Great Weekend of Deer Hunting

Finally broke away to go down to the farm this past weekend. Went out two mornings and two evenings. We really have an overpopulation problem, and some biologists from Mississippi State have told folks they wish they could go no limit hunting for a few years. In fact, we have greater than 45 deer per square mile, which is the most they release stats for. On our 500 acre farm, we estimate greater than 50 deer.

Anyways, I got my first deer walking. I was downwind headed north on a logging road. We have a spring and I think the deer were headed to that to drink - though it was a weird time to do so. It was 11 a.m. Saw a herd of 3 milling in the woods. Dropped to one knee. One popped its head out. It looked good size, so I waited for a better shot (I was at least 100 yards away). It stuck it's neck out, and that was all I needed. My unmodified 1896 Swedish Mauser fired 6.5x55mm round and got it right in the neck. Clean kill. It was nice because it was right on the road and we just brought the truck right to it.

That night I saw several and might have been able to take a nice buck, but I didn't want to shoot into brush - I like clean kills. Same thing next morning, 2x - they were bounding into roads as I explored the farm.

Finally, I decided to sit by our pond. We have a high, wooded bank (which is new to me, growing up it was cleared... also the drought has seen the pond drop about half it's size) that I sat on. It gave me good coverage of about 80% of the shoreline with good kill zones all the way around due to the pond shrinkage. I sat for four hours, then at about 4:50, a buck bounded out of the woods and kept going into the woods. He turned around like he was scouting to see if it was safe to drink. I pegged him. He never felt a thing - the shot broke his neck. Two football fields away, open sights.

So between me, my cousin, and our friends, we took six deer off the farm this year.

9 shy of what we want off there each year for the next few years to reduce population to healthy levels.

I just loved it though. Walking in the woods is the kind of thing that just brings a feeling of extreme relaxation. Also, walking the land my grandfather and father worked was surreal. Getting to know it was just amazing. I've decided to really work to make the land an even better hunting site, to research and plant food types conducive to a variety of game, and to enjoy enjoy enjoy it.

Also, you might find this video of a Buck attacking a hunter interesting: Click here for video.

If you have any recipes for deer meat - stews, jerky, etc - please reply with them!

Initial Deployment... Looks(ed) OK

I just got done deploying a new server at the office. It meets the requirements of everything I felt we needed - very redundant.

The only problem is, it appears our RAID card is defective. Gotta get a new one overnighted in. :(

New Years Was Great

I got to spend New Years day with Sarah's family, arriving late the 31st. I met her younger brother for the first time. He's a nice guy. I like her Dad, but he's still sizing me up I think. Her mother made as-always-wonderful meals for us. Sarah and I shopped that afternoon, relaxed, and simply enjoyed time together.

A Day of Silence

I got sick while spending Christmas in Minnesota. It was a buggersome sickness, the details of which I won't delve into. Today though, upon waking up, I realized that I could not speak! That's right - the voice was gone. For the first time in my life (I believe) I went a day without speaking. I did all my talking through my computer, utilizing LH Michael's voice in Microsoft Word.

I got mixed responses: My mother thought it was annoying, my girlfriend thought it mildly amusing and... well, I didn't try it on anyone else. Interestingly enough, the computer was clear enough for her to understand through my cell phone.

Also, I got several thank you notes done. Well, more than several. Half done!

Intense Loneliness

I've made some difficult decisions recently that I think are what God willed me to do. With that said, for some reason life is very difficult for me right now. Though our business is growing, though I'm near family, though finances are good... everything is good, and yet on top of this mountain, igh above the valley and even looking down on the clouds there is a bittersweet smell that I cannot stomach. It is driving me from the mountain, though I'm not sure what it is or where it comes from.

It started last night as I watched I Am Legend when Robert Neville could do nothing to help humanity. Yes, that made me sad. He labored for years and then at his crowning moment, he died. He wasn't able to enjoy the fruit of his years of labor. Then, as I watched The Notebook, the feeling returned, as two lovers who worked hard on their family and enjoyed each other for years are unable to enjoy the twilight of life together.

Perhaps I need to be more heavenly focused - the things of this earth just don't seem worth laboring for sometimes, and other times it seems the more we care, the more we are hurt.

Or, maybe I just didn't have any coffee today.