I proceeded out of my door at 7:00am to my favorite hunting spot. It’s a beautiful unexplored parcel of land attached to a very affluent farm in one of our NY counties. From what I understood, there hasn’t been hunters allowed on the farm since the early 1900′s. The previous owners of the farm had a very strict policy that continued through the generations into the new millennium. The words “NO HUNTING” were prominently displayed at the front entrance to the farm! If you’re a hunter, you know what it’s like to find a good parcel of land. I love to hunt on private land, It seems to be a little bit quieter than State lands, and one of the roads less traveled. I had been granted permission to hunt because of an ad I had started placing on craigslist.com two years ago. Most of my friends pay an annual fee to hunt.

They go up opening week and are required to pay $2500.00 per season. I’m a small business owner and have fees popping up all the time so I really don’t have much money to spend towards hunting season, other than the normal fees incurred, let alone pay to hunt. So I decided to come up with a way to have that privilege and not pay any fees that hunting private properties entailed. Being a multi licensed & talented Union Sheetmetal Worker, I placed an ad that was titled appropriately “Handyman, GC Skills in exchange for Permission to Hunt”. In the ad I described a little about myself, how much I love our forests, nature, water ways and wetlands, my skills and what it is that I can offer. The responses were phenomenal! I had offers from people ranging from hundreds of acres, all the way down to private homes with 5 acres attached to State land. I emailed back a few of the people to see what it was they wanted done and if I was qualified to help them. The duties ranged from cutting grass, digging holes with a post hole digger and installing a fence, to exterminating deer.

What a novel idea I thought to myself. We exchanged numbers & interviewed over the phone. Before I knew it I was headed up to fulfill my promise and hopefully evaluate the property. My first job was painting a barn over. It took me the whole 2006 hunting season to complete. I went in the woods and hunted early morning from first light till about 11:00am, changed out of my hunting clothes and into my work clothes. I painted each day till about 1:00pm, washed up & changed back into my hunting garb and off into the woods I went. The woman was so happy with me that she invited me back this year. I was ecstatic!! I have been hunting since opening day & saw several deer, but no shooters. Then Saturday morning I followed my usual routine. Upon exiting the woods to go to breakfast, I noticed a group of deer in the field next to the wood fence that separated the horses and the road. At first I was stunned by what I saw. One of the animals with the small group was a goat. I thought to myself, that’s odd, I never saw goats & deer herding together before. Upon a closer look, I saw that it was not a goat. It was in fact a piebald deer.

I started to shake like I had buck fever on my first day hunting again as an adolescent. I placed my weapon on the floor & hurried backwards to my vehicle to retrieve my camera. I had to get pictures of this, I thought to myself. If I tell anyone, they wouldn’t believe me. I finally got my truck opened, fumbled through my bag, grabbed my camera & headed back to where I saw the deer previously. They were no longer there. I let out a loud sigh. It figures, I said aloud.

I picked up my weapon & proceeded to walk towards the area where they were standing. All of a sudden, I see movement in the tree line. First the mother stepped out & checked me out, then the other offspring. Finally the white deer stepped out. It was a white button buck with a black head. The feeling that came over me was magical. He raised his nose into the air to get a whiff of my scent like a classic buck in training. I turned on my Kodak digital camera, raised it and took these pictures for the hunting, wildlife & outdoor enthusiasts of the world to see. From what I understand from the locals, nobody else has seen it. I was even called a liar unless I divulged it’s whereabouts.

I almost fell for it. I truly had no desire whatsoever to shoot this animal, and I damn sure wasn’t going to lead another hunter to his safe haven. I just smiled & walked away exclaiming “just kidding”. A chill arose up and down my spine and made me shake during the experience. I thought to myself, I’m sure there are other hunters out there who will not feel the same when coming face to face with one of these rare species. Therefore, I will protect it’s exact location with my life. If this one has the gene, I’m sure more will follow when it starts to procreate. As they scurried off into the thicket, I could only fantasize about meeting him again some day when he grows to be a majestic 8 – 10 or 12 point buck.

