Gary Miller
Thursday, January 25, 2018 8:26 am

The fishermen around here are coming out of their hibernation. The walleye and crappie will soon ring the dinner bell and the bass will be getting more active as well. The stories will soon be plentiful. I hope the filets will as well. Even though there are many different stimuli that cause a fish to do certain things; one of those is temperature. In a lake, most fish are more active when the water is neither too hot nor too cold. This time of year, when the sun begins to warm the surface of the water, fish soak in that warmth and become more active. This activity creates the need for food which you and I are glad to provide - at a cost of course. And sometimes that cost is dear! While fish are becoming more active, the approach for catching them still requires a slow presentation. That is, most bass fishermen right now prefer to slowly fish a jig or a crankbait. Anything too fast will most likely cause that bass to stay sunning next to that rock. As the temperature rises, those same fish will be more apt to react to faster moving baits. A pastor once told me to never make any decision when I am either too high or too low. If I do, I will most likely make the wrong decision. He was so right! What he was saying was that the temperature of my temperament must be neither too hot nor too cold when making major decisions. I must make sure that I am in my best thinking weather when it's time act. Some of you right now are contemplating something that you may regret. You may have just been scathed by your boss and you are planning your "take this job and shove it" speech. Or it may be you have just gotten a big raise and as a result you are close to buying a red Corvette. For the sake of every member of your family, let me beg you to stop! Don't make a move! Step away from the computer, or the car lot, or even the ledge! Wait until your temperature and temperament is back tonormal-functioning mode. When it is, you may still want to fi re your boss or buy that Corvette, but you will do so with a clear head. Otherwise, there may be an unwanted hook embedded in a bad decision.

GARY MILLER

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