over a largish deer. Well, not large in the conventional sense, just… well, fat. Kinda scrawny horns. I look up, and there’s another buck, this one a bit healthier looking, staring straight at me.

“You, er, you gonna be using that can of spray?” the buck says, a hoof pointing at the can of Deepwoods Off in my fanny pack.

“Erm,….. no? ”
“Would you mind spraying some across my face? Yeah, just there. I’ll close my eyes, ok?”
“Um, sure” I spray the deer’s face, he snorts a little then says “the ears too, please” I hit the ears and he turns around.

“A little around the family jewels, if you don’t mind, and yeah, up there, yep. Thanks”
“No… er, no problem” I stammer. “I hope there’s no hard feelings- I mean, I shot your friend”
“yeah, about that. He wasn’t hardly anyone’s friend, really. He was always talking about how good he was, how much smarter, how he could figure anything out. He walked out in the zone after I pointed you out. he was like, all “That guy’s from Indiana. he probably moves his lips when he reads”. SO not a big deal. “

“Okay, thanks. You want the rest of the can?”
“I would, but no pockets, you know?”

“I could just leave it here. You could have someone push down on the top”
“That would be great. And hey, thanks. And while I’m thinking about it, stay away from that liver, he abused it a lot”

“cool. Um, couild I ask you a question?”
“SUre”
“When is the rut? What actually controls it?”
“Skeeters and deer ticks.”
“What?”
“We have only a few areas where we’re vulnerable to mosquitoes and ticks, and you can guess where they are. Can you think of sex while mosquitoes are biting your nose, eyes, and balls?”
“I guess not. Thanks. You know I’m gonna be looking for you in two weeks, during firearm season”
“Yeah. But I’ll get some fucking in before then”

“Seeya!”

And then the alarm clock got to me, and I had to hit the road.
Man, I gotta lay off the chili cheese dogs.

172 permits issued yesterday at Kingsbury, one deer taken. In the old classic indiana method:with a pickup truck.