and a strong cup of coffee

Sunday night on 60 Minutes, Lara Logan did a story on big game hunting in Texas. The tag line for the article was "Can hunting endangered animals save the species?" and it interviewed Charly Seale who " is a fourth generation rancher and the executive director of the Exotic Wildlife Association based here in the heart of the Texas hill country. It's his job to represent the interests of some 5,000 exotic ranchers across North America ." As I watched this show, I was torn. I love the idea of working to raise awareness of the threat of extinction for these animals. I love the idea of being able to give the species an opportunity to thrive in a much different location than African and I love that through conservation, we can try to bring their population numbers back. But I really don't see the need in trophy hunting. I am conflicted. The naturalist in me wants to head down to Texas (even though the Mainer in me hates heat and snakes!) and see these ani...

We met this little guy the year before (fall 2009). He is one of the triplets that we saw and watched play. It was my first experience just sitting and watching deer that were within 25 feet of me (I was in the Sky Condo looking down). We didnt see him this year, unless he is the monster 8 pointer or the 10 pointer (

Over the weekend, I finally cracked into the trailcam and got the photos of the deer off it, or at least copied/emailed to myself. Here is the deer that Dad was looking for. There is no solid, solid proof that it was taken this season, so a little piece of us is holding out hope.

A few weeks ago (Jan 12), I posted the beginning of a sentence here as well as on my personal Facebook page. The sentence started: "Women Hunters..." The following are the responses that I got on FB. The picture is of me and my best friend Jodie who is also a hunter. 1. rock! 2. should bring me some meat... 3. Turn me on. (earned 1 like) 4. can climb my tree stand anytime ! 5. Are awesome! 6. ...are probably not vegetarians (earned 1 like) 7. Get bigger animals than boys do. (earned 1 like) 8. SUCK!!!! Lmao. But I love you!!!! 9. are the same as men hunters ‎10. . . .are a better shot :-) 11. have pet squirrels. 12. aim to please 13. scare the hell out of me..because they can shoot well ;o 4 of the 13 comments are men (#2, #3, #4 and #13) To my knowledge, only two are hunters (#1 and #4) Two are my best friends (#1 and #7) One is my sister (#9) One is my pseudo brother (#13) Things that I noticed: ~ None of the comments made by men are encouragin...

2.4 BILLION dollars comes into Maine thanks to folks like you and me. I contribute directly to the 200 million that is brought in every year in connection with deer hunting. In this article , Bob Humprey gives an over view of impact that our hunting and fishing industry has on the economic health of the State. Each year, I have paid $27 to renew my hunting license. This gives me the right to shoot a buck, of any size, during the season. If I want to put in to get a doe permit, its a free process but its a lottery, so no guarantee. Then, assuming you shoot a deer, you pay $5 to tag it. They take your name, license number, where you shot the deer (town), what you used for a gun and they take your money. If you want your deer weighed, that costs more. Last year's buck, seen here, was 150 and it cost me an additional $1 to find that out. This year, Dad and I went some place different and it cost us $2 to weigh it. So, lets say its about $35 for me on a good year. I buy Dad...

Whitetail Woods: Tasteful or not Tasteful, You be the Judge.

I like to be in my own little bubble when it comes to the possibility that my deer might not be perfect and instead, could have E.Coli or a number of any other gross things that I dont like (food illnesses, ticks etc). I was wondering what I could post before the weekend came and I found this article: kids getting sick from harvesting, butchering and eating their class project . It makes me happy that I enjoy well cooked meat - no pink. I know, I run the risk of it being more like a hockey puck than a juicy piece of meat, but its a risk I am happy to take, especially when I read articles like this.