Dudleys Diary

early this morning. They bought a couple of dozen minnows and went fishing at the same place Frank went yesterday. Jeff never had caught a crappie before but he caught the two biggest today, a 12 inch and a 13 inch slab! He was pretty excited to say the least. The total catch this morning was four and with the three from last night we have a total of seven crappie. That is enough for a fish fry tonight and Jeff is going to come over and eat with us. There is nothing better than fresh fried crappie and french fries, hurry up dinner time!

for Frank and himself. They are Columbia Super Bonehead Classic long sleeve shirts. Frank has been wearing these shirts for years and swears by them. These normally go for around fifty bucks each but Dudley got a tip they could be purchased online for less than fifteen bucks. With the tax and the shipping it was around twenty dollars each which is a pretty good deal. We are going to wear these on our private trophy bass lake fishing trip. Dudley got the blue and Frank got the yellow. We are going to look pretty sharp wearing these in the photos holding our giant bass lol.

riding one of his many Honda motorcycles that he loved. Howard was a man of strong character and will. He was never one to let a little thing like gravity keep him or his motorcycle on the ground. The more challenging the ride or the bigger the obstacle in his path, the better. I am sure Howard won't let a natural thing like death, keep him from continuing his journey. As John Gillespie McGee Jr. put into writing many years ago..."Oh! I have slipped the surly bonds of Earth--Put out my hand and touched the Face of God." Rest in Peace Papa Howard, you will be missed.

down in the beautiful Texas Hill Country. They are hoping to get in on the annual white bass run from Lake Buchanan, twelve miles up the Colorado River. Hopefully they will catch some "sandbass" as we Texans call them. They are taking their kayaks and their spinning rods and fly rods. Dudley had a friend from the Tx Fishing Forum tie some custom flies for them to use. They also bought some road runner jigs and have an assortment of clousers and wooly buggers to try and entice the fish to bite. The scenery is spectacular. Hopefully Frank will take plenty of photos so I can post them to Dudley's Diary. They are going to fish this afternoon, all day Wednesday and either half a day or all day Thursday depending on how well they are catching. Dudley is hoping they have a great trip. The last fishing report Dudley got was that the fishing had slowed. Hopefully that was the calm before the main run. Last year on March 15th, they were catching fish on every cast. Good Luck guys!

afternoon. Was watching tv and heard an ice cream truck nearby. Had heard it the other day drive though the court in front of the Dudley domicile but was not prepared. Dudley has fond memories as a small child of hearing an ice cream truck in the neighborhood, which would result in a mad scramble with Dudley's mother looking in her purse for enough change to buy a Popsicle, Ice Cream Sandwich or an Eskimo Pie. Dudley remembers well chasing after the truck with the flashing lights and music playing loudly over speakers, either on foot or on his Sting Ray bicycle. Dudley remembers trying to decide on his purchase and then the satisfaction of enjoying the ice cream especially on a hot summer day. Yesterday upon hearing the ice cream truck approach, Dudley had his daughter bring him his wallet and he gave her all of the money he had, three dollars. After a short time, Dudley's daughter came running back in and said she needed another dollar. Her mother came to the rescue and she ran back outside and paid for her an ice cream treat and an ice cream sandwich for Dudley. Dudley walked out on the porch and waved at the driver. Let me tell you that ice cream sandwich was good. And the memories were even better!

which is the last of our leaves for this year. At least until they fall again in the fall. He bagged 42 bags today. This was the second go round, earlier he bagged 40 bags. He is going to be rewarded for his efforts. I don't pay him for yard work but I am going help pay for a trip down to Colorado Bend State Park down in the beautiful Texas Hill Country. He and Jeff are going to go down there with their kayaks to fish the Colorado River and try to get in on the spawning run of the White Bass or Sandbass as we Texans call them. If you hit the run right, you can catch a fish on every cast. They should have a great time fishing up against towering cliffs with their fly rods and ultralight spinning gear. They should see lots of whitetail deer and if they are lucky may see some Aoudad Sheep up on the cliffs overlooking the river. Dudley wishes he could go but is not able to physically make a trip like that any longer.

Dudley's stepfather passed away one week ago today. He was at home under hospice care and was surrounded by his family. Howard was 92 years old. He and Dudley's mother were married for 35 years. Howard graduated from TCU with a degree in physics. He was in the Army reserves when his unit got called up soon after the US entered WWII. He went to England where he was trained to set up and operate the first generation of radar. He received a direct commission to second lieutenant in the Signal Corps. He returned to the US and was shipped out to Hawaii then to Iwo Jima, Leshima, Saipan and Okinawa. As a first lieutenant, he commanded a platoon of 50 radar operators. After the war, he went to work for New York Life Insurance Company. He became a Chartered Life Underwriter and was a life member of the Million Dollar Roundtable. He retired in 1996 with the distinction of being a 50 year agent. Howard was one of a kind and had many hobbies which included woodworking, making mineral spheres and tumbling/polishing rocks, hiking, catching snakes and turtles. For many years, his favorite hobby and the one that Dudley shared and enjoyed with him was riding Honda dirt bikes. Howard owned a Trail 90, SL70, XL100, XL125 and an XL 250. We had great fun riding the bikes together up in Estes Park Colorado, down at South Padre Island on the beach and closer to home at the Flying P Ranch, my uncle's ranch in Palo Pinto County and up near Lake Grapevine. When Dudley was in college, Howard gave him one of the best presents he ever received. A mint Remington model 700 .243 caliber deer rifle. No one ever appreciated and used a present more. Dudley and Frank have taken around 40 deer with this gun since and are not through yet. Thank You Howard for all of the good times and the memories. You will be missed.