Use fishing as inspiration in home decor

Art comes in many forms. There is art available in the outdoors world, and it comes in many forms, as well. Of course, you can take or purchase photographs, paintings and drawings that are suitable for hanging in your home. Taxidermy certainly is art, whether fish, bird or game. I have seen some high-quality fish carvings. I think that some of the highest-quality hand-painted lures are works of art as well as some of Jim Grandt’s one-of-a-kind, custom-made fishing rods.

I have come across a new form of art, and it is in a form that I never have seen before. Al Capaccio makes incredible hand-crafted balsa wood fishing floats. His company is AC Floats. He sent me one, and I can assure you that this thing of beauty never will see duty in my tackle box. It is on display in my home.

The floats are beautifully shaped. They are well-painted, finished with a high-gloss lacquer, and adorned with feathers. There is a lot of work that goes into the making of an AC Float.

I asked Capaccio how he began making the floats by hand.

“I’m 59 years old and have worked in the architectural metals industry for 35 years,” Capaccio said. “I was the plant manager for a premier company that had to close due to the economy. This was the push that I needed. I always loved fishing – every aspect from fly to float and everything in between. So now I had the time to pursue my love for fishing. I started carving last September, and it’s been an exciting experience.

“Float fishing has always been one of my favorite forms of fishing. Raising three kids, it was a great way to get them started. Maybe we all got started that way. Over the years I have bought every kind of float that one can think of.”

To view some of Capaccio’s floats, visit AC Floats at www.etsy.com/shop/ACFloats.

I think you will be as surprised as I was when I discovered them. They deserve a look. Is just less than $20 a lot of money for a float? It certainly is. However, $20 certainly is a bargain for a true piece of art.

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I regularly receive notices about some offbeat things that amuse me. Let me know if these kinds of things are worth your interest.

A Washington State man and his wife recently were awakened one morning when a coyote chased their pet cat through a pet door and into their home. It was reported that before the couple was able to successfully move furniture around to guide the freaked-out coyote to leave the premises via open door, it left behind quite a mess.

A New Jersey man, a self-described animal lover, was hospitalized in serious condition after he was bitten by a timber rattlesnake. The man said that he tried to help the rattler cross a busy road by pinning it to the ground with a stick and then grabbing it. The snake struck as the man tried to grasp it behind the head.

A Michigan man was enjoying a getaway in his pop-up camper at a county park when his traveling companion was found to be missing. It seems the man’s pet 5-foot boa constrictor somehow slipped out of the camper unnoticed. Authorities have papered the park with signs warning of the snake’s presence.  

A Tennessee fisherman working the banks of Old Hickory Lake landed quite the surprise catch recently. It seems that the angler reeled in what authorities believe to be a rocket-propelled grenade. Local police, FBI and ATF secured the area and detonated the device.

Indiana authorities say that it is commonplace to see teenagers in fairly large numbers jump off a 30-feet bridge over Crystal Cove at Hamilton Lake in northern Indiana every weekend. Recently, a 17-year old leaped from the bridge and landed in a passing boat. The boy may be paralyzed for life, and the unsuspecting boater had three of his fingers severed in the accident.  

An Inverness man has had a dog killed and another injured by coyotes. The incidents occurred in his backyard while his child played nearby. The man has discovered that a city ordinance prohibits him from building a fence around his property. The town claims the ban allows the village to have “a more open and rural setting.”  

If you remember a while back, San Francisco banned cat declawing because of cruelty. Now, the SF Animal Control and Welfare Commission is recommending the outlawing of sales of goldfish, guppies and other tropical fish because they claim that, “Most fish in aquariums are either mass bred under inhumane conditions or taken from the wild, leading to devastation of tropical fish from places like Southeast Asia.”

Oh, by the way, puppies, kittens, hamsters and other small pets would be included in the ban. Maybe we could ship them some Inverness coyotes to take care of the kittens and puppies?

• Northwest Herald outdoors columnist Steve Sarley’s radio show, “The Outdoors Experience,” airs live at 5 a.m. Sundays on AM-560. He can be contacted at sarfishing@yahoo.com.