Birds, snakes and fish at Outdoor Fools Day April 7
Special to The Monitor
ATHENS–The Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center (TFFC) is holding its annual Outdoor Fools Day from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Saturday, April 7.
All activities are free with regular paid admission to the center. Adults are $5.50, seniors $4.50 and children 4 to 12 are $3.50.
The event is held to showcase outdoor recreation opportunities in East Texas such as camping, fishing and dutch oven cooking while demonstrating skills that make them more enjoyable.
Among the variety of activities include:
• The Blackland Prairie Raptor Center representatives who will display various birds of prey, explain their place in the ecosystem and why it is important to protect them.
The birds will be displaying during the noon presentation in the Hart-Morris Conservation center and throughout the grounds at other times.
• Wildlife on the Move presents “The Unhuggables” show, featuring a variety of animals and fun facts.
Presenter Eric Brittingham delivers a rapid-fire presentation about wildlife habitats and conservation. He’ll also debunk the myth that snakes are slimy by allowing guests to touch a 12-foot python following the 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. presentations.
Many of the Wildlife on the Move creatures will also be on display at various times throughout the day.
• The Texas Parks and Wildlife Departments Coastal Fisheries Division will present a saltwater touch tank filled with harmless creatures. Caution, they may not seem harmless just by looking at them.
• The Lone Star Bowhunters Association and Dutch Oven Cookers will display life-size replicas of deer, hogs and turkeys and serve homemade goodies cooked on coals and served up warm.
• The Texas Trackers will be at the Wetlands Trail, to demonstrate how a dog’s sensitive sense of smell allows it to follow the trail of a wounded animal. Please leave pets at home as they are not allowed on the fisheries property.
• TFFC offers hunter education courses and instructors will be present to answer questions.
• Fishing is always free at TFFC, a license is not necessary and bait and tackle are always furnished. Guests may bring an ice chest for transporting their catch.
Visitors are welcome to bring personal fishing gear, but only single hooks with the barb mashed down are allowed.
Individuals may harvest and keep up to five trout for free. Go to the Anglers Pavilion for check in, orientation prior to fishing and reporting catches before exiting the park.
Other exhibits will include animal track identification, fly-fishing and kayaking instruction and hunter education.
The Texas Freshwater Fisheries Center is located at 5550 FM. 2495, in Athens, 75 miles southeast of Dallas.
A short video of last years highlights can be viewed at www.facebook.com/pages/Texas-Freshwater-Fisheries-Center/128462433868391.
For information or directions, call (903) 676-2277 or go to www.tpwd.state.tx.us/tffc. 

 

Storage Warz Stuff offers an unusual shopping experience
By Barbara Gartman
Monitor Staff Writer
GUN BARREL CITY–Garage and yard sale enthusiasts, along with those hunting for something to take to an antique show and your ordinary bargain hunter will really enjoy shopping at the fairly new business called Storage Warz Stuff.
Owner Glenda Morris describes her business as “unique” because the merchandise is different everyday.
“Every time you come in you will see different stuff,” Morris said.
She opened her storage sales store March 1.
The new store is located at 123 Dunaway Ave. in Gun Barrel City, between the Family Dollar store and Lakeway Chiropractic Clinic.
Store hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and from noon to 5 p.m. on Sunday.
It is across the street from where she once operated Healthy Bodies and Oils. She still offers the toxin-free soaps, shampoos and lotions, but now at her new location, along with health-giving essential oils.
Her son, Justin, and his friend, Roy, attend the auctions and bring in the contents they have bought, keeping the merchandise constantly rotating, she explained.
“The first day after placing an ad in the paper, customers were coming in and we had just returned from a storage auction the night before,” Morris said.
“It was a sight to see as our customers were having to dig through the containers to see what we had,” she added.
“The store was just packed with the merchandise but the customers didn’t seem to mind,” Morris explained.
“I think they enjoyed it and I reminded them that one never knows what they might find,” she said.
Prices are always negotiable, she added.
“I always want to have the best prices for my customers, so if there is something in the store you want, just give me a price and we’ll talk about it,” Morris said.
Keeping the merchandise “new” is pretty simple, she said.
“What does not sell after a short period of time will be taken to an auction. That way we can keep putting different stuff in our store,” Morris explained.
Going into the storage sale business was neither a coincidence nor the result of a long-term planned project.
“I asked the Lord to give me a new business to do and he told me to go into storage auctions,” she recalled.
“The next morning my son (Justin) called and said, ‘Mom, guess what the Lord told me to do? The Lord said to buy storages.’ I was amazed and I told him to move down here as soon as possible,” she said.
Justin and Roy very recently moved to the area from Denison.
Justin drove a truck for Werner and Roy was a Dallas paramedic, she explained.
“My dream is for the business to grow so much that we have to have a much bigger warehouse for the contents,” she said.
Buying storage merchandise can sometimes be either exciting or maybe gross, depending on what is in the containers.
As an example, Morris recounted this incident:
A man was in the same type of business and purchased a storage consignment for only $15 but there were rats in it.
When asked why he bought the lot, the man answered he couldn’t lose at just $15, and he could just kick the rats out.
Her hopes are pinned to the idea that one man’s garbage is another man’s treasure.
For information, call (903) 880-5636 or stop by for a brief treasure hunt of your own.

 

Come Adopt Us At The Humane Society of Cedar Creek Lake

We have many animals at the Humane Society of Cedar Creek Lake in Seven Points in dire need of a good home. Please call or stop by the Humane Society today and rescue one of these forgotten animals. The Humane Society of Cedar Creek Lake is located on 10220 County Road 2403 in Seven Points. For more information, please call (903) 432-3422 after 11 a.m. We are closed on Wednesday.

For further information visit our website at petfinder.com