“Grandpa took us gigging.” That is perhaps how young Miss Scarlett will describe the past weekend’s events to classmates later. Grandpa, 86-year-old Tod, did indeed take “us” gigging. He purchased a gigging trip at a 4-H fundraiser, paying a bit over $500. We were
“I have lived so long and learned so much, I can’t begin to remember everything I’ve learned!” Rick Mansfield So explained my dear friend Ray Joe Hastings, author, gig-maker, historian and all-around good guy. He had just recently coined that phrase in an attempt
“Numbers rule the universe.” So believed Greek philosopher and mathematician Pythagoras, who lived centuries before the birth of Christ. A few centuries later, fellow Greek thinker Proclus thought “Wherever there is number, there is beauty.” Nearly two millennium later American writer Nathanael West
Growing up I soon realized we children generally saw things in the same way our parents saw things. Or as maybe grandparents or merely those in the community with far more years under their belt than we. Some of my more memorable models
“Just the facts, ma’am. Just the facts.” Such was the message conveyed to my wife recently, per what apparently is a “Media Moderator” that is “seeking to re-instill truth into reporting.” Rick Mansfield Not sure if this is a governmentally-funded position or purely fictional.
“I’m here as ballast!” So spoke the elder of the Bland and Bland fishing team at the recently held “Buddy Bass Fishing Tournament Winter Classic.” This was its twenty-seventh year and continues to be a large source of supplemental income for the Ellington Nutrition Center.
Thousands of young men and women are currently in our Ozark hills and hollows, streams and streambeds, taking part in an annual harvest going back generations. They are harvesting deer and are harvesting fish. It is that time of year that whole families take
It has been said that “fishing is a way to be at peace with the world and oneself.” Not sure who said it, but they knew what they were talking about. At least for me they did. Rick Mansfield And one of the
“You did what?” my uncle asked, not so nicely. He has a way of making an inquiry about one’s health sound like an interrogation. Rick Mansfield “I fell. Out of the boat. I fell out of the boat.” I explained for what seemed like the
The lights didn’t help; I fell out of the boat anyway Read More »
“While you can!” This was an uncle’s response when he heard me talking about fishing for stripers this spring. I looked somewhat puzzled. He explained. Rick Mansfield “But a vapor we are told. Not only are we not promised tomorrow, but at our age we
Life is a journey of balances & choices; let’s not vegetate Read More »
“While you can!” This was an uncle’s response when he heard me talking about fishing for stripers this spring. Rick Mansfield I looked somewhat puzzled. He explained. “But a vapor we are told. Not only are we not promised tomorrow, but at our age we
“Take some if you need them; leave them when you are finished.” Such advice was given to some friends just yesterday as they visited an iconic site on the Mississippi. Due to my aversion to severe respiratory infections, I am currently pretty much isolating
