Dear visiting dipnetters

To the 10,000+ visitors headed down to the Kenai Peninsula this weekend to hit the mouth of the Kenai River and dipnet for red salmon to stock their freezers I have one request - please be respectful. I know, it's the biggest party of the summer for a lot of you. Camping on the beach, there's ample opportunity to drink too much and play a little too loud. Most weekends, that works out great, but when you look at the sheer size of the camping group it becomes dangerous.

So, please, be respectful. Pick up after yourself, catch and kill what you are legally allowed to - don't practice sadism by catching other types of fish and torture it before throwing its corpse back in the water. Keep the crime in your city of Anchorage, don't bring it with you. Kenai has it's own share of delinquents, we don't need the big city's problems as well. So if you feel like you need to have a knife fight, take it home. You're here to fish to supposedly provide for your family, keep that as the only priority.

I know it's hard to use common sense when you're cold, tired, maybe drunk or hung over, but don't go out farther than you need to. Trying to wade into the middle of the mouth of the river will not ensure you catching more fish. News flash, they typically run closer to shore. Our first responders are too busy dealing with knife fights and drunk and disorderly - they can't be floating up and down the water 24/7 to rescue your butt.

With that in mind, don't overload your boat and swamp it. You lose everything, a lot of waste happens, and it's expensive for our town to rescue your butt.

Take your time getting here. I know, I know, the best camping spots go early - but if you're traveling this weekend to get here I hate to break it to you: they're already taken. I was down at the beach the other day and folks are already parked and camped. Sorry, you're too late. So stop playing chicken on an already overly dangerous road system. There are 10,000 of you coming this way, you want to get here, right? So take it slow, give other drivers their space, and enjoy the drive. It should be the least stressful part of your dipnet experience.

When you get to town, don't treat it like a Tickle-Me-Elmo sale on Black Friday. No fights need to happen in the checkout line because the last case of Miller Light, or the last bag of Doritos was taken right out from under you. If you HAVE to have the "fun stuff" bring it from home where your big city has several major box stores that have shipments almost daily. We don't.

Yes, I know we know you're coming. Yes, I know we can be prepared. We are, but it seems like you come in like locusts taking everything! It looks like a warzone in Fred Meyers the entire month of July. That isn't us, that's you. We do our best to host you, try and be a nice guest for a change.

Speaking of locusts, we have tried very hard to accommodate your camping needs, you food needs, your walking needs. Follow the signs. Don't destroy a VERY DELICATE ecosystem just because you can. You don't have to live with the consequences, we do. Maybe if your property taxes went up each year to deal with the extra cost of taking care of the mess you'd think differently - but, then again, I doubt it.

Take your limit and leave. Yes, we see you - taking a few extra. Or worse those groups - who I won't describe for fear of the PC police coming down on me - that get dozens of extras to use in their family owned restaurants. Uh-uh. That's not what Subsistence fishing is. This is a PERSONAL USE thing. You want to sell the fish or cook it up for pay? Yeah, you need to go to the COMMERCIAL FISHERIES. We have several in our area you can go and pick up from.


I know, I come off as sounding crazy angry. It's not just because my 20 minute commute will double for the next three weeks. It's not because I can't use the beach in relative quiet. It's just that this has gotten ridiculously out of hand in the last few years. Yes, I know it's not JUST people from Anchorage - the locals get nutso, too. And trust me, I rant about our issues just as much. But TEN THOUSAND extra potential problems arise when you arrive. So PLEASE, for the love of all things holy, BE RESPECTFUL. Let's make this a positive experience this year. If you promise to play nice, I promise not to rant about you next year.

"They're like locusts... After they've consumed every natural resource they move on..." - President Thomas Whitmore (Bill Pullman, Independence Day)

Support Setnetters and be declared UnAlaskan

So apparently if you support the setnetters in the great salmon debate currently being duked out on the Kenai, and you DARE to suggest Anchorage fish IN ANCHORAGE when it comes to Dipnetting, then you are declared a "lower 48 scumbag" who needs to "move back to where you came from". I just got told that several times by internet idiots.

