These could also mean you’re a little too excited, border line obsessed- maybe? Hey, I’m not here to judge, just shedding some light on the topic.
1) The group texts have started. The gang is getting everyone pumped up by sending photos of the birds in their area, talking new gear, you name it it’s in there and it’s getting everyone’s blood flowing.
2) Spring and summer time, are often times of lawn maintenance. Those tree and shrub trimmings are now stacked in a pile at the back of the yard waiting to be put on the duck blind to refresh last season’s handy work.
3) The phrases “Let’s go for a drive” or “I went the long way” now have underlying meanings. The hidden meanings being that the route of travel is to coincidentally go past the local ponds and fields to scout for ducks and geese. I mean, every waterfowler has done it, and if they say they haven’t- they're lying. It’s also a bonus if you slam on the brakes at the thought of maybe spotting a band!
4) You just ordered another dozen decoys. You “needed” another dozen. These are the new ones this season. Ignore the boxes from previous summer orders stacking up in the basement- the more the merrier, right?
5) Speaking of the basement, you now occasionally hear anything from a couple quacks, hail calls, and feeding chuckles instead of the normal basement sounds- like the water heater or laundry radiating from the bottom of the stairs. This can go one of two ways in the house: either it will irritate the significant other because it’s annoying or “too loud”, or like in our house, a calling session starts and then you are critiquing each other.
None of these things are bad by any means. Waterfowl hunting is more than a hobby- it’s a lifestyle. It grabs your heart and tugs at those strings, refusing to let go.