The Armchair Outfitter

“The best name for a hunting dog is ‘Permission.’  Think about it.  All the best places to hunt have signs that say ‘No Hunting Without Permission.’”

- Anonymous

If Pete drank it all, why did I have a headache? - Ed.

Once again, it’s hard to believe the year is gone.  I’ve been away from the blog for a while because I’ve been busy doing things that will hopefully prove worth writing about in the months to come.  From the end of deer season to the beginning of spring turkey season can be a long haul, not to mention how far away good fishing weather seems right now.  I’ll try to serve y’all a steaming cup of Armchair gumbo in the meantime, a little bit of this and a little bit of that until we’ve cleaned out the freezer.  Maybe I can tie up some loose ends by finishing some of the multi-episode stories that seem to have taken on a life of their own in the telling.  I hope your 2009 was as blessed as mine, and here’s wishing you and yours a safe and prosperous 2010.

Although I enjoy a hunting or fishing outing regardless of whether I take any game, it’s always nice to feel I’m doing something besides nature watching.  When someone catches the first fish, I always say, “The skunk is out of the boat.”  With that in mind, after Thanksgiving in Tennessee, my deer season is officially deskunkified.

Cousin Tim looks pretty excited, and who wouldn’t be with a nice 8-point on the front rack?

There’s nothing better than seeing the next generation coming along behind us.  The young sportsman is Tim’s son Garrett.

I took a nanny-head for the freezer, but hey, that’s why they call me the Slayer.  I let several immature bucks ease on by to get a shot at her.  She should be clean, because we had to drag her across a creek.

Tim and I actually put our deer on the ground at the same time from different stands.  We called in Uncle Gary for reinforcement.  Not to be left out of the story, he culled this big-bodied 3-pointer the next morning.

The skunk is definitely out of the stand, so we can all relax and enjoy the rest of the season.