Balance. Isn't that what they say life is all about? Lately I've been all out of balance. I haven't been fishing in months and fishing is my third most favoritist thing in the whole world. I drove by one of my secret spots yesterday on the way back from Santa Cruz, and noted that the water was moving at the correct speed, that it was just the right color and judging by the recent weather and time of year, probably the correct temperature. So today I spent my lunch break at the tackle shop. I needed some fresh line and jigs. My man Buck helped me locate my old standby striper lure and asked me where I was going. He confirmed that the time was indeed right and said some of his other customers had already had some decent luck. Thus begins the time honored tradition. Reno: Oh yeah? What were they throwing? Buck: Chrome and blue Rat-L-Traps and white pearl Flukes Reno: No kidding, Flukes? Buck: Flukes. Reno: Well I better grab some of those too. The thing about Buck is he's honest. Beware the tackle shop guy that recommends items he's way overstocked on. Buck was running very low on the jumbo sized, white pearl Flukes, and I bought his last two chrome and blue Rat-L-Traps. Ring up a Calif. fishing license with all the add ons and I added well over $100.00 to our local economy. Things began slipping into alignment. When I got back to work, our boss (a saint of a man) wanted to go to church to observe Good Friday and let us all go home early. So I have been spending the afternoon cleaning and oiling my reels, spooling up with fresh 12 lb. test and reorganizing my striper box. Now everything is stowed away and ready to go tomorrow morning. Notice that seven foot graphite rod perched on the tip of my finger? Balance has been restored.