When the heck do you find time to fish!?!?!

[Achiro]

Just finished up 3 days solid moving my parents. Last weekend was a funeral, the weekend before that something else. I haven't had the boat out since Memorial Weekend and only been out twice since then. The yard, the house, the wife, the family, the business, etc, etc. It's seriously wearing on me and actually affecting my health(stress). I can barely find a day to fish let alone a weekend to camp. Not trying to whine, just wondering how you guys juggle it all and still make time for yourself?

[crappiepappa]

First and foremost I have a very understanding bride who realizes this fishing thing is a stress reliever but more than that a passion of mine. I work 12-14 hour days at the shop. If I have time at end of day I garden, keep house maintained etc. I have to schedule my fishing, hunting, camping times. Just part of it. Certainly don't get to go enough but enough to scratch the itch for now.

[cricket george]

Pappa - feel lucky, I have fished 3 times this year. I have not scratched the itch in so long that I have almost lost interest in the whole thing. I have bought tackle, built jigs this year but no time to use it.

[Crappie ciller]

My formula was working well for about a year until I volunteered for an 18 month mission trip in the Philippines. The year my first son was born I caught crappie most every week and often limited out twice in a day ( not proud of that by the way). I also played in 4 basketball leagues that year- life was impossibly good! Then somewhere between that son and my 5th , a daughter, my former high school sweetheart sat me down for "The Talk". For the next 30 years, which went really fast, I didn't fish much and always took my kids along when I did. Started and ran 3 real small but successful businesses and more importantly we raised 5 really pleasant ( mostly) and responsible kids during that time. When #5 graduated college I bought a boat and learned something horrifying about myself. I really stink as a crappie fisherman which bothers me and I hope to devote a lot of time the next few years changing that. One bonus is that now I live on a crappie pond with (soon) 12 grand kids who so far are crazy about fishing with PoPo. I'm pretty sure the 30 year near fast was worth it but dang it, sometimes when I am out there catching dinks I wish I had taken a few more days off to study crappie lifestyles- they are still smarter than me and I do live for the thump. Now I am a pretty young geezer so I plan to fish enuf in my semi retired state that if I can stay on the water til I'm 90 I think I can catch up to some of you guys. I hope your lean fishing opportunity years work out as well for you all as they have for me- my bride hardly ever corners me for " The Talk" these days.

[Redge]

"First and foremost I have a very understanding bride who realizes this fishing thing is a stress reliever but more than that a passion of mine."

Stole the above from CP, but it applies to me also! I have the best wife in the world, am blessed by that, and know it! I may be a little biased about that also. LOL

As CCiller alluded to above, once you can get the kids out of the house and stable in their lives, it becomes a lot easier to slip off and fish for a little. The stress is about non existent any more, unless you start worrying about the Gkids or GGkids!

I am self employed also, small reasonably successful business, used to work 16-18 hours a day. Got to a point, after about 10 years, where I realized I was spending to much time working. I could work at my office 24 hrs a day 365 days a year and never catch up.

Another thing I am blessed with is the ability to shut it all off after I leave work. I don't think about work until the next morning on the way to work.

I garden also during the week and that is a nice stress reliever also.

[Fishers]

I am self employed also. I put "rain days" into my schedule. If it rains and I cant work, I go fishing. If it doesn't rain, I have a day and I go fishing. Its a beautiful thing.

[DrNip]

I don't have the time!!! Waiting on the grass to quit growing so the lawn mowing (3rd job) stops. That'll at least free up my Sundays.

[Machine]

Fishing has fallen off here no thermocline.
Ive been killing pigeons and making jellies

[cpd21]

I am very blessed to live close to Lake Eufaula....within an hour of getting off work my wife and I can be on the water fishing

[SeaRay]

The most disappointing think I have found about being retired is you don't seem to have time to do half the stuff you thought you would. I love being retired but sometimes I stop and realize I have not been fishing in a while! What was I doing and where did the time go??
Been retired 12 years and it seems like 2. I was lucky enough to retire at age 57 so hopefully I still got some time left.