buzzbomb

Affordable housing, job creation, mental health supports, addiction treatment all work to reduce crime, and those things are enabled by all levels of government. Who you vote in as mayor or city counselor counts just like Crown ministers or party leaders. Having a say in who represents you is the beautiful thing about democracy (just like carp.com 😉). A quick scan of the world news drives the point home.

Thanks for the reminder, I have to go plug in my block heater for a few hours if I want to go anywhere today; it's -35 this morning. Naturally, if you need a new battery every place is closed for New Year's.... Happy New Year everyone!

I've bought used rods from expats in the US and Canada (usually a pair for the price of 1 bargain rod), bought US market Shimano rods (didn't need the 13 footer), a cheap mail order 3 rod set of Ultimates (never heard the word graphite) and a few others. We have a 1 rod rule here but I like having lots. 😃 Some of the used ones are pretty soft, some aren't, but there is only one of the cheapies I don't like. Even one of the two 2.25lb fiberglass Ultimates I still have which is very well worn after 20 years is still fun to use in the close quarters river swims, as is an old worn out Spirit I bought from an expat in Chicago (broke a guide insert in the other one). The reels that came in that Ultimate kit were burned out catching big fish (as was the Mitchell with the alarm built into the spool; yay warranty!) so I'm not as compromising about reels.

I agree, and stop calling me Shirley.

I saw this on Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/premiuminternet/comments/q36bwy/the_way_this_guy_casts_his_line/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web2x&context=3

My condolences emmcee; it is incredibly hard but it was the last favour you could do for her.

Not my pb, but a real good looking fish from long ago. I wheeled him in 100 yds, and he took 1 look at me and went straight back out about 90, so I got to do it all over again. I suppose this one was memorable too, because it was just nasty out, cold and windy and we only got 1 bite, but I got the fish.

I like the way this group treats one of my old Canned Heat favourites.

Reminds me of some Pedigree pet treats so maybe it's high-end cat food. Drill it and rig it up and cast it out.

My condolences; I know what it's like.

Any bait manufacturer had to take a hit over the past 18 months, as would their suppliers of ingredients. It was suggested up-thread that this could be seasonal, but if it's a significant price drop (and sustained) it might be a desperate move to keep their suppliers afloat. Without the companies producing the ingredients, there is no boilie business, so a strategic sacrifice. If dropping bait prices brings fishermen back to their product then it's a win.

Some of us have the 6 pack, and some of us have the keg. 😳

I know a woman who was absolutely incredulous when I wouldn't go over to her house on a day off. She said "Do you mean to tell me you'd rather go carp fishing than spend time with me? Carp fishing in the rain?!"

I was retrieving ducks in a flooded gravel pit one evening, found a sudden drop and filled my chestwaders. I was able to regain footing and get a bit of the way back but couldn't go up the grade to shore. Shouted to my hunting partner who took about 10 minutes to find a fallen tree long enough to reach me so I could grab it and walk out. Drove back in the Gipsy 40 miles in the dark naked wrapped in a blanket. A life preserver and rope would have been handy.

I was kicked out of the United Church of Canada for awhile for hammering the smart mouth kid in front of me in the back of the head with my Bible in confirmation class when I was 14. I hit him so hard he got a nosebleed, and the elder who was standing in front of us teaching the class was his father. Red card. They made me go back and finish about 2 weeks later.

Hilton Valentine of The Animals; dead of unknown causes at 77. https://www.theguardian.com/music/2021/jan/31/hilton-valentine-founding-guitarist-in-the-animals-dies-aged-77

Our government was counting on tax money to help sell legalization, but they botched the roll-out, from allocation of licenses for shops and producers to supply issues to pricing. The grey market helped bring legal price down and quality up by sheer force of competition, and now government has to find a way to tax those illegal stores because it's just too big and entrenched to shut down. As for fishing, legalization hasn't changed what I do. Politeness dictates not being too brash about it. Since smoking or vaping pot in public is still verboten, the standard procedures of keeping out of sight and downwind of kids and tourists, looking around for cops or conservation officers beforehand are still in effect. All the bad effects that were predicted failed to materialise. No rush of psychosis cases to hospital, no increase in impaired drivers or workplace accidents, etc. The biggest problem was a shortage of cannabis on store shelves right at the start, and they've caught up now. Re:hash Someone gave me a nice lump of their home-made pressed kief from his own crop yesterday and it's a lot like the good old blonde Leb we used to buy almost 50 years ago. I'll be getting back to him.