To them I say:

I was born and raised here. The media is reporting that 90% of those that are dipnetting on the Kenai DO NOT LIVE ON THE PENINSULA. Knowing what I know, that means 90% are from Anchorage and the Valley (anyone further North most likely dipnet in their rivers). 15,000 people are reported to be dipping this year ON THE KENAI. Not total in state, but IN ONE LOCATION. To suggest that THAT is not a factor in the smaller salmon runs is to be in denial. The crowds have gotten out of control, when my family dipped it was not HALF this size peoplewise. That was just a decade ago (if that). The numbers are growing exponentially.

Setnets have been around far longer than dipnetting. Between Dipnetters not following the rules, and more guides and commercial fishermen there is going to be a smaller number of fish returning. It's simple math. But as always the setnetters are the ones that the people focus on. Why? Because it's easier.

I am SO done with this debate. Dipnetters need to GO HOME, and ADFG needs to get a grip on the situation. The Kenai King is DEAD because of piss poor management that was more about the dollar than about sustaining ANYTHING. Now look where we are.

You seem angry, are you okay?

I've gotten that comment a lot in the last year or so - closer to 18 months, now that I think of it. 2013 sucked on a lot of levels, but the biggest issue was one that I'm pretty much forbidden from talking about (by both the court system, apparently, as well as my parents). But, at the same time, I feel it's my right to let it out. So without naming names or going into too much detail, here it goes. I've been wanting to talk about this for a long time.


Late in 2012 the cops came to our door looking for my younger sibling. Considering his track record, they pulled him in for questioning. My parents had been completely in the dark as to what he'd been up to - the sneaking out of the house at all hours of the night that was keeping me up wasn't a big enough red flag. His angry outbursts and threats to harm me and others around him wasn't a big enough red flag. They were stunned when they found out what he was being charged with.

I was just shocked with how I was going to be treated.

I became the fall person. I had absolutely nothing to do with the crimes he committed. ABSOLUTELY NOTHING. But I became the "reason behind it". Because I didn't "love him enough" as his older sister. That I went away to college and was not around enough "forced" him to act out. This excuse came to light only after the courts didn't buy his "my parents never taught me right from wrong" crap. Gotta hand it to his lawyer, he tried everything to save his client's neck. To hell with the truth or the people it hurt.

His crimes are of the unspeakable kind, but because he was "under age" when they started, they ignored that they continued after he hit 18. The courts basically bent over backwards to protect HIM and not the victims or people around him. They slapped him on the wrist, and put him on probation mandating that he had to live with us. At the time I was running my business out of the house - my "family portrait studio" was no longer SAFE to be there.

We are a small town, news spread. They weren't rumors, they were true. Not only was he (rightfully) vilified, but so were my parents... and me. I lost ALL of my summer and fall business. I'm still trying to rebuild. I am still convinced that I will never be out from under it. Our last name is forever going to be tied to his crimes. And that pissed me off.

Still does.

Family and friends took sides. A lot of people that are friends with my parents bought into the sob story the boy told - and because they aren't allowed to know exactly what he did, and it was whitewashed by my family, I became though of as the unloving, selfish sister. That I wasn't ignoring what he did, or what he continued to do (the sneaking out continued until finally my parents couldn't turn a blind eye and turned him in to his PO), was the biggest sin a person could do. I should just forgive and forget was the message I got over and over. Nevermind he was STILL DOING IT... nevermind that he threatened me daily, coming at me with his fists several times, and spent several afternoons telling my mother in detail how he imagined he was going to beat me until I was bloodied and dead.

It was so bad that several times I ran to a friend's house just to get away. I stupidly always came back once dad came to the door with a hurt puppy expression promising things would change. They didn't until the cops once again came calling because someone broke the court mandated curfew and had no explanation for it.

He's been gone about 9 months now. There's talk that he'll be out soonish. I'm not looking forward to it. At this point I do not trust what I've been told as what it all means for me. EVERY time I was promised that I would be safe, that he would not be a threat, it was untrue. Every time something new came to light or he got into more trouble I became the fall person. I was either declared a liar, "mistaken", or it was my fault because I was "acting like a victim".

I don't trust that anything will be different because I haven't been shown anything that suggests that it will. His therapists demand that I talk to him - I refuse. So he has to send letters. They are pretty much textbook apologies. They are just words he's basically been fed, because they're words I've never heard him use. EVER. And it's all laced with the whole "maybe if you loved me better" theme that he played out all through his trials. There is nothing sincere about them. So I do not respond.

Yes, I think this is my right. No, I don't care to hear you tell me otherwise. Because you don't know the story, and because we have to protect the predator, you never will.

