Monday 22 March 2021

How To Pick The Right Boat

There are two questions that should be considered when choosing the right boat: 




The first is "What will be the fishing for?" and then "where will the fishing activities be?" 

Always look for the signs of quality check the carpet and the compartments - they could be plastic, metal or fiberglass. Look at the little but very important things like the 1000 GPH bilge pump, the six gauge wiring instead of ten or eight that is because heavier wires gives more power from the battery up to the trolling motor.

There is Five Star Advantage that ranger dealers often speak to their customers: Quality, Safety, Innovation, Performance, and Value. Below is a list of "must have" things when buying your first boat.

Tow Vehicle - This is one of the most important piece of your equipment, ensured that has the rating to get the job done like loading up to 3500 lbs. of weight that could easily pull the boat up the hills and mountainous treks.

Bass Boats - For first timers, consider a second hand boat. This will be a trial and error stage where fishing skills can be tested. Consider a larger boat, which is about 19 feet with 20 to 30 miles speed for larger bodies of water.

Aluminum - In smaller lakes, a 16-18 foot aluminum boat is a good choice. It is cheaper than fiberglass and more forgiving of bangs, running up into shallows and hitting stumps and rocks. The only downside is that it rides rougher even with the slightest winds.

Fiberglass - This two-stroke engine is much more expensive which could cost from $20,000 to as much as $50,000. The good thing with this boat is that it could handle bigger, rougher water and still give you a smooth ride.

Brand new versus Second Hand - Buying a second hand boat is not only cheaper but holds their value longer and better. The downside is that you''ll probably inherit someone else''s troubles. During casual inspection, outboard engines problems are not easily identified. The best thing to do is bring someone you trust with you to inspect a prospective boat or buy from someone you know instead.

Handling the Boat - Listen to the pitch change when trimming down. Although it will be very difficult for beginners like trying to launch and retrieve the boat backing it down the ramp. Never worry, because everyone passed that stage and there''s no boat owner that is not willing to help a first timer learn. Sometimes all it takes is just 4 hours to learn the basics.

Buying a dreamboat is very exciting. It is not the boat that really matters but the experiences that come with fishing.


Saturday 20 February 2021

Coffee With Friends



This morning was a bit of a welcome surprise! This usually quite den was a bustle with activity. I have watched single marmots sun themselves atop this hill for the past two spring and summers but today was the first sign of what I assume to be a successful mating season. I had no idea of what lay hidden deep in those rocks. My wife and I have had many conversations about the biology of these quiet shy neighbours of ours. For instance, they disappeared mid summer last year leaving us bewildered as to where they went. I had many hypothesis about the disappearance none of which I care to share and all of which were dead wrong anyway. We later found out that they go back into hibernation very early in the season…who knew? Now with this new development it is all becoming more clear. I’m no expert on the Yellow Bellied Marmot but judging by the size of these young’ns, they must have been born sometime during the long winter hibernation. To my surprise, with the little time I spent, mom was no where to be seen. Needless to say I still had some real fun with the “new kids on the block!”

I shot this image with my 500 f4 and the my 5D III. Quite the sight for my neighbours I’m sure…big man in his back yard with big lens hunched over his tripod wearing only his boxer shorts at 6 in the morning:)

Update: Morning two. (today)

This morning was a little different with mom now on scene watching contently as the newbies got another taste of their new found freedom from the den. From yesterdays count I totalled five little tykes running amuck but upon review of this last image I shot this morning….six! The power of photography to reveal little details that are sometimes not so obvious at first, cool…

What a crew!

Ill keep my camera close by over the coming months and bring you some updates as to the well being of this gang. I suspect that all will not make it. We have a heavy coyote presence around this year and raptors are constantly soaring over head so we will see what happens….enjoy and leave a comment or suggestion if you so please!

P.S.
Here is some test footage I also shot…I was taken more or less to see if I could figure out how to get it from camera to web. I thought the first couple of seconds were cute when the two in the lower right fall back into the den…cheers!

