke. That is a big problem with this I think. I have a friend who hit a tree snowboarding and tumbled down a hillside. Long story short he still has issues with his brain. I can tell, but I know why. He's usually fine but every once in awhile I can see it. Totally understandable of course, and we talk about it. Well it's good that it is becoming more understood by people. Like I said, 1 out of 10 are on anti-depressants, and who knows what the other 9 may be doing. I talked to my boss today who is also a friend. I didn't want to try to explain this to him (I called in sick this week) but he said, "Ya my brother has problems too when he runs out or stops taking his meds" I was like, okay cool, you "get it". Was a load off my mind. Incidentally, I've tried CBD too. I like it sometimes. It seems to take the edge off. It's so mild to me it's hard to tell sometimes. Definitely helps me sleep too. But just do it occasionally. Funny, my Mom, Dad and Stepdad have all tried it, either creams or tablet form. Times are a changin!

Also, Koz has a good point. I'm not religious, but as I said above, knowing you have a problem can at least help. Praying, or asking a person for help can both probably be beneficial because you are admitting it to yourself. Saying it out loud. I dunno what I'm trying to say really. Why do dogs have it so easy? Your dog ever complain about a headache? "Oh I don't feel like going for a ride" Heck no! No matter when you grab your car keys that dog is at your feet ready to go whether they're dead asleep or in the middle of a meal. No issues, no BS. If they're not ready to go then you KNOW they're sick. Dang I wish it was that easy for us!

Nothing has to trigger depression. I try and explain it to people like this, maybe it's a bad analogy: "You know how you feel when someone close to you dies (or something similar)? That's what depression feels like, except you don't need a death to bring it on. Like the weight of the world is on your shoulders, but for no reason at all" Your brain squirts a little juice into your bloodstream and that is what makes us feel sad, or happy, or horny. With depression your brain does this for no reason (the sad part). The drugs simply try and control what your brain is releasing, simply put. It is just my brain screwin with me, as I said earlier. I know this, but it is still real. People kill themselves because of depression. You're down, no motivation, things seem like a waste of time. It's not a mystery either, it's science. We know what is going on, it's just hard to fix. I cannot meditate, pray or talk myself out of this. It is a part of me. But knowing that can make it easier. Kind of. And I don't even have it that bad. Last time I felt bad I remembered that it's just my brain screwing around and that helped me deal with it. Knowledge is power whether it be from doctors, research, or experience. One more thing: Years ago my doctor told me this. "We can do therapy and talk about your mother , we can talk about your life history for a year, or we can try a few meds and see if anything helps. You know, get you functional then maybe go from there. In the end the meds made it the most tolerable, allowed me to live my life, hold a job, be functional. And what the heck I've gone this far...I take Wellbutrin. It's mild, low side effects, and is good for ADD and mild depression. It isn't perfect but when I've quit in the past I always go back to it. I take it primarily for ADD but it helps depression too. Now this is way more than I expect to tell people on a fishing forum, but screw it, what the heck. If it helps anyone then cool. If not maybe it'll help me! And we shouldn't be afraid to talk about it.

Just got back, glad I went. No fish, said hi to a few people and was glad I wasn't sitting in front of the computer instead. Fished a little, sat down a little. I don't feel awesome but I feel "better" and like I did something today. I'm actually going through a bit of a physical therapy as well, so I'm a little slower still. I walked across a footbridge and looked down at a 15 pound carp in about 4 feet of water, just sitting there. A kid walked up and we watched that fish rise up then blast out of the water to eat something. That was a cool view of it. This lake is in San Jose, just a park. I've also been on workers comp for a bit and that has been a bummer. I work part time still, but too much time on my hands. Thankfully it's time to fish, and I'm almost ready to go back to full time. Whoopee LOL.

Ya I have issues with depression/ADD, not too bad but sometimes it can be. I am the same right now, lazy and unmotivated. But I also had an issue with my meds recently and had to go through withdrawls, then start again (doctor screwed up, thanks doc) TIP: Sometimes I just make myself go fishing. Like "Get off your butt and go dude, it's just your mind effin with you!" Go to a pond, local lake and bank fish. I'm usually glad I did. Even just for an hour. I think with today's political chaos, Covid and now Russia/Ukraine that there is a lot to be concerned about and it is no wonder many of us are having problems. Oh ya, we all have our own stresses on top of that too! Good thread. It's a shame that mental illness, whether mild or severe, is still thought of as being for wussies. "Oh just get over it!" Ya right. Though it is not nearly as much of a stigma as it used to be. I mean something like 1/10 of people over 12 in this country are on antidepressants (I just looked it up). There is a LOT more understanding now. I'm actually going to see a shrink a couple of times just to maybe get a better grip on stress management, look into different meds and maybe to be reminded that no, I'm not crazy, the rest of the world is. Okay I'm a little nuts My other TIP is to talk about it. Here, with friends or family, with a doctor, if for no other reason just to realize that you are not alone. Sometimes if I complete a task or chore I've been putting off that makes me feel better. No you are not alone, my brother. Edit to add: if anyone is having really bad thoughts please talk to a professional. Don't mess around, suicide is a big killer in this country - 47,000 in 2020. I've been bad a few times in my life. I sold my only gun 5 years ago just in case. I scared myself a little. Edit 2 I just talked myself into getting out of the house for a couple hours. Went like this: "Mike, take your own advice and go for a walk at the lake in town. Well heck. may as well grab a rod! Don't bring any tackle or back pack though, no pressure, just one rod and whatever plastic is on the hook and that's it. GO!!!" I'm going! Never caught a fish there but I'm just gettin out of the house

I've only done local bank fishing still and it's actually been good for me. But we're talking four fish. It's still better than the zeros I've had the three years prior by this time of year. But by Bay Area I mean south bay.