This morning I was up at out early enough to catch the sunrise way before it happened. Funny thing is somedays it's just not a good one or other days, like yesterday, you just miss it. I was at 7-11 in the dark so I new I would have plenty of time to pick a different spot and wait for the light to arrive.
As I stood there in the cold looking at, more snow we got last night, I watched as several cars pulled up and people positioned themselves to watch the sunrise. Some were alone, some with spouses and friends, and most all with something warm to drink in one hand and a camera of some kind in the other. It was another beautiful morning......one that most missed while sleeping in on a cold Sunday.
As with each day that I write this blog I tried to find a topic that I would write on. Sometimes it's about the fishing or the fish, fly tying, sunrises, beach or boat trips, or, in my case, vehicle problems, surgeries or injuries, triumphs or disappointments in both my professional and personal life. I like to think that I keep most of my life under guard, but thinking back to this blog I realize I, for the most part, put it all out there, for better or worse.
When I got home I flipped on the computer and checked my emails. One email asked why I didn't have a Valentine's Day themed post, which I found both interesting and alarming, and another congratulating me on the blog hitting 200,000 views. This blog has become an important part of my life and a part, albiet on a much smaller scale, in the lives of others. People enjoy it, people look forward to it, and people let me know if I miss a day here and there. I guess, in a way, its like going outside and the paperboy forgot to leave the daily paper on the sidewalk.
When the fishing on the Jersey Shore or Upper Delaware is on people enjoy reading the good, the bad, and the ugly and seeing myself and my clients out and about doing what we do....enjoying the environment, enjoying time with others, and enjoying the sport of fly fishing. Soon, and not soon enough, the internet will be full of people posting pictures of fish they have conquered in the fresh and salt water. On March 1st those diehard anglers will venture to the warmest of waters inside the colregs line and target striped bass. The forums will be a buzz with spot burn warnings and heated suggestions on practicing catch and release, and the cycle of the seasons will begin.
I will venture out too, throwing flies to half frozen and lethargic bass that are rooting down into the mud, knowing that most of my early season outings will not produce a bite or a fish. But, those days will give me a chance to get out and enjoy the outdoors, loosen up the arm and shoulder, and give me new blog fodder for people to enjoy.
