When in Rome...

I know some of my friends might take offense to this, but just realize that I am having a great time down here and am meeting some truly nice, honest people.

I had a busy day yesterday. I am trying to immerse myself in the Southern culture and I think I am doing a fine job. I did something for the first time yesterday and I will be doing it again, as I had a wonderful time. I went hunting.

I didn't get to shoot anything.. or even fire the shotgun for that matter, but it was a very pleasant experience. I awoke at 3:30 and met up with a group of people at 5:00. It was cold, like 29 degrees cold. Luckily, I have learned a few things about keeping warm in that type of weather. So, 6 layers of clothing and some hand and toe warmers later, I was ready to hunt.

Yesterday was the first day of dog season. This was a new concept to me. About 6 of the guys had hunting dogs, ranging from Walker Hounds to Blue Ticks. These dogs were ready to go! The guys released the dogs, who would then find deer and chase them, barking and having a great time the whole way. All we had to do was wait for the deer to cross our path. Unfortunately, they ran the exact opposite way of me all day long... of course.

I still had fun and this is more that just a sport down here. It is a way of life. No part of the deer goes to waste apparently. I had home-made venison sausage and jerky. It was really, really good.

I hope to go again over Thanksgiving weekend!