Reasoning

I've been in a slump. Yup ol pro guide #003 hasn't been getting the customary tug on the line and figure I could use this situation to help all the up and comers on how to handle these situations. When you're slumping people will forever ask you why and whats going on so you need an extreme amount of excus....ahhhh...reasons for it. You need an inventory of reasons so you don't get stuck in the middle of a dead dog slow fishing day with the old " that's the same reason you gave me last time".  So here's Pro Guide Tip # 5.5 with a few ways I've handled those through the years. You could even use this as a cheat sheet, keep it with you and fill in the closes option, feel free.

The waters to : 1. warm 2. cold 3.wet

The water to :  1. clear 2. muddy 3. polluted

The dot tide book had a skunk instead of a fish symbol

The barometer is :  1. rising 2. falling 3, broken

The fish are : 1. not hungry 2. over fed 3. smarter than you

Your bait is : 1. freezer burned 2. to soft 3. Chris pissed on it

The tide is : 1. to small 2. to big  3. I was asleep during it

Well you get the idea, glad to help....the biggest thing about a slump is ya just gotta keep fishing until finally pitch your way out of it and start a new one like I did yesterday with this fish that surprised me during a standing nap.

So last mid week I did something I never do just to remind me why I never do it....I went fishing in a boat, in Mexico, on the ocean. Of course it was the usual ' you shoulda been here yesterday ' deal with the weather. It was a typical Jeff off shore day, sea's to 4 feet etc. I was 6' tall when we left and a few hours later at the dock I was 5'10"...I traded my buddy Kiko a river trip for a Mazatlan panga ride, the weather ol Kiko can't control so I'll give you Pro Guide Tip # 6....call it a bonus tip here at Mile 14....The first thing they teach you in guide school is take the money. SO TAKE THE MONEY, no barter and if you must barter remember to be the guy that gets the service first.  We actually had a good day all things considered. we caught easily 100 whakachanga's and some Flamingos. I kinda got the feeling we were fishing in the nursery and you know how I go on about that so it's a good thing I took a week off the Homer winter King rant.... and oh, that's a big one.

That last pic took exactly 42 minutes to load here on Telmex ultra slow no G but cheaper than hell service. So I'm going to try one last one to show you where I was and what I was looking at that would be the where I'd rather go deal....Then I'm gonna find a shrink my pics program and then in the next few days I hope to post many pics of the over the top Christmas displays here in Mexico....wish me luck and please come back soon, ya'all hear now ?