BOOM! OUAT's Jennifer Morrison Speaks - and fans hopefully listen

Jennifer Morrison - aka Emma Swan in ABC's hit TV Show Once Upon A Time - saw some heated discussion thrown her way earlier today for comments she made about a character on the show. It was in answer to a question about Neal Cassidy (Emma's first true love, played my Michael Raymond-James, who was killed off the show in the second half of the season), and it had Nealfire/Swanfire fans upset.

Fans have been upset for months now with the death of the character - arguing that it happened only to open the door and allow Captain Hook to "win the girl". The creators, writers, and actors have all been "confronted" by fans on twitter demanding answers, demanding Neal be brought back. Certain actors have been vilified for the characters they play, or for what they have or have not said in response to the character death.

The "other side" of the fan wars have been no better, antagonizing and creating rumors. It's gotten ugly. It's gotten bitter. It's definitely made ME wish I hadn't gotten so into the social media version of the fandom (all I wanted to do was follow the actors! what was I thinking?!). As someone who likes both Neal and Hook it's been hard to keep my sanity much less hold my "virtual tongue" on the matter.

Morrison got a lot of heat today with her comments in Monte Carlo saying that Neal and Emma would've had a hard time being the ultimate true love - but that it probably would've happened had he lived. But that Emma would've had a huge hill to climb with the betrayals. It's the multiple of betrayal that had most people at least questioning her statement as most (including me) could only think of one - when he left her at August's request and let her go to jail (nevermind that, that last part was August, not Neal). I was amazed by the hate that was spewed at the actress almost immediately.

Having not been paying attention to her Monte Carlo trip (I normally don't follow the cast around while they go off and do the interview circuit... and I'm really not interested now while I'm still bummed MRJ will not be joining them this year *tear*) I really had no idea what was going on when I logged onto twitter this afternoon. But once I got caught up I had to just roll my eyes. We're taking all of this far too seriously, folks. It's a TV show.

Yes, Neal is a fantastic character. Michael Raymond-James gave such heart and warmth to him that I can't help but really connect with the character (it took time, but OMG... I'm obsessed). But this is not a true life or death situation. This is not the end of the world. MRJ has survived - he's got himself a project that he's excited about (declaring on twitter that "#This1feelsspecial"). And while yes I GET THAT IT IS SAD and FRUSTRATING and something that makes us ANGRY (I have felt all of these emotions more than once since Quiet Minds airred), it is NOT THE TRAVESTY WE'VE MADE IT OUT TO BE.

Was it bad writing - I've contested that it was not the best writing. That it was too soon - too close to the last time Neal "died". However, the way it was written was well done. Neal has been very well respected in the episodes after Quiet Minds as well. This was not to placate the fans - not entirely. It was to give MRJ and Neal the send off he deserved. I hope that this is not the end for him - flashbacks, for me, would be enough if nothing else. Yes, there is a lot of Neal's story that should have been shared. Does it make sense to leave it open ended - this fangirl says no. But others have said that it is. Who am I, as a biased fan, to judge that?

Morrison took to her facebook page to set the record straight, and I'm glad she did. SHE DID NOT OWE ME OR ANYONE an explanation. And while I agree that she probably shouldn't have acknowledged the poor behavior of a few fans, I am glad for my own peace of mind that she did. I have wanted to know how the actors felt about losing MRJ (we've seen some of the "non regular/primary" actors voice their love), and I wanted to know what she meant by the multiple betrayals.

Her explanation is one that I totally understand and get. I typically don't see the "broken" scene where Neal grimaces and then we don't see him again until it's revealed as who he is to the story (first as Emma's lover/the reason she went to jail/Henry's father... and then in a later episode as Baelfire) as a betrayal. But it's obvious that Emma/JMo does. And she knows better than I do. In fact Emma lets him know that it hurt - and that's when he apologizes to her. Saying he wanted to love her, but he was afraid that she'd never forgive him.

Emma will ALWAYS love Neal, always has. But she has to move on for the sake of his memory - she PROMISED him that she would. That it's going too fast is irrelevant - this show moves too fast between emotions and always has. I get that it's icky that she's falling for the guy who at one time was "having relations" with Neal's mother, and I agree. I'm not a CaptainSwan shipper (nor am I a SwanFire shipper, though if I HAD to choose I'd lean more to SwanFire), but I have thought since season 2 that he'd end up being a love interest. In fact in Season 2 I was pulling for Hook, not Neal, to win her heart. It wasn't until we saw Neal fight for Henry and Emma that I started to better like his character.

