These aren’t real goldfish — they’re handcrafted by a Japanese artist who painstakingly builds them up layer by layer.
I’d love to see what he could do with a small pod of Brookies.
(Click here to see more pictures and watch a pretty fascinating video.)
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I’ll admit I’m ready to be reversed if the Undergrounders form an Occupy The Underground movement, but I just transformed the daily Short Cast posts into a single, awe-inspiring digest post set to appear once a week (it’s set for Thursday).
It seemed like the daily Short Casts were starting to clutter up the place a little, and yes, when I see a string of them I’m reminded I haven’t written anything for days.
As it is in the House of Representatives, the victory here will go to those who make the most noise.
If you want to experience my Short Casts in realtime, just subscribe to my Twitter feed.
See you being all geeky and shit, Tom Chandler.
Never let it be said that the Underground turns a blind eye to the plight of steelheaders those struggling with addiction, which is why we’ve chosen to courageously publicize perhaps the Most Important Press Release We’ve Ever Received:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: LOS ANGELES, CA – JANUARY 24th, 2012 – Doron Ofir Casting, (Millionaire Matchmaker, My Strange Addiction, Jersey Shore) officially confirms and announces for the first time ever, real people struggling with addiction will have the opportunity to take part in a revolutionary and groundbreaking documentary series chronicling the emotional and physical struggles of addiction—“REHAB with DR. DREW”.
Participants will be given a once in a lifetime opportunity to enroll in a no-cost, 30-day treatment program to begin the process of breaking free from the bonds of addiction and take their first steps down the road to recovery.
VH1, in association with Irwin Entertainment and Doron Ofir Casting, is currently searching for those struggling with substance addiction but not ready to give up hope.
“If you are ready to fight to take your life back into your own hands, I’m hoping to find you! Instead of giving in, make a change and seek the help you need. I want your story and why you need the help. Your story can be someone else’s hope.” Doron Ofir, Executive Casting Director
Realize that recovery can become your reality.
Please apply online at http://www.rehabcasting.com
Wow. Who knew there existed a reality tv-based cure for addiction?
Of course, we’re 100% sure the casting of this wholly non-sensationalistic show won’t be biased towards those with the ability to fill a C-cup, so all you fly fishermen — who as a group tend to peg the rattiness meter — should apply right away.
Make sure to tell them you’re not only addicted to fly fishing, but have developed a Spey craving that has cost you several relationships.
With the coastal rivers running either dry or muddy brown as of late, you can also truthfully say you’re hitting rock bottom.
Even as I write this, I am dabbing at the tears forming in the corner of my eyes (just like I would were I chosen for this reality series [hint, hint]).
At the Underground, we can’t help but give. You know that about us.
See you in reality TV rehab, Tom Chandler.
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In what I’ll admit is a clear case of snow-driven retail therapy, I just ordered a 6wt Bass Bug fly line from the Orvis Clearance Tent.
I haven’t owned one of those aggressively front-loaded, big-bug throwing fly lines in well over a decade, but given my desire to get back to throwing poppers at bass from a float tube, it seemed like time.
Especially given the $23 price tag.
A reservoir trout -- and a good reason to own a handful of 6wt fly lines
(In this post, the Underground rolls out the Index Rating the rest of the fly fishing industry has sadly neglected: The Risk To Relationship Rating. An R2RR rating of 23 is pretty safe; a rating of 800 [e.g. -- for one of the new high-end fly rods] puts you firmly in the red zone.)
Still, no purchase ever goes unpunished, and in this case, adding another 6wt line has added a little juice to my only real source of fly fishing gear angst.
I don’t have any place to put them all.
I’ve got five 6wt fly lines, but only one 6wt reel:
Only two of the above are actually found on reels, and one is mounted on an old Teton Tioga, which may be strong enough to withstand a nuclear strike, but which is, I’ve decided, way too damned heavy.
(I’m not one of those anal types whose reels have to balance their rods perfectly, but even I have my limits. It’s voted off the island, paving the way for my followup gear post: The Underground Closeout Sale).
