The weather here is delaying the summer of fun a bit, 42 tonight and someone stole my 2 Tier Flower Pot with the cat windchime that has been out next to my driveway for 5 years; don't know how anyone can enjoy stolen flowers?
I AM VERY INTERESTED IN SHIRTS, POND BOSS AND BIG BLUEGILL. I am quite amazed a what a hit wearing the Boys of Summer Shirt at the MLSA conference was. I am off next week to the first leg of the LAKE LEADER INSTITUTE I am enrolled in this summer. It is headed up by Jo A. Latimore, Ph.D of the MSU Fisheries & Wildlife Dept. along with the MLSA.
This is funny, first session is next weekend, at Higgins Lake Ram Center, which is 10 minutes away from where we stayed at Houghton lake a few weeks ago. Never been to either before now, but I am going up a day early (going it alone to the LLI) hitting that casino by myself, and am going on to stay at the same place and go to Skips where I am comfortable. I want to support those local nice people. I have already completed the first homework assignment reading "Tragedy of the Commons" and will have to read it again.
Then on July 30 I will spend 4 nights at the Kellogg Biological Station on Gull Lake (never been there either) doing field work in the water, class time, and more homework. After that I will do my Applied Project and poster board (I will need 2 boards for sure)on my lake, and I will call it WHEN A GOOD LAKE GOES BAD, and outline the steps, process, contacts, etc. to find the solutions. Part of it will be about learning what the fishery is (I will put Pond Boss, and Big Bluegill on there) along with getting rid of the bad guys and getting the BOS in here.
On Oct. 2, I will go to the Bengal Wildlife Center in Bath MI, (never been there) and have the final day of classes, present my project to all the Alumni guests that show up, and graduate. I will get to attend the Alumni day every year after.
This is funny, young biologist of the Boys of Summer is in this year's class as well. I already told him to do his homework as I will be watching him.
On June 27, I will be attending the parade of ponds tour in West Brach, (never been there).
My State Rep is coming to my house for a tour of our problems in an effort to get stimulus money, and the State Senators office is working on this as well.
Fish kill can't happen soon, water is way too high to shut the overflow off for one week, it just keeps raining. This is funny: GF LakeChair has a pump in her garage they use to pump water from one lake to another, no thought or consideration has been giving to draining out some water, it kind of make you wonder, you know?
Then the next battle will be to try and keep a balanced fishery instead of LMBass only, it kind of makes me crazy, every single thing around here is a battle. I have gained so much pleasure in feeding and observing the fish, I will not give it up.
Along this path of When a Good Lake Goes Bad, I have gained so much more than I ever could have, had our lake remained the beautiful blue swimming pool it once was. I would not trade what I have gained for a beautiful, trouble free lake.
