LMAO

[Bobb-o]

My mom got really mad at me the other day when grades came back. She said that i spend too much time fishing when i am up at school(is that possible? i mean seriously i only go 6 days a week) and she proceeded to tell me that i need to stop having fishing control my life and that it is just a hobby and i need to stop making it such an obsession, I dont think i have ever seen her as mad when i laughed at her after she said that to me. (I think setting up the tip-ups during christmas eve dinner and thanksgiving dinner and watching them out the window ticked her off a little) But i mean seriously how is it possible to fish too much? can anyone answer this? I do study at school, it is just hard to hold a book and jig at the same time, i told her if she bought me another tip-up i could do some more studying...... then she walked away

[MNice]

Take care of the grades!! School will do more for you in the long run. Fishing can and will always be a part of your life, and a good job wil give you more time to do it.

[Scoot]

Isn't there a country song that refers to "too much fun" and "too much money"? "Too much fishing", what the hell is that? I can't imagine fishing enough, let alone too much.
You better set your mom straight! One helpful tip though, you might want to start bringing some books on the ice with you. Get good grades and she won't care how much time you fish.
Scoot

[mistermom]

You can't buy much of a boat on what they pay at the carwash.

mm

[Bobb-o]

but that is what i am going to school for, i am studying Fisheries biology so i can work for the DNR, so in a way i am studying, just cant wait for my fishing class to start, yes, bemidji state has a fishing class, not sure what semester they are gonna have it next but i am assuming next fall

[Bobb-o]

and i do bring books on the lake with me, that is how i studid for finals, 6hours and 12 crappies and 1 walleye later i aced the bio final

[Guest]

Sounds like a bemidji student I'm just jealous.

[GullGuide]

You will NEVER graduate from BSU if you like to hunt and fish....lol...or get ready for the 10+ year plan.
Get out now while there is still time.....

[mistermom]

Gullguide is right I went there one year and had to transfer.... What a fun year... I wish I could remember more of it. I think the hockey team won the national div 2 championship that year...That was a lost 3 days. And then there was....

mm

[Bobb-o]

upnorth, who said anything aboot a fish house? i sit out on the ice on my 5-gallon bucket

[Stiff]

Don't let the disscusion focus on how much you fish, it should focus on your grades. If your grades are less than what they should be then "yes" you probably fish too much. If you have great grades in ALL the important subjects, then what's the problem?

If I were you I'd spend some time with a fisheries biologist who holds the position you think you would like to have some day. I've known a few and I don't know many people who fish less than they do.

However, I also have a cousin with a PhD in marine biology who works for a University on the west coast. Some of his studies actually include spending a week at sea fishing for marlin and sailfish with a hook and line, collecting data, tagging and releasing the fish. Very cool job and he doesn't starve either.

Definately do an internship as soon as possible in your college career and I'd give a little thought to guiding in Alaska as a "summer job" too.

[BLACKJACK]

When I went to Mankato State about 15 years I was thinking of getting a biology degree, then I saw all the biology students going after their masters degrees, I finally realized that they were there because they couldn't find a job in biology!! About the same time my uncle the truck driver gave me the lecture "I really don't like what I do but I make enough money so that in my spare time I CAN do what I want to do". I'm now a computer programmer, planning my next fishing trip, just bought a couple of deer stands and a deer blind over the net, - you get my point.

Good luck! School is fun but make sure you graduate with a skill that will get you a job better than clerking at a Seven Eleven!

[Bobb-o]

stiff, i have given thought to actually transfering to alaska anchorage after my sophomore year. The grades arent that bad it's just they are lower than I normally get (I was an honor roll student throughout high school) and she just wanted to find something to yell aboot. As i was talking to my bro aboot this secret lake i had found and was putting new line on my ice fishing rods i think this is why she chose to yell at me aboot fishing.

[Bobb-o]

I am working on an Environmental Studies degree witha minor in Fisheries Biology, it has always been my dream to be a CO, but who knows maybe i will make it up to Area Fisheries Supervisor for Brainerd or even the Commiss

[Guest]

At the end of the day it really boils down to who is paying your freight.

[Bobb-o]

I am paying my way through college

[Bobb-o]

well headed out the door to do some fishing right now (with mommy's permission of course) anybody gonna be around Lake Owasso Stop on out i am following a tip i heard, i will tell you aboot it if you aree out there

[Stiff]

Well Bobb-o,

Don't hate your mom for yellin' at ya. She just does it because she cares about you and she's worried about you.

