JUNE

[Micanopy]

The wife likes it, too. She, like me, says it needs a stainless steel roll around service table to sit upon. I burned off the cast iron grates last night and plan to get a scraper and brush to the top soon. I might even take the sander to the top and then season like I did my cast iron pans.


I am filling in on the cook team to do a wedding Saturday night. I already met the bride and she is a nice lady. Second marriage. I haven’t cooked in a month. Been shining a brand new office chair with my butt. Sitting in the A/C all day long. I bet I am gonna sweat like a pig when I get to boiling potatoes and smoking ribs and such. I told them if I need a break to cool down, I am taking a break to cool down.


The “Pit Boss Sierra Griddle” is still lying out next to the parcel box. Walmart still refuses to issue a refund, or a replacement, or even an email telling me when they plan to come get the thing. Two weeks. Been two weeks now. No one seems to care but me. Yes, this is all my problem you see. I am the dummy for ordering a griddle from Walmart to begin with. I am going to sign in on my Walmart account and leave a review for people to see, replete with photos and a description of how Walmart backs their sales with service. So stinking rich, that family no longer cares about the old man’s dreams. Just the money now baby.

I might get to go fishing Sunday morning.

[DockShootinJack]

A social media campaign complete with photos and emails may get noticed

[Micanopy]

Well early yesterday morning the offending box containing the broken griddle disappeared. I hope it was that same stupid FedEx driver that had to lift the slimy cardboard box. The same one lifting the same box that he crushed, now moistened by Summer rains, and crawling with wood roaches. I hope he got goo all over his hands and no way to wipe them clean again. Wrenched his back and stubbed his toe when the wolf spider leaped out. Nice to know he had to handle it twice, once to put it on the truck, and again to get it off.

Now Walmart must intend to refund me.

Here is what I think I have learned. When an object for sale on Walmart.com, is not offered as a ship to store item for pickup, that means that Walmart.com is only serving as a platform for a third party seller. In my case Pit Boss. Much like Amazon does. They facilitate the money transaction, and send instructions to the actual seller to ship to this address. Then later Walmart sends the company a check, keeping a percentage for themselves.

So that meant that when my item was delivered destroyed, and I called Walmart, it was really Pit Boss’s problem at that point. Walmart wasn’t helping me because they figured it was Pit Boss’s problem. Notifying PayPal that there was an issue was exactly the right way to proceed, as neither Walmart or Pit Boss wanted to get involved. PayPal threatened to withdraw the funds, from Walmart.com, and that got Walmart’s attention. They then notified Pit Boss that there was an issue and that it was they that needed to come back and pick up the damaged goods. Walmart.com was no longer planning on sending payment to them.

So if you ever plan to order anything from Walmart.com, and the item is not available to be shipped to a local store for pickup, run away. Go hide. Bum deal.

The “Pit Boss Sierra Griddle” was a collaborative effort between Pit Boss and Walmart, or so I was told in the advertisement. Actually it was simply Walmart.com selling for Pit Boss. This probably works fine with cheap Chinese junk, but once a certain dollar threshold is reached, and you are into expensive Chinese junk, the wheels come off and it takes two weeks to get the item returned, and probably another two weeks to see a refund.

So I was being abused by three large companies all at once. My review of the griddle on Walmart.com has never been published. I have however left little crumbs of evidence around the internet for a researching buyer to discover. Because what this means is that if the griddle were delivered in an unblemished, or acceptable condition, that replacement parts would also be a nightmare. Each company would have reason to delay, obfuscate, and wait for the requestor to grow weary and give up. The old Rope A Dope. So the griddle is a horrible offering because of the way it is being sold. Pit Boss can claim ignorance, Walmart can simple absorb you, and the FedEx driver gets to keep his lousy job.

Live and learn I guess. Not my problem any longer. I have progressed to another level now and have no intentions of buying any more on-line collaborative efforts. If I cannot pick it up at the store, and return it to the store, then forget it. In fact if you open a new product’s box, right on top is a piece of paper alerting you to contact the manufacturer if there is an issue, and not return it to the store. I call that the Walmart white paper. They want to service your claim because that allows them to get the original check due from Walmart. See Walmart does not buy the products in their stores. Nope. Instead they are all on consignment. Offered on behalf. If Walmart sells fifty of the hundred they set out, then at the end of the month they pay the supplier for those fifty, and can toss the remainder in the dumpster. This is why returns are no problem. Walmart doesn’t have to actually pay for that item. Saves them billions of dollars in interest on their money, and suppliers must accept the deal or skip having their Chinese junk in a Walmart store. They are so large now that they are changing the way other sellers sell.