I am confident that I will feel the same way I felt when I had first glanced upon his magical technicolor dreamcoat. I felt truly blessed to see this animal. I have named him appropriately. He is called Oreo. How do I know he won’t roam off onto someone else’s property & meet a horrible death? I just have that feeling. He felt safe on the land. He trusted me. His mother knows the terrain. She has eluded me for years, she will not lead him astray. There are also a few other things that give me the confidence in knowing he will survive till adulthood. One is, I am the Steward of this land! Two, we will will always be friends and never enemies, and number three. It’s the sign above the opening on the entrance of the farm somewhere in New York State. It explicitly says, ” NO HUNTING!”

We will meet again.

Michael Di Pippo, President & CEO – Penfishingrods.com

Not to put too fine a point on things, but I’m speaking specifically of the Notre Dame Fighting Irish football team. I just watched them go down for the 5 game in a row this season. They are 0-5 this year and all of the loses have been by 15 points or more. They rank statistically in the bottom for just about every category. They are bad. They are a comedy of errors, missing two extra points and a field goal in one game. The games previous to the Purdue game were like watching a high school team play. Truly, truly disheartening to endure.

Back to my situation. On one hand I no longer feel convicted to watch every game and my weekends have opened up my schedule for which my wife is very happy. But I also now have no college football game to look forward to. So what do I do? I recored the game and watch the beginning, then I start fast forwarding with the 3 and outs, the turnovers, the missed blocks, the bad play and the poor coaching rear the heads. I have turned 3 1/2 hours of football into 40 minutes of condensed football. It has really saved on time and since I don’t have to be at home to watch it live (after all, they are probably going to lose) I can spend the day in the nice Virginia weather.

Don’t get me wrong, it still bothers me greatly. I just finished watching the loss to Purdue, and thus prompted me to write this post. Being a fan of a really awful, bad sports team has taught me a few things:

1. I am an optimist inwardly (Until we are down by 28 points or more)
   I still look forward to every game, against my better judgment, and really believe they are going to win. I still hold out hope for the comeback even when nothing has shown me my team has the talent or heart to make it happen.
2. I am more appreciative (Come back Lou!)
   I remember criticizing Lou Holtz for a few non-spectacular seasons near the end of his tenure as coach. Wow, what I wouldn’t give to have Sweet Lou back and be a consistent 9-3 every year. Rooting for bad team, makes you long for the mediocre years.
3. I am a cynic outwardly (I always know every bad play will happen, right after it happens)
   With every botched play, poor coaching call or bad decision I say how I expected it, but with every good play, few that they are, I say I can’t believe it.
4. I know there is next year (I can’t wait for it)
   0-5 means I’m already thinking about next year. And with that thought I find hope, because there is no way Notre Dame can be this bad two years in a row. No way. Of course, this decision is based on my first self discovery of optimism.
5. I have a unconditional love (Or a masochistic nature)
   I don’t believe in booing the home team except for specific reasons. You can read the Bill Simmon’s article on booing to see those reasons. I cheer them and always defend them with being tauted by other fans. Believe me, Notre Dame is either loved or hated with no middle ground, so I get lots of taunting. I feel for the team, especially Jimmy Clausen, and hope the best and stick with them through the bad. While it may be hard to do this some weeks (Georgia Tech game, yikes!) it makes is all the more sweet when the do have a season to remember. See optimism point above.

So when it is all said and done, I have no choice but to root for my team, hope for the future and tough it out while it is happening. Much like a mutt you didn’t mean to adpot your team and you are stuck together whether you like it not. During the midst of the bad season(s) I try to ease off and focus on other activities, focusing on something beside the score of the game that day. Your peace of mind and sanity will thank you. Probably your blood pressure too!

Thanks to The Fire Pit blog post on the Irish futility for the idea to post this.

