American Legacy Fishing

G. Loomis Superstore Blog

  • ALFC Blog Home
  • Shop American Legacy
    • Fishing
      • Fishing Rods
      • Fishing Reels
      • Lines / Leaders
      • Tools
      • Tackle
    • Accessories
      • Bags & Luggage
      • Decals and Stickers
      • Rod & Reel Covers
      • Sunglasses
      • Novelty
      • Cameras
      • Gloves
      • Scales / Measuring Tools
    • Hunting
      • Apparel
      • Archery
      • Decoys
      • Optics
      • GPS & Accessories
      • Lights
      • Oufitting Supplies
      • Treestands & Blinds
      • Youth
      • Accessories
      • Knives & Tools
    • Clothing
      • T-Shirts
      • Hats / Headwear
      • Sweatshirts
      • Jackets
      • Rainwear
      • Shorts
      • Shoes / Boots
    • Electronics & Optics
      • Scopes & Binoculars
      • Game & Trail Cameras
      • Accessories
      • GPS & Maps
      • Fish Finders, Sonar & Accessories
      • Trolling Motors
    • Marine, ATV/UTV
      • Marine
      • ATV/UTV
    • Sale!
    • Brands
    • Gift Cards
  • Newsletter Archives
    • ALFC Newsletters
    • Fishing Stories
    • Videos
    • Specials
    • Product Spotlight
    • Braggin’ Board
    • Tackle Talk Podcast
    • The Weekly Tip
  • Testimonials
You are here: Home / Newsletter Archives / Fishing Stories / Cabin Fever!

Cabin Fever!

February 28, 2015 By Brian Dolne 1 Comment

Hi folks,

Well, I have to tell you, I’ve just about had it. Dixie says I’ve got a bad case of “cabin fever”. If the symptoms are grumpiness, lethargy,  and being hard to get along with then she’s spot on.

Here in southern Indiana we’ve had too much snow and temperatures as low as 8 below zero. And it just keeps coming and coming. Tonight we’re supposed to get down to about 6 above zero. The ground is covered with 6 inches of snow with about an inch of ice on top. My deer feeders are frozen up so I can’t even check to see if they’re full or empty – I can’t even pry the lid open nor tilt them away from the ground, they’re that frozen up.

My boat is in the garage where the garage door is frozen solid to the driveway by the ice. Cabin fever? Yea, I’m damn sure it have it. And I have it bad.

I’m thinking there are probably three stages to cabin fever: The sports stage, the tinker stage, and the replacement stage.

The sports stage is where it begins. Snow and ice and sub-zero temperatures initiate this. So, unable to go outside to fish or hunt I grab the TV remote and turn on the tube (actually now a flat screen) and scan the channels for any sports show. Football season is only a memory, so I check out basketball, hockey, and any other team sport. I avoid hunting and fishing shows as this only seems to add to my restlessness.

I’ve discovered that a man can only watch so much basketball and hockey. So I’ve switched on some of the really obscure stuff like cricket and rugby and who-knows-what. Eventually it becomes obvious that I am pretty well through this stage when I find myself watching some reruns of little league tryouts in Japan.

The next stage is what I call the tinkering stage. This begins immediately when sports on TV seem boring and restlessness reappears as I sip a beer and puff on a cigar. I’ve got to do something else!

So I start fixing stuff around the house. I replace burned out light bulbs, fix leaky faucets, change furnace and water filters, fill the water softener with salt, paint some doors the dogs have scratched, you name it. I’m tinkering my time away one job at a time.

Dixie suggested I clean out and straighten my office. What? That’s my domain. It’s just fine as far as I’m concerned. If I rearrange all my stuff then how the hell will I ever find anything. It may look a bit askew, but to me it’s perfectly organized and for now I know where everything is, most of it within arm’s reach from my desk. Never mind the stacks of paper or the tools scattered on my desk. I know where everything is and I’m just fine with that.

Like all good things, tinkering finally pays off and there’s very little that needs to be fixed. I suppose I could venture outside with a pan of hot water and try to “de-thaw” the deer feeders, but with 15 to 20 mph winds out of the northwest and temperature in the single digits I just don’t think that’s a good idea.

The third and possibly final stage of cabin fever is the replacement stage. This only happens in my case after about 4 to 6 weeks of prolonged time spent inside or at the office. This is where the TV is forgotten, all the small and even a few large chores are done, and once again restlessness has firmly set in again.

