outdoorsy question???

larry merlau

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Delton, Michigan
ok this is for the ones that can relate to a person who has spent many hours in a tree or after a quarry or the elmo of the water way.. now he's grown old and the offspring all have much differnt lifestyle and intersts,, the old trophys be it fin, feather or fur are gonna be left when he makes his last journey.. where do you go with them if the kids arent into it? this will probally only touch a few of you but if those that dont understand ,,but have friends that you feel would ,ask them there opinion.. i would like to hear there and your thoughts on this...
 
Larry, that is a good question. But, unfortunately, the answer is not one that will please you. Now I understand that every family is different, but generally what is left behind becomes fodder for the garage sale or auctioneer. My mother, in her last months, summed it up when she said "All my precious belongings will just become 'stuff'." Unfortunately, she was right. Much went into the garbage, a lot to the church for their fund raising and a few items to me and my sister. My son has no interest in my various avocations. My daughter not much more although she wants my guns. I'm sure my tools and collections will become fodder for the auctioneer at a tiny fraction of value. What non-turner even knows what a Barracuda 4 chuck is?
If you do not specify, item by item, who gets what, that is very likely the end result of your lifetimes memories in 'things'.
 
Frank speaks the truth.
I've had to go through both my dad's 'stuff' and the 'stuff' left behind by my MIL & FIL. Some of it came home with us and, except for some of my dad's tools, have not seen the light of day in a decade or more.
Larry - if you have no one who wants it when you're gone, give it to someone else now. Related or not, makes no difference. They get something they want, and you get their smile and gratitude. You can't take the furry stuff with you, but the smile and gratitude will follow you all the way home and live long after you can no longer enjoy them.

(PS. See my sig line:D)
 
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i had that in mind!

but when i had made a similair suggestion, the better half said we paid to have this or that done and your not gettin rid of it.. well its served its purpose and when i found out and got the realty check that my offspring had no interst:eek: well i figured it was time to do as I WANTED to do with it... but as of now its not went anywhere.. i was kinda hoping that there might be a place where it could still be appriciated even if they didnt get the stuff...
 
but when i had made a similair suggestion, the better half said we paid to have this or that done and your not gettin rid of it.. well its served its purpose and when i found out and got the realty check that my offspring had no interst:eek: well i figured it was time to do as I WANTED to do with it... but as of now its not went anywhere.. i was kinda hoping that there might be a place where it could still be appriciated even if they didnt get the stuff...
Well, I heard some of the same, but I reminded her that I plan to go home before she does and she's gonna be stuck getting rid of it.:rofl::rofl:
 
The problem is that way of thinking is so short sighted. It may be true that your children may not want your guns, your collectibles or your shop tools, but perhaps your grandchildren might ??? In fact more then likely someone in your family will enjoy those things and will want to have "grand dad's things" or whatever, down the road.

When my Grandfather was giving away all his tools, I took his Canedy Otto drill press. A beast of a until that was from 1909. I took it because I was raised when you take something, you take all of it and then discard what you don't want later. Anyway I tossed the drill press out into the weeds. Only after he died 2 years later did I retrieve it and rebuild just because he would have liked that.

The point here is, you just never know. Once you sell/give away something you never get it back.
 
well travis,, i dont have to worry about grand kids, only one that will have that title is a girl and is city threw and threw... so the tools and the critters or other goodies have no value to my offspring ..i made a major mistake and they went as far from me as they could.. one became a silly vegatarin and the they both are in the one of the biggest citys in our state,, they were taught and raised the country life and the country way.. and can survive if they used what i taught them,, but there intersts arent where i had hoped in my plans.:(
 
Good question Larry.

My brother and I will probably draw straws for my dad's 10' plus polar bear rug:D Seriously, Dad has already doled out most of his trophies and guns (to his two boys and his grandkids).

I donated over 20 mounts when I moved out of Alaska. Safari Club International has a "Sensory Safari" program where folks can touch the mounts. Many schools love to have hides/skulls/antlers/horns for their science classes. There are also brokerage companies that buy and sell hunting trophies (where legal).

My stuff will go to my girls, schools, museums, or "for sale". But I hope I get blessed with another 30 or so years to use it.:thumb:
 
Not yet.

What you ingrain in children never leaves them. They would not be the first kids that came back from the city realizing that lifestyle is only based on someones elses expectation of what "sucess" is.

In today's economy, where success, value and net worth is being re-evaluated as never before, you just never know. I don't know your children granted, but hold onto those things my friend, you just never know.

Here in Maine many kids leave, but ultimately they come back to raise their kids. Its just the kind of place you want your children raised. Perhaps in due time your kids will do likewise. :dunno:
 
Hey Larry
This is a huge dilema. My Dad now 91 told me at the age of about 50 that all his tools would be left to me. He and I were lucky in that I shared the interest in the tools. He was not that much of a woodworker more of a diy guy, but he had some tools and set of draws that were handed down from my grandfather.( see the picture below of my grandfathers tool draws( refurbished by me), with hand made dados he had no power tools) Time came for me to leave SA and move to Canada and the old guy ( he was about 82 at the time) said you had better come and take what you wish before you go. i did this and can tell you it was one of the saddest days of my life. I am not embaressed to say I cried like a baby doing it. It was one thing to talk about it but another to do it. To a man that has worked with his tools, it was like putting him in a box. It was like closing his life. He did not see it this way but I did. I realized then he was getting on and that chapter of life ( the two of us working together ) was over. In cowboy terms it was like hanging up the rope or guns whichever you prefer.

