RC..
I looked back over my post, and I see what you mean. I could've chosen my words with a little more forethought. I'll take another stab at it. A few months ago I was approached about being an ambassador for Pond Boss. I agreed, as I know what the magazine, and this forum has done for my ponds,and I wanted to share this with the people in my area. I own a small businesss, and as I type this, Pond Boss brochures are displayed on the counter for customers to pickup. Part of my business requires that I travel to customers houses to pickup and return equipment that I repair. I carry brochures in the glovebox, and if I see a pond at my customers house, I always leave a brochure. I encourage everyone to come to the forum, and checkout what Pondboss is about before they subscribe. Now comes the rub. Everything you stated about my ponds is true. I own them, I stock them, and I control who fishes them.
I could choose to cut down the trees, or take a boat out, or toss a half stick of dynamite in and collect what floats up... it's entirely up to me. However, when I made the "real world" statement, I wasn't talking about me. You see, most of my friends' ponds, my family's ponds, and my customers' ponds, look just like mine. Trees growing down to the waters edge, grass and weeds up to your waist. I have gotten some feedback from people who visited the forum on my reccomendation, and they were concerned that the issues discussed were so divergent from their own concerns, that they weren't interested in subscribing. I try to explain that everyone here is very friendly, and a wide variety of topics are discussed at length. Hang around and give it a chance I say. But I can see their point. I realize that it's impossible to discuss, at length, the various nuances among ponds of different geographic locales, I just don't want Pond Boss to seem like they are too far removed to be able to help the guy with cattle in his pond, or the fellow who needs advice on drinking water systems utilizing pond water, or the angler who chooses to fish in the brush. Those are my "real world" contacts, that I am trying to convince to join us. I already know that this is the friendliest, most helpful forum to which I belong. I just want the locals to know it too.
Respectfully,
Tony