Friday 6 April 2018

Nutritional Supplements - What Are They?


Nutritional supplements are a subject of some controversy among medical professionals. Some feel that a proper diet is all that's needed to keep you healthy, while others see a legitimate case for the judicious use of vitamin and mineral supplements. Let's take a look at some of the reasons you may want to add nutritional supplements to your healthy eating plan.

The commercial vegetable grower may not practice crop rotation, growing his green beans in the same location year after year. This causes soil depletion, robbing the crop of many valuable nutrients. The green bean that ends up on your dinner plate may not contain the vitamins and minerals a nutritional table leads you to expect. Many vitamins and minerals work in concert. If one is missing, another partner nutrient in the food may not be absorbed. There you have one case begging for  nutritional supplements.

As we age, certain nutrients become more difficult for our bodies to assimilate. This is particularly true of the B vitamins. Children and teens require some nutrients in greater  amounts than adults. Calcium, magnesium and zinc are especially important, as are vitamin A, C and E. Moreover, calcium, magnesium and zinc must be in specific ratios to do their jobs and many processed foods skew these ratios or even eliminate them, rendering them virtually useless. The teenager's bane of skin blemishes is often due to inadequate amounts of vitamins A, C and E. People with poor night vision usually suffer from a lack of vitamin A. Do you bruise easily? Perhaps a lack of vitamin D is the culprit.

Certain diseases and health conditions can be partially or completely remedied with proper nutritional supplements. For example, some women are more prone to yeast infections than others. Causes may be genetic or dietary. Yeast feeds on sugar, so excessive sugar intake may promote these infections. At the same time, vitamin K helps keep the bacteria candiasis in check with a proper balance of 'good' and 'bad' bacteria. Therefore, some women may benefit from nutritional supplements of vitamin K.

It's important to note that nutritional supplements are not all equally effective. Often, the cheaper supplements are not in a form that's readily absorbed or may even have undesirable side effects. Vitamin C made from rose hips are more readily absorbed and does not irritate your stomach like vitamin C derived from ascorbic acid. There's much to know when it comes to choosing the right nutritional supplements. It's a good idea to consult with a knowledgeable person at your local health food store or visit an online vendor of supplements to be sure you're getting a product your body can use.

Nutritional supplements can be a boon to your health when properly chosen and applied. Your family physician can provide valuable information on supplements as they may relate to your specific conditions. Do yourself a favor and look into the possible benefits for you and your family. To your good health!

Thursday 14 July 2016

It's the New Thing in Green and Frugal Living

When the economy was going great guns a few years ago, no one would have had any time for this kind of thing; if there was maybe one month left in the season and you needed a Weed-whacker, you think nothing of putting down $100 for one and then letting it rot in the attic. If you needed to call your work friends to a barbecue and if you knew you were not going to have another one for a year more, you still went out and bought an expensive grill and let it stand idle on your patio. It didn't pinch when the money flowed freely. We live in changed times now however. People make much less than they used to, and keeping up with the principles of frugal living is completely praiseworthy now.

The new concept in frugal living today is community ownership - or sharing for a fee, in everyday language. You usually never get to borrow  beyond your immediate circle; if you want to borrow a power tool for instance, you would go to a neighbor, you would call your sister or your friend; but  what do you know of resources available elsewhere? Certainly, you could go down to a rental shop, but there aren't as many of those, and they were expensive. The new concept therefore is something that resembles peer-to-peer sharing on the Internet. The idea was thought up by a particularly creative individual in California; he's founded a whole new Internet startup based on his idea of sharing for frugal living. And the business is a smash.