I've seen a few strains advertised that are crossbreeds of the UK Cheese but haven't tried it. The review I just read of UK Cheese claims the smoke from some of it smells like rotten vegetables, so what you say makes sense. Legalisation in Canada hasn't been without a few bumps, but overall it's great. Anyone can grow 4 plants but for non-gardeners who don't want to buy from the more expensive licensed shops there is a thriving mail-order grey market. I can choose the potent Indica or Indica-dominant hybrids I want for pain management, and price is down, quality is up, and it's delivered in the post by an agent of the government. It's about time, says I, and glad I lived to see it.

It's a vice, and not even one of the really rewarding ones.

Try microwaving some of them, they're already made so nothing to lose.

Carping was a lot more popular in the US 20 and 25 years ago than it is now, and it's a real shame. Carp Angler's Group forum was really popular until they started being insistent about charging membership fees. They had to fund tournaments and so on, but when the forum withheld local content from non-paid members it began to get a bit cliquey and started to fade. There were some really great people on there and it just sort of fell apart. Some very serious specimen hunters began US Carp Pro, and some of them were the ones who would go any distance and devote as much time as it took to get the big ones. I won a bag of plastics off them once in a draw. I think it lost steam and then became mainly for fly carpers, but I lost track of them. There is probably still a gang of carpers and maybe even a forum in Ontario but I lost track of them too. Some years ago someone from here was going on holiday and spending some time in Chicago, and I phoned the new owner of Wacker Baits, who said he'd be glad to take him out fishing with his pals, provide tackle and everything for free, but the guy begged off and wouldn't take him up on it. Too bad because that group was the US world competition team. I would have gone! Those were the days when there were 6 or 7 US shops dedicated to Carp tackle and baits and 2 in Canada. Those were the days when the North American section of this forum was busy because of CAG members joining here too. Keith Thompson was the mod who sort of ran that section, iirc. How many people remember him, or the raging arguments with mudfish until he got banned? 😁

I was going to suggest steel flour scoops for baking or the cast aluminium ice scoops we use in the bar, but then I watched the video and saw I didn't know what I was talking about. 😀 As you say, a nice big cooking spoon would do.

I've never been to the UK, but I've seen some match fishing on television and I think paylakes may be closer to coarse match fishing than specimen carp fishing or runs waters, despite the difference in fish size. The lack of concern for natural surroundings, crowded arrangement of pegs, and competitive atmosphere all seem to be common traits. On paylakes the serious players are there to enter for cash prizes, and at night the water, sectioned off by ropes so everyone knows their fish-able space, is illuminated by floodlights. I found this site to give our UK brothers an idea of what they do. http://www.angelfire.com/sports/carpking/html/paylake-pics.html

In the fall when we're drifting for walleye we even get the odd carp on big diving rapalas. They're opportunistic like every other fish; if they can catch it and expend less energy than they gain, they'll go for it. Re: sweet vs savoury, in my groundbait I like to put something sweet (or sweet-ish) like a fruit drink or soft drink, ice tea powder, kool aid or syrups (I get expired stuff from the bar where I work), something hot like chili flake or sriracha or other hot sauce for the capcasin element, and something fishy. I have old cans of Red Bull I've been waiting to use for years. I use nuoc mam Vietnamese fish sauce for the fishy element, and it's also really salty, so checks that box as well. I add it all when I soak overnight so I know what level the canner is at, then bring to a boil and simmer for an hour and it's ready. Experimentation is the name of the game, and the mad scientist thing is absolutely one of the more attractive aspects for me. There are a thousand hacks for hookbait, but in my experience, where I am, any sizeable piece from a decent groundbait will work on the hair.