Rosemary encrusted sardine gills and battered women.

Good Morning and welcome to the last weekend of November.
The last weekend of firearms deer season in Michigan and the beginning of the holiday smack down upon my bank account.  Did I go hunting this morning?  Hell no too cold.  Did I think about it?  Enough to give me partial credit.  I actually slept in this morning until 7 o'clock.  Can you believe it?  Me.  7 am.  After laying on the couch all day yesterday I'm surprised I slept at all.  Went out with the boys on Friday and paid dearly for it on Saturday.  Oh well.  It's been a very long time since I did that.  I had fun.  Although I feel it may be a very long time before it happens again.  Whew!!!!
I don't have much this morning.  Congratulations to the Lake Orion High School Dragons on becoming division 1 state champs in football.  My Alma Matter.  Congrats to Michigan State Spartans as well on their shared title.  Congrats to University of Michigan for at least getting their jerseys on the right way!
Really I don't care much about these events I'm not into sports.  Some say hunting is a sport, I disagree.  I would say it is more of a hobby or a lifestyle than a sport.  But if it is a sport than I digress on the previous statement.  Don't much care for arguments either.  Now that's a sport.  Ask my wife.  She'll argue with you about arguing.  She always wins too.  I think she cheats.  I argue with guy in my head but he usually just mocks me and pokes fun at my weakness until I give in and let him win. 
With the onslaught of cold weather and my inhibitions on braving the elements December usually turns my attention towards my culinary experimentation upon my family.  It's funny how the weather can make you hunker down and start thinking of food like a squirrel hoarding nuts for the winter.  (guy in my head is laughing profusely and gibbering something about how I must be a squirrel cuz my heads full of something I can't make it out he's laughing too hard) I was in the grocery store yesterday with my beautiful bride and I told her to stop and look at all the sections of food she normally wouldn't.  That is how I get some of my ideas for cooking.  We have an international section in our mart and she was standing there staring at stuff and I said," c'mon let's go".  She gives me a cold look and says," I'm doing what you told me to do."
Can you believe it?  She listened to me.  I told her to put the pesto down because she wouldn't like it. 
I was thinking of having another New Years Eve dinner party this year but slightly hesitant.  I love to cook and entertain it's just very hard to scrape up the kind of cash I need for a dinner party for 8-10 people.  Especially after Christmas.  So we will see.  I recently re-discovered my Showtime Rotisserie "set it and forget it".  I actually forgot I had it all summer.  I suppose I was just to busy with the BBQ grill.  So I brought it out and now my wife says,"OMG (she says that alot)  are you going to cook everything on that now?"  Yeah pretty much me thinks to myself.  What a great contraption though.  In just the last ten days I have done a teriayaki pork tenderloin, 2 chicken legs and 2 thighs, half of a pork loin roast and I'm just getting started.
I was amazed at what that thing would do for chicken thighs.  OMG (sorry had to do it)  I usually am a white meat guy but this could change everything.  That was a triple chicken night that time.  I rotisseried the legs and thighs, I baked the breasts and I fried the wings.  Crispy skin on the outside moist on the inside.  The Colonel would be proud.  By the way whoever came up with the word colonel needs a but whooping.  It needs an R in it.  You can't just leave out the R in a word and pronounce it with one. 
Other than cooking I really need to find a winter time hobby.  I'm already fat as a whale and I don't need anymore food.  As for exercising?  When I feel like exercising I just lay down until the feeling goes away.
I don't know how these chefs on TV stay so skinny.  They smoke as well.  What gives with that?  How can you taste the food if your mouth was recently bathed in creosote.  I know as an ex smoker.  I never realized food could taste so good.  Baffling.  If I was to interview for a head chef that would be my first question.  You smoke?  Yep Then get the $%*& out of here.  That's my Ramsay interpretation.  Sometimes I wonder about that guys palate as well.  Do you see the crap they eat over there?  I would really like to try it though.  Just to see.  Maybe it is good.  Withered cockscomb on a bed of rosemary encrusted sardine gills.  Top it off with a warm beer.  Cheerio!  I suppose that comment will let me now if I have any readers from the UK.  Or is it England or is it Great Brittain?  My folks have friends from the UK.  Delightful people.  Funny.  Ok next post will be some food recipes that will compare some of the UK food to the US.  I just happen to have a recipe book that has a recipe from many of the guests that stay at the Florida Resort known as Sea Club.
Some of these people are from the UK.  Enough gibberish for one day mate!