The company is called Rentalic; it's a clearinghouse for people who have things lying around that they never use, and people who want those things for a short time, and don't find it worthwhile to go and by the whole thing (kind of like wondering why you should buy a cow for a glass of milk). Open Rentalic.com, and it's fascinating for he kind of stuff you have access to. It changes the way you see the world when you know that everything you ever dreamed of, you could get your hands on for maybe $10. It empowers you in a way you would never imagine. Do you need golf clubs for a friend from another city who was dropped by? They go for $15 a week. Do you never need a computer printer, but you need one now for a bunch of flyers you need tro print out? How about putting down five dollars? Frugal living isn't just about saving money either; it could also be about saving Earth. If everyone who wanted a printer for use for just a week went out and bought one, that would one day contribute to so much more landfill.

The wealth of stuff available to rent on Rentalic is bewildering. You have textbooks, novels, snow tires, air conditioners, camera lenses, DVD's, you name it. They even rent out luxury stuff sometimes, like designer clothing.You just go to the website, put down what you're looking for, and where you are, and often, you get something within a 5 mile radius. The idea is so successful that there are other companies too trying out the same thing. Neighborhood Fruit for instance, tries to get everyone in the neighborhood together to share the fruit that grows on trees in everyone's backyards. Try the new blogs Shareable and The Sharing solution for more news on the sharing industry. But enough people have to get on the bandwagon to really make this work. If you want to rent a fan for a dollar a day, it had better be really close to where you live. And for that to happen, there have to be millions of people who come on board. It's a great idea of its times; if enough people buy into it, what could be in for a grand time.

Wednesday 13 July 2016

Self-Hypnosis - What Is It All About?


One of the techniques being used right now anywhere from fighting off addictions as well as in improving  concentration and learning is self-hypnosis, which is one form of hypnosis that allows the person to take on the responsibility for the procedure. This, for some, is vastly preferable as some sectors are still not comfortable placing a person under the control of another. With self-hypnosis, the control is entirely in the individual’s hands.

One of the most common problems that self-hypnosis is used for is for self-improvement. People who want to improve their social skills or manage their anger better can utilize self-hypnosis to unlearn or relearn what they need to. There are also some in the medical fields that use this procedure in order to lessen the impact of pain and physical symptoms. Self-hypnosis after all can fool the brain and make it believe that there is no more pain.

Critics of the procedure have however argued that the change in behavior and in overall wellbeing is not true and is only temporary. It is only there as long as self-hypnosis is effective but the change is only artificial and the root of the problem is only masked and not removed.

Still fans of this procedure have attested to its effectiveness especially in getting rid of bad habits and freeing themselves from chronic body pain. Besides, as they would argue, these people have learned these bad habits and that self-hypnosis will only make unlearning it easier and faster. Still, if you feel that you are comfortable with a professional controlling you, it is recommended that you have a professional perform the hypnosis instead of doing it yourself. Besides having full control over the procedure, they will also be more in the know regarding it.

To get started with self-hypnosis, you will of course need a professional hypnotist to guide you. These people will be the ones to help you with the instructions and the procedure. The whole procedure is different for every person. Some people will find it easier to manage while others can completely lose into it. After all, they will basically depend on the subconscious and will need to have the strength of mind to deal with it.

Self-hypnosis may not however be as effective as being done by a professional but the peace of mind and independence that you get from knowing that you are in control can mean a lot to some people. This knowledge of having the power to change yourself sometimes make up for the limitations that self-hypnosis brings to the table. The progress for instance with self-hypnosis may not be as fast with one professionally done. But as most patients have already implied, slow but sure is better than making a major change through the hands of an incompetent hypnotist.

There is no need to worry about safety. Just because you are doing it does not mean that it is any less safe. There is no truth to the claims that self-hypnosis can open the mind for the devil to enter or that people can get crazy because of it. A person under self-hypnotic state will have the same safeguards as with ordinary life. Actually, there is not much difference. The difference lies in the segment of the person’s personality that he or she wishes to change.

All in all self-hypnosis is an effective tool in curbing bad habits and lessening pain but the jury is still out on whether it can go mainstream.