The Pudelpointer Chronicles: NERDY CONFESSION

Okay, I have to admit it. I'm sort of a "nerd" when it comes to bird hunting--ruffed grouse hunting in particular. I can see it in other people's eyes.

For instance, the other evening I was chatting with a friend who is a VERY focused grouse hunter. (Nearly every day of the season, he and his dog are hunting grouse. They look it too....lean, athletic and confident.) I started telling him about a "grouse hunting" book that I was reading. I began to quote comments of the authors. I discussed their technique and told him about the "serious grouse hunting" website (http://www.seriousbirdhunting.com)

...and I guess I started to ramble.

Point!

As I watched, a "glaze" came over my friend's eyes as he looked at me with a certain "there he goes again" look.

Next, being the sage that he is, he kindly explained to me where my authors got their quote.

I can't help it. Compelled to dive into the subject matter, I take pleasure in reading/ hearing/seeing what others have said/are saying about the sport--so many different personalities, so many different approaches. I don't believe everything that I read, I just enjoy it and allow myself to be entertained and (perhaps) informed. Like a thirsty man, I "drink in" the efforts of others to capture aspects of bird hunting --whether their works be written, spoken, or video.

At the very least, it helps pass the time between winter snows and autumn's opening day.

To my way of thinking, it takes us away from aimlessly walking through the woods and strengthens us in two important areas: information accumulation and dreaming. Hunting is about information -- covers, drumming logs, food and gravel, population densities, clear cuts, shotguns, and equipment to name a few examples, It's also about memories and emotions such as a "heady" scent you found once and how you wished it could have been bottled because it seized your mind like an expensive french perfume, ...or the bird that held for the dog's classic point on a post-card perfect day. Like good TV re-runs, the dreaming provides us the pleasure of the past and helps us structure the future.