I wonder where this bloke is from.  He shares my commitment to artery clogging deep fat fried things

(this is purely a food related picture and no women were hurt during the making of this post)

Deer Camp 2010 Part II

Here is a little more from our 2010 deer camp.




Dad's deer hanging from a very nice buck pole.

Poor Joe just couldn't help himself and had to text all his girl "friends" back home.  He seems to have a new one every couple weeks and then returns to the first one.  Some sort of maddening circle.  He'll learn eventually.  One is more than enough!!  Unfortunately he couldn't always get a signal in camp and at his weakest moment I got a picture of him desperately seeking signal.  Pun intended!

Yes it's a ladder and he's at the top with phone in hand.

We teased him all week about his phone and girls and not seeing deer because his eyes were in his lap while he texted.  It was good fun.  Joe says he can't wait for his sister to make the trip so he won't be the greenhorn anymore.  I would bet that his sister would probably shoot a deer leaving him to once again fill the rookie vacancy.  It's just Murphy's law.  It is what it is.

Shall we move on to fried chicken night?

Dad's little fry station

I brought two whole chickens cut up and they gave us all livers and only one gizzard.

We ate them anyways.  We had french fries with this as well but not long after the chicken was removed from the fryer it disappeared.  We stood right there and ate at the fry station.

Joe almost put his phone down to eat.  Almost!

Dear Girlfriends,  I am at deer camp and my step grandpa just fed me fried chicken livers.  Despite the fact that I am ravenous and near the brink of starvation I ate them anyways.  They were good.  I would never eat these at home.  I miss you and I will talk to you later on top of the ladder.  Love Joe Joe!!

Well before we went out for the evening hunt Dad and I prepared the chimney log by stuffing it full of dead pine boughs.  We packed them into the chimney with the splitting maul.  I cut air holes in the log so it would burn better.  Here see for yourself.

It is upside down in the above picture.  I had to scrape all the wet rotten wood from the center as well.

Stuffed

On fire!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Add a little used fry oil for cause and effect!!

This baby was hot.  Blue flames and it ate poplar logs like candy.

Oh yeah I almost forgot bath day!!!!  It's a good thing I control this blog because you won't see my pictures.

Dear Girlfriends,  I am at deer camp taking a bath in an ice cold creek.  Apparently I am so dirty that I need to subject myself to 34 degree water in order to look good for you when I return.  My phone is hidden in the chair so the guys up there don't have any idea what I'm doing.  I am so sneaky.  PS.  Due to almost freezing water my willy has retreated so far that I will have to pee sitting down for the next 24 hours.

Love, Joe Joe

Dear girlfriends,  These are NOT the same boxers I have had on for 3 days.  Do not listen to those guys!

Love, Joe Joe.

I must say it was amazingly refreshing once the feeling came back into your numb, red body.  Well worth the sacrifice of sitting down to go pee!

Dear Girlfriends,  Just got done recharging my batteries.  I am so cold.  I don't know how these guys can stand there in just shirts and jeans.  Crazy fat guys!  Maybe I'm still cold from my bath.  It's hard to text when my face is covered so bye for now.

Love Joe Joe.

I had a couple partridge(ruffed grouse) walk by my blind one day.  Hard to get the camera to focus on them.

We had such a great time.  I miss it already.  I need to modify a few things for next year but all in all a great time.  I'm having a hard time getting back into the hunting down here now.

One more thing;

Dear Wife,

What have I got myself into.  Jeff wasn't very honest about this trip.  He said there was clear water and a sandy shore all I see is this freezing creek and the sand has rocks in it.  Can you believe it?  That would never fly in Florida,  rocks in the sand.  He makes me climb these huge hills and haul wood.  Wakes me up at 4 am every morning and tries to get me to drink boiling hot coffee.  I truly believe he is trying to clog my arteries with these 5 egg omelets and fried potatoes.  Eat, Eat ,Eat, I swear he pushes food down us like there's no tomorrow.  Might have to buy an extra seat for the flight home. Also we have to drink our beer out of cans.  What I wouldn't give for a glass.    Not sure how much more of this I can take.

