Fishing the World II

I have listed, on the previous page, 16 different places I've fished (Iraq doesn't count). I could add many more places to the list, but you get it. I find fishing helps me to calm down, relax, and relieve stress. Many people have many different hobbies for the same reason. I was once told by my doctor that, if I didn't find a way to relieve my stress, I would be dead soon. I had developed hypertension, had bleeding ulcers, migraine headaches, and rising blood pressure. I am one of those persons that tends to hold my emotions inside. I don't display much outwardly.  That has it's advantages.  It also has it's disadvantages. You're not able to release pent up frustration, or anger, or depression. It builds inside of you until you start to suffer from it physical and mentally. You have to find ways to release it. Or, at least, to control it as much as possible. So, my two favorite hobbies grew to be fishing and motorcycles. I have always enjoyed fishing, and hunting, too, for that matter. I developed it into an outlet.  I put some of my spare time into it, to really take advantage of it's ability to calm me down.  I started getting into it heavily, as it gave me something to focus on other than my problems. I started to collect really nice fishing poles, buy the best lures, get the best lines, etc. I have fishing poles ranging from very light action, to ice fishing gear, to very big, strong extender poles for long casting. I have flys, mini-flys, beaders, jigs, worms, crawfish; then going up to spinners of all kinds and colors, top water lures, poppers, jinglers, rattlers, tarantulas, and others.  Then step up again to deep water fishing lures, both for deep-diving and top water. Some lures have two hooks; other have up to nine hooks. I have lures for salmon, for tuna, for mahi-mahi, and many others.  I have rods that you can literally bend to touch the end to the base. I have others that you can barely make bend at all. I have, of course, reels for every occasion.  They range from right side crank, to left side crank, with the line coming in straight or coming in circular. And some with a top mounted reel, and others with a bottom mount. It's a collection that I have built for many, many years. 
I've fished standing on the tip of flat bottom boats, to single and dual seat bass masters, to fishing off the back of charters, to chumming off the side of 40 footers in Okinawa to party barges on the Mississippi. 
My favorite fishing shows are "Wicked Tuna", catching bluefins off the east coast, to "Big fish Texas", which is very close to where I grew up. I enjoy watching their reaction to catching the fish they went after, as I know what it feels like. I am also proud that they try so hard to regulate the amounts caught. They take it very serious, as well they should. You cannot overcatch a species of fish and expect them to survive. And when they're gone, they're gone. I watched the episode of "Big Fish Texas" where the owner went to talk to his Congressman about regulation and fishing quotas between commercial and charter/recreational fishing boats. I was impressed that he cared so much.  Of course, he has his own reasons for doing it, but he didn't have to try. But he did. That's what counts. 
Fishing is a livelihood for many.  For others, it's a hobbie. Either way, catching fish is a great thing! Being able to extend the ablility for you, then your children, and grandchildren, to enjoy the feeling of fishing for fun, and also for making a living, is critical. That's why there are licenses, limits, quotas, and regulatory boards. It's not all about you! It's about the fish surviving to be around another generation.
I will never stop fishing until I'm not around any more. It has helped me to live longer, experience great times with friends, and given me a bigger view of the world. I know some people have never caught a fish in their lives. And maybe they never want to.  That's perfectly ok, and that leaves more for the rest of us! But, if you ever really want to give it a shot, just for the sake of saying you've done it, just ask a fisherman.  He'll be more than glad to take you!