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Norman,
OK. – As the calendar turns new every January 1, the entire country rolls itself out of bed, struggles to shake the effects of hangover and exhaustion, and thinks to itself; “now what?”
For some of the population, life is a set of momentary snap decisions that occur on a frequent basis because they resist any form of organization. For this type of person success is based on the immediate, and as a result they are also quickly moved away from to move on to the next project or moment; translated, the next whim.
For many citizens, those hopelessly mentally ill sorts who have their life planned out like some sort of master ‘to do list,’ the rolling of the calendar to January 1 is not a big deal. This type of person has every day of their life calendared down to 15-minute increments. The reaching of a goal is reached with a celebration of the achievement before moving on to the next step.
For another group, who isn’t comfortable being pigeon holed into one of these two categories, there are the hopes of the New Year’s Resolution, those self promises of improvement that they hang their dreams on each year.
For the rest of the world, those citizens blessed with being bass anglers; there really is no need for the ritual of the resolution. As bass anglers, we have reached a level of perfection that the rest of the world can only hope to attain. Years of hard work at pinpointing the movements of our quarry has given us a unique connection to the forces of the earth that leaves us in tune with the passing of time; in other words, we have, most of us achieved perfection.
For that small percentage of bass anglers who has not reached that final plateau of perfection, we have complied a list of suggested resolutions that will help you attain the confidence the rest of us have our flawlessness.
Some of the items on this list will be tougher to accomplish than others, but rest assured, the completion of these resolutions will leave you not only in complete control of your world, but you will have a distinct competitive advantage at every tournament.
The BASS ZONE .com Staff has compiled a list of suggested Resolutions for you, one for each month of the year.
1. Resolve to organize all 362 Plano, Flambeau and Falcon tackle boxes in your boat and tow vehicle according to lure type first, then color second. All terminal tackle should be categorized by size and color of hook, size and material of sinker and color of course. (This process should take no more than the first half of the year to complete).
2. Resolve to employ a new diet and exercise program into your annual practice routine. Chicken and Sushi are healthier, and will help aid in keeping you healthy enough to fish as fast and as hard as you want to. (Besides, McDonalds and Hormel are not going to be wrapping any boats to look like Big Macs or Vienna Sausages, so you can stop trying to force their hands by eating more of them).
3. Carry at least one set of swimming trunks and towel in the boat with you at all times. (That way you can avoid the embarrassment of showing up at weigh-in with wet trousers from swimming to retrieve a snagged lure).
4. Resolve to hire a handyman to complete that list of chores you began as a part of your 1994 New Year’s Resolutions. (Hey honey, do we still need the crib set up for the kids, and since we have a DVD player now, can I cross fixing the extension cord on the Betamax machine off of my list?)
5. Resolve to share equal amounts of memory on your DVR with your spouse for her recordings. (Accomplish this by transferring 17.5 hours of Bassmaster, FLW Outdoors, Ultimate Match Fishing and of course Byron and Mary’s season of The Bachelor to DVD or VHS; of course that season of The Bachelor can be counted as a fishing show).
6. Resolve to release some of your 2008 fishing budget to share with your kid’s college fund and your daughter’s wedding fund. (Oh, who am I kidding, your oldest is only 8 years old, and you can make it up to her out of your tournament winnings. Besides, everybody loves a backyard wedding and the world needs more mechanics).
7. Resolve to reduce the amount of tackle you have stored in the garage. (We understand your long held belief that there will be a time that fish will only bite that special pour bubble gum flavored plastic worm you’ve had since 1972, but you need more room for the new YUM plastics coming out).
8. Resolve to reduce the amount of rods and reels you will purchase in 2008. (We know that Quantum has a new extra heavy swimbait rod designed by the top pros, but if you only buy three, you have reduced your usual expense by 32.54 percent).
9. Reduce your trips to local and destination tackle stores by 33 % in the coming year. (I know that seems like a lot, but not to worry, that still gives you nine trips a month, and don’t forget, you still have the Internet and Cabela’s Grand Opening loopholes you can employ).
10. Resolve to teach your children to fish this year. (We know that it will cut in to your practice time for that big club championship event, but you only really need three days; and, it gives your spouse reason to let you go fishing more. Besides, how could anyone argue with you for taking your children fishing?).
11. Attempt to redeem the gift certificate for those dancing lessons you got as a Christmas present from your wife in 2003. (You can use this as the ‘exercise’ portion of item number 2 above, and these days you can always use a new dance routine for celebrating on camera when you catch that kicker on the last day of a big tournament).
12. Resolve to include an image of your family into your 2008 wrap on your boat. (The picture of your spouse and cherubs will remind you what they looked like when you last saw them, and besides, it gives the media a reason to write about you in the latest edition of your local paper).
There are twelve ways you can improve yourself for 2008. But, you probably don’t really need any of these resolutions to be considered perfect anyway. We also know that finding time to work on all of these items will be a tough task, what with local tournaments to fish, new fishing shows on TV to watch, and Internet message boards to peruse. Of course, there are also six additional BASS ZONE .com on location events to follow this year, thanks to our coverage of the FLW Tour to go along with the BASS Elite Series.
Whatever the choice you make on improving yourself for the coming year, remember, your options are all Wide Open, and It’s all about Being There… Stay Tuned!
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