On Thurday of this week we were greated to morning low temps of -9 degress ice, snow, wind all the fun things that come with winter in Kansas. I have a contract to provide maintance for 5 rental storage facilites in the Topeka area. So most of my day was spent shoveling snow, pushing snow, thawing frozen pad locks, repairing frozen gates, and doors. Among other exciting bone chilling fun activites.
When 5:00 rolls around I am almost done for the day. My family and I had planned on attending a program at Washburn University in Topeka with Jeff Corwin the host of the program "Disney's going wild with Jeff Corwin". The kids are excited to see animals and be in front of a tv host. So I arrive late to the event or later than planned. I have been outside all day chilled to the bone and not in the best of moods. Walking into the venue to meet with my wife and kids no time to change clothes. So here I am walking past car after car with bleeding heart bumperstickers for PETA, save the spotted something or other. Oh lord I am walking into what will surely be a PETA convention looking like a complete BUBBA. Sporting hunting boots, flannel lines brown carhart pants, fleece hunting jacket. So in short my fall Sunday best.
Tickets were only $5 bucks or a donation of 10 cans of food. So dirt cheap I hand the lady my money collect my ticket and head in. The young lady checking tickets at the door I reconize as protesting for PETA at Lowes home improvement store last year. They were protesting the horrors of using mouse traps when all the mice want to do is be warm.
So I spot my family sitting 4th row back dead center. We sit down and wait for the show to start.
The show starts with Mr. Corwin coming out and telling a little about himself and making a comment about Topeka. Saying something to the effect that around here all you need is a deer stand and beer to be happy. I took offense to this but was already in a crappy mood. Perhaps his sense of humor is more from Massachsetts than mid-western. A couple other comments while harmless took me back. I guess I was on edge from the day and looking like a bubba in what has to be a animal lovers unite against hunters convention.
Mr. Corwin had a very good program with several animals and taking folks out of the audience to help with the show. After the animals were finished he opened up with a Q&A portion. He took many questions from members of the audience when the question came. Someone asked what can we do to save the animals. While a good question to be asked of a Disney program host I braced for the expected response "We all must ban together to stop these horrible hunters". His actuall answer was a complete surprise. Mr. Corwin explained how we must each of course cut down on our consumpiton and waste. He furthur went into "Do we really need to buy Organic so and so from god knows what country in the middle of winter?" He continued with encouraging folks to buy local foods and freeze or can them. The the shock of all shocks. He explained his love of fishing and setting lobster traps or how he and his oldest daughter spend time in deer blinds to collect protein for thier family.
Not once did he say hunting was the root of all evil he said that he hunts..
So to end the long boring story I gave this guy not a single chance. He had everything in my mind working against him. Host of a Disney program, from Massachusetts, part time reporter for MSNBC. Well it turned out that I was wrong and to keep it firearms oriented and in tune with several current threads. You could of knocked me over with a .380. I let my own sterotypes shadow that fact he was in all a pretty good guy in the end.
When 5:00 rolls around I am almost done for the day. My family and I had planned on attending a program at Washburn University in Topeka with Jeff Corwin the host of the program "Disney's going wild with Jeff Corwin". The kids are excited to see animals and be in front of a tv host. So I arrive late to the event or later than planned. I have been outside all day chilled to the bone and not in the best of moods. Walking into the venue to meet with my wife and kids no time to change clothes. So here I am walking past car after car with bleeding heart bumperstickers for PETA, save the spotted something or other. Oh lord I am walking into what will surely be a PETA convention looking like a complete BUBBA. Sporting hunting boots, flannel lines brown carhart pants, fleece hunting jacket. So in short my fall Sunday best.
Tickets were only $5 bucks or a donation of 10 cans of food. So dirt cheap I hand the lady my money collect my ticket and head in. The young lady checking tickets at the door I reconize as protesting for PETA at Lowes home improvement store last year. They were protesting the horrors of using mouse traps when all the mice want to do is be warm.
So I spot my family sitting 4th row back dead center. We sit down and wait for the show to start. The show starts with Mr. Corwin coming out and telling a little about himself and making a comment about Topeka. Saying something to the effect that around here all you need is a deer stand and beer to be happy. I took offense to this but was already in a crappy mood. Perhaps his sense of humor is more from Massachsetts than mid-western. A couple other comments while harmless took me back. I guess I was on edge from the day and looking like a bubba in what has to be a animal lovers unite against hunters convention.
Mr. Corwin had a very good program with several animals and taking folks out of the audience to help with the show. After the animals were finished he opened up with a Q&A portion. He took many questions from members of the audience when the question came. Someone asked what can we do to save the animals. While a good question to be asked of a Disney program host I braced for the expected response "We all must ban together to stop these horrible hunters". His actuall answer was a complete surprise. Mr. Corwin explained how we must each of course cut down on our consumpiton and waste. He furthur went into "Do we really need to buy Organic so and so from god knows what country in the middle of winter?" He continued with encouraging folks to buy local foods and freeze or can them. The the shock of all shocks. He explained his love of fishing and setting lobster traps or how he and his oldest daughter spend time in deer blinds to collect protein for thier family.
Not once did he say hunting was the root of all evil he said that he hunts..So to end the long boring story I gave this guy not a single chance. He had everything in my mind working against him. Host of a Disney program, from Massachusetts, part time reporter for MSNBC. Well it turned out that I was wrong and to keep it firearms oriented and in tune with several current threads. You could of knocked me over with a .380. I let my own sterotypes shadow that fact he was in all a pretty good guy in the end.