Update 10/7/2007: Notre Dame Football got its first win on the 2007 season and I’m still not impressed with the offense. ND defeated UCLA 20-6 and without the 7 turnovers by the Bruins the Irish couldn’t have done it. But still, I’m very happy they have broken the losing streak and I’m sure things will turn around now. See eternal optimism point above.

Related articles

• European Football Stadium Tours (infographicsshowcase.com)
• Best Free Video Game Website (verybestsites.com)
• Heard This Story Before (steviessportspage.wordpress.com)
• Top 10 Places to Visit on a Budget in 2011 (makethelist.net)

If you are discovering rock climbing in Australia for the first time, there are only two names you have to remember, the Blue Mountains and Mt Arapiles. Each of these places has its particular appeal:

The Blue Mountains

Located only two hours west of Sydney, the Blue Mountains have been extensively climbed for over a century. In fact, the unique Australian climbing difficulty scale originated with Sydney based Blue Mountains climbers and Australia’s other contribution to the sport, the climbing bolt and hanger were first tested on the sandstone cliffs of the Blue Mountains by Australian climbing pioneer Bryden Allen.

Because of their close proximity to Sydney, the ease of access to the cliff faces and the variety of climbs that can be found in the Blue Mountains, they are arguably the most popular and safest place for beginners to learn to rock climb. A number of outdoor shops in Katoomba specialize in offering rock climbing lessons and offering guided rock climbs for everyone from beginners to expert climbers. If you are traveling solo, a guided climb is an ideal way to get an introduction to the sport. The shop will have provide you with rock climbing shoes, a harness and a helmet, while your instructor will be there to teach you rock climbing techniques and safely get you to the top of the cliff.

Cliff faces in the Blue Mountains range in height from 10 meters to 150 meters or more and in difficulty from an easy ’10′ on the Australian scale, to incredibly challenging climbs on featureless overhanging cliff faces. Even if you are an expert and come to the Blue Mountains with your trusted climbing partner, it’s a good idea to hook up with a local or hire a guide for your first outing. Aside from the hundreds of climbs that are within easy reach of the main towns of Katoomba, Medlow Bath and Blackheath, many of the best climbs are harder to find and recognize, even if you have a guidebook.

Whatever you do, don’t make your Blue Mountains rock climbing excursion a day trip. Book a Blue Mountains accommodation and stay as long as you can.

Mt Arapiles

When rock climbers hear the magic words, “Mt Arapiles”, their hearts beat faster and some are said to have heavenly visions. Mt Arapiles is a rock climber’s version of paradise. Jutting out from the desert floor of Victoria’s Wimmera Plains, it does not cover an enormous amount of area, but virtually every square foot of it is composed of high quality sandstone. Reaching a height of 369 meters, Arapiles has some of the best routes in Australia. Some of them have been conquered by only a handful of elite climbers, while others are perfect for beginners. All of them are sparsely bolted and knowledge of how to place protection is required.

Unlike the Blue Mountains, Mt Arapiles is fairly remote and except for bird lovers, virtually the only ones who go there are climbers. The campground at the foot of the mountains is always filled with climbers from around the world, but other than that, there are few nearby amenities. Natimuk, the nearest village, has a small population. There are a couple of excellent climbing shops in the town and lessons and guided tours are sometimes available, but not to the extent they are in the Blue Mountains. For these reasons, it is advisable to travel with a group of dedicated climbers.

If you don’t want to stay in the campground, your best bet is to check into a Horsham accommodation. Horsham, just 16 miles from Natimuk, is the largest town in the Wimmera region of Victoria. Another bonus to staying in Horsham is its proximity to another great rock climbing area, the awesome Grampians. But that’s a subject for another Australian rock climbing adventure story.

Post by guest blogger Sidney Morgan who writes about interesting things to do and see while visiting Australia.

Related articles

• Top 10 Smallest and Most Liberal Colleges (totallytop10.com)
• Long Exposure Plus Light = Magical Glowing Balls (thisblogrules.com)
• Lego Animation – Shootout (bizarrebytes.com)