Hopefully him and Joe don't see me texting. 

Love William.

Opening morning and our summit of Mount Brian

You'll never guess what's behind the brown tarp.  Yep a duct tape crapper!!!!

Opening morning dawned extremely early, we awoke and lit the heater to warm the camper much to the joy of Joe, a 6'1" bean pole,  soaking wet maybe a 130 lbs.  He froze his buns off all week while Dad and I slept without covers.  Sometimes it pays to be fat!!  I mean slightly overweight.  :) 

We had a ripping good breakfast of eggs, fried potatoes with onions and green peppers, sausage and some grilled toast.  Two pots of coffee washed everything down nicely.

We headed out in the dark and began the summit attempt of Mt. Brian, named for the first Bushman to summit a few years back in search of a good blind location. 
The adrenaline was pumping and the sweat was beginning to flow.  I had worn my lower bibs but carried my coat in my backpack for fear of overheating but it was a foregone conclusion.  By the time I reached my blind I was sweating like a fat guy shoveling lava and my heart was pounding to the beat of the University of Michigan fight song. 
Gasping for air I stepped into the blind and wiped a sleeve full of sweat from my brow, plopped down in my chair and cursed myself silently for climbing so fast. 
I cooled down soon enough and removed my coat from the backpack and put it on.  The light was beginning to flood the eastern edge of the treeline and I could make out vague shapes which could have been trees or giant bears waiting to pounce upon my fattened and warmed, chubby body.  Either way if you've been in the woods in the dark on opening morning your senses are on full alert, adrenaline courses through your body and you jump and twitch at every sound you hear.  God forbid a stick breaks somewhere out in front of you in the dark you may just scream. 
There is nothing that matches the thrill of that 15 minutes of darkness.  Soon it was light enough to see the cross hairs through my scope and the hunt was on.  Shots rang out in the distance and I tensed, gun at the ready, waiting for that buck to show himself.  Soon the minutes turned into an hour and the tension was leaving my shoulders and I was beginning to settle in for the duration of the hunt when I saw something white.  Sure enough a deer.  My heart took off for the races again and I felt like a kid once more.  I watched a group of 4 does make their way towards my blind and at about 40 yards my rifle cracked sending three of them scampering up the ridge. 
Not long after that I heard the roar of my father's rifle behind me as he dropped another doe.  Now all we needed was Joe to shoot.  Nothing but silence was heard from his side.  Although he seen deer he just didn't have any good clean shots and i was proud of him for being a good sportsmen in that aspect.   We waited until about 11 o'clock and then we dressed and hauled the two does form the woods to our camp.  By the time we had hauled both deer from Mt. Brian we were exhausted.
A cold beer and a hot lunch brought us some relief and we enjoyed each others success and tales of the morning.  Here is the view from my blind.

We went out for the evening hunt but nobody saw a thing.

We returned to camp and enjoyed a nice fire and a meal of pan fried walleye and french fries.

This meal was voted our tastiest meal of deer camp 2010.

Thanks Harry for the beautiful fillets caught fresh from Saginaw Bay just this July.

I had dad fry the fish as he is the fish guru being from Florida and all and I stuck with the french fries.  Although are they really French?

I wish I would have got a shot of the finished fish.  They were so beautiful golden brown.  Perfectly done.

I believe even Gordon Ramsay may have kissed dad on the cheek for those fillets.  Bloody right he would!!

So with a successful day behind us we climbed into our bunks and snored the night away.  Sorry Joe.  You need to learn to fall asleep first.

Gone again!

I dropped my father off at the airport yesterday.  Quickly and without much ado as the tears in my eyes were beginning to swell to large enough proportions that would surely leak down my cheek and give away my emotions.  (not fitting for a guy you know).  A quick grunt, a strong hug and a peck on the cheek was all I could do.  My throat had already closed and was incapable of anything but squeaks and grunts.  It was 15 miles down the freeway before I regained enough composure to utter any words to my wife, who sat beside me in the passengers seat.  It was sad.  I was sad.  Sad enough that the tears flow now as I type, blurring my vision and jumbling the keys together.  So brief a time and then gone again.  Like a well constructed E-Mail that just disappears once you hit send.  Leaving you wondering when you'll get a response.  A speck of time in the universe that leaves a giant hole in the heart.  In time the hole closes as it is packed full with memories and laughs and most of all time.  Time seems to heal all things.  So father as you read this know that I love you and miss you already and I will look forward to the next time we meet again.  (this should explain the hasty drop off at the airport as well).  So now let's celebrate deer camp a few more times before I pack it away until next fall.