I put a space heater in the garage and within about 2 days it had warned up to about 45 degrees. I went out there and started looking over my fishing rods, reels, tackle boxes, bows, boots, and other gear used for hunting and fishing. And you know what I discovered? I’ve got some old stuff that needs to be replaced.

Little did I know that some of my rods were 10, maybe 20 years old. My boots were cracking at the toes, my tackle boxes (perennially disorganized) were obviously too small, and some of my reels were close to becoming antiques. Aha! Time to replace!

I gathered up all the suspect rods and reels and headed to the store. After all, we DO have a trade-in program. The boots, although they bring back fond memories, landed in the Goodwill bag. The tackle boxes I sized up and decided they needed to be about double the size they were.

Now, about a week later after I entered the replacement stage, I have some great new rods, some new reels, a pair of awesome new boots, and an assortment of new “soft side” tackle bags that would make any fisherman proud. The only thing missing is some marginally decent weather.

So here I sit, typing away in my office, waiting for the weather to break so I can get outside. Being the eternal optimist I’m absolutely positive that will happen any day. And it better. I’m still searching for that flat screen remote I misplaced in my office the other day!

This week we have some great products to feature, and don’t forget about the last chance for our Spring Trade-A-Thon!

Thanks to all of our great friends and customers who have supported us and passed our name on to their friends. We know we are only here by making sure your needs are our first and only priority. Please let me know if we ever fail to meet and exceed your expectations.

All the best,

 

Tom Ashby

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Pinterest
  • LinkedIn

Filed Under: Fishing Stories, Newsletter Archives Tagged With: cabin fever, cold weather, Dixie, fishing boots, fishing reels, fishing rods, marine boots, new reels, new rods, new tackle bags, soft side tackle bags, tackle bags, tired of the cold, Tom Ashby, wife dixie

  • Terms of Use
  • Shop
  • Contact Us
  • Trade In Program
  • Shipping Info
  • G Loomis Warranty Program

About Brian Dolne

I have been fishing my whole life and share the same passion as all of you....getting out on the water! I am an avid bass tournament fisherman and also do as much saltwater fishing as possible. See you on the water!

Comments

  1. Dennis Cardinal says

    March 4, 2015 at 11:49 am

    I’m sorry that you can’t get out to go fishing, I know how that works. I would like to invite you to come out to Olympia, WA. and we can take my boat out in the South Sound for salmon fishing. Our weather has been in the mid 50’s and very sunny. Good luck getting out there.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Current Specials

Afterpay Is Here - American Legacy Fishingtrade In Program

Follow Us on Facebook

American Legacy Fishing Company, LLC

Legacy Loyalty Rewards- Earn Points With Every Purchase!

Legacy Loyalty Rewards- Earn Points With Every Purchase!

Quick Links

  • Site Map
  • Search Terms
  • Advanced Search
  • Reward Points

CUSTOMER SERVICE

  • About Us
  • ALFC Guarantee
  • Contact Info
  • Loyalty Rewards
  • My Account
  • Shipping Info
  • Testimonials
  • Trade-In Form
  • Trade-In Program

ACCOUNT

  • My Account
  • Orders and Returns

RESOURCES

  • Shop By Brand
  • Boats, ATV/UTV
  • Clothing
  • Electronics, Optics
  • Fishing
  • Gift Cards
  • Hunting
  • Sale Items

POLICY LINKS

  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of Use
  • G. Loomis Warranty Info

SOCIAL MEDIA

  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  
  •  

FEATURED BRANDS

  • BogaGrip
  • Daiwa Fishing
  • G. Loomis Fishing
  • Sage Fly Rods
  • Shimano Fishing

CREDIT CARDS

  •  
     
     
     
     

BBB

Copyright © 2023 American Legacy Fishing · All Rights Reserved.

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Reject Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Non-necessary
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
SAVE & ACCEPT
Submit Your Photos to the Braggin' Board!

  • Max. file size: 500 MB.
  • Tell us about this photo. If there is a cool story that goes along with the photo we would love to hear it. Please also include any names you would like included with the photo.
    By checking this box, you agree to the American Legacy Fishing Company Terms of Service. You also verify that you are the sole owner of the copyright to this image, and grant a universal license to American Legacy Fishing Company to use this image.
  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.