Canoe and Kayak Paddle Shop

GPS Coordinates - N 36.45.20 - W 93.31
ph: 417.538.4848 - Now on the water, at Paddling Center.com!
OzarkCanoe.com - "Your canoe and kayak source, and resource...

"You'ens Like Bugs?"

River Scene

"Relaxing and kicking back one evening in our little habitat (home) on the river, I turned the porch light on and sat down, and the bugs started to swarm the light.  I thought to myself, “I wish there were no bugs”.  What good are they, to us?  So I left the lit porch and walked down to the river shore as the sun was setting and getting dark.  I spooked a bull frog on the bank, sitting and waiting for his bug treat.  It was a rather large one at that. Then I looked up and in the dimly lit sky I saw bats.  There were probably twenty in my immediate view, swooping and diving around the tree tops, eating bugs as they were flying.  Then I looked at the sunset reflection in water and bugs were everywhere leaving tiny little wakes (waves) behind them.  Fish of all sizes were hitting them, even little chad closer to the shore, leaping into the air from the water and flipping so fast they buzzed like hummingbirds...  Then it suddenly dawned on me.  “What if there really were no bugs?”

Who, who, who is watching you???

"One of us was out early on a morning "as she does", sunrise coming up, with all of nature's life still awake and busy.  She saw a tiny, but gnarly looking bug.  This bug was on a limb of a tree, about her shoulder height.  She described this bug as hairy, fat and round, with a protruding neck and head similar to a preying mantis.  She did not know what it was at this early waking moment for her, but described it as a very tiny bug, very detailed with large eyes.  She noticed this tiny bug was looking at her, staring straight at her!  So she moved.  Off to the left, "he" turned and watched...  Off to the right, he locked his little eyes on her, and did not waver in attention.  So a complete circle is what she walked, all the way around him.  This tiny bug watched, as his head switched back and forth with fury, to follow her motion.  His intelligence, concentration, and attention was very apparent as he continued to stare at her until she left to go on with her morning.  You never know who watches you, when you walk through the woods.  This little bug was apparently pretty sharp.  Who, Who, Who, is watching You???"

Ozark River Picture
I was relaxing and coasting in my kayak, the paddle lying across my boat.  At a flash of a moment a very large dragonfly flew by me at a high rate of speed, smacked my paddle blade head on with enough force to feel it vibrate the shaft and make a very large banging noise.  The dragonfly flipped through the air over my paddle blade, landing on the water, back down, wings floating, staring straight at the sky.  I turned around to see this, and suddenly a “fish of a competent size” hit the top of the water with fury!  That large dragonfly was gone in a millisecond with nothing left but a ripple.  I realized at that moment in life, no one is safe from having an accident, and need to watch where you’re going.  I had mixed emotions.  I first felt sorry for the dragonfly and partially to blame for my paddle being there.  Then I thought of “that competent fish", which was just as quick at getting that big meal as I was seeing what happened in the wake of the dragonfly’s collision with my paddle.  So how would that leave you feeling, floating on down the river?  Life is like that.  And I am more careful; no matter how well “I think” I can fly.

Ants. Do they have it "all together" in their little social community?

"Imagine life as a colony of ants.  There is a flurry of constant activity, such as in life.  Like us, each ant is a part of something whole, the surroundings, and the other ants.  If one ant moves a piece of dirt and places it somewhere, but does not fit in the needs of the colony, the piece of dirt will be moved by another ant to get it where it needs to be.  Most ants work together, some ants start the process, even scout for the rest of the colony.  Which ant are you?"

We hope you have been informed and entertained!

Thanks!  By: Ozark River Company

©2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008

Now open in our new location, 18 miles West of Branson, Cape Fair MO!

Ozark River Company at PaddlingCenter.com

7847 State Highway 173

Cape Fair MO 65624

Phone: 417-538-4848 or 417-538-4802

(Formerly in the Gainesville and Alton, MO river areas for 9 years)

(76 west from Branson Missouri - Country Music 76 boulevard, 18 miles - follow 76 west through Cape Fair, as it turns in to 173. Look for our paddling center and resort on Table Rock Lake at the Flat Creek bridge!)

Winter Retail Hours: Sunday through Tuesday - Closed - Wednesday through Saturday, 12:00 to 5:00

Email All Inquiries to: ozarkriverco@aol.com

 

Ozark River Company - OzarkRiverCo - A "Pro Rep Associates, Inc."  registered Company Name - Since 1996, in our Twelfth Year in business!

ALL RIGHTS RESERVED

ORC Canoe and Kayak Related Names; for our Future!

Our Own Outdoor Sports Related Websites!

promoting vintage guitar buyers website