. Had another interesting season, only killed one this year. Come to think of it, I maybe only killed one last season 
. Must be that I'm gettin' older, we always have had a big chest freezer in the shop full of venison at the end of each season. I've been on the same lease property for over 20 years and only hunted there 2 times this season, the other times it was always here on our farm. Sittin' in a little ladder stand over on the lease the other evening, I began to reminisce about past hunts over the years on that particular piece of property. (You must be gettin' old when you begin to think back over the years.) Sittin' on that little short ladder stand I wondered if this would be my last season to deer hunt? Then I thought about my 1st actual kill 50 years ago. For many years I could look at a rack and tell all about that particular hunt, how I came to kill that particular buck. My dear father-in-law taught me how to cut antlers using the front of the skull as a decorative display. I've only had one shoulder mount done over the years so he saved me a pile of money. Our living room has several racks mounted on some old barn wood that allow me to reminisce sittin' in my recliner. The mud/utility room has antlers around several of the walls and there are antlers tied in bunches, kinda' like grapes, on my shop's porch. I've always salvaged the antlers, no mater what size the buck was. I've given antlers away and I've made "rattling horns" out of them. I'd say Miss Joy and I have eaten our share of venison over the years. There were a few "dry" years when we first moved to the Panhandle. There were deer here but not like where we had moved from in Orange County. Beginning in the early 80's deer were becoming common place and they have not slowed down. As a kid we called ourselves "deer hunting" but we were just ramblin' in the woods not really knowing anything but, "There goes a deer!" We would see a white tail bouncin' away from us. My 1st kill was probably a fluke as a buddy and I were slowly walking a logging road next to a swamp, when I saw a buck lookin' at me from a palmetto patch. "Boom" went the 12 gauge double barrel, the deer dropped out of sight. Then I saw that he had jumped up and was gettin' away, "Boom" with the other barrel. Wading into the palmettos we found two 8 point bucks, the 1st was dead, the second was down and almost out. I told my buddy to finish him off. Here's a picture of us after we got the deer to his house:
We posted a picture of the buck I killed on New Years afternoon when we were trying out the "Rocky" knife that was sent around the country. Pulling the hide with the golf ball and lasso last month:
Thought I would share a few thoughts of 50 years of chasing Bambi.
Treefarmer
Made my day bro! I'll bag a slice or two for ya and include an Oak knot slice from here for comparison. That is one tough knot to cut! My band saw bogged cutting into it. Well worth it I'd say. I'll get some slices in the mail this weekend. In the mean time here is pic of the main pieces that I plan on making knife handles out of. Thanks Scott! 
