A sad day here in God's country

Today is the ND deer gun opener and, as far as I can remember, except for the one year a blizzard kept us from getting back to the farm, it will be the first one I have ever missed. You see my youngest boy is a high school senior who plays football and tonight they play a game in West Fargo to see who goes to the State AAA Championship game being held next Friday.

Don't get me wrong, I enjoy watching the boys play but whoever came up with a sports season that overlaps deer season needs their head examined! Oh well, pretty sure my daughter won't be playing football so this should be the last time I have to worry about such nonsense interfering with my deer hunting.

Signed,
Whining in Dakota

Ha ha! Sounds like my buddy in Ohio. When he got married years ago, it appeared the wedding date was going to fall during deer season. He told his soon to be bride they'd have to put off the wedding until later because he not only didn't want to miss deer season, but he didn't want to spend the rest of his life celebrating anniversaries when he should be in deer camp! That was about 35 years ago and they're still married ... and he still can't wait for deer season! ;)

That does suck. But, you only have your kids with you for a short time and you're making the right call. At least I hope so as I'm missing our entire early ML season which is in the heart of the rut because I'm coaching my younger son's football playoffs...

Spot-on, Thump....several years ago, I was elk hunting with my buddy from Loveland, Colo....he had warned his son and soon-to-be d-i-l not to schedule their wedding, during the opening week of elk season....his son was sorta pussy-whipped at the time, so he went along with the d-i-l's decision to schedule the wedding on frigging opening day.

Long story-short....he refused to attend because she was so day'um hard-headed....we both tagged out that morning, and spent the rest of the day, packing out elk meat off the side of Uncompahgre Mtn. ;)

Neat thread on the arkansas hunting site about "What has kept you from deer hunting?".......mostly it was surgeries and health stuff. But everyone said, without hesitation, their family's stuff overrode hunting.......

Our gun season opens next Saturday. God willing, I'll be in a tree at the farm. But I have enough family issues that something is liable to raise it's head and stop me. The good thing is that the season runs until December 13 (50 days???), so I have time to get out there.

Not sure how long your season is, but I bet you get some time in the woods.............oops, I mean in the field! :wavey

Bwana I know exactly where you are coming from on this. Just a couple years ago when my third oldest boy was a senior they made play offs. They made it all the way to the quarter finals, and only barely lost that game in the last 30 seconds of the game. Anyway it was an exciting football season, but it went more than half way through deer season. I didn't kill a buck that year. First time in nearly 30 years. I enjoyed the football season, but was awful glad when it was over though. My youngest son plays junior high football, but we have an understanding that after his 8th grade year (next year) he won't be playing high school football. There is no way on this planet I want to risk him getting an injury that would end his abilities as an artist. So I only have one more season to stand and cheer on the sidelines for one of my kids. To be honest I'm more than okay with that.

I've been lucky that way with both my kids. My daughter was originally due in the middle of November, right about the opening of gun season here. Luckily, she came about 6 weeks early and has an early October birthday, so I don't have to worry about her birthday interfering with the opening of deer season.

About the only other thing that I refuse to ever miss is the Indy 500. I've been to everyone since 1981. My son had a due day at the end of May, and I told my wife that she needed to do everything possible not to have him anytime between May 24 and May 30 with is the possible date range for the 500. Luckily, he was born on June 2nd.

Of course, I wouldn't have missed anything for the kids for either one of those things, but I can always talk tough. ;)