I think I have a case of toy envy

I caught myself thinking about all the goodies I wish I could afford the other day. There’s a lot of stuff out there that would be great to have for hunting and fishing, but only so much money to throw at it.

I was waiting for my kids to clean up their toys the other day, and my mind started drifting to the toys I’d like to have myself. As Colby was puttering toward the toy chest with his plastic four-wheeler, I thought about the things I could do with one that’s a fair bit bigger.

Of course, an ATV is much handier if you have a trailer to pull it around on. That got me thinking about the living-quarters horse trailer my wife wants for barrel racing. Those things have a place for horses in the back, a gooseneck hitch up front, and a really nice camper in the middle.

That would be great, but it’d also be good to have a camper that’s just a camper. The living-quarters horse trailers are pretty long, and it’d be hard to get one into a lot of the places I like to go. A nice little 18-foot bumper-pull camper would be about perfect.

A boat would be handy, too. Maybe a few of ‘em. A sweet little drift boat with a small outboard for floating the rivers, and possibly a bigger bass boat for puttering around on the reservoirs. There are walleye in those lakes you need a boat to get to, and I’ve been left out of that game for most of my life.

I have a wish list that stretches longer than my paychecks, that’s for sure. I suppose that’s just part of being an outdoors enthusiast. I enjoy getting outside and doing things under my own power most of the time, but once in a while, it’d be nice to have the option of using a machine to take some of the work out of it. And sleeping in a tent is my idea of heaven, but every so often, I’d like to have a roof over my head and a bed under my back that are a little more comfortable.

It’s not all going to come at once. I’ll have to get what I can when I can. I’m saving my pennies now. Maybe someday I’ll have as many toys as my kids do.