When we arrived at our spot, next to the creek in the middle of state land, we were much relieved to find it empty.  There is always a bit of anxiety as you round the bends and strain your eyes and neck to see any hint of human habitation.  We quickly set the camper in it's place and began to assemble camp.
This is the bare bones here.  Set up with tarps and awning room in place.  Dad is just beginning the fire pit here and Joe will soon be digging his first ever latrine hole!!

Joe taking a break with a well deserved soda.

After setting up camp we cut wood.  We would drive down the two track and find dead trees and cut them into 6-8 ft. lengths and load them in the truck.  We filled the truck twice and dumped it off at camp.  Then we went for a ride looking for a chimney.  Every deer camp of ours has to have some sort of chimney.  We prefer a hollow log but sometimes have to build one ourselves.  This year we hit the jack pot.  Travelling well into the hardwoods Northwest of camp we found this giant beech tree.  I wasn't sure we could get it in the truck but somehow we managed.

The first section on the ground was too heavy so we cut another and loaded that one by first "stepping" it up to the log you see under the tailgate then up and in.

This could very well be my favorite picture of deer camp.  I would say that log weighed about 350 lbs. and stood about 4 ft. tall not to mention the diameter was close to 30 inches.  I don't know why someone had cut the tree down in the first place but thanks we loved it.

If you click on the read more tab right below this line it will take you to the rest of the story.  You will notice these page breaks on my longer posts for those of you not familiar with this feature.

Return of the mighty deer hunters.

My friend Jerry says to us the day before we left for deer camp," If you come home early call me and maybe we'll have a beer before your dad leaves for Florida".  We (dad and I) practically laughed in his face.
"Come home from deer camp early?  Are you crazy?"   Well guess what........... we came home early.
Only one day but still early.  I will get some grief for that one I suppose.  What happened to bring us home early?  Old age!  No just kidding.  Well maybe dad.....no he's not that old.  Two things.  Weather and the lack of 4 legged creatures to toss lead projectiles at.  There was some nasty weather forecasted for today up north.  Windy conditions with rain and snow and cold.  I thought it was wise to pack up early so we didn't have to do it in the crap and drive in the crap.  It was raining and snowing when we packed up and snowed almost half way home.  So good call.  And the deer you ask?  Practically non-existent.  Opening day we seen a total of 11 deer between three of us and all does.  Two of which are no longer up north.  Second day I seen one spike buck and was letting him work his way across the ridge and right into dad's range when someone on the the far ridge opened up and presumably by the sounds of it might just have been successful in holding off a Nazi counter attack.  Now I'm sure you know deer don't like rifle fire and especially not in rapid succession.  Needless to say the spike went straight up over the ridge and out of sight.  Probably still running as far as I know.  And dad went spikeless.  We never saw another deer after that.  All camps in the area packed up and left Tuesday morning leaving no one to move the deer around.  Not to mention the weather was non compliant with deer hunting.  Low pressure, rain, drizzle, snow, winds out of the east, winds out of the south, winds out of the north and west winds that swirled around you just to make sure they didn't miss anything.  Crazy winds.  I have never seen anything like it.  If I was a deer in those conditions I would probably hunker down in the thick stuff and not move at all.  Am I complaining?  Hell no.  Just explaining.  I still had a riot.  Dad and I both shot a doe and Joe received a great education on deer camp etiquette and how fast a deer can actually run past your blind (5ft. away) and your not fast enough to get your gun up.  LOL 
All in all a successful deer camp.  Good food, good company, and memories to last a lifetime.
Here is a shot of our camp next to the cold, clear trout stream.

More to come in the days ahead.  I only took a hundred pictures!!