Stillwater guru [Name Redacted] impressed me with his stillwater system; a couple of those truly affordable synthetic fly reels and a handful of extra spools (sadly, he managed to misplace the reels last season).
He liked their affordability (a former government employee, he said they were “Forest Service cheap“) and the fact they weighed almost nothing.
Both of which are sounding pretty good.
As a man who has caught a lot of very big trout on lakes, if he says they work, then they work.
So I turn to the Undergrounders for their advice.
I can find a reel for my floating line. Which leaves those four other specialty fly lines.
Is the smart play to buy a pair of synthetic fly reels and a handful of spare spools? (Orvis sells a $49 budget model with $25 spare spools, so the Risk To Relationship Rating is $150.)
Or do I risk matrimonial eviction and pony up for a pair of mid-range reels and a couple spare spools? (Risk To Relationship Rating of $330.)
Note that I’m looking at two reels. There are times when one sinking fly line isn’t enough, and despite what the popular literature would have you believe, changing spools while fishing is not a particularly quick or relaxing process.
Has anyone else come up with an affordable system that doesn’t lead to the immediate filing of divorce papers?
Keep in mind I’m not a reel snob; I own one of the Winston/Hardy Perfects (a tradeout) and one of those high-end Ross fly reels meant to mimic the original Etna-built Ross. I bought both a bargain prices, but I can safely say I’d have done just fine without either of them.
In fact, there’s something to be said for fishing with reels affordable enough to not generate a sharp, worried intake of breath every time you stumble.
Underground Gear Fiends, the floor is yours.
See you juggling 6wt fly lines, Tom Chandler.
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While those other bloggers are satisfied simply posting useful information, witty writing and pretty photographs, the Underground does more for its readers.
The last two days have found me working hard, stacking next year’s trout water (in the form of snow) in neat piles alongside the driveway, keeping it away from filthy things like dirt and grease until it finds it way into a trout stream near you.
I know.
At the Underground, the giving never stops.
Today's experimental snow picture...
And those nice, neat piles? They’re growing rapidly. Yesterday the Underground/Man Cave World Headquarters — located above the alpine town of Mt. Shasta — got ten inches of snow; last night was another 3″, and today’s it’s going gangbusters, and a foot is likely.
In fact, I’ll be out there again with Mr. Snowblower as soon as this is posted.
(In a reminder that I need new friends, Raine accused me of not putting fuel stabilizer in the gas tank of the Honda snowblower after it took three pulls to get it started.)
With lesser amounts of snow predicted to fall through the weekend, it’s clear the high-pressure system keeping California snow-free is gone. Whether we reach our “normal” snowpack after one of the slowest starts to winter in recorded history remains to be seen.
At least we’ll have some water to throw at next year’s trout, and while I’m probably happier when I don’t face an hour or two of snowblowing duty per day, I will say this about the snow: It’s About Goddamned Freakin’ Time
If you haven’t stumbled across the Underground’s Catch Magazine discussion — where one of the ezines announced a $12 annual subscription fee, and readers and content creators reacted — then stop by.
I’m amazed by the depth of the comments, which are covering a lot of ground, both philosophically and practically.
The world is changing, and while pundits are fond of throwing around terms like “disruptive technologies” and all, it’s far from an abstract concept if you’re a writer or photographer or other person whose professional life has been upended.
And given the pace of the change (ebooks now represent more than 20% of the book market, tablet PC sales are going through the roof, everything “streams”, etc.), things aren’t slowing down. In fact, the change is probably only beginning.
Maybe all this change explains my recent small stream fly fishing kick. Extremely high-modulus marketing jargon, prohibitively expensive foreign lodges, and two-handed fly rods are not needed to catch 8″ backcountry trout, which, it turns out, are largely immune to the latest trends.
On small streams, the tips printed in the musty books I read as a kid still work, the fish are still impossibly gorgeous, and the primal “me catch fish” jolt to the brain still fires, which is precisely why someone facing dramatic change in his professional and family lives would tend to find it all pretty comforting.
See you caretaking next year’s trout water, Tom Chandler
Singlebarbed’s Crazy, But…
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