Ultimately I have to agree with the last part of JMo's statement:

"All that being said, I wish Neal was still alive. I love working with Micheal Raymond James, and I believe that he is such a special part of ONCE UPON A TIME. It was a huge loss for me personally and for Emma when his character died." -- Jennifer Morrison

It sums it up so well... and I've always thought that she was affected by it personally. Her scene with Rumple in the finale where she is crying "I loved him, I wanted to save him. He died a hero, you can't take that away from him," I felt was just too raw and real for her to be acting (I am not a fan of her acting style in general. She normally leaves me cold. But not in that scene).

So, thank you, Jen for giving clarification even though you didn't need to. Hopefully as MRJ begins work on Sons of Liberty he will keep us updated on the progress, and production of OUAT will resume and people will calm down and remember - that even though these are wonderful stories... they are just that, stories (sorry, Jefferson). The people playing these parts are not out to get each other, that they are human just as we the fans are. Let's give them some respect, and the benefit of the doubt... and let's all try to get along.

You're going to Disney? You must be rich!

You don't need to be Scrooge McDuck to go to Disney.

We all do it. We hear of someone's vacation plans and we immediately start thinking of how much they're spending and if they can afford it. Some trips, by name, just sound extravigant. Disney, apparently, is one of them.

Don't get me wrong, I know there are vacations less expensive - and I've discussed this several times on the blog - but you have to weigh in everything and not just the dollar to see just how much one is spending. As noted in the Disney Math blog post a few days ago, breaking down costs can really put a Disney trip into perspective.

I recently got a few comments saying I must be really well off to be going to Disney so often. (The Disneyland trip will mark my 9th Disney trip, the Disney World trip next year will be #10.) This is a general misconception. I don't make big figures. I don't have a financially stable business. It is not cheap to live in Alaska - and I work a second job while fighting to keep my fledgling photography business afloat. I have more money going out than coming in most months.

So how is Disney possible when I am not Donald Trump? Well, for one, you have to remember some of my trips I didn't pay for. My first trip to Disneyland I was five - grandparents paid for it. Of the Disneyworld trips, however, I have paid for most (2004 being the only exception). Disneyland I've only paid for once. That's not to say I don't pitch in my own cash for special items and food at Disney, but the main chunk of change is taken care of by others. Family trips and gifts have made a lot of my travels possible over the years.

Secondly, I don't normally go during peak season. Peak season is just that, peak. It's when everyone goes. There's no incentive for Disney to give deep discounts to entice people to go. Summer and Christmas week are to be avoided if you want those special deals. I typically go to Disney World in January or November. Crowds are lower and we've gotten some killer deals in the past. Yes, things are closed for refurbishment, but the discounts make up for that in many ways.

Third, I live at home. There. I said it. If it weren't already well known, it is now. I moved back into my parents' house a year ago next month. It's easier to save up when I don't have rent, utilities, food, etc. I pitch in and buy things that the family wouldn't otherwise get, but really I'm not obligated to pay for things noted above. Some consider that a mooch, but it is what it is. My jobs are not consistent moneywise, and until I am financially more stable it makes more sense to live at home. Granted my dad is getting a little pushy, and I know things have to change, but ultimately this is how we roll for now.

I don't use every penny to plan disney trips, I do use my money wisely, but I have a Disney vacation fund. It's something I decided to have for myself. Others budget in a general vacation fund, which is what this savings originally was, but I keep going back to Disney. I normally go with others to keep costs down by sharing costs. I don't splurge and stay at the most expensive hotel. There are many ways to cut the costs of a Disney trip.

I've also been told instead of Disney I should use my money to help the poor. This suggests that all of the money used for vacation is ALL the money I have. Again, this is not the case. My Disney trips come out of their own savings. It's all extra. Not that I have anything to prove, but I do give to others. I help out in my own way. I do not, however have to sacrifice one for the other. It's caled a budget, and anyone can have one of those!

I like Disney, and I like to visit the parks. It's my "happy place." I don't feel guilty for having one. I believe before people start judging about how much someone ELSE gives to organizations and what not they should be looking at themselves and decide if they are giving "their all." It's not my business what you do with your money.

