Hunters do their thing with onset of fall

The pastime of hunting bonds the two fellows at right. They are Morris High School alumni from 1972. At center is Scott Reese and at right is Peter Timmons. White hair is a nice "touch" for people of this vintage, wouldn't you say? You certainly recognize the fellow at left, 1971 MHS graduate Del Sarlette of Sarlettes Music, and of course the photo was taken at the music store. See the vintage marching band uniforms in background? Del does not share the interest in hunting. To each their own. Your blog host is Class of '73 and I retired my hunting interest long ago. Certainly these people commune with nature. Reese and Timmons have joined the growing ranks of the retired from our generation. All three of these gentlemen were very active in MHS band under director John Woell. Peter played bass clarinet in concert band and bass drum for marching. Scott, Del and I were on trumpet. My, how we traveled far and wide! Like to Winnipeg, Canada.

 

We are on the verge of another cold weather season. Cheery thought, right? It's so pleasant now with the cool and crisp air of early fall. It suggests "hunting season." I no longer am aware of when the particular hunting seasons start and end. 

My late father was a young man when hunting was a major part of the male culture. That's why we see so much attention on hunters in the story of the 1940 Armistice Day blizzard. It was horribly tragic. 

Hunting has not gone away. My own personal view is that it is unpleasant and depressing, I mean to kill things. The weather is so often cold. Isn't it dangerous just being out in a boat when you have heavy outerwear on? I never gave that much thought as a young person. 

My father meant well as he took me hunting. We hunted ducks right here in Stevens County. In pursuit of whitetail deer we went up around my mother's hometown of Brainerd, to those great "north woods." Such different surroundings from here in Morris. By the end of the day I felt I'd made acquaintance with the squirrel scurrying around. 

I actually never got a deer in northern Minnesota but I did succeed in Wyoming. Dad and I went there twice. I succeeded there both times, so how about that? What I remember best, though, is the uniquely savory homemade bread prepared by our hosts out by Sundance. The mother of the family gets kudos. Up north and in Wyoming, Dad and I could use standard rifles. I had a bolt-action 30/06. I heard that around Stevens County, it was necessary to use a shotgun with "slugs." Not sure of the reason for that. 

So Dad meant well as he continued a strong tradition from his younger years, pursuing game and fish. Eventually I dropped out, opting for the occasional trip to Las Vegas instead! My father's interest eventually seemed to wane also. I remember a conversation he had with someone where he reasoned "live and let live" re. hunting. 

Hunters argue of course that their pastime is an essential part of wildlife management. I won't dispute that. It's just not my cup of tea. I note that our technology age has given lots of these "sportsmen" strategies that would have been unheard of before. It's to the point where some people have made an ethical issue out of it. Tech progress parades on. It waits for no one. 

We are embarking on a new cold weather season with the pandemic still on. This is serious business: It may not be a "pandemic" at all, it's likely an "endemic." The bug (or whatever you want to call it) is here to stay. Or to quote an apparently well-backgrounded person from the radio yesterday: "We won't be able to 'booster' our way out of this." 

I mulled that over. Is there really no light at the end of the tunnel? Or maybe just a faint light? I doubt we are all ready to accept this, to deal with the many ramifications. 

I happen to be lucky, though I'll knock on wood anyway. I have only myself to take care of. I can cut corners in my life to save money fairly easily. I'm spending a fair amount right now to make my home more energy-efficient. I am having to wait an unreasonable amount of time for some window replacement. You've heard of the "labor shortages" and "supply chain disruptions." So I cannot blame the companies I am dealing with. 

Our present distress all gets back to the pandemic. And if the pandemic can't be eradicated, then what? 

Don't you all realize how distressed you ought to feel about the specter of inflation? And this time around, unlike the inflation crisis of the 1970s, you can't even go to a bank and get a CD that pays good interest. You basically get no interest at all. 

We haven't seen that much inflation yet. Or if we have, it crawls along at such a pace that we put aside our concerns for now. Keep an eye on "shrinkflation" too! I have not had a frozen pizza for a while. The last couple of times, I felt a somewhat unpleasant aftertaste, making me wonder if the pizza companies are cutting corners with ingredients. That's part of "shrinkflation." 

We used to get more value at McDonald's by being entitled to free refills of soft drinks. It's gone now. We passively accept such shortcomings for at least a while. Then it could "bite us in the butt," as it were. Gone is the advantage that comes with a restaurant salad bar. Will salad bars ever come back? Holy cow, when I was a kid, no one thought anything of taking a "used" plate back up to a smorgasbord or salad bar. Then the new rule was pushed on us. 

And it didn't end there - pretty soon restaurants were putting plastic panels over the salad bar and we'd have to reach underneath. We were all turning into germophobes. I remember a local person who didn't have the best hygiene - God rest his soul - who reportedly was told to just stay seated while buffet items were brought to him. It was justified, no doubt, but a little scary too, as we had to wonder if anyone who appears a little disheveled might get the same treatment! 

At present we are dealing with small price hikes everywhere. But what about the next round and the round after that? The alarm bells are definitely ringing. It is funny to hear someone like U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley - 88 years old - jump on Joe Biden and say Biden "isn't doing anything about inflation." Oh, Biden is a Democrat and Grassley is a Republican. But surely Grassley knows, if his 88 year old mind can process it, that there is only one way - literally only one way - to deal with inflation. The Federal Reserve needs to raise interest rates. This is how the inflation of the 1970s was finally solved. Paul Volcker did that at the Fed. 

Here is the tremendously scary thing today, and I cannot emphasize this enough: Do our politicians of the year 2021, i.e. these crazy times, have the courage to see to it that the Federal Reserve undertakes the necessary action with the very real collateral damage? Volcker promised that we'd get a recession as our "medicine" for inflation. But what politician wants to countenance such a promise today? 

We have zero patience for economic "down" times. It's not like the 1970s when we could just sit back and watch "Smokey and the Bandit" movies for a few years. Or, watch "The Gong Show." Or, to follow the silliness of "Studio 54," and be amused by Euell Gibbons TV commercials. Those days are tucked into history. Today we demand instant gratification. The stock market simply must keep going up. 

The stock market would likely be a disastrous first casualty if the Federal Reserve did what might be necessary. 

Donald Trump? People were fond of saying "he's not a politician" in a giddy way. So he doesn't follow conventions, right? And you all are fond of that? Oh, so cute. One of the conventions of Washington D.C. is to "leave the Federal Reserve alone." Or more accurately: "Don't fight the Fed." Donald Trump gave quotes saying the Fed needed to seriously consider negative interest rates. All he cared about was being able to go on CNBC TV and chat with Joe Kernen about how stocks were doing boffo. 

Don't you all realize how hazardous that whole scenario would be for all of us? 

Biden has said that "unlike my predecessor, I will not pressure the Federal Reserve." Here's the problem: it might be too late. It might be "later than you think." 

Go hunting to escape it all? Not yours truly. I'm just waiting for my window replacement (Renewal by Andersen). 

How will we all "come out on the other side" in spring? Just brush ourselves off, routinely, and move on past any adversity? One of these times, maybe not. I'm reminded of the words from Custer's Indian scout just prior to the big battle: "Friend, I fear that at the end of the day, we will go home by a road we do not know."

- Brian Williams - morris mn minnesota - bwilly73@yahoo.com