I have been out of the fishing loop for quite a while now. My old rod was
broken (snapped the tip off in the trunk during a move) and my reel simply
vanished. So, I went to the store and picked up a $30 Shakespeare rod (Ugly
Stick, med action) & spinning reel (Whatever came with it, don't remember at
the moment) combo.

Next was the tackle box. Well, I opened it up and everything was a
disgusting mess. The hooks were all rusted on everything, and most of my
good stuff was missing or in poor condition. I salvaged a few things (my
hula popper, my first hard lure, for instance. The skirt is in terrible
shape, but I can replace that). I tossed the mess of a box and went and
bought an $10 box.

I won't even comment on the condition of the plastic worms I had in there.
Yuck.

Essentially, I am starting all over again.

So, now I have a new rod & reel, and a new tackle box with a spool of 8lb.
test line, and nothing else. I plan on buying things like hooks, bobbers,
sinkers, and their like, but I am very uncertain what else I should think
about tossing into this thing. I will mainly be fishing on the local rivers
here in eastern NC, but I may be doing some lake stuff too. You never know.
The Tar River and Pamlico can be a bit murky depending on where you go, so I
need to be ready for murky and clean waters.

Any suggestions?

Oh, and I am not exclusively a bass fisher. Sometimes, I just like to toss
out a line with a bobber on it and see what bites whatever passes for bait
on that day. I have caught many a sunfish and their like on bread (didn't
like my sandwich that day), of all things.