Look what I found on my Doorstep!!

Who doesn't love free stuff?....... That's what I thought, everyone does. (Sorry, this isn't a give-away, not to get anyones hopes up.) Well, maybe it's not free stuff, maybe part of the agreement was I do some product reviews.  I think that's a hard stipulation to follow, use some awesome new gear with the stuff I love to do and then blog about how it held up. Sounds tough to me, but someone's gotta do it. I know that it sounds like I'm gloating a little, and I may be, so excuse me for that, but I am just excited to have these opportunities. Back on Monday's post "Random Ramblings 2.0" I had hinted about some product reviews to come, so here are the products I received to review here in the near future...

These are the great products from Montana Fly Company that 

I got selected to review for the Outdoor Blogger Network.

Thanks OBN and Montana Fly Company!!

This is a care package from Grabber Warmers for some of the snow storms we have 

in West Virginia and those late winter/early spring fishing trips.

Thanks Grabber Warmers and WebMasterJ - @grabberwarmers

Long Weekend and Late Birthday Presents

This weekend started in a firestorm of things to do. We had to run back to my house to get some things done and to get some things for this weekend. Then had to high-tail it back to Cassie's apartment in Morgantown, so that we could get some sleep before headed out to Parkersburg, WV, to spend sometime with her family and to have a late birthday dinner for me with her parents. With fishing season right around the corner and with me out growing my beginners fly tying kit and materials, I started searching for a local fly shop. Lucky as I could be, I found out that there was one in Parkersburg, and even more so that Cassie's father knew the manager at Angler's X Stream, an official Orvis dealer. Of course they had no problem showing me where the shop was, and of course I had to explore and pick up some new items. To my surprise, they knew I wanted to get a new fly tying vise, so they surprised me with one at the store as I was getting some new tools, materials, and hooks.

Some of the goodies I picked up this weekend.

Then today was topped off with a WVU basketball game (and a victory!!) this afternoon with Cassie, her brother, my dad, and uncle. I didn't get much done outdoors wise this weekend but I was able to pick up some new fly tying equipment, and had enough time to bust a few new flies this morning, man am I rusty. It looks like I need to practice a little more before the products come from Montana Fly Company to review, but hey it's all in good fun. Guess I'll just have to banish myself to my fly tying table for a few nights this week to knock off the rust. Haha. Even though it was a long weekend, it was an enjoyable one. Next weekend looks like it's going to be very low key. Hopefully, that means that I'll get some more interesting post of up for you guys and some more flies tied. I'm also hoping that the stuff comes for the product review so that Jay and I can get together so we can get that write up done for the Outdoor Blogger Network.

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What a way to start the week!!

Normally starting the work week is sluggish and mundane, nothing really changed that one until I checked out the OBN on my lunch break. Monday is normally the day they do the featured bloggers of the week and announce the winners of the product reviews from the week previous. This past weeks was from Montana Fly Company (MFC), now fly fishing and fly tying is still something I am a novice at and actually made a goal this year to improve these skills, so I thought I had a slim chance to review one of the three package, but if I did it would only aid me in my learning. So come to my surprise I actually won, that's right I get to review some of the great products from MFC. As ecstatic as I was that I got chosen, I had to call and tell Jay about this, because he has been messing around with fly fishing longer than I have and was actually one of the reasons I got involved in it in the past year or so. It looks like now we're going to have what we refer to as a fly tying party. Really it's just us sitting around having a few ice cold refreshments and tying flies on a random night, talking about what and when we're going to go fishing next. Now you're going to get two people to review this, we're still not sure what we're going to be tying up yet, guess that also  get determined on what kind of thread we're sent. I know the basics and Jay knows a few more advanced ones than I do, so who knows where we'll end up, but I do know Rebecca over at OBN has put in an order, so I'll be sure to get on that one first. Anyone else need anything? Haha. I would like to say thanks again to the Outdoor Blogger Network and Montana Fly Company for this opportunity, and keep your eyes peeled for my review here in the near future!!

Right there I am under Package two.

The weekend that wasn't..

..anything but relaxing, well for the most part that's true. After a week away from my house due to snow and deciding to stay the week with my girlfriend, it was time to head back there and relax. So that's exactly what I did; I'm kind of ashamed to admit I didn't even make it into the woods or river this weekend, but with the amount of snow and the warmth of my house, I didn't think it was the best idea to brave it. Haha. Even without having any great outdoors news for you there are still a few updates, well if you want to call them that.

This weekend did allow me to get started on the project of reclaiming my house from the last  few months (Deer Season) of dirty clothes and dust, well I should rephrase this, it allowed Cassie to start on this and me to help her. But I guess if she going to start moving her stuff in soon it means I need to start getting rid of the 329084352394 t-shirts I have along with those pants that I haven't fit into since high school. Either way this was a good project for this weekend, for one I got a start on another part of my 2011 Goals List, and two it really just needed it. Of course we are no where near the end of this, but the hardest part is always just starting. Plus, I am finding hunting and fishing stuff that I had forgot I bought or couldn't remember where I put it strategically placed to find at a later date, so it was like Christmas morning all over again. On a  serious side, tomorrow after work I will have three to four bags of t-shirts and clothes to drop-off at Goodwill. This is at least a good start for now.

Another great thing about a lazy weekend is getting to lay around and watch football and basketball, WVU played a great game and beat a #8 ranked Purdue team today, but really that wasn't were I was going with this. It was suppose to talk about how I spent half my weekend trying to find all my fly tying stuff after entering the newest Gear Review Opportunity at OBN, if you haven't checked that place out you should. After scouring my newly cleaned house I realized I knew where the equipment was (still on my desk), it was the materials I was lacking, so this means a trip to Cabelas here in the new future. Really, this just gives me more time to review some new flies I'd like to try and make on Troutrageous! and OMG It's Fly Tying!, just to mention a few.

The weekend wouldn't have been complete without some of the amazing brownies Cassie made (Thanks!!) or the Deer Jerky I made, yes that's right folks, I can cook (when I really, really need to that is). But you guessed it, I'll be posting the recipe and the step my step process of how I make my Sweet'n'Spicy Deer Jerky, so there's one post to look forward to this week. And with Jay making a quick trip back home from work in FL, I'm hoping we're going to be able to start hitting up the streams soon as well. But here's to everyone having a great week ahead!!