Don’t open it. Doing so will lead to financial disaster and domestic discord. You will max out your credit cards on exotic feathers and hair from nearly extinct animals. If you do not offend your spouse and children by ignoring them entirely to produce more flies than you can ever use you will terrify them when you approach with a pair of scissors and a mad gleam in your eyes. Even your faithful dog will abandon you in his shame at being exposed naked to the world from repeated shearings. As you reach the final stages of this addiction your beard will have great ragged chunks cut out to to ties streamers for the saltwater box you have never used. If you already opened it WELLCOME TO THE MADHOUSE!
Thanks for the tip. 
And after a short while you will start eyeballing every dead animal on the side of the road and wondering how long it has been there. You might even start carrying heavy scissor so you can jump out and collect a squirrel tail from time to time. Your teenager daughter will be particularly embarrassed.
Then you will get bright ideas on new things to try only to find out one of the old guys on FAOL did that years ago. Welcome to the club, those first ugly flies you tie are not nearly as ugly as the first one’s I tied, I’ll bet you a cup of coffee on that one.
Enjoy, it’s as close to art as some of us ever get, just remember some of the stuff Picasso drew and he was consider a master artist.
Where were you all about 25 years ago. I’ll never shake the addiction, but I guess there are worse ways to go.
Bruce
Last year at this time, my brother had given me a fly rod that he had tried and then gave up. In complete ignorance I asked this board how to spend a $100 Santa Claus always manages to send me this time of year. I then started recieving flies, fly boxes, tippets, leaders and even 5wt double taper fly line and backing in the mail. Which left the 100 bucks for a vest and waders. Then in March I had my last (I hope) knee surgery and received a vise, tools and all kinds of feathers and dubbing in the mail so I’d have something to do while I was laid up. Now I own all of the above several videos, wading staff and an ODC Classic. And Santa brought me a computer desk today for my fly tying stuff which I am going to place where ever my wife lets me. 
None of which would have happened if my little brother could have gotten that fly rod to work, or if it wasn’t for the members of FAOL. I want to tell him and all of you thank you. My wife probably has a few other words she’d like to tell you. But its a family site so I won’t try to guess what they are. :lol:
hNt
hung Ntree you need to get revenge on you brother. Teach him how to cast and sit back to watch the fun.
Bob,
My dear wife enabled my addiction by giving me a nice oak fly tying desk for Christmas. Now I can ty in my own little corner of the world. Guess I will have to start looking the roda kill over as well. I am new to the forum and look forward to conversations with those who love feathers and thread.
Merry Christmas
rainbowchaser!!
hungNtree really has me to blame!!:twisted:
The way this group operates, there is plenty of blame to go around.
Rev. Dan,
Welcome to FAOL from Tennessee! You are in good company here! Sit back and spend many hours reading all the great info that is on this site.
It is truly one of the only hands on, year round hobby,s and remember beauty is in the eyes of the beholder.
Hi Ho Hi Ho it’s off to Bass Pro I go… Need 6 bx of hooks assorted sizes, assorted capes, and a new pair of scissors.
Will be tying flies while working nights all week long.
Rev Dan, and welcome from SW Montana.
Hope you enjoy your stay here.
John
That is a tip that is 20 some-odd years too late. Now I’m in a 12-step program for chronic fly-tyers, but to no avail. I can’t even sit and watch the news anymore without getting bobbin and scissors in hand. I’m sure if my local fly shop, Jimmy’s All Season Anglers in Idaho Falls, ID, ever had a supplier issue all he would have to do is call me and I could help him keep his shelves stocked for a good long time - that’s what my wife thinks anyway…:rolleyes:
Kelly.
Hi All,
The additiction gets worse. You will spend time in Walmarts looking in the crafts department. Your wife will wonder about you when you want to go to fabric stores and craft stores with her, and she will be really shocked when you suggest that you go to such when you are out and about.
You will end up buying different colors of finger nail polish, beads, and even go to the counters to ask about seldom sold craft items, items which the clerk has never sold to a man.
Face it you will be sick…sick…sick.
As the old saying goes: Give a man a fish and you feed him for one day, but teach him to tie flies and he will spend a good deal of time in his basement ignoring his personal hygiene.
Welcome to the obsession!
Regards,
Gandolf
What ever you do dont buy anyone the labador pocket flytieing kit. it was two of them that got me hooked. next thing you know i’m making bobben holers out of copper tubing and spring steel spending hours trolling this site and others learning about tieing. the someone sends you a vice and materals and your off. now i spend 4-8 hours a day tying flies and even go to the book store and sit in the cafe and tie flies. as people watch me. my girlfriend is trying to get me to sell my flies online just to see the pile of flies lessin its wonderful
Rev. Dan welcome to the loony bin! I mean FAOL.
Jack’s right there, my first fly fishing trip was with him. I caught 5 rainbow! I had the first hooked for afew minutes but that duck river bow hooked me for life!!
Welcome to fly tying Rev. Dan. Beware that one enters this fraternity at your own risk!!:lol: I got my fly tying kit last Christmas and I think it made the year go faster! My good wife, who has the patience of Job, often walks by my bench, smiles and shakes her head usually without uttering a word. On a few occasions she has asked with surprise, how can chicken feathers cost so much? and how many feathers do you need? But, it was awesome when I landed my first trout on a fly that I tied…that was worth it all. I think even my wife was impressed! Happy New Year!
The disease is definitely chronic and not curable. I started upon military discherge in 1950 and am still at it. I don’t even fly fish any more because I couldn’t handle wading on those slippery “door knobs” and “bowling balls” but I still enjoy tying. My latest cycle of activity involves finding places to store more new stuff that I don’t need. Maybe we could start a Fly Tiers Anonymous like the alcoholics have.
Fly Tyer’s Anonymous - what a great recruiting tool for new tyers…
<stands up, head hanging, no eye contact>
“Hi my name is Ed, I started tying at age 12.”
<sits down>
<the assemblage drones> “Hi Ed”
<one member quietly threads a bobbin>
<all move to the tables and set up their tying stations…>
Ed