Yes, they did it!

[Betty Hiner]

Oh, the lightning blazed! The thunder roared! The winds destroyed barns, and toppled trees! The sky opened up and rained torrents of waters on us, for four days straight! Had "Someone" got wind of our fishing trip? Could we have enraged the heavens enough by speaking bluegill, that they, too, were worried of the potential outcome?

It was so bad; contingency plans were being made ... unfortunately none of them involved fishing. But, we;d talked about this for years. Surely, a quick trip to the bluegill hole wouldn't be jeopardized at this late date! I wasn't going to be the lightning rod for this bunch! ... or, maybe I already was!! This was our signal ... bad things happen to elitist trout chicks when they defect to the gills!

Thursday morning came cloudy and unfriendly. Could the rains hold off for just a few hours? Or the winds?

It was about a 45 minute drive to the lake. Low and behold as the miles went by, could that be? A lifting of the clouds? The sun making a late afternoon/early evening appearance? Nah, just the wind blowing the darkness about. But still, no rain, no wind. There was hope at catching that first gill!

The boys, Zac, Kim, and Steve, were already set and fishing when I arrived. Umm, where were their nets? The fru-fru stuff of all trout purists? Talk about a fish out of water! What was I doing??? I'll tell you what I was doing! I was taking steps to a newfound happiness! OK ... so the boga grip left me a bit un nerved ... I got over it with the first monster bluegill that took my fly! The fight was on! The frantic swimming around in circles. And there he was.

What a pretty little fish! A bit bigger than my hand, but a comfortable fit. Granted, he didn't smell or feel like any trout I've ever brought to hand, but the colors! Blue and orange, and yellow, teal, and black and green! Incredible! Never mind that puppy had spikes all down his back, he was cute!! Over and over and over ... the process was repeated. Tim and Larry arrived to find a goofy, giggly little girl, well on her way to a bluegill high!

Oh, I'll never turn my back on my pretty trouts, but I have learned I don't have to! After all, trouts don't live in ugly places, but 'gill are from the 'hood!!

I can never thank "my boys" enough for this trip. It was fun beyond fun.