I'm over here...or am I over here?????

Due to the massive amount of requests for more fishing/hunting related posts on this blog, I (Jared) have to do some posting of my own.  First off fishing.  Since consulting with my fishing coach (John Sanchez) and discussing baits (chicken livers) and tactics (cast and wait), I have become the reigning catfish champion of our subdivision.  There is no official tournament, but I am sure that I have caught the biggest cat in the pond.  

  Lake record holder.

Unfortunately I do not hold the record for most turtles caught in an afternoon (one) which is currently held by Kellen, and I'm not going to even try to tackle the Bluegill record Becky set.  I'm not sure where this fishing section of the blog is going so I'll 

end it there.

I have no pics of Kellen's turtle so here is one of his fish.

Next on the agenda, hunting.  This Thanksgiving while Becky goes to her parents to sit around and eat a fat store bought bird that is surely chock full of steroids (and butter if they know what is good for them and follow Big J's secret recipe (which will not be divulged here)) I will be out with the rest of the Longmire Well Service crew on a duck hunt/bay fishing trip in San Antonio Bay (which is not very close to San Antonio).  As such I have been getting ready for the trip with some sporting clay shooting on Sunday with Jason and Eric (geologists from UH) and more recently with a trip to Bass Pro to get some supplies.  So I bought a bunch of stuff and each piece of clothing seems to have a different style of camouflage, so I will be either super invisible or stand out like a horse in a cathouse.  (If you can spot me in the picture below then the answer is probably the latter).

  Ok I think I wore out the parentheses key so I better finish up. Later 

(Update!!!: It has been brought to my attention that the lake record for Bluegill is being challenged by the 10 year old neighbor kid who taught Becky how to catch fish, he has amassed a much larger tally, but has been filing them under "regular fish".  We'll give you more information as the story develops.)

Cleavage and Killer Ducks

Now that I've got your attention...we'll start with the killer duck. If you're interested in 1 min and 25 seconds of watching a duck snap at my hand, go ahead and let me know, and I'll include the video in my next post. Otherwise, here is my friend Alfredo; we're friends with benefits actually. He gets bread from me, I get to pet him. I named him Alfredo because he looks Italian and is clearly part of the mafia. Or would be if there was a duck mafia. Actually, him and Dark Wing Duck are close associates. Anyway, Alfredo followed me around, nearly snapping off my fingers and refusing to leave me alone. I can't say it's the first time I've been attacked by a duck, Alfredo has had predecessors, but so far he is the best. They can be ferocious. Perhaps that why Jared is going duck hunting next month (which I still think is a little harsh). 

As for the cleavage, Jared and I went to the Renaissance festival this past weekend. I knew it would be fun. I've been wanting to go for years - this time I just got the tickets and told Jared several months in advance there was no choice about the matter. He accepted reluctantly knowing all the things I do but don't want to.  When we were walking up, I noticed massive amount of cleavage and belly fat spewing out of tight wench and gypsy outfits.  So I knew it would be great, and Jared and I were laughing before we even got into the gates. Actually, Jared was already pretty horrified and kept commenting on the crazy people. But I love crazy people. It's one reason I chose psychology as a major, so I was delighted. I already starting to look at costumes that I want to wear next year.

It took a while, but even Jared starting enjoying himself; mostly due to this massive turkey leg. And then he did an ax throw - poorly, I have to say. He didn't even get one in the wood. Followed by more food. I was feeling pretty sick by the end of the day due to the funnel cakes, rootbeer floats (Black Cow), and sausage on a stick. But I did like how everytime I bought something they said, "Thank ye, m'lady." That almost made the outrageous prices worth it. 

I don't know why he think this face looks tough, but its the one he makes when that's what he's trying to indicate.

We also went to several shows - belly dancers, jousting competitions, falconer's exhibition, and a mud show where this guy actually ate a handful of mud. It was horribly disgusting, but the show was funny.

The jousting competition - there was some nasty splintered wood after the brawl.

But I have to say the best part for me is pictured below. I knew I would have a good time, but I had no idea my life long dream was about to come true. I've loved elephants as long as I can remember, and that day - I got to touch and ride on one! When I saw the opportunity, I  just looked at Jared and said, "I don't care how much it costs - I'm doing it." Here I  am paying no attention to anything but the elephant. I couldn't get over how he felt. 

 The coolest elephant ever.

The point here is that it was a good time. Next year, there will be pictures of me in a renaissance style dress to look forward to. :)

Turning 26...

Not the greatest. I've never been one to get depressed on a birthday before. But being closer to 30 than 20 was slap in the face.  Jared tried really hard to make it fun for me - he took me to a really nice restaurant - Masraff's (apparently a favorite of the elderly Bush's), and bought me my favorite dessert - an ENTIRE Godiva chocolate cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory.  The natural consequence of that fateful decision, all but a tiny portion of that has been consumed this week, mostly by me. I also was spoiled with this particular item which I have been wanting for a year. 

He did cheer me up immensely, I was laughing and having a good time by the end of the evening. But I better get to updates - Jared is having a great time with school. A little too good - I tell him. I hassle him about the progress on his thesis nearly every day. But I think he prefers his bowling league to writing papers. Go figure. :) His friend, Kellen, came back from his field work in Switzerland and they lovingly decorated his office beforehand. 

I'm sure Kellen appreciated posters of Hannah Montana and Zac Affron (what a dream boat :) 

Let's see, we still go fishing on a regular basis (last night, I almost caught a catfish so huge he broke my line before I could reel him in) and I'm getting back into school. It was a hard week, but I'm enjoying it more now. I think I'm finally starting to understand why people can stay in teaching for more than 2 years. Some of it is really fun and then other parts are really challenging. But I love a good challenge - so I appreciate that too, a lot of the time. It feels different teaching this year than it did last year. The stress is still there, but nothing is as hard.

Okay, enough. To end this thing, I'll throw in a picture of me wearing Michele's birthday present (my apron). She wasn't sure I'd like the pink - but actually I love it. Pink and purple used to be my favorite colors after all...