Old me

Cleaning out my office in preparation for the move West. Reading over old papers and tests and stupid things I should have thrown out years ago. I'm struck by the thought that the old me has been lost. I remember a philosophical, curious, eager person prepared to take on the world if need be. I am not that young man anymore. It sounds melodramatic, but the world beats you down. I now find myself concentrating on the here and now - trying to enjoy moments - rather than on where I'm headed. The world is too unpredictable, too cruel, and too slow-moving to pay much heed to the dreams and whims of poor boys from Vermont. Especially if you believe that. Focusing on the moments is good - and I need to be better about remembering (documenting?) - but accomplishing something of meaning is gaining importance in my life again. I think my education has simultaneously served to heighten my understanding of how the world works and fog my view of how it can get any better. I need to clear the fog.

PS102 - Exam #1

"Locke thought that most people, in anarchy, would live according to the golden rule -- and they would do so out of fear of revenge. Hobbes said we are all naturally greedy, jealous, and mistrustful. In a state of anarchy, we might all want to follow the golden rule, but we will cheat - mostly out of the fear that our neighbor will cheat first."

"If I have lots of property and get you to believe that a set of laws is good because it will protect your life, your freedom, and your property, I have gotten you to subscribe to a belief that you can never take my property or interfere with my pursuit of more. Since I have more property than you to begin with, I can use this new set of laws to oppress you and remain more powerful."

"The liberal agenda is to limit government spending on welfare (social) programs, limit government intervention in the market, and reduce taxes in a country. Liberals want other countries to stop wasting money on people who can't help themselves, collect those monies owed to them, and let the invisible hand guide the market. The people of "X" might oppose this because they do not believe the "universal" values that liberalism is based on. Perhaps they believe all people, in order to be happy, must have food, water, and shelter and that it is a government's responsibility to provide these goods, no matter the cost."

"Those in charge of social engineering in USSR thought they knew what a perfect society was. To them, this notion justified any means by which to reach this end. This is not based on the idea that each man may have a different idea of happiness, but rather on the the modern thought that if you sit and think and write long enough, you will understand certain "truths" in life - and that these truths are the same for all mankind. After seeing what atrocities could arise from such assumptions, this rationale (although still accepted by many) has been rejected by most in the educated and political world."

"Market World - is based on individual greed, creativity and productivity. It is based on the belief that the market will provide for all and allow for social reforms. It is based on a belief that the market, not the government, will protect all people and things needing protection. For this reason, Market World has no trade barriers, no government imposed environmental regulations, and no social welfare programs. It is a world where success trickles down and becomes success for the poor.

Fortress World - is based on the idea that market world will fail. It is based on the belief that the rich get rich on the backs of the poor and of the environment. All success in fortress world is concentrated in small islands surrounded by oceans of poverty; oceans filled with hostile poor, eager to undermine the success that mocks them.

Transformed World - is based on an evolution of values: instead of valuing profit, people will be more important. Employment before profit. Fairness will be more important than success. In this World, market pressures shift from greed to more humanitarian desires. In an attempt to avoid Fortress World, people in Transformed World make inclusion of all in the success of society a top priority"

Spring in PA

After many too many days of cold weather, rain, and late snow squalls, spring has finally sprung in Happy Valley. As the buds are bursting and new leaves stretching skyward I've been trying to spend as much time as possible in the turkey woods and in trout waters before the move West. The trout have been cooperative, the turkeys not so much, although there have been two close calls. After a silent opening morning, I spent the first Monday on the Weaver property. Walking the entire border of the property yielded nothing, but as I was leaving I found myself peeking into the front field where a Tom and two Jakes were strutting their stuff and chasing each other around. After a belly-crawl to the corner of the field edge, the yellow gate to my left, I posted my gun on the left side of a white oak and gave some soft purrs and clucks. The Tom came running from right to left. "Perfect!" Or so I thought. Instead of his head poking out from behind that oak, all I saw was the tip of his tail, down, as he turned and headed back into the field. I guess I should have set up on the other side of that tree... Sonova... Being on the edge of the posters, and knowing there was at least one other hunter wandering the property, I hesitated. As usual, just a moment of doubt erases opportunity. In hindsight, I should have swung steadily around that tree and pulled the trigger, but within seconds that bird had retreated back down into the center of the field - my decision making time blew my chance. I regrouped and called again, but only the smallest Jake would come in. He stood at 15 yards in my sights for a few minutes, but I passed; his beard was barely protruding from his chest.



The second chance came with Paul and Ben a few days later. After toying with a hen on "gobbler's knob," we moved in on a Tom that finally decided to be vocal. We snuck within 50 yards and set up just as he came into view through the understory. Ben was to my left, Paul behind us calling. He came in within 20 yards but was always behind thick brush - very thick stand with a short canopy and lots of deadfall. As soon as he was in sight, two hens showed up as well. I think we all converged at the same moment, because those hens cut his path off (to my gun)and steered him away, silencing his gobble, and ruining our opportunity. Attempts to circle them and re-engage were futile.

Luckily, the fishing has been more fruitful. Ben and I headed down to the Little J the past two nights. The sulphurs were around, but no spinner fall to speak of. Regardless, we've caught about 40 fish in a total of 5-6 hours.

Mother's day brought a relatively uncrowded stream - suckers! - and we were able to cover a lot of water that hadn't seen guys in a while. The side channels proved most productive with some fat browns sipping our dries and emergers in little more than 5" of water. After I broke my rod (yep, shit), Ben and I shared his rod, alternating fish. Well, either one lunker or three small ones brought on a change in hands. The rod break was a blessing in disguise as we stood side-by-side all evening, guiding each other, talking flies and strategy and celebrating each perfect drift, each sip or strike, and each netted brute.

Last night was a little less productive - we had to work for each fish, but we managed to pull them from tricky locations across big runs, tucked in eddies, under branches, and to outlast those picky fish waiting several minutes before rises, waiting for the perfect bug. Again, the spinner fall was absent, but the sulphurs are definitely on. Hope this rain holds out for our trip to the Quehanna...