I suppose this entire display would be easier if I just looked to the other end of the couch and told my wife these things face to face rather than pretend, she is my editor, write this to the other reader out there in the world, (Mom, I had fun) and give it to Paul to share online (Looper 4 life). But hey I get a kick out of it, and I hope you did too...

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20 years ago, while driving across Texas, I met up with Andy Dear for the first time. We had already known each other for some years and Andy had shared his fascinating rod maker interviews which I republished on Sexyloops. I was on the way to meet Wild Bill Gammel and so Andy and I met up for a cast on the side of an interstate highway. This was not that unusual for me, since the US has some very long drives, that often take multiple days. And the best way to stay nimble is to regularly pull over and work on your fly casting. But this was my first time having company! If I remember rightly we cast distance and worked on the double haul. But it was much more about actually meeting each other in person.

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James and Tracy are away this week. I’m writing this while heading down the lake to the Battleship. It’s quite exciting because there is a high possibility that I will run out of fuel before I get there! There might be some paddling.

I have a Malay lesson tonight and a casting coaching session. I’ve immersed myself into trying to learn this language. I’ve never been very good at languages, so this is a real test.

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A little break from the fly of the week today, and a bit of a fishing update. Which is welcome because I was struggling to choose a fly for some reason!

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This weekend I’m away skiing. I’m not a skiing nut but it is okay. And I think I’m an okay skier also. One painful thing is that many of the locations where you go skiing in Sweden is located near good or great fishing locations. From the cabin we are staying now I can see a river. Not the best river but it holds some grayling, trout and salmon. The salmon and trout is stocked as this river isn’t flowing freely. 

And that I’ve brought a fly rod with me on each of the skiing trips I’ve made this year reminds me of the fishing nearby even more. This time I’ve gotten some casting in. A little bit of accuracy standing on the balcony. No one did see me so not any smart comments this time. 

There are some things that skiing and fly casting have in common. If you look at the tree you will end up in the tree. Look at the ground and you will end up on the ground. 

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I was standing on line with my new posse of 8 anglers, waiting to check into our flight to Acklins and observing that  I’m older and at least a head shorter than all of these Europeans. All looking athletic and fit. I’m hoping I don’t slow anyone down on this trip. They’re all serious fishers and outdoorsmen. I think I’ve got mostly doctors and lawyers this time. Last year it was teachers and retired cops. Very congenial lot even so. In line I’m hearing discussions in Dutch, German and English about articulated flies for sea  trout, winter fishing for pike, tiger fish in Africa, all things accessible from Europe and rarely considered for stateside anglers. It turns out that my roommate for this trip will be a cardiologist from Romania. I think that’s a good thing. 

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