Vacation, Hiatus, Time Off, Running Away, DEER CAMP EXPEDITION

Ladies and gentlemen the time is upon us.  No more prepping, no more fretting, most importantly no more waiting.  I am truly a kid on the verge of entering the world's greatest candy store.  However my store contains majestic oaks and fragrant pine stands, glistening white birches and an undergrowth of ferns hiding beneath it the magic of the great north woods.  Ahhhh.  I can smell it now.  I can hear the water in the creek trickling away to unknown destinations.  The cedar thickets with their dark shadows and thick moss beckon me to step into another world.  A world where time has stopped and history is only made by what you can remember with your eyes and what you feel in your heart.  It is not just hunting.  It is living.  It's a way to get back to nature.  Aligning you spirit with a power greater than your own.  It is a place of discovery!  Along with that comes the bond of a fraternal nature.  Fathers and sons putting away the everyday life to simply enjoy each others company and unite together in a single passion.

Not only is this one of my true passions I get to see my Father twice in one year.  If I'm lucky I get to see him once every two years.  This time were flipping the tables.   Not only is he my father but he is my best friend.  So you can imagine my delight when an opportunity like this unfolds.  I must have done something right this year to deserve such a treat. 

To top that off I get to take my stepson with us.  He has yet to grace any deer camp with his presence and I am saddened that I have not been able to give him this gift until now.  I hope he enjoys himself as much as I do.  We don't share much in common so this is a chance to have something together.  I am anxious and slightly nervous. 

With all of that said I will leave you until probably Sunday the 23rd.  I wish you well and remember if this guy can accomplish his goals you can to.

Not much today.  I could bore you with more accounts of camp preparation but by now you may be thinking enough is enough.  So I won't.  Not much anyways. :)  Shot two of the rifles yesterday.  My 7mm Remington Magnum and  a borrowed Remington 742 Woodsmaster Carbine in 30-06.  Quite possibly the state's favorite deer rifle.
Both were punching bulls eyes at 75 yards.  Should be dead on at up to 150 yds.

Thanks Ernie for letting Joe use your rifle.  A true friend and a gentlemen when it comes to youth and hunting.
It was Ernie that led Joe to his first buck about 4 years ago.

It was a nice 7 point with a perfect heart shot at 40 yds with an open sights smooth bore 16 gauge that my Grandpa gave to me years ago.  I was so proud.  I had it all on video.  Joe had buck fever and was shaking so bad I had to bear hug him to quiet his shivering.  Though I must say I was shivering a bit myself and it wasn't cold.  :)

So today I need to shoot the 300 Weatherby Magnum.  That's Dad's rifle.

You may ask why we use large caliber magnums for Michigan whitetails.  The reason is we used to hunt all over the country and into Canada.  Elk, mule deer, antelope, caribou.  So we wanted a rifle for all game species.

I also filled the propane tanks yesterday. 3 -20 pounders.  If you just exchange them you only get 15 lbs of propane in them.  The exchange companies like blue rhino say it's safer.  Well the tank is built for 20 so I think it would be fine.  They still charge full price too.  Last time I exchanged it was $19.99 plus tax.

When I fill it's $21.20 out the door.  There is also 5 more lbs in the tank.  Do the math!

So now there isn't much left to do other than pack clothes and finalize.  I'll leave it at that.

Daylight savings today!  I forgot to tell the dogs so they had us up at 3 instead of 4.  I made Momma let them out and feed them.  Then they came back to bed and slept until 6:30.  Whoopee. 

Here is last years buck!

I'll try and better him this year but I don't know.

Here is my buck from 2 yrs ago.

I have been scouring my brain for names for our deer camp but just can't think of anything I like.

Our old camp was Crooked Arrow Camp because someone once stuck a bent arrow in the trees in front of our camp.  We also referred to it as Main Camp.  The latter being the most boring.

Another camp we had in the area after the main camp broke apart was Lake Camp.  Named for the lake the camp was located next to.  The camp sat on a small plateau and overlooked the entire small lake.  Bit breezy but a beautiful spot.  Another place we camped was at the creek.  This is where we intend to camp this year if no one else has chosen it first.  However Creek Camp is rather boring as well.  We tend to name things after major geological features as in Lake Camp, Creek Camp, Swamp Camp.

I want a name that immediately brings to mind excitement, fun, yearning, a bit of mystery and intrigue.

