Pond Boss Forums INTRO Questions & Observations Priceless day

I cut out of work early yesterday to take my Partner (6 year old Grandson) and his 8 year old best friend for a day in the country. They caught bluegills, green sunfish and broke off one whopper catfish. They picked and ate a bunch of blackberries, destroyed my beer can collection with BB guns and rode 4 wheelers. I expect they got lots of chigger bites.

At the end of the day, when it was time to travel the 70 miles home, they started hammering me to spend the night and do it all again the next day. We stopped at a BBQ place on the way home and they were too tired to eat. That's unusual for this pair.

My Grandson is used to this and spends a lot of time with me. His friend isn't and the day was hugely improved by bringing another kid. When we got home they started their planning for a full weekend and the other kid wants to move in with me.

Boy, did I have a great day. Now back to work.

Kudos, Grandpa. Way to go.

Judging from personal experience, Dave, in 40 years he'll remember this and his kids will have heard what a great Grandpa he had enough to know your name.

Good memories are the best things we make.

We need to see more of this. Many kids these days are not taking to the outdoors for various reasons which include broken homes, single parents that do not fish, lack of opportunities, lack of funds, no father in the home, home computer games, etc. etc.

There are also ponds out there that could easily accomodate kids but the owners are afraid of being sued if something should happen. You can thank sleazy lawyers in our sue happy culture for that.

I see the number of anglers and hunters dwindling rapidly in the future. I see it already as a taxidermist and it is only getting worse. My DNR has taken notice of this by sponsoring "kids day tournaments," but it is too little too late. Among other things they need to make our lakes more angler friendly by enacting idle speeds in the mornings so the average angler is not blown off the lakes by jet skis and power boats. So far this has fallen on deaf ears. They are just working they're way out of a job and mine too!

Great post Dave, I really enjoyed it.

Theo, that boys grandkids will never know my real name. When he was very small and just learning to talk, he looked at me one day and called me Pardner. From a very early age he knew what that meant. He has never called me anything else and early attempts to get him to call me Grandpa would put tears in his eyes. He talks about "our" pickup, stock tanks, tractors, guns, etc. When another kid says something about his Grandpa, He responds that I'm not his Grandpa but his pardner. He knows different but? BTW, Lusk has posted his picture on page 4 of the photo section here. He likes Bob.

I have 6 Grandchildren and the girls are fairly bubbleheaded but this guy is in the Gifted and Talented program at his school. He doesn't much like the idea because he's afraid it will cut into his fishin and hunting time.

Cecil, I drop by all of my local Grandkids schools for lunch whenever possible. I take them all fishing but the Granddaughters just don't have the patience. They also don't appreciate the value of peeing outdoors like the boys do.

I had never taken another kid along. It improved my Grandsons day immensely and I'm going to do more of that. I highly recommend it to you guys.

Great post Dave. I am going to have the opportunity to go to work from the house and will be able to look out the window from the office I am building in my detached garage and watch the kids fish and play in my pond. It sure is going to be alot different than haveing to drive 45 miles to work!

Bob

Dave my day is coming up this Saturday, taking my 83 year old mother fishing at the pond. Cane poles and worms, going for the bream like she did as a little girl.
Can't wait

Dave, thanks for sharing your experience. You are creating memories for these boys that they will remember forever and share with their grandkids someday. My strongest memories from my childhood all involve the outdoors,nature and fishing, they seem to outlast any others. It sure puts a smile on your face just watching them enjoy,explore and learn.

Dave, THAT is what it's all about!! My brother brings my nephews out to the property, and all day they jump from the fishing poles to the quads to the paintball guns in a neverending cycle. When they bring a freind or two, it just gets compounded. Then on the way home, my Bro gets harrassed for two hours as to when they are going back.

Last Saturday we had a local Cub Scout Pack out for the day. There were 11 boys aged 7 to 10 and 12 adult advisors & patents. They had a ball in 3 boats and the paddle boat catching BG and Bass and roasting their own hot dogs and marshmallows.
As I sat back in the shade with an adult beverage just watching and being amazed at all their energy there was one young lad about 8 years old who has Cerabal Palsey (sp?)who was confined to a $30,000 motorized wheelchair.
I have one dock that is 4' wide and 57' long with a 8' by 8' platform at the end and is sturdy as a rock. (I've been know to drive out to the end on one of my Honda Rubicons on occasion).
Anyway, with an adult on each side of him he was able to motor out to the end of the dock and the adults assisted him in putting a worm on his hook and throw his line out a few feet. I was talking to his Mother and she said it was the first time he had ever been in an "Outdoor enviroment" and with a little assistance he caught several BG. His excitement and expression on his face with squeals of joy caused me to have to go off for a short walk in the woods.
One of the pictures we took was of him showing off one of the fish he caught and we printed out a 8 X 10 copy and are sending it to him.

I hope he got half as much enjoyment out of it as I did just watching him.

Dan

Any chance of us seeing that photo, Dan?

Dan, your the Man

Yea Dan, awesome. Got a bit semi-mental myself reading your post.

It doesn't have to be your kid or grandkid. Just take a kid or two fishing. I took a bunch a while back. They beat me to the fishing while I was cleaning up from breakfast. After I finally found them, they confessed that they had caught nothing. I showed them what to use, and how to use it. They began catching fish. Made me feel smart. Made them smile. But deeper than that, it just made me feel good.

Doing something like this puts you in touch with what we are here to do. We should be teaching those younger than us how to live. We should be creating experiences for them that attract them away from the negative influences and toward the positive.

Guys, I'm at the bottom of the gene pool when it comes to posting pictures...BUT if someone else would post it I would like to e- mail it to them.

Any takers??

Dan

I'll do it!

bmcondello@bizfunctional.com

Member number 7 and can't even post a picture? Sure seems like you have been fishin too much! Email it to me and I'll put it on.

Bob

Price of 1 BBQ dinner = $10
Price of BB Guns and 4-Wheelers = $1,000
Price of Building Pond = $10,000

Price of kids asking to come back for more = Priceless

that is awesome.

Dave, great post. What a great story about a great experience. I always have a special time when I take the grandsons out to our place. They are 7 abd 5 yrs old. It does make for a special time. Ponds & kids just seem to go together. I guess I am just a big kid.

Bob,

Thanks. I'll send it now.

I think it's a brain-finger interface thingy.
Heck, I still use a old IBM electric typewritter it that gives you any clue to my computer abilities.

Dan

Chuckle Chuckle!

Here is Dan's picture for everyone else to enjoy like I did.

I think someone should ask the Pond Boss to consider making that picture part of the logo...

Dan, you're a hero.

The world uses the word HERO too loosely. However, Dan is the real deal.

Thanks Bob. Someday maybe I'll figure it out.
Been called a lot of things but hero sure ain't one of them. You can get a lot of enjoyment out of watching kids just have fun being kids. Seeing the ones that are less fortunate have opportunities to do things that they are not able to normally enjoy really is in the "Priceless" catagory and makes you appreciate your own kids/grandkids all the more.
Most of the scouts were from the "city" and several wanted to move in or be adopted. Guess they really had a good time.

Dan

Dan I can truly relate to kids with special needs. My 4th grand daughter was born in Deceember with Down Syndrome. But to us she is just one of the grandkids and is sweet as a button. I have spent lots of time working with the Special Olympics doing communications work and it is great that we have such a good network of people to help out. Especially seeing how special kids were treated in foreign countries as I traveled the world in the Navy.

Bob

Dan, E-mail that picture to Lusk. It may take a little time but I bet he will put it in the Photos section of the website. He is spending most of the summer in upper New York State so it might take him some time to get it posted.