Keeping your family happy

It is not always easy to keep your family happy during the holidays, especially if it is spread out across the country the way mine is. The closest family I have, other than my parents, is my brother up in Houston.  My family is spread from Lubbock Texas, to Benton Illinois; I even have a few family members up in New York.  Planning family events during the holidays is not fun for us. The side of the family that is not visited that year for thanksgiving or Christmas is always asking why, or what’s the problem, when there really is no reason for picking one over the other.  No matter what is decided, someone is going to be upset or disappointed.

 Some of the things that I have found over the years that can help are:

Alternate what holidays you see each side of the family

Let the family know that the next year you will be spending that holiday with the other side of the family

Invite both sides of the family to your place for the holidays

Tell them that you already have other commitments and don’t want to disappoint them by backing out

If all else fails, just say you have work

                By alternating what side of the family you see each holiday, you never miss seeing everybody two years in a row for that holiday.  Inviting everybody to your place is a good way to satisfy both sides of the family, that is if you have the proper facilities and they will get along with one another. Telling your family you have to work, even if you don’t, is one way to avoid this problem all together. Nobody should question you if you say you have to work, it is your job and how you pay your bills. It may seem rude or mean, but sometimes you have to do what you have to do to avoid these stressful situations.

I have always had a passion for hunting and fishing, but after I came to college, I had nowhere in the area to go hunt. I spent three years here in Kingsville looking for an affordable lease before I became informed about all the public hunting land in the Kingsville area. After I had been informed about public hunting land, I spent a few hours researching it. I wanted to make sure that I followed all the rules and regulations to avoid getting a violation. The way this hunting land works is very simple. A public land permit will cost you $48 on top of your regular hunting license, which you can purchase anywhere that sells hunting and fishing licenses. http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/business/licenses/ You need to wear blaze orange for most types of hunting, but it is not required when dove hunting. Look online to find a location near you with the desirable game that you intend to hunt.

     When you arrive at the location, there is usually a check in station called an OSR. This is where you fill out top half of a page, which is a liability contract, and at the end of the hunt you fill out the bottom portion telling what you hunted and the game that was harvested.  Texas offers 898,950 acres accessible by this hunting permit, so there are plenty of hunting opportunities out there for those who cannot afford a hunting lease. I live in Kingsville Texas, so this is the area that I have done the most research over. There are six hunting locations within 15 minutes from where I live, all of which only offer dove hunting. Even with this being the only game I can take at these locations, I was thrilled to have found a place that I can hunt that is closer to my house than my drive to school is each day. The sight that I hunt most often is South Kingsville Unit 2260. This Unit is known to the game wardens as the Y. They call it that because it is located at the point where Highway 77 and Business 77 meet.  The reason I chose this sight to hunt most often is simply because it is the closest to my house, about 1 ½ miles. On opening day I headed out at about 6:45 just before sunlight. The birds were flying great. I was able to go out hunting, shoot eight or nine birds and make it back to class before 9:00 AM. The birds have slowed down in numbers as the season has progressed but that is the way it is at most locations. Because this unit is located close to town, there is usually a plentiful supply of white wing and even the occasional pigeon.

There are five other locations in the Kingsville area that I have not yet been to, but I plan on going soon.  If you want to try quail hunting, there are many public locations down in the valley area. I have just begun explore the opportunities of hunting public land. I want to make a trip up to northern Texas some time this season where they offer land to deer hunt on.  If you are someone who loves to hunt, but does not have the access to a ranch or a lease, I strongly recommend you look into the public hunting opportunities that Texas has to offer.