She wants to make sure you take your life somewhere, instead of having your life take you somewhere.

Fish all you want, but do recognize that you need to focus your work on your schooling at this point in your life. Think of it this way, at this point in your life your job is to get good grades. As long as that job is getting done then hit the ice with a clear conscience.

I'm a guilty as anyone on this page. I went to school in River Falls WI. No lakes to speak of, but after the first Saturday in May, I'd hit the trout stream 5-6 days a week. It was just what I did.... Everyday. Don't regret one minute of it either.

[This message has been edited by Stiff (edited 01-06-2003).]

[Matt D]

Bobb-O,

Good advice from most here. You don't have to quit fishing, but don't let it detract from your studies. You've only got a few years to glean as much as you can out of college, but a lifetime to fish.

Tony Dean wrote an excellent article last year that in my opinion should be required reading for anyone considering a career in natural resources. It's titled "So You Want To Become A Biologist". You should be able to find it on his site, but if not, email me at ([email protected]) and I'll forward you a copy. Actually, it'd be an excellent read for anyone who fishes/hunts.

P.S. If you're paying for school, why's your mom opening your grades? Guess that's what livin' at home gets ya!

------------------
Best FISHES,
Matt

[Stiff]

Bobb-O,
I hope you caught that sunset!!
Another evening well spent if you ask me! Do you have an e-mail address to share? I have a few photos I’d like to send you from “back in the day”.
Not that long ago, but long enough.

[Guest]

I'm in the same boat with bob. Only my problem is this forum. When school is in action I find myself at my desk all day long. And it just so happens that my computer is right next to me. I was seriously consdidering a lap top to take out in the permanent. Stick with school and we'll have plenty of rods for our wives to complain about. I pay my way in college and have no student loans out, and yet I still get sidetracked fishing.

[ChapstickCharlie]

Picked up a minor in philosophy once, but there was a slot limit at the time and .....

[Steve Foss]

You're all missing the point. Bobb-o can get his degree and who cares about the grades, because he's going to make his living as a FULL-TIME FISHING GUIDE!

Just because he has a major doesn't mean he has a career. Mine was English and, while I can speak and write a coherent sentence, where has my college education gotten me? I still sit dangling my short pole over a cold hole, and one fishing writer I know uses that as an example of insanity.

Bobb-o, screw the advice. Do what you like. Life is over in a minute. Whatever it is you end up doing for a living, enjoy getting there.

[This message has been edited by stfcatfish (edited 01-06-2003).]

[Guest]

Bobb-o, I feel a flashback coming on.

I am a BSU alumni 1985-87 and 1989-91. I finally graduated from UWisc in 1993. While at Bemidji I was in the aquatic biology program aimed at DNR. I fished and hunted constantly. I had a fish house set up on Diamond point so I could fish during my daily class breaks. If the fish were biting I skipped class. My grades were not stellar. Anyway, 2 years into the program I realized how much work was involved to compete for a government DNR job. I met with the DNR chief for 5 minutes at the Bemidji office, he said in summary; 8 years of school (with 4.0 grades), 8 years of summer grunt work and wait for someone to die....Oh and DNR folks get to watch everyone else fish! Granted, This is only MY personal experience, you may have things dialed in better. I'm sure there are some cool success stories that go against the grain. But, I became an engineer. Now I fish pretty much where ever I want.

My advice, take it or leave it, you owe it to yourself to excell your future now and fish the rest of the time.

Hey, if you want to chat about BSU or fishin you can email me at [email protected]

[Guest]

Better grades today will likely mean more time to fish tomorrow.

If you have your eye on a career in wildlife or fisheries the competition is likely to just get tougher as budgets get smaller.

It's all attitude really. Even if what they are trying to teach you appears to be bogus and nothing you will use in real life, odds are good you will. A successful fisherman has a eclectic field of interests that sharpen his or her skills. You just never know what you may need to know?

Besides, better grades now will likely get and keep you folks off your case, and you on the water more.

I lean something new every day, whether I know it or not.

------------------
Ed "Backwater Eddy" Carlson..><sUMo>

Backwater Guiding
"Ed on the RED"
(701)-281-2300

[email protected]

http://ed-carlson.fishingbuddy.com