Hunting

Last Thursday I shot a deer...........with a camera. Unfortunately, if you were hoping for interesting, compelling stories from my hunting excursion on Thanksgiving you will probably be disappointed. It turns out that I actually didn't get to shoot anything. We were mistakenly led to believe that I didn't need a hunter's safety course to get a hunting license so I wasn't legally allowed to do any hunting. However, I did get to put on all the gear and sit in the tree stand with a camera for a couple hours. It was incredibly peaceful and quiet, and on the whole, a very relaxing experience. I saw one young buck with short antlers not too far from the tree stand eating the corn strategically laid on the forest ground. When he left he joined a group of about four other deer in the distance that I wasn't able to get a real good look at because they were too far away. Unfortunately for my companion at another tree stand, he didn't see any deer at all. Overall, it was a great experience that I would definitely like to try again for real. Even though I didn't actually get to shoot at anything, I enjoyed the experience of interacting with nature and just being outside.

True Manhood

One could possible say that I am making my first step into true manhood on Thursday. For the first time ever, I will be braving the elements and attempting to shoot live animals. That's right, this city kid is going hunting. My small group leader at church has a huge amount of land that he is going to take me hunting on. This will be the first time I've fired a real gun, and I'm pretty excited. Hunting is something I've always been casually interested in but never seriously considered as something I would ever have the chance to do. Several members of my family hunt or have hunted in the past so it's always been something I've been familiar with, but now it's my turn to be a man. I highly doubt that I will actually kill any deer, but at least it will be a fun experience. I will be sure to update afterwards with stories.

November Madness

Well, my friends, it's here. That's right. Basketball season is underway in the state of North Carolina. Neither Duke nor Carolina has played a game yet, but they might as well have already won the championship with the way people get excited around here. Football season isn't even close to being done, but that doesn't matter. Part of the problem, if you know anything about college football, is that neither Duke nor Carolina puts together a football team resembling any sort of cohesive team unit. Between the two teams there may be a combined total of 2 wins. Thus, any excuse to ignore the football team and look ahead to glorious basketball season is warmly welcomed. I have never been much of a follower of college basketball before, but there is something about the atmosphere here that just requires you to be interested. Although I will probably never be able to go to a game, it still is exciting to be on the verge of a season that looks so promising for the Carolina team. So I guess this is the year that I give basketball a chance. I guess there's really no better state in the union to undertake such an endeavor. Bring on the hoops!