I'm a film critic, a winner announcer, a drunk, and a fisherman.

So, I kind of ran out of steam with this whole contest thing. Admittedly, I got pretty drunk on Saturday night (more on that later) and I slacked on announcing the winner. I'm pleased to announce that my good buddy Dean over at Gin Clear won the Eat My Fly Outfitters shirt and hat giveaway.

As for contest Day 7....to be honest..I had something to give away. And now I can't find it. I think my kids stole it. But anyway, as soon as I find it, I'll post it. Or I'll just tie up a shit ton of flies to give away. Either way, Day 7 will happen. Just not today. You should all go enter Cameron's contest. He's got some pretty amazing stuff.

So yeah, back to Saturday. We had a friend's son's Bar Mitzvah at Citizens Bank Park on Saturday night. Shit got crazy. Like real crazy. We wound up hitting a few bars afterwards. I don't remember much, but the Philly Phanatic was raving out. It's always a scene when they turn a baseball stadium into a night club.

I did manage to get a little pickerel fishing in before we left. Only had a follow, but the peace and quiet was much needed to level myself before a night of insanity.

As I spent yesterday and today recovering (yes, hangovers last two days now that the late 30s is upon me) I watched a few fly fishing flicks.

First up, "The River Why". I want the two hours of my life back that I wasted on watching this shit movie. I read that someone said this film was going to rejuvenate fly fishing like "A River Runs Through It". Well, Buster did not want to fish. He wanted to watch 2 hours of no plot, HORRIBLE acting, and  a bunch of steelhead getting bonked on the head. I'm not even going to post a video clip of this film because it was so damn bad and I'm angry because I heard the book is great but this movie ruined it for me. I can't bring myself to read it now. The only reason to watch this movie is Amber Heard's beauty, but you can just google her instead. WTF was up with the  guy from The Walking Dead and his chair rocking dog? And the random nonsensical words that Gus mutters? Or the clay wrapped around the worm? I feel like you had to read the book to understand half the stuff that happens.

Next, Low and Clear. I wasn't expecting much from this film and I wouldn't exactly call it a fly fishing film. I'd called it "An Anti-Bromance that takes place on a BC Steelhead trip". If you want to watch the intricacies of a 25 year old relationship between two guys unfold in front of you while one gets skunked and the other slams fish all day, go for it.

In all honesty though, it wasn't bad. There are some beautiful fish caught, the scenery and music are both excellent, but I felt it does move a little slow. If you're expecting nonstop fish porn, go somewhere else. If you want some thinking man's fly fishing art house film, this is for you.



So yeah, keep an eye out for contest 7, and if you're the dude who won day 1, You have until tomorrow to claim it or I'm picking a new winner.


Seacrest out.

The internet vs. fly fishing

So, I was at a local fly shop today and wound up having an almost hour-long conversation with the owner. This guy has been around. He knows all the fly fishing legends, and has a bamboo collection that would make your jaw drop. He's from the old school, before people were instantly posting their massive catches on Instagram and Facebook. (guilty, I know..) Over the past few years, I've been stopping by there, spending money on materials, and shooting the shit, and I got to know him rather well.

So anyway, we got to talking about the current state of fly fishing. He knows I have a blog and whatnot and he said "No offense, but I think all this bullshit on the internet killed fly fishing." I think a lot of other bloggers, and people who frequent forums and comment on the Orvis Fly Fishing Film Friday posts would be butt-hurt, but honestly, I get it. He said he sees younger people coming in, bragging about this and that, and asking to test cast some rods. He watches them go outside and they can barely do a standard cast, yet their iPhone is full of Steelhead pictures from Pulaski. He also mentioned he'll see someone who is well versed in the sport comment on an ignorant post (as in... uninformed)  from some newbie on a message board, and get flamed to death for it.  I've kind of noticed the same thing.

I'm not someone who has been involved in the sport for two decades, and the only real reason I started this blog was to chronicle my fishing trips and look at my progress with fly tying. All of a sudden, people started to read it. That's cool and I appreciate the following, but sometimes I think all of us need to take a step back and remember that it's just about getting out of the house and maybe catching some fish.

It's not all about tying the hottest pattern with all the new synthetic czech materials and posting it online. It's not about catching a 25 inch brown and keeping it out of the water for 4 minutes to get that "perfect photo". It's not about the hero shot with the 20 lb steelhead you caught on the swing, and definitely not about 40 retweets on your amazing tweet about some fishing story.

It's about the zen you get from a cold beer, a hook in the vise, and some good music playing as you first pick up the bobbin after a long day. It's about the first signs of spring, and average sized wild browns rising to olives under a hanging tree that's just starting to bud. It's about sharing fishing stories over a few lukewarm beers in the parking lot after a day of slow fishing. It's about that perfect solitude in the dead of winter and catching half a dozen rising fish on dry midges yet no one else will venture outside because it's 20 degrees and snowing, and also about getting a bad farmer's tan while getting eaten alive by Mosquitos on a hot summer afternooon but not leaving because the Bass keep smashing poppers.

Posting massive hero shots and Go Pro videos, or taking over a fly fishing message board, might make you f*cking awesome on the internet, and if that's what you wanna do, go for it. But maybe this generation (including myself) need to occasionally step back and remember what fly fishing is about. It's not about 100 likes on Instagram. It's not about 2000 followers on Twitter. It's about fooling a fish. Remember that, and I guarantee you'll enjoy it much more.

I've definitely slacked off on my blogging over the last year, as have a few of my fellow bloggers. This can't be controlled. Kids and work happen and sometimes there's just not enough time to fish or post. I had a conversation with another fellow blogger who slowed down his posting as well at the Somerset Fly Tying show on the weekend and we both noticed that it doesn't matter if we stop posting because there will be 10 other new fly fishing blogs to take our place. I think it's great that people want to share their fishing experiences but I just want to say.......Take heed of what I said above and you will have a much better time, and a much more enjoyable blog to read.

Sorry for the ramble. I may or may not have had a few too many beers this afternoon. Enjoy the gluttony tomorrow.