He also had a great deal of Naval memorabilia that he had collected over the years, I did not serve in his navy and it had little meaning to me. When he recently moved out of his house into a home for the aged he had great deal of difficulty finding a home for the memorabilia. It was history the way he had put together newspaper clippings and models of warships etc to tell his story of the war. Eventually and old admiral came and took it and promised to create a room in his museum devoted to the memorabilia.

But I can tell you it is tough very tough to do.

So I agree with the guys here, in some respects if there is anyone that is interested ( a youngster in the neigborhood) that has shown interest and would value the objects, yes give them to him, if you have the means, you might want to think about storage to do what Travis did and give it to your grandchildren but in time to come when they grow old enough to be appreciative of the items.

I would say the saddest thing is when you see these posts on Craiglist etc by a wife of the departeds tools. Yup I know they are only hunks of metal but they were close friends at one time.

Best of luck. By the way you might find some conservation authority or a company like Bass Pro might be interested in fury heads.
 

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Good question Larry.

My brother and I will probably draw straws for my dad's 10' plus polar bear rug:D Seriously, Dad has already doled out most of his trophies and guns (to his two boys and his grandkids).

I donated over 20 mounts when I moved out of Alaska. Safari Club International has a "Sensory Safari" program where folks can touch the mounts. Many schools love to have hides/skulls/antlers/horns for their science classes. There are also brokerage companies that buy and sell hunting trophies (where legal).

My stuff will go to my girls, schools, museums, or "for sale". But I hope I get blessed with another 30 or so years to use it.:thumb:

well barry i dont have B&C's just some ordinary stuff.. so saafari club wont be intersted but you have given me some ideas as have others...at least i stopped dropin coins into the dark hole a fews years ago:) just diverted it into tools:)
 
larry, I believe that children deciding what they want and not necessarily what parents believe are best, or hope for, proves the children were raised correctly. To be self thinking strong minded determined adults.

If noone wants your things, sell them off if you can when the time comes you feel you dont need or want them, and go have a good time wherever you fancy.Whatever you enjoy doing. Life is way too short, and if you have the means, I believe in enjoying it all as much as you can.
We get one shot,
 
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If I am understanding this right, you are wondering where your hunting mounts/memories will go.....


You never know what the future holds, your girls may not want them, but other family members may.....how about that special nephew of yours that spends as many hours (and is more succesful than you :rofl:).....perhaps he'd like some memories of hunts past with Uncle Grizz.....maybe in later years those girls of yours may just want a keepsake of what ole dad enjoyed so much.

You've been in my house and seen my trophy bucks.....the one that my grandpa shot, nobody wanted it for the longest time.....sat in grandmas attic, then my dads and then my brothers before we finally realized it was what we had from grandpa.....now when I am done with it, along with the one I shot, it will stay in the family....passed down.

Maybe you could use them antlers in such a way they would find appealing....maybe a lamp like Cabelas sells, or a chandelier....find a use for them in some way that your girls may want to hang onto.

If all else fails.....make antler pens, just go out and buy that lathe you have wanted so badly.......:rofl:...everybody needs pens....heck I'll take one:D

Now if it is guns you are wanting to get rid of.....I have a large gunsafe that has a bit of room left.:wave:
 
Sell it all spend the cash now. I don't have any kids but there are nephews that have their eyes on some of my stuff.

Only ones getting anything. And he gets any farm stuff I have. The rest gets sold off and I'm taking the wife vacationing!!!
 
Tan me hide when I'm dead, Fred. Tan me hide when I'm dead!
So we tanned his hide when he died Clyde and that's it hanging on the shed!

Don't know why but reading these posts just brought that to the surface.
 
My granddad left behind a nice mule deer head mount when he died, and none of his kids or grandkids were interested in it. My mom ended up donating it to the NM Fish and Game Department, and they were happy to have it. I got the bulk of his tools.

My dad has been in the process of passing down his guns for several years, including some that were my granddad's and grandmother's. (I've already got several, and will be picking up some more on my next trip back home.) The guns are being spread out among me, my sister's husband, and her three boys.

Since I have no kids (that I know about), when I go, the only potential recipients of my tools and other things will be my nephews. LOML has promised me she's going to die first, because she doesn't want to have to deal with it all.
 
Man, that's a gut shot. :D :rofl:

I was being nice and making it a point not to mention the stuffed possums and squirrels. :p

Hey don't laugh Vaughn, I thought about dressing my sheep in blaze orange so those cidiot hunters do not mistake one of my sheep for one of those "wooly albino deer", and yes occasionally doe's do have antlers.
 
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