Wayne SW/MO

Things happen.

Rusty I think a constant circulating system is more cost effective. I can't remember the official name, but the description is accurate.

I suspect that the big difference is that generations have evolved from having what they needed, but not what they wanted to a generation that has more than they need and everything they want. Of course the blame lies squarely on adults however.

No, I never lived where we didn't have indoor plumbing. Not everyone in town did however, and none of the farms did. Everyone had electricity, but I know of one area in Oklahoma that still didn't have it in the very early 70's. My childhood might have predated some of yours.

Can't help you, I'm too old to handle the stress and my son has one, with another in training. If he survives them I'm sure my grand daughter make him wish they were back.

I was 12 when we got our first TV, but we were 100 miles from the station and somewhere in the transport a lot of snow entered the picture. I saw my first color TV at the American Royal in KC, it wasn't to good so I knew it wouldn't catch on. Radio was the big thing when I was a kid, well until I learned girls weren't all as worthless as my little sister. Sky King, The Shadow, Superman, and its seems like there was another. Of course there were also some crank telephones still around also. I was too young, but the big thing on Halloween was setting an outhouse in the middle of the junction of 5 streets up town. Those were the good old days, the bottoms were full of marijuana and nobody cared, didn't need it.

Enforcement isn't cheap and even if it was you need the cooperation of the county judge. I suppose to know if the stream teams are wort it you have to stop there operations for a year or too. I wouldn't want to see that, but it would answer your question. There is only one realistic option, in my opinion, and thats a commercial clean up operation funded by a surtax on floating. There are probably thousands of retired law enforcement in Missouri who would work part time for a reasonable wage without beni's to enforce laws relating to outdoor activities, but the people that can initiate it don't care.

I had another thought this morning when I was out with the dog, my place has been surrounded by wild flowers, including some semi wild ones. The rain has caused an explosion in flowers around here, so maybe they just have lots of food to choose from.

You guys had TV!

You had videos? I had to go to the movie theater and shell out a dime!

It never seems to take much. Look at what happened in Lebanon.

Its hard to stay away for very long, I know, it must be some kind of chip instilled when you're born.

If you can get in, RR is the place, its probably the most family friendly fishing park we have.

The late frost?

Maybe its just not big enough to handle a lot of attention?

Congratulations Martin.

I think he is thinking of a more ancient Merlin GF, not one of movie fame.

Its hard to make a comparison between Bigheads, and their cousins the Silver, with the common, they don't feed the same nor were they deliberately introduced, not to mentuon that they haven't been here 125+ years. The suppose trait of muddying up the water is hard to pin down and it seems to be based on carp presence, rather than a fact.

Thanks GF, back at you.

We also have to look beyond our own short visits to earth. In some instances it only takes one event in several hundred years, or more, to make a long term change.

My kids and grandkids are at TR for a week, an annual thing, and between them they caught 6 Golden Ghost up to 20 lbs on Thursday. It was fun for them, and so were the Punkinseeds.

Glad to hear that. I was by there last Fall and they were closed, but didn't look to be out of business. They're very accommodating people.

KFF, I've spent many nights camping in Black bear country, and many days hunting and fishing in the same, and I've seen maybe a half dozen, or less. Tell your wife the danger of being attacked by a "Dillo is probably greater.

I realize that the easiest approach is to look at one thing, make a quick decision and attack, but I have to point out a few things. Songbirds have declined in the last 40 years, so could it be Sparrows? Well they have been here 150 years, so why did they start a decline in their competitors 40 years ago? Starlings, cats, snakes, hawks, Blue Jays, they all take some toll, but thats been going on for 100 years. What has dramatically increased in the last 40 years is mans obsession with order. We buy an acreage for development and cut every tree and bush, we pave part of it, cover part of it with houses, and whats left we strip of of any bugs or seed producing plants, or seed producing wild plants. We plant nice open trees and shrubs that keep the pesky pooping birds from nesting, kill the bugs so they can't eat, and most of all get rid of any plants that drop seeds or fruits on the nice lawn, even if the birds would clean them up eventually. We like "ornamentals", they look nice but no seeds or fruits like a messy native Crabapple which we can replace with a Flowering Crab that produces no food for critters. No Meadowlarks on the fences? How about no fence rows, how about Fescue instead of native grasses, how about no bugs or seeds, no food, no where to nest or hide? On 76 west of Branson they've cleared a ridgetop and the sides down to dirt and rock, its probably a 360 or bigger, and there's nothing left for any wild animal, but it will produce more humans. I'm sure they animals that were pushed out aren't going to find an uninhabited area to populate, so I suppose most will die off taking others with them in the process because of overcrowding in an area nearby. So my vote for the most detrimental animal to birds is you.

They moved him somewhere, probably to MTNF west of Reed Springs. I'm sure they'll grab a little food and aggravate someone once in awhile, deer have been doing it for decades.