Still Walmart should have treated me much better than they did. Two weeks of being told no refund, no replacement, and no idea of what I could expect was uncalled for. They should have responded on their own and sent for a pickup right away. Instead they waited for Pit Boss to do that, to initiate the request to FedEx, and they were in no hurry to do so. They knew that they would not be getting paid by Walmart anyways, so why spend good money chasing after a busted up griddle ?



My boss has asked me to bring my new to me Char Broiler into work so he can examine it and make sure it is running like it should. I feel that the regulator is causing issues, he thinks it is an orifice problem. It isn’t getting hot enough. The burners are rated at 30,000 each but no way I am getting that kind of heat from them. Could be a wolf spider has crawled up inside and laid eggs and stuff. Anyways, i thought it was nice of him to offer to work on it for me. I want that baby to have full range of heat settings.

For now I plan to use my cast iron skillets until I settle up with Walmart for the big refund. I am shopping for a stainless steel roll around table like you see in commercial kitchens. The ones on Amazon rust even though the ads say otherwise. At least their reviews are more honest than anything you see on Walmart.com. Whimps couldn’t even let me offer a review.

[DockShootinJack]

Hope y'all get your regulator issues fixed up. A Su Vide steak seared off on the charbroiler would certainly be tasty

[Micanopy]

Old Slabeye had him a Fathers Day Sale and I got me some new ones.www.slabanatorjigs.com



These are his 3” Mega Hotrods. I slid them onto a BatJig 3/16th ounce head, one with a blade. These are larger sized baits of course, but we are in a Summer time pattern. These will work well right beside/behind the boat, in close. That space is at a premium now though as I have crank baits swimming, too. The plastic material is very nice and will survive the fish quite well.

My setup has been light jigs fished normal long line fashion, some with tickler blades some without, and heavier jigs in close, and crank baits. All pulled at the same speed. They say that I shouldn’t do this, that crank baits require a faster speed. I am not so sure about that as I can see the rod tips vibrating like crazy at 1.0 mph. My lakes are shallow affairs, so a deep diver cannot be sent down much past six feet or so anyways. I was surprised at how well the crappie will hit the crank baits, with some fish just a little larger than the bait itself.

I also ordered some of his curly tails and these are very nicely made. The tails are stuck on there really well, and with his durable plastic, will survive better. Some days the fish respond well to curly tails, other days they want paddle tails. Weird I know. Anyways he makes a nice paddle tail bait as well. His amounts are good, too. You should check out his website sometime. Shipping is good price and fast to your mailbox.

I have about ten pounds of plastic baits now. I have ordered based on what I wanted to fish with, not necessarily what the fish wanted. So I have plenty of plastics that just kind of hang out in the large bag I keep everything tucked into. In the house. So as I fumble through this bag, I still gravitate to those same baits, and want to force them into working on those dumb fish. I have taken to pre assembling all my jigs, so that I can glue the bait to the head. Pool noodle sections work great for holding these jigs. I keep like six pool noodles in the boat, so I have a wide selection to choose from. I tried to keep my choices limited for sanity sake, but I became weak in resolve and have faltered.

The Hot Rod design glides through the water very easily, which means it can go deeper more readily. The tail seems to remain still when viewed from above, but when carefully studied, it offers a nice flicker effect. Now days I am able to better assess the colors I need, to actually please the fish and not just me. Pink seems to be very productive, and yellow chartreuse is almost mandatory. I like whites and purples as well.

Pink head, white body, chartreuse tail
White head, purple body, chartreuse tail
Chartreuse head, green body, chartreuse tail

These are my confidence patterns. My local fish respond well to these. I am not certain that these colors match their natural forage, or if they appear better in murky waters, or what, but they do seem to get the bites. It is nice though to imagine switching to other patterns to get some bites on slow days. Never really happens, but there is always the chance.

