Too Much Equipment and other musings...(long)

On Mon, 04 Oct 2004 19:35:40 GMT, "Barry"
wrote:

I spent over fifty years fly fishing with my dad before he died about three
months ago. Both of us collected a lot of fly fishing gear over that period
of time. When I inherited my dad's equipment, I found my den looking like a
small tackle shop.

Snipped only for the sake of space

Enough nostalgia. What to do with so much equipment is where I started.
Maybe a fly fishing club or ??

Barry

I have some idea of what you are going through, both with your loss and
with the collection. Putting aside from my own collector's desire to
know what you have, might I suggest a coupla-three things:

1. Plan now, but don't dispose now, for two reasons: I have friends
that were never going to have kids, get married again, etc., and are now
happily on marriage 2 or 3 with a gaggle of great kids, and secondly,
you might find _your_ perfect way to dispose of your legacy tomorrow,
next week, or next year.

2. Figure out what you really wish for the gear. While selling it off
and donating the proceeds from the sale to charity might be the way to
go, why not consider using the proceeds to fund whatever "passion" your
daughter might have. While the passion for fishing might not be passed
on, she can at least know that her father's and grandfather's "passion"
helped contribute to hers - after all, at least IMO, it really isn't the
activity in which one finds their joy, but the joy found itself.

3. If you really must know that the gear be cared for but used and that
the proceeds from any potential sale are, for whatever reason, not
important, maybe donate it to something like the Catskills museum,
www.cffcm.org, or similar with the provision it be not merely displayed,
but used. Depending the gear, they might even be able to fundraise with
it (I have no idea what the gear is, whether the Catskills museum or
similar would be interested, etc. - it's just a suggestion/possibility).

Just some thoughts, and hope they help,
R

"Cyli" wrote in message
...
On Mon, 04 Oct 2004 19:35:40 GMT, "Barry"
wrote:

Nice stuff snipped)

Enough nostalgia. What to do with so much equipment is where I started.
Maybe a fly fishing club or ??

There were some good suggestions.

You might want to do some 'random acts of kindness.' Take along some
extra stuff each time you fish and hand it out as you see fit or leave
it in an obvious spot near the parking area with a note saying it's
for whoever finds it? For the latter you have to give up entirely on
control of the stuff and of ever being thanked for it.

Cyli
r.bc: vixen. Minnow goddess. Speaker to squirrels.
Often taunted by trout.

http://www.visi.com/~cyli

i don't know about that one-the cynical side of me imagines someone picking
it up for the purpose of selling it-
snake

"Willi & Sue" wrote in message
...

On Mon, 04 Oct 2004 19:35:40 GMT, "Barry"
wrote:


Enough nostalgia.

The nostalgia, made for a very nice read.

What to do with so much equipment is where I started.
Maybe a fly fishing club or ??

I think Tripper's suggestion of of selling it then donating the money is
a good idea.

that is a nice idea


People tend to value things they paid for more highly than
things that were given to them for free by a stranger.

Willi


maybe so, but there are exceptions to be found. i couldn't possibly value
the equipment frank church sent me any more if i had busted my budget to buy
it. there is a very sentimental attachment that comes with such a gift,
especially when a special friendship/ mentorship develops as a result. one
day my grandchildren will hear the story of how i "acquired" my first fly
rod.

larry, i would hold on to the stuff for a bit- don't be in any rush. you
will know when the right time, and the right person come along, and if/ when
that happens, it can be very rewarding for you both. if you are both lucky,
you may even share some time on the water.

snakefiddler

On Tue, 5 Oct 2004 19:37:07 -0400, "snakefiddler"
wrote:
(s
nipped)
i don't know about that one-the cynical side of me imagines someone picking
it up for the purpose of selling it-
snake

Maybe they need the money? I tend not to bother about that stuff
unless I'm getting rid of a live animal. Then I like a bit of money
so that I'm sure it's not some whacko or some medical experiment
thing. But if I hand out change on the street and some guy thanks me
(over half do) and says, "I won't use it for booze" (about 1/20th), I
say, "I don't care what you use it for. It's a gift. It's yours
now." and walk on. Sometimes leaving them staring blankly after me.

It was one of the reasons I put in the loss of control part of just
leaving it with a note. You'll never know what happens to it if you
do it that way. Some people can't handle that.

But you have to leave the note, because many of the nicest people
won't touch something that they think someone might come back for.

Cyli
r.bc: vixen. Minnow goddess. Speaker to squirrels.
Often taunted by trout.

http://www.visi.com/~cyli