The camp is located next to Gilchrist Creek, bordered on the south by a high ridge that starts out flat by camp and rapidly climbs in elevation as you head south east along the creek.  The ridge drops severely to the creek and is troublesome to traverse in it's steepness.  My little brother Brian shot a nice buck from this locale a couple years back. To the east is the creek and across the creek is what remains of the old two track that is no longer used because the bridge is gone and the other end of the two track is now private land.   To the right side of the two track lies a small cedar swamp that follows the creek and the high ridge mentioned above.  To the left of the two track is some flat land mixed with pines, poplar and birch.  If you follow the two track directly east you hit private land in about a half mile.  To the north is the creek again, some flat land with mixed trees leading into hardwoods and mature trees,  the creek is the property line for private and state land to the north of camp.   To the west is more high ridges, the main two track in and plenty of oak trees once you've reached the tops of the ridges. 

We have hunted this area a few times.  Last time up I saw a huge buck right across the creek, not 50 yards from camp.  We had decided to stay in bed that morning because it was a monsoon rainstorm outside.  When I peeked out from the screened in room to check on the weather, there he was.

I took my first buck from this spot when I was 15.  21 years ago.  I also wounded my first buck from this spot 21 years ago.  Brian took his first Michigan whitetail from this spot.  So we have three firsts from this area.  Perhaps Joe will take his first deer with a rifle from this spot.  Dad can take his first deer as an out of stater as well.  Perhaps a theme developing here?

"First Timer's Hunting Camp"

We'll see.

Screw Machine and the Hunt Camp

Well if I had three words to describe this morning it would be:
Damn Dogs Anyways

That's AM people.  Oh well I was in bed at 9:30 last night anyways and I only get 7 hours of sleep a night not counting falling asleep on the couch.

Busy day today. Joe is coming home from his Dad's house so we can shoot the rifles and work on the camper for a bit.  His grades aren't perfect but he's trying.  I understand how it goes.  I am not that far removed from high school.  18 yrs is not that far. 

I did most of my grocery shopping yesterday.  I spent almost $300 yesterday in food and other hunting related items.  The cost wouldn't be so bad but when splitting it three ways I absorb two of those ways.    Thank heavens for the bonus at work! First one in 5 quarters. Damn Economy Anyways.

I still can't wait.  Joe has never been to deer camp and it will be fun to show him the ropes and how to be a respectful woodsman.  It will be some great quality time for all three generations.  I made a big pot of venison stew yesterday to take with us.  Simple stew, seasonings, carrots, potatoes, celery, onions, venison.  I made enough so we could have it for dinner last night.  Served piping hot over a flaky biscuit.  Priceless!

Blurry I know.  Damn Phone Anyways.  (I see a theme developing here)

I froze two big bowls full.  Today is chili which is extra special because I will be using the tomatoes from my garden that I canned earlier in the year and also one of my precious chipoltes (which I spent 4 days making)

I also picked up my pop up blind yesterday.  On sale for $54.  My Dad did not have any heavy outer wear to protect him from the cold so I bought him a nice pair of insulated pants (I have a big wool coat for him just no pants) for $39.  Damn Floridians Anyways. 

So for our breakfasts I have sausage, patties and links, bacon, Canadian bacon, ( eh?) potatoes O'Brien, (O Blarney) English muffins, (pip pip cheerio) eggs, toast, assortment of fried potatoes, bread, butter, syrup.  So any combo of meat and eggs or mcmufffins or french toast you can think of.

Lunches will consist of ;

Chicken soup, bean soup, chili,hot dogs, and whatever is left!

Dinner will be:

Fried walleye, venison loin, hamburgers, fried chicken, venison stew, smoked bratwurst.

With these meals I have an assortment of side such as: french fries, baked beans, green beans, fried potatoes, baked potatoes and chips.

For yummies I have made 15 lbs of jerky, 15 lbs of snack sticks and will be making summer sausage stuffed with cheddar cheese today.  An assortment of mixed nuts, candy bars, wheat thins, cheezits and block cheeses.  Of course we will be having refreshments but we will procure those items in Mio which is just 3 towns outside of our hunting area.  If we buy it up there we help support their economy and cut down on our weight during transit.  A couple cases of beer, pop, water, Gatorade, milk and juice can weigh in at a hefty weight.  $2.85 a gallon for gas.  You do the math. 