Yes, vacations are extravigant. And, yes, they are not a right of anyone. You can have more relaxation duing a staycation - and you'll be saving money, too! I've done that as well. My trips are not me bragging, showing off how much money I have (honestly I don't have much). It's something I'm excited about. Something I enjoy sharing. Not everyone in their life will get a Disney trip, that's not my fault nor is it my job to get them there.

Basically if you want a Disney trip - take one. Figure out how to save the money and go. There are tons of resources out there - in books and online - that can help you. I even give tips from time to time. But, please, don't email me or comment on the blog saying I need to give money to charity instead. I'll decide where my money goes, what groups to support, and whether or not I get to go on a dang vacation!

Yes. Yes, I am Crazy...

http://www.photographybyantonia.com

I frequent several message boards. Figure Skating - I'm a mod at one of the larger ones, Disney Travel, and until the other day pugs were all on my list. All come with their share of headaches. As a moderator those headaches are daily. The Disney board I am a member of is the easiest one, though people get heated on there about what resort is best and so forth (it's actually teh most sane MB I've ever been a part of). The pug boards I've been on are probably the most... difficult.

You see, there are dog owners and lovers that have very drastic differences in viewpoints on what their dog is and what dogs should be to all people. It's like the Michelle Kwan vs all of skating debates multiplied by a million in terms of hostility.

Rescue is the biggest deal.

Don't get me wrong not only do I support rescue, but all but one of the pugs in our family are rescues. Here in lies the problem. I do not have a dog I "rescued", I bought my dog. From a backyard breeder. Uneducated about such things.

I am to be shamed.

Or am I? I've learned a lot in the last 9 years, not only about the breed but about rescue and backyard breeders, puppy mills, etc. If and when I lose Yuka, I have no clue where I will go as the pug rescue here is rarely in need of adoptees, and I can't limit myself to a waiting list. Respectable breeders are expensive... but we'll cross that bridge when that comes. I'm hoping I still have many years with Yuka left.

But that brings me to the point that had me questioning my sanity. I've left a board in the last few days because I was just tired. I was tired of the bullying that is felt when my views on dogs weren't just questioned but were just "wrong" and therefore I am a horrible person.

Look, the fact of the matter is, I like to have a well trained dog. Yuka can do the basic sit, stay, etc, but what I really appreciate is that she goes outside to do her business 99% of the time. the 1% is only now that she's older and she doesn't always realize she's going (and thankfully someone is normally here most of the day so she can go out regularly). Pugs are trainable, but they're stubborn and set in their ways. Many of the posters that think I'm cruel have more lax of rules. They have areas in their house that they allow their dogs to mess in. This is completely unacceptable to me.

Which led to the reason that I have sworn off these boards from here on out. There was a "bash the selfish" type thread that suggested that those that want to rescue or have young dogs were crazy. I guess if I were to rescue a dog I would be in this crazy group. A younger dog is easier to retrain in the potty department. Considering that my first encounter with rescue was a four year old male pug that hadn't been potty trained and spent the next six years marking and pottying wherever he wanted in teh house. We did our best to keep it from happening but he did it. Sorry, again, I find it unacceptable. He was not a bad dog, he just was so used to not having to go outside that he didn't. He tried, he really did, but at the end of the day he found someplace discreet to go in.

I mentioned my reasons. Told I was wrong. And then got a PM from a member saying she pittied Yuka because when she got "old" I would consider her a throwaway dog and that the poor Anchorage rescue would get a sweet and loving old girl. I left, and I won't be back for this reason.

Yuka is MINE. She has been mine since the day I picked her up in Feb of 2003 when she was five weeks old. I freak if she's out of my sight, I have nightmares of losing her, and now that she's nearly nine years old it terrifies me to think she's become a senior pug and that means I only have a few years left. She's spunky, sassy, and a total brat, and I love her. There are tons of things in her training that if I'd known then what I know now I'd have done it differently. But, I wouldn't trade her for all the puppies in the world.

A dog is mine forever. It doesn't matter if I'm moving - a lot of decisions I made/make is based on if she can be with me or not. It doesn't matter if I were to get married and have kids - she's with me. She's not disposable.

What is disposable is the holier than thou attitude of uber rescues who bully their beliefs on others. I've seen them run off or even scare people from going that route (or even leaving their dogs in a rescue's care when there is no alternative for fear they will be lumped in with all the other irresponsibles... really, military families have enough crap to deal with, show some compassion).