I am getting the idea that it is all about placing a bait in just the right spot, at the right depth, at the right time. That the bait really doesn’t need to be anything special. Just presented just so and ready to go. Then I am getting the idea that the dumb fish are eyeing my baits and evaluating them on their appearance and ability to swim. They come up from underneath and behind and if the bait looks funny, they swerve away. Then I feel there are times when the fish just sit down their and sulk. They look up at my best stuff, and yawn as they go past.

Sulking…..yup I am going with sulking.

Summer also means bladed jig action. I have some with large bass master type blades and they will get some attention from the bigger fish. I like those a little deeper, too so I make them with heavier heads and keep them in close to the boat.

I was talking to a couple of crappie guys about nabbing fish right against the hull of the boat. I felt that the fish were spooked by the boat going past. Then one day after unhooking a fish, I tossed the jig over the side while I was containerizing him, and wham caught a nice fish. Ever since I have fished jigs alongside the boat, in nice and close. They agreed that it is worth keeping a few in close like that. So I pondered a reason why this works. That the fish are hanging out, then when the boat comes along it spooks a school of minnows, which panic and the big fish swoop in to pick off the easy ones. I mean it is either that or the fish like the way aluminum feels against their skin. That is why I am sticking with boats panic baitfish. They have learned to watch for that as a boat goes by. I know ospreys will fly up and behind my boat to check out the scene. An observable learned behavior, so why not fish ?

I need to fire up the jig making machine again and get some made up. I have gifted away so many now that I need to rebuild my stockpile. Some want blades others don’t. I feel the Tickle Me Elmo is a nice compromise. Anyways, I am still sticking with plastic baits vs squirrel fur and such. Can’t help myself. I enjoy lashing various materials and imagining them moving through the water, but really……how does that really compare to a paddle tail or curly tail ? Might be great when dead sticking, or casting, but for long lining I want something bright in appearance and writhing as it swims past. One of the interesting things about crappie is the vast differences in styles and techniques. Most fish are not like that. Oh sure you can use two or three different styles, but crappie have about a dozen different ways.

I have lowered the number of fish we consume now. It wasn’t planned and there is no purpose to it. I just can’t seem to go and when I do the fish don’t cooperate. The state has planted signs warning of algae and to be careful about getting it on your hands and eating sandwiches and stuff. No swimming of course. They say it blooms every year but some years os more prevalent. Like in the movie Predator, the spanish girl says the creature only comes during the hottest of years, and this year it grows very hot.

I used to issue a warning regarding vibrio in brackish and salt water, every Summer on surf fishing sites. It is very easy to get infected when the vibrio are in huge numbers. They are spiral shaped micro organisms. Once in the blood stream, passing through a wound perhaps, they multiply and you become very sick, and possible die. I had such an infection and it was nearly deadly. Well my sister in law decides to eat some raw oysters the other week. Became sick and said her legs hurt. I told her to go to the doctor right away. She refused and toughed it out. This is how most folks die from vibrio, deciding to tough it out. By the time they get sick enough to go to the doctor, the progression has become overwhelming and the body begins to shut down organs. It reacts in panic mode to try to kill off the invaders and you go into shock and die.

The old adage of only eating oysters in months with an “R” in their names is sound advice. Some think that it was only that way prior to refrigeration becoming available. Nope it has to do with micro organisms living in the water. Not that they knew that, just that they deduced it. warmer months allow the water to heat up, and in turn many organisms bloom and multiply and coat everything. Like oysters and crabs and such. A pinch from a crab is all it takes. A would dipped into the water also allows entry. Consumption of raw fish or oysters is a great way to get an infection started. If you plan to eat oysters, roast them or something. Try not to shuck them as you can puncture yourself. Not all waters will have these blooms, but enough do to use some caution.

My sister in law survived just fine apparently.

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*** See signature line
*** Hope they never get to take away our ability to mention God.

[DockShootinJack]

As a younger man we would eat oysters we found while we walked the flats gigging flounder. But only during months with an R in them. Not so much during April. All of the rain flushed all kind of nasty out of the rivers and back waters into the bay. Not the mention the sewer overflows that happened. I can remember if you had a cut or sore a swim or a soak in saltwater would have it all cleared up in no time. Certainly not the cause in this day in time. Makes one miss the old times