Weather for the North country appears to be cold.  For Saturday high 44 with chance of showers.  Sunday highs in the low 30s lows in the low 20s.  I will check each day as the week progresses but it doesn't matter.

We are prepared.  I also picked up a dozen 1 lb propane cylinders for our blind heaters.  I also have 4 more tucked away in the camper.  I have (3) 20 lb tanks for the camper heat. 

I just need the next week to get over with fast.  4 days of work.  Pick up Dad at airport on Friday.  Pack truck and camper that evening.  Departure time 8am Saturday morn.  ETA for camp 1:00 pm Saturday afternoon.  That gives us about 5 hours to set up camp, cut some firewood, and check things out. beforedark.  Damn daylight savings anyways.  Sunday will be scouting and blind building/set up day.  Along with more firewood cutting.I am almost ready.  Oh hey look it's 5 am now.  Now what do I do?

Chili anybody?

I almost forgot I found this ad in the paper this morning while waiting for coffee to brew.

This must be a guy only thing.  Can't believe the job is still available. 

Sounds like a great job.  I may have to check it out!  Or maybe I'm reading it wrong.   Sorry it's blurry I didn't have my glasses on.

(Refer to picture number one)

I love the title of this post.  Sounds like an 80's cop show :)

Duct Tape Crapper

A little crude I must admit but I am a man of little wealth.  (Is it still called wealth if it is virtually non-existent?) Sometimes I think I get more pleasure out of seeing how cheap I can do something than actually doing it.  I love to say," look at that and guess how much it cost?"  Nada.  Nope. Nothing.  Not that I don't like to buy something I just have a hard time parting with my money.  Unfortunately while it sits in the bank (while I'm contemplating) someone else spends it.  DOHHH! 
Anything over $20 and I start him- hawing.  I can't believe I just typed him haw spell check isn't gonna like that one.  So I built a crapper AKA toilet, porta john, head, bathroom, dump hole, the list goes on and on.
The plywood and 2x4s I got from work and the duct tape has been hanging around for who knows how long.  Almost used it up on patching the camper though.  Damn Mice Anyways.  We dig a hole in the woods and place said crapper on top of hole and the rest is stinky history.  Yes I can't believe I'm posting this either.
When we leave camp we burn it.  No problem!  For you environmentalists out there we remove the duct tape.  For those of you who don't care we leave it on.:):):)

She's a beaut' eh?

So leading up to the crapper is my menu for deer camp.  Irony or is it Memorex?

I have two meals in the freezer already(dinner)

I call it my tribute to Michigan.  Walleye and venison Loin.

Thanks Harry for the beautiful fillets from Saginaw Bay caught this past July.

Also looking at pork chops, fried chicken,venison stew, and burgers.

It's tough cooking when you have limited resources and limited packing space.

I have decided to squeeze one of my turkey fryer set-ups into the mix with a fish basket for the chicken and fish and french fries.  It will be worth the space.  I have 7 more pounds of jerky going in the smoker today and some venison grind that will be turned into summer sausage(or fall sausage I guess) with cheddar cheese in it.  Which leads me to my next topic of processing deer for people.

Had a guy drop off a deer Monday night.  Kind of a friend although we don't really see each other much.  Friend of a friend we'll say.  I have processed his deer in the past.

His neighbor shoots a doe and gives it to him.  Now he has to take care of it in a hurry so who does he call?  Me.  I'm a little more expensive by about $20 but I can turn it in a day.  So he tells me to turn the loins into jerky and make the rest into sausage and sticks.  OK I wasn't planning on that much work right before I leave but he's a nice guy and I could use the $.  So that night I order my supplies from out of state and have them rushed in so I could finish it this weekend.  I e-mail him an estimate and he chokes.  $250 for a whole deer turned into jerky and sticks is a great price but he just can't afford it.  I'm stuck with the supplies.  $61 dollars for supplies and his processing cost $70.  So I guess I made $9.  Hmmmmm

Which is why I'm making sausage for myself now.  Oh well.  He's happy,  I learned a lesson.  No one is dead and the damn chicken still wakes my dogs every morning so let it live right?

Crap On, Crap On, The Crapper!