So I'm done. I see that several folks from these boards have visited in the last few days, I'm normally not a fan of people airring their MB dirty laundry, but I don't want people to have the impression that my dog is disposable. Yuka is with me until the day one of us leaves this life for the next.

I've got the blahs...

I don't know if it's work - which is a job, not a passion... yet again - or the living situation drama, or the hermit lifestyle I've led these last six years or so... but I just have been in this set pattern of blahs. Aside from vacations to Disney... and the Iditarod... I really haven't had much to look forward to or get excited about. It's frustrating, but at the same time I'm just not enthusiastic about changing the situation either. It could be laziness, or maybe I just don't give a real care to change. I look around me and all of these people are so much better at what we do, have these amazing families - which yes I know have their own trials, tribulations and moments of discontentedness - and I can't help but feel like I'm still stuck where I was in 2003, the only difference is back then I had a whole world of possibilities... now, nothing. I'm in that rut, I've gone back to the one place I promised myself I wouldn't go. And I'm just. UGH!

I don't understand why I am this way. I don't understand why I can't take the bull by the horns. Why I can't seem to even make a sale in my job or with photography! I just feel very inept. I have Two Years before I'm old enough to attend a high school reunion but what will I have to show for it? I'll be the loser on the corner. And not even a good kind of loser.


So, yeah, I have the blahs. And I'm tired of people saying "look on the bright side" quoting a Bible verse or saying "it'll get better" and then tell me their lifestory. Because, honestly, I don't care. I don't want a comforting word. I don't want a "pick me up." I just want to vent, and when I vent I don't want someone to answer back. I just want to scream and hear the lonely echo. So let me do that.

and, yes, this was taken right outside my door. Gonna miss this sight.

And so this post isn't a total loss, let me add a photo.

Change in Plans

I was going to post my final thoughts on Nationals tonight, but have been side tracked thanks to Aaron's blog, "Axels, Loops, and Spins" report on Johnny Weir's latest turn in the media.

This time it's not about what he's said, or what team he supports other than the USA... or even his sexuality. Nope, it's what he's wearing.

In 2006 he got flack for wearing a CCCP jacket. This year, it's fur.

That's right; earthquakes in Haiti, children starving world wide, shoot the fable of global warming all seem to be on most people's top priorities...

but not for those oh so wonderful "Friends of Animals" let the humans starve and suffer, it's the animals that we need to worry about.

Let me preface by saying I am not a sadist who enjoys pulling wings off of butterflies just to see what happens. I appreciate all of God's creation, and do believe they have a purpose on this earth other than for humans to abuse. I don't, however, believe they are sacred to the point of worshipping them or not using them for food and for clothing purposes.

I am a hunter, a fisher, and I love watching the Iditarod. I believe some animals are bred for working, some are bred for food, and some are just around to be pretty. This, in part, comes from my upbringing in Alaska. While I lived in a main town in South Central Alaska, we still lived off the land. Hate to break it to the "bunny hugger" community, but being Vegan in Alaska is five million times harder than anywhere in mainstream America. We can't grow a lot of what we'd need to have a healthy diet, and veggies and fruits do NOT come cheap up here in ANY season. It's bad enough in the big communities, try living out in Rural (or Remote) Alaska where an apple is considered a delacacy most times of the year. We have to live off the land if we're going to survive... when times are hard we can't just go to the supermarket.


Johnny case, you say, is different. It's in the name of fashion. I would agree in that I don't believe in hunting animals just for sport. But if it serves a purpose it can be argued that it's right. No, I know, you say it can't, but it wound't be an argument if it were one sided, now, would it.

Johnny wears fur, I'd argue it's weird for other reasons (mainly his gender plays a part) but it works for the costume he's using. Where do we get off dictating what he wears. Seems to me if we can't tell a person how to live their life sexually, or what job to have, or how many kids to have.... what we wear shouldn't be a freedom that is taken away either. It's a minute problem in a world filled with many more.


And, no, this is not a rant from a "Johnny's Angel" or general fan of the man. I honestly can't say I like the guy. I prefer a different sort of skater. That's just me. But, of all the problems one could have with him, seriously? A tuft of fur is what churns your stomach.

Well, whatever floats your boat.