Give 'Em Hell Teddy

WORDS TO LIVE BY

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WALLPAPER:  ZANTE CURRANTS

What, Me Worry?

It's a Mad, Mad, Mad, Mad World

1L,  2L,  3L,  4L  5L.

Swamp Creatures

THE BEST WE HAVE

Just Ignore It All

the bard knows

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.. There is an old West Yellowstone adage: "Hire clowns: watch the circus!"
.. It's easy to be jocular as we ridicule Democrats. It's easy to be jocular as we ridicule Republicans. It's too easy to be amused by the tone of our national catharsis in the political arena.

SEMINAR ON SUCKING UP

.. There is enough blame to go around as our elected representatives, (of all stripes,) ignore principle, protocol, process, constitutionality, legality, and civility.
.. We should be outraged. We seem to be amused. There is an underlying seriousness about the circus playing out in Washington, D.C. All of us, (politically inclined or not,) should be paying close attention to the drama.

TAKE A PILL - IT'S OVER - YOU LOST

.. This comedy tragedy is not a footnote in future history books. This is several chapters  about the character of our constitutional republic and the rule of law.
.. This is about ass kissing and placing party above country.
.. This is about malfeasance of the finest kind.
.. This is about the pathology of power and it's ultimate consequences for our nation.

I'LL HAVE YOUR BALLS !!

.. Protestations from all stripes of the political spectrum demand that we examine the course of our nation.
.. Braggadocio and protestations within the current climate of our nation's capitol are too serious to ignore.
.. This, sad but true, is not politics as usual.  President Trump promised to "shake things up." We voted for that. We also voted for the sycophants and combatants that exist in the legislature.
.. This is most probably the result of emotionalism in the electoral politics of our moneyed campaigns.
.. We have gotten what we wished for. We have allowed ourselves to be swayed by money. It's the current American disease: money rules and that is it.

PLEASE FOLLOW THE RULES

.. It's most interesting for us to watch the pathological lairs from both sides of the aisle. They conform to the lair's code and do it so well.
.. Hell's bells, this was a code perfected by fisher folk in this part of the world.
.. Fly fishers themselves believe their own lies. Each and every fly tied by a fisher is the absolute best fly ever. That's why there are so many flies.

.. Each and every rod is the best and so, the reel, line, brand, river, boat, etc. We see it daily. It can almost be forgiven at the merchandising level.
.. It's the American Way = believe the others lies and avoid the thought process of doing it yourself. It's easy to do and, fly fishing has capitalized on it commercially.
.. The American electorate and fly fishers have this in common: they are lazy and subscribe to connoisseurship rather than becoming involved in the rigorous endeavor of intelligent exploration.
.. At it's worst the American electorate knows neither the facts nor the substance of our constitution and the law of the land.
.. At it's best the electorate accepts the word of the media, religion, club, social group or, divinity.
.. There are simple reasons for strident protestations. The bard knew. His play within a play shows it nicely.

.. In Washington, D.C. and, across our nation there are plays within plays that are strutting their stuff and being believed or, being giggled at.
.. Protest loudly enough and the substance of the protest is lost in the strident play of words and deeds. It's a sleight of hand and mouth that is being perfected and practiced before us.
.. We are of the belief, sadly, that both fishers and politicians will continue to behave more and more in the current manner.
.. The Romans did it, The Hittites did it, The Sumerians did it. The Chinese do it. The Russians do it. The Catholics do it. The Protestants do it. The Koreans do it. The French do it. Volkswagen does it. Carrier does it. Americans do it - perhaps best of all.

THE TRUTH SHALL SET YOU FREE

.. They do it as it satisfies the ego. It is much more fulfilling to believe the good lie about oneself than to explore the world without rose colored glasses. No grains of salt in the American psyche, (or that of fly fishers?)
.. The lost art of truth telling makes for sorry choices. Pick the best lie and go on down the road.
.. Ask Orvis who makes the best fly rods. Ask Hardy. Ask Fisher. Ask your neighbor. It's all the same. Pick a lie and be happy in the self delusion.
.. Or, believe the Democrat on the tube, the Republican on the tube, Rachel Maddow or Sean Hannity  --  pick your lies and giggle as our national principles get washed down the toilet. At least you will know that you are the most correct of all the people in the world.

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.. Geeze it's warm. The ukulele strummers are having a hard time keeping their instruments in tune. The streets are turning into midday slush and the skiers have run out of the correct colors of wax.

PREGNANT SCUD

.. We will be treated to a couple more nights of cool temperatures and then even the night will be welcoming.
.. It's that time of year up here. This is the false Spring that has newcomers believing that our seasons match those of the lowlanders. HAH !!
.. Ice fishers are scoring with worms, maggots, hamburger, and pregnant scuds.
.. Down canyon, (in the regions around Four Corners,) the folks in Bozeman are taking advantage of the gentle weather and thrashing the Gallatin River waters to a froth. Very deep and very slow with a very sparse and very dark streamer will poke the best fish where it counts.

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WALLPAPER:  ALASKAN POLLOCK AND POTATOES

Anticipation

UKESTERS ARRIVING

Big Doin's In Town

plastic, wood strums

WALLPAPER:   UKULELE FEST IN WEST YELLOWSTONE

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GREEN PLASTIC

.. We never knew that there were so many ukulele players in our neighborhood. There are plastic, waterproof, wood, coconut, and metal ukuleles. Who knew.
.. Visitors are coming from miles around: even from foreign countries like Idaho and Bozeman.
.. The celebrities are firmly ensconced in luxury accommodations and strolling around  -  with the little guitars  -  or whatevers.

BROWN PLASTIC

.. In two days the strumming and plunking will echo in our village. Maybe the visitors will serenade the dusty aisles of the feather merchants that are still open. Could wake them up.
.. The big event starts on "Groundhog Day Eve," (February 1, 2018) and, concludes on Groundhog Day, (February 2, 2018.)
.. If, and only if, the concertmaster sees his shadow before noon on February 2, 2018 there will be two more months of winter.
.. If, and only if, he does not see his shadow on February 2, 2018, then there will be two more months of winter.  Hey, we're here in West Yellowstone.

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CUTE_n_FUZZY

.. Aha, brief break in the snowfall: warming up, more to come, nice wet and heavy snow, can even make a snowman  -- bring it on.
.. Just enough time to visit the grocery store and the Post Office to catch up on the rumor mill.
.. We'll let you know.

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WALLPAPER:    BREAKFAST SERVICE

In Eleven Days

SHE'S THERE

The AP Found Her

girl on the 1/2 pipe

..

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The neighbor kids reminded us.

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WALLPAPER:   VANILLA ICE CREAM PLUS

Small Update

NEW OWNERS

New Signs

less feather merchants

FEATHER MERCHANTS OF WEST YELLOWSTONE

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NEW SIGN IN TOWN

.. The recent amalgamation of feather merchants in our little village requires a new map.
.. We figure that a town with twice as many pubs as fly shops and, more fly shops than churches deserves it's very own map.
.. Click on the map to see original and then save it to wherever you like.

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.. The snow is coming back this afternoon.  It's going to be warm enough to bring us another dump of the wet stuff rather than the dry stuff.
.. Breakfast was early and there's time for a quick dash to NOTELLUM CREEK ESTUARY. The midges are swarming in the morning sun. Off we go.

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WALLPAPER:  OVEN BBQ RIBS - YUM !

SELL IT !!

LAND FOR FREEWAYS

Our G'munt At Play

rural vs. urban  ??

MONTANA'S  GIFT  TO  AMERICA

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.. The leaked presidential infrastructure plan is available on line. We're hoping it really is  just a draft with talking points only.
.. View the Fact Sheet PDF Here - 1.  View the Funding Principles Here - 2.
.. Below we've highlighted an interesting obnoxious shitty way to fund the bridges, water supplies, roads, airports, electrical distribution, and other bits of our crumbling infrastructure.

AMERICA'S GIFT TO THE WORLD

.. We're quite sure that there will be much pork to be consumed across the nation in celebration of the proposal.
.. We anticipate that the proposed federal contributions to the projects will go up and that the proposed private contributions will go down.
.. We do need help for our dated and obsolete infrastructure: no question about it.
.. We also need the adults in the room to take a stand on the way we go about the help. We question weather a philandering con artist and dime store cowboy have the answers that America needs.

RESOURCES

>> AXIOS
>> CNBC
>> FOX BUSINESS NEWS
>> MOLDY CHUM

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.. We've had some snow in dribs and drabs and the high country is piling up nicely. The temperatures have been moderate and seasonal or, slightly on the less cold side.
.. Even the neighbors with legs that wobble less than ours have been out in the real world of catch - release - and - brag.

RIGHT SIZE SMOKER

.. Winter fishing pressure from visitors has slowed over the last decade or so and now there are two feather merchants completely closed up.
.. Catching success has been mixed. Ice fishers are stocking up on 'smokers,' (Mountain Whitefish,) while stream fishers are still pestering spawners from the rivers.
.. Should you happen to know where Indian Creek joins the Madison River you might easily take a fish every 10 minutes.

A PINK FEATHER DUSTER

.. Both trout and mountain whitefish use the lower reaches of this ephemeral creek and hang out until Spring around it's mouth.
.. Our ice rink is slick and fast, the town roads are in excellent shape, trinket and T-shirt shops are open and, visitors are strolling the walkways. The only hazard in town is the skiers who insist on walking six abreast in the road - such is life.

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.. It's early and we're having a midlife morning so perhaps we'll shovel in the dark, warm our buns by the stove, contemplate the universe and have an early breakfast. Or, try to get a couple of hours of shuteye.

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WALLPAPER:  RIB STEAK AND EGG