Thursday, May 21, 2009

Decision Time

IT'S A WONDERFUL WORLD
Flip A Coin ?
couch time-------
.. It's not like the park is going to run away. Baring a catastrophic eruption, fishing will be better next week than it is this week. And probably better the week after that.
.. The high flows are a good thing for the rivers. Boulders get rearranged, channels are rearranged, overbank sediments replenish the meadows, the weak fish get sorted out, some eggs get redistributed, fry have new habitats to explore, and fisher folk avoid streams like the plague. All-in-all a very healthy situation.
.. We've missed a few opening day visitations to Yellowstone National Park. We hope to live long enough to miss a few more.
.. We've done the requisite scouting. There are some mighty inviting prospects this year. Better than some years: not as good as others. We've considered the options for Saturday, and Sunday, and the next 5 months as well.
.. We've considered that another tradition conflicts with the opener this year; (as it does every year,) the Indianapolis 500.
.. While it's maybe not the spectacle it once was. And, while the current formula has reduced automotive development to the tricks of tuning a Honda engine in a Dallara chassis. And, while it's a bit of a parade; it's still 500 miles at 200 mph.
.. There's also the girls: Sarah, Milka, Danica. These kids have taken the example set by earlier women to new heights. Although we'll probably not see the tattoo on one of them - we will see a few guys get tattooed by the gals, and a couple of them have an honest shot at winning. That would be worth watching.
.. We've also a local activity that is just as important as either opening day or the 100th anniversary of the speedway: Fir Ridge Clean-up, and services.
.. The cemetery at Fir Ridge has planted in it some old friends and neighbors. It gets walloped every winter. Some of the Vets in town along with other neighbors get together and clean up the place. It's a good time to reminisce and do our civic duty.
.. The Memorial Day services at the cemetery do a bit to remind us of the past wars and conflicts America has participated in. It brings service to country and Memorial Day to mind like fishing can't.
.. Then there's the corralling of the painted buffalo. These works of art commemorate the "Buffalo Roam" event that lasts all summer. And this is the last of the three year celebration. They will be auctioned off at the end of the summer.
.. This year's annual "IMAX Film Festival" includes eight movies for one low price over the weekend. The movies, in addition to Yellowstone, include Lewis & Clark, Hurricane on the Bayou, Bears, Wolves, and others.
.. What a wonderful world. The choices are nearly endless. The decisions are fraught with peril, (or at least anxiety.) What will be available next week after the unique events of this week are gone? Fishing and catching is surely one of the things that will be available, (baring a catastrophic eruption,) and it should be better.
.. We'll decide tomorrow morning or Saturday morning. We'll sleep on it tonight and tomorrow night.