Sometimes, when I'm wound up real good and relaying one of my more "interestin" tales, I'm accused of exaggerating, augmenting and yes, even lying! True! Yes me, accused of lying about my hunting dogs, feats or my own hunting prowess. I know it's hard to believe.

  Now let me assure you that I am fully aware that any man who has more than one coon hound is bound to lie sooner or later. Well, I've never had more than one hound at a time, but over the years I have had several.

  My first real coon hound was a big ole redbone named Satch. He was what ya call a real good'n. This dog was so adept at not only running and treeing coons, but he would just a soon hunt all by himself. He was a big dog and could actually jump up against a tree trunk and shake those coons right on out of there. He didn't need me to slow things down.

  When I was a young man, there was a thriving market for coon hides. The fur buyers however insisted the hides be stretched and cured. I made myself some hide stretchers from stiff wire. They weren't fancy, just more or less a triangle with a rounded point. I made three sizes: small, larger and great big one.

  After only a few hunts and Satch watching me stretch a hide over those frames, he knew as soon as I brought the frames out, it was time to fetch a coon. He would eye the frames, sniff at the great big 'un then take off into the woods. Pretty soon, he'd be back with a big old coon and I'd skin it out and stretch the hide over that frame.

  Early on, Satch would occasionally bring in a coon too small to sell, but soon enough, he only caught the really big ones. Seems he took it as a challenge and really prided himself on the size of his quarry. This very satisfactory arrangement went on for many years. Yeah buddy, the money was rollin’ in. Coon hides back in those days fetched upwards of five, six, maybe even seven dollars! I was probably the wealthiest 12 year old in town! Visions of fancy pick-ups, Buck knives and huge kennels with concrete floors danced in my head.

  It was the life alright. I just pulled out the stretchers and good old reliable Satch would spring off into the woods and return with a big coon. I had it made in the shade!

  That all changed, however.

  One day, my mother bought a new ironing board and told me to take the old one out to the barn and stash it. Old Satch took one look at that big rounded triangle and took off for the woods and hasn't come home yet.

  That was in 1983.

  As you take to the woods this final month of deer season you may be asking yourself “why am going hunting? I already have the freezer full of venison so do I really need more meat? If I’m blessed to take a trophy buck what will I do with the meat?” The answer is donating your venison to someone less fortunate then yourself or to your local relief program.

  Most programs work like this. You harvest an animal, take it to a participating game processor and they will process it and distribute it to local hunger relief programs. Some places will do the processing free of charge, some of them split the cost with you and then others have you foot the entire bill yourself. The small cost you may incur by paying for the processing only helps to relieve funds for other worthwhile programs.

  There are several great organizations that spearhead such programs year round. One of them is Sportsmen Against Hunger. This program was started over in 1989 by members of Safari Club International and has grown every year since. A few years ago they launched an on-line database that features over 1300 affiliated game processors and hundreds of hunger relief organizations across the country. To find the nearest place to donate your meat, visit their web site at: www.safariclubfoundation.org/humanitarian/sah or call 800-377-5399.

  Another organization that has helped in this fight against hunger is Farmers and Hunters Feeding the Hungry. They operate in over half of the 50 states including a lot of the heavily hunted ones so it shouldn't be hard to find a participating processor. One great thing about FHFH is that if you donate all of your deer they will pay the cost of the processing. Not a bad way to go. Visit their web site at: www.fhfh.org or give them a call at 1-866-GET-FHFH for details.

  The beauty of these and other programs is that the donated meat stays in the local area helping out local families who need a little assistance. According to a recent study as many as 30 million Americans annually cannot get enough food to meet their dietary recommendations. There is a need worldwide for hunger relief so let’s pitch in and help those here at home fill their bellies with nature’s bounty. You'll be glad you did.

  Ever wonder if those batteries in the bottom of the junk drawer, your back pack or tackle box are good or bad? Here’s a quick method to determine if they are worth keeping or recycling.

  Hold the battery about an inch above a solid surface with the negative end down, the end without the “nub”, and drop it. A charged battery will land with a thud and then fall over or it might land upright. A discharged battery will bounce a couple of times and fall over. Try it with a known dead and charged battery so you’ll know what to look and listen for.

  This works with all sizes of cylindrical shaped alkaline batteries but not the square 9 volt size. The reason it works? It’s most likely because of the change in density of the electrolyte of a discharged battery.

  With all of the electronic devices used now days, the average American uses 30 to 50 disposable batteries per year. Please make sure to recycle them. Most hardware, appliance and lumber yards have recycling bins for your old batteries. Your local grocery store may also have one so drop off your dead batteries when you visit these places. Also a lot of communities have recycling days where you can drop off your old appliances, electronics and surprise, old batteries. So do your part